Magic At Sea - Bingo, Game Show & Entertainment Reviews
Cruise 21-Jul-2021
Welcome to Mickey From The UK’s Magic At Sea Disney Cruise Series. We share reviews, experiences, and more of the Magic At Sea Disney Cruise staycation happening in 2021. After you’ve read this article, feel free to click here to view all our Magic At Sea content or click here to signup to our email club to get these articles delivered to your email inbox.
For better or for worse, there's no casino on Disney Cruise ships. I believe (although don't quote me on this) they are the only cruise line that does not have some sort of casino offering onboard. It seems like they've chosen not to have disgruntled guests onboard for the sake of a bit more profit. A call I can agree with, as much as I enjoy a spin. However, if you want to dip your toe in a little bit gambling-like activities, there is fun fun fun Bingo!
Bingo! Shake It Up Betty!
When I first saw they were doing Bingo onboard, I won't lie, I chuckled at the thought. Thankfully, it turned out to be a lot of fun and we did it on both days. There is an extra charge for Bingo, and that's because there are cash prizes. Fun fun fun.
They sell the Bingo cards in packs of 6, and a pack of 6 costs $25 (or you can buy a single card for $10, but don't do that). You can also buy 2 lots of 6 packs for the discounted price of $40. Each pack contains 4 different sheets, as 4 different rounds are being played. Each round uses one of the 4 sheets. We just got the $25 6-pack because we didn't want to spend the entire time scrambling over multiple cards, we just wanted to relax with our beers and have some fun.
There is an error on the above photo, as the $40 option should read 12 paper cards, not 6. I'm sure they've fixed that by now. The cast members are entertaining along the way, and even come out for a dance or two.
Kids can play too (and even mark the cards), however, an adult over 18+ must be the one buying and claiming the prize. We got our drinks, got our cards, and were ready to play!
A quick side story. I remember as a kid playing Bingo at the waterfront area at Westward Ho! and remember vividly all the different ways you can win. This includes diagonal lines and weird patterns. My traveling stowaway partner, Lorna, was much displeased with some of these combinations, touting "that's not Bingo!". She's obviously had a very privileged Bingo upbringing while I had a much more casual Bingo past.
After a couple of rounds into the first game, I was constantly making jokes about how it was rigged when we weren't even coming close to winning. I (sarcastically) shook my fist in the air and said (as a loudmouth with a Disney blog) "people are going to know about this!!" as I express my displeasure in losing. However, we did win, twice.
About half-way through the first game on the first day they do a raffle where they pick three people at random for a little Disney cruise bag full of goodies. It was funny because they have a big dramatic reveal on the big screen, and I was just sat there rolling my eyes because the odds of winning one of these were so small, and then suddenly, BOOM, my name comes up first. The cast member shouts my name and then suddenly my reasons to shake my fist in the air slowly diminishes. Another cast member brings the bag over to me and congratulates me.
While I wouldn't use half of the stuff in this pack, they're super cute unique items that you mostly can't even buy, so they make great souvenirs.
On the second day, we played Bingo again. In the first round, we won! We won on the very first round as the first players getting a full line. We won $96! My (sarcastic) fist-shaking was completely withdrawn with the thought "perhaps it's not rigged". Funny that? Good times.
The cash prizes are based on how many people are playing the game. While I didn't sit and try to do the math to work out Disney's cut, the prizes start at around $90 and work their way up to around $150-$200 for the final big game. If you're lucky enough to win, the amount is credited to your onboard account (show at the bottom of the screenshot below). You can get the cash if you want, but there isn't really much point.
Game Shows & Entertainment
There are game shows and entrainment happening almost every hour during the voyage. They range from general Disney trivia to Marvel trivia, all the way through to karaoke in the evening. There are multiple showings of movies in the theater. The movies playing were Cruella and Black Widow. There are game shows like Snippets, POP!, and more. The trivia range from Disney music, Disney TV, and general Disney. There's one called Frozen Phrases which is a good one for the kids and big kids who love Frozen. There are also Marvel Trivias, and a game called Marvel Super Fan, where you're given lettered answer cards.
There are other types of activities like Family Animation, which for those who remember Disney Quest, is where you are taught to draw a Disney character. We were taught to draw Minnie.
What's great about some of these game shows and activities, is Disney characters sometimes surprise you at the end! When we were finished drawing Minnie, she and Pluto came out for a photo opportunity.
In the evenings there is Karaoke, and for adults, there's a show called Match Your Mate where couples are brought up to test their knowledge of each other. Later at night, there is a pianist and a violinist at two of the adult bars.
There's also a fun game called Sarge Says which is exactly how you'd picture it. Three of the green army men come and tell the crowd what to do in a Simon Says based game. What was amusing about this is that everyone (adults and kids) got involved. However, when the run-on-the-spot orders started, the adults quickly sat down and took a few sips of their beer. Fantastic to watch.
Mouseketeer Madness is another good game show. You pick up a number when you enter, and three audience members are chosen (one at a time) to answer questions in a Who Wants To Be A Millionaire type setup. If you answer all 5 questions correctly, you're rewarded with a Mickey medallion. Just like with Family Animation, look who pops up at the end of Mouseketeer Madness!
A couple of times a day there's also an outdoor Frozen show. You'd usually plan to see this on a night you don't have your theatre booking. It was a very cute show, and it was really nice to see all the kids all dressed up in their Disney outfits having a dance and a good time by the stage.
The main event is the Disney Dreams show in the Walt Disney Theatre. You do have to pre-book your slot when you check-in online, but Disney have said that everyone will get to see the show once. The show was amazing and incredibly moving. I'd love to watch it again.
If you missed it, you can click here to read my full Magic At Sea review, which gives an overview and review of our whole experience.
Book Your Magic At Sea Cruise
The Magic At Sea UK Disney Cruise staycation is sailing on select dates through the summer of 2021 from multiple ports. Prices and dates are listed here, or you can click the link below to be directed to the Disney Cruise Line website for the most up to date information and booking options.
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