October 21st 2006 !!!!

[Timon]

Welcome to all the October 21st 2006 Disney Magic Cruisers!!

Okay, how about we get to know each other and let the planning begin!!!

We've got about six months to go so let's all get pumped!!

:banana: :cool1: :yay: :bounce:

I have started a website for all of us which you can find HERE (http://www.cassworld.ca/102106.htm) !!!

Hopefully it will be helpful in all your cruise planning!!

[tinkerfun]

Thanks for the new thread and mentioning there's just about 6 months left, I feel like I can finally start getting excited now! :cool1: We booked this cruise in Oct 2004 while we were on our 1st Disney Cruise, so it seems like it has taken forver to get here!!!!
We are planning on going to Discovery Cove doing our stay in Florida and maybe seeing Kennedy Space Center. And the kids want to stay at the Nick Hotel they've seen on TV. It looks like the rates aren't too bad for a Sun-Thu stay. So let me know if anyone has any info on those places.
Thanks,
Julie

[J&ADisneyMom]

Hi Cass,

I am happy to see you will probably be on our cruise! I read your trip report religiously last fall. I loved all the info and all of the pictures. It looked like you had so much fun. We're considering going two days early, spending one night on site and attending MNSSHP prior to sailing. I'd love to hear all of your tips for the party, sometime.

We booked Capt Marvins for the stingray swim, already. I hope you (we) get there this time!!! Will you go through DCL for the stingrays, or will you go through a private tour service?

My dh was just looking at your photos posted with your signature and we both think you look like friends of ours that are married!!! I should bring a picture of them onboard to show you.

Thanks for setting up the new site,

Shell

[Timon]

nrsldy & J&ADisneyMom...your info is up on the website!

Let me know if you want to add something or if I made a mistake anywhere!


tinkerfun,

We did Discovery Cove this past October and it was awesome!!!
I have photos and video of it on my website:
WDW 2005 Video (http://www.cassworld.ca/videoswdw2005-1.htm) This has some footage of the park and some of the Dolphin Encounter from the beach area.

Our Dolphin Swim Video (http://www.cassworld.ca/videosdc2005.htm) This is the video that they took of us during the dolphin swim.

Discovery Cove Photos (http://www.cassworld.ca/photosdc.htm) And these are my photos from our day at DC.

Tips:
Get there early! Try about 8 am if you can get there that early! You will get your Dolphin swim early which is good cus then you can get that done and just relax for the rest of the day instead of checking your watch all the time. :cool2:

Prepare to have sticker shock when you go to buy your photos/video!! :faint:

Check out park maps BEFORE you go so you can at least get an idea of how the park is layed out.

Most importantly, suck up all the magic you can, it's a wonderful experience but it goes by SO fast!
btw...did you want to add your info to the Who's Going page???


J&ADisneyMom,

Thanks! It was a lot of fun to post the live report! I will be doing it again this October if we go!!!

Yes, definitely see MNSSHP!!!! The parade and fireworks alone is worth the admission price! The new Hallowishes was AMAZING!!!!!!!!!!!

You can watch a video I made of MNSSHP on my web site HERE (http://www.cassworld.ca/videosmnsshp.htm) or look at some photos and my trip report HERE (http://www.cassworld.ca/mnsshp2005.htm) Photos are at the bottom of the page after the trip report.

Definitely bring that photo!! Ya know, I get that a lot! People are always asking me "Do you know Susan??" or "You look familiar, do I KNOW you??"

LOL :lmao:

If we go, which of course I am ALL excited about now :cool1: , I will be booking the Short Excursion (approx. 2.5 hours): 11:15 AM to 1:15 PM
with Captain Marvins. I've seen the cruise line boats and most of them have about 100 people on board! Capt Marvins and Nativeway (we booked with them in 2003) have smaller boats with about 15-20 people on board so you get more attention from the tour guys to feed the stingrays or to look/learn about them. :woohoo:

[abitjaded]

Thanks Cass! The web site looks grand.

NRsldy, will DS12 still be 12 when we cruise? DS13 will turn 13 in July, too old for the kid's clubs. Off to the tweens. What does your son like? My DS plays Runescape and World of Warcraft constantly. Not too crazy about that. He isn't playing this week, though. Not until his math grades come up. Yuk, what an age, he is in 7th grade.

Heard a rumor from school that one of DS10's classmates may be cruising, too. Need to talk to his parents to find if this is the week. DS13 is on traditional year, his fall break is the week we cruise. DS10 has three weeks off for his track, and his friend could be one of two weeks. He told me they were going to Margaritaville, so this may be the one!

Will try to avoid real names on this thread, unless folks say it is O.K.

Carla

[tinkerfun]

Hey Cass,
My dd11 and I loved looking at your Discovery Cove photos and video, she was sooo excited after seeing them and can't wait to go. Thanks for the tips you had. I just got the kids break schedule, I thought we were going to have a week off before the cruise, but it looks like it's going to be the week after now, so I'm glad I hadn't book Discovery Cove yet.
We missed Grand Cayman last time and had really wanted to do the sting rays, so I'm hoping to get there this time. :fish:
Thanks,
Julie

[tinkerfun]

Does any one know the days for MNSSHP this year? And when do tickets go on sale? We just read Cass' trip report there and thought that might be a good way to spend Halloween since we won't be home.
Oh, and any ideas for easy, inexpensive costumes that don't take up much suitcase room? I have a dd11 & a ds9. Maybe we should all be pirates this year since we would be able to get to use them twice on the trip! pirate:
Thanks,
Julie

[Timon]

You can see the expected dates for MNSSHP on this website (http://www.touringplans.com/BestDays.htm)

Scroll down to October and you will see MNSSHP written on the right hand side of the expected days.

The OFFICIAL dates should be released at the end of April as they were released last year on April 30th.


We went as pirates last year for the same reason, we could use them during Pirate Night on the cruise AND MNSSHP pirate: I suggest either ebay or your local Walmart or Target come September/October for costumes!

[tinkerfun]

Thanks for the website with the MNSSHP dates. Do you know if they always have it on Halloween? The site listed dates for MNSSHP, but on 10/31/06 it just said Halloween, not MNSSHP. That would be our preferred date. I can check on it when tickets go on sale.

My family has really been enjoying your website, Cass. I showed my husband some stuff on it the other night. He never seems to get as excited as I do about Disney, or the whole vacation planning stuff! :cheer2:

I'll keep my eye out for pirate stuff pirate: , I'm hoping there will be a lot of it out this season with the new Pirate movie opening in July.

Thanks,
Julie

[Timon]

Yes, they always have it on Halloween Night. We went to it last year and although everything I read about the crowds being really bad, they weren't as bad as everyone said. Yes, a little busier than other nights but not intolerable.

Halloween Night is also a little more expensive and ALWAYS sells out so make sure you get your tickets relatively soon.

Okay, come on people!!! Where are you all???? Let's get it started in here :rolleyes1 :rolleyes1 :rolleyes1

Okay, how about sharing our excursion choices...I will start!

Key West
I think we will just be walking around in town. I would like to stop by Kino's and check out some sandals and watch the sunset celebration from Mallory Square and go to the obligatory southernmost point of continental USA since hubby and I have been to the southernmost point in ALL of USA in Hawaii. :rolleyes:

Cozumel
Going to book the Fury Catamaran. Booked it last year but we never made it to Cozumel, so I am crossing my fingers :thumbsup2
Then some shopping perhaps.

Grand Cayman
Cpt Marvins Short Excursion 11:15 AM to 1:15 PM
Then we are gonna grab some more HRC shirts and maybe do some shopping.

Castaway Cay
We are going to park our butts in a shady hammock and snuggle each other in paradise while sipping on some virgin daiquiris!

[J&ADisneyMom]

Cass, you must have a familiar face!! The funny thing is that your dh looks like our friends dh as well...must be your virtual married twins.

OK, lets see what our plans are so far-

We plan to arrive in Orlando Thurs and go to MNSSHP (thanks for posting the link to your pictures and video, Cass. They are great!). Friday we'll enjoy the boardwalk and then catch some lunch at Earl of Sandwich before heading to Cocoa Beach. We'll meet up with friends and family in Cocoa Beach and probably have a nice dinner at Grills.

Key West-I expect we'll go into town to get some Key Lime pie and just walk around a bit. We've been to Key West before. Shirley posted where to get the best key lime pie and I have it written down someplace, so that is where we'll be heading. We'll also spend some time on the ship while it is less crowded.

Cozumel-right now the plan is to take the kids to Paradise Beach while the guys are doing an ATV tour. My kids loves the sand and the water and I'll love having some authentic Mexican food and drinks. Hopefully we can shop a bit too.

Grand Cayman- we'll also be taking the 11:15 short excursion with Capt Marvins. We can't wait! Not sure how the kids will do. I expect my dd will be jumping right in and my ds will be hanging on the boat, but we'll see. Even if they both stay on the boat, it will be an awesome excusion for them (and us!). Afterwards, we'll check out the town and try out some Stingray beer. I just bought some rum cakes from the Tortuga factory and when my family is visiting over Spring break, we'll make some rum punch and try the cakes. That should help to get us in the traveling mood.

Thurs is our anniversary! We'll be celebrating by renewing our vows onboard and then having dinner at Palo.

Castaway Cay- we're hoping to do the Banana Boat ride, rent some bikes and enjoy the beach.

Next...
Shell

[latoberg]

Hey thanks for starting up this thread. Mine didn't go anywhere, so I'm glad there's some excitement for this cruise building.

Self, DW, DS7, & DS4 will be making our first cruise. We changed plans from a week at WDW to this cruise.

DW is getting excited about this trip that she is ready to go NOW.

Boys are very curious about everything they can do.

I hope we can find them some "buds" before we set sail. It will help them adjust to something very different.

We haven't planned our excursions yet, but here is what we have said so far:

In Key West, I want to check out the Mel Fisher museum. Mel Fisher was one of the gurus of treasure hunters for Spanish ships that sunk around Florida (I love treasure hunting).

Wife is wanting to swim with some kind of critter. Rays, dolphins, snorkling with fish. She loves the water stuff. (Since I have a terrible fear of water, that isn't my thing..although I have adapted enough to shower fairly frequently :rolleyes1 )

Boys are looking forward to the Oceaneer Club (big pirate ship room) but DS7 loves new places. It will trip his little, wonderful mind that he is in another country.

DS4 really doesn't know yet. As long as he can bring a lightsaber, he'll probably be just fine.

[abitjaded]

Hey all,

I think DH actually booked a couple tickets already for Orlando using Frontier mileage. We leave Friday and arrive late, so we will probably stay near the airport and drive to the port on Saturday. I hope we arrive early enough to upgrade. DH has to visit someone at one of the universities there and may be going a day or two before.

Then the cruise. We won't do much in Key West, maybe walk around and chill. I would love to see Tortuga, but not enough time to do that. Captain Marvins at Grand Cayman. Cozumel, probably just find a decent "beach" off the beaten track for snorkeling, though our favorite is supposedly a mess from shore. We may have to find a boat, but not a Disney one, they just take too much time in gathering to be worth it.

After the cruise, we hope to get space at the Swan on the teacher discount and hit MNSSHP and the Food and Wine Festival at Epcot. I think we do not leave until late Monday afternoon. Need to start planning, but it has been so crazy around here, I have not gotten much done.

I hope I get some time this next few weeks, Spring Vacation this next week, then two more weeks off for DS9 who is on tracks, so I do not need to work as much.

Carla

[nrsldy]

Carla,
My DS will be 12 during the cruise. He loves his PS2 games. We are doing Capt.Marvins because DS wants to swim with the stingrays.I do not snorkel but will be learning during the summer.

We will be coming in on the 19th and will go to MNSSHP either thur or fri. I plan on us walking around Key West on our own. No other excursions planned at this time.
I am still hunting for pirate costumes. pirate:
Have A Magical Day!

[abitjaded]

Tracy,

Lots of pirate stuff should show up in the stores as Halloween nears. Before the last cruise in October we were able to find a lot of things at the party stores and even Target. Found some stuff at the second hand stores, too. Of course there were a lot of things since Pirates Of the Carribean (the movie) had just been out. We dressed up a lot for Pirate Night but were so shot from doing too much we had to go to bed before the deck party started. Did manage to see the full eclipse of the moon that night, though.

This will be the first cruise where one of our boys will be too old for the kids' clubs, so not sure how that will work. I'm hoping the tweens club will keep him happy. He is 12 going on crabby teen. If your DS 12 wants to email my DS12, 13 on the cruise, we should set it up.

Have you been to Key West before? My kids liked the Mel Fisher museum and it is a very short walk from the ship port there. We also took the Conch Trolley around the town. You could jump on and off at will. We walked around the light house and Hemmingway's house. Did some walking around at some of the other stops, too. The kids went to their clubs and we had our Palo dinner that evening, early, and watched the sunset from the ship, rather than going to Mallory Square. According to Shirley of a Perfect Gift (Key Westers originally) the beaches and reefs are pretty lousy, so we gave those a pass. It was a good opportunity to treat it as a partial day at sea.

