Is it possible to travel with a child that has extreme allergies? I put Disney to the test this winter. My son has Eosinaphilic Esophagitis, which causes a continued narrowing of the esophagus in response to food allergies, making avoidance of the foods the most favorable cure.

We were in the right in the process of addressing this when we had the opportunity to go on Disney Dream’s inaugural voyage.

I know it sounds crazy, but I had a terrific girls getaway on the Disney Dream.

When I received the invitation for the Disney Dream christening cruise, I immediately had visions of the adult beach at Disney’s private island, Castaway Cay. White sand, colored umbrellas and fruity drinks (not the lunch box kind). The perfect opportunity to check out the adult amenities I missed on my family’s Disney cruise last summer to the Bahamas.

I was invited down to cover the inauguration of the new “Disney Dream,” the third ship of Disney’s cruising fleet. I had many preconceptions about what the ship would be like (see Hello Disney Dream for details), but here’s what I found most surprising:

Just how much my son loved it

My son kept saying, “This is the best vacation of my life!” Now, this kid has been all over France, Italy, England, Ireland, Caribbean, and the USA — this is the best vacation of his life. Wow!

When we think about a Disney theme park, most Americans conjure up images of Orlando or Anaheim. When you live in Europe, there’s an additional option to add to the list, Disneyland Paris (often referred to as Euro Disney).

We visited Paris Disney over New Year’s weekend to celebrate our son’s 8th birthday. After living in Switzerland for 5 months, we all wanted a dose of something familiar. Admittedly, I don’t associate a Disney visit with …

CB’s Nancy Solomon and Kristi Marcelle are lucky enough to be on the Disney Dream inaugural cruise this week. Talk about media buzz! There’s been a stream of constant chatter. I even saw a tweet yesterday calling the cruise, “The event of the decade.”

We’ll publish official reports from them when they return, but in the meantime, Nancy has sent fun photos for a peek at all the action.

When I received an invitation to the inaugural voyage of the Disney Dream Cruise ship, believe it or not, I paused. While I think it’s fun to go to a Disney park every so often, I’m just not the type that can use my vacation dollars to go to Disney ever year. Plus, I’m terrified of cruises (funny, right?).

There’s no doubt that Walt Disney World is at its most magical during the holidays. The theme parks and resorts are decorated to their jaw-dropping max, and there’s plenty of extra entertainment in the form of special parades, shows, and themed character greetings.

The downside? Crowds. The week between Christmas and New Year’s is generally the busiest of the year.

My husband and I are not the biggest Disney fans. When it comes to a vacation, there are a lot of other places we’d rather take the family. That said, we understand why it would rank high on our kids’ list of places to go.

Our story goes like this. We were headed to Southwest Florida to visit family. My girls had seen Disney’s “Give a day. Get a Disney Day.” advertisement. Basically, anyone who volunteered for a day, got a free ticket to Walt Disney World or Disneyland.

A cruise, like any other vacation, is a different experience for each family. For some it’s all about the service and the food while for others it’s about exploring new destinations and unplugging from the daily grind. No matter what the reason is for your trip, the convenience of having someone else plan it all for you helps to create a stress-free experience.

There are a few tips to make your cruise planning and experience more enjoyable for all.

This was my first Disney Cruise Line vacation and besides thinking I’d see plenty of Mickey and Minnie, I wasn’t sure what to expect. By the end of the cruise, I realized that in subtle and not so subtle ways, the mission of the Disney staff is to make every passenger’s vacation as stress-free as possible.

The service level was extraordinary—this vacation helped us understand why families like cruising so much and return over and over again.