Before I went on my first cruise (which was a complimentary media event onboard the Disney Fantasy), I had always thought that cruise staterooms were tiny. While they are definitely smaller than most traditional hotel rooms, my family of four can always manage okay in one stateroom – even when on board for seven days.
If you are headed on the Disney Dream (or its sister ship, the Disney Fantasy), here’s some information about the Disney Dream staterooms.
All About The Disney Dream Staterooms
Disney Dream Stateroom Categories
With letters and numbers, it can be confusing to decipher the various categories on the Disney Cruise Line. Categories are dependent on quite a few things – the location of the stateroom, the size of the stateroom, the verandah type (obstructed view, standard, etc).
There are several different stateroom types, including Deluxe Stateroom with Verandah, Deluxe Family Stateroom with Verandah, Inside Staterooms (Standard and Deluxe), Oceanview Staterooms, and Concierge Rooms. While we don’t tend to spend too much time in the room, I do prefer to get a stateroom with a verandah. It’s nice to have that extra space, and I love sitting outside at various times during the day.
For those who have five in their family, or who prefer a bit more space, the Disney Dream offers slightly larger family staterooms which offer a pull out Murphy bed in addition to the bunk beds. In the photo above, you’ll see what the Murphy bed looks like when it is open.
Many people ask me, “What is the best deck location for a Disney Dream stateroom?”. I find that it really depends. While we enjoyed a room on the 10th deck because it was just one staircase away from Cabanas and the activities of the pool deck, it was more decks away from the lower level activities, like the Oceaneer Club/Lab, and Walt Disney World Theater. Higher decks may have better views, but ultimately, we try to choose a broader room category, and don’t worry as much about the deck level.
I do, however, prefer midship, because that’s the most central location. However, I’ve also had forward and aft rooms, and it really isn’t a big deal to walk from one end of the ship to another.
Depending on the size of your party, you may also choose to book adjoining staterooms. In addition to an adjoining door in the rooms, you can also ask your stateroom attendant to open up your verandahs (if your room includes them). See the picture above to see what that looks like. When I travel with my friends, we get a adjoining rooms, open the verandahs, and end up spending so much time outside.
Disney Dream Stateroom Amenities
A Disney Dream stateroom contains plenty of space for your family’s belongings for a week. We typically store our clothes in the drawers, shelves, and closets, and then put our empty suitcases under the bed. You’ll also find a large chest that can be used as a coffee table, and also opens to store items. There’s a small refrigerator as well as a hairdryer, two Wave phones that can be used on the ship, a television, and a regular phone. However, we no longer use the Wave phones, because we prefer to communicate through the Disney Cruise Line app.
If your room includes bunk beds, your stateroom attendant will open them up in the evenings. Typically, the attendant will talk to you when you arrive and will find out if this is something you’ll need. My kids used to fight over the top bunk, but now that they are older, they fight over the bottom one. If you are only traveling with one child, they can just use the bottom bed. When the stateroom attendant cleans the room during the day, they will put the bunk bed back up until the evening.
Bathrooms in the Disney Dream staterooms are split into two sections (in most cases – some rooms don’t offer this split bathroom). The first one, closest to the external door, includes the toilet and a small sink. There are also a few shelves that can be used to store toiletries.
Adjacent to that is a small room with a shower and another sink. That one also has some small shelves to hold toiletries. There are also the Disney Cruise Line toiletry amenities made by H2O. They are pretty big, and usually last us the whole 3-day cruise on the Dream. These are refreshed by your stateroom attendant if you do happen to go through them.
I love having the split bathroom, because then two people in our family can get ready at the same time with a little maneuvering.
One negative to the rooms is the lack of adequate outlets. There are a few scattered around the room, but with a bunch of devices and Apple Watches to recharge at night, it becomes a balancing act of plugging and unplugging things. Power strips aren’t allowed, so you have to get creative. On our last cruise, I noticed that the alarm clock had two USB outlets, which we ended up using.
To learn more about the Disney Dream staterooms, see their website.
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