Good luck on the snorkel lessons. Get a decent mask and snorkel, rather than renting. Nothing worse than stuff you are not familiar with, or a mask that leaks.

Carla

[abitjaded]

Woo hoo! Got the Swan cheap for our Saturday and Sunday nights post cruise. Cannot wait until the ressies open for Food and Wine Specials and MNNSHP. Years ago we did an amazing Vintner's Reserve dinner, but you cannot get those anymore, all the Florida Wine and Dine card holders get first crack, and they are instantly gone. Just cannot figure out what to do with the soon to be 13 yo if we do something one evening. I do not feel comfortable leaving him alone. Has anyone ever used the baby sitting services? They loved the kids clubs but most limit the age to 12 and under.

Carla

[Timon]

Hello cruisers!! I just wanted to pop in and say...

207 more days till we cruise!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!



That means next week we are in the hundreds!! :lmao: :rotfl2: :cool1: :banana:

[need_a_Disney_fix]

Cass, I noticed on your cruise website that you are in 6634. DH and I loved that stateroom so much we rebooked the same one on our February 3, 2007 Eastern. We really like the locationand the obstructed hull verandah was great. It is cozy but yet you have a full verandah. It took me about 3 minutes to get to Topsiders using the aft stairs that end up by the dessert bar. If you have any questions about 6634, just ask.

[Timon]

Cass, I noticed on your cruise website that you are in 6634

Yes, I am VERY excited about it!!! When I bugged DH about cruising one last time before kids, I looked at the DCL site and saw that 6634 was available!! :cool1: I know that these normally go very fast so I was all giddy about it and after I told hubby about why I was giddy he told me to book it and if we end up pregnant soon then we will just cancel.

I prefer an enclosed verandah but wanted to be able to look through the glass so this cabin is perfect for me! I hope we can go!

Do you happen to have any pics of the room?? :rolleyes1

[J&ADisneyMom]

Well, we made a nice, big payment over the week end, on the cruise and yesterday we booked Pop for the 19th, and the new Marriott Residence Inn for the 20th. I can't wait to see that we are under the 200 mark. We booked almost a year ago and the time has gone by quickly. Now with nice weather approaching, I'm sure our departure date will be here before you know it. I'm off to order matching outfits for the kids, from Gymboree.

Shell

[latoberg]

that you want to eat when you get on board?

Being a newbie to the cruise, I've heard lots of mmmm, aaaahs, and oooooh yeeaaahs over food. So what are you wanting?

[Timon]

Ooooohhh, food! :rolleyes:

We cannot live without the chocolate croissants from Topsiders Breakfast Buffet!! Just so you know, they don't really look like a croissant, they are square but you HAVE to try them!!

Silly but we LOVE Pluto's!! Those chicken strips and hot dogs and chicken sandwiches are DELISH!! :cool1:

Hubby lives off the fruit at Goofy's Galley!!!

And I love the Amaretto Cheesecake on the seafood dinner night!

[Dyerneeds]

Timon

We just wanted to tell you guys to have a great trip this October. We considered taking the same trip, (What are the odds it would get diverted again.), but decided to book ours April 21st, 2007.

We will be going to WDW in October too, so maybe we'll run in to you. After all, we ran into Walt & Di last October in the MK after the cruise.

Just wanted to say, love your new pups and have a great time. It'll be here before you know it.

To everyone else on this thread, Have fun.

[Timon]

dyerneeds!!

Hey, nice to hear from you! When will you be in WDW in October?? We will have to make sure we run into you if our schedules are similar!!! We should be there in Disney from the 15th to the 20th. Trying to do MNSSHP twice :rolleyes:

Yeah, I hope we don't get diverted again this year! :crazy2: :scared: We may be pushing our luck but oh well. April 2007 huh? Well, you don't have to worry about being diverted then :lmao:

[abitjaded]

Hey Latoberg!

I'm looking forward to the cold soup at lunch in Parrot Cay on embarkation day. And while others rave about the chocolate souffle, I love the pistachio torte at Palo. I'm looking Forward to EVERYTHING there. Stone crab! (If it still is around after Katrina.) And sundaes in the dining rooms. I have always thought the desserts were a little lame, but started getting the ice cream ones after tasting DH's.

Carla

[abitjaded]

Oh bummer, Looks like MNSSHP dates are only on Fridays and during the week, no Saturdays or Sundays. ARRRGGGGGHHHH! No October 28th or 29th! What are they thinking???? We cannot arrive early enough on the 20th, either.

Carla

[nrsldy]

UNDER 200 DAYS :cool1: :woohoo: :banana: :yay: :Pinkbounc :woohoo:

[Timon]

Hi guys!

Some good news and bad news....

Good news...I am pregnant!! :banana:

Bad news...we had to cancel the cruise. :guilty:

I am due beginning of December so I will be way too pregnant to cruise since they don't allow after 24 weeks.


However, if anyone wants to e-mail me their info I will gladly keep up the Who's Going Page for you guys!!

I will be following the weather and stuff for your cruise. Hope you all make it to the scheduled ports this year! :rolleyes2

Have fun everyone!!!

[abitjaded]

Cass,

Congratulations!!!!!!!!!! When are you due?

That only leaves a few of us! I hope we will have some Florida cruisers when the locals can get their cheaper prices. I'm nervous there are so few of us. I hope we are not a convention cruise.

Carla

[J&ADisneyMom]

Congrats Cass!! That is wonderful news. Best wishes for a uneventful nine months and a happy, healthy newborn! One day you will be able to share all the magic of Disney with your child. As much as I love Disney, there is nothing like seeing it through the eyes of my children. My kids are now 5 and 2 1/2. My five year old has been to WDW 3 times and my 2 1/2 year old has been twice. They both ask when we're going back... they just love it. You will be missed on the cruise... we'll be thinking about you as we're eating chocolate croissants and chicken strips!

Shell

PS my friend that looks like you is having her first baby in May. I wonder if your kids will look alike, too :0)

[Dyerneeds]

Congratulations Cass & Rob,

We were planning on meeting you at WDW the week before the cruise, but this is really great news. I'm so happy for you both.

We'll continue to keep in touch... Maybe when your little one reaches the toddler stage, we can cruise together again. That's the greatest age.

We are actually expecting our first grandchild in September, so we're looking forward to introducing this little one to the Disney experience. My son and daughter-in-law are dihard Disney fans, too.

Again, congratulations. You'll have to send me pics.

Keep in touch.

[Timon]

PS my friend that looks like you is having her first baby in May. I wonder if your kids will look alike, too :0)

LOL, maybe huh? Hmm, yes have MANY chocolate croissants for us!! Have fun!!!

Robin,

Well congrats to you too!!! It's going to be very different going to WDW now I guess!! I will definitely keep in touch, and you can always find me here on the boards...somewhere :rolleyes:

[Duane]

Hey Everyone! Count in another "3" folks for the Oct. 21 sailing.

I'm Duane (42), DW Claudine (41), and DD Ashleigh (10) and will be coming down to join you guys from the Raleigh NC area.

This will be our 3rd Disney cruise on DCL. We have taken a 3 and a 4 day in the past. And several years ago, DW and I took a Disney cruise on "The Big Red Boat" with Premier Cruise Lines.

We will be staying in SR 6586, so Cass, it looks like were just up the corridor from you.

We look forward to meeting everyone and will be checking back regularly on the forum.

Everyone Take Care, and we'll check in later!

Duane, Claudine & Ashleigh

[abitjaded]

Welcome Duane, Claudine and Ashleigh!

My DS younger will be 10 on the cruise, they should be in the same group. Does she like boy friends? DS10 has several good girl friends at school.

What are you excursion plans? Do you snorkel or beach comb?

I noticed latoberg on some other posts is into metal detection on the beach. Are you going to bring your gear?

Carla

[Duane]

Hey Carla, thanks for the welcome! Yes Ashleigh likes the boys just as much as the girls. I think the girls in her class sometimes get a little jealous because she is just as content with playing with the boys as she is with the girls.

So far, as excursions go, we haven't planned anything as of yet. We're pretty laid back and enjoy doing just about anything. I hope to take Ash out snorkeling this trip, because she was a little too young on our previous cruises to participate. Claudine is just as content to relax someplace on the beach....

We enjoy shopping at the different ports and just plain exploring. I guess now the fun of it all is researching and planning. Claudine says it takes me forever to make a decision on something because I will research something from every angle that I can.

I've been reading some of the trip reports from some of the other folks on here to get ideas.

As far as "gear" goes, I'll have to see how much "STUFF" Clausdine plans on packing... :)

Anyway, I catch you folks later....

Duane

[Duane]

Okay I have finally read throught the entire thread up til this point and have found that Cass and Rob won't be making the cruise, BUT, CONGRATS on the new member of the family that's on the way....

Also, Carla, I see that one of your sons is on the track system for school, Ashleigh is too. We call it "year round school". So already I have that we have something in common. We usually get the strangest looks from folks when we travel Folks always ask why Ash is not in school. Then we have to explain the whole year round thing to them....

[abitjaded]

Ah, yes the track thing. Ain't it grand.

The DIS is THE place for those of us who plan. The planning keeps us going, too. I have a notebook with everything plotted out. Calendars with early and late openings for each park, which restaurants to try. And an Excell spread sheet with shows, formal nights, port times, menus, etc. Ye gads.

Snorkeling should be great. Have never done Cayman, but it was legion when DH and I used to scuba in the days BK (before kids). We were in Coz when it was a tiny place many moons ago. Last cruise, we just taxied to a great little spot in Cozumel and snorkeled from the beach, but I have heard that it was pretty wrecked, and "Cozumel Ian", who keeps the Hurricane Wilma spot, recommends getting a boat and going further out, so Coz may be more complicated than I want to think about now. But, at least when our kids were younger, it was easier to get them to snorkel when they went from a boat rather than a "beach". No surge from waves at the shoreline and tripping over rocky entries. (Long story here about getting Ian into the water at St Martin, when he was 6, yuck.)

Carla

[tinkerfun]

Congratulations Rob & Cass on the pregnancy! Was really looking forward to meeting you on the cruise, but a new baby is much better!!! :cloud9:

Looking forward to the chocolate souffle at Palo's!!!

I have a dd11 and a ds9 going on the cruise with my hubby & I.

Julie

[latoberg]

Sorry gang, but me and the family are getting off the boat before it leaves.

Wife and I discussed options and we're going to do 8 days at WDW instead. With everything outside of the cost of the cruise to get ready, we were spending a boat load! :sad2: ! We figured it up and are going to do the Wilderness Concierge and Mickey's NSSHParty instead.

So have fun all.

[Duane]

Latoberg, sorry you won't be on the cruise with us, but I know (!) you will have a great time with the WDW plan. We have done the WDW visit during this part of Oct. for the past 5 years and have gone to the MNSSHP for the last 4.

In my opinion, this is absolutely the best time of the year to be at WDW. The weather is nice, the crowds are low to manageable. You will have a great time.

We have always stayed at Ft. Wilderness and rode our bikes over to WL. That is a great resort.

Funny thing happened last year this time though, and something you should be aware of.... We were evacuated from the campground for 2 nights for Hurricane Wilma. They put all of the campers and folks staying in the cabins up at the All Star Sports until the hurricane passed. But we're not gonna talk anymore about that....

Anyway, have a great time, and get alot of candy at the party!

Duane

[abitjaded]

Help us....


We're shrinking, we're shrinking......


Carla

[nrsldy]

Well we are still in planning mode! :woohoo:
I booked Captain Marvins. My Dh and Ds are both excited about this.
Watching the clock tick down :thumbsup2

[abitjaded]

Hey Tracy,

Which Captain Marvins did you book? I would like to do the one with two extra stops after Sting Ray City. Haven't you gone with Capt. Marvin before? I'm wondering just how rough the boat ride is. I figure once we are in the "bay" it will be smooth but just how rough can the western transit be? Where are their boats actually docked? I've been looking at the Cayman sites and can't figure what the currents, tides are like in October.

Latoberg,

Have fun at Wilderness, we'll miss you.

Duane,

I have always been curious about camping at Ft. Wilderness. We stayed once at the cabins and the mosquitos were pretty voracious even in October. Did you tent or RV?

Carla

[tinkerfun]

I'd love to hear about what excursions people are planning to take or have taken before. We were schedule to do the sting rays on Grand Cayman on our last cruise, but the ship had to skip it due to hurricane damage. I am now wondering whether to do the sting rays at Grand Cayman or Castaway Cay. DH wants to do parasailing at Castaway Cay. He was all set to do it last cruise and then sprained his ankle the day before and ended up on crutches the rest of the trip!
...on second thought, maybe I shouldn't plan out anything ahead of time!!
Julie

[DVCKatie]

Hi everyone We just booked for the oct. 21st cruise. I will be traveling with my DH and my DS. This is our first cruise and we are looking forward to it. Hope all of you can help us with lots of Info. Glad to be aboard.

