Trip log, day seven. Castaway Cay.
7-Night Western Caribbean Cruise on Disney Treasure
January 3, 2025
Guests Ashore: 8:30 am Guests Onboard: 4:00 pm
Personal Navigator – Day 7
The final day of this 7-night Western Caribbean cruise is upon us, and so the day starts off in Fairytale Fresh laundry. It is not uncommon for us to do laundry near the end of our trips, so when we get home, we do not have a backlog of laundry. In hindsight, this turned out to be an important decision, as our washer control panel decided to quit working when we returned home. I was not able to fix it, but the replacement panel got us back up and washing! As for the onboard laundry, I was initially puzzled by the dryers as I didn’t see a noticeable lint trap, which I recommend checking before you start a dryer on any of the ships. Quite often, they are full of lint. It is not immediately obvious, but you can pull the panel out that is between the washer and dryer to clean the lint trap.
I happened to be in the right place at the right time to enjoy a unique view of the Disney Treasure maneuvering into her berth at Castaway Cay. Seated outside on deck 13 at Currents Bar facing the Funnel Suite, I enjoyed the following view of our arrival.
I decided to change things up a little this morning and test out a different office location while Emily went to the gym. Deck 5 off the Grand Hall features a nice seating area where you can look out the portholes. It was relatively peaceful, but the ergonomics were not great for productivity. However, this is an ideal spot for hanging out with a larger group.
We casually headed ashore around 10 o’clock after the initial rush ashore.
It has been a solid decade since we last saw the holiday decor on the island. During our Very MerryTime cruise in 2022, the decorations were not out yet since we were on one of the fleet’s first holiday sailings that year. We took advantage of the opportunity and took some family photos.
With a high temperature in the low 70ºs F, it was not a water day for us. Instead, we just walked around.
Actually, we filmed a partial walking tour of Castaway Cay with an emphasis on the Family Beach area starting from the pier to the second tram stop.
We made our customary stop at Mt. Rustmore which remains in too perfect of condition. At least the sign lives up the name.
During our walk, we stopped and browed the merchandise at She Sells Sea Shells and Everything Else and Buy the Seashore.
In a surprise to no-one, the Post Office was closed. If I can make as suggestion. Rather than using this solely as a character meet and great background, how about converting this location into a food and beverage location such as Mangroves & Go at Lookout Cay. With two doors already in place it is ideal for a little beverage spot to serve guests waiting for a port adventure at Marges Barges or for guests looking for a refreshing beverage as they stroll along the walkway.
After nearly a couple hours ashore, we started to work our way back to the Disney Treasure.
Once back onboard we made our way to Triton Lounge for Florida and The Bahamas Trivia. We have been looking forward to this trivia for a couple days now. We narrowly won in very lightly attended trivia session. I find general trivia such as this to be a fun alternative to the more popular music and Disney trivia sessions where there almost always a tie or perfect score. That isn’t sour grapes talking, I’m just know I am not cut out for the high steaks trivia sessions.
With our winner medal in hand we headed up for lunch with a view of Castaway Cay. I spotted pretzel rolls in Marceline Market… There is potential there for a custom creation, but the pretzel roll was great on its own.
In the early afternoon of our day at Castaway Cay, we discovered Haunted Mansion Parlor was dead. When I walked in, there were 2 people finishing up their drinks while playing cards at the bar. Eventually, they left, and I had the place to myself aside from the bartenders. Now, I wouldn’t wait for the final day to visit this currently one-of-a-kind venue, but it is something to consider if the parlor continues to be open while most guests are ashore. During my visit, I had the opportunity to sit back and enjoy the atmosphere.
We planned to attend the 3pm matinee showing of Disney The Tale of Moana. For me, the Te Kā puppet and scene was awesome, but the real star of the production was the Moana’s grandmother who just like her role in the film was a storyteller moving the production along with witty humor. However, I wish there would have been a way to incorporate Hei Hei and Pua, which are noticeably absent from the production.
Following the show, we stopped at Skipper Society to try a couple more of the cocktails and to say sea ya real soon to our new pals. Emily ordered the Hippopotomai-Tai, a Bayab Gin, Campari, Orgeat, with lime cocktail. I went with the Old Fashioned Breakfast for a pre-dinner snack.
