2018 Christmas Disney Cruise Part 9: Day at Sea

We went on a Disney Cruise just before Christmas in December 2018 with our friends the Riedels. See more about it at the 2018 Christmas Disney Cruise page. After a fun day at Nassau and Pirate Night, it was time for our last full day…

Thursday, December 20, 2018

It was our last full day on the Disney Dream. That is always just a little sad, but we knew that we would make the most of it as we always do.

We really did not have all that much on the agenda for the day, so we slept in a bit. We eventually got up and got going, and along with the Riedels we went to breakfast at Cabanas around 9:00. One more day of a good buffet breakfast. And it was delicious as it always is. Then it was back to our rooms for the usual teeth brushing and stuff.

Laura takes some time to read while on our stateroom verandah

While we did not have that much of a rigid agenda, we did have some things that we wanted to do. One of the was the Aquaduck, because we had gone this far on the cruise without taking any rides on the water coaster that circles the top decks of the Disney Dream. We had dressed for swimming before going to breakfast, so we were all ready to go. Zach, Katie, Laura, and I decided to go. Brant and Karen skipped it and watched our stuff, and Jaylin headed over to the pool for a while.

One of the good things about going to the Aquaduck rather early was that there was not a line. At other times, we have waited for quite a while. But this time we climbed all the way to the top of the stairs, and there were just a few people in front of us. It was lots of fun as always. And after the first big splash, the water did not feel all that cold.

The Burns adults on the Aquaduck

The Riedel children on the Aquaduck

We all decided to go again, and about that time Jaylin walked by, apparently not having made it to the pool yet. We asked him if he would want to go, so he said he would. However, when we got to the crew member at the entrance, he said that everyone would have to have a buddy. No single riders. Even though the sign said one or two people per raft. This was a little confusing, because there was almost no line at all. But instead of arguing, I sat out so that Jaylin could go, and I joined Brant and Karen to watch them go by.

After that one trip, Jaylin decided he was finished and headed on to the pool. Everyone else still wanted to go again, so I joined the group for another trip. But before I went, I gave Karen my camera to take some photos of us as we went by. We ended up going two more times. The line got a little longer each time, but we still did not wait more than a couple of minutes. One time, the same crew member who made sure we all had a buddy said that there was a two-time limit for adults, because we were taking away fun from the kids. Of course, he was just kidding.

Laura and Karen were wanting to go to another craft session, this time to make a scrapbook page. So Zach and Katie took one more ride on the Aquaduck while Brant and I waited with everyone’s stuff. Jaylin came back around that time, and we all went back to our rooms to get changed out of our swimsuits.

We waited around for Laura and Karen to join us, and then we all headed out to the Buena Vista Theatre to see Mary Poppins Returns. The new movie was actually just released to movie theaters the previous day, so I thought it was pretty cool that they were showing it on the ship. It had been the “show” in the main Walt Disney Theatre the night before, but we had skipped it then, knowing that they would be showing it later. We figured most people would be going that night to see it, so there might be a few less people if we waited a day.

When we got to the theater, most of us went to get seats. Brant and Katie had gone to look for coffee, and Laura and Jaylin went to get us some popcorn and Coke, which turned out to be more expensive than I had thought. But everyone joined us before the movie started, and we were able to hold enough seats for everyone.

Before we had left our room, we had noticed that the water was starting to look a little rougher than usual. And sitting in the seats of the movie theater, we could occasionally feel the boat move this way and that. Once or twice, I thought someone behind me was kicking my seat, but it was actually just the ship moving around. I don’t mind that kind of thing at all, but it was still a little surprising sometimes.

The water was a little rougher than usual

When I had first heard about a new Mary Poppins movie, I was a little skeptical. But then I had listened to the soundtrack on Spotify before we had left home, and I really liked what I had heard, so I was looking forward to seeing the movie. It did not disappoint, either. It is obviously somewhat different from the original, but it still kept up the spirit of the original quite well. I was really glad that we saw it on the ship, because that will always be a fun memory. Most everyone in our group seemed to enjoy it, too.