Katie :wave:

[abitjaded]

Welcome Katie! How old is your DS? Mine will be 13 and 10 when we cruise.

Julie, we had booked Captain Marvin's before but also missed Cayman because of Hurricane damage. We went to the first (?) Magic private tour via Ivan of Chaccoben. When did you cruise before? That same cruise we just taxied to Dzul Ha in Cozumel. It was a great snorkel beach. We went from shore and hung at the little palapa restaurant that was there, cost two beers and two cans of pop. All the snorkel tour boats dropped folks right where we were! I have heard from Cozumel Ian that this site was pretty devastated and is not back to snuff, as are most of the shore dives or snorkels. So I, too, would love to hear what folks did in Coz. We are thinking of getting some type of snorkel boat.

Carla

[DVCKatie]

Hi all! There is a typo for my DS which is actually my DD and she will be 21 by
then.

Katie :wave2:

[nrsldy]

Welcome Katie!
Carla,
We have never cruised before. The stingray snorkel is the short one. My DH last night said he might like to parasail. So I am going to check into that for him. I think I might like the stone massage for myself :cloud9:

[Duane]

Welcome aboard Katie, glad to see someone else will be joining the rest of us in October. You are gonna have the time of your life! We (me, wife and daughter) have been on the 4 and the 3 day in the past, and are really looking forward to this one.

Carla, we have always camped in an RV when we've stayed at Ft. Wilderness. Yes the "skeeters" can be an issue sometimes, but we always keep bug spray and Yard-Guard in the trailer for these kinds of things.

The only other resorts we've stayed at in the past, were the All-Star Sports, however not by choice. We were evacutated there last Oct. from the Ft. when Hurricane Wilma past by. We also have stayed at the Disney Inn, its now called Shades of Green. We stayed there a long time ago when the Disney used Premier Cruise Lines for their cruises. That was the very first Disney Cruise the DW and I took.

Claudine has been begging me to take her to the Animal Kindom Lodge to stay at least one night after we get back from the upcoming cruise. We'll see how things work out.

Anyway, gotta run.... I'll catch you guys later!

Duane

[abitjaded]

Duane,

I don't blame Claudine. The year Animal Kingdom Lodge opened we had Annual Passes. DH had a conference in the area and so did I, so we bought the passes for everyone and watched the airline fares like hawks. We made three trips. We got to preview the AKL on one trip. They then gave wonderful rates at the AKL for AP holders so we stayed there 5 days on the next trip. We spent a lot less time in the parks on that trip. We had a deluxe room on the savannah. We would get food at Mara, sit on the balcony and just watch the animals. We would finally be chased off to the parks when they would take the animals in mid-day to clean the enclosures. The place is wonderful.

Carla

[DVCKatie]

Hi all!
Would like to have some views on the islands sush as Key West, Grand Cayman and Cozmel. Which is the great places to shop and etc. Thanks!

Katie :wave2:

[Duane]

Thanks for asking that question Katie, as I would like to know the same thing.....

Duane

[abitjaded]

We did not buy much in Key West, lots of lime bath products and shell stuff, and we never made it to Cayman. But if you look at the shopping guides on some of the other sites, they show the same sort of duty-free shops found all over the Carribean that are full of liquor, gold and crystal. We went in some of the same in St Thomas and St. Martin. But we did shop a lot in Cozumel. Of course, who knows if the places we went are there, now.

But enywho... I love the silver jewelry in Mexico. It is comes in plain and fancy. It is fun just to look around and see what grabs you. Most every shop (and there were many, many....) has variations on the same thing so you just keep asking until someone is willing to give a good price. They also have wonderful crafts: painted fantastic wood beasts, pottery Maya faces, brass suns and on and on. There was one huge shop to the left of the pier with an enormous selection of all the wonderful crafts found all over Mexico. I found some wonderful bells in shapes that cover everyone on your holiday lists, penguins, parrots, doctors, lions, nuns, etc. They have good vanilla and some types of local liquor make good souviners. I also buy some types of medication reasonably priced by reputable companies in the large Pharmacias there. There are leather, carpets, pottery shops, clothes with embroidery and sweaters. Check out your local Pier 1! Then halve or quarter the price there.

What are you interested in?

Carla

[tinkerfun]

We went on the Disney Magic in Oct. 2004 and took the kids out to the market place Costa Maya to look around and haggle a little. At the time, DS was 7 and DD was 9. DS enjoyed talking with them in Spanish (our kids go to a Spanish Immersion School), but DD didn't enjoy the bartering at all. And really didn't like how all the vendors tried to get her to go into their shops to look. It will be interesting to see how they react this time.

At Key West, we left the kids at the club and my dh and I just walked around. Bought some lime stuff and that's about all. We really weren't looking to buy much though. We will probably bring the kids with us this time and show them the fish out at the docks and the guy who stands outside his shop with a pie that he pretends to throw at you.

Julie

[kecall]

Count us in for the October 21, 2006 cruise!!! :woohoo: :woohoo: :woohoo:

My dh, 2 dds and I are taking our first cruise! (dds will be 13 and 9 when we go) We will be celebrating our 25th anniversary! :love:

We are staying in #6562...just a few doors down from you, Duane!

We made the reses. so long ago that I just pushed the whole trip out of my mind....Now, I am just getting back into the swing of things...and feeling a bit panicked!! I'm reading everyone's posts and realizing that we have made solid plans about anything!! *yikes!!* We better get on the ball!!!

I must admit, I am feeling very overwhelmed. After so many trips to WDW, I feel like a "pro" at it!! But this whole cruise thing is "new territory" for me!! I keep reading and reading, and getting more overwhelmed at all of the details I need to arrange....Then I remind myself that I also need to relaxxx and enjoy and not be tooo "organized" about the whole thing!! Hopefully I will find the balance before our trip!! In the meantime, looks like I will be up all night reading again!!! :D

I look forward to meeting you all....and congrats Cass!! What wonderful news!!!

karen :)

[abitjaded]

Welcome Karen and family. Wow, happy 25 in advance. One of my DSs will be 13, too.

I made a spread sheet based on an Excel one of the cruisers on our last trip made. It has a day and is color coded to show each restaurant, dress, port et al. That is about the only way I have a clue what is supposed to go on. I still have not made a reservation for Captain Marvin's. But at least we have hotel after and some plane reservations! I did sneak into a store this week that someone had told me carried a lot of boy's suits, just had to peek. But no way am I going to shop for those yet. It seems their pants and shirts have to be replaced monthly due to untoward growth!

Julie, where is this pie place? Love to trick the kids.

Carla

[DVCKatie]

Hello Karen and family...Congradulation....Looking forward for the trip in October too. It's our first time too. When we will be going my dd will be 21 yrs. We found some interesting events to do but its hard to decide of which ones to do. In time we will decide later.

Lots of fun....
Katie

[tinkerfun]

Hi Carla,
I found some info on the pie shop in Key West:
www.keylimeshop.com
They have a very refreshing key lime soda.
Julie

[abitjaded]

Thanks, Julie. I wrote down the address and book marked the shop. I love key lime pie.

Carla

[nrsldy]

Welcome Aboard Karen and family. We are first time cruisers also.
Thanks Julie for the key lime place- one of our faves.
I bought our tickets for MNSSHP for Oct 20th. and made dinner ressies at LLT for that night. That is my DH's B-Day. We will be staying at SOG the night before the cruise and driving that AM to the port.
Happy Planning :woohoo:

[tinkerfun]

I didn't think MNSSHP tickets went on sale until May 1st! I'll have to give them a call. We want to go on Halloween! :hmghost:
Thanks,
Julie

[kecall]

Thanks everyone for the welcome! I am getting more and more excited as each day goes by!!

I'm looking forward to hearing about everyone's plans....and making some of our own!!

karen :)

[abitjaded]

Over a week and no posts!

Just got an interesting book from the library: Caribbean By Cruise Ship by Anne Vipond. A nice overview of the ports and general ship workings. It has a few pages on each of our ports.

Carla

[tinkerfun]

I have now booked all our hotels, rental cars, airfare, and side trips in Orlando. I received our MNSSHP tickets in the mail today along with our Discovery Cove reservations. Still left to do are cruise excursions, Kennedy Space Center tickets and getting pirate costumes. pirate: And of course watching Pirates of the Carribean movie coming out July 7th! Whew!
I'm getting so excited, but it's still so far away!
Did anyone already book Capt. Marvin excursions for Grand Cayman? We are still trying to decide what we want to do. Probably just a short excursion to the stingrays in the morning.
Julie :wave2:

[nrsldy]

We have booked with Captain Marvin. That is the only excursion that DS wanted to go on.I need to reserve our rental car next. I have slowly been getting our pirate geer. Looking forward to the cruise. :woohoo:

[Duane]

Hi everyone, just got back from 6 days at WDW and Ft. Wilderness. The weather was toasty, the crowds were medium to low.

Just thought I'd check in and say HI! :wave:

Duane

[abitjaded]

Hey , Duane, any mosquito bites? ;)

Just spent some time reading all the Western trip reports from May 6th. Sounds like the reefs in Cozumel are a mess. I'm still undecided about what to do there. We are snorkel fanatics and I would really just like to find a nice shore spot rather than going with the hordes on a DCL excursion. Anyone made any decisions?

DH, the rat, and our younger son, DS-10, are now booked for MNSSHP on Friday night. They get to leave Thursday. Probably staying at All Star Movies, but have not reserved that yet. DS-13 and I have to get in at midnight Friday, since son has to go to school that day. What shall I tell them they have to do to "pay the price"? Considered making them walk the plank on Pirate Night, the scurvy knaves, but will consider any other reasonable, or otherwise, consequences. I can make DS-10 do his homework ALL on the first few days, but what for DH? Ideas?

Carla

[Duane]

Hey Carla, no, not too many bites, but I am sitting here in NC wishing I was in FL.

I too am scanning all of the Western trip reports to get a feel for what we think we may want to do (how does that sound for a planning attitude....) I guess I'll just keep watching.....

[tinkerfun]

Took the family to the Oakland Museum in California to see the "Behind the Magic - 50 Years of Disneyland". We had fun looking at all the changes in the Park and explaining to the kids what an "E" ticket is since they had some of the old ticket books there. I remember the only reason we could even use up all our "A" tickets is because my youngest brother was still little enough to go on all the non thrill rides! We still ended up having to buy extra "E" tickets!
It was a great way to stay excited about the cruise - bought pirate head scarves for my husband & son and a pirate necklace. pirate:

[abitjaded]

Hey, Julie, you are so lucky to get a Disney "hit" in California. We had to settle for reality instead of fantasy.

We went camping in Sand Dunes National Park over the long weekend. There is a reason they are there. It is because the wind blows the sand into the corner of the mountains. And blows, and blows. Especially in May. We are still picking sand out of places where sand does not belong.

Who else got their cruise planner? Ours came today! Last payment due Aug 7, but we can make our reservations for Palo et al. starting July 23 if paid in full by then. Note to self, pay before then so we can get up at 3A.M. Florida time to reserve (yikes that is 1 A.M. in Denver).

Carla

[tinkerfun]

I didn't get a cruise planner yet. :sad2:
Why in the world do they open up reservations at 3am??? Well, since that's midnight here, I guess I would just stay up late!!! I guess that means we will actually have to make some payments then. We booked this trip in Oct. 2004 and put down our deposit, but haven't done a thing since then.
I was wondering, how many people went through Disney Cruise Lines and how many people went through their travel agent or transferred it to their travel agent. Do you have a preferrence? And why? We booked on the cruise, but I'm trying to decide if I should just leave it there or switch to a travel agent.
Thanks,
Julie

[nrsldy]

No cruise planner here. :sad2: We have to make our last payment by Aug 4th. I will have to do that sooner so I can book Palo's for dinner.
Carla my DB lives in the Denver area. We will be out there in July for his B-Day.
Counting the days. :woohoo:

[abitjaded]

Our cruise planner just came today, dated that it was sent on May 24th, so there is hope for you all. ;) I was curious about the dates too, always thought the 90 day full payment and advance reservation day was the same. Why August 4th??? The 3 A.M. thing comes from the DIS. I want to do at least the Palo in advance since DH tends to lollygag on the way to the port and it makes me CRAZY thinking I have to do the ressie rush when we board. We did the REAS last cruise and it was so wonderful knowing our reservations were ready to go. Nice to just get on the ship and have lunch and not stand in Spa lines, Palo Brunch line, Palo dinner line and kid's club lines.

Julie, we have done it each way. We have booked with a local cruise specialist, booked with Dreams Unlimited and transferred cruises we have booked to agents. Dreams Unlimited was great when we had time to extend the land portion pre-and post-cruise. They will go the extra mile for you, make reservations for meals and other help. The main glitch there was that most of the communication was via email. We have booked with agents mostly because of discounts or on-board credits or just plain good will for nice agents. Our Travel Agent here in Denver is very good, but far away and we always ended up paying for her to Fed-Ex the documents across town. We booked on board (also October of 2004!) and got a better discount and credit than the travel companies could do. We like having agents looking out for price reductions. Who knows, we still may transfer the ressie to an agent if we can get some perks or a better deal on travel insurance.