The Old Fashioned made with Old Forrester Statesman, Barrel Aged Maple, Orange Bitter, Bourbon Sugar is served smoked in a box with a waffle, bacon and fried eggs on the side. The eggs are actually gummy candies.
We headed back to the room to get ready for dinner and completed the puzzle which we took down to show our friends in Skipper Society. We boxed up both puzzles and passed them off to the crew.
On our way to dinner, we spotted Voyager Minnie out on deck 4 meeting guests yet again.
Our final dinner brought us back to Plaza de Coco for the second night of themed entertainment, the Día de los Muertos celebration. I also noticed the napkins feature the restaurant’s logo.
This was the Disney Treasure dinner menu I was the most eager to try.
The second dinner show in Plaza de Coco feature Miguel reuniting with his great-great grandparents, Hector and Mama Imelda, by transporting them to Santa Cecilia with the help of his magic guitar during the Día de los Muetos celebration.
If you recall from the first dinner at Plaza de Coco, the salsa was meh. However, there is a guacamole appetizer that was the perfect mate for the chips. During a future dinner, I may actually order multiple guacamole sides and skip the salsa altogether.
The dinner was quite enjoyable with actual flavor, the red Chicken Enchiladas actually had a bit heat! Overall, this was my favorite main dining room menu of the week. We hope the food remains flavorful and doesn’t get dulled down. In a way, this feels like when Carioca’s first launched on the Disney Magic only to have the flavors muted over time and the restaurant fully replaced after a few short years. I realize this has more to do with the evolution and rollout of the dinner show experience, but the loss of that menu still lingers in my memory.
Remember the removal of the churros from the 1923 menu, well they simply moved aft to Plaza de Coco.
We had an amazing server this week, Midori. Near the end of the dinner, she presented us with these cards featuring our names written in Japanese.
As we departed Plaza de Coco, we stopped to see the cat for the final time this voyage.
Before we retreated to the stateroom to pack up, Isabelle made her way to the Grand Hall for a meeting with a princess.
Go big or go home, right? Well, let’s end this voyage with the most expensive cocktail I’ve ever ordered, The Cats Meow from Scat Cat Lounge.
The Cats Meow is a clarified cocktail made with Angel’s Envy Bourbon, Amaro Montenegro, Aperol, and lemon. In actuality, the cocktail is a clarified Paper Plane.
Since the cocktail was first announced, I’ve been thinking about this glass. Even when I did find it for purchase online it was out of stock or ridiculously priced (don’t say it.). It was fantastic and we both agreed that it was the best cocktail that we had onboard. Lito was amazing and we enjoyed talking with him about it.
My first attempt at making the cocktail in June was a moderate success using Buffalo Trace and Amaro Nonino, when I made it again, I used whole milk to clarify instead of 2%, and Angels Envy in place of the Buffalo Trace and it turned out great even with the different Amaro.
We then returned to the stateroom to pack up before completing the online guest feedback survey. As a consumer, I am tired of surveys that can easily be linked to me that insist on asking questions that can be queried from a customer profile in the database. It also continues to bother me that a cruise line which was once so proud of saying “based on guest feedback” is now just another corporate entity using surveys that do not allow for actual guest feedback, locking guests into arbitrary rankings for line item topics. Frankly, I am to the point where I may just stop completing the survey rather than giving almost every response an excellent because these scores impact the crew more than they do improving the guest experience. I’m part of the problem, but I’m also somewhat aware of how the results are used and will still do it so we can provide true excellent feedback on the crew member(s) that were excellent. In my mind, this survey is NOT the time to be critical as it serves little purpose to provide feedback that will directly impact department morale when the crew is actually doing a great job. They should not be held accountable when they are simply adhering to decisions made well above their pay grade. It has been years since my wife or I received a post-cruise survey to complete at home. Technically, these trip logs serve as my extended feedback, but I wonder where others submitting additional feedback are?
Survey submitted and time for the final rest onboard.
