This is the third in a series of blogs on the Disney Fantasy, which will be christened in March and sailing by the end of that month. I am in Germany for a sneak preview.
PAPENBURG, Germany — There isn’t one area of the Disney Fantasy where you will not find a workman doing something...right down to the final touches being applied by the brushes of artists.
As the two award-winning restaurants Remy and Palo are being completed, it's clear they are much the same as on the Disney Dream. Remy, of course, is the most expensive restaurant at sea ($75) while Palo will be serving food from Northern Italy. They are both adult restaurants, and Palo also has a fee.
The troika of restaurants for families and adults all have their own kitchens and the staff moves with you from restaurant to restaurant.
The one that should cause the most interest is Animator's Palate. Because you dine here twice on a 7-night cruise, the interactive show on the 
Dream — Crush — is still here but Disney has added a neat idea for the second dining experience. Kids will be able to draw a Disney cartoon character and their creation will go up on the interactive wall that surrounds the theatre. Each section of the restaurant will have its own show as the characters come to life in animation with some of the bigger Disney stars. Everybody in our group thought it was cool and we're not kids! Well, maybe a bit.
The Enchanted Garden changes as the day changes, again using 
technology so that by the end of the day stars will be created throughout the restaurant.
And then there's the main dining room, called Royal Palace and inspired by Cinderella and Sleeping Beauty.
Apparently, Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique is a big deal at the parks and so Disney is bringing it onto Fantasy. Here, for a fee, kids can get the full treatment to look like a princess or a pirate — a can’t-miss on Pirate Night.
On the entertainment side, there are two new shows, and with them another Canadian connection. Aladdin and Wishes are both currently in rehearsals at the CBC studio in Toronto and will soon be moved to the
Fantasy. When I was on board they were already rehearsing...the speed of the curtain going up and down. Detail, detail.
The kids' area will expand. More interactive games are planned, especially with the Muppets, who will be new on Fantasy.
For the adults, a new area will be called Europa — it’s bigger than on the Dream and each of the bars in this area will salute parts of Europe. The scenes going by in Skyline will now be the great cities of Europe. La Piazza is the lounge that connects it all together. From there, you will have Skyline, Ooh La La, The Tube, and Darby O’Gills serving Irish brews and offering interactive games for adults, along with monitors that cover your favourite sports.
The inaugural cruise will be March 31 from Port Canaveral, and the Fantasy will mainly sail alternating eastern and western Caribbean cruises.
It appears Disney's changes should be successful but we wont know until summer when the passengers start to weigh in. Today’s kids want WOW stuff and it appears that's provided. Also important is time for the adults and it looks as though there will be spaces inside the ship and out where you can take a good, deep breath.
And finally, I don’t think I have ever done this...but I have to show you 
this washroom. The art is all done in miniature tiles, so you can see I covered just about ALL the areas of the new Disney Fantasy.
More tomorrow on some news from Disney. If I am right, it will cover New York and Hawaii. And you can always check this link for what's new on the happiest website on earth.
All for now.
Another blog by the Ports and Bows team — click here.