Complimentary Items for Kids on a Disney Cruise Ship
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Every great Disney cruise begins with an idea; that moment when you and your family decide that your next adventure will be sailing on board one of Disney’s ever growing fleet of ships. Regardless of the itinerary that you select, each Disney Cruise will feature world class shows and entertainment, delicious food, and unparalleled service.
During the booking process, you’ll have the opportunity to provide Disney with important details about your family and begin to make special requests for items that will help your little ones feel at home, even while they’re away. Once you officially board the ship, you can speak with Guest Services for additional assistance and inquire about other items that can’t be reserved during booking, but are still available to guests on a first-come, first-served basis.
In this post, I’ll share with you all of the items that we were able to request directly from Disney Cruise Line during our vacation to make our trip with little ones more comfortable.
Disney Cruise Stateroom Sleeping Arrangements and Available Extras
This information will vary based on the type of stateroom, so please keep that in mind! On our trip, we stayed in a Deluxe Family Oceanview Stateroom with a Verandah on the Disney Fantasy. For the purposes of this post, I’ll keep this as a brief overview of the sleeping arrangements. If you’re looking for a more in-depth look, be sure to check out my full stateroom tourhere.
Our stateroom featured a queen-size bed, a pull-down sofa bed, and an additional pull-down bed from the ceiling (similar to a bunk bed) that’s accessed by a ladder. The sofa bed worked great for my older son, who was 4 at the time of sailing. For my younger son, who was 1 ½, we were able to request a Pack n’ Play.
The Pack n’ Play comes with a clean set of sheets and the thin pad that’s standard with most Pack n’ Plays. Your Stateroom Host will set it up for you, and can either take it down each morning or leave it set up for naps. We chose to keep it set up since there was still plenty of space to move around the room.
For my older son, I was able to request bed rails, which helped him feel more comfortable at night. Our Stateroom Host set up his bed each evening with sheets, blankets, pillows, and the bed rails. In the morning, he removed everything so that we could use the sofa during the day. The bed pulls down horizontally from the couch and is closest in size to a twin bed. It ended up being the perfect setup for my 4-year-old, and he slept great the entire trip.
Dining with Kids on a Disney Cruise
Before getting into the details, I want to make a quick note about Disney Cruise Line’s rotational dining. Each night of your cruise, you’ll rotate between the main dining restaurants on board, but your assigned dinner time will remain the same throughout your trip. When booking your cruise, you can request either the earlier or later dining time, and your assigned time will be confirmed prior to sailing.
There are typically two seating times: an earlier seating around 5:45 PM and a later seating around 8:15 PM (times can vary slightly, so be sure to confirm in the Navigator app). The earlier seating time is very popular, especially amongst families with little ones. If you end up selecting the later seating time, there is a chance to speak with a Cast Member once on board the ship, but there are no guarantees that they can switch you. Take special note of this choice when booking your trip!
In addition to your dinner seating time preference, this is also the point during the booking process when you can request a high chair. Your family will be assigned a table ahead of time for dinner each night and your server will ensure that if you requested a high chair(s) it will already be set up for you upon arrival. You will also find a large number of high chairs available on Deck 11 where the Quick Service dining options are located. Additionally, we found high chairs available for use in Cabanas (on the Disney Fantasy) which is where buffets for breakfast and lunch can be found.
Guests are permitted to bring baby food jars on board the ship in their carry-on bags, provided that they are in the original manufacturer’s packaging, and are unopened. As another option, you can speak with your Server while at dinner and request fresh pureed vegetables at no additional cost. You can also request them by contacting room service.
Bottle Feeding Essentials on a Disney Cruise
My younger son was still drinking a bottle at night and in the morning at the time of our sailing. He doesn’t like cold milk, but bringing your own bottle warmer from home is not permitted.
After doing a bit of research, I found that Disney Cruise Line does offer a limited number of approved bottle warmers that can be requested once you’re on board the ship, at no additional cost. They’re available on a first-come, first-served basis, but we had no trouble stopping by Guest Services after dinner on our first night to request one.
If a bottle warmer is unavailable, you can also request hot water to be delivered to your stateroom at any time through room service.
In addition to bottle warmers, you can also request a bottle sterilizer from Guest Services once you board the ship. If you prefer to clean bottles yourself, or if a sterilizer is unavailable, I brought this travel bottle cleaning kit with us and it worked out perfectly.
There are two collapsable drying racks, a bottle brush, straw brush, and nipple brush. It also comes with a small pump bottle so you can bring your own soap. The inside tray is removable to help drain water, and the entire thing is compact enough to easily fit inside your diaper bag or suitcase.
Diaper Changes on a Disney Cruise
At the time of booking, you’ll provide Disney with the ages of any children traveling with you. Based on that information, Disney may automatically include helpful items in your stateroom—like a diaper pail.
I didn’t see an option to request one ahead of time, so I was fully prepared to stop by Guest Services once after boarding. However, I was pleasantly surprised to find that one was already set up in our room when we arrived.
Your Stateroom Host will also take care of emptying and replacing the bags throughout your stay, which is incredibly helpful and appreciated.
Strollers and Wagons at Castaway Cay and Lookout Cay
Our itinerary included stops at both of Disney’s private islands: Castaway Cay and Lookout Cay at Lighthouse Point. To help families with little ones, Disney offers a limited number of strollers and wagons at no additional cost on a first-come first-served basis.
At Lookout Cay, there is about a half-mile walk from the ship to reach the tram area, which can feel like a long distance when you’re carrying beach bags and keeping track of little ones.
Wagons are typically lined up as you exit the ship, making it easy to grab one as you walk by. There are also additional strollers and wagons available once you’re on the Islands.
In addition, there are a limited number of beech wheelchairs available, which are designed with special wheels that can be pushed in the sand.
Strollers on a Disney Cruise Ship
Disney does offer a limited number of complimentary strollers that can be requested once you’re on board by visiting Guest Services. While there is no cost to use them, there may be a refundable deposit required, so it’s a good idea to confirm the details when making your request.
We chose to bring our own stroller, and overall, I’m glad we did. It was helpful to have when we needed it and I didn’t have to worry about availability.
That said, strollers can be a bit cumbersome to navigate on the ship, especially when elevators are busy since you won’t be able to take the stairs. However, there were plenty of times when we were just casually exploring and waiting for the elevator wasn’t an issue. Our youngest definitely appreciated having a place to sit and relax.
Just keep in mind that your stroller will need to be stored inside your stateroom.
Final Thoughts
Disney provides a number of complimentary items to help families traveling with little ones on a Disney Cruise. Many of these can be requested ahead of time during the booking process. These include a high chair, Pack n’ Play, and bed rails. This is also a great time to select your preferred dining time.
Once you’re on board, Guest Services can help with additional items like bottle warmers, bottle sterilizers, and strollers. You can also contact room service if you need hot water for warming bottles or freshly pureed vegetables.
We found all of these options to be incredibly helpful, and they made our trip feel that much more relaxed and enjoyable.