How a Tiny Caribbean Island Stole My Heart (And It Wasn't Even on the Itinerary)

I'll be honest: when I first booked our seven-day Disney Magic Caribbean cruise, I spent zero time researching Dominica. While my friends were geeking out over Castaway Cay and Grand Cayman, I was that person scrolling past Dominica's port day without a second thought. It wasn't a "famous" destination. There were no Instagram-worthy resort photos flooding my feed. I figured it would be a sleepy day-at-sea kind of stop, maybe grab some lunch and chill by the pool. I couldn't have been more wrong. Our family—my husband Dave, our two kids Emma (7) and Marcus (10), plus my mom—had made this trip special by celebrating my parents' 40th wedding anniversary. We'd splurged on a deluxe oceanview stateroom on Deck 6, right above the magic, as Dave liked to say. The Magic is honestly our favorite Disney ship. There's something about her that feels more intimate than the newer megaships. The deck spaces don't feel as crowded, and the cast members seem to know your name by day two. Mom had been on the ship before, back when my dad was still with us, and she was quietly emotional the entire embarkation day. That's probably why I wanted to make sure every port felt special. As we pulled into Ros…