Disney Destiny Eastern Caribbean Cruise Review – Day 5: July 1, 2026

Day 5 on the inaugural Eastern Caribbean sailing of the Disney Destiny celebrates another first: the port of Sint Maarten, or Saint Martin, depending on which side of the island you are on. This island is the smallest in the world to be shared by two separate nations, France and the Netherlands. The port of Philipsburg is located on the Dutch side of the island, but you can take excursions that tour both.

There are a few popular tours to check out if you haven’t been here before. First, look into one of the various tours that offer both the Dutch and French sides to get a bit of history and an overall experience. There is also the Aerial Explorer, a ski lift-style ride up to a scenic outlook. There are a few options for how to get back down, though. First is taking the lift back down, or you can choose to go ziplining and schooner to get to the bottom. If you want to enjoy some beach time, one of the most unique experiences is Maho Beach. Located on the western side of the island, it lines up with Princess Juliana International Airport. Planes land and take off directly over your head, close enough to feel the jet blast as they go by.

The all-ashore call today was a little late, at 8:30 instead of the scheduled 8:00 AM. With a typical 5:00 PM all-aboard time, there was still plenty of time to enjoy the island. Joining us in port was Royal Caribbean’s Allure of the Seas. Nothing felt crowded or rushed, and it seemed to be a nice amount of guests sharing the port area without it being congested.

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With this being our third time, we decided to skip the excursions and do a little walking around on our own. The pier area offers the standard collection of shops and a few small bars and grills, but nothing spectacular. However, just a short 10-minute walk from the pier, you’ll find the boardwalk that runs along Great Bay Beach.

If walking isn’t your thing, for $5 per person, you can catch a water taxi from the pier that offers three different stops along the boardwalk. Plenty of shopping and beachside restaurants can be found along this stretch. About every 5 steps you take, someone will offer to rent you beach chairs and umbrellas for around $20 a pair. That seems to be the going rate at most beach excursions, so if you just want to hang out at the beach and be in close proximity to the libations, it’s really not a bad spot.

Even more shopping can be found along Front Street and Back Street. They really outdid themselves naming those.

On our last stop here, we took a trolley ride through Old Town Philipsburg that ended at an Amsterdam Cheese store, number 12 on the map above. As the Dutch are known for cheese, Gouda in particular, we loaded up before heading back to the ship. We had been looking forward to revisiting that store to restock since we booked this itinerary.

To our dismay, we have learned that Disney Cruise Line has taken a hard stance on bringing food back aboard over the past year. Even factory-sealed dairy items are no longer permitted. Thus, no cheese to bring home. We verified this rule on the way off the ship, both at Guest Services and with the security team on the gangway. That didn’t prevent us from at least stopping in and getting a few samples and a snack pack to eat as we walked around, though. Even the store managers stated that they had been informed that Disney guests could not take anything back, but guests on the other ships in port could. Boo!

If you don’t have an international internet plan, I recommend taking a screenshot of Google Maps before disembarking the ship, just in case. That’s something I failed to do. I was pretty confident I remembered where the cheese shop was, so we set off. Since we also wanted to explore a bit more along the bay, we walked from the ship to where the furthest water taxi stop was located, near number 10 on the map, then cut inland. I mistakenly went to Back Street before heading back in the direction of the ship. While there were plenty of shops spread out along there, it wasn’t the clean appearance we remembered.

We made our way all the way back to a cross street where I saw a familiar sight: the Amsterdam Cheese shop. Just a slight detour. From there, we realized that we wanted to be on Front Street to begin with, as that’s where all the real shopping was to be found, along with The Yoda Guy. If you’re a movie fan, this is something I’d recommend checking out.

Former Hollywood prop master Nick Maley, aka The Yoda Guy, has a small museum that includes many of the features he worked on during his career. Tons of original script pages, complete with his handwritten notes, adorn the walls as you walk through. He’s there personally and takes time to talk to each guest who passes through. He has no shortage of stories to share. While we didn’t stop in this time, I’m sure we will again in the future.

As we made the return walk toward the ship, we stopped at one last shop, the red dot below, to look at shirts. As I stood at the entrance and looked to the left, I saw something I hesitated to even tell Angie about: the cheese shop. It was right there smiling at us. Once we got back to the ship, she informed me we walked over 4.5 miles. It probably only needed to be 1. DOH! Well, at least it wasn’t hot out!

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Palo and Pirates

While ashore in St. Maarten, the ship was taken over by pirates! Yup, it’s Pirate Night aboard the Destiny. This is without a doubt one of the most popular theme nights among DCL sailors. Forget formal night or white night. Bring on the scallywags!

All the traditional deck parties and pirate-themed activities run throughout the evening, culminating in fireworks over the side of the ship. Nobody else in the cruise industry does it like Disney. Literally. No other cruise line has permission from Bahamian and Caribbean governments to launch fireworks out to sea.

Don’t worry, if you’re new to the site. Disney has specially designed pyrotechnics that are made up of completely biodegradable material, which dissolves and is safe for marine life. You’ll often see ships from other lines hover nearby on Pirate Night so they can steal a glance at the show.

Palo Steakhouse Dinner Menu

Palo Steakhouse takes everything people love about Palo and levels it up with prime steaks, wagyu, Kobe, and elevated Italian favorites in a refined, adult-exclusive setting. Add a strong Italian wine list, that must-order chocolate soufflé, and even a special first-night tasting option, and it quickly becomes one of the most sought-after reservations onboard.