Tracy, are you counting the days till Denver or the Cruise? ;) Have you been here before?

Carla

[nrsldy]

Cruise Planner arrived today :cheer2: Time is a ticking away :hourglass until our cruise!

Carla my DB has lived in Arvada for over 30yrs. We have been to Colo a few times. It has been 3yrs since our last visit. Looking forward to seeing everyone in July.
Off to look at the planner!

[tinkerfun]

Cruise planner came today!!! :cool1: My DH & DS9 are planning on doing a tandem parasail at Castaway Cay, my son was flipping through it and got really excited when he saw it!

Carla - When did you sail in Oct. 2004? Your screen name looks familiar. We were on the 7-day western that left 10/23 or so. We had to skip Grand Cayman and went to Costa Maya instead. Were you guys on that one, too?

Julie

[abitjaded]

Julie, congrats on the planner. Wow, parasailing, you are brave. Give me two feet on the earth or both fins in the water at all times. Or if I have to be airborne give me an engine.

Yes, we must have been on the same cruise. Makes sense, although I cannot remember the exact date, but we flew home on Halloween. The web site was hosted by PamDara? or some such, cannot remember her exact screen name. She even made tags for all of us at the sailaway party. Lovely lady.

The thread seemed pretty strange to me because of one particular group and their friends who kind of dominated it with who was going to drink what. So I did not post much toward the end. Once seeing them on board, we tended to avoid them and hence many of the other "innocent" DISers. Long story that has subsequent chapters forwarded by others who have run into them on other DCL cruises.

P.D. found Ivan in Costa Maya (the first Ivan reports on the DIS thanks to her) and some of those on the thread shared the tour. We had a wonderful experience with that. My older son and the son of another couple had a great time hanging out together.

But I am really looking forward to Cayman since we missed it before. I have always wanted to go there from the time DH and I learned to Scuba, way before kids.

Carla

[DisneyZell]

Hi all! me and my family are going as well...my DW, DS#1 and DS#2. We are psyched! We are also going with our neighbors as well, and they are excited too.

We went in October 2004 so this is a repeat and we can't wait!

For those Castaway Club members...what are the benefits if any to being a club member?

[tinkerfun]

Carla,
Yes, I was on the same thread and didn't respond too much because it seemed like a lot of people already knew each other & were talking about things that didn't relate. And, you're right, there was a lot of drink preparation!

DisneyZell,
Carla & I just found out we were on the same October 2004 cruise. Did you happen to do a 7-day western toward the end of the month, probably 10/23? If so, it was the same one!
As for the Castaway Club, you get to sign up for Palo, excursions, etc. 90 days before we cruise (as long as you are paid in full.) You have a seperate chick-in line at the terminal. There is also a reception on board for Castaway Club members and I think they leave a little treat in your room, such as a towel and pins. You are automatically in once you have sailed with Disney, but you might need your Club number and you definately want Disney to know you are on board again, so make sure you or your TA lets them know. This is my first time as Castaway Club, so I'm sure someone else out there can give you better info than I have.

Julie

[tinkerfun]

DisneyZell,
I forgot to ask, how old are the kids? I have a dd11 and a ds9.
Julie

[DisneyZell]

Julie, our two boys will be 4 and almost 8 at cruise time. The almost 8 year old will go into the Oceaneer Lab this time. Our neighbors who are going have a 6 year old girl and a 9 year boy. As for our last Disney cruise, we went on the Oct. 2 Eastern cruise.

[abitjaded]

Zell welcome to you and yours. I also have two sons, ages 10 and 13 when we cruise. Our first foray into the "teenage" program.

Julie, I think you got all the perks of the CC Club. The latest trip reports for the Western show the reception on Grand Cayman Day, or Tuesday. The latest ones have been on the deck by the Goofy Pool, as opposed to Rockin' Bar D. Too many repeat cruisers, I guess. It was getting a little crowded in there. The food is mangoey-rummy drink stuff and white bread cheese-whiz finger food and fried stuff. ;) Not the ship's finest cuisine moment. If you have early seating, hold off! Ohhh, plus we get our very own site on the offical Disney Cruise site to do the reservations, but have not yet figured out what else it is good for.

Julie and Tracy, what are the dates for pay-off and reservations on your planner? I always thought that both were at 90 days.

Carla

[tinkerfun]

Final payment is 75 days ahead, which makes it August 7. Therefore, if it is your first cruise and you do not have the really nice suites :thumbsup2 , then your final payment and booking days would be the same. But with CC you get the bonus of booking things at 90 days, but final payment is still at 75 days. So in order to take advantage of booking early, you now need to pay it off 15 days early.

Julie

[abitjaded]

Thanks Julie! I was being lazy, I did not feel like counting the calender days to figure it out.

Carla

[DisneyZell]

Hi everyone. Just wondering if anyone is doing the Royal Dolphin swim in Cozumel? We just booked it directly with Dolphin Discovery and wanted to see if there would be anyone else doing it with us. We are so excited about it.

[tinkerfun]

I hope you have a good time. We decided to do Discovery Cove in Orlando, we gave it to the kids for their birthday this year. So we will be going there a few days after we get off the cruise.
Julie

[abitjaded]

I think we may take the Catamaran snorkel in Cozumel. Not sure though, but no dolphins for us.

Anyone made their ADRs for dining in WDW, yet? I am way behind, hoping the Food and Wine Festival schedule would be released so I can plan our precious 3 days post cruise in the parks.

How about a stupid game? What are some of the dopey things you are taking along?

To the Magic I go and I am taking:

Light sticks from the Dollar Tree. The necklaces are too big for the suitcases so I got some of the bracelet and stick size for the kids to wear in the evening. Got some extra for camping, too. They make great nightlights.

Carla

[tinkerfun]

Well, the kids got out of school yesterday and our summer looks pretty busy, so by the time they get back in school I will only have 2 more months to wait!!! :woohoo:
Hmm... dopey things we are planning to take...I'll have to think about that, I had plenty on the last trip, but I'm going to try to pack much lighter this time!!!
Julie

[abitjaded]

Julie, are your kids on some kind of year-round schedule? My middle schooler has been out for two weeks, but the elementary one still has two days next week. Know what you mean, I don't think there is a day on the calender without something written on it!

Carla

[tinkerfun]

Yeah, my kids are on a somewhat modified year-round schedule. We get 2 wekks off in October each year, that's why we've always done our cruises then.
Anyone find any good places to get pirate items yet or you think it's easier to wait for the Halloween items to come out? pirate:
Julie

[abitjaded]

I kept looking for pirate stuff for our cruise two years ago. We have a very upscale magic/gaming/kid junk shop here in Denver, The Wizard's Chest, that has an upstairs always devoted to costumes. Bought some pirate stuff there because I couldn't wait. But if I HAD waited I could have purchased it all much cheaper when all the Halloween stufff showed up in the usual stores. But the fun of shopping too soon was worth it! I'll bet tons of Dead Man's Chest stuff will be showing up soon, too.

Today is our first day of everyone off for the summer!

Carla

[abitjaded]

Anybody here??? We have had over 1,000 views. Lurkers, introduce yourselves! Or maybe our pitiful thread is scaring everyone away???? When do the Florida resident rates come out for our date? I just get the willies, wondering if some company has booked our cruise and they will cancel us all out at the 90 day date.

Today I finally did some ADRs. Made a Kona Cafe dinner for DH and DS-10 for Kona Cafe before they go to MNSSHP on Friday the 20th. (The rats, DS13 and I are en-route from Denver after DS-13 is out of school. DS and I get a dinner of pretzels and soda, if we are lucky maybe Frontier will even give us the whole can.) After the Cruise on Saturday we go to Epcot and have a late lunch at Chef's de France, and a whole lot of wine and food tasting at the Food and Wine Festival (still no schedule!!!! according to the CM who took the ressie). Sunday is AK day with a dinner at Boma after they close, then jump to the late EMH at MK. Monday is MGM or Disney Studios or whatever it is called these days and one last late lunch at MGM Brown Derby. I can taste the grapefruit cake even now!

Carla

[tinkerfun]

Can they really cancel everyone on the cruise 90 days before if a company books the whole thing? That would really suck since we booked our cruise 2 years in advance!!! Please don't freak me out like that! I already have airfare, hotels, cars, MNSSHP, Discovery Cove, etc. already booked!!! :sad2:

Julie

[Jpoo]

:disrocks: Hello fellow cruisers! We just booked 'your' cruise and are so excited. My name is Jennifer 35 and my DH 41, and 2 DS 5 & 9 will be joining you all Oct. 21st!!! I have been a fan or the DIS for the last couple of years, and probably would not have booked this cruise without it. My DH and I took our first Disney cruise in March 1999 (4 day) when our 1st DS was only 2. I have been looking forward to taking another Disney cruise now that out DS are older and can we can all thoroughly enjoy ourselves. We missed out on a bunch last time cuz DS was only 2. Back then, no flounders and sitters onboard were only a rumor. Now- Palo, here we come!!!!!

I need suggestions on excursions- Disney or non Disney. DH wants to snorkel, I do not like to snorkel. I think that the kids would like petting or swimming with stingrays. We honeymooned on Cozumel almost 13 years ago and loved it. Disney dolphin excursion is too expensive for my blood, but DS9 asked about it. Any good suggestions? Thanks so much JPoo (nickname not of my own choice-thank my drunken friends)

[tinkerfun]

Don't think I want to know how you got your nickname, but welcome!
I also have a ds9 (along with a dd11). We did this same cruise two years ago and my ds was 7 at the time. He and I must have spent over an hour snorkeling at Castaway Cay. You can visit stingrays at Grand Cayman or Disney now offers them at Castaway Cay. Glad to have you aboard!
Julie
Redwood City, CA

[suz72]

OK, I couldn't find the thread for 10/21. There used to be another one...I guess it fell into obscurity.

We booked this cruise in Oct 2004. Never cruised before and we are really excited.

DH, me, DD7, & DD4 (acutally DD7 will not turn 7 until 10/30 & and DD4 is still 3 until Sept.)

Glad I found this new thread!

[tinkerfun]

Welcome! We booked our cruise in October of 2004 also! (While aboard our first cruise.) Where is California are you from? I am from Redwood City, located between San Francisco & San Jose. Glad you found our link.
Julie

[suz72]

Hi Julie,

We live in Fresno.

[Cheryl N. WI]

Hi I couldn't find the other thread for 10/21 either but am glad I found this one. Now I just have to find the time to read through all of it lol.

We are on this cruise also!!!! It will be myself, DH and DD12. DD is wondering if there are any other girls around her age that she can start emailing or pm so they can "get to know each other" before the cruise. She had done this for our last cruise and it was great to know she already had a few friends to hang with in the kids club right away.

We are on deck 5 in cabin 5022 (secret porthole!!). This is our fourth Disney Magic cruise (1 eastern, 3rd western). We are flying in the day before and going to MNSSHP Fri. night!

Have a great 4th everyone and hopefully I get a chance to get caught up on this thread in the next few days!

Cheryl

[nrsldy]

Cheryl,
We will be across the hall in room 5520! Hope to get a chance to meet you.
We are going to WDW 10/19 and staying at SOG for 2 nights. Going to MNSSHP Fri night. It will also be DH's B-Day. We will be going to the port Sat AM. I have not decided if we will rent a car or book a town car for the trip. That is the last thing on my list.
110 days and counting down!!!!!! :dance3:

[suz72]

Hi Cheryl and Tracy,

We will be in 5020! Another SPR!!

[Jpoo]

:chat: I just set up an e-mail account for my ds9 and thought he might like to communicate with some kids who will be sailing with us either via e-mail or this board. I have read other kids doing this and I think its great that they can meet up with kids that they are a little familiar with in the clubs. :dance3: My son is 9, almost 10. If any parents out there are interested, contact me through the forum and we can set something up!!

[abitjaded]

Welcome to Jennifer, Susan and Cheryl. I'll try to get my kids to email, if I can get them off Runescape. We just spent a week in Columbus, Ohio visiting DH's family, and the kids were having computer withdrawal. They actually had to go outside and play for a change.

Susan, Cass had started a new thread with the web site premiere, so the old thread died. She said she would still add families if you want to email her. Have seen her online recently.

Jennifer, I think a few of us are taking different Captain Marvin's trips. Plenty of folks seem to just stay on the boat if they do not snorkel, judging by trip reports. On all of the other snorkel expeditions we have taken, there are always people who stay on the boat.

Julie, didn't mean to scare you. I remember a couple of years ago an October cruise was "cancelled" because a company bought the ship out. They did let folks stay if they wanted, but some moved dates because of the "club atmosphere". I was just getting nervous, since so few seem to have booked this date. I like the October dates since the ship is not booked to the max.

