I’d love to follow that sign right about now…I’ve talked quite a bit about Walt Disney World and Disneyland being closed right now, but I haven’t mentioned Disney Cruise Line all that much. The cruise industry has been hit hard by Coronavirus, but I have no doubt that DCL will bounce back. The two cruise ships that I’ve been on have been the cleanest places that I have ever stayed. Cleanliness is extremely important on a Disney cruise, so much so that you are given a wipe to clean your hands before entering a restaurant. I expect that once cruises are operational again that there will be temperature checks before boarding, at least for a while. I would not hesitate to sail with Disney Cruise Line again once this is over if everything else fell into place.
Currently Disney Cruise Line has suspended all departures through April 28. It’s kind of crazy to think that things will be up and running again in the month of May, so I expect that date to be pushed back. That’s obviously nothing official, just a guess on my part.
The exception to the April 28 date is the Disney Wonder, which is on the West Coast. It has suspended departures through June 29. There are stories floating around that several crew members on the Wonder have tested positive, but I can’t find a reliable source to say for sure. If it is true, I have no doubt that they are being well taken care of. Part of the reason why the Wonder’s dates have been pushed back is because the Canadian government has announced that they will not allow any cruise ship of 500 or more passengers to dock before July 1.
From what I’ve heard, the crews are on the ships, and Disney is taking very good care of them. The three East Coast based ships can often be seen off of the coast of Port Canaveral. I’ve seen pictures that crew members have sent back to their families, and they say that they miss the guests.
One final thing, if you’ve ever doubted that the characters are real, watch the video below. It was taken on March 21, after everything was shut down and only the crew was onboard. Looks like proof to me…