So - We need to bring our own cups?

[wrighter]

As a recently-booked, first-time cruiser, I'm reading a lot about people who bring their own cups on the cruises. Specifically, this "tervis tumbler" thing seems to be a favorite. I have no idea what that is, but many frequent cruisers seem to think there is need for their own cups.

Why does everyone bring their own cups - whatever kind that is? What are the advantages/disadvantages to this? Can we purchase them on the ship if we want? Just hoping for some clarification here!

Anyone have photos of their beloved cups?

 

[KristieBennett]

I am too am confused by this need to bring your own cup! I have sailed 20 times on Disney and have never taken a cup. I see people with them and always say to myself, that I would not want to have to keep up with that all day! I guess if you are a big drinker and sit by the pool in the same spot all day you might want a larger cup than what Disney provides, but I guess I just never have a need for that. At the drink station there are disposable cups with lids/straws and also the foam cups for hot drinks. We have always used those. For those that do not like drinking out of a paper cup, you can always grab one from Cabana's and use it. A tervis cup is a large thick insulated plastic cup and unless you are bringing a huge one, they hold the same amount as the cups Disney has. With no dish soap to use all cruise you would be drinking from the same cup just rinsed out. Yes Disney does sell plastic cups in the gift shop should you find yourself in need of one!

 

[ShellB8585]

Congratulations on booking your first cruise!!!

You don't have to bring your own cups we never have. I can imagine some advantages are that certain cups keep drinks colder longer and you can fit more in - the cups at the self serve section are small.

But you will need to use one of the clean provided cups to fill up.

 

[cypressmom]

We didn't bring cups, but then again, we don't drink soda.

 

[GusGus77]

After reading the Dis boards about cups, we brought our own on our first cruise. We used them once. I just didn't see the need for them and they just took up space. I guess we don't drink enough soda or other beverages outside of mealtime that it was an inconvenience to just use the cups provided. I thought they were sufficient. We did not bring cups with us after that. I didn't see the point.

 

[the_bUg]

<------- Needs a large cup for his coffee.


If you're a coffee addict like me, the little coffee cups that are available from the self serve stations just do not suffice. Another pro tip, in your room (possibly in desk drawer), there will be an "order" card so you can pre-order the night before some cold breakfast items and a pot of the horrendous coffee they serve on the ship. You can have coffee delivered to your stateroom at 6:30 AM to get a jumpstart on your day.

 

[TwinPrincessMermaids]

I don't bring my own cup, but I did buy one drink and then used my DCL cup the entire time. I just liked carrying it around! You are supposed to fill the disposable cup into your cup for hygiene purposes.

 

[cheerbearsmiles]

Hubby and I bought personalized reusable cups online just because they're bigger and a cute "souvenir." It was nice to be able to go up to Cabana's or the pool deck, refill our cups, and bring them down to our room to enjoy a nice cup of cold juice/soda on our verandah.

 

[jjje]

I don't like the tervis tumblers because they're so small. I bring a big cup so I can have a larger amount of whatever I'm drinking without having to go back to the drink station. I didn't bring it with me everywhere but if I knew I was going to spend a few hours around the ship going from one activity to another I would grab it. We also brought a trial size dish soap so we could wash our cups out at night.

 

[Dug720]

I don't like the tervis tumblers because they're so small. I bring a big cup so I can have a larger amount of whatever I'm drinking without having to go back to the drink station. I didn't bring it with me everywhere but if I knew I was going to spend a few hours around the ship going from one activity to another I would grab it. We also brought a trial size dish soap so we could wash our cups out at night.

They make big cups too. Not just little ones.

 

[DisneyCowgirl]

I don't like the tervis tumblers because they're so small.

Our Tervis tumblers are 24 oz. That's pretty good size.

We spend a lot of time laying around by the pool and this is when we liked having our tumblers. Didn't use them any other time, but we will pack them again. If you are not planning the "lay-around" time, I probably wouldn't bother with packing them.

 

[wiigirl]

Hubby and I bought personalized reusable cups online just because they're bigger and a cute "souvenir." It was nice to be able to go up to Cabana's or the pool deck, refill our cups, and bring them down to our room to enjoy a nice cup of cold juice/soda on our verandah.

 

[wrighter]

Hmmmm - well I certainly am happy to know that plenty of cruisers do just fine without bringing their own cups! I can see the advantages on both sides. I will have to really ponder whether I want to bring our own or not.

