You might remember the charming Hall family who won our Unfrozen Winner contest earlier this year. Check out their adorable snowman submission!
Service Experts Heating & Air Conditioning sent the family on a Disney Cruise and covered airfare for four. Mom and Dad (Rebecca and Bradley) took their two oldest children, Korbin and Brooke, on their Disney Cruise during mid-summer. This was Korbin and Brooke’s first cruise and Rebecca and Bradley had not been on a cruise in nearly 10 years.
“I can’t begin to tell you all the fun we had and how truly amazing the whole experience was,” wrote Rebecca. “It was a getaway we could have never done on our own. Disney does cruising right!”
The Hall family was kind enough to give us their itinerary and some photos from their incredible trip. If you’re interested in taking a Disney Cruise, or just looking to see what it’s all about, read on to see the highlights from the Hall’s experience.
Monday
We were on the water for 2 days (Saturday and Sunday) and then docked in Tortola, British Virgin Islands. We had reservations for a Catamaran and went out with four different families for the day. It was my kids’ first time snorkeling and they were in heaven. We got to see turtles and stingrays – it was probably the coolest experience of the whole trip!
Tuesday
We sailed from Tortola to St. Thomas in the American Virgin Islands, where we got to snorkel even more, swam, and laid out on the beach. The water was actually that turquoise blue that they show on TV – truly perfect.
Thursday
We were on the ship all day Wednesday and then ported at Castaway Cay, Disney’s Cruise Line Guest-Only Island. The water was incredibly blue and had amazing visibility below, so of course that meant more snorkeling! They had hidden Mickey Mouses you could hunt for underwater, which made up for not having as many fish. They also had an 18 and older beach which we enjoyed while the kids played with other kids. Castaway Cay had people everywhere to watch the kids so we (Rebecca and Bradley) laid out and had a daiquiri. It was basically a floating Disneyland!
Aboard
It gives me goosebumps reminiscing about everything on the cruise ship – it was all so fun and amazing! They have a “Midship Detective Agency” where you choose the mystery you want to solve and they give you a card so you can keep track of all your clues. When you hold the card up to a painting, it comes alive – it talks to the group, tells you about the mystery you are trying to solve, and gives you hints and directions. One mystery went on for two hours because we were running all over the ship.
They are continually playing first-run movies out near the pool so we got to enjoy Jungle Book. We also got to go on the Aqua Duct, which is a large slide that takes you up and down and swings you out across the boat!
All of us went Goofy Golfing and they also have games like basketball, fooseball, and a Tween Club called Edge with activities like scavenger hunts and more.
It’s really easy to meet characters on the ship – you only have to wait a few minutes versus 30 or 40 at Disneyland. We saw about two each day, and one day we met five in a row! They also have several versions of the characters, including Captain Mickey, Traditional Mickey, etc.
The stateroom was incredible! We had an ocean view room with a large porthole and window seat. Our room was a really great size and all four of us were comfy and never felt smushed.
Dining
You rotate through three restaurants. Enchanted Garden has neat flower lights on the ceiling that open and close and the colors change on the ceiling during your meal and Royal Court was very elegant and reminded me of Cinderella. The food is very gourmet and they have a good medley. My son tried everything, even the escargot at the Royal Court. (He thought it tasted like dirt!)
Animators Palette is animation-themed and they leave markers on your table so you can sketch a figure. They offer instructions on how to draw a figure, then they pick up the drawings and at the very end of dinner, they animate your drawings on the wall. You have no idea it’s coming! They choreograph them to music and put them in Disney clips. Our daughter is our artist so she worked really hard on hers and was so excited – the rest of us weren’t quite as polished
“Our family can’t thank Service Experts enough for this amazing vacation,” Rebecca wrote after they returned home. “I get emotional when I think about the whole experience. Submitting our picture to a contest I never thought would go anywhere, finding out we were a finalist, the nail-biting voting round, the big win, reading about and picking which cruise, the excitement of going and finally experiencing an amazing adventure. It was such an amazing time living it all. Thank you, thank you!”
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