* Each room features a wall-mounted monitor framed to have the appearance of a porthole. The monitor displays a real-time video view outside the ship – sometimes supplemented by a little “magic” in the form of animated Disney characters that “fly by.”
    * High-definition cameras on the exterior of the ship feed the video to the monitors. The cameras are positioned to correspond with stateroom locations – either port or starboard and from bow to stern.
    * Among the approximately three dozen animated characters and objects that may pop by the Magical Porthole are Peach the starfish from the Disney•Pixar film “Finding Nemo,” Dumbo the flying elephant, the house from the Disney•Pixar film “Up” or even Mickey Mouse.

Living Characters
In Disney’s Oceaneer Club and Disney’s Oceaneer Lab youth areas, Disney characters come to life and interact with children in one-of-a-kind experiences …

    * It has the initial appearance of a pre-recorded animated movie when Crush, the animated sea turtle from the Disney•Pixar motion picture “Finding Nemo,” or Stitch, the mischievous animated alien from the motion picture “Lilo & Stitch,” appears on the 103-inch plasma screen.
    * The characters then chat, play and joke with kids in live, unrehearsed, personalized conversations.
    * During the scheduled appearances, Crush and Stitch sometimes even use silly props from their digital environments.
    * The “live” experience uses sophisticated, voice-activated animation.

Living Characters create ‘Undersea Magic’
The Living Characters fun continues at Animator’s Palate restaurant …

    * The restaurant design is reminiscent of a classic animation studio – filled with character sketches, maquettes (three-dimensional character models), paint brushes, colored pencils and other tools of the animation trade. Scenes and characters from popular Disney•Pixar films adorn the walls.
    * After guests are seated, the entire restaurant goes through a transformation as dinnertime is also show time for “Undersea Magic.”
    * The transformation involves more than 100 wall-mounted LCD screens that switch to scenes of a vivid undersea environment – as if the restaurant was transported to the ocean floor and the LCD screens are windows providing views of a colorful coral reef and creatures that reside on the reef.
    * Crush, the surfer-dude sea turtle from Disney•Pixar’s “Finding Nemo,” swims around the restaurant from “window” to “window,” engaging in live impromptu interactions with guests.
    * While Crush is moving throughout the restaurant, other characters from “Finding Nemo,” such as Nemo, Dory, Squirt and Bruce the shark, swim by and visit with guests.
    * The dining experience culminates with a surfing lesson led by Crush as the EAC (East Australian Current) swirls around the room.
    * As Crush swims away, other characters from “Finding Nemo” make a final appearance before magically turning into pencil sketches.

Magic PlayFloor
For young cruisers, Disney’s Oceaneer Club and Disney’s Oceaneer Lab will feature a Magic PlayFloor, a cruise-industry first that blends the latest in gaming technology with Disney’s panache for storytelling…

    * Located in the main gathering space in both venues, the interactive floor allows children to engage in group activities where their movements control the action.
    * The PlayFloor was designed with 16 light pads on the perimeter that detect motion and location and trigger actions. There are 28 monitors integrated with one another to create a grid display 15 feet by 15 feet on the center of the PlayFoor.
    * Children will be able to explore numerous gaming options created with varying levels of difficulty to suit children ranging in age from 3 to 10.
    * It’s not necessarily “every kid for himself”: Gaming options include team play, where multiple light pads can be controlled in concert with one another to achieve a collective goal.