Trip Log Day 8: Debarkation Day at Port Canaveral – January 4, 2025
This was our first cruise in a while where we were not in a rush to get to the airport, train, or back home for work/school with express walk-off. We took our time and tried to time up our departure during a lull in the breakfast service. On our way out, we watched as the holiday decoration team dismantled the Christmas tree and removed the garland from the Grand Hall. I am extremely jealous of the storage system they have. If I had warehouse space, my decor would be set up the same way.
Facial recognition in the terminal was amazing! I’ve always felt like CT8 at Port Canaveral was a well oiled machine, but now I think I’ll call it the gold standard when it comes to the embarkation and debarkation process. We also coordinated our morning to time our private transfer. This time, we used the very exclusive port to home transfer service, my in-laws. Thanks for the rides; much appreciated!
Final Thoughts
Since this was our first cruise on the Disney Treasure, I wanted to share some final thoughts on our trip. First and foremost, I’m a big fan of the adventure theme compared to the castle at sea theme. I loved the Indiana Jones show and the atmosphere of the Sarabi Supper Club, I missed the other offerings for Sage & Coriander (these are the stage names of the crew members performing in these shows, similar to the Fairytale Players on the Wish) in the Grand Hall including the Jungle Cruise show, but friends have told me I would have loved it as well. The Wish Class, designed around the castle at sea concept, works to a point. I can see the concept, but the unnecessary IP used on nearly every venue makes it feel more like a shopping mall and food court than a cohesive design of a castle. Theme aside, the Disney Treasure still falls victim to the Wish Class design. There are aspects I genuinely like, such as the concentration of venues between the forward and aft stairs (which I realize is a polarizing statement). However, the adventure motif feels more like someone bought the Wish’s castle and remodeled a few areas. Structural design aside, the Grand Hall is gorgeous and the layers of theming in The Haunted Mansion Parlor compared to Hyperspace Lounge is a huge improvement. That being said, no one is or should be booking a cruise because the Grand Hall is gorgeous. My favorite new aspect of the Disney Treasure is Plaza de Coco. In my opinion, this restaurant is the star of the ship complete with a great entertainment cast and some flavorful dishes.
From our family’s perspective, the ship is lacking diversity in terms of onboard activities outside of the linear schedule, meaning there isn’t enough ‘stuff’ to just do that is not something on the Navigator (or going further, non-weather dependent things when the pool is not an option). And even then, a lack of scheduled things as well. For a 7-night ship, we expected more options than overpacked venues for the same old trivia questions. For example, where is the miniature golf course? Technology is forced upon us by the Mouse, why not leverage technology for dynamic trivia? Build in say, 100 questions for each trivia and then at the time of trivia have the software randomly select 20 clues. While on the subject of technology, it was disappointing the Uncharted Adventure game wasn’t available. We’ve not had the time to play it on the Wish due to the short sailings and at other times technical difficulties. It would have been nice to see the Wish Class debut Midship Detective Agency version 2 themed to the motif of the each ship leveraging the Navigator App or even better an Intranet game website independent of the app in place of the midship user card and paper maps. Midship was such a great way for first time guests on the Dream Class to explore the ship. Additionally, the Navigator app developers could reduce the app size by removing the game engine. Honestly, if not for college and NFL football, we would have been bored out of our minds – we bought puzzles to do as a family activity because there was an absence of options for families and small groups. Our daughter is about to graduate high school and didn’t spend anytime in Vibe because she just didn’t feel the vibe of the other teens in the space. We are grateful that she is happy to spend time with her parents, and so we searched for things to do as a family which ultimately lead us to “sneaking” her into adult events. I don’t care, keel haul me for it. She ordered adult mocktails (like a Paloma, not smoothies), in the lounges and can keep an adult conversation with anyone. And, I really hope this last nit picky thing is a case of “they are on order” – the loungers on the promenade did not have cushions, which kinda limits how long you want to sit out and stare off into the water or read a book. However, the ambiance of the promenade just isn’t the same as deck 4 on the Magic and Dream class ships at all. It feels just less ‘cozy’ for lack of a better term. In speaking to both my wife and daughter, we all share the same sentiment.
