To call my latest journey a road trip isn't quite correct. A road trip brings up visions of long stretches of highway, quaint sleepy towns, grand cities and the unique people you meet while in route. My experience over the past weekend was more of a canned escaped. Kelleigh, her niece, nephew, mother and I all hit the high seas for a four day Disney Caribbean cruise.
I can already hear the ughhhhs and snickering. When I was approached with the opportunity to take the trip I wasn't exactly jumping for joy. Tons of kids in a confined space is not my idea of a great time. All I could think of was being trapped in an over marketed, surgery sweet, oh too cute, floating kids paradise. However after doing some research and understanding that for family you bite the bullet, I packed my bags and headed for a weekend with the world's most famous rodent.
After doing some detailed research I expected very few surprises on the cruise. I figured the Disney masterminds majored in efficiency and quality. I knew the cruise would lean toward the higher end in terms of food, entertainment and services. Obviously, the kids would think it was heaven on earth.
If you have kids between the ages of 3 and 15 this cruise is designed for you. No surprise! I'll cover just a few of the magical details. Everyone assumes Disney is structured to wow the kids. The true surprise is how they take care of adults. I should have known. After all who is paying for all this fun? Certainly not little Johnny. Mommy and daddy are the ones floating the big bucks and it's in Mickey's best interest to please the hand that feeds. Parents are
provided with plenty of time without kids under foot. The efficient staff runs more than enough kiddie activities from morning to night. If your kids get very involved and spend hours doing activities you may actually forget you have kids. The little angels can play, learn, explore, experiment and take in tons of entertainment for hours on end. All this is done under the watchful eye of the meticulous care givers. As a parent you are given a pager in case of emergency or if it's time for the fun to end. This sets up the perfect opportunity to do all the loving family activities, then drop off the kids for adventure time with their peers. That allows mom and dad to have their fun time. Perfect! The adult fun: bars, nightclubs, spas, restaurants and alcohol were all hugely promoted. Even though I don't have children I can fully appreciate why people who do need a drink and some alone time. Since Kelleigh and I were there as added support for her mom with the kids we had some great opportunities to enjoy those adult amenities. I knew Disney could create a mega party. My real concern. What's on the beer list?
provided with plenty of time without kids under foot. The efficient staff runs more than enough kiddie activities from morning to night. If your kids get very involved and spend hours doing activities you may actually forget you have kids. The little angels can play, learn, explore, experiment and take in tons of entertainment for hours on end. All this is done under the watchful eye of the meticulous care givers. As a parent you are given a pager in case of emergency or if it's time for the fun to end. This sets up the perfect opportunity to do all the loving family activities, then drop off the kids for adventure time with their peers. That allows mom and dad to have their fun time. Perfect! The adult fun: bars, nightclubs, spas, restaurants and alcohol were all hugely promoted. Even though I don't have children I can fully appreciate why people who do need a drink and some alone time. Since Kelleigh and I were there as added support for her mom with the kids we had some great opportunities to enjoy those adult amenities. I knew Disney could create a mega party. My real concern. What's on the beer list? 
The quick answer is, nothing amazing. However, they are attempting to appease beer fans. I've been on other cruises (Royal Caribbean) and the Disney cruise, while not great for beer, was my best oceanic beer experience. First I'll get the obvious out of the way. The AnheuserBuschInBev and SABMillerMolsonCoors morphing beasts rule the se
as. So Bud, Bud Lig
ht, Michelob Amber Bock, Bass, Stella Artois, Beck's, Miller Light and Coors Light were front and center. Next you have Heineken International: Heineken, Heineken Light and Amstel Light. What's left you ask? Corona, Guinness (draught can) and Sam Adams Boston Lager. I may be forgetting a couple. All beers: draft, bottles and cans ran between $5 and $6.50. OK, so no surprises. For me there were a few safe choices. Boston Lager (the craft go to beer in a macro world), Guinness (old standby) and Bass (older standby). Lucky for me the wine, scotch and bourbon lists were noticeably better. I also made sure to grab a couple Guinness Foreign Extra Stouts while in Nassau. This version of the stout brewed for the Caribbean is a slightly sweeter, stronger version of Guinness Extra Stout. The Foreign Extra was a treat. The real surprise was a scheduled beer tasting listed on our second day activities sheet.
When I inquired about the beer tasting guest services only knew the cost ($12 per perso
n). "Sorry sir n
o other details are available." I assumed the samples covered beers available on the ship. With that, I opted out. Later I overheard that several micro/craft beers were sampled. I never confirmed the supposed good beer sighting. I'll just have to wonder if my choice to sit out was the right one. It's still safe to say that the Disney Cruise Line is currently no craft beer paradise. They cater to Mr. and Mrs. Average American, thus the beer list is what it is. The shining ray of hope is that any type of beer tasting is done. A few years ago only wine sampling classes were offered. Who knows, continuous classes full of knowledgeable people asking for good beer may lead to more craft choices besides Sam Adams. Then the Disney cruise may truly become the happiest place on earth.
n). "Sorry sir n
o other details are available." I assumed the samples covered beers available on the ship. With that, I opted out. Later I overheard that several micro/craft beers were sampled. I never confirmed the supposed good beer sighting. I'll just have to wonder if my choice to sit out was the right one. It's still safe to say that the Disney Cruise Line is currently no craft beer paradise. They cater to Mr. and Mrs. Average American, thus the beer list is what it is. The shining ray of hope is that any type of beer tasting is done. A few years ago only wine sampling classes were offered. Who knows, continuous classes full of knowledgeable people asking for good beer may lead to more craft choices besides Sam Adams. Then the Disney cruise may truly become the happiest place on earth.
3 comments:
I was surprised at how adult friendly the Disney cruise was as well. I enjoyed it. The pub where they had the tasting (which is a good time) also has most of the stuff available at all times (when it is open that is). Anywho, I hope you enjoyed the cruise.
We had a great time. Although it was a short voyage it was one of the better cuises I've been on.
been on a cruise to Bermuda, and also Alaska and saw the same thing beer-wise unfortunately. Disney doesn't sound above the curve from my experience.
sounds like that "beer tasting appreciation class" thing is taking a step in the right direction but think they are "missing the boat". if they threw in a few dozen cases of some craft beer I guarantee they would be sold. Even "joe average beer drinker" would probably try some of them while on vacation and there should be enough craft beer lover where they would sell them all (and probably for $1.00 more)!
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