It definitely feels like a "well we might as well buy it" type purchase. But Turning a profit on a half-price and near complete vessel is going to be easy, especially in the Asian market where demand for cruises is only increasing year on year. Plus, if it stays in that market is likely won't ever see US ports and few in the US will be aware of it, thus leaving the overall brand aesthetic untouched.

Ship price was to be around 2 Billions... Disney bought it for 41 Million... It is the best deal Disney ever have made. China, India and the rest of Asia is a MUCH bigger market than USA.

This is definitely one of those remnants of the short-lived Chapek era of Disney. Disney wouldn't have bought this ship if it wasn't 41M compared to the 1.8B it took to construct. Too big of a deal to pass up I guess. I doubt this ship will ever touch US markets though and will remain for Asia markets.

They purchased this ship at an unbelievable bargain. Although it may be a little different from their usual design aesthetic, this ship is a  virtual blank canvas that they can do with whatever they can dream up. I thought it was a great buy, and when they said they'd drop the guest capacity to a more manageable complement, I became more intrigued. Afterall, Disney has demonstrated a surprising willingness to stray from tradition much in recent years. Not necessarily a good thing, but we'll just have to wait and see.

Updates:

As of 2026, the ship is busy sailing as the Disney Adventure, out of Singapore. Its itinerary is basically just constant 3-4 day sea cruises before coming back to Singapore, which is actually kinda unique for the market it's in - seems like they're trying to use the ship to fill in a niche 99% of cruise lines aren't doing which is just a few short days at sea with all the ship has before doing stuff. It's still funny to see the itineraries because its just 2 of the same areas over and over again. The ship is meant to hold around 6,000 people, with an average sailing of around 4-5 thousand passengers each time.

The rooms are really small and frankly almost spartan - they get the job done and give you the space you need to do things, but they're otherwise rather bland, with the room quality going worse the cheaper you go - one review compared his inside room to a prison cell. They're pretty meh at the lower levels and while they do get better at Concierge levels, no one in their right mind is paying for those. Ironically, an inside-cabin might be the better option because there really is nothing to see - the ship doesn't go anywhere unique after all.
Food is half western half eastern, so it really depends on if you like eastern stuff. Singaporean food is awesome though, so it's probably going to be good, which this + Disney's shown standard for food probably will give Jake high expectations if he ever tries this ship lol.
The ship is eh, the videos I've seen of the ship showed that Disney really tried to make the outdoor spaces as Disney as possible, which is either a good or bad thing. Knowing Jake it's probably going to be bad, and of course the ship appearance looks as you've already known.
Experience might be the interesting thing. The first reviews about the crew are all mid-to-negative, because all the crew is green and are learning the ropes as the ship is in service - not surprising given how this Disney ship is a new beast. Recently, the reviews are getting a bit better, as the crew is getting more experience on how to handle the ship. Also, the rollercoaster was closed at first, but is now open and there's a lot more activities focused towards kids. There is still a ton of good entertainment, and I like how almost everyone agrees that the show featuring Baymax was the best thing onboard. Another thing people have noted are the various upcharge options, in particular: there's a Disney princess Meet&Greet that costs $250 USD - aka, almost unanimously regarded as a rip-off.
Pricing is also a rather iffy category. Yes, the cabins are all stupendously cheap compared to the other Disney ships, being only 1.5K USD and even as low as 1K USD for the inside cabins, up to 3.5K for the best basic cabins, and with a concierge that starts from anywhere between 4-6K and 20K USD. Yes there's no stupidly overpriced Tower Suites, and the 6 funneled design was apparently just to troll people or something. But I did a quick check and Disney is probably the most expensive cruise for a day-to-day comparison, mostly because the competition is iffy - Royal Caribbean 3-day voyages goes for around 300 USD, Dream Cruises (yes, they came back) goes for around 300-400 USD for the same length of time, and there's also a Chinese brand (Adora Cruises) which runs ships similar to the Adventure but which costs 300 USD as well for a 4 day voyage. For more apples-to-crab apples comparisons, Princess does 7-day voyages for 1K USD as well (but those are twice the length as Disney and they do indeed visit somewhere), Celebrity does 12 days for 1.5K USD, and the only thing that really outprices Disney on a day-to-day cost are all the ultra-luxury cruise lines like SIlversea, Viking, Mitsui and Crystal. It's also worth noting that because the ship is predominantly positions towards the Asian market, which has on average, a lower GDP than the west and the USA in particular, so that's why the prices are so cheap - the low prices draw in Asian customers, so really the price to many Asians is kinda like the price of the American ships to an American.

