Celebrating DCL’s Silver Anniversary at Sea Aboard the Disney Magic
We have a special guest writer, Lynne, who is going to tell us about her latest Disney Magic Voyage:
As longtime fans of Disney Cruise Line, my family and I were eager to board one of their limited 25th Anniversary “Silver Anniversary at Sea” cruises this summer. We decided on a 5-night “Double Dip” itinerary aboard the Disney Magic that provided us with two days at Disney’s Castaway Cay. After sailing on the Disney Wish last summer, we were excited to be back on the ship that started it all! The Disney Magic has also recently gone through a dry-dock refurbishment since the last time we sailed on her in 2019.
Special Decor & Merchandise
In celebration of the anniversary, the ship’s lobby was festooned with special decorations. The portholes along decks 3 and 4 midship were also specially decorated with the 25th anniversary logo. The lobby had a special cutout of the ships with the logo that made for a really fun photo-op, with Disney photographers available most nights to capture a special family memory. Unfortunately, because we were on one of the later anniversary sailings, a lot of the merchandise Disney had teased early on was sold out. The special ears (which you can now purchase on ShopDisney), the loungefly, the pin and the mug were not available for our sailing. The ornament, spirit jersey, and all of the jewelry items were still available. The new 2023 general DCL merch was available including the plush ears and crossbody bag that my daughter and I had to have.
Castaway Cay was also decked out for the 25th anniversary with decor along the walkway and a repainted Mt. Rustmore.
Castaway Club Gifts
If you’ve sailed with DCL before you know that after one sailing you become a member of the Castaway Club and each subsequent sailing raises you up the different levels: Silver, Gold, Platinum, and the newest, Pearl. With the 25th Anniversary sailings, all of the Castaway Club gifts have been updated. As Gold members, we received the new beach bag and wet bag, along with the new gold lanyards. Plus, on the second night of our voyage, we received the special 25th anniversary Joe Kaminsky Captain Mickey print. We were especially delighted that it was framed, as I had heard rumors that on some ships they no longer had the framed versions.
Special Entertainment & Food
The second night of our cruise was the Shimmering Seas Soiree. At 7:30pm, between dinner seatings, there was a special toast in the lobby. In the evening, we were treated to anniversary fireworks at sea. Captain Mickey, Captain Minnie, Pluto, Goofy, Chip and Dale all had special costumes to commemorate the occasion which they wore throughout the cruise, and during the Sail Away Party, the special shows and the final night. I will say that I wish there were more opportunities to meet them in their 25th Anniversary outfits. We missed them the night of the Soiree and ended up having to grab a photo in our pajamas on the final night! We also attended a session of 25th Anniversary crafts, which could definitely have been a little better. Though we didn’t participate, a cast member told us that the Disney Cruise Line 25th Anniversary Trivia was one of the hardest trivias aboard the ship.
There were a handful of themed food and beverage items onboard to celebrate. My husband surprised us by having anniversary cupcakes waiting in the room upon embarkation. 25th Anniversary chocolate pieces were added to some of the regular desserts. There was a 25th Anniversary “Jubilee by the Sea” cocktail that neither my husband nor I tried, but we did grab one (or two) of the bookmarks with the recipe. I also saw a handful of people in the store on the final night getting padding to wrap up their anniversary beer steins for the long plane ride home.
Disney Magic
The Disney Magic, even at 25, still holds up and the refurbishments from her recent dry-dock only added to that. Soul Cat Lounge, which took the place of the Promenade Lounge, is themed after Pixar’s “Soul” with great music, super clever decor, and great new seating. Though I had heard rumblings that A/C and plumbing were still an issue post dry-dock, we didn’t have many issues. The A/C in our room worked great and though our section of the ship had a plumbing issue on the second-to-last night, the staff addressed it quickly.
Overall, my family was happy to have sailed during the anniversary sailings. The bonus night of fireworks was the definite highlight of the anniversary offerings. Generally, the additional theming, outfits, merchandise and entertainment added a little extra level of Disney magic to the trip and gave repeat cruisers something new. I’ll also mention that if you love Castaway Cay you need to treat yourself to a “Double Dip” cruise. It was so nice to have the extra time on the island that didn’t leave us feeling rushed. I’m looking forward to what’s next at Disney Cruise Line, including the new Lighthouse Point and the Disney Treasure. We can’t wait until our next adventure at sea!
