I agree with everyone. It’s just that the more cruises you take, the pirate night looses its appeal. And the menues that day are gross. The excitement of everyone is fun though.

My preference is to board early, go directly to lunch at Triton’s, hit the muster station, done. I don’t like Pirate Night either. Good time for Palo or room service.

I agree Craig, I also hate pirate night. I have done 27 cruises though. I hate the menu always try for Palo that night.

Where does this man keep getting all these incredible shirts! Love Pete’s look this week.

10 DCL cruises and 10 visits to Serenity Bay and we still enjoy it. The last cruise in February we stopped at the family beach because there were very few people there. Really enjoyed it. Have never waited long for the food at Serenity Bay and the one bathroom is big enough for everyone.

Great video, especially the reviews about the family & serenity beaches.

Great discussion on this topic. Could you also do something like this on the excursions on the island?

I agree with Elain. If you are first on, your room will not be ready and you have to drag all of your stuff. We got on around 1:30 or 2. I scheduled a later time so that our room would be ready. We did the welcome aboard show (covid changes were still in effect) and went streight to our room and dropped off our carry on bags. WE Did our master drill, and grabbed some food from Cabanas, took it back to the room, and watched sail away from our balcony. There was no party, but it was such a great way to start our trip, we might still get started the same way next time.

I do not enjoy the shorter cruises. I feel the first day on the ship is a rush, anxiety-ridden, as you are trying to get settled, and as soon as you are settled, the cruise is over. With that said, cruising concierge eliminates some of that "stress." if your goal is to climb the ranks to Platinum, it is a quicker achievement. I also like to book a B2B if you are looking for a double-dip to Castaway.

Totally agree with Pete about serenity bay. We went over on podcast cruise to see it and turned right around and went back to family beach. There’s only the one place to eat and it had a long line (no line on family side) and heard people complaining about there only being one bathroom. It looked way more crowded then family beach. Plus there is much more to do around the family beach.

We had a late arrival time a few weeks ago and didn't love it. No time for the Oceaneer open house, buffet was closed, and we felt a little rushed. It was like there was no time to do much before the Sail Away. I did like breezing through the embarkation though! And omg, I LOVE Pirate Night. I go all out on the outfit and got a "my lady" and a hat tip from Jack Sparrow! Not in love with the PN menu, it's always the same...

I was originally upset about the Dream moving down to Miami to make way for the Wish until I saw the price of cruises sailing out of Miami.

I’m looking forward to pirate night. I dig seafood so that menu appeals to me. Elaine you’re a rockstar

I agree with Erica, I went on my first Disney Cruise back in February and I wasn’t wow by the AquaDuck I thought it was relaxing but I think they need another slide that’s more thrilling. I also agree with Pete, Serenity Bay is not that great the water is really shallow and is not my cup of tea. I also agree that PAT time for me doesn’t break or make my vacation.

I think aqua “coaster” is a misnomer. More like an elevated lazy river with a few fast sections.

Going on my 3rd cruise in October. Can’t wait

UMMMM! Elaine, I am that client who has to be on the ship ASAP, and cruising concierge offers a less stressful boarding process!

Craig, wear a swim rash guard. They make them tight or loose and I’ve always worn one at the Poly. I’ll be wearing one on my cruise and at Castaway Cay

I' with Elaine, love not worrying about it and just showing up whenever, but my vacation starts when I set foot in the airport. I don't care about pirates night either - except for the fireworks... but do we need Pirate Night for that? For me it's a combo of my wife hating it - and the food sucking and not glorifying the blah blah blah... skipping the lecture.

If you need to squeeze into Palo or Remy they hold a few spots for getting it on the cruise when you come in. Reason to come early if you need adjustments too.

I agree with you Pete on Serenity Bay. This April, first time we did an adult only trip, we get to be at Serenity Bay, not a big fan. Too quiet my opinion, lol and everything is far.

Elaine, your take on boarding is SO helpful as a first time Disney cruiser. I also feel like I gotta get on there asap so your perspective is helping me chill :) Also helpful to hear about serenity bay, we will be going with our toddler so I felt like I was really going to miss out on serenity Bay and that food spot Looking forward to episode 2 of this! Great one.

Craig - I had the same experience at CookiesToo with the brisket sandwich. There was a tiny sliver (maybe 1) of brisket, and the rest was coleslaw. I was so disappointed! lol

I just had my first Disney cruise on the Magic ship. It was very nice, but the coffee needs improvement. The coffee taste like instant coffee. Cabana's food is not good either. Reminds me of something you could get at a school cafeteria or hospital. I do like the crab legs though. The rotational dining is a step up better. Palo food is excellent. The service throughout the ship is impeccable. I love the turn down service in the rooms as well.