Carla

[Jpoo]

Thanks, Carla, for the welcome.

Just booked my incredibly cheap airfare for the cruise on Spirit. $49 each way from Detroit!!! :surfweb: My obsessive online airfare search paid off!!! DH can stop complaining about my time spent online!!! (gives me more excuse to stay on the DIS)

Now I am really excited! :magnify: Next question: We will be renting a car at Orlando airport. :drive: Flying in Friday early evening. Should we stay at the Airport or Port? I want to keep the hotel $ low, rather spend the money on the ship. :sail:

Good bye for now.
Jpoo
P.S. the nickname is of a completely sanitary origin!!!

[abitjaded]

Wow, Jennifer, what a great airfare. What time do you get in? Early enough to go to the Downtown Disney or some such? You can get cheap hotels at the airport or near Cocoa Beach. Just depends on when you get in. There is something to be said for driving to the port from Orlando in daylight and seeing the Magic from the causeways.

There is a website, Dave's, that has a lot of info about rental cars and hotels. It has not been updated in quite a while, but may give you a starting point. Not sure if this link is blocked, but here is a try:

http://www.dcltribute.com/

Carla

[suz72]

I just checked out Cass' website for our cruise. Too bad she's not cruising with us...she did a great job setting it up!

We were actually planning to go with Nativeway for our Stingray excursion...Rays, Reef, and Rum Point. I saw pictures of Rum Point...looks beautiful. This excursion includes lunch. I read many positive reviews of the excursion on cruise critic.

We aren't planning any other official excursions. I think taxi to Paradise beach in Cozumel. Butterfly Conservatory in Key West. Lots of relaxing planned.

How come there are so few of us on this thread?? Weird. pirate:

[Timon]

She said she would still add families if you want to email her

Absolutely! Even though I am not going with you guys, I am happy to keep that cruise page up to date for you!

Just e-mail me at cass@cassworld.ca with your info and photo and I will happily add it to the page!

We are thinking of booking for next October, 10/20/07 to be exact and we will be travelling with a 10 month old by then! :teeth:

Wish we were cruising this October still :sad2: I could use a break!

[Jpoo]

Carla, We get in Orlando 530pm-ish. Plenty of time to drive over to port or check out stuff in Orlando and drive in the morning. We have never been to Downtown Disney. I think my boys would like to see the LEGO store. Then we could drive in the morning and see the Magic in port in daylight. I will have to check rates and bounce it off DH Brian.
Has anyone on this thread discussed a DIS meet onboard? I have read others doing this and it might be fun. All of us freaks meeting in person.

[abitjaded]

The Lego store is great. It was a must do when my guys were smaller. Be sure they save up their "pennies" (read:"mucho dollars") before entering, though. There are other fun things too. Make a dinner reservation at Rain Forest, if you have never seen one of those. Disney Quest if you have admission included on your tickets.

No meet as far as I know. Ideas?

Cass, feel like you are dragging around a 30 pound sack of potatoes everywhere you go, yet?

Carla

[nrsldy]

I am all for a DIS meet. :woohoo: Where is a good spot to meet at? It could be in the hall 3 of us are neighbors. :wave: Let me know the When & Where!

[abitjaded]

Can we do a re-check-in?

Who is still on? Julie, Tracy, Katie, Jennifer, Susan, Cheryl? Shell and 10 other family members? Are you still coming? Who am I missing?

Once before, we met on the port side of deck 10 for the sail-away. Worked fairly well. Or take a look at this and see if anything rings your chimes:

http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=1161620


Carla

[Duane]

Carla and others..... we're still here and still going to sail with you guys....

Just so you won't have go back and re-read, there will be:

me: Duane (42)
dw: Claudine (41)
& dd: Ashleigh (who just turned 10 today)

I've been cruising the boards in stealth mode keeping up with everyone.

[DisneyZell]

We are still going! It is:

me: Deanna (34)
dh: Drew (35)
ds: Nicholas (7 who will be 8 right after we get off cruise)
ds: Connor (just turned 4 today!)

Our neighbors are going as well but have not got involved with the DIS board yet. The have ds (9) and dd (6). We can't wait...we'll be paying the remainder of the cruise off in a couple of weeks...just in time to make our Palo reservations at the 90 day mark.

[Jpoo]

Carla-
Checked out the thread about meets. How does the Promenade Lounge sound? I just introduced DH to the DIS while I was looking at the thread and he suggested it. It's roomy, and if anyone would like a cocktail :drinking1 to start off the cruise, its a nice lounge with seats and probably would not be too crowded. Just a suggestion.

[nrsldy]

LOOK UNDER 100 DAYS!!!!!!! :cheer2: :woohoo: :dance3: :beach: party:

[abitjaded]

Jennifer,

Day and time? What time is everyone getting to the ship?

All right, checked our whole thread and it looks as follows, in no particular order:

DisneyZell : Deanna, Drew, ds8, ds4

Neighbors a la Zell: DH, DW, ds9, dd6

Jpoo: Jennifer, DH, ds9, ds5

Suz72: Susan, Jon, dd3, dd6

Cheryl N WI: Cheryl, DH, dd12

Nrslady: Tracy, DH, ds12

J & A Disney Mom: Shell, Tom, ds5, ds3

J & A Disney Mom: Mom and Dad

J & A Disney Mom: friends, DW and DH? and ds8, dd6

Tinkerfun: Julie, DH, dd11, ds9

Duane: Duane, Claudine, dd10

DVCKatie, Katie, DH, dd21

kecall: Karen, DH, dd9, dd13

abitjaded: Carla, Brad ds10, ds13

That makes over 40! Anyone missing or not coming?

Carla

[J&ADisneyMom]

Yup, we'll be there. Not sure who will show up for the meet with me, but I'll sure try. I'll be traveling with my mom and dad, sis and family (two boys ages 5 and almost 4) and friends (boy 8 years and girl 6 years). We're on vacation next week so I'll be doing my last minute plans (MNSSHP tickets, car rental, etc). I'm still waiting for SW to open up their dates past Oct 27 so I can book airfare. I'm also going to try to pay off my balance so I can book a few things. Since we are going to renew our wedding vows onboard, our planner can make some ressies for us ahead of time, which is nice. I'll have her book Palo's and the spa.

Cass, how are you feeling? Your twin gave birth to a baby girl in May! Hope everything is going well for you.

Shell

[Jpoo]

Carla, We are planing to arrive at terminal 10-1030ish, hope to be aboard by 1130-12ish. We will get lunch and maybe swim, see if the room is ready. Seems like 3pm is a popular time for other DIS meets. Does anyone know what time the safety Muster thing is? I'm thinking 4pm? then sail away party is 5pm?

[Jpoo]

Shell- That is so sweet that you are renewing your vows aboard. :lovestruc When is your anniversary? We celebrate 13 years Oct 16th, 5 days before the cruise. I considered cruising over the Anniversary, but we preferred the Western itinerary, and since we honeymooned in Cozumel, it made more sense. I hope your renewal is wonderful!

[suz72]

Can we do a re-check-in?

Who is still on? Julie, Tracy, Katie, Jennifer, Susan, Cheryl? Shell and 10 other family members? Are you still coming? Who am I missing?

Once before, we met on the port side of deck 10 for the sail-away. Worked fairly well. Or take a look at this and see if anything rings your chimes:

http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=1161620


Carla

We're still here

Susan
DH Jon
DD6 Ally (turning 7 October 30th)
DD3 Rebecca (will be 4 Sept. 16th)

Sure we'll do a meet! Sounds like fun pirate:

[abitjaded]

I'll keep trying to edit the link:

http://www.disboards.com/editpost.php?do=editpost&p=13479171

J & A's additions above.

3PM at Promenade? Just a quick nip in? We could always try agin on Deck 10, portside for Sailaway, too at 5:00? Has anyone ever seen the green Mickey paint chip heads folks talk about, to help locate each other? Never looked for them myself.

Carla

[nrsldy]

Carla~ Having 2 options to meet is a good idea. The green Mickey heads I have found at Home Depot. I will go and look for some.
Have A Magical Day ~~~~~ :beach: pixiedust:

[J&ADisneyMom]

Thanks Jpoo. Our actually anniversary is the 26th, the Thurs of our trip.

Cass, would you mind posting the link to the page you were making? I can't seem to find it in my favorites. Thanks!

Shell

[Cheryl N. WI]

We're still going!!

It's myself, DH Al and DD12 Rachel. Rachel is still wondering if there are any other girls around her age that would like to start emailing and "get to know each other" before the cruise.

We will probably get to the port early Sat., somewhere around 10:30 maybe. I think we need to have the rental car at Avis by 11:00.

We are staying at Wilderness Lodge Villas the night before and going to MNSSHP!

Cheryl :sunny:

[Jpoo]

All CC members get prepared for the ressie rush next saturday nite!! I have to work that weekend, east coast (3am UGH!). Do I sacrifice sleep before work or sacrifice prime ressies? I'm torn.
I booked this cruise just 120 days out. How do those of you who booked it so far in advance stand it!! I can't wait. :bitelip:

[suz72]

I am making our final payment on our cruise this week. :cool1: :cool1: We haven't cruised before so I think we will be making our ressies at 75 days out.

Jpoo -> I will be excited to hear how it goes for you.

[abitjaded]

Cass's link is in the first post on the thread. But here it is again:

http://www.cassworld.ca/102106.htm

We'll see all repeaters at 1:00 A.M. MDT on Saturday-night Sunday morning the 23rd. Am I right?

What days are you going for brunch and dinner at Palo? I was thinking Palo dinner in Key West at, maybe 7-8. I figure the variety show will be someone who can be seen in the other clubs. Does anyone remember how rough the seas are from Key West to the Caribbean? We did this last cruise and it was nice because we were docked, and we got to watch the sunset from the ship at Key West, but it looks like we leave much earlier, 4:30, compared to years past. Hate the thought of not having sea legs and dining at Palo. We used to do Palo night on the Caribbean night don't care about missing a film, but I don't want to miss Pirate night. Then brunch on the 26th, day at sea.

Anyone else considering the Fury Catamaran in Cozumel?

Decisions, decisions.

Carla

[suz72]

I made the final payment on our cruise today! :banana:

Now it is time to start thinking about ressies for Palos, etc.

We haven't cruised before, so I think that we can make ressies at 75 days out...can anyone confirm this. Also, what is the deal with midnight...etc. We live in CA, so I'm not sure if it is midnight eastern or how exactly this works. :confused3

We will not book any DCL shore excursions, but I would like to do one Palo dinner or brunch with DH. :love:

I figured out that 8/7/06 is 75 days out for our cruise, so then do I do it at 9pm on 8/6 since I am in CA? Not sure what to do. :confused3

Thanks

[tinkerfun]

Made final payment on the cruise! :Pinkbounc

Reservations can be made at midnight in California/3am eastern.
I can book 90 days in advance, so it was listed as 7/23/06 (Sunday), which means Saturday night at midnight California time. So 75 days out is probably Sunday night 8/6 at midnight (which would actually be Monday 8/7/06). But please don't take my word on it!

Thanks, Susan, for listing what excursions you are doing, I'm going to check them out.

Julie

[Jpoo]

Also made final payment! I also reserved Captain Bryan's "Stingray City Sandbar Cayman Snorkeling & Sailing Excursion" for Oct 24th. Gonna be brave and try snorkeling. I thing we will do the Cozumel beach break if it is open by October (hurricane damage) or the Sanfrancisco beach break if not(both through Island shore excursions.) Got my alien green Mickey head chips from Home Depot also. Everything is coming together! Now for the ressies tomorrow nite!! Dreading the 3am. Want to get Palo Dinner on the 24th and Brunch on the 26th. I am not planning any spa things, maybe I can score a poolside massage( i hear they sometimes walk around and offer them). Well, good luck tomorrow nite to everyone trying for ressies!

[nrsldy]

I do not know if anyone is interested but DisneyOutlet.com has lime green logo t shirts on sale.They are $3.99, less if you use a code.
We are going to do brunch at Palo on the 23rd and dinner on the 26th.
I am now looking for a suit for DS without breaking the bank. Would it be OK if I just bought him a couple of dress shirts and called it a day?

[tinkerfun]

If you have a Disney Visa card, you can also get 20% off a purchase of $100 or more through 8/15/06 at www.disneyshopping.com, type the code VISASUMMER20 into the Special Offers and Discounts box, then click Add, select the Exclusive 20% off Coupon promotion and click Apply.

As for the suit, I don't think my husband would have been as comfortable without a jacket on formal night. My mom just mentioned that they had some really nice suit seperates at Target, you might check out their prices if you have a store near by. Also, JC Penney runs some nice sales and also Macy's, despite being pricey usually, runs a good sale about twice a year. Last year we rented a tux for him that was delivered and picked up from the room, it came with two shirts, socks, shoes, etc. But this year I think we are going to apply that money to a nice dark suit that he can re-wear. It just means we will have to pack it this time!

