Get ready for a date with Destiny
Get ready for a date with Destiny
Copious heroes and villains will be aboard Disney’s newest cruise ship
Want to enter Doctor Strange’s mystical sanctum? Share a libation with materialized grim grinning ghosts? Be serenaded by Scar as you chow down in a “Lion King”-themed restaurant? You’ll be able to do all that and more by booking passage on Disney Destiny, which is set to launch in November 2025. The forces of good and evil will clash at sea as the ship, the latest to be revealed by the burgeoning Disney Cruise Line, will feature Disneyfied heroes as well as a surprising number of villains.
Veritable theme parks at sea, all of Disney’s vessels are jam-packed with things to do that draw heavily on the company’s vast library of characters and stories. Disney Destiny will have much in common with its sister ships, the Disney Wish, which set sail in 2022, and the Disney Treasure, which will take its maiden voyage this December.
Among the highlights will be Pride Lands: Feast of The Lion King, a dinner theater-like experience that will pair a show based on the beloved movie with a menu that I imagine will include at least some African-inspired dishes. Other restaurants will include Worlds of Marvel and the retro 1923, both of which debuted on the Wish. The Destiny version of the Marvel eatery will shine the spotlight on Rocket and Groot from the “Guardians of the Galaxy” franchise. Classic rock songs will surely be in the mix at the restaurant.
Unlike other cruise lines, liquor isn’t as much of a draw aboard the family-focused Disney ships. (Another cruising staple, casinos, are nowhere to be found on them either.) But passengers looking to imbibe will be able to order a drink at some wildly unique watering holes. The adults-only De Vil’s piano lounge will be decked out in Cruella’s signature white, black, and red tones. Presumably, no Dalmatians will be harmed to develop the bar. Also, I’m pretty sure De Vil’s will not be a designated smoking area, even for those sporting the villainess’ trademark cigarette holder.
Guests will literally be able to drink up me hearties (yo ho) in the Cask and Cannon, a pub that will be adorned with booty courtesy of certain Caribbean-based pirates. Patrons might need some liquid courage to face the specters looming in the tricked-out Haunted Mansion Parlor. Things are bound to get spooky in The Sanctum as well, which will feature sorcerers and otherworldly artifacts courtesy of Marvel’s Doctor Strange. Alas, unlike the Wish, there will be no Star Wars-based Hyperspace Lounge, nor its wacky $5,000 cocktail on the Destiny.
A statue of T’Challa, the Black Panther and Wakandan king, will greet passengers as they make their way onto the Disney Destiny via the ship’s Grand Hall. A huge likeness of do-gooder Spider-Man will grace the stern of the ship. A rogues’ gallery of villains, however, will abound throughout the vessel. If they can gather the courage, guests will be able to meet and greet baddies such as Captain Hook, Oogie Boogie, Maleficent, Hades, and the dastardly Ms. de Vil.
As on the Wish, folks on the new ship will be able to careen aboard the AquaMouse themed water coaster. The attraction will present four different “shows,” which are abbreviated “Mickey Mouse” shorts shown on a series of screens that line the ride’s lift hill (which Disney refers to as a “magic tunnel”). One of the shorts will be “Sing a Silly Song,” which will star Mickey and Minnie as they journey up Villain Mountain. (I told you the ship will be full of villains.)
Accommodations will include inside staterooms, oceanview staterooms (with a porthole), and verandah staterooms with outside decks as well as more pricey suites that will be themed to “Hercules” and “The Incredibles.” The Destiny will embark on four- and five-night cruises from Fort Lauderdale to the Western Caribbean and The Bahamas. All sailings will include a stop at the company’s private island, Disney Castaway Cay, or its new port of call, Disney Lookout Cay at Lighthouse Point. Some itineraries will visit both island getaways.
Would you want to hang with a bunch of Disney villains on the Destiny? Might you plan a vacation aboard the new ship?