Disney Fantasy Trip Report Part 6: Royal Court Royal Tea

Trip Report Links:
Part 1--Getting There
Part 2--Embarking the Disney Fantasy
Part 3--First Sea Day
Part 4--Second Sea Day
Part 5--St. Maarten

Part 6--St. Thomas, US Virgin Islands

Part 7: Royal Court Royal Tea

In November 2013, Disney Cruise Line debuted a new princess experience called the Royal Court Royal Tea. It is similar to the My Disney Girl's Perfectly Princess Tea Party at the Grand Floridian. If you didn't know about this event through word of mouth or by reading about it online, you would probably miss it. It was only advertised once in the Fantasy's Personal Navigator on the first day:

"Hear ya, hear ye! Princes and Princesses are welcomed to join some of your favorite Disney Princesses at the Royal Court Royal Tea for an afternoon filled with music, fun and delicious goodies! Stop by the Guest Services Desk, Deck 3 Midship, to register and to learn more about this royal event. Reservations required. Fee will apply. Limited space available."

This even is only open to 20 kids, and on our cruise it sold out early on the first afternoon. Concierge guests have first dibs for reservations before the cruise, and then any available spots are filled at the Guest Services desk on a first-come, first-serve basis. (Edited to add: this event is now bookable online before the cruise).

We decided to splurge on this tea for our daughter instead of having a big birthday party at home. The tea costs $279 for a parent/child duo, so it isn't cheap (but it's comparable to the tea party price at the Grand Floridian). We were on board the ship around 11:30 a.m. on our first day, and I headed straight to Guest Services to sign up.

I was given 2 tickets and learned that the time of the event was on Thursday (our last sea day) at 3:00 p.m.

For the event, Alyssa wore a princess-inspired dress ($12 from Zulily) and a crown. We waited in the atrium with other excited little girls (most appeared to be between the ages of 3-7).

The doors to the Royal Court restaurant opened promptly at 3:00, and servers dressed like princes announced each girl's arrival. Lady Chamomile was the official hostess of the event, and she gave all the girls a new crown (there was only 1 boy, he received a foam sword).

We were escorted to our table, and Alyssa was shown her seat with all her gifts.

Each girl received a Cinderella doll, a Cinderella musical jewelry box with a bracelet and necklace, and a princess autograph book.

Each girl had a personalized cookie on her plate.

Chef Brule also hosted the event with Lady Chamomile. The pair sang songs together and were very funny.

Both of them visited all the tables several times.

Soon, some tea sandwiches and desserts were served at each table.

Then, all the kids were invited to hold hands and dance in a circle to one of the songs from Tangled (where Rapunzel dances near the palace). My daughter did not want to participate, but she enjoyed watching.

Each child also received a large cupcake in a tea cup. Alyssa picked out a blue Cinderella cupcake. Kids had apple juice in their pink tea cups, while adults had real tea.

Lady Chamomile and Chef Brule introduced each princess with a song. Each princess came to every table for a quick greeting, and once all 3 princess were out, they spent time with each child and gave out additional charms for the bracelets. Our tea had Cinderella, Tiana and Arielle (but the princesses vary based on the time of year).

Near the end, all of the princesses danced (twirled) to a song.

As we were walking out, each child got to take a photo with all 3 princesses together.

The next day, a leather folder was delivered to our cabin with Alyssa's photo with the princesses.

From start to finish, the event was almost 2 hours.

So was the event worth the price? Yes, in my opinion. But only if you have a child that would be thrilled spending extra time with princesses. The gifts and the attention were nice and made all the kids feel special and spoiled.

Would we do this again? Well, probably not...because unless the gifts change, it would be a repeat of the same exact thing. Maybe now that the event is nearing its one-year anniversary, it will change slightly to entice repeat customers. But since it's so popular right now, it might not need to.

Have you gone to this tea or something similar? Do you think it's worth it?