Disney Cruise Line Tips and Tricks (including a few packing tips)

These are in no particular order. The tips and tricks listed below were gathered from both personal and client experiences with Disney Cruise Line over the years. If you have a tip for me to add after your cruise, I’d love to hear it!

1. Charging towers/stations are not allowed. Though I highly recommend them for Disney World and Disneyland, they’re a no on Disney Cruise Line so take lots of cords. If you’re doing a combo trip and you need to take a tower/station on a ship because you don’t have anywhere else to put it, they will remove it from your luggage and you can pick it back up on disembarkation day.

2. Most brands of sound machine (definitely Hatch) are allowed after being inspected. They will remove it from your luggage and leave a note saying it’s being inspected then return it to you later in the evening on the first day of your cruise. Sound machines are very helpful when a whole family is sleeping in the same room and they’re also helpful for preventing any hall noise from bothering you.

3. They’re going to give you a “Key to the World" card for every person in your party and it’s VERY important. Required for most things and expensive to replace. Take lanyards for the cards or you can also use magicband+ or disneyband+. If you choose to use magicband+ or disneyband+, make sure you charge them the night before you board your cruise. The person who checks you in at the port will activate your bands for use on your sailing so they must be charged at that point to use them on board. If you have a large family/group, keep in mind that outlets cannot be increased by charging stations or towers so it can be hard to charge all devices and everyone’s magicband+ or disneyband+ every night.

4. There’s not a lot of space in the staterooms or the ship hallways or elevators for a big stroller but an umbrella stroller would be helpful for littles both on and off the ship. I even wished for one for my four year old once when he fell asleep at Castaway Cay. Double strollers are too wide. It would be better to take two umbrella strollers, if needed. Or an ergo or similar baby carrier.

5. Don’t pack beach towels. They are available to you on the pool deck, on Disney’s private islands (Castaway Cay and Lookout Cay at Lighthouse Point), and at the check-in for your port adventure if you’ve booked something that includes water activities.

6. Speaking of towels, YES, you can take them to your room from the pool deck.

7. And still sort of staying on the subject of towels, the towels on the pool deck are often changed out for blankets at night. If you’re on the pool deck in the evening watching something on Funnel Vision and you want a blanket, check the towel locations! I’ve heard this isn’t always the case but it does usually happen.

8. If your cruise goes to a beach type location or you plan to go to the pool on the ship, take a beach bag. If you’re planning some other type of port adventure, you may consider taking a backpack.

9. The electricity in the staterooms only works when there is a card placed in the slot by the door. Disney will tell you to put your Key to the World card there but actually, ANY credit card size/style card will work. I personally don’t recommend using your Key to the World card because the more you mess with it, the more likely you are to lose it or end up somewhere without it. Here’s my advice-Take an old gift card or something similar to put in the slot by the door for electricity. Leave it there the whole trip.

10. While I think you should rest on a cruise and not overdo it, I do strongly recommend you go to all live shows. Anything listed as a “signature event” and all live shows in the Walt Disney Theater are worth your time!

11. You don’t have to purchase wifi to enjoy the cruise. The complimentary wifi on board will only allow you access to the DCL app but that’s technically all you need. If you do want to purchase wifi but you don’t want to spend a ton of money on it, here’s a tip- you can buy one wifi package (For the length of the cruise or 24 hours at a time) and share it between devices. When you try to sign in with the second device, it will ask you if you want to kick out the first device and you just say yes. You can’t use it on multiple devices at the same time (unless you pay extra) but you can use multiple devices with the same payment if you’re only using one device at a time.

12. If anyone in your party has food allergies or dietary restrictions, order all that person’s food for the next day at dinner each night. This includes the ability to order food from the restaurants on the pool deck, room service, and on Disney’s private islands. You can also preorder for the kids for the next night’s dinner so their food will come faster. This is particularly helpful if your kids want to leave dinner early to go to the kids club.

13. For the self serve ice cream on the ship, make sure you check all the machines every day because the flavors change. There will always be chocolate and vanilla but the other flavors change each day. If you need a gluten free cone, they are available upon request. They will also let you read the ingredients in the cones and in the ice cream mix, if needed.

14. If you plan to go shopping on the ship, shop on the first night. Cruise ships can’t restock so when it’s gone, it’s gone. Many things will be sold out by the last night of the sailing. Also, shops aren’t open on disembarkation morning so don’t expect to shop then.

