4th of July on the Disney Dream

Family portraits before dinner

It has been our pleasure and privileged to sail on Disney Cruise Line ships on various holidays including Christmas and New Years.(Links to read about those trips at bottom of post.) Our 8th Disney Cruise sailed over the 4th of July holiday.  The 5-night Bahamian itinerary on the Disney Dream had 4th of July, the last day of our sailing, as an "at sea" day.

Initially, we were surprised by that as Disney Cruise Line likes to make the last full day of a cruise a stop at Castaway Cay, if possible.  After doing some research, we discovered that guests on board the Disney Fantasy were spending 4th of July at Castaway Cay.

So, our day at sea began with room service breakfast being delivered to our room.  Guests can order breakfast the night before and select a specific time frame of 30 minutes for it to be delivered.  We like to call this breakfast part one as it included fresh fruit, coffee, toast, muffins, juice, and cold cereal and hits the spot while we get showered and dressed.

We checked the Personal Navigator and learned that many characters were going to be greeting guests in the patriotic attire.

Pluto was milling in the hallway on Deck 5 as we walked to the Lobby Atrium and he stopped to allow us to take a photo.

Wood was greeting guests in the area just off the Lobby Atrium on Deck 3 featuring his own character back drop.  Know that most characters on the Disney ships sign autographs.

After meeting Woody, our family headed to Cabanas for "breakfast part 2". And, then headed off to meet more Disney characters!

Captain Thor was greeting guests in White Caps, one of the shops on Deck 3.
A Captain's Signing is typically scheduled on an "at sea" day.

The photos taken on board by ship's photographers on the 4th of July included special borders.

After meeting lots of characters, our family split up.  The boy wanted to spend time in the teen club, Vibe.  The husband and I had a special tasting scheduled for the afternoon.  We agreed to meet at a certain time to get ready for dinner.

The husband and I got wind of a special tasting that wasn't showing up in the Personal Navigator and had been requested by guests who had experienced it on another cruise.  Chocolates and Liquor Tasting and it was to be held in Pink, the champagne bar located in The District on Deck 4 Aft.  This area is for all ages during the day and offers different activities.  After 9:00 pm, this area becomes adults only.

Note:  If you are on the Disney Dream in this area, be sure to check out the bathrooms.  They are incredible!

Here we are at Pink, ready for our tasting.  Pink is designed to make guests feel like they are inside a champagne bottle.  It is plush and whimsical.  The elephants in Fantasia can be found dancing in the bubbles on the walls.

The last day of any cruise offers one last opportunity to meet characters.  We have seen it under different titles and is typically in the Lobby Atrium and is sometimes offered twice--in the late afternoon before dinner, and again around 10:30 or so.  We hit the afternoon session with our hard target of Chip and Dale.  They were the only characters we hadn't seen during the cruise.

The family reconvened in our stateroom at the designated time and we changed clothes for dinner.  In addition to taking some family portraits, like the one at the beginning of this post and another one below, we were able to say hello to Daisy Duck.

Our dinner was in Royal Palace and in addition to the regular menu, there was an opportunity to order a traditional 4th of July meal that included BBQ ribs, corn on the cob, and friend chicken.  The boy decided that was what he wanted for dinner.

When we boarded the Disney Dream, there was a rumor buzzing from the very first day that our cruise would have two sets of fireworks--Pirate Night and 4th of July.  Never before had a ship done that--it can be a fire hazard to hold that much flammable material.  And, having sailed on other holidays, we know that Disney Cruise Line has not had fireworks on Pirate Night to save them for New Year's Eve for example.

Turns out the rumor was true!  For the first time ever, The Disney Dream had fireworks for its guests on the 4th of July and we were there for the experience.

Click here to read about sailing on a Disney Cruise during Christmas.

Here's how we  spent Christmas Eve on the Disney Dream.

New Year's Eve on the Disney Fantasy

More about a New Year's Eve Cruise on the Disney Fantasy