Pete- you look fabulous! I must be broken too as I agree with Craig- no pirate night for me.

I agree with Elaine. It's a vacation and I just take my time getting on the ship.

Just went on the Dream out of Miami 3 weeks ago. It was my 11th cruise with Disney. So pleased to be Platinum, finally. But very minimal perks. It was the most disappointing cruise we've ever been on. The Senses spa overview on embarkation day was AN HOUR long. Not worth our time. The food in Cabanas was horrendous. Especially breakfast, which I used to love there. I thought all the food was bad in the main dining rooms, and I always despise the meal on PN. Palo was fantastic. We had the best server, Svjetlana. We were her ONLY table that night. And being Platinum, got most of it for free. So we gave her a HUGE tip. Only saw my stateroom host a handful of times on the whole cruise, so never got that personalized service I usually love. Castaway Cay was also really disappointing and we went to Serenity Bay, which I used to love. Where were the evening entertainment they used to have like the magician/comedians? Disney has lost the spark for us. This was definitely not worth what we paid for it. We were going to do our second Disney Alaska Cruise next year, but at 5-6K a person, we will be looking for a different cruise line (Norwegian, I think). I may even sell my 1000 DVC points as I'm that disappointed in Disney anymore.

Yesss! I agree 200% with Pete's opinion about Serenity Bay! And yes, I agree that the food @ Cookies II is much better than Serenity Bay!

We love the cabanas at Serenity. No swirling masses of people. And the snorkeling is easy.

I'd be upset if it was noisy at serenity Bay

I agree, the adults only beach was not impressive. We didn’t bother with the food based on your recommendation. I also didn’t enjoy pirate night. The show with Captain Hook was so obnoxious and repetitive. I understand that they are trying to get the audience involved, but enough already.

I love the snorkeling.

Guy who starts every video "Ahoy Ahoy" hates pirate night. Go figure!

Someone buy Craig a rash guard, then he can keep his shirt on and enjoy the aqua duck.

I really enjoyed your opinions and rebuttals to the opinions.

The AquaDuck is the most boring slide ever, there's so many other ships with better waterslides. It's not even unique, there are better "water coaster" on other cruise lines.

Nope…gotta be first one onboard. Gotta have lunch, unpack, look around…it’s part of the cruise and I feel cheated if I don’t get on that ship. Plus you can grab Palo or other things you missed out on. Serenity Bay needs an upgrade! We did see several huge Star fish on serenity bay and it was quiet👍🏼

Pete- you need to ride the AquaDuck! it is super fun!

I cruised in October 2021. I agree about Serenity Bay except I did like the food. The chairs were like, going downhill. Don’t love that. But people I was with loved it there.

Agree with Craig, Pirate Night, meh....... Serenity Bay, has been different with Covid. As DCL had far less kids and mostly adults with the vaccination requirements, Serenity Bay has been far more crowded and more a "party" atmosphere. Especially in the beginning of the restart. Food is all the same at any of the BBQs. Still love a Cabana on SB.

Can’t say, never been but the coleslaw sandwich is disgusting. They should be ashamed of themselves. I’ll save my money since it seems they are cheaping out on the food. A huge reason people go on cruises.

We weren’t impressed with the buffet and preferred table service as much as possible.

I get it for some re Serenity bay but they have done a lot of work out there, and there were no rocks or seaweed when we went in April, and the water was beautifully clear and we saw loads of starfish and dollars.

Same Elaine. I am an absolute sucker for characters in costumes. Yes, the Family Beach ⛱ is better. A Cabana is well worth the 💰 on Castaway Cay. I say that as someone who does Not love the Beach though. Love the Ocean. Hate the sand. The hammock, mini fridge and sitting area with fan are worth their weight in Gold.

I agree about the Aqua Duck, everyone in our group rode it once and wasn't impressed.

I’ve never been to Serenity Bay but my unpopular take is that Family Beach on Castaway Cay is ALWAYS complete Thunderdome. From trying to get on the tram at the pier, to finding open beach chairs on either beach, to the gross feeling of slimy lukewarm sea grass on the beach bottom, Tto always feeling like you have people on top of you everywhere you turn… I generally don’t have joyful memories of any visit to Castaway Cay. The ONLY part of Castaway Cay I’ve enjoyed is the stingray encounter and swimming around the snorkel park. If I ever end up at Castaway Cay again though I’ll probably just stay on board. Maybe it wasn’t as bad when it was the Magic and Wonder stopping there but the Dream and Fantasy have too many passengers for the way that island is setup. I can’t even imagine what it’s like for people on the Wish now.