Speaking of packing, I can't believe how much stuff we end up taking. I just don't know if I am willing to leave anything behind though. We end up with a bag for formal wear: my dresses, shoes, husbands, suits, shirts, ties, shoes and the kids stuff. Another bag with all our snorkel gear (the kids and hubby have hard faces to fit) and then all our regular clothes on top of that. Plus, I take a wetsuit because I am a wimp in the water! What do you carry in your bags???

Julie

[sunshinegirl]

We'll be joining you all! It is our second Disney Cruise but our first 7 day. We just paid off this week so that we can make reservations tomorrow.

There will be 4 of us coming from Indianapolis--my husband and I and our two DDs, 3 and 5. princess: princess:

I can hardly stand how excited I get when I start thinking about it. We are putting so much into this and making it our big trip this year. DD3 and I will be visiting my mom in Tampa for a few days prior to when we leave and then DH and DD5 will be arriving on Friday. I'm thinking of using Hilton Honors points to get a night at the Embassy Suites at the airport Friday night.

The online registration stuff is new since the last time we sailed. Our DD3 was also only 9 months last time. So although we had DD5 in the club, we had the little one with us most of the time and missed out on Palo, the spa, etc. I am totally psyched!!

Tricia

[suz72]

So 75 days out is probably Sunday night 8/6 at midnight (which would actually be Monday 8/7/06). But please don't take my word on it!
Julie

Thanks Julie for the info...now I know what time to be ready...

aargh!

That would be of course the ONE night in a year that I have made hotel resevations for DH and I to be out of town without kids.

Now to find out if the hotel has internet access! Hope so.

[suz72]

We'll be joining you all! It is our second Disney Cruise but our first 7 day. We just paid off this week so that we can make reservations tomorrow.

There will be 4 of us coming from Indianapolis--my husband and I and our two DDs, 3 and 5. princess: princess:

I can hardly stand how excited I get when I start thinking about it. We are putting so much into this and making it our big trip this year. DD3 and I will be visiting my mom in Tampa for a few days prior to when we leave and then DH and DD5 will be arriving on Friday. I'm thinking of using Hilton Honors points to get a night at the Embassy Suites at the airport Friday night.

The online registration stuff is new since the last time we sailed. Our DD3 was also only 9 months last time. So although we had DD5 in the club, we had the little one with us most of the time and missed out on Palo, the spa, etc. I am totally psyched!!

Tricia


Hi Tricia :wave2: I'm sure my DDs would love to meet yours (DD3 will be 4 in Sept & and DD6 will be 7 on 10/30)

[suz72]

I do not know if anyone is interested but DisneyOutlet.com has lime green logo t shirts on sale.They are $3.99, less if you use a code.
We are going to do brunch at Palo on the 23rd and dinner on the 26th.
I am now looking for a suit for DS without breaking the bank. Would it be OK if I just bought him a couple of dress shirts and called it a day?

Hi Tracy,

How old is DS?

A little guy would probably be just fine in some dress shirts & maybe a cute tie for formal night.

[tinkerfun]

Hey Tracy,
I just realized I mis-read your question and thought you had asked about a suit for your husband, not your son! I wouldn't really think your son would need a suit, it's not a big deal. Nice shirt & pants are fine. My kids didn't even end up eating with us on formal night, there was something going on in the kids club they wanted to do, so our server used one of their napkins and made it into a "candle' for us - it was really cute.
Julie

[tinkerfun]

I bought some of the t-shirts at the Disney outlet.com for $3.99 today, but didn't go for the lime green. They have a back to school coupon going on right now, it is $10 off an order of $40 or more, $20 off an order of $70 or more and free shipping on $70 or more. My original total came to $38.50 with the $10 off and then would have been $9.50 shipping for a grand total of $48. But by buying $31.50 more, I saved another $10 plus the $9.50 shipping and only spent $50 total. Just thought I'd share the savings tip, also picked up some $5.99 beach towels and $7.99 hooded sweatshirts with patriotic Mickey.
Julie

[tinkerfun]

It's 12:30am California time and I just finished making my reservations! :thumbsup2

Here's what I got:
Sunday 10/22 Palo dinner 6pm
Monday 10/23 couples massage
Thursday 10/26 Palo Brunch 11am
Friday 10/27 Parasailing for husband & son at Castaway Cay
And both kids registered for the Oceaneer Lab!

Good luck Castaway Club Members! :sail:
Julie

[abitjaded]

O.K., who is here this late? Jennifer, Tracy, Julie? How'd you all do?

Welcome to Tricia! Were you burning the late oil tonight, too?

Well, there must be more people on this cruise than post here! By the time I got Palo dinner at 7:00 Sunday, then Palo brunch at 10:30 Thursday, the Fury Catamaran Sail in Cozumel was gone. The rest of the Cayman and Cozumel stuff went really fast, too. Went ahead and booked the Catamaran for Grand Cayman, just in case I cannot get Captain Marvins. Yikes, then I did get tea, but 3:00 for Monday, maybe too close to dinner if our rotation comes out the 5:30 one. I would have hated to be on a cruise with lots of DISers!

Was anyone able to print out their cruise summary? When I hit print on the pop-up, my printer just reels out a blank sheet.

Now I need to chill enough to get to sleep. Set the alarm for this but couldn't get to sleep before, anyway.

Carla

[Cheryl N. WI]

Hi I am up late getting things booked too! :cool1: I must be crazy but am glad I did this because now things are set and I did take a "nap" before hand lol.

This is what I booked:
Sat. 10/21 Palo dinner 7pm
Tues. 10/24 8am Shipwreck & Reef Snorkeling (not sure if we'll keep this but we've got it if we don't decide on doing something on our own)
Fri. 10/27 11am Castaway Ray's Stingray Adventure

our friends took care of booking Palo brunch for Turs. morning

Carla I had the same problem when I tried to print the cruise summary, blank page, but I did print each confirmation seperately.

I think I'll still get DD registered for the Oceaneer Lab and then I'm done for now and am going to get some sleep.

Our friends already did the on-line check-in and said it was easy to do, I'll probably getthat done in the next few days too.

Cheryl

[Jpoo]

Well, I got up at 430 am (EST) and the the reservation system would not allow my to book any resies. I kept getting error messages. Finally it popped up and said to call during business hours. yeah-right. i will try again in a couple of hours. congrats to everyone!

[Jpoo]

Tried again when I got to work. (this is a no-no) but I had success!! I got my palo dinner 10/24 and palo brunch 10/26!!! That's all I really was concerned about, so I am happy! :banana: We are doing non-Disney excursions. I am considering a spa treatment, but not decided yet.

[DisneyZell]

Just booked our Palo reservations too. We got brunch on Mon, the 23rd at 10:30 and dinner on the 24th at 7:30. We're doing excursions on our own, so didn't book any disney ones. We are so excited and can't wait. It's finally getting closer.

[suz72]

Congrats everyone on their Palo, spa, excursion ressies!

I need to sign up at 75 days out and with my luck, I won't be home that night! Bummer! I would like Palos on Sunday night...but I have 2 fall back options. If I can't do it online...I will just have to get to the port early.

I have emailed Nativeway about their Rays, Reef, and Rum Point excursion on Grand Cayman...haven't heard back yet. Not doing any DCL excurions.

Susan

[sunshinegirl]

I booked Palo for brunch on Sunday and the Rasul for Thursday morning. Now I'm looking at excursions. I really feel like we should take the kids to something off of the boat. I mean, it seems weird to go the whole way down there and not have them see a little culture. But then I worry that if I book something with the kids it will overlap with something they really want to do in the Lab like a character visit. Oh, the dilemma!!! :rotfl:

[tinkerfun]

Hi Sunshine girl, :sunny:

Susan had a few good ideas about shore excursions that I checked out that don't require reservations:

at Key West, there is the Butterfly :butterfly conservatory, located at 1316 Duval St. 1-800-839-4647 adults $10, kids $7.50. There is also an aquarium :fish: in Key West. We also enjoyed going to Kermit's Key Lime Shoppe :thumbsup2 , where Kermit stood outside looking like he was going to throw a pie at you. We picked up key lime water taffy, key lime lotion and some really refreshing key lime soda.

In Cozumel, you can take a taxi to Paradise Beach :beach: , I checked it out on their website and if I remember correctly it is $8 per person to use their chairs, umbrellas, showers, bathrooms, kayaks, water trampoline, etc. Maybe a few of us can plan to meet for this one and go together-it would be nice to share taxis and have a larger group hang out together at the beach to keep an eye on kids and items.

So you can still get out and check things out after you see what the kids might want to do for the day on board. Last time we went, the kids opted to stay on board while my dh & I checked out Key West. In Cozumel, we just took a taxi to the beach. The only excursion we had planned ahead of time was for Grand Cayman, and the ship went to Costa Maya instead!

Julie

[sunshinegirl]

Hey Julie,

That sounds like a really great idea! I figured that Key West would not be a place that I would be really psyched about taking the girls but that Grand Cayman and Cozumel might have some good opportunities. The Key Lime Shoppe sounds very cool though!

DH is saying that he wants to try some jet skis or something like that at CC. I am usually such a chicken but really want to make this trip fun for him. I'm thinking maybe one scheduled excursion that involves snorkeling? I saw that there is now a haunted ship at CC that you can snorkel around. Does anyone know anything about that?

[tinkerfun]

Ahh, the ship you are talking about is the Flying Dutchman, now located at Castaway Cay! It is not too far away from shore. For those who may not have seen Pirates of the Carribean 2, yet, it is the ship that Davy Jones sails.
pirate:
Here is a link for more info on it: http://allearsnet.com/cruise/cr_news.htm#0705
And here are some phots:
http://allearsnet.com/cruise/ghostship.htm

My kids and I are really excited about it!
I heard if you rent a boat you could take it out there, I haven't heard if you can swim out to it though.

Last trip my son (7 at the time) and I spent quite a long time snorkeling at Castaway Cay. They give you little vest to wear that you can inflate a little or a lot and they have lifeguards around their snorkeling area. They have sunk items in the area to attract fish. It was a lot of fun and didn't require any reservations, you just head on out.

Julie

[J&ADisneyMom]

Hi everyone

Congrats on all of your reservations. I did mine this morning (made final payment Sat am but it wasn't processed until today). This is what I ended up with:

Sunday Palo's brunch
Monday Rasul
Tues Capt Marvins (made them back in March)
Wed hoping to go to Paradise Beach. There are four ships in port that day and we're the last ones in. I bet the beach will be crowded. The guys might do the Jeep Tour-has anyone taken it before?
Thurs vow renewal day and our anniversary. My wedding coordinator will make our spa ressies to have our hair done and we're eating at Palo's that evening.
Fri reserved our floats and bikes and are considering the banana boat

I also booked all of hotels (Thurs we're going to MNSSHP and staying on property, and in Cocoa Beach), bought our MNSSHP tickets, and booked our car rental for both legs. Now, I need to get airfare and we should be set!

I wanted to book the walking tour of Key West, but since I'm booked at Palo for 10, it won't allow my name to come up on the 1:15 tour with my family. Has anyone done a walking tour on their own? Mostly, we want to do the Key Lime place and cigar factory. Maybe I'll post on the cruise forum page and check with Shirley but I'm open to suggestions!

Thanks,
Shell

ps any suggestions on how to change our brunch ressies to 8 people (from 2) so that we can eat with our group?

[tinkerfun]

We just did our own walking tour when we were in Key West last time. As long as you know where you want to go. (We didn't know, just wandered around, and still had a good time-found the key lime shoppe, saw really big fish, a neat shop with a koi pond out back, interesting people and bars-it was fun)
Decided to add the rasul on the same day as our Palo brunch. After doing so, I wanted to see if I could move my brunch from 11am to 10:30am. But I couldn't check the times since I had already booked a brunch. So I CANCELLED my brunch to see if 10:30 was still available and it was NOT, just the 11am was (which was probably because I had just cancelled it!) so I hurried up and booked it again. I sure would have been mad at myself if I had lost it!!! :sad2:
Julie

[DisneyZell]

Shell, I am also hoping to make our Palo brunch for 4 so we can enjoy it with friends who are coming with us but have never been on a disney cruise before. So, if anybody knows how to do it, let us know!

Thanks, Deanna

[msr709]

Hi Everyone!

I'm going on this cruise with my DSis and DBIL, just us three adults. Staying at the Hyatt on the Friday before, not going to WDW at all (which will be very hard for me, I'm the real DISney fan here) but trying to save some $. I'm in charge of making the ressies but its our first cruise, so no 90-day booking for us. I guess we have to wait to Aug. 7 to make online ressies. Not thinking so much about making excursions ressies since we want to make this a very relaxing type vacation. We all grew up in Puerto Rico, so we've seen a lot of the Eastern Caribbean, its Mexico we're looking forward to. Looking forward to doing some shopping and maybe a beach day. Any thoughts on that would be appreciated. And how is the weather that time of year? I remember it being like spring weather in P.R. but how is it in the Western Caribbean, I can assume its pretty much the same? Has a meet been planned yet? Hope to meet you all soon. Can't wait :banana: :banana:

[gottaluvpooh]

:wave: My family will be on this cruise. :cool1: Myself - DH, DD and my MIL.

