Disney Destiny - Day 6: Final Thoughts

Today was possibly the smoothest departure/disembarkation process we've had in recent memory off of a Disney cruise. We got up, packed up the past of our things, headed up to the buffet for some last eats, and headed down to get off by 8:20 or so. The line moved super quickly (btw, we only had a single Key to the World card between us and they still managed to identify us all -- so don't panic if you've packed your Disney bands and lost your key cards 😊). We decided to catch a taxi instead of Uber since there wasn't a taxi upcharge for needing a minivan to fit all of us people and luggage. The actual fare on the meter was about $8.50 to the rental car station but the guy tried to claim he needed minimum $20 for the ride because of port charges etc. It was an obvious lie, but maybe I was just impressed by how easy things had gone all morning so I decided not to fight it and gave him a $20. 

The rental car situation also went very smoothly -- we were packed up and off to Character Warehouse by 8:45 I think. We actually got to the store before it opened and broke out the cards for a bit of Zheng Shang You in the empty mall food court. This was our only card playing during the entire vacation! 

We didn't get a ton at the store, but prices were definitely good compared to anything at the Parks or ship. I bought a teal DCL serving bowl and the twins got matching vintage style Monsters University sweaters. 

By 11 or so, we headed off to Miami -- Baba and I had some work meetings today so we spent the day at the Miami office; the twins went off for more shopping with LaoLao and LaoYe -- they apparently visited a Barnes and Noble -- I didn't even know those still existed IRL. 😆 

We had an 8:15pm flight so everyone slept a good bit on the plane. But generally pretty uneventful last day. 

Thoughts on the cruise!

1) DCL doing well to "grow up" with the twins. Admittedly Destiny was our first Wish-class ship with different activities, but I found myself leaving the ship legitimately wanting to take another DCL cruise. I think it might actually be the twins' interest levels. L deserves a lot of credit for forcing us out into various activities, like Silent Disco, animation, game shows, funnel vision - I think she really was sad that she couldn't go to some of the comedy shows, the lounges, and the adult speciality dining. R on the other hand really enjoyed all the movie watching and especially all the Broadway shows. Between the two of them, I felt like I was always choosing between activities...I only read a book on a lounge chair for maybe 30 min tops all cruise. 

2) Cruising with more people is good. Even though LaoLao and LaoYe weren't exactly the most Disney obsessed people, they added enough variation to interests that we did some things we wouldn't have done without them. Like the stretch class and Serenity Bay. So if you can, I would recommend cruising with more than your nuclear family -- it's just a nice way to spend time together while allowing subsets of folks to explore their own preferred activities. 

3) Food quality - I think I ate at the quick service BBQ at least 4 times. Those ribs were SO good. The dining rooms were fine...but even Enchante didn't leave me wow'd. I think going forward I won't bother with the adult dining rooms anymore (except maybe a Palo brunch for a social experience). I think this is me passing from "must eat the things that are high value!" to wanting to eat the things I actually think are done well. So prime rib, while it was fine, was probably middle of the pack for prime ribs I've had in my life. But those ribs man, so good! Definitely in the top quartile at least. I didn't realize until we left that I could have ordered chicken wings from room service! Next time, that's what I'm doing. I also loved that L and R have grown up enough that they actually order entrees I want to share or try. I think every meal we just rotated plates continuously. 😁 

4) Bahamas/Caribbean cruises -- the main issue is how long it takes to fly here. I really wish one of the bigger ships would come dock on the West Coast. Maybe by the time the twins are 18. They actually told me they preferred the recent Alaska cruise to this one, largely because it was longer and they had their-aged friends on the cruise. I think I preferred it because it was just so much easier to get on and home from the ship! But I can totally see myself doing a Florida cruise again in order to check out one of the other Wish class cruises. Like Treasure maybe. 

5) Crowding -- it was definitely a thing, especially at the shows, good seats required a lot of getting there early. After shows ended elevators also took forever. Baba felt a bit overwhelmed at points. BUT...I think there is quiet to be found if you want that. The adult pool areas were definitely quieter for example. It might also have felt the most crowded in the dining rooms. Because the tables and chairs felt really squeezed together. I think we might consider late seating for meals next time, especially if we cruise from east coast. We all were up until 11 every night anyhow, might as well get the show and dinner seatings with fewer babies and toddlers. 