By the time the movie ended it, was after 2:00, so we were ready for lunch. Or at least some of us were. Laura decided that the popcorn we had eaten would hold her until dinner. We picked Flo’s for our lunch meal, and this time around I got some pizza, because I had gotten a burger the previous day.

Our group, except for Jaylin and me, after lunch

Mickey mirrors in a Disney Dream bathroom. Yes, I made sure no one else was in there before I took the photo.

Next, we took care of some last day business. We went to Shutters, the photo shop, and we Burnses picked out the photos from the cruise that we wanted to buy prints of. There were so many good ones that it was hard to narrow it down. The Riedels had purchased the digital photo package, so they were going to get all of their photos on a flash drive. Karen checked on that, and they told her it would be ready the next morning when we were getting off the ship.

We also stopped by Guest Services for a few minutes. We Burnses had some gift cards to apply to our balance, and the crew member there was more than happy to help us with that. It was kind of nice to lower our balance by at least a little bit.

Another Disney Dream bathroom, more Mickey mirrors. And the same note as before.

After that, we made one more trip to the shops, trying to decide what we wanted to get and what we might want to leave behind. Again, that was a difficult decision, but we did the best we could. And once again we were thankful for those gift cards that we had just applied to our balance, knowing that the amount was going up again.

In addition to our matching Pirate Night shirts, Karen had gotten the girls matching Christmas Minnie shirts, so we took a few photos of them because they all matched. If you have not figured it out, we like to take lots of photos on these things. Memories are the best kind of souvenirs, after all.

Girls in matching shirts with a photobomb by a guy with a really big head

Girls in matching shirts in front of the Christmas tree

Jaylin in a window

Katie in a window

Zach in (or near) a window

We had one other event on our somewhat unplanned day, so we went back to our rooms to change clothes for a show and dinner. The final show of the cruise in the Walt Disney Theatre was a new production of Beauty and the Beast, so we all decided to go to it since none of us had seen it before. We got dressed and headed out to the Theatre.

A rainy afternoon on the Disney Dream

A pretty good crowd had arrived before we did, but we easily found seats under the balcony, and we could have gone closer if we wanted to. While we waited, I was interested to see the flaming lanterns on the side walls, but they were really just projections. Pretty cool. Soon, the show started, and right from the beginning song we could tell that it was based more on the recent live-action movie than on the original animated movie. Nothing wrong with that. There were several parts of the stage that would raise or lower, sometimes with set pieces on them, and that was pretty cool. But the coolest part was the backdrop, which was made up of high-quality screens the height of the stage. They would change to be whatever backdrop was required, and they were really cool. The “objects” (Lumiere, Cogsworth, Mrs. Potts) were all puppets with their puppeteers behind them, which was better than people in oversized costumes. The whole thing was really well done, and almost as long as the original movie, except that they left out the Beast’s song. I was glad that we saw it, and it was nice that they had a new show on this cruise.

The rain had ended, but the waves were getting bigger

After the show, there was still some time to kill before our dinner time, so we wandered back over toward the Lobby Atrium. They were having a character dance party in there, as it turns out. Not that we would have stayed away if we had known that, even though we are not exactly the dance party types. We mostly stood at the side and watched, and it was fun to see Goofy out dancing with whoever wanted to dance. Or just jump around, which is what most of the dancing really looked like. It was a fun time, and everyone looked like they were enjoying themselves, which is of course a good way to spend the last night of your cruise.

Having our own party off in the corner during the dance party

Although we were tempted to jump in and dance with everyone else, our dinner time had arrived, so we made our way down the hall to Animator’s Palate. When we got to the main door, one of the servers asked our table number. I told him we were table 110, and he said, “It is a shortcut if you go down to that other door.” We knew right where the other door was, so we went down there and were shown to our table, which indeed was quite close by.

