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encountered, waking up every day to look at the rolling ocean or a remote island, and topped off with amazing evening shows. That’s a Disney Cruise. Our most beloved characters wander the ship, happy to entertain little ones, and the pièce de résistance is a kids’ club so good our child actually refuses to leave. Peter Pan teaches my daughter how to crow (thanks for that) and she swashbuckles with Captain Hook on Pirate Night.

We wake each morning of the cruise ready to be awed by a new location, from rustic Tortola in the British Virgin Islands to Disney’s very own hideaway, Castaway Cay, where we feed stingrays who tickle the palms of our hands and rub up against our legs in an affectionate welcome. The staff remember our names, our waiters know I’m a fussy vegetarian, and our little girl is called “princess” wherever she goes.

From coast to coast

Because too much Disney is never enough, in New York we visit the famous Disney Store in Times Square. It is absolute mayhem. Packed to the rafters with bustling fans, I ask the staff if it’s particularly busy today, to which they breezily reply, “no, it’s like this every day”. It seems that even in New York, tourists like to get their Disney fix. The store is the number one place to buy the fancy princess dresses my daughter adores so much, so we buy her the gown she’s been endlessly begging dad for.

California is the final leg of our whimsical adventure and Disneyland is truly where my daughter’s dreams come true: she undertakes Jedi training to wield a lightsaber against Darth Vader, transforms into a shimmering princess at the Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique and eats enough popcorn to feed a family of four. She is in absolute heaven. www.disney.com.au

Stay

www.hojoanaheim.com resorts.disney.go.com/aulani-hawaii-resort

Do

stores.disneystore.com disneyland.disney.go.com

Cruise

disneycruise.disney.go.com