Overall, it's probably a tough nut to crack. There's also the problem of the ship not being designed for an American market, so it would be tough to see impressions - and indeed, the Chinese reviewers I've seen reviewing the ship largely came out with a positive experience, while westerners have been left with predominantly mixed experiences. To be honest, the whole experience feels like a Disney-generalised version of the infamous Galactic Starcruiser - at least we can all agree that Disney did a much better job with this than the Starcruiser, but that's no high bar to clear. The experience really banks on the idea that you want to live in Disneyland for 3-4 days at sea. Still, the ship has an evident feeling of being half-baked, especially given its launch in 2026. And considering the Adventure is MASSIVE, it at least has that over the Galactic Starcruiser - there's a lot of things to do aboard, and with the short cruise timings, you will probably be occupied with enough Disney to last the voyage.

Ironically, to me personally the Disney Adventure feels like it tries to combine everything unique about Disney, the region it is in, and a premium experience, and doing too many things at once, spoiling everything. The truth is, the Adventure is a tough product because at the quality level, location, and product it presents, there are many other better options. Want to experience tropical weather and good food? Just cut out the Adventure and instead vacation in Singapore itself - there's quite a lot to see and do over a few days, from the zoo to the many parks and malls, and of course the countless restaurants on the island. Want a budgetary Disney option? Go to one of the three East Asian Disneylands (Hong Kong, Shanghai, or Tokyo). Just want to go an an Asian cruise with premium levels? Take one of the other options I mentioned before like Celebrity or Princess. Adventure is really only for people who want to do all three at once, but the result ironically cannot be cheap and premium - just what we ended up getting.

This update was crafted from checking around 20 reviews across YT, reddit, and other websites.

*This post has been updated, so it will be resposted. For the sake of keeping the original comment under the update, this comment will be retained in full

Cruise fan: Disney is neglecting the design and attention to detail that established them in search of fast cash

Parks fan: First time?

THANK YOU JAKE! No one talks about how Disney cruise line is not just about a “Mickey Mouse Boat.” As someone who loves dcl for its aesthetics just as much as the experience, this ship was a kick in the balls for the branding. As much as I still love the older ships, it’s hard to feel confident in management when they make decisions like this without considering the brand as a whole and just see dollar signs.

I wouldn't mind a Bright Sun Commentary or more travel industry commentary on the channel.

As of 2026, the ship is busy sailing as the Disney Adventure, out of Singapore. Its itinerary is basically just constant 3-4 day sea cruises before coming back to Singapore, which is actually kinda unique for the market it's in - seems like they're trying to use the ship to fill in a niche 99% of cruise lines aren't doing which is just a few short days at sea with all the ship has before doing stuff. It's still funny to see the itineraries because its just 2 of the same areas over and over again. The ship is meant to hold around 6,000 people, with an average sailing of around 4-5 thousand passengers each time.

The rooms are really small and frankly almost spartan - they get the job done and give you the space you need to do things, but they're otherwise rather bland, with the room quality going worse the cheaper you go - one review compared his inside room to a prison cell. They're pretty meh at the lower levels and while they do get better at Concierge levels, no one in their right mind is paying for those. Ironically, an inside-cabin might be the better option because there really is nothing to see - the ship doesn't go anywhere unique after all.
Food is half western half eastern, so it really depends on if you like eastern stuff. Singaporean food is awesome though, so it's probably going to be good, which this + Disney's shown standard for food probably will give Jake high expectations if he ever tries this ship lol.
The ship is eh, the videos I've seen of the ship showed that Disney really tried to make the outdoor spaces as Disney as possible, which is either a good or bad thing. Knowing Jake it's probably going to be bad, and of course the ship appearance looks as you've already known.
Experience might be the interesting thing. The first reviews about the crew are all mid-to-negative, because all the crew is green and are learning the ropes as the ship is in service - not surprising given how this Disney ship is a new beast. Recently, the reviews are getting a bit better, as the crew is getting more experience on how to handle the ship. Also, the rollercoaster was closed at first, but is now open and there's a lot more activities focused towards kids. There is still a ton of good entertainment, and I like how almost everyone agrees that the show featuring Baymax was the best thing onboard. Another thing people have noted are the various upcharge options, in particular: there's a Disney princess Meet&Greet that costs $250 USD - aka, almost unanimously regarded as a rip-off.
Pricing is also a rather iffy category. Yes, the cabins are all stupendously cheap compared to the other Disney ships, being only 1.5K USD and even as low as 1K USD for the inside cabins, up to 3.5K for the best basic cabins, and with a concierge that starts from anywhere between 4-6K and 20K USD. Yes there's no stupidly overpriced Tower Suites, and the 6 funneled design was apparently just to troll people or something. But I did a quick check and Disney is probably the most expensive cruise for a day-to-day comparison, mostly because the competition is iffy - Royal Caribbean 3-day voyages goes for around 300 USD, Dream Cruises (yes, they came back) goes for around 300-400 USD for the same length of time, and there's also a Chinese brand (Adora Cruises) which runs ships similar to the Adventure but which costs 300 USD as well for a 4 day voyage. For more apples-to-crab apples comparisons, Princess does 7-day voyages for 1K USD as well (but those are twice the length as Disney and they do indeed visit somewhere), Celebrity does 12 days for 1.5K USD, and the only thing that really outprices Disney on a day-to-day cost are all the ultra-luxury cruise lines like SIlversea, Viking, Mitsui and Crystal. It's also worth noting that because the ship is predominantly positions towards the Asian market, which has on average, a lower GDP than the west and the USA in particular, so that's why the prices are so cheap - the low prices draw in Asian customers, so really the price to many Asians is kinda like the price of the American ships to an American.

