We recently returned from a sailing aboard the Disney Wish and had a great time exploring everything the ship has to offer. If you're considering a Disney cruise with kids, there is no shortage of activities, entertainment, character experiences, and family-friendly fun.
A Disney cruise offers many of the things families love about Disney vacations, but with a more relaxed pace. Instead of rushing from attraction to attraction, you unpack once and spend your days enjoying the ship, the entertainment, and time together as a family.
One thing worth mentioning is that I have only sailed on the Disney Wish, so I can't personally compare it to Disney's other ships. However, one thing I've consistently heard from experienced Disney cruisers is that the Wish can feel a little less intuitive to navigate. There are more hallways and separate spaces to walk through when getting from place to place, whereas some of the other Disney ships are said to have a more open layout. It wasn't a major issue for us, but it did take a day or two before we felt comfortable finding our way around.
Bonus Tip: Give Yourself a Day to Learn the Ship
The Disney Wish is a large ship, and it may take a little time to learn where everything is located. We occasionally found ourselves taking the long way around or walking through multiple hallways to get where we wanted to go.
By the second day it felt much easier to navigate, so don't stress if you spend the first day checking the map frequently. That's completely normal!
Tips and Tricks for Families Sailing on the Disney Wish
1. Take Advantage of the Kids Clubs
One of the biggest highlights for our kids was the Oceaneer Club, which is designed for children ages 3–10. It includes multiple themed spaces where kids can play, explore, create, and interact with Disney stories in a way that feels much more immersive than a typical kids club.
Disney also offers clubs for ages 11–14 and 14–17, so older kids and teens have spaces designed specifically for them. Families traveling with little ones will appreciate that there is even a nursery available for babies and toddlers ages 6 months to 3 years.
One tip I would highly recommend is taking advantage of the Open House on embarkation day. During this time, families can explore the kids clubs together before the clubs officially begin operating. This is also a great time to complete registration so that dropping your kids off later in the cruise is quick and easy.
My kids are pretty shy, and even after seeing all the fun activities available, they were still hesitant to leave us. Looking back, I wish we would have encouraged them to spend a little time in the club earlier in the cruise. Toward the end of our trip, we let them go into the kids club while we waited just outside for a few minutes. Knowing we were nearby gave them the confidence to explore on their own. They didn't stay long because we had dinner reservations, but that short experience made a huge difference. After that, they kept asking to go back. If I could do one thing differently, it would be introducing them to the kids club earlier in the cruise so they could have enjoyed it even more.
One thing to note if you have younger children traveling with older siblings: my kids are 4, 5, and 8 years old. My 5 and 8-year-olds were able to move around the Oceaneer Club much more freely, while my 4-year-old was required to stay with a counselor-led group. I completely understand the safety reasons behind that policy, but it did mean he couldn't simply follow his siblings wherever they wanted to go. His older brother and sister could join him, but he couldn't always join them. Because of that, he didn't enjoy the experience quite as much as the older two. I think kids who are 5 and older may get a little more out of the experience since they have more freedom to explore the different areas on their own.
2. Don't Miss the Broadway-Style Shows
The Disney Wish features three incredible live theater productions:
Disney Seas the Adventure
The Little Mermaid
Disney's Aladdin: A Musical Spectacular
Even if your family doesn't normally attend live theater, these productions are worth making time for. The costumes, music, sets, and special effects were impressive, and our kids were entertained the entire time.
Disney offers two showtimes each evening to accommodate the different dinner schedules. I believe the shows were around 6:00 PM and 8:30 PM. Since our dinner seating was at 5:45 PM, we attended the later show each night.
Most of the performances lasted about 45 minutes to an hour. While 8:30 PM was a little late for our younger kids, the shows did such a great job keeping their attention that they stayed engaged despite being tired from a full day of fun.
3. Ride the AquaMouse
The AquaMouse was one of our family's favorite experiences on the Disney Wish.
Part water slide and part water coaster, it takes riders over the edge of the ship with special views of the open ocean below. It's a fun mix of Disney storytelling, water slide thrills, and amazing scenery that makes it a unique experience for both kids and adults.
One tip we learned is to plan your rides strategically. Riding early in the day can help you avoid some of the longer waits, but one of the best times to ride is while the ship is in port. Many guests leave the ship to explore, which often means significantly shorter lines than on sea days. We found this to be a great time to enjoy the attraction with less waiting.
4. Check Out Hero Zone
When our kids needed a break from swimming, Hero Zone was a fun place to burn off energy.
