The Wish Breaks, the Magic Disappoints, New Castaway Club Gifts, and More!
Mechanical failure keeps Wish at Nassau overnight; Upgrades to the Magic met with a "meh" from some DCL fans; and new Castaway Club gifts introduced
A little later than we’d like this week, but we didn’t want to miss a chance to comment on all the happenings at Disney Cruise Line (DCL) last week. If you are enjoying this newsletter, please be sure to share it with other DCL cruising friends so they can subscribe! You can also help support us and our content by leaving a 5-star review for our podcast (the DCL Duo Podcast) on Apple Podcasts. With that, let’s dive right in!
Who Missed the Check Engine Light?
The Disney Wish suffered an undisclosed mechanical issue to her propulsion system on her April 29, three-night Bahamian sailing. While the ship departed Port Canaveral without incident on Friday, April 29, she struggled with a late arrival into Nassau on Saturday morning (April 30). Guests onboard reported she was moving at slow speed, may have been using her “thrusters” for propulsion, was assisted into port by tug boats, and parked “head-in” which is unusual for DCL. Some reports indicated the Wish may have experienced an issue with her Azipods. The Wish is the first Disney ship to deploy the Azipod technology.
Passengers were ultimately advised that the ship was experiencing a mechanical issue, and its departure from Nassau would be delayed. Regular fireworks were canceled on the evening of April 30 (they did take place on the evening of May 1), as fireworks cannot be set-off while in port, although the “Pirate’s Rockin’ Parlay Deck Party” proceeded as planned. Initial information to guests suggested the ship would leave Nassau late in the evening, so she could make her regular call on Castaway Cay the next morning.
However, on Sunday (May 1), guests awoke to find the ship still docked in Nassau, with no indications of when she might leave. Eventually, guests learned the ship would depart Nassau at 10am that morning (she actually cast lines closer to 10:30am). DCL also advised it would not be calling on Castaway Cay as planned; although DCL cited weather as the cause, rather the mechanical issue. Guests were compensated with a $100 onboard credit (OBC) (per cabin) and a 20% off future cruise credit (FCC) that is good for two years and can be stacked with an onboard placeholder for a total of 30% off (although the FCC is subject blackout dates).
Unfortunately for Disney, two well-known YouTube personalities were onboard, who have now posted a lengthy live video about the experience taking Disney to task over its lack of communication, suggesting weather had nothing to do with the missed Castaway Cay stop (despite gnarly weather in Southern Florida the same day) and saying the compensation offered was insufficient for those who may not be able to afford to sail Disney in the next two years. They also called on their fans to complain to Disney with the hope of changing the provided compensation.
We ran an informal poll both on Twitter and Facebook, and a majority of respondents on both platforms (282 total) disagreed that the compensation was not reasonable.
While we sympathize with those onboard who might not be able to use their FCC and agree it might have been nice for Disney to offer an option for a partial refund or an FCC, the approach Disney took here is nearly identical to what Disney offered impacted guests on the Wonder last year in Alaska when she suffered a propulsion issue that prevented her from making a planned call on Ketchikan (guests there were given a $150 OBC per stateroom, although that was a seven-night sailing). We have a show coming out later this week on this topic where we discuss our thoughts in more detail with a guest who was on the sailing, so stay tuned!
The Magic is Back With a Whole New Groove (Kind of?)
The Magic completed her planned dry dock and returned to service on May 5, with an eight-night sailing that is still underway. In addition to minor refreshes to spaces throughout the ship, major upgrades included:
The new “Soul Cat Lounge” replacing the former Promenade Lounge just outside of Rapunzel’s Royal Table onboard;
The conversion of eleven family verandah staterooms to concierge staterooms onboard, along with upgrades to the concierge one, two and royal suites onboard; and
An expansion and upgrade to the concierge lounge onboard.
The “Soul Cat Lounge” has been met by some DCL fans with a collective “meh.” Early photos (thanks to our listener Carin who is onboard right now for sharing these with us and our listeners) show a jazz-themed bar space with touches of Disney IP from the movie “Soul.” It also features a drink menu with New York and jazz-themed cocktails and non-alocholic concoctions, as well as coffees and “Giant New York Style Zeppole’s” which appear to be similar to the beignets served in the “French Quarter Lounge.”
We would have definitely preferred a “Snuggly Duckling” themed space to tie in with the “Tangled” themed Rapunzel’s Royal Table. That would have been consistent with the upgrade Disney made to the Wonder with the “French Quarter Lounge” augmenting the theming of “Tiana’s Place.” Disney could have also easily updated “Keys” to a “Soul” theme without much effort if they wanted to incorporate that IP into the fleet. Notably, “Keys” is already a piano bar - Joe’s instrument of choice.
That said, we welcome the update to the “Promenade Lounge” whose interior was looking pretty tired, and can’t wait to check out this new space ourselves later this Summer when we sail the Magic out of Miami.
The upgrades to the Concierge Lounge are also welcome, although we were a bit disappointed to see them fall short of the full upgrades that the Wonder received. It looks like Disney has laid the groundwork to complete the full upgrade at a future dry dock, as the outdoor space has been partially enclosed by steelwork resembling a navigator’s verandah. We are excited to see a different layout to the space, and the inclusion of an actual bar space in the lounge, much like the Wish. Lots of photos are circulating online, and we can’t wait to see the space ourselves when we are next onboard.
And you get a lanyard, and you get a lanyard….
Disney announced some new Castaway Club stateroom gifts last week in a post from the Plan Disney Panel on Instagram, timed to the start of the new Pearl Castaway Club tier on May 1. For those new to DCL, the Castaway Club is DCL’s loyalty program that rewards cruisers with special perks that vary by level (Silver, Gold, Platinum and Pearl). The new gifts have been welcomed by many who were growing tired of the traditional sling-bag and newer cooler-bag offerings that have been mainstay stateroom gifts for years.
The new gifts include:
All Castaway Club members will receive a redesigned Castaway Club Key to the World Card lanyard (there is one for each level of the Castaway Club), featuring a fun new Captain Mickey design. Lanyards are typically given one per Castaway Club member, corresponding to their status.
In addition to lanyards, Silver Castaway Club members (those who have taken at least one Disney cruise previously) will also receive an all new tote bag;
In addition to the prior gifts, Gold Castaway Club members (those who have taken at least five Disney cruises previously) will also get a new wet/dry bag;
In addition to the prior gifts, Platinum Castaway Club members (those who have taken at least ten Disney cruises previously) will also get a new beach towel;
In addition to the prior gifts, Pearl Castaway Club members (those who have taken at least twenty-five Disney cruises previously) will also get a pair of insulated champagne wine tumblers.
The new gifts have started showing up across the fleet. We’re excited to see them in person on our next DCL sailing on the Wish in August.
In other news:
DCL’s 25th Silver Anniversary at Sea (SAS) celebrations kicked-off in earnest this past week with decorations in the atriums of some ships across the fleet, a new fireworks display and, of course, new merch!
Speaking of fireworks, some guests have been disappointed to learn that Silver Anniversary at Sea fireworks will only be offered on “select” sailings, not all SAS sailings. DCL’s website currently does not indicate which sailings will have the fireworks, but we are hearing about both three and four night SAS sailings where fireworks are not expected to occur.
On the merchandise front, Disney introduced a new DCL-inspired floating speaker for the SAS. The speaker, which is similar to one offered onboard Carnival Cruise Lines, will cost $120 and is only available for purchase onboard. Note, the same speaker from Carnival costs $70.
Guests are also now reporting special SAS Key to the World Cards are being provided onboard, including a special card for concierge guests.