You might recall the sweet Hall family who won our Unfrozen Winter contest earlier this year by submitting a picture of their creative snowman. Check it out!
Gordon's Service Experts sent the winners on a Disney Cruise and paid for airfare for four. Bradley and Rebecca took their two oldest children, Korbin and Brooke, on their Disney Cruise during mid-summer. Korbin and Brooke had never been on a cruise before and Rebecca and Bradley hadn’t been in about 10 years.
“I can’t even begin to describe how much fun we had and how truly unbelievable everything was,” wrote Rebecca. “It was a vacation we could have never done on our own. Disney does cruising right!”
The Halls were nice enough to give us their itinerary and some pictures from their incredible trip. If you’re interested in taking a Disney Cruise, or just want to find out what it’s all about, check out the highlights from the Hall’s trip.
Monday
We were on the ship for a couple days (Saturday and Sunday) and then docked in Tortola, British Virgin Islands. We had reservations for a Catamaran and went out with a few other families for the day. It was my kids’ first time snorkeling and they had a blast. We got to see turtles and stingrays – it may have been the coolest experience of the whole cruise!
Tuesday
We sailed from Tortola to St. Thomas in the American Virgin Islands, where we got to do more snorkeling, swam, and hung out on the beach. The water was actually that turquoise blue that they show on TV – truly incredible.
Thursday
We were on the ship all day Wednesday and then ported at Castaway Cay, Disney’s Exclusive Island. The water was incredibly blue and had amazing visibility beneath, so of course - more snorkeling! They hid Mickey Mouses you could find underwater, which made up for not having as many fish. They also include an 18 and older beach which we enjoyed while Korbin and Brooke played with other kids. They had people everywhere to watch the kids so we (Bradley and Rebecca) hung out and had a daiquiri. It’s like a floating Disneyland!
Aboard
It gives me goosebumps reminiscing about everything on the cruise ship – it was all so fun and amazing! The cruise has a “Midship Detective Agency” where you select the mystery you want to solve and the cruise gives you a card so you can keep track of all your clues. When you place the card up to a painting, the painting comes alive – it speaks to the group, tells you about the mystery you are solving, and gives you signals and directions. One mystery lasted two hours because we were going all over the ship.
They are always playing first-run movies out around the pool so we got to watch Finding Dory, Big Friendly Giant, Alice Through the Looking Glass, and Jungle Book. We also got to ride the Aqua Duct, which is a big slide that shoots you up and down and swings you out across the boat!
The whole group went Goofy Golfing and Disney Cruises also have games like foosball, basketball, and a Tween Club called Edge with events like scavenger hunts and more.
It’s so easy to find characters on the boat – you only have to wait a few minutes versus 30 or 40 at Disneyland. We got to see about two a day, and one day we got five in a row! They also have multiple versions of the characters, such as Captain Mickey, Traditional Mickey, etc.
The stateroom was awesome! Ours included an ocean view room with a HUGE porthole and window seat. The stateroom was a really good size and all four of us were cozy and never felt smothered.
Dining
You alternate three restaurants. Enchanted Garden has awesome flower lights on the ceiling that open and close and the ceiling changes colors throughout your meal and Royal Court was really elegant and put me in mind of Cinderella. The meals are very gourmet and they have a great selection. My son tried everything, including 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 draw a figure. They offer directions on how to draw a figure, then they pick up the drawings and at the end of your dinner, they animate your drawings on the wall. You have no warning! They choreograph them to music and place them in Disney films. My daughter is our artist so she worked really hard on hers and was so excited – the rest of us weren’t quite as proud
“We cannot thank Service Experts enough for this incredible opportunity,” Rebecca wrote after they returned from their cruise. “I get emotional when I think about it all. Submitting an entry I never thought would go anywhere, hearing we were a finalist, the stressful voting stage, the big announcement, reading about and selecting which cruise, the elation of going and finally experiencing an unbelievable trip. It was such a fun time living it all. We are forever grateful!”
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