The NEW Disney Wish cruise ship officially sets sail on its Maiden Voyage on July 14th, 2022, but we’re already bringing you a full look at what to expect on board!

The debut and christening of the Disney Wish took place in June, we were able to go on an early sailing, get a look inside the rooms, eat tons of food, check out the kids clubs, and explore the entire ship! While there are many new experiences that make the Wish different than Disney’s other ships, one of the most unique things is that the ship features Disney’s first attraction at sea — the AquaMouse! What is this experience like? Is it something you should wait for during your cruise? Join us as we find out!

We were invited to attend a media preview of the Disney Wish, and we’ve been taking you around the ENTIRE ship with us. From stateroom tours to a full review of the new Marvel dining experience, we’re sharing all the details. And now we’re tackling the AquaMouse!

Never before has there been a “Disney attraction at sea,” so the AquaMouse marks a BIG moment in Disney Cruise Line history! This attraction transports guests into the animated world of Mickey Mouse shorts, kind-of like Mickey & Minnie’s Runaway Railway.

Let’s start at the beginning (a very good place to start!). To locate the AquaMouse, look for the signs for the attraction on the upper decks of the Wish.

You’ll notice a sign in the area that lists the wait time to get on the ride. Like a regular Disney ride, expect there to be at least a little bit of a wait!

During our time on the media sailing, the wait stayed at around 20 minutes while the ship was docked at Castaway Cay. But, the ride did go down quite a bit. It started going down somewhat regularly in the afternoon. At one point, we saw the ride reach a 60 minute wait! 

From what we saw, Disney was running between four to eight 2-person tubes at a time, though you could ride alone if you wanted to. We also noticed that the Cast Members were regularly pulling off tubes to inflate them more so as to prevent them from getting deflated and potentially getting stuck.

Of course, that’s just what we experienced on the media sailing. Disney could operate things a bit differently or work out some of those issues prior to the general sailings!

Once you’re ready to hop in line, you’ll follow the Mickey steps and wait until it’s your turn!

Who’s down for a ride on the AquaMouse? #DisneyWish #hosted #mediaevent pic.twitter.com/YBIRhbTAbT

— Disney Food Blog (@DisneyFoodBlog) June 29, 2022

 

Then it’s time to hop aboard your 2-seater ride vehicle and let the adventure begin!

Just keep in mind that there is a height requirement of 42 inches.

The main “story” portion of this ride is told in the lift hill, which is the first area you enter. This space is filled with “virtual portholes.” Basically, you float by these screens so you can catch all the animated scenes.

There are around 9 show scenes and there are supposed to be about 60 water nozzles to spray you throughout the ride! During our ride, however, the water effects weren’t fully turned on. We expect that they will be in operation once the ship opens to the general public.

One of the cartoons you might see is Swiss Meltdown, which is about Mickey and friends trying to keep Pete (who acts as the sun) from melting their winter wonderland. In this story, Mickey and Minnie want to take you on a port adventure to go sledding down the Matterhorn. But, a very bright sun comes out and threatens to ruin their perfect day by melting all the snow! You’ll have to get to the top of the mountain FAST, before all the snow melts away!

And it won’t be easy! You may just encounter an avalanche or a waterfall or two! This story also has all kinds of easter eggs, like some sky buckets and a yeti.

Riders may also be able to catch Scuba Scramble, a story about Mickey and Minnie on an undersea adventure. In this story, Mickey and Minnie want to take you on an excursion to Mermaid Lagoon. But, of course, some things go (hilariously) wrong. Turns out Mickey and Minnie were led down a route filled with danger.

As they try to swim away, you’ll see all kinds of amazing details, like a statue of Mickey from the atrium of the Disney Magic ship or a point in the audio where Mickey says “fish are friends, not food,” a reference to Finding Nemo!

Once you finish going past all of the story scenes, you hit the top of the enclosed tunnel/lift hill. After hitting that top, the ride really gets going!

At the top, it turns into an enclosed tunnel slide, then a little water jet sends you into an enclosed, clear portion of the slide!

That clear portion takes you sailing OVER the side of the ship, so be sure to look down and around! According to one of our reporters, that was one of the most fun parts of this experience.

You then get to continue on your wild water ride all around the upper decks of the ship.

At the end, you see a few more themed elements like Mickey and Minnie and Chip ‘n’ Dale. In fact, those with a sharp eye will spot Chip ‘n’ Dale in both stories told in the lift hill. Looks like their goal is to make it onto the ship to join in on all the cruising fun with you!

Overall, the ride sort-of divided our team. One reporter rode it and had fun. They did note, however, that the ride is pretty short at only around 2 minutes long. That’s a fairly short ride to wait upwards of 60 minutes for.

Another reporter had a LOT of thoughts about it. They acknowledged that they didn’t get the full experience, because some of the water effects weren’t working, and that they think it could have been great, had they been able to get the full experience. It seems like right now there are some kinks that need to be worked out, and Disney might get them all worked out by the time the general public sails on the cruise. But it’s also possible that the ride could continue to experience some issues.

It’s for this reason that we’d recommend prioritizing the AquaMouse as something to do EARLY in your day and early in your cruise. If you hit the AquaMouse early in the day and are one of the first to ride, you’ll likely get a shorter wait time, which is a plus. But you’ll also give yourself the best chance of still getting on the attraction, even if it does break down.

If it breaks down while you’re waiting, you could come back later in the day or later in the cruise and still have plenty of time to get on it (leave it for the last second and you might not get that chance). Or you may get on it before it starts to experience any issues.

Both reporters who rode it shared that their favorite part was the clear section where you go over the side of the ship and other portions of the cruise. But it is still a short ride, so that’s something to keep in mind. The majority of the experience felt like it was in that lift hill, and then the rest felt like it was over so fast!

One reporter shared that they think this might be a ride that’s particularly great to share with others. Riding with a family member or friend can sometimes make it feel more thrilling and exciting!

Overall, we got a sort-of modified version of the ride. We think the full thing with the water effects could be really fun, especially if shared with family/friends. But come prepared to tackle this one early in your cruise so you give yourself the best chance to get on it without any problems.

Want to learn more about the Disney Wish? Click here to see the full list of characters we met on the Wish, and click here to tour a Princess-themed concierge suite onboard!

Stay tuned to DFB as we continue to explore the Disney Wish! We’re here to bring you all the information you need before boarding a Disney cruise ship, so keep reading DFB for more Disney vacation news!

Click here for everything you need to know about the Disney Wish!

Do you have a trip planned aboard the Disney Wish? Tell us in the comments!

Disclosure: In nearly all circumstances, Disney Food Blog writers and photographers pay full price for their own travel, hotel, food, beverage, and event tickets. We do this because it’s important to us as journalists to ensure not only that we give you unbiased opinions, but also that you can trust us to do so since we’re paying our own way. On rare occasions, when we are invited by a company to attend a preview as media, and when we choose to accept that invitation, we will always make you, our readers, aware of that situation. We were invited by Disney Cruise Line to attend their media preview/sailing of the Disney Wish. Note that when we attend events as media we are 1) Not required to review that event/food on any of our channels, and 2) Not required to review that event/food favorably. You can always count on DFB to give you a 100% unbiased and honest review of any event that we attend, food that we eat, or beverage that we drink. You can see more in our Disclosure Policy. Thank you for reading. — AJ

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