Unfrozen Winter Winners Enjoy Their Disney Cruise

You may remember the charming Hall family who won our Unfrozen Winter contest earlier this year by submitting a picture of their creative snowman. Check it out! 

Atmostemp Service Experts sent the winners on a Disney Cruise and provided airfare for four. Mom and Dad (Rebecca and Bradley) took their two oldest youngsters, Korbin and Brooke, on their Disney Cruise in July this year. Korbin and Brooke had never been on a cruise before and Rebecca and Bradley hadn’t been in about 10 years. 

“I can’t even begin to tell you how much fun we had and how seriously unbelievable everything was,” wrote Rebecca. “It was a getaway we could have never taken on our own. Disney does cruising right!” 

The Hall family was kind enough to send over their itinerary and some pictures from their awesome trip. If you’re interested in taking a Disney Cruise, or just want to find out what it’s all about, read on to see the highlights from the Hall’s experience. 

Monday

We sailed for 2 days (Saturday and Sunday) and then ported in Tortola, British Virgin Islands. We booked a Catamaran and went out with a few other families all day. It was Korbin and Brooke’s first time snorkeling and they loved it. We spotted turtles and stingrays – it may have been the most fun experience of the entire trip! 

Tuesday

We went from Tortola to St. Thomas in the American Virgin Islands, where we got to snorkel even more, went swimming, and hung out on the beach. The water was actually that turquoise blue you always see in pictures – truly picture perfect. 

 

Thursday

We sailed all day Wednesday and then got off at Castaway Cay, Disney’s Private Island. The water was very blue and had clear visibility below, so of course - more snorkeling! They had hidden Mickey Mouses you could look for underwater, which made up for not having as many fish. They also include an adults-only beach which we enjoyed while the kids played basketball, pool, and shuffleboard. They had people everywhere to watch the kids so we (Bradley and Rebecca) relaxed and drank a daiquiri. It’s like a floating Disneyland! 

Aboard

I (Rebecca) get goosebumps reminiscing about everything on the boat – it was all so fun and unforgettable! Disney Cruise Line has a “Midship Detective Agency” where you pick the mystery you want to solve and Disney gives you a card so you can write down all your clues. When you put the card up to a painting, it comes alive – it talks to you, tells you about the mystery you are trying to solve, and gives you clues and directions. One mystery took us two hours because we were running all over the ship. 

They are always playing first-run movies out around the pool so we got to see Big Friendly Giant, Alice Through the Looking Glass, Jungle Book, and Finding Dory. We also got to go on the Aqua Duct, which is a large slide that shoots you up and down and swings you out over the boat! 

We went Goofy Golfing and the cruise also has games like foosball, basketball, and a Tween Club called Edge with things like scavenger hunts, ice breakers, and more. 

It’s really easy to see characters on the ship – you only have to wait three or four minutes versus a half-hour or more at Disneyland. We met about two a day, and one day we hit five in a row! They also have multiple versions of the characters, like Captain Mickey, Traditional Mickey, etc. 

The actual room was amazing! We had an ocean view room with a large porthole and window seat. The room was a really great size and all four of us were comfortable and never felt squished. 

Dining

You rotate through three restaurants. Enchanted Garden has cool flower lights on the ceiling that open and close and the colors on the ceiling change during your meal and Royal Court was very elegant and made me think of Cinderella. The food is very gourmet and they have a great selection. Korbin tried everything, including escargot at the Royal Court. (He told us it tasted like dirt!) 

Animators Palette is animation-themed and they leave markers on your table so you can draw a figure. They give you directions on how to draw a figure, then they collect the drawings and at the end of your meal, they animate your drawings on the wall. You have no warning! They put them to music and put them in Disney movies. Brooke is our artist so she worked really hard on hers and was thrilled – the rest of us weren’t quite as polished 

“We can’t thank Service Experts enough for this once in a lifetime vacation,” Rebecca wrote after they returned from their cruise. “I tear up when I think about the experience as a whole. Submitting an entry I never thought would go anywhere, hearing we were a finalist, the nail-biting voting round, the big win, planning and choosing which cruise, the excitement of going and finally experiencing an amazing vacation. It was such a fun time living it all. We are so grateful!” 

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