Available on: Disney Destiny, Disney Treasure, Disney Wish

Antipasti & Zuppa +

Heirloom Tomato, Burrata Mozzarella Caprese

Basil pesto, aged balsamic vinegar

Antipasto

Prosciutto, coppa, bresaola, salame Calabrese, Parmigiano-Reggiano, Pecorino Toscano, caciotta al tartufo

Fritto di Calamari e Gamberi

Deep-fried shrimp and calamari with lemon-garlic mayonnaise and marinara

Sliced Herb-Crusted Yellowfin Tuna

Apple mostarda, biscotti di Reggio, limoncello white pear balsamic

Cioppino Soup

Mussels, shrimp, calamari, red snapper and monkfish poached in garlic, basil, white wine tomato broth

Tuscan White Bean Soup

Cannellini beans, pancetta, chicken stock

Insalatine +

Crisp Romaine

Caesar dressing, toasted ciabatta croutons, quail eggs, gorgonzola

Baby Arugula

Virgin olive oil, white balsamic, Parmigiano-Reggiano

La Pasta & Pizza +

Agnolotti

Butternut squash, buffalo mozzarella, amaretti, sage-brown butter, basil

Soft Potato Gnocchi

Roasted tomatoes, pine nuts, basil pesto in prosecco wine sauce

Pappardelle

Grilled lobster, leeks, salmon caviar, truffle oil, tarragon cream sauce

Penne

San Marzano tomato basil sauce, chiles, Parmigiano-Reggiano

Paccheri

Lamb ragù, thyme, ricotta salata

Prosciutto di Parma, Basil, Burrata Pizza

Bianca Ricotta, Mushrooms, Arugula, Truffle Oil Pizza

Secondi +

Bar Grilled Yellowfin Tuna

Green beans, roasted new potatoes, quail eggs, Cerignola olives, white balsamic

Pan-Seared Salmon

Tupelo honey parsnip purée, roasted white asparagus, leek, baby turnip, cipollini confit, Pinot Noir reduction

Roasted Free-Range Lemon and Thyme Chicken

Roasted baby vegetables, garlic potatoes, chive thyme sauce

Osso Buco

Barolo wine slow-roasted center cut veal shank, gremolata, Milanese risotto

Piatto Vegetariano +

Portabella, Morel, Crimini and Porcini Mushroom Risotto

Shallots, Barolo wine

Roasted Red Pepper Spiced Eggplant

Heirloom tomatoes, ricotta, chopped hazelnuts, aged balsamic, micro celery, parsley

La Carne +

Parmesan-Crusted Rack of Niman Ranch Lamb

10oz Veal Rib Chop

6oz Choice Angus Beef Tenderloin Steak

32oz Choice Bone-In “Cowboy” Rib Eye Steak

8oz Prime Angus Beef Tenderloin Steak

12oz Prime Angus New York Sirloin Steak

28oz Dry-Aged Prime Angus Porterhouse Steak

Japanese A5 Wagyu Strip Loin

Snake River Black Wagyu Strip Loin

Snake River Black Wagyu Tenderloin

Contorni +

Fried Yukon Potato

Rosemary, Parmigiano-Reggiano, lava salt

Spinach

Butter, black garlic, lemon

Cavatappi Pasta

”Macaroni & Cheese”, Parmesan, buttered breadcrumbs

Pan-Roasted Wild Mushrooms

Shallots, garlic, Pinot Grigio, thyme

Whipped Yukon Gold Potato Purée

Butter, chives, parsley

Grilled Asparagus

Virgin olive oil, ricotta salata, lemon

Broccolini

Black garlic, breadcrumbs, parsley and lemon

Since the Pirate Night menu is the one that hasn’t gotten a revamp, although it was the one that needed it the most, we did our usual: skip the MDR and dine in Palo. You can never go wrong there.

We had Darko as our server again, and he did another fantastic job walking us through the meal. We went in with a slightly different plan this evening, though. Most visits, we split appetizers and then order separate entrees. Tonight, we opted to order the entire meal to be served family-style, as I wanted to tackle one of the larger steaks: a 28-ounce Dry-Aged Prime Angus Porterhouse. I knew that was going to take a team effort.

Every Palo dinner starts off with the bread service and a palate teaser of gnocchi. The gnocchi is usually in a mushroom sauce, but Darko caught on that we are not fans of fungus. Instead, this time he presented it to us with marinara sauce, along with the single pillow of dough. For our lone appetizer, we shared the Agnolotti, a butternut squash ravioli with fresh mozzarella. Delicious.

The main event consisted of the 28-ounce Dry-Aged Prime Angus Porterhouse, along with a shared dish of Soft Potato Gnocchi and broccolini, which I must not have gotten a picture of.

Mouthwatering goodness. And, yes, we, read: I, cleaned it down to the bone. In retrospect, I think I could have done it myself but wouldn’t have had room left for dessert, which would have been sacrilege, passing up the soufflé. I went with the chocolate, while Angie had amaretto for something less rich.

Just short of a food coma, we had just enough time to digest before heading up to stake out a good spot on Deck 13 to watch the fireworks.

With another great day in port and onboard, we begin our trek back toward Port Everglades tomorrow with back-to-back sea days. I’ll use that time to go over some other key areas of the ship and some of the highlights of the Disney Destiny. Thanks for following along.

Disney Destiny Day 5 Daily Program

Personal Day-By-Day Disney Destiny Caribbean Cruise Review: