Over a year ago, Adam and I decided to rip the bandaid off our “never travel with kids policy” and booked a Disney cruise. We were originally slated to go in January 2019, but someone decided to have open heart surgery so we postponed our plans until November. To add to the fun, Adam and I kept it a surprise from the kids.

Our surprise plans paid off!! We woke the kids up early for “school,” and as we were passing their empty elementary, Eli said “Wait, we’re going to be like… the first ones here.” See what happened after that in this video.  They all had the absolute best reactions!

Our flight left at 7:45am from Fargo and we had a long layover in MSP. It worked out well as we weren’t rushed and the kids were able to eat and wander. Perhaps the highlight of the day was seeing two comfort dogs at the airport and the kids talking the ears off their owners.

Friday night we stayed in the Hyatt Airport Hotel– super nice and super convenient. We ordered room service to our hotel room as there was no way I was going out in public with Claire again. Let’s just say she had had a long day.

Day 1–

Our travel agent arranged everything and I’m so glad we had her. By staying at the Hyatt, we were able to easily board the shuttle that would bring us to the port. Seeing the ship (the Fantasy) for the first time was truly breathtaking. In our first taste of Disney magic, we made it through the massive check-in line and were immediately called to board (versus waiting in a huge group of people).

If you’ve met Sam, you know who his favorite princess is. She is also his favorite person of all time, and I love it. The one and only… CINDERELLA. And wouldn’t you know, but within 15 minutes of boarding this beautiful ship… she was the first Princess we saw. Eli excitedly yelled to Sam and they peered over the railing in amazement.

Sam was so excited to meet her and naturally, I cried. The trip truly couldn’t have started any better. (It got worse, haha) Several people have asked me what the highlight of our cruise was – and this is the first thing I mention.

The rest of Day 1 was spent checking out the pools, decorating our doors, unpacking, and meeting our dining room team and stateroom attendant.

Oh, and Anna and Elsa sprinkled us all with some holiday cheer/snow.

Day 2–Day At Sea

This was a “Day at Sea.” The kids spent a good chunk of the day rotating through the Oceaneer Club (kids club), although never at the same time. A lot of the day was spent walking around the ship and getting a feel for everything.

This was also our cruise’s Formal night. We got zero pictures as a family, but it was so much fun to see everyone all dressed up. The wait staff and the characters were all in their formal attire too.

Day 3–Cozumel

This was our first port of call. Our cruise was a Western Caribbean Itinerary and our first stop was Cozumel. We wanted an easy beach day where all of our kids could do something together (Claire’s age -4-was prohibitive for a lot of the excursions). We opted for Beach break. I wouldn’t do it again. It was fine… but it just felt very gimmicky and the Cozumel port was super annoying as it was a very long walk to our shuttle bus and we had to walk through an open air mall.

That night Adam and I had our only alone night of the entire cruise. We booked a dinner at one of their adults only restaurants – Remy. It was INCREDIBLE. I can’t say enough good things about Remy (although we did not get to try Palo).

After our dinner, we picked the kids up and headed back to our room. On the way, we spotted Santa and Sam wouldn’t rest until he had met him. It was worth it.