Disney first went to sea in 1985 by licensing its characters to Premier Cruise Line, which ran the ships while Mickey walked the dining room. In 1993 Premier dropped Disney for Warner Bros. and the Looney Tunes. Talks with Carnival and Royal Caribbean broke down over control of brand standards, so in 1994 Disney announced its own line under president Arthur Rodney. It ordered the Disney Magic and Disney Wonder from Fincantieri in Italy, styled as early 20th century liners with black hulls and lifeboats painted yellow to match Mickey’s shoes under a special maritime waiver. In the Bahamas it took a 99-year lease on Gorda Cay for about $25 million, renamed it Castaway Cay and dredged a channel so ships could dock directly instead of tendering.
After the 2020 to 2021 shutdown, Disney launched its largest expansion: the Wish class running on liquefied natural gas, with the Wish in 2022, Treasure in 2024, Destiny in 2025 and Believe slated for 2027. It bought an unfinished Global-class hull from bankrupt MV Werften and is home-porting it as the Disney Adventure in Singapore from 2026. The Disney Imagination, due in 2029, will be owned and operated by Tokyo Disney Resort operator Oriental Land Company and registered in Tokyo. The episode also covers an April 2026 CBP operation in San Diego involving crew members across several cruise lines, after which Disney said its crew members involved had been terminated.
- Disney Magic entered service in July 1998, and Disney Wonder followed in late 1999.
- Castaway Cay was the first private cruise destination designed for direct docking.
- By 2024 Disney claimed 4.2 percent of worldwide cruise revenue.
- LNG must be stored at minus 260 degrees Fahrenheit, forcing a redesign of the Wish class interior around insulated tanks.
- The Adventure was designed for methanol, but Disney adapted it for lower-emission fuels such as hydrotreated vegetable oil.
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