Curtis and Don then arrived to take our orders. We are all pretty much consistent with our drink orders, but Don still asked, just to be certain. Curtis then went over the recommendations of the night and took our orders. I chose the Black Truffle Pasta appetizer, the Baked Potato and Cheddar Cheese soup, and the Beef Tenderloin entree. It was all delicious as always.

Zach at dinner

Karen at dinner

Brant at dinner

Katie at dinner

Jaylin at dinner

Laura at dinner

Steve at dinner (taken by Laura)

During the meal, Crush the Turtle from Finding Nemo did his show as he always does. We were not close to one of the screens, so he did not talk directly to us. But it was interesting to hear that there were others from Tennessee at our meal, too. It’s a small world, after all.

For dessert, I got the Cookies and Cream sundae, and it was deliciously sweet, just like I knew it would be. And then we were finished. That was not quite our last meal with Curtis and Don, because we would see them for breakfast the next morning, but it was our last main meal. They had taken good care of us, particularly Curtis, who would stop and chat when he could.

But even though we had finished our last full meal of the cruise, the fun was not over yet. We headed up to our rooms to put our luggage out in the hall. I checked several times to make sure all of us Burnses had everything that we needed for the night and the next morning, so that we did not have to keep all of our luggage with us. For the first time, I had thought to pack a fold-up duffel bag in my main suitcase, and I used it to hold the things that I was keeping for the night. That would make carrying things out a little easier the next morning. Maybe I should remember that for next time.

Also, on our bed was a crab made out of the bed blanket. And in the Riedels’ room was a turtle. Always so clever. Also on the bed was the standard survey of how our cruise was. I knew that they would get high marks from us once again for this cruise.

Crab blanket

…and turtle blanket

When our bags were all out in the hall, we went back to the Lobby Atrium for the evening’s See You Real Soon show, finding a place on the main floor this time around.The show is always one of those bittersweet moments, but we always plan to see it. Once the show started, the characters were introduced, and they all came down the staircase to greet everyone one last time. Most of us did not have any particular characters to meet, although Karen and Katie went to talk to a couple of them. But we still held onto our good spot in the center of the room for the end of the show. Besides, it is always fun to watch the characters interact with everyone. They are great at what they do.

Mickey Mouse comes out to greet everyone

Once the greeting time was over, the characters went back up the stairs, and then there was a special addition to the show. Because of the Christmas holiday, the Dickens Carolers came out, and also the Children’s Choir assembled on the stairs. The Children’s Choir were some of the kids who had gone to the kids’ club during the cruise, and they had practiced some songs while they were there. First, they all sang “Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer,” with the carolers singing that one acappella. Then they finished up with “Let There Be Peace On Earth,” which was a great way to end the evening.

Admiral Donald Duck and the Christmas Carolers

With that, the characters came out on the balcony above us one last time to wave goodbye until the next time. And hopefully, there will be a next time, because once again we had enjoyed a wonderful Disney Cruise.

See you real soon!

We went outside for one last stroll on the Deck 4 Promenade. It was still raining, so we had to walk quickly in the places where the lifeboats and upper decks did not provide enough cover. It was also windy, which made it feel a little cooler than it had felt for the past few days. And the ship was still moving around a good bit, making walking in a straight line a little more challenging. But it was nothing that we couldn’t handle. Except that the cold was a little more cold than what we might have wanted.

We ducked back inside one of the doors and headed back to our rooms. We knew that when we woke up in the morning, we would be back at Port Canaveral, back in the United States. And it would be the day that we would head for home. It had been a wonderful cruise. We had a great time doing fun things with great people. What more could you ask for?

We settled in for our last night of sleep on the ship, being rocked by the boat slightly more than the previous nights, but still being rocked gently.

But that is not all! Check back soon for the conclusion of the 2018 Christmas Disney Cruise trip report!