6) Stateroom strategy - I recently discovered that 12 is the cutoff age for Disney discounting guests 3 and 4 in a stateroom. Meaning when I priced a 4 person balcony room vs. a 2 person balcony and a 2 person interior (across the hall), the difference for two staterooms was only about $400 more. If that pricing holds up, we definitely are going to move to two staterooms going forward. 

7) Photo package & Placeholder. You'd think that we, having almost reached platinum status at this point (two more cruises!) would not need to be reminded of these things...but we totally forgot to check out our photos (I meant to, but we never had time) and Baba forgot to purchase a placeholder (thankfully I had gotten one, but this means we can only get the discount for our own rooms and cant offer any to his friends). We took so many photos too! I almost decided just to keep the $250 package...but having never looked at them, didn't trust that they'd be worth it. Oh well. I think our group shots were pretty decent so I'll just have to happy with those!

8) Conflicting Events. I really wish we had done another back to back after this cruise. There were a bunch of things I didn't get to do that if I had a second cruise, I could have fit them in. Like the Loki takeover, more time on Castaway, catching the Tron movie, going to collect more of the charms, checking out the Haunted Mansion parlor. I actually think I'd prefer two 3 day back to backs over a full 7 day for this reason!

That's all I can think of for now -- in the name of business development -- feel free to email me at zoubavacations@gmail.com if you have more questions about the cruise or would like assistance booking one! 😆 

Next adventure - Mexico City spring break!

Disney Destiny - Day 5: Castaway

Today is our last full day on the ship - sadness. We are at Castaway today...I'm actually not sure how many times we've been to Castaway now. At least 5? Because I think there was one cruise that went here twice...and then we also did the back to back that both visited... So while it's nice, we don't feel so compelled to spend tons of time here or rush out to grab lounge spots. Our plan today was to go out, see the beach, read a bit perhaps under the umbrella, eat the bbq lunch, and then head back to the ship for more activities. 

Plan started out going pretty well...got the Mickey Churro waffles at the buffet...sunscreen'd up...and even took a few shots of the boat along the walkway to the tram. 

Anticipating prime beach time!

Well...when we got to beach, we realized that 1) this ship had a LOT more people...and 2) most of them came out early to stake out lounge spots. So it took us awhile to find some chairs in prime shade zones. Eventually we succeeded!

Well...not quite enough lounge chairs were available, so I took LaoLao over to the adult only Serenity Bay to check that out. It was markedly more peaceful, less crowded, and generally more relaxing. 

Even the food eating was more relaxing. And included grilled to order prime rib! (I'm pretty sure Cookies at the family beach did not serve prime rib). 

Baba has a work call this afternoon though, so he was eager to get back to the ship. I was feeling the ocean breeze and considered staying at the lounge chairs longer. The twins convinced me to brave the water, just to say we went in. This is photo proof that I went in because I was the photographer!

It is always impressive how blue green the water is here. I need to do a RCL cruise to compare cruise line private islands with their Perfect Day at Coco Cay.

At 1:15, we decided to call it for the day in terms of shore time (plus another silent dance party was starting at 3).  R excited to be riding the tram back -- she was a little sad we didn't do snorkeling...but the water was so cold!! Maybe come next cruise...in the summertime...

Since they had gotten a little wet already though, they decided to give the Aqua Mouse a shot (line was only about 10 min long!)

They're smiling...but as soon as they got off they were shivering and teeth chattering. 😆 Warm showers for all! And then off to deck 11 for some pre-dinner funnel vision...I can't believe this was the only 45 min we spent with funnel vision this cruise - a sign 5 nights was not enough!

So bit of a curveball at the end here, I started packing up our stuff...and realized the big suitcase Ian had taken to London had an entirely broken wheel where the plastic was coming apart with a big crack in the outer shell and exposed fabirc. I called Guest Services hoping for some duct tape...they told me to put it outside my door to see if the carpenter could do anything. When they confirmed he could not fix it, they went ahead and delivered us a brand new suitcase! It wasn't quite as nice as the model I had (plus it doesn't match our other bags now), but I was still very impressed with the lengths Guest Services will go to keeping guests lives easy and worry free!

I managed to get two bags fully packed before our last dining room meal. Again, sadness! We were back in Marvel, where the walls this time didn't have trivia but did have screens circling through various Marvel character drawings/renderings. The food...was overall not super impressive..but that might be because we've all gotten majorly stuffed over the course of the cruise. 