I have booked Palo brunch for Key West day and Palo dinner the last night of the cruise.

Haven't made many excursion res's except the sting ray at CC.
Will be staying on ship at Key West but looking for things to do in Cozumel and Grand Cayman.

[suz72]

DisneyZell : Deanna, Drew, ds8, ds4

Neighbors a la Zell: DH, DW, ds9, dd6

Jpoo: Jennifer, DH, ds9, ds5

Suz72: Susan, Jon, dd3, dd6

Cheryl N WI: Cheryl, DH, dd12

Nrslady: Tracy, DH, ds12

J & A Disney Mom: Shell, Tom, ds5, ds3

J & A Disney Mom: Mom and Dad

J & A Disney Mom: friends, DW and DH? and ds8, dd6

Tinkerfun: Julie, DH, dd11, ds9

Duane: Duane, Claudine, dd10

DVCKatie, Katie, DH, dd21

kecall: Karen, DH, dd9, dd13

abitjaded: Carla, Brad ds10, ds13

sunshinegirl: Tricia, DH, DD5, & DD3

msr709: & DSIS & DBIL

gottaluvpooh: & DH, DD, MIL

I added onto Carla's list...looks like we are growing...have I missed anyone?

[Belle17]

Hello everyone! Last year I finally convinced my parents that we need at least one very special vacation together before I graduate high school in spring 2007 - and I for one can't believe that we're really going on a cruise! None of us have ever been on a cruise before, and we've all been so busy with work, school, etc. that we hardly ever get to see all five of us at once. Even my brothers, who are constantly glued to their video games or at band practise and hardly get excited over anything, can't wait for the cruise. I believe the last time we had a genuine family vacation (as in, all five of us were together and had an awesome time) was when we went to Disney World six years ago. My parents are both very hard workers, and I think they deserve to have a nice break like this. :joker: Are there any other teen cruisers among us? I'm 17, and by cruise time my brothers will be 14 and 16. Since we live in south Florida, my brothers and I will be missing three and a half days of school (Thursday is a half day and Friday's off), but it is a sacrifice we are willing to make. :p ...and that's the only week this trip would be possible for all five of us.

Oh yes - I saw some posts on this thread about some people wondering where to get pirate costumes... Working on costumes in my school's drama department has taught me that the best place to get the absolute best costumes is your neighbourhood Goodwill or thrift store. My pirate costume for the pirate-themed night on the cruise consists of an old dark blue ankle-length skirt, pirate-perfect frilly white shirt, and a rust-red vest on top. Altogether it was under $7, and I love the way it all fits together. My mom and I are going to join forces to try to make Belle's gold/yellow dress for me to wear on at least one formal evening on the cruise, and I'll also wear it to the drama banquet at the end of the year. (Belle is my favourite Disney princess!) Take care, everyone! :wizard:

[tinkerfun]

Welcome Belle17! Glad to have you and your family aboard. Thanks for the thrift store idea for Pirate Costumes. pirate:
Julie

[surf'un]

We just learned of this site from an experienced dcl friend. Just reading the entries has increased our excitement of the trip. Our family has ages 5, 7, 11, and 13. We also have Grandma coming with us. My Mom is wondering how it is being single on such a family cruise. We are eagerly anticipating this trip during the kids' fall break from school. What are the best times for Palo dinner and brunch reservations. We also can't make these online until 75 days prior to departure. We now have started to count down.

So glad to have joined together with other DC Folks! :sunny:

Surf'un

[hank56]

I am new here so beg patience, times ticking down for the cruise and family is excited. I am wondering about maybe finding someone for my 12 and 13 yr old boys to hang with. No big deal but it would maybe be nice for them to look forward to meeting someone their ages. This is our second Disney cruise, and third overall so we know what to expect from the ship and ports just trying to enhance their experience.

[surf'un]

:wave2: We would like to hook up with other families with kids our age. We have ds13, ds7, ds5, and dd11. We are new to this too.

Surf'un

[teamwilliams]

Hi everyone! I have been reading this forum for awhile now, getting more and more excited! Decided to officially add our names to the list of fun people we will be sailing with. This will be our first cruise and the first Disney experience for our daughters, ages 5 and 8. We will be traveling with my sister, BIL, and their kids. Their children are 5, 3, and 1. My parents will be along, too, as well as my FIL. This trip was booked last August so the cruise is finally getting closer! Is it too soon to start packing?!?

[tinkerfun]

Hi Team Williams :wave:
It's never too early to start packing! So what have people put aside already to take?
I picked up 2 cheap floaties for Castaway Cay and a mesh laundry basket/bag and a few pirate items.
How about you???
Julie

[DisneyZell]

Hi everyone. I have started picking things up for the cruise as well, but I'm having a hard time hiding them! The cruise is a surprise for our sons, so it is very hard not to get so excited about it in front of them. I have put aside the inflatable POC sword that McDonalds was giving with the happy meals a few weeks back...I don't know how well the sword fights will go over, but oh well. Mostly I have been getting small beach toys and pirate gear. Our big excitement is that we just bought tickets for Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween Party for Oct. 20. We are flying in that day and will spend that night having a blast! We are just about at the 75 day mark...are all the 1st timers going to get their Palo resies tomorrow? Good Luck!

[Smooch]

Hi Everyone! I'm so glad I found your forum and I've really enjoyed reading your posts. DH and I cruised last October for 3 days and had a blast, we're hooked! This year we are cruising with our family dd8 and ds2 as well as my bro, SIL, and their dd13.

For the first-timers, I highly recommend picking up a copy of Passporter's field guid to the Disney Cruise Line as it really helped us make the most of our last cruise.

Anyone who has been to Paradise Beach in Cozumel - Is it toddler friendly?

[J&ADisneyMom]

Hi Smooch-hoping to hear good things about Paradise Beach and toddlers since I'm taking my 3 year old!!

Susan, we have a change. Our friends are no longer going to be joining us, but somehow I missed adding my sister. Their info is

J&ADisneyMom-DSis, Bil, DS 5 and DS 3

Also, my 3 year old is a girl.

How did everyone do with your ressies yesterday? I booked mine a while ago and did OK, but I got up early yesterday to book my mothers ressies. I got her a 6 pm at Palo on Tues but nothing for brunch. Fortunately I have brunch booked for 4 on Sunday am. Once we get onboard, I'll see if we can add two more people to our brunch reservation. My poor sis could only get a 9pm dinner on Monday at Palo.

Has anyone done the bike rentals at CC with small children. With DD, we'll need a bike seat, but I'm not sure what to do about DS. Do they have any tandem bikes? He is 5 and just learning to ride without training wheels. So far, NOT so good.

This week I'll be working on my door signs, pillowcases, invites (for our vow renewal ceremony) and t-shirts to wear to MNSSHP. Anyone else going on the 19th?

I have purchased a bunch of stuff and put it away. I'm doing sandpails for the kids with water cameras, movie candy, pj's for my nephews and DD, and bathing suit for DS. Also, it will include their pillowcases to be signed, glowsticks, pins and chapstick. I bought a couple cheap corkscrews yesterday for my mom. I'll be picking up some wine to bring onboard for her and my dad. My sister is driving so I'll send her my package and then have her drive it to the port.

Shell

[teamwilliams]

Hi there,

I did fairly well with our reservations yesterday. I set the alarm for 2 a.m. our time - midnight CA time - to get on right away. (My DH thinks I'm going a little overboard with all of this planning stuff! :banana: I think he just knows that he can relax and I'll have everything under control! I plan on doing plenty of relaxing myself, but don't want to miss out on any of the fun.)

Was able to book Palo dinner for Tues. at 8:30, brunch for my parents on Sun. at 11:00. I reserved 2 bikes for CC, along with a couple of floats for me and DH.

I have heard really good things about Paradise Beach, but also some concern that there will be four cruise ships docked in Cozumel the day we are there. Not sure if that means it will be horribly crowded or not.

I agree that the Passporter's guide has been awesome in helping with the planning. I also ordered the ebook, Disney's Cruise Clues, that has tons more tips, etc. It can get overwhelming with all of the info. that's out there!

Our flight home on 10/28 isn't until 6:45 p.m., does anyone know of anyplace reasonably close to the airport - maybe via bus - where we could go? Don't want to already thinking about leaving for home already, but also want to avoid hanging out in the airport for most of the day! :crazy:

So is the pillowcase thing for real? I have read mixed messages about having this done. Has anyone heard from a recent cruiser that was successful with this?

Kathy

[suz72]

Welcome to those who have joined us...I will need to update our list!

I stayed up until 12 midnight on Sunday to book Palos and spa.

DH and I are doing Palo on Sun 10/22 (Key West night) @ 7pm
also, I signed us up for Exotic Rasul on 10/25 in a.m.

I'm really getting excited.

I will add our new friends onto the list! :wave:

[suz72]

DisneyZell : Deanna, Drew, ds8, ds4
Neighbors a la Zell: DH, DW, ds9, dd6

Jpoo: Jennifer, DH, ds9, ds5

Suz72: Susan, Jon, dd3, dd6

Cheryl N WI: Cheryl, DH, dd12

Nrslady: Tracy, DH, ds12

J & A Disney Mom: Shell, Tom, ds5, ds3
J & A Disney Mom: Mom and Dad
J & A Disney Mom: Sis, BIL, DS5, DS3

Tinkerfun: Julie, DH, dd11, ds9

Duane: Duane, Claudine, dd10

DVCKatie, Katie, DH, dd21

kecall: Karen, DH, dd9, dd13

abitjaded: Carla, Brad ds10, ds13

sunshinegirl: Tricia, DH, DD5, & DD3

msr709: & DSIS & DBIL

gottaluvpooh: & DH, DD, MIL

Belle17: Belle17, Mom, Dad, Br14 &Br16

surf'un: & DH, ds13, ds7, ds5, dd11

hank56: & ds12, ds13

teamwilliams: Kathy, DH Mark, DD8, DD5
teamwilliams: Sis, BIL, kids (5,3,1)
teamwilliams: parents & FIL

smooch: & DH, dd8, ds2
smooch: Bro, SIL, dd13

Did I get that right...let me know if you want me to update.

[DisneyZell]

Thanks for the updated list, Susan. It is so nice to see so many of us on the cruise. It sure is getting close!

[nrsldy]

Welcome to all the new cruise buddies.
:boat:
Thanks Susan for the update :thumbsup2
I am getting sooooo excited. All of our plans are booked. :woohoo: Now just watching the clock tick away. :hourglass

[abitjaded]

You gain some, you lose some. We have had to cancel, so check if you need Palo, lunch, brunch or tea or the Fury Catamaran or Cozumel Snorkel.

Have fun , all, and blow a bit of pixie and angel dust my way.

Carla

[Jpoo]

Carla- you had to cancel your cruise? so sorry! Hope you are all well.

[suz72]

Carla-

Sorry you had to cancel. Hope you get to cruise soon! Thanks for the heads up on the ressie info, maybe someone on this thread can book now.



Hello everyone else! Are we getting excited?? party:

Just a quick recap...DH pirate: and the girls princess: princess: and I are going to WDW for a week before the cruise. I know some others are also going...at least for MNSSHP. :hmghost: :maleficen

We have planned to do Palo's dinner on Key West night and the exotic rasul :love: on Cozumel morning. We are booking through Nativeway for Grand Cayman...the Rays, Reef, and Rum Point excursion.(I read great stuff about this excursion on cruisecritic.com). :beach:

Other than that we plan to (probably) rent an electric car for touring Key West... :car: don't know if we are getting off the ship in Cozumel ...heard we are the fourth ship that day to dock (maybe just for shopping).

We've never cruised before so just being on the ship will be exciting for us!! :sail: :boat:

We are really excited...how about you? Just over 2 months until we fly to Orlando. :banana: :banana:

Let's hear what you are excited about! :dance3:

[nrsldy]

We are going to MNSSHP on Oct 20th. Went last year and had a blast.
We are going to Palo the 23rd for brunch and the 26th for dinner.I booked the Romance package, so we will see if it was worth the extra money. DS is looking forward to Cpt. Marvins to swim with the rays.
Has it been decided when and where to meet?
Let the Party Get Started :woohoo:

[DisneyZell]

Tracy, it looks like we could be seeing a lot of you...MNSSHP on the 20th and brunch on the 23rd! Question for you about MNSSHP...did the adults dress up for this or just the kids? I'm having my two boys wear pirate outfits for this as well as the cruise, but didn't know if dh and I should dress up as well. We've never been, but just couldn't pass this up when I looked into it.

