**We booked our Disney cruise with a special Disney partners discount.**
When we booked our 3-day Bahamian Disney Cruise on the Disney Dream as part of the Social Media Moms Celebration this winter, I didn’t anticipate how much fun my older kids would actually have on the ship.
I figured that taking them away from their friends, their technology, and the privacy of their rooms would be a hard sell.
They were perfectly happy to be crammed into a stateroom together, without any connection to their friends back home -no Instagram, no Snapchat, no YouTube for three whole days and everyone survived. In fact, they even got along better than they had in months!
I was pleasantly surprised to discover that they were completely happy without any of those things!
If you’re a Disney loving family who is starting to feel like a week at the parks is getting old (it’s totally not, but just in case) and you’d just like a switch up for something new, I urge you to look into booking a Disney Cruise with your family.
It is the perfect way to get away with few worries and all of the magic of a Disney.
Disney Cruise with Teens: 10 Things Your Teens Will Love About Their Disney Cruises
The coolness of the teen club.
Disney Vibe, reserved for cruisers ages 14-17, is truly this private, teen-centered space where they can kick back and enjoy all of the things teenagers love to do. There have huge screen TVs, video games, music, food, and ample lounge spaces to hang out in and on to connect with your new best friends. And, they even have a cool set of “hidden” stairs to get to it -that way parents can’t stumble into it and totally throw of the Vibe (see what I did there!).
Take a quick peek at all of the kids’ clubs aboard the Disney Dream…
The special programming at the teen club.
But of course, it’s not just about the décor of the place. Throughout the trip, the teen club will offer special programming for the kids to partake in. Video game challenges, movie nights, board games, they even had a homecoming dance for them the last night on board. Plus, you can book your teens into an excursion on Castaway Cay with the teen club. It allows them and their new found friends to enjoy Disney’s private island together while you do the same (or, if you’re us, you just spend time with your younger kids). Highly recommend this if you have teenagers. It’s called The Wildside Castaway Cay Teens Only Adventure and my teenager LOVED it.
Catching first run Disney films in the theater.
We got to see Black Panther when we were cruising and it was and awesome film to catch on the high seas! Your kids can check the schedule and just go see a film anytime they want. Theater admission is included in your cruise fees, but expect to pay for popcorn if you want it.
The awesome pool.
If you’re on the Dream or the Fantasy you can take a turn on the Aquaduct, the wicked cool water coaster that whips you around the entire deck of the ship aboard an inner tube. The line will be super long on day one, but my kids didn’t have to wait long any other time they tried it out.
The freedom.
I don’t know about you, but knowing that my kid isn’t able to get off the boat, and having an easy way to communicate with them while they are on board (you can do it through the app, Disney Cruise Navigator), meant that I could let my sons have a ton of freedom to just enjoy the ship while we were on board. Their regular curfews turned into vacation curfews and they spent most of their time hanging in the teen clubs, lounging by the pool, or enjoying one of the other many on-board activities available to them.
Basketball on the top deck.
Don’t worry, it’s enclosed with nets so you won’t lose the ball to the ocean.
And there’s mini golfing too.
The food.
I think cruisers of all ages will agree that the eats are a prime draw for this type of vacation, but the bottomless pits that are my children (and many other teens) loved having the ability to eat as much and as often as they wanted. And the food is amazing.
All you can eat ice cream.
Literally, just walk up to the machine, as many times as you want a day, and make yourself a tasty soft serve treat. My dudes took full advantage of this perk.
Experiencing International travel.
For teens who’ve never traveled outside of the United States, a quick trip to the Bahamas is an easy way to introduce them to life in another country. Though the areas around the ship are super touristy as you’d expect, it’s still a quick glimpse into the fact that every place isn’t just like America. I encourage you to take your kids off the boat and take a tour of the island, or at least spend some time walking around the downtown area. My kids truly enjoyed it and were intrigued by everything from the fact that they drive on the “wrong” side of the street, to the live music in the market.
Planning to go on your first cruise? Start here for some much needed tips: 50 Things to Know About Disney Cruising