Nonetheless, here are some dishes and thoughts - first the appetizers. Mushroom ravioli. Flavor was good, but a little overcooked perhaps? Ravioli was a little hard to chew at times. 

Caprese salad - definitely NOT as good as burata caprese that we make at home. The balsamic glaze was particularly weak. 

The chicken satay -- R wasn't that impressed. The peanut sauce did not meet expectations. 

Lobster bisque - good flavor, low on actual chunks of lobster, but of the appetizers, this was one of the stronger ones. 

Onto the mains - honey salmon with soba noodles. The salmon was decent...but not as tender or flavorful as the ones from the first night. 

Beef Wellington - LaoLao was not a fan -- I think the mushroom paste layer threw her off. Ian thought it was passable. 

My chili crisp chicken salad. I really liked the Asian ponzu dressing. The chicken...was good in a Chinese fast food way. Not a bad choice for those looking for a lighter meal. 

Last dessert round! L has the celebration cake - not bad - 4/5. 

R got the peach pie with ice cream - also a 4/5.

Baba got the blueberry cheesecake -- a little sour, 3/5.

LaoLao got the coffee mousse -- no sugar added - people thought it reminded them of Asian cake frosting. Light, okay, but nothing special. 

LaoYe got the same cheesecake as Baba. Showing it here as the last dessert shot of the cruise!

I got a sundae for once -- chocolate everything!

Tonight was the final show: Frozen, the musical. We have seen Frozen umpteen times now so it wasn't as exciting to us as Hercules, but still enjoyable nonetheless. Shows are where Disney really shines I think. We actually ran into the dance crew practicing their sail away party dance as we were leaving on the last morning -- they work really hard! The dancers are really good!

We did one last activity tonight -- the Heard That game show. I forgot to bring my phone but L's moment of glory was beating this other kid in a lightning round of naming as many Disney Villains as she could. Our team crushed the competition!

Sadly that was the last activity...back to the stateroom...one last night of sleep...tomorrow we head back home!

Disney Destiny - Day 4: Sea Day / Lunar New Year!

Today is Chinese New Year! It's the year of the Horse, or, credits to Gemini, more specifically the year of the Fire Horse - a rare, high-energy, and transformative year. Symbolizing freedom, speed, and passion, this year favors decisive, fast-moving action. It is a time for taking risks, pursuing ambitions, and adapting to rapid changes, but also requires careful management to avoid burnout. 

Because I am always trying to maximize the Chinese heritage connections for the twins, I set up a red envelope exchange with a few other cabins on board who were celebrating as well. Oh my gosh the kids were so cute in their traditional garb! 

After we handed out all of our envelopes, it was almost time for our lunch reservation at adults-only Enchante. The twins had a plan to catch a showing of Zootopia 2, so the four adults headed up to the 13th floor. The entrance is actually the adults only Rose bar/lounge.

It's very quiet, nice chairs, kind of overpriced drinks but I guess that's the cost for the serenity and view!

I'll run through all the food photos because someone might find our review helpful if you go on the Destiny. Or I figure enough folks just like food photos. 😊 

Starts off with these little starters - one was creamy and the other was chickpea based. I think I liked the chickpea one more. High presentation points:

What's a French restaurant without some good bread and butter:

Laoye actually says he prefers his butter pre-salted because he's not very good at using the little salt spoon. They claimed the butter came from 57 different sources? Is that like 57 different...cows? 😆 

Then a second palate cleanser, little radish rolls sitting in a green tomato sauce. Did the job as a palate cleanser I suppose?

Next up was the scallops, which came as three parts - a cerviche:

And an actual scallop along with a foamy soupy thing with bits of charred shrimp and scallop inside. 

Here is the second tasting course, langoustine (had no idea they were this long when fully unshelled!), which was well prepared...but the sauce was a little too salty for us. 

We ordered one tasting per couple and then the second person would supplement with some a la carte off menu items. Here's the chicken dish that Baba picked as one supplement. He said the highlight was the butter foam that he applied liberally to each bite. 

The tasting menu seafood item was some kind of white fish. This was my least favorite dish of the meal. Pretty bland, texture felt a little rubbery, not my thing. 

