Disney Magic 7-Day Southern Caribbean Cruise Review – Day 4: November 10, 2025

Today we woke up pulling into Willemstad, Curaçao — and what a colorful welcome it was! Looking out over the port, the vibrant buildings and bold hues grab your attention from every direction. It’s the perfect way to spark excitement for the day of exploration ahead.

Putting the C in ABC, we can officially check another port off our list. Before we dive into our adventure, here’s how Disney Cruise Line describes this island paradise:

Discover Curaçao in the southern Caribbean Sea, about 40 miles north of the Venezuelan coast.

Local Culture and Flavor
This gorgeous country consists of the main island and the uninhabited island of Klein Curaçao. The population spans over 150,000 across an area of 171 square miles. Visitors flock to this vibrant oasis for its white-sand beaches, pristine diving and snorkeling experiences, rich culture, relaxed attitude and unrivaled European architecture. The capital, Willemstad, is a UNESCO World Heritage site that features colorful Dutch buildings, museums, monuments, restaurants and historic complexes housing modern shops.

Past and Present
Curaçao’s native inhabitants, like many other islands in the Caribbean, were the Arawak and Taino Indians. The Spanish colonized in 1499 and retained their claim until 1634 when the Netherlands declared independence from Spain and the Dutch East India Company usurped control. The island fell under Dutch, French and British rule over the course of the 19th century and this legacy has preserved a wealth of diverse cultural influences apparent among its people, shopping and cuisine today. In 2010, Curaçao became a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands.

The weather was beautiful once again, with a low of 80° and a high of 84°. There was a light breeze, but nothing like the strong winds we experienced in Aruba. All ashore was called just after the scheduled 8:00 a.m. time, and all aboard this evening isn’t until 6:00 p.m., giving us plenty of time for a morning excursion and then some exploring afterward to hunt for those all-important souvenirs.

We were joined in port by the MS Rotterdam — which I believe Scott will be sailing on next week — as it made a late arrival around noon.

Coastal & Country Drive

The excursion we chose was very similar to yesterday’s, as we boarded a coach bus for a drive through town before heading out into the countryside. Let’s see how it stacks up against the description from Disney Port Adventures:

Be sure to bring your camera to capture the wild natural beauty of Boca Tabla National Park and Jan Kok salt lakes.

On this adventure you will…

• • Board a motorcoach and drive 40 minutes to the western side of the island.
  • Stop at Boca Tabla National Park, where you’ll see the wild sea meet the coast as waves explode on rock formations. The power of the sea will amaze you and the unpredictable waves are stunning.
  • Take a short drive to West Point, where you can take in the beautiful view over the Caribbean Sea at Playa Forti.
  • Make your next stop at one of the island’s most beautiful beaches, with its unforgettable white sand and tropical fish swimming through the crystal-clear sea.
  • Your final stop will be at Jan Kok estate, which is used as the gallery of local artist Nena Sanchez. She is well-known for her Dutch Caribbean sceneries with fascinating bright colors, capturing the essence of Curacao’s beauty.
  • On the way back to the pier, enjoy a short photo stop at the salt lakes of Jan Kok, where flocks of flamingos tend to congregate.

We started out with a short drive through Willemstad, getting an up-close look at all the bright, colorful homes and buildings. As we passed through, our guide explained that decades ago, most of the houses were painted a simple white. The governor at the time supposedly complained that the sun reflecting off the white paint gave him migraines when looking out over the town from his residence. His solution? Order that the buildings be painted in softer colors. After his death, it was discovered that he owned the local paint stores!

Now, I’m pretty sure I’ve heard this joke before on other islands, so part of me wanted to cry foul. However, a quick Google search confirmed that this story is indeed a commonly held belief — whether it started as an urban legend or has some truth behind it is anyone’s guess. Either way, the result is gorgeous, and I’ll be petitioning our HOA to follow suit!

We continued out of town and into the countryside, heading toward Boca Tabla National Park on the western tip of the island. This stretch of the drive produced mixed feelings. The landscape occasionally offered rolling hills or glimpses of the sea, but thick vegetation along the roadside made it difficult to see much of anything clearly. I’d compare it to driving along A1A, trying to catch a peek at the ocean between beachfront houses and sand dunes.

Once we arrived at Boca Tabla, the scenery opened up to a rugged stone shelf made of coral and lava rock. Fascinating to look at, but definitely not the kind of surface you want to stroll across — very uneven, very sharp, and very capable of turning an ankle. Thankfully, there were trails leading to decks overlooking the sea. Massive waves crashed into the cliffs, sending up dramatic sprays of water that made for some great photos.

While it might look like a surfer’s dream spot, you wouldn’t want to end up in the water here. With no beach or gentle shoreline, once you go over, you’re relying on the coast guard to come find whatever’s left of you. The undertow was brutal, and the rocks were unforgiving.

We were given the option to return to the bus — with a few minutes for restrooms or settling in — or take an alternate path down toward some lower sea caves for a quick exploration. I didn’t need to be told twice; I had already been eyeing that alternate route from the moment we arrived.

The next stop brought us to a white sand beach for a brief visit. Since this was a sightseeing tour and not an actual beach day, we only had about twenty minutes to get some sand between our toes and wade into the gentle surf. While the sand itself was incredible, there was one caveat — to reach it, you had to make your way over a washed-up barrier of coral and shells about six feet wide. I’d definitely recommend water shoes here, because doing it barefoot was… let’s just say not pleasant.

Once you reached the water, though, it was absolutely worth it — the perfect temperature and wonderfully refreshing.

