This review will be from the very first time I sailed upon the Disney Dream, so the information might be a little outdated about the room itself; however, amenities related to the concierge service for room will be up to date. The ship was still in its Inaugural Voyages, in fact this was only voyage #14 for the Dream. We stayed in the Roy O. Disney Suite (#12502) which is one of only 2 Royal Suites on board. Staying in the room was my parents, my sister and I. My older brother and his wife and kid were booked in a Concierge Oceanview Stateroom with Verandah, right down the hall. And let me tell you, this stateroom was magical.
First I’ll talk about the stateroom itself which is a total of 1,781 sq ft (including verandah). The room’s occupancy is 5 guests which is a step down from the Royal Suites on the Magic and Wonder which sleep up to 7. There is a queen bed in a separate bedroom with its own bathroom which has double sinks, a whirlpool tub, and a rain-style shower. There are also double and single wall pull-down beds in the living/dining area. An additional bathroom with shower is located in the entry hall across from the wet bar. The only problem we had with the room was the wall pull-down beds. They were so extremely uncomfortable. It was like sleeping on a rock. I told the suite host and he put an extra mattress topper on it, but it didn’t help much. It got so bad that I ended up sleeping on the couch one night. However, that is the only con I have about the room. Well, maybe the price, but I wasn’t paying. The nice thing about the room was that it was large enough to allow our family not staying in the room with us, to come join us and hang out, but not feel crowded what so ever. My favorite part of the room was the veranda. The balcony is at the direct front of the ship just above the spa and bridge. The balcony wrapped from directly forward around to the side of the ship. Deck furniture consisted of 2 sun loungers, an outdoor table, 4 chairs, and a small sofa. The best item though on the balcony, was the Jacuzzi. Nothing was more relaxing than just sitting in the hot tub while at sea, cruising along. Side note, the hot tub is drained each night during turn down service, and refilled the next morning. There was also a wet bar which had a sink, mini-fridge, and fancy espresso/coffee maker. The stateroom host restocks the mini-fridge each day with a selection of soft drinks and bottled waters. The coffee maker was nice, so nice in fact, we had no idea how to work it. We normally just used the one in the concierge lounge for our morning caffeine kick.
Not only are you paying for the stateroom itself, but also the service that goes along with it. The shoreside and onboard concierge are absolutely fantastic. Starting with pre-cruise services, the shoreside concierge are available starting 120 days prior to the sail date. They will actually start taking requests and plugging them into the online system 125 days prior to sailing, then the online system will automatically book them at midnight, 120 days prior. Once onboard, you’ll have access to the concierge lounge, only accessible by gold key to the world cards, where your 3 dedicated concierge team members will be to assist you with any possible need you might have. They can do anything from booking or changing port adventures, changing your dining time or rotation, booking hard to get spa appointments, or organizing special character meet and greets. They also keep the lounge stocked with snacks, hors d’oeuvres, sweets, and drinks all day long. Each night there are 2 complimentary cocktail hours right before each dining time. The dedicated concierge bartender has a variety of beers, top shelf spirits, and premium wines for you to enjoy. If they don’t have a certain brand on them, just ask and they’ll bring it the next night and throughout the duration of the cruise. I personally have to do this for a bottle of Malibu every time we sail. The concierge also have DVDs that you can check out to take back and watch in your stateroom, they also have complimentary bagged popcorn that you can take down to shows or back to your stateroom. Another key service provided to concierge is in room dining. You can order from any of the 3 main dining rooms and have it delivered to your stateroom, the concierge have that night’s menus available in the lounge. Only guests staying in the Royal Suites also have the option of having Palo delivered to their rooms, so needless to say we had a couple chocolate souffles delivered to the room after dinner some evenings.
The room was actually cheaper then, than it is now. For the four of us (2 adults, 2 teenagers) the 4 night Royal Suite cruise total came to be a little over $17,000. I looked up a similar cruise around the same time for next year and the price was a little over $23,000 for the same occupants and ages. I would like to note that we did book this the day that it became available. If you don’t already know, cruise fares increase as the sail date approaches. They normally only decrease due to special promotions.
OVERVIEW
- 4.5 out of 5 Mickey Heads
- Would definitely recommend if cost wasn’t a factor.
- PROS
- Very spacious
- Concierge service
- Magnificent balcony
- In room dining
- CONS
- Uncomfortable living room beds
- Cost… (shocker I know)
Disney: An Urge to Splurge 