By contrast, the pigeon pie was really really good. Maybe my favorite item of the cruise -- though I'm always a sucker for foie gras. 

LaoLao chose the lobster supplement here - it was, as expected, quite nice. But when is lobster ever not good, eh? Again, beautiful presentation.

Baba got another add on dish -- Wagyu (which I was surprised wasn't on the main tasting menu). It actually wasn't as memorable to me as the Pigeon Pie. Also, I feel like we've had some very nicely done steaks in the main dining rooms. But Baba seemed to enjoy it. 

And to move towards the end, we had a cheese plate with 5-6 different cheeses (I forgot to take a photo of, but my favorite was the goat cheese with honey and LaoLao and LaoYe preferred the blue cheese. 

And finally, dessert, which was this chocolate thing that was WAY too much chocolate. Even for me. 

And of course a number of little bites that we decided to largely pack up and bring to the kids. They were pretty bummed that they couldn't come to Enchante -- maybe this is how Disney gets the kids to come back after 18! 

After our lunch (which, I think because of our half tasting menu, half a la carte selection left us not OVER stuffed), we caught the Maleficent mini show. These shows aren't in and of themselves that impressive...but for people who like theatre and Disney character improv, help the whole cruise feel more immersive in the Villain and Hero stories. 

After that it was time for pin trading. This is when I felt like L & R don't fully appreciate monetary value of things yet. I silently cringed a little everytime they just gave away a pin or traded away a pin we actually bought from a Disney Park - but I guess they can stay innocent and naive kids of privilege a little longer before the real world comes for them eventually!

At this point I was getting a little tired too so Baba and I headed up to the adult only pool area for some quiet reading and resting time. I would have stayed longer except I didn't want to miss today's stretch class. Laolao already went once on the first sea day and said she came out sweating and feeling very challenged. I am proud to say my splits were the closest to the ground. 😁 

After stretch class we were headed to dinner, back to 1923. L got the beef with sweet potato mash. 

R got a really lovely chicken and tagliatelle mushroom sauce entree (she added salt, but after that it was very good -- would recommend!).

I opted for the duck breast salad -- the vegetable in the salad and the dressing sauce were actually really nice..but the duck wasn't for me. A little too thicky sliced and gamey for me. 

Our server came by to show us another card trick (the first one last night I was a little meh on but this one was very impressive!)

In honor of New Year, we all helped Baba with his wine package (he bought a 3 bottle package, which we weren't sure would be a good deal at first but we are now already into the last bottle). 

Classic family shot! I am glad all the outfits worked out so well.

Some more food shots from dinner - here is the apple pie. Laolao and Laoye liked it better than the lava cake because it wasn't as sweet.

Sweetness not a problem for R! She thoroughly enjoyed the lava cake. 

L opted for the mint chocolate chip sundae today. And she finished it all before I could turn back from phototaking to ask for another bite. 

This was the sugar free option -- a chocolate mousse thing I believe? I actually liked this more than the lava cake. Perhaps my taste buds are losing their sweetness tolerance - horrors!

Moving backwards -- here's the chilled dill marinated shrimp - not bad but I think I've concluded Disney does shrimps pretty well so they're all starting to blend taste wise. 

Baked oysters! Low on oysters, heavy on breading. But overall decent. Would recommend if you like oysters.

Baba went for the three cheese souffle - he liked it, he describes it as cheese on cheesy shortbread.

Since we got all dolled up, we had to get some more backdrop photos.  Nighttime Destiny:

And lucky gates:

The twins liked their dresses enough that they kept them on all evening. The rest of us swapped back to normal clothes.  Tonight was an encore performance by Bradley and Hiba for adults only - Baba actually though Hiba was better - both quite impressive still.  

The towel animal today - Wall-E (Baba originally thought this was Baby Yoda 😆):

L really wanted to go to the silent dance party...I think she underestimated how embarrassing Baba and Mama could be:

I would have stayed longer except I didn't know most of the songs (you'd think they would have one channel that only does Disney tunes or something!)

So after 10 minutes or so we called it quits to catch the second half of Hercules again. I do really like that show. Except for the Phil parts, those are both musically not as interesting and hard to understand. 

After the show we decided to check out the Family Game Show (alas, we did not get picked). Maybe next cruise! 

At this point it's 11pm and time for bed. Tomorrow is Castaway!