15. Take cash if you want to give additional gratuities (in addition to what you pre-paid).

16. On pirate night, tons of people dress up. Even if you don’t pack to dress up, they will put pirate night bandanas in your stateroom so you may decide to join the fun at the last minute. Stay up late for the fireworks, if you can! As long as you’re on the pool deck or the deck above, you do not have to be close to the stage to enjoy the fireworks. They are shot to the side of the boat so any spot in the open air part of the pool deck is a good spot. Everyone acts like they need to squish in by the stage but don’t fall for it! ha

17. If you’re on the Dream or the Fantasy, laundry rooms alternate aft/forward on each floor (well… most floors) of the ship so depending on your location, it may be faster to go down/up a floor than to walk to the opposite end of the ship. The Wish, Treasure, and Destiny only have one larger laundry room on Deck 8, midship. Magic and Wonder each have three laundry rooms total located on decks 2, 6, and 7.

18. Disney Cruise Line’s famous (and delicious) Mickey churro waffles are usually served the last full day in the main breakfast buffet but ask your dinner server to make sure you don’t miss them. You can find them in Cabanas (Magic, Wonder, Dream, Fantasy) or Marceline Market (Wish, Treasure, Destiny). You can preorder an allergy friendly version the night before at dinner, if needed.

19. Any purchases made on a Disney owned island (Castaway Cay and Lookout Cay at Lighthouse Point) must be charged to your room. They do not take other forms of payment.

20. If you plan to pay off your onboard account in cash and that’s the option you select during online check-in, they will shut off your ability to purchase once your onboard account reaches $300 on most cruises. They sometimes allow larger amounts on longer cruises. You’ll just have to pay that down to zero at guest services to have your onboard account reactivated. But don’t get off the ship on a Disney owned island with $250 already charged to your onboard account and expect to go shopping. ha! If you put a credit or debit card on your account, this does not apply to you.

21. Key to the World cards for each member of the party (even babies) are required to exit and re-enter the ship. Adults should also take government issued photo ID. If you lose your key to the world card and need a replacement, it’s $25 per card.

22. Popcorn and drinks in the theater are an extra fee. However, you’re allowed to take food and drink from other parts of the ship into the theater. If you want to get a complimentary soft drink/coffee/tea from the pool deck and take it to the theater with you, that’s totally fine. Don’t expect to take an ice cream cone or a full hot dinner into the theater (sometimes allowed and sometimes not) but if you want to take some packaged snacks or something, that’s totally fine.

23. Missing kids are taken to the kids club (ask my youngest son how I know). If you lose a child and ask for help, they will ask you to start by checking there. Make sure you’re familiar with the location even if your kids don’t plan to spend time there so you can get there quickly in the event you get separated from your child.

24. There are complimentary life jackets, in all sizes, available on the pool deck and on Disney’s private islands.

25. When you sign into the ship’s wifi after boarding, your Disney Navigator app will completely change to an invaluable tool you’ll need on the ship. You can scroll all the activities offered each day and if you “heart” something, it will be added to the “my plans” section of your app. There is also a section of the app where you can communicate with other guests on the ship. If you have an old cell phone or device that you want to take for your kids to connect to the app for communication purposes, they will work. Even if the device doesn’t have internet or active cellular.

26. When sharing a stateroom with kids who you might not want to wake at night or early in the morning, flashlights or headlamps are a helpful tool for finding things without turning the lights on in the room. And on the subject of light, you may want to take a nightlight if that’s something your kids are used to having.

27. Magnetic hooks are helpful to dry clothing items outside the shower. They will work on all the walls/ceilings in the stateroom. There are clotheslines in the showers but it’s hard to use those for drying and use them for showering at the same time. ha For clothing/storage type situations, you may also want a pop up laundry hamper and an over the door shoe organizer.

28. Don’t be early or late to the Muster drill. Right on time is your best bet. It’s a lot of waiting around and standing very close to strangers so you’ll want to get there just a few minutes before the required time. You also don’t want to be late because the crowd will heckle you! Ha. Take headphones for kids or adults who are sensitive to loud noises.

29. I recommend taking medicine for seasickness every day instead of waiting to get seasick and then trying to handle it. You never know when you’re going to hit a rough patch of ocean and it’s better to be prepared. My dad is a pharmacist and here are the meds he recommended for my family: For children ages 2-12- chewable dramamine. It does cause drowsiness so keep that in mind when choosing to give it. We give it to our kids in the evenings on a cruise. For adults and children over 12: Meclizine. It’s a non-drowsy dramamine. Evan and I take this every night of a cruise- including the night before we board. We also pack ginger chews/candies for immediate relief in rough waters, Tylenol, Advil, Zofran, and Imodium. I also have clients who use sea bands or patches. Do what works for you but be prepared to do something.

30. If the elevator is taking a long time, push the opposite arrow of the direction you’re trying to go. For example. if everyone is trying to take the elevator up to the pool deck for pirate night, you can catch a down elevator much faster than an up elevator. You may have to ride down a few floors before going back up but it still saves time.

