A christening is one of the most important milestones in the life of a new cruise ship. But in the case of Disney Treasure, many fans were left wanting more – and not in a good way.
After weeks of building anticipation, the short ceremony took place on Tuesday, November 19, at 8 p.m. EST.
Onlookers gathered to watch the traditional naming ceremony in New York Harbor, while thousands more live streamed the christening from home.
The festivities began with a live performance from American Idol winner and recording artist Jordan Sparks – who is the voice behind the Triton-class ship’s signature theme song, “Live the Adventure.”
As the first ship in Disney’s fleet to have its own theme song, it was only fitting for the song to be sung at the 4,000-passenger vessel’s christening.
The cruise line then used drones to display a light show over New York Harbor that featured classic Disney characters and paid homage to new experiences launching with the ship.
For example, a “Coco” section commemorated the opening of the Plaza de Coco dinner theater experience and a “Moana” segment was included in connection with the new “Moana” stage show, titled “Disney: The Tale of Moana.”
After the light show, the 144,236-gross ton vessel was symbolically named and christened using a giant champagne bottle in the sky – which was created by the same drones that performed the light show.
Once the ship was christened, the bottle faded into what looked like stars in the night sky.
While the effect was cool, the tradition that dates back to the 1800s is for the ship’s godparent to break a bottle of champagne over the bow for good luck – and this didn’t actually happen.
That said, Disney may have opted for this artistic approach as the company made all of its employees – or cast members as they call them – the godparents of the new ship.
Of course, it would have been impossible for thousands of cast members to be part of the christening – but representatives could have been selected to carry out the tradition.
You can watch the full ceremony below:
Christening Ceremony Disappoints Fans
Disney Treasure’s christening came after weeks of anticipation – with the cruise line teasing the performances and encouraging cruise fans at home to live stream the festivities.
Disney is also famous for its top-notch storytelling and stellar performances, which set high expectations for this historic event.
The cruise line even made a big deal about Disney Treasure leaving her first homeport – Port Canaveral (Orlando), Florida – to host the christening in New York, which added to the hype.
But when all was said and done, many felt that the event simply didn’t meet their expectations – leaving many underwhelmed.
“It was cool, but a 10 minute ceremony is underwhelming, especially considering they took it all the way to New York City for the ceremony for the first time,” one person commented under the livestream on YouTube.
Indeed, the ceremony was on the short but sweet side at just around 10 minutes long. Meanwhile, the average ship christening lasts for around 15 to 30 minutes.
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Others pointed out a lack of participation from key figures within the Disney Cruise Line brand. There were no speeches from Disney executives – at least not on the live stream – and even Mickey Mouse didn’t make an appearance.
“So like what happened to all of the fireworks, and where was Mickey Mouse? There are expectations that Disney has built within their fan base and one of them is absolutely a glorious fireworks spectacular,” commented another live streamer.
All that said, Disney will get one more opportunity to impress New Yorkers before Disney Treasure officially enters service – as the new ship will be represented as part of an elaborate float joining the 98th Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade.
The new vessel will then officially enter service with her maiden voyage on December 21, 2024.
