Free Souvenirs Ideas On Your Disney Cruise

 

The great thing about a cruise is that by the time you board the ship nearly all of your expenses are paid for. Lodging, dining, and entertainment are all covered. Minus your shore excursions and on board shopping or alcohol consumption your in the black when it comes to your budget. That's a great feeling on a vacation because the things that aren't yet paid for can be modified to fit your budget.

I've put together a list of all the free things my kids, and my husband and I have taken home from our cruises as souvenirs.  So that you are better able to plan and save for your cruise.

• The first thing my kids seem to acquire on the cruise are from the Sail Away party on the deck where the Cast Members are passing out streamers to the guests so that they can wave them at all those people on the shore as you leave your worries behind for the next week. They are free and the cast members generously pass them out to both children and adults a like.
• Another place my kids accrue things is from the kids clubs. While in the clubs they get to make some cool crafts including the infamous green Flubber made in the Oceaneer Lab. It practically glows in the dark.  The kids are told to keep it in the fridge when not playing with it.  So stow it in your fridge but don’t forget to pack it up and take it home with you.
• Free T-Shirt: Through out the cruise the kids in the kids club are preparing and practicing a show for the parents to watch at the end of the week. When the show date arrives all the participating children receive a T-shirt as part of their costume. This T-Shirt is theirs to take home at no additional cost. 
• Autographed Pillowcases: Something we learned about before our first cruise was to bring our own white pillow cases along with sharpies and drop them off at Guest Services when we arrived. At the end of our cruise they were returned to us autographed by Mickey and his friends! This was a great going away present for my kids and something they looked forward to using when they got back home.
• Pirate Bandanas: When the evening of your “Pirates IN The Caribbean Party” arrives your Cabin Steward will leave bandanas for each person in your room. The bandanas features a pirate Mickey face. When getting ready for dinner that night be sure to put yours on and be prepared to Arrgh like a pirate.
• The servers at your dinning table are good about entertaining the kids at your table.  Most of them go out of their way to talk to your kids and get to know them.  Throughout the week they may even share magic tricks and paper origami surprises that they can take home.
• During our last cruise Steve and I went to one of the trivia contest they were having in the promenade lounge that day.  We came away winners and took home two free Disney Cruise Line Baseball Caps.  Lucky for us there were only two other couples that showed up to play along with us making our chances one in three to win that day.  Many times this is the case though so don’t forget to check out what is going on using your ships Navigator (Daily Activities Guide).

Here are some other more creative souvenirs we have brought home from our trips not necessarily from Disney.

• My kids filled up a cup full of sea shells to bring back with them from the beach on St. Maarten. These made great gifts for them to give to their friends back home.
• Collecting sand from different beaches is a great souvenir collection to start.  As a teenager I had a collection of sand in different bottles from my travels and loved comparing the difference in their textures.  Be sure to bring zip lock bags for you to take your sand home in.
• Photos: Before our first cruise my son begged us for a camera.  He was only six at the time and we didn't really think he needed one.  However, we had set aside a good budget of money for him to spend on souvenirs and he said that he would rather use that money to buy a camera before we left than anything else.  So we bought him a decent digital camera.  He spent plenty of time taking photos that cruise and came home with some great shots.  It was fun for me to see the cruise from his perspective through his pictures.
• Shopping Coupons: While onboard your cruise they will offer workshops that tell you where to shop and find the best deals in the ports of call.  They will also have plenty of coupons to pass out and many of those offer a free gift to those that stop by.  My daughter has come home with some special jewelry just for her by using these coupons.  It’s not fancy jewelry but it works for a nine year old.
• My Kids also enjoy collecting their “Key To The World” cards from each cruise.  My son now has a rather large collection from each of our trips.  They all have a different graphic on them and have the dates of our sailings, the name of our ship, and our current status as Castaway Cay Members at the time.

Speaking of Castaway Cay Membership once you have completed your first cruise with Disney you automatically become a Castaway Cay Member.  As a member you receive gifts as returning passengers on your next cruise. Here are some of the free gifts we have received. The gift changes periodically and not all of these are given out still.

Bakpacks Lanyards Key Chains

Water Bottles Tote Bags Snacks

Shipboard Credit

• If you booked your cruise through a travel agency you are at times given onboard credit.   Some of our favorite online travel agencies are Dreams Unlimited and Mouse World Travel.  We have used the onboard credit to pay for many things including souvenirs.

If you have come up with some of your own ideas about some the things you can take home from your cruise as a souvenirs please share them with us.