31. Breakfast room service- you will find a menu/order form in your room. Fill that out and hang it on your stateroom door before 3am (the time is earlier on some ships/saillings so make sure you read the time on the menu in your stateroom) and a breakfast delivery can be your alarm in the morning! Breakfast room service has way fewer options than the breakfast buffet or table service breakfast but it’s fast and convenient- especially for a day when you’re trying to get somewhere early- like a port day. If you need gluten free bread/pastry items, just write it on the form.

32. On your last night, you have the option of putting your luggage in the hall with special tags that will be left in your stateroom. If you choose to do this, that luggage will be carried off the ship for you so you have less to carry during disembarkation and less to deal with during breakfast on your final morning. The luggage has to be in the hall before 10:00pm. On our first Disney cruise, this caught us off guard. By the time we realized this option, we had stayed at the pool too late to pack up before dinner and we wanted to do several activities after dinner. If we had known, we would have made sure to pack the luggage we wanted to send off the ship before dinner so we could enjoy the rest of the night without worrying about when to pack. So if this is your first Disney Cruise, here’s my heads up: LEAVE TIME TO PACK BEFORE DINNER ON YOUR LAST DAY. And also, because it’s Disney, you can always call and ask for grace after 10:00pm. They’ll likely still take your luggage (they took ours late on that cruise) but you will have a more enjoyable final night if you get it done before dinner. ***Make sure you do not send any of your important documents or Key to the World cards off the ship in your checked luggage. You will need these items for disembarkation.

33. Disney Cruise Line will send you luggage tags after you check-in online and before you sail. I recommend storing those with your important documents (zipper binders work nicely) and strapping that entire folder to your body until you arrive at your port. I’m obviously kidding but documents and luggage tags are both very important. Please put them at the top of your packing list and maybe set a location alert on your phone on the day you leave to remind you to get those things when you leave home. To review, important documents are: Port Arrival Forms that you print after online check-in, passports (if applicable), original birth certificates (if you don’t have passports and your cruise starts and ends in your home country), government issued photo id, any name change supporting documents (marriage license, adoption decree, divorce decree, etc.- these are not always needed but good to have with you.) They will not let you on the ship without your required documentation.

34. When you arrive at the port, you can give the “porters” as many pieces of your luggage as you want to be delivered to your stateroom. Whatever you keep with you is your “carryon” luggage and will remain with you until you have access to your stateroom between 1:30pm-3:00pm. (Side notes: the porters work for tips and MAKE SURE you don’t have any important documents in the luggage you’re handing off.) While you will have access to your stateroom in the afternoon, your luggage may not arrive until evening. With this in mind, it’s important to pack anything you may need from the time you board until the time you go to bed in your carryon luggage. If you plan to swim after boarding, pack swimwear in your carryon. Carryon luggage should also have any money or valuables, medications, portable phone chargers, cruise documents, passports, and any verifying documents. If you want to change clothes before dinner or a show, you may want to pack a change of clothes in your carryon luggage also but I recommend boarding the ship in whatever you plan to wear to dinner. You should absolutely have your luggage before dinner but sometimes there are delays so it’s best to be prepared.

35. Each guest 21 and older is allowed to bring up to 2 unopened bottles of wine or champagne or up to 6 beers onto the ship at embarkation and at each port. If you choose to do this, it must be carried onto the ship in your carryon luggage and not stored in your checked luggage.

36. Finally, everyone everywhere thinks it’s best to get on board the ship first and early. Most people want to have lots of time on the first day. I get that. However, if long lines or large crowds are a lot for you or anyone in your party, you may consider arriving later. If you arrive around 2:00pm, you’ll basically walk right on the ship with no waiting. BUT if you choose this option, you should definitely eat lunch before boarding as you’ll board the ship with not much time before your required arrival at the muster drill.

37. If you haven’t already, make sure you join the Facebook group for your specific cruise. You can usually find it by searching the name of your ship and your sail dates. If you have trouble finding it, let me know and I’ll help you. If you’re interested in participating in “fish extender” groups, you’ll find the sign ups for that in your cruise specific Facebook group. Fish Extender is a small gift exchange between guests on a cruise. If you choose to participate, you will give gifts and receive gifts.

38. If you love your cruise experience and you think you’ll want to go on another one in the next two years, you can book a placeholder while you’re still onboard your current cruise. Once you get off the ship, it’s too late. It’s a $250 deposit per stateroom (which goes toward the deposit you’ll make on your next cruise) and gives you 10% off the rate of your next cruise. If you purchase a placeholder but you are unable to use it within the required time frame, it’s fully refundable. You can make this purchase in the Disney Navigator app while onboard your ship.

***Updated 1/12/26