Overall, it's probably a tough nut to crack. There's also the problem of the ship not being designed for an American market, so it would be tough to see impressions - and indeed, the Chinese reviewers I've seen reviewing the ship largely came out with a positive experience, while westerners have been left with predominantly mixed experiences. To be honest, the whole experience feels like a Disney-generalised version of the infamous Galactic Starcruiser - at least we can all agree that Disney did a much better job with this than the Starcruiser, but that's no high bar to clear. The experience really banks on the idea that you want to live in Disneyland for 3-4 days at sea. Still, the ship has an evident feeling of being half-baked, especially given its launch in 2026. And considering the Adventure is MASSIVE, it at least has that over the Galactic Starcruiser - there's a lot of things to do aboard, and with the short cruise timings, you will probably be occupied with enough Disney to last the voyage.

Ironically, to me personally the Disney Adventure feels like it tries to combine everything unique about Disney, the region it is in, and a premium experience, and doing too many things at once, spoiling everything. The truth is, the Adventure is a tough product because at the quality level, location, and product it presents, there are many other better options. Want to experience tropical weather and good food? Just cut out the Adventure and instead vacation in Singapore itself - there's quite a lot to see and do over a few days, from the zoo to the many parks and malls, and of course the countless restaurants on the island. Want a budgetary Disney option? Go to one of the three East Asian Disneylands (Hong Kong, Shanghai, or Tokyo). Just want to go an an Asian cruise with premium levels? Take one of the other options I mentioned before like Celebrity or Princess. Adventure is really only for people who want to do all three at once, but the result ironically cannot be cheap and premium - just what we ended up getting.

Jake please don’t stop with this channel! It’s been my favorite thing lately. Lots of other creators ditch their second channels after a few months. Please don’t do that

As a long time cruiser I’am so sickened over these malls at sea

Shanghai Disneyland has a pretty different aesthetic than other Disney parks, while definitely invoking familiar imagery. So in this case, I'm not surprised that DCL might be ok with a different ship design for the Asia market.

I’m completely with you. Something about this just feels so off and more in line with modern Disney in trying to worry more about cost and money than the product they’re trying to deliver.

you should do a follow up on this!!

Honestly this is the most sustainable thing. Would rather have Disney purchase at a discount a ship that almost already done instead of them building one from scratch especially if it’s for a market they don’t already have a ship for. This will be a learning opportunity

I thought it only had three funnels and I kinda liked the idea of a classic design that harkened back to one similar to the Queen Mary. Then Jake pointed out the design calls for six...

Honestly, I’m not that convinced that the brand impact will be all that significant, even if it ends up not being great compared with the current ships.

The Chinese market is not familiar with the Disney Cruise brand, and that’s the only market that this ship is going to serve, so I think any brand impact will effectively be quarantined – and to be fair, this ship may serve the Chinese market well in a way that existing ships would not: that market has none of the associations with the golden age of cruise ships that Disney plays off of elsewhere.

I some people were theorizing that Disney buying this ship might have been part of a last ditch effort by Bob Chapek to save his job before he was outed as CEO. I honestly wouldn't be surprised.

I have always felt big cruise ships to be really dystopian

Can’t wait to see your future video, “my experience on the (Global Dream) was so bad , I apologize for everything negative I ever said about the Wish”