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Disney Treasure cruise first look: Adventures with Aladdin and Donald Duck

Simon Calder’s Travel

A foghorn reverberates across the Atlantic Ocean from Orlando’s Port Canaveral. Rather than the ordinary ear-piercing blast, the slightly more melodic When You Wish Upon a Star echoes through the sea air.

The familiar tune marked the sail away of Disney Treasure, the latest cruise ship in Disney’s growing fleet.

I was one of the first people to stay on its inaugural sailing from Florida, ahead of its maiden voyage on 21 December.

Disney Treasure is the sister ship to Wish and the sixth vessel in the fleet, with a capacity of 4,000 passengers.

Despite the number of people, I felt immediately noticed when my name was announced as I stepped aboard. Crew – or cast members, as Disney calls them – clap as you walk into the Grand Hall.

I spent most of my three nights aboard Disney Treasure nodding nostalgically as I remembered long-forgotten characters and theme park experiences from my youth.

A bronze statue of Aladdin and Jasmine meets my eye in the Grand Hall, taking me back to one of the first Disney films I watched as a nine-year-old when it was released in 1992.

But even now, as a 41-year-old, I felt transported to Agrabah among the massive Moroccan-style rug on the floor and the high ceilings of the Grand Hall that is lit with an Arabian-inspired brass chandelier.

Read more: The best mini cruises from the UK

An Arabian chandelier overlooks Disney Treasure’s Grand Hall entrance

An Arabian chandelier overlooks Disney Treasure’s Grand Hall entrance (Marc Shoffman)

The theme of Disney Treasure is adventure, making Aladdin and Jasmine the perfect Disney dignitaries for a welcoming statue) or, as Sharon Siskie, senior vice president at Disney Cruise Line, describes it: “Creating memories that become your treasure.”

Plenty of memories flood back as I climb the stairways and pass artwork from films such as The Jungle Book and Aladdin – the original cartoons rather than the more recent live animations.

Artwork from the original Jungle Book film is one of many stairway images you will find

Artwork from the original Jungle Book film is one of many stairway images you will find (Marc Shoffman)

Adventure-themed cabins

The cabins aboard Disney Treasure are designed with adventure in mind. Mine was Pocahontas-themed, with a headboard image of the nostalgic heroine in her canoe being watched by her friend Meeko the raccoon.

Other themes include Aladdin, Finding Nemo, Encanto and Up.

Cabins are adventure-themed with characters including Pocahontas and Aladdin

Cabins are…

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