Is the Disney Cruise Photo Package Worth It? My Honest Review After 3 Sailings

odienadventures
1 day ago
3 min read

Over the past year, my family has sailed on three Disney cruises, two 3-night sailings on the Disney Wish and a 7-night on the brand-new Disney Treasure. I wanted to share my honest Disney Cruise photo package review to help families decide if it’s worth it. And every single time, we purchased the Unlimited Photo Package. After hundreds (literally hundreds) of photos and lots of trial and error, here’s my honest take on whether it’s worth the price.

Spoiler: for us, it absolutely is.

How the Disney Cruise Unlimited Photo Package Works

The price varies depending on:

The length of your cruise
Whether you buy before your sailing (cheaper!) or onboard

Once you’re on the ship, the Shutters team makes everything super easy. You can:

View your photos on the DCL website using the ship’s Wi-Fi
See them right on your stateroom TV (my kids LOVED this)
Track everything in the Navigator app, which updates in real time

You get 45 days after your cruise to download everything.

The only photos not included are the Signature Private Photo Sessions, which we haven’t tried yet, so I won’t speak to those.

What’s Included? A LOT. Here’s the Breakdown.

I’m splitting these into sections so you can see exactly what you’re getting.

Character Meet & Greets (Including Royal Gathering)

Every scheduled character meet-and-greet (unless a character is roaming) includes a photographer. This alone is a huge win if you have kids, or a kid at heart, who wants every memory documented. We met so many characters, including some rare characters (that you don't see at the Parks), so this alone was worth it.

Dining Room Photos

On the Wish: photographers came around every night since we were only on a 3-night
On the Treasure: on select nights, but made sure we had a photo at each restaurant.

These are great for getting dressed-up family shots without hunting down a backdrop.

Magic Shots

These are sprinkled around the ship and at the nightly backdrops. We’ve had:

Characters magically appear next to us
Fun themed overlays
Special effects that make the photos feel extra whimsical

They’re some of my favorites.

Iconic Ship Locations

Think:

The Grand Hall staircase
The ship’s statue
Beautiful spots around the decks

These are the photos you’ll want framed.

Immersive Portraits & Themed Backdrops

Every night, Shutters sets up unique backdrops, and they change depending on the ship and sailing.

Examples we’ve gotten:

Pirate Night portraits (different on Wish vs. Treasure!)
Halloween on the High Seas themed sets
Star Wars: Hyperspace Lounge lightsaber photos
Worlds of Marvel props like Captain America’s shield (Wish) and Thor’s hammer (Treasure)
Coco’s Hector’s guitar
The Enchanted Rose
And my new favorite: Haunted Mansion Parlor photos on the Treasure

Each ship has its own personality, and the backdrops reflect that. The Treasure especially had so many options because of the longer itinerary.

Tip: If there’s a backdrop you really want, get in line early. We lined up an hour early for the Haunted Mansion photos and were first — by the time we finished, the line was wrapped around.

Photos on Disney’s Private Islands

On Castaway Cay or Lookout Cay, photographers are out:

With characters
At iconic ship viewpoints
Sometimes, even roaming the beach (we got lucky once!)

These are some of the most beautiful photos from our trips.

So… Is the Photo Package Worth It?

For us? 100% yes.

Here’s why:

We take a LOT of photos

To put it in perspective:

Disney Treasure (7 nights): 565 photos
Wish – April (3 nights): 266 photos
Wish – Halloween on the High Seas (3 nights): 297 photos

I did the math, and every cruise came out to under $1 per photo. That’s wild value.

It’s perfect for families

Kids grow fast. Their reactions are priceless. The photographers capture moments, and I am part of the memories (rather than behind the camera).

You get to know the photographers

They’re genuinely amazing humans. By the end of each cruise, we knew many by name, and they made the experience even more fun.

The variety is unmatched

Between characters, themed nights, magic shots, immersive portraits, and island photos, you get a huge range of styles and memories.

Who Should Skip It?

If you:

Don’t plan to stop for many photos
Prefer taking your own pictures
Only want a few character shots

…then you might not need the package. And remember, you can always ask crew members to take photos with your phone.

Final Verdict: My Disney Cruise Photo Package Review

If you’re like us and love capturing the magic, the characters, the themed nights, the ship, the islands, the little moments, the Unlimited Photo Package is absolutely worth it.

It’s become one of our favorite parts of sailing with Disney Cruise Line, and the memories we’ve captured are priceless.