Overall, I think the Treasure is definitely an upgraded experience compared to the Wish. However, at the price point for a 7-night Caribbean cruise, I can only recommend the experience for the onboard “only Disney can offer experiences”. Remember, I love the travel part of the cruise experience where you use the ship as a hotel and wake up to explore a new port of call and use sea days to relax and rejuvenate from long port days. If you are seeking a Caribbean adventure that includes spending most of your time ashore enjoying the ports of call and enjoying the the classic/traditional cruise travel experience, there are better (& more economical) options within the Disney fleet, and with other cruise lines sailing from Port Canaveral.
Thanks for the great review and final thoughts. I definitely can relate to many of your comments on the Wish class, and the limitations this is creating for the Treasure. While we have found the theming and overall feel of the Treasure to be better executed than the Wish, yes, there are still a few shortcomings and not having a more traditional promenade on Deck 4 is one of those small details that makes a significant difference for some (It does for us). The other thing too is what I feel is a lack of outdoor eating space at Marceline… not sure that it is , but it feels like/looks like there are not as many chairs.
Now, I love that Salon services (like Hook’s Barbery) is stand-alone and the Treasure is one of the ship where we actually wanted to spend some time in the lounges (other than for the 18+ shows). I generally also prefer the food options, especially Festival of Foods. i also love the central laundry option, rather than having to run around the ship. Staff was wonderful. We also felt the MDRs to be less crowded than what I have experienced last on the Dream and Fantasy where there were a few service issues given how close tabled were from each other.
We liked the food experience at Coco… but not the entertainment experience. On both of my Wish-class trips, our table was close to one of the walls, with columns obstructing line of sights. This could be due to “special service requests” aka noted allergies, as my dining request is actually “near entertainment”. You can’t feel the show when you are that far, with a poor line of sight.
We loved the Treasure and we’d likely go back one more time, but the ports for us are “been there, done that”, although we could probably do an Eastern Caribbean one more time.
Centralized laundry is my favorite part of the Wish Class, second Festival of Foods and by which I mean Donald’s Cantina. Even on the Magic & Wonder, seating can impact the enjoyment of the dinner shows. Given the physical constraints of the ship they need to maintain the column with inherently create blocked views. I would actually be willing to opt into perimeter seating option to give families with younger kids better views of the stage.
Fair point on the Magic and Wonder and the sightlines in the dining room (Tiana/Rapunzel), but given that the characters do walk around the dining room at some point, there is a bit of a consolation prize if you do not have a straight view. And, of course, those columns are needed for structural integrity, no argument there!
I also found the lack of cushions on the deck chairs (Deck 4/5) a disappointment. However, I am giving them the benefit of doubt due to the new ship timeline. This area is a wonderful place to get away from the crowds of the upper deck but without cushions, it was not comfortable to sit long. The Magic pulled up next to us in Cozumel and one of the things I noticed was the presence of cushions on their deck chairs. What a contrast between the oldest ship and the newest ship.
Is the matinee stage show something unique to the Treasure? Don’t remember seeing that before on any of our cruises.
Matinee showings have been offered across the fleet over the years, but are not a regular occurrence.
That is a balanced comment. I think your point of view regarding entertainment is especially true if you are a seasoned cruiser. We did a few cruises but overall not more than one every other year and only 2 in the Caribbean. Therefore being outside, in the pool… is part of the entertainment and novelty for us.
I also understand your family structure might not have been the ideal candidate for activities geared toward younger audiences like the hero zone?
I greatly appreciate your thoughts and opinions on the Treasure, especially as a father of an older teen. We are due to sail on her in June. One of our close friends has recently discovered Royal Caribbean, and has tried to convince us to sail on their ships. We almost did that instead. But as a family of five, we were finding the prices to be too similar to (excuse me for saying it this way) jump ship. Our three kids will be aged 20, turning 18 during this cruise, and age 11. This could be the last cruise that all five of us go on together for the foreseeable future. We are definitely looking forward to making some good family memories. We are first time platinum cruisers (two kids are gold and one is silver though) so we’ve experienced all the ships over the last 20 years. But, if you want to suggest any don’t miss activities/excursions/events for us I’ll definitely consider it.