I am finally finishing my disney cruise album from 2004 b/c I told myself I couldn't go on another disney cruise without finishing the first one. :cool1: Luckily I'm just about done, so I'll be able to go! :cheer2: See everyone soon!

[suz72]

:thumbsup2 Yea Deanna and Tracy! :thumbsup2

Who else wants to post what you are excited about? :banana: :banana:

Let's get excited!!! :cool1: :cool1: :cool1: :cheer2: :cheer2: :cheer2:

[surf'un]

We also were up at midnight for the ressies. Hard to believe all of Palo was gone in 20 min. We have dinner on Sun. and tea on Mon., also the stingray reef and fury catamaran sail. It will be great to see others will be on these excursions too. We've never been on a cruise before, so we started a countdown chain with the little kids where we cut a paper ring each day.

We'll also be in the Hyatt the night before the cruise, and taking land transport to the terminal.

With much excitement, Surf'un, dhJim, ds13, ds7, ds5, dd11, and dGM

:yay:

[Belle17]

Hm... What to get excited about for our first cruise... :Pinkbounc

1) My brothers and I missing 3 1/2 days of school! ...well, my brothers are looking forward to that. I actually love going to school, and this is my last year of high school. :guilty:
2) Palo. Not for me (drat!!), but for my parents, because they very rarely get to treat themselves to a nice night out at all, let alone a high-class restaurant. Being the "cruise trip manager," I made sure they got a reservation. It was a close call - when I went to reserve, there were only two dinners left! So on the last night of the cruise, my parents will be indulging while my brothers and I are off with the other teenagers, probably dancing the night away. :woohoo:
3) The shows. No words of mine can express my excitement for the evening shows. Next year I hope to be working towards a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Theatre Arts or Musical Theatre, so I'm certainly excited for this!
4) Pirates IN the Caribbean. I was fascinated with the world of pirates even before the blockbuster hits, and I can't wait to don my costume - constructed entirely from goods I got at our local Goodwill thrift store!
5) Total peace of mind. :cloud9: Something my chaotic family (myself included) desperately need. One week completely free of band, mathletes, cross-country, piano lessons, showchoir, musical theatre, overtime work, and wondering whether or not all five of us will be at the dinner table at the same time. ...but with showchoir district evaluations the second week of November, I'd better prove to our chorus teacher I know the music and routine by heart before missing an entire week of practice! :rolleyes1

We won't be doing any excursions at any ports of call or any "extras" (i.e. spa visits) on the ship, with the exception of Palo for my parents. But you can bet we're all anxiously awaiting October 21! :yay:

[Jpoo]

I have actually had dreams about this cruise. :cloud9: Good dreams and nightmares. Last night I actually dreamed that we were upgraded free at port at the last minute to a suite! :cool1: I also have had a nightmare that we got to Florida from Michigan and I discovered that I forgot MY and DH birth certificates!!!! :confused3 Talk about panic!! :scared: I was glad to wake up from that one! It's silly, I know, but we are really looking forward to this trip, and I have spent a lot of time researching and planning it.( on the DIS of course!) we didn't book until 120 days out, but I contemplated for a very long time!
I am excited about spending some relaxing time with DH, hopefully a nice quiet romantic meal or two :lovestruc , and also having plenty of fun family time with our sons :grouphug: . Most of all I am looking forward to not having to cook or clean for a whole week!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Being waited on and taken care of is a wonderful treat. princess: We all deserve some pampering!

[suz72]

Oh Jennifer! Yikes! I've had that type of panic too, except...when I'm awake!

Forgetting something as important as passports or birth certificates would surely be something to stress about. You should go pack them right now. :thumbsup2

:grouphug: Family time...I'm really looking forward to having fun family time with my 2 DDs! That sounds great.

For those who are trying to get into the cruising mood, reading the trip reports is really fun. Some of them are soooooo good! Lots of folks also post photos.

Getting excited :banana: :banana:

[Cheryl N. WI]

I have fallen behind on this thread again. It has been a very busy summer for us and it is hard to believe it is almost over and DD starts school in 2 weeks.

We are getting very excited :banana: Two months from now we will be going to MNSSHP on Fri. night and then 2 months from tomorrow we get on the Magic!!!!!!!! From briefly skimming through the last few posts it looks like there will be a few of cruisers at MNSSHP that nigh! We went a few years ago and it was great. We are really looking forward to going again. Deanna DH and I are going to dress up a little, we are going with a pirate theme pirate: and we have Goofy pirate ears and pirate eye patches and I have a white blouse that DD says looks like a pirate shirt and DH has a shirt that looks "piratey" from an old costume, I'm just not sure what to do about pants for that night. I don't want to bring a lot of extra stuff because I don't want to overpack like we usually do. Maybe we'll just look like pirates from the waist up lol.

Getting very excited :Pinkbounc :bounce: :banana:

[tinkerfun]

Hi Cheryl,

Why don't you wear some black pants and shoes with your pirate shirt and a sash at your waist. That's what I'm planning on doing. I froze last time on the cruise by wearing sleeveless dresses, so this time I am bringing 2 pairs of black pants and several nice shirts to wear on the non-formal nights.

Julie :wave2:

[Cheryl N. WI]

Hey everyone 2 months from now at this time we will be sailing on the Magic!!! :banana: :bounce: I have been driving my DD crazy today because all day long I have been saying, 2 months from now at this time we will be _____ lol

Julie thanks for the idea about the pants and sash. I was actually thinking about bringing either some balck or brown dress pants that I could wear one of the non-formal nights and maybe to brunch at Palo and they would actually work for MNSSHP too because they are very comfortable but I'll probably ruin the look by wearing my tennis shoes to MNSSHP because I need comfy shoes for walking around the Magic Kingdom all night, or maybe I could wear my brown Crocs that night, that would prabably look better than white tennis shoes.

Cheryl :sunny:

[nrsldy]

I am going to get us pirate t-shirts to wear at MSSHP that we will wear on pirate night also. I did see a shirt on line at the disney store for women that I liked. I am going to wear black shorts. The guys jean shorts.

How many of us are going to the MSSHP fri ? How does a mini meet before the cruise sound? Let me know maybe we can meet for the Parade. pirate:

[tinkerfun]

Our family is doing MNSSHP :maleficen , also, but we aren't going until 10/31. We can hear all about it on the cruise from the rest of you!!!
Julie

[Duane]

Hey guys, was poking around the different websites for the ports, and found out that Fantasy Fest (http://www.fantasyfest.net/index.htm) will be in its third day when we get to Key West. From what I could tell it looks to be a "little racy", especially for kids.

I posted a question in the main area about this event and if anyone has been to it.

I'm trying to get a feel if we need to stay on the ship or venture out until it becomes uncomfortable.... What do you guys think?

Duane

[msr709]

Hey guys, was poking around the different websites for the ports, and found out that Fantasy Fest (http://www.fantasyfest.net/index.htm) will be in its third day when we get to Key West. From what I could tell it looks to be a "little racy", especially for kids..... What do you guys think?

Duane

I read the other thread, it seems things won't start getting "racy" until after we leave (the following Saturday). So it should be safe. :thumbsup2

[tinkerfun]

We went on this same cruise at the same time two years ago and never saw anything. We weren't looking for it though. I think it wasn't close enough to Halloween and we weren't in town in the evening hours. If we happen to see anything it will be good dialouge to explain to dd11 why body paint is NOT considered appropriate clothing! :confused3
But for those who DO want to participate, I really don't think much will be going on before we have to re-board.
Julie

[suz72]

I posted something about Fantasy Fest on the main cruise board a while back ...maybe Jan. or Feb.

I don't remember the details, but I do remember that whatever the reply was, I was no longer worried about exposing my 2 sweet DDs (and DH :rotfl2: ) to Fantasy Fest.

I think is isn't really in effect when we are there.

Who is excited about this cruise. We've all got our formal gear finally!!! :woohoo: :woohoo: Can't wait. My little DD who is almost 4 was doing a Disney Cruise dance today :dance3:

[Jpoo]

I just helped my ds9 post a new thread for kids on our cruise in the cruise meets. If anyone has kids that would like to chat with each other, please check it out! I wish I had done this sooner. We only have 8 weeks left!!!!
:chat: shoutout to Rachel from Adam!

[Duane]

Susan, Julie, I think you guys are right, from what I can tell from the posts for Shirley (The Perfect Gift) that most of the "naughty stuff" will most likely happen in the later evenings and later on in the week after we're on our way back.

We have always wanted to go down to Key West with our RV, but it would take us a couple of days to get there from NC. This way we can check out the area without driving all that far. But you best believe I'm gonna keep my eyes open for any "funny business" that may be going on. In this day and time people don't need an organized event such as Fantasy Fest to act like idiots.

But as for getting excited, the DW and I were laying the bed last night reading all of the past trip reports from previous cruisers. Kind of like a real life bed time story....

[sami90tsi]

Hi Everyone,
We will be joining you as well on this cruise. There are Six of us. My Husband, Myself, 4 year old Son, 2.5 year old Daughter and my In Laws. We have never taken a DC this will be our first.
Samantha

[DisneyZell]

Welcome Samantha and family. You are going to have the time of your life! I too have a 4 year old son so I'm sure they'll be in the Oceaneer's club together. Let us know if you have any questions...we have been on one DC before (2 years ago and the Eastern) and everyone else on this board is so helpful! See you soon.

[bschiffler]

This will be our first Disney Cruise. We are DH, DW, DS (5) and DD (2 1/2). We are so excited. Cat 5/late dining.

[sami90tsi]

I have a question maybe you both will know. My DD is going to be 2 years 9 months when we cruise. I have read that they might let them into the Club if they are potty trained and withing 1 month of their birthday. Do you know if they make exceptions? And if not will she like the Nursery? This is our first DC, so we haven't a clue as to what to expect. We took Carnival's Legend last year and it was a big disappointment. We also have the late seating for dinner. I read that we would have to see the shows before dinner.

[DisneyZell]

As far as the club goes, they might let you do a trial run to see if that works out for your daughter, and if they have room. My 7 year old will be a few days shy of turning 8, but we plan on putting him in the Lab which starts at 8 years old. If they will not take her in the Club, I think she would enjoy Flounders...my 2 1/2 year old liked it when he was in there. We even have a picture on him on Snow White's lap when she made a visit to the little ones in the nursery. We are also in the late dinner seating, but are waitlisted for early seating. With late, you do see the shows before dinner, and for a few shows, you can go to a matinee (around 2:00). Having late isn't too bad, except that my kids get so hungry that they end up snacking before dinner and then they don't eat dinner! But, it is vacation, so we'll just play it by ear! Oh, and a big welcome to bschiffler, we're so glad to have you join us.

[Smooch]

I'm a little nervous about my ds2 liking flounder's as well. My plan is to leave him at the drop-in daycare at the gym a couple times before the trip so I can gauge his reaction. I read that you can take kids under 3 to the oceaneer club if they are able to use the potty, wash hands, and undress/dress themselves independently.

Welcome to all our new cruise buddies! :thumbsup2

[sami90tsi]

We are potty training my daughter now and she is going to start pre school in September so I am keeping my fingers crossed about the Club. :)

[bschiffler]

I too will have a 2 year 9 month old girl on the cruise. I am going to get her potty trained....at least give it a shot...so she can maybe go in with the 3 and 4 year olds. I think she is going to be really bored in the nursery!

We also have late dining and yes I heard we have to see the shows first.

[sami90tsi]

When is your DD Birthday? My DD birthday is Valentine's Day. That will be great the two of them the same age. I am curious if the 3 year old club is full? And what are our chances of getting them in the club? :)

[sami90tsi]

Hey J&AMOM, where in NY are ya? We are in Middletown.

[suz72]

DisneyZell : Deanna, Drew, ds8, ds4 late seating (waitlisted for early)
Neighbors a la Zell: DH, DW, ds9, dd6 late seating waitlisted for early

Jpoo: Jennifer, DH, ds9, ds5 late seating

Suz72: Susan, Jon, dd3, dd6 early dining

Cheryl N WI: Cheryl, DH, dd12

Nrslady: Tracy, DH, ds12

J & A Disney Mom: Shell, Tom, ds5, dd3 early dining
J & A Disney Mom: Mom and Dad
J & A Disney Mom: Sis, BIL, DS5, DS3

Tinkerfun: Julie, DH, dd11, ds9

Duane: Duane, Claudine, dd10

DVCKatie, Katie, DH, dd21

kecall: Karen, DH, dd9, dd13

abitjaded: Carla, Brad ds10, ds13

sunshinegirl: Tricia, DH, DD5, & DD3

msr709: Milly, & Lolly( DSIS) & DBIL

gottaluv & DH, DD, MIL

Belle17: Belle17, Mom, Dad, Br14 &Br16

surf'un: & DH, ds13, ds7, ds5, dd11

hank56: hank, dw, & ds12, ds13

teamwilliams: Kathy, DH Mark, DD8, DD5
teamwilliams: Sis, BIL, kids (5,3,1)
teamwilliