Hi there, Linda!
Welcome to the Disney Parks Moms Panel! Wow! Spending New Year's on the “Mickey Boat” is on my bucket list of itineraries; I cannot think of a better way to ring in 2020 than with Mickey and Friends! What a celebration that will be and I am so excited for you and the memorable way you will spend
New Year’s Eve this yEAR!
That final morning on any Disney Cruise Line vacation is always a bittersweet one for me. While I am always eager to get home and back to a routine and schedule, it’s always disappointing when a vacation ends! And often, we have had so much fun on our Disney Cruise Line vacation that I feel like I need
another vacation – just to recover from all that fun and excitement! But, to ease that feeling, I always make sure to book a
future Disney Cruise Line vacation so that I can at least start planning for that when I do scan my Key to the World card that final time!
Assuming no delays getting back to port, you can expect disembarkation to begin around 8:00AM or 8:30AM. On the final full day onboard, you will receive character-coded luggage tags to affix to your luggage that you will set outside your stateroom by 10:00PM on the final night. Then, your stateroom host or hostess will make sure that your luggage makes its way off the ship and you can pick it up in the cruise terminal once you disembark. Once they begin disembarkation you will wait for your group to be called and then you can make your way off the ship. If you prefer, they also allow Guests to participate in “Express Walk Off” where you would NOT put your luggage out the night before and instead you would be required to carry off your luggage yourself. This is a great alternative for Guests who may be headed directly to the airport for an earlier flight or Guests who are ready to get on the road back home! Typically, “Express Walk Off” begins around 7:30AM, assuming no delays in the arrival back to port.
Disney Cruise Line recommends that Guests NOT make flight reservations earlier than 11:30AM on disembarkation day. This allows Guests to fully disembark the ship, collect their luggage and make their way through the cruise terminal and to the airport with a sufficient amount of time. So, if you are working on airline reservations, you may want to take that into consideration!
Wishing you a MAGICal vacation ringing in the New Year!
Happy Sailing!
Stephanie