A "Dream" of a Trip

I recently attended Disney's annual Earmarked Conference, an event for travel professionals. This year's conference was a little different in that it was held on Disney Cruise Line's newest shining star, the Disney Dream. At 14 decks tall and over 1,115 feet long, she was an impressive sight to see as we pulled into Port Canaveral.

We boarded on Deck 3 and couldn't wait to check out our stateroom. We were on Deck 6 in a Family Oceanview Stateroom with a verandah. One of the greatest features in most staterooms onboard the Dream is that they feature split bathrooms, with one bathroom containing the toilet and sink and the other the tub/shower and sink. Having a tub was wonderful, and having a separate place to get ready while another person in our party showered was invaluable. An added touch is that the beds are raised, so stowing luggage or duffel bags underneath the bed is not problem and frees up precious space in the cabin.

Another really cool feature on this ship are the Wave phones. The portable phones can send and receive phone calls and text messages from other Wave phones when used on board the ship or on Castaway Cay. The phones do not work off the ship other than on Castaway Cay. You can use the device to call other Wave phones on Disney's network, but not to call home. Each stateroom comes equipped with two of the phones; concierge staterooms come with four phones. There is currently no charge to use the service, but you can rent additional units if you need more than come with your room. There is a $250 charge per unit if they are lost or damaged.

Before too long we were off to Deck 12 to ride the newest innovation onboard a cruise ship, the AquaDuck water coaster. In this cruise industry first, guests are propelled through an acrylic tube above the ship and over the water, traveling 765 feet and dropping four decks before emptying the guest into a lazy river.

For the littlest cruisers, there's the 1,500 square foot Nemo's Reef, where they can splash and play to th