There are plenty of little things you can worry about before a Disney cruise that really aren’t worth losing sleep over. Luggage tags didn’t arrive? That can be fixed at the port. Forgot to pack something? There’s a good chance you can live without it.
But showing up without the right citizenship documents? Flying into town the morning your cruise leaves? Losing track of ship time while you’re enjoying a port? Those mistakes can turn into much bigger problems.
On this week’s DCL Show, Chris Vorobek and Elaine Edwards are talking about the Disney Cruise Line mistakes that really do deserve your attention before you leave home.
Start With Your Travel Documents
Chris calls citizenship documents the “F1 key” of cruise planning because questions about passports, birth certificates, and other required documents come up constantly.
Elaine sees travelers spend months thinking about their ship, stateroom, excursions, and even matching outfits, only to start investigating documentation requirements a few weeks before sailing. That’s one detail you don’t want to leave until the last minute.
Requirements vary depending on your citizenship and itinerary, especially when traveling internationally. Chris and Elaine strongly recommend checking the official requirements for your specific trip early and then checking them again just before you leave. And yes, make sure you have the actual documents with you, not a photo stored on your phone.
Traveling with a child who isn’t yours can add another layer of paperwork. Chris was preparing to do exactly that, so he and Elaine also discuss what grandparents, family friends, and parents traveling without the other parent should investigate before heading to the port.
Don’t Fly In on Embarkation Day
Elaine doesn’t leave much room for debate on this one. If you’re flying to your embarkation port, she recommends arriving at least one day early and giving yourself even more time for international departures.
Flights get canceled. Weather happens. Bags go missing.
Elaine has firsthand experience with that last one. Her luggage once failed to arrive when she did. Had she flown in the morning of her cruise, she would have boarded without her clothes, her belongings, or, perhaps most horrifying of all, her pirate outfit.
Know When You Need to Be Back Onboard
Getting off the ship in a port is one of the best parts of cruising, but Chris and Elaine have a warning here too: know what time the ship is using and exactly when you need to be back.
Elaine learned that lesson during a Disney Wonder sailing when she discovered “all aboard at 5:30” did not mean casually strolling toward the ship at 5:25. Her group ended up being the last passengers back onboard.
She tells the full story during the show, including what happened when another person in their group was still out exploring. Let’s just say you don’t want to see crew members coming to look for you.
Some Rules Aren’t Negotiable
Chris and Elaine also get into travel insurance, medical needs, dietary restrictions, final payment deadlines, prohibited items, pregnancy restrictions, and minimum ages for infants. Some of these situations can be handled with a little advance planning. Others are rules Disney simply isn’t going to bend.
The point isn’t to make you nervous about everything that could possibly go wrong. It’s actually the opposite. Take care of the handful of things that really matter, and you can spend a lot less time worrying about the rest.
Watch this week’s DCL Show below as Chris and Elaine share the mistakes they’ve seen, the close calls they’ve experienced themselves, and what you can do to keep them from happening on your Disney cruise.
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