I want to be on one of the first to explore the ship and take plenty of photos before it get crowded especially all the ship I booked are the new ships

Only thing about Pirate Night that I like is the midnight buffet afterwards.

I always make time for the aqua duck even having to ride it by myself. The aqua dunk was too intimidating. I only enjoy pirate night if I'm traveling with a multiple-cabin group and we are all dressing-up. The Serenity Bay food is WAAAAAY over-rated. Our last two cruises (since covid), Serenity Bay has been rather crowded. We had to walk way down the beach to find a place to sit. OH, my husband had that "brisket" sandwich with cold slaw instead of meat.

I’m with you Pete!! Serenity was a let down.. I’ll eat on the ship next time

We like to get that early PAT and don't mind hustling to get on board for some of that first day embarkation magic. Don't understand why anyone but a first time cruiser would go to Cabana's for embarkation lunch when you could go to an MDR for a MUCH better experience; the two aren't even close. As for Pirate Night, I'd like the Jack Sparrow show to go away, but Mickey's show and the fireworks are a "can't miss" for us, even tho the crowds are a bit much, especially on the Dream/Fantasy.

Who doesn’t love Pete! You’re the BEST! Loved this show! Craig…I always enjoy your take as well 😃

Do they still do pirate nights on the Christmas cruises?

My unpopular opinion....I don't like Palo brunch 😳 Dinner is better, but the food for the brunch is definitely lackluster. They serve the same crappy steak there as well 🙄

I agree with Craig about Pirate night…if I hear the argggg one more time, lol

I just did the Wonder and my favorite meal was from Tiana’s on pirate day! Go figure 😜

Maybe if you would have told her it was a lazy River and not a water slide she would have been impressed! Lol. Best Lazy River ever! On a hot day that aqua duck is a refreshing cool down slash of the people mover. Now Pete! Please try the aqua duck. You are a major representative of your business, the guy everyone wants to here from. Your reviews are like Simon Cowell. Everyone wants to hear them! Experience new stuff! And while you’re at it get out your comfort zone and Ride GOTG. Everyone will tune in for that show! ! Make it a show about the whole experience. It would be Epic. 😘

Agree about Serenity Bay and the food there.

I love Elaine’s animation 😂

Getting on the ship early? Heck, I don't cruise until October and I'd be happy to stand in line for the ship NOW! LOL! Seriously, we always go Concierge, and we love boarding as early as possible. Most of the time, we can get in our room early - after our champagne and lunch, of course! There is some so exciting about getting on that ship as soon as possible! Most overrated is Pirate Night, but I can see its appeal for families. I sort of agree about the Aqua Duck opinion - it's okay. I've rode it twice. That's sufficient. It's a nice slide, though... just not my favorite thing to do. Love Dreams Unlimited! Have used them since 2013. Our wonderful agent is Beth Fejer, and we always ask for Beth to handle our travel. She's so polite, helpful and patient. The BEST! And I love this show. Thanks, Pete and gang! You keep my enthusiasm strong!

First unpopular opinion, It's NOT worth the money. 2nd Cabanas was HORRIBLE at ALL times. Terrible food. no taste & lukewarm at best. The place rumbled in the ceiling & the soda dispensers hardly worked. Pirate night was lame & thank goodness for our server from Palo and I was able to watch the fireworks from the back patio behind Palo. Serenity bay has so many flies that you can't get up. When I went to get soda, I got back and my food was COVERED in flies not just a few but HUNDREDS. So I threw all my food away & went back to the ship to eat.

Did he really say, “full on wench, huh?” LMAO

As a plus size person I did not like the aqua duck. It was very uncomfortable.

I can’t speak to it and I can’t even go in the pool because of my brace so I can’t even get in the pool physically disabled ❤😊!! Aqua duck is not what I am looking for

We need to join forces and get Pete on the aqua duck.!!! What are you scared of? I send a challenge out to you. Love you guys. Bye.

Oh I can get on it since it’s slow

That "steak" sucks!! LOL

I love Craig’s point of views. They are real and honest. He’s the reason I subscribe.

The time you get on the ship is the time your vacation really start...

Aquaduck worth 15 minutes. Not worth 60 min

100% agree about Serenity Bay

I'm with Craig. Pirate Night🤮

I'm with Craig also. I hate pirate night and wish they would do away with it and come up with something else. The menu is awful, so it is when we always go to Palo. The fireworks - when they do not get cancelled - are meh. It's time to get a new theme for a "special" night.

lol i aint riding that too look at a bunch of people i dont care about. could careless about looking at people walking on decks on swimming. im riding it for some fun. not for the unique perspectives lol jesus

I am so with Craig apart from the fireworks I dislike Pirate Night… and would have liked something different on the new ships 🙈

Craig is a depressing human