For the coffee-loving poster who mentioned that the provided coffee cups are too small: How big are they? Are we talking little teeny tiny styrofoam ones? Or the slightly bigger 12 oz ones? We definitely need our coffee in the morning - and from what I hear there is only one place on the ship to get "good" coffee without paying for it. Would love to make only one trip there in the mornings. I can do without a soda cup during the day, but may need the extra space for coffee!!

 

[robhawk]

Hmmmm - well I certainly am happy to know that plenty of cruisers do just fine without bringing their own cups! I can see the advantages on both sides. I will have to really ponder whether I want to bring our own or not.

For the coffee-loving poster who mentioned that the provided coffee cups are too small: How big are they? Are we talking little teeny tiny styrofoam ones? Or the slightly bigger 12 oz ones? We definitely need our coffee in the morning - and from what I hear there is only one place on the ship to get "good" coffee without paying for it. Would love to make only one trip there in the mornings. I can do without a soda cup during the day, but may need the extra space for coffee!!

That's why I like bringing my own cup because I drink at least 3 coffees in the morning. Cup size... Think Dunkin Donuts small. I usually get an XL.
I also like have a bigger cup for soda or water while laying around the pool!

 

[Seamama]

The cups at the drink station are small (I think 6 oz?) and also there are not drink stations everywhere so if you want a lot of soda (or even water), you'll be running back there a lot if you don't bring a cup.

As you can see from the posts so far, for many people this isn't a problem. In fact, for me it wasn't a problem either but my family drinks water like fish! And since we didn't get/bring the bottled water, we brought thermoses to fill for the day- worked great. Since only filled w/ water, we didn't bother w/ washing them w/ dish soap (just washed the straw part w/ regular soap- no problems).

I'm also seeing a lot of kudos for the Tervis tumblers on here, which I wasn't familiar w/ so I looked up. They seem to be very sturdy (almost unbreakable) plastic cups w/ lids and straws that keep drinks cold all day and don't sweat.

I'm not sure if you can use the Tervis tumblers w/ soda? Also can't tell if they're leak-proof? Though the thermoses we used were only for non-carbonated drinks, we liked that they were totally leak-proof and could be thrown in our little day bag. For some that might be more trouble than it's worth but for us it's normal- our kids drink a lot of water and we usually carry the same thermoses around anytime we leave the house!

Edit: We posted at almost the same time so I didn't see your question about coffee... I don't remember for sure but I think the coffee cups are also like 6 oz! So even if you don't need a cup for soda or water, you'll want to at least bring a commuter-type coffee mug.

 

[jjje]

Our Tervis tumblers are 24 oz. That's pretty good size.

We spend a lot of time laying around by the pool and this is when we liked having our tumblers. Didn't use them any other time, but we will pack them again. If you are not planning the "lay-around" time, I probably wouldn't bother with packing them.

That's good to know there are bigger ones. The ones I saw in the gift shop on board were small.

 

[Lisa Lisa]

We don't take our own cups (don't drink enough from the beverage station to warrant doing so), but I have purchased Tervis Tumblers on two of our cruises. OP, if you're debating whether to take your own cups, you could wait until you're onboard and purchase one or two of them. Even if you don't find the need to use them while you're onboard, they make great souvenirs! I bought one of the larger ones (24 oz) with a straw on our first cruise, and DH and I use it all the time for cold drinks. I can't take a photo of that one because DH has it in his car. On our second cruise, I bought one of the smaller (16 oz) ones with the "sippy" top. I use that one for coffee on the go. I love them both and each time I use one I remember our cruises! Here are a few photos of the 16 oz Tumbler:

They're good for both hot and cold beverages and are dishwasher safe. They are not leak proof, but they are somewhat leak resistant.

 

[ahain]

We did not bring our own cups on our first cruise, but we WILL on our upcoming cruise in April. We purchased Tervis-like cups with straws (too cheap to buy the real thing, I guess) and personalized them with our names. DH drinks ALOT of soda, so he will appreciate the larger size. Also, on our first cruise, we didn't even know that you could bring pop & snacks into the shows (we were newbies and knew NOTHING - didn't even know wbout this forum, so we missed alot). THIS cruise we will be better prepared!

Another tip we learned on this board is to bring along a drink holder (i.e. like from McDonald's) so that one person can go up to the drink station and refill everyones cups and carry them back to the room (or to the show) by themselves. I'll send someone else to the buffet to get us some snacks

 

[JohnDS]

That's good to know there are bigger ones. The ones I saw in the gift shop on board were small.

You don't have to buy them on board unless you want the Disney graphics. I've seen these cups at Target and Bed Bath and beyond.

 

[Racer X]

Just an FYI - if you are going on an excursion, you are going to want to bring along some water! So i would definately recommend bringing a thermos or water bottle with you!