As everyone knows, the Disney Magic went into dry-dock in 2013 for about two months, and it was totally re-imagined. Well, it appears as if the Disney Cruise Line will not have just one, but two ships in dry dock in 2015.
It’s well known that the Disney Wonder would be going into dry-dock sometime over the course of the next two years and being re-imagined much like the Disney Magic was. Disney Parks Chairman Tom Staggs himself told me that it would get a tune-up in the next “two-three years.”
A source with inside knowledge has told me that not only is the Disney Wonder scheduled for dry-dock in 2015, but the Disney Dream is as well.
Yes, the Disney Dream is one of the newer ships as it has only been around for five years, but it makes sense. In my Disney source’s words:
“The Disney Dream is scheduled for dry-dock sometime in late 2015. It is not confirmed, but we always find out first and well…it has been give year. Disney wants to make sure to keep the Dream ‘fresh and new.'”
There is no telling if the Disney Dream would undergo any serious changes such as the Magic and Wonder, but one has to believe that it will receive more than a fresh coat of paint since that can even be done without it going into dry-dock.
With rumors of two ships going into dry-dock and the Disney Wonder possibly sailing back to Hawaii…it looks as if 2015 will be an interesting year for the Disney Cruise Line.
Theres a specific reason on why the Dream is going into drydock next year. Under current maritime rules, a ship must go into drydock at least 2x in a 5 year period, not to exceed 3 years. There are 2 different age groups of ship, that the rules apply to with exceptions. For a ship under the age of 15, a ship can forgo 1 dry dock in lieu of an in water inspection, provided that the ships master can prove that the ship hasn’t been grounded, or other hull damage. The Dream class, being 3 (Dream) and 2 (Fantasy) would fall into this category, can have 1 in water inspection, in the first 2-3 years, followed by a mandatory drydock. For a ship over the age of 15 years, in Disneys case the Magic and Wonder, they have to have a drydock every2-3 years. In a drydock, its not just a coat of paint and then let her go. Its to inspect the hard to reach areas of a ship, that cant be seen or accessed while in the water, like sea chests, fuel and sewage tanks, metering(measuring) the thickness of the hull plates and welds etc. Theyll also do mandatory SOLAS upgrades, like removal of certain materials and replacing with new materials. While the ship is out of service, they’ll take the time to correct any issues that may have sprung up and clean and repaint the ship, and do anything else that would normally interfere with guests onboard, like pool resurfacings, ship laundry updates etc.
any update on whether or not the wonder will get some upgrades in 2015? I just booked our 1st family cruise on the wonder when I noticed this ship is the one ship without all the fun new slides. my two teenagers would much rather prefer a fun slide rather than a mickey shaped shallow pool.
There are no dates set for the Disney Wonder to dry dock in 2015. The Disney Dream will end up going into dry dock later this year.