This recreation area includes:
Basketball courts
Ping pong
Air hockey
Organized activities
Special events like a giant inflatable obstacle course
Check the daily schedule because activities can change throughout the cruise.
5. See Characters Often
One thing we loved compared to Disney World was how easy it was to meet characters.
Throughout the cruise characters that were available to see were:
Mickey
Minnie
Donald
Daisy
Pluto
Goofy
Chip and Dale
Spiderman
Ant Man
Wasp
Black Panther
Captain Hook
Jack Sparrow
Bluey/Bingo
As well as several princesses including:
Tiana
Cinderella
Rapunzel
Belle
Character lines were generally much shorter than what we've experienced in the Disney parks, and there were opportunities throughout the cruise to see characters in different outfits and settings. Even if you missed one appearance, there were usually several more opportunities to see them later in the cruise. This was especially true for the main characters like Mickey, Minnie, Donald, Daisy and the princesses who seemed to make appearances throughout the sailing. We loved that the character meet-and-greets felt much more relaxed and easier to fit into our schedule than they typically do at Disney World.
6. Save Room for Ice Cream
The cruise ship offers "free" unlimited soft-serve ice cream, which was a huge hit with our kids. I say "free" because you don't pay for it when you get it, but let's be honest, it's probably built into the cost of the cruise somewhere along the way!
No matter where we were headed, it seemed like someone in our family was asking for another ice cream cone. Between pool breaks, afternoon snacks, and evening treats, the kids enjoyed multiple cones throughout the cruise.
The Disney Wish also features an Inside Out-themed ice cream shop that was another favorite stop for our family. Unlike the soft-serve stations, this ice cream does cost extra and is purchased separately. We enjoyed mixing things up with some specialty ice cream creations and fun toppings in between all the soft-serve cones. It was a fun treat and a nice change of pace during the cruise.
7. Enjoy the Rotational Dining Experience
One of the most unique parts of a Disney cruise is the rotational dining system.
During our sailing we enjoyed:
Worlds of Marvel
Arendelle: A Frozen Dining Adventure
1923
Pirate Night
Each restaurant offered its own atmosphere, entertainment, and menu while allowing us to keep the same dining team throughout the cruise.
It was fun experiencing a different restaurant each night because every dinner felt unique. From the interactive Marvel experience to celebrating Anna and Kristoff's engagement at Arendelle with Elsa, Olaf, and friends, there was always something new to look forward to.
One thing we especially loved was keeping the same wait staff throughout the cruise. By the second night they already knew our preferences, remembered our kids, and went above and beyond to make every meal special. They truly got to know our family and spoiled us beyond measure. It was one of those little touches that made the Disney cruise experience feel extra magical.
8. Enjoy the Pools, But Know What to Expect
There are multiple pools on the Disney Wish, giving families several places to cool off and have fun throughout the day. The pools are fairly shallow, with depths ranging from about 2 to 4 feet.
Our kids still had a blast splashing around and playing in the water, but it's a little different than spending time at a typical neighborhood pool. Because the pools are smaller, fairly shallow, and shared by thousands of guests, they can get crowded during peak times. Due to the shallow depths, the pools are more for splashing, playing, and cooling off than they are for traditional swimming.
Families with younger children will also appreciate the Toy Story-themed splash area designed for kids ages 4 and under. It features fun water play elements and gives little ones their own space to splash and explore.
That said, the pools and splash areas were a great way for our family to cool off, relax, and have fun between all the other activities happening around the ship.
9. Download the Disney Cruise Line App
One hidden gem on the Disney Wish is an interactive game built into the Disney Cruise Line app.
Families can complete missions, search for clues throughout the ship, and interact with special displays using their phones.
Our kids loved hunting down the locations and completing the challenges. It became a fun activity whenever we had a little downtime between other events.
10. Don't Try to Do Everything
This might be our biggest piece of advice.
There is so much happening every day that you simply won't be able to do it all—and that's okay.
Pick the experiences your family is most excited about, leave room for spontaneous fun, and enjoy the slower pace. Some of our favorite memories came from moments we never planned.
Final Thoughts
If you're looking for a family vacation that combines Disney magic with a more relaxed pace, the Disney Wish is a great choice. Between the incredible entertainment, character experiences, themed dining, kids clubs, and family activities, there was never a shortage of things to do. At the same time, it felt much less stressful than trying to fit everything into a Disney World vacation.
The Disney Wish created so many special memories for our family, and it's a trip we would happily recommend to any family considering their first Disney cruise.