The rest of the drive was fairly uneventful. We passed the advertised art gallery with barely a mention from the guide before continuing on to the salt flats. Upon arrival, we were supposed to see flamingos gathered in the shallow water — but there weren’t any to be found. A bit disappointing, sure, but hey… you can’t schedule nature.

This tour was priced at $54 for adults (ages 10 and up), $39 for children (ages 3–9), and complimentary for infants 0–2. Much like yesterday’s excursion, it was enjoyable to experience once, but on our next visit we’ll look for an alternative to get a different perspective on the island.

During the drive, our guide also shared a few local sayings, the most memorable being “danke dushi,” which translates to “thank you, sweetheart.” Phonetically, “danke” sounds just like the German word for thank you, while “dushi” sounds a little too close to the English word douche.

Let’s just say “danke dushibag” doesn’t quite have the same affectionate ring to it.

Port shopping at Willemstad

We were impressed in Aruba with the variety of options just steps away from the ship — but Curaçao kicks it up a notch.

Port Willemstad, like many Caribbean harbors, features historic forts that once served as pirate deterrents. While many islands preserve their forts as museums or national monuments, Curaçao has repurposed them into vibrant shopping and entertainment centers. Just a few hundred yards from the dock, you’ll enter Rif Fort, home to a multitude of shops, cafés, and restaurants.

Passing through the fort, you can continue along St. Anna Bay and cross the iconic Queen Emma Bridge, a floating pontoon bridge, to find even more shops, eateries, and entertainment on the other side. You could easily spend the entire day exploring the area, grabbing lunch, and hunting for those all-important keepsakes.

The area was clean, friendly, and felt completely safe — never once did we worry about making a wrong turn. This is another port we’re excited to visit again.

Meanwhile back at the ranch

For our dining pleasure this evening, our rotation brought us back to Animator’s Palette for the Night 2 menu. Since this happens to be our least favorite menu, we secured a reservation at Palo — the singular upcharge, adults-only venue onboard. Because this menu is the same as the one on the Dream and Fantasy, I’ll skip the full breakdown this time. I’ve covered it in detail on previous sailings if you’d like to look back and revisit it.

The key highlight for this cruise, however, came when we informed Christiano that we wouldn’t be in the MDR tonight. He told us that his wife, Soraia, was a server in Palo. Naturally, we requested to be seated in her section, knowing the service would be nothing short of exceptional.

She did not disappoint!

Welcome Disney Destiny

While we’re sailing the southern Caribbean on the original and oldest Disney Cruise Line vessel, the newest ship in the fleet — the Disney Destiny — was being christened back in Port Canaveral. In true Disney fashion, they live-streamed the entire event throughout the ship, including on the Funnel Vision screen.

Since we needed a few minutes to relax before heading down to the evening show, we opted to watch from our stateroom. Disney put on quite the extravaganza with drones, projections onto the ship, and the big reveal of the Fairy Godmother — none other than Broadway legend Susan Egan.

Tangled The Musical

Appearing in the Walt Disney Theater tonight was Tangled: The Musical. This is a Disney Magic–exclusive show that doesn’t appear on any other ship in the fleet or in the Disney Parks. A stage presentation that closely follows the animated film, the best way to describe it is simple — WOW. This production was incredible from start to finish.

Flynn was fantastic and delivered his trademark charm while also doubling as a bit of a narrator. Rapunzel didn’t just light up the stage — she glowed, figuratively and literally. The signature rendition of “I’ve Got a Dream” in the Snuggly Duckling Pub had the entire audience swaying and clapping along. Maximus provided plenty of comic relief, and the puppetry used to bring him to life was absolutely spot-on.

The only thing missing was poor Pascal. He was mentioned once in passing, but not even a stuffed animal made an appearance to represent Rapunzel’s color-changing sidekick.

I’m still torn on who the true star of the show was. Rapunzel was genuinely amazing, but Mother Gothel nearly stole the stage. At times it even felt like she was holding back just enough so she wouldn’t outshine the show’s namesake.

A stellar adaptation from screen to stage — an absolute must-see.

Disney Failed as much as the Packers

As soon as Tangled wrapped up, I hurried down to O’Gills Pub to catch the Monday Night Football game. Because showtime and kickoff overlapped, I slid into a seat just before the end of the first quarter — and quickly realized I hadn’t missed much, as the game was still scoreless.

Before I go any further, a reminder: Monday Night Football airs primarily on ESPN, is sometimes simulcast on ABC, and also features the “ManningCast” on ESPN2. Disney owns all of these channels. With over fifteen televisions in O’Gills, every single one of them was tuned to ESPN2.

Now, the Manning brothers are entertaining in general, but their MNF broadcast is more about talking up their own careers and interviewing guests than actually calling the game. Live plays were routinely missed so they could show clips from games they played in more than ten years ago. For people who actually wanted to watch the current game — which was everyone in the room — this became a serious point of contention.

Multiple guests asked for at least some of the TVs to be swapped to ABC or ESPN for the live broadcast. I didn’t catch the entire explanation, but long story short: they couldn’t do it. Complaints got so loud that by halftime they turned off the game audio altogether and switched to Irish pub music — to the applause of the entire bar. SMH.

I honestly don’t know which was worse: listening to the Manning brothers babble, or dancing a jig while trying to watch football. I finally headed back to the stateroom at halftime to watch the rest of the game — where all three channels were available just fine. Major fail for whoever or whatever prevented the main broadcast from being shown in the sports bar.

If you want to know the outcome of the game… I don’t want to talk about it.

As for that ship coverage I said I’d break down a little each day in yesterday’s post — yeah, just kidding. We’re going back to Plan A. I’ll use tomorrow’s sea day to cover various areas of interest. There may even be a surprise review…

Thank you, as always, for sailing along. Good night, sports fans.

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