06/11/2026
It's trip report day! We're back from our Disney World + Disney Cruise combo, so grab your popcorn and settle in because I'll tell you allllll about it.
✨ Day 1 - Travel + Typhoon Lagoon + Disney Springs
We took an early flight from Dallas to Orlando, picked up our rental car, and drove straight to Typhoon Lagoon because apparently we don't believe in easing into vacations. Pro Tip: Make a better lunch plan than I did. Someone was very hangry upon park entry and that someone was me. It set a terrible tone until my sweet chili aioli chicken strips and paloma fixed everything. We rented an umbrella since we wouldn't be getting there early enough to get a shaded spot. Turns out, they are very strict about the 4 person rule, and trying to use it with 5 made me more anxious than it was worth. No more umbrella rentals for us. We only stayed for a few hours of slides and the overly aggressive wave pool, and while we had fun, it wasn't the best way to start this trip.
We drove to the Grand Floridian to get settled and showered, and our room was gorgeous, as was the view! That said, we discovered that we are not Grand Floridian people. We are Riviera and Polynesian people. And now we know!
I bought the Quick Service Dining Plan since we were only there for 2 nights, so we made good use of our credits for dinner at Disney Springs! First of all, I am obsessed with Polite Pig with dining plan credits. (Cedar Plank Salmon! Crispy Brussel Sprouts! Jalapeno Cornbread! Polite Slaw! Sweet Tea Old-Fashioned!) Two of us ordered burgers and shakes to go from D-Luxe Burger, and three of us were smarter and ordered Polite Pig, where we all ate in glorious air conditioning.
✨ Day 2 - Hollywood Studios
I already did a full report on this day (scroll back a couple posts), but we rope dropped and called it an early evening. It was a really great day though and we loved the new Muppets version of Rock 'n' Roller Coaster! We did not love eating at Docking Bay 7 for dinner - one and done but worth trying since it was "free" on the dining plan.
✨ Day 3 - Drive to Ft. Lauderdale and Embark on the Disney Destiny!
We left around 7:30 am for the 3.5 hour drive to Fort Lauderdale. I may or may not have gotten lost trying to return our rental car after dropping everyone off at the port. Whoops. But we made it for our 11:30 am Port Arrival Time!
Lunch was at Pride Lands, and I will forever recommend doing a sit-down lunch on embarkation day to calm down after boarding (buffets are stressful!). Then we unpacked, explored the ship to get our bearings (with a pit stop at the Hero Zone for air hockey and foosball), and hit the pool deck for the sail away.
✨ Days 3 - 6 - Cruise Highlights + Lowlights
HIGHLIGHTS:
◼️ The Hero Zone (sports courts, air hockey, foosball)
◼️ Sliding down the slide to the kids clubs to use the handwashers, lol (nostalgia for my big kids, ha!)
◼️ Donut sundaes at Worlds of Marvel
◼️ Snorkeling at Lighthouse Point
◼️ My new cookie sundae hack on the islands
◼️ Haunted Mansion Parlor (creepy-cool bar straight out of the ride)
◼️ Palo Dinner (!!!) - adult-only dining, and now I can't decide if I like brunch or dinner better!
◼️ Chocolate and Liquor Tasting (the best tasting DCL offers, imo!)
◼️ Disney Hercules show
◼️ Dr. Facilier's Parlor (hard-to-get, no-phones-allowed private magic show! well worth waiting in line for)
◼️ Filet Mignon at 1923 (our entire family's favorite meal - aside from Palo for Matt and me, duh)
◼️ Churro Waffles (don't miss these!!!)
LOWLIGHTS:
◼️ Movie theater seats on the new ships aren't super comfy
◼️ I don't love the pool layout on the new ships
◼️ Pride Lands dinner was bleh (and so was the Pirate Night menu but we already knew that, and Matt and I skipped it for Palo - *sorry, kids*)
◼️ Rainy day at Castaway Cay (and really disappointing food quality - Lighthouse Point was so much better)
◼️ I forgot my popcorn bucket!!!!
✨ Day 7 - Travel Home
We really did have an AMAZING time, and even the teenagers all loved it. But they kicked us off the ship on the last day, so we had to go home, womp womp. We took a Lyft from the port to the airport, and the vehicle was so gross and reminded me why I prefer private, pre-arranged transportation, ugh. Also, I was a cheapskate and booked a flight with a layover because airfare is dumb right now, but Southwest came in clutch with an earlier (and shorter) standby flight! Hallelujah because FLL is where dreams go to die, and they don't even have a fancy lounge (acknowledging first world problems, don't come at me).
DID YOU MAKE IT THIS FAR?! What else do you want to know? This got a little out of control, so I tried to shorten it, but I'll answer any questions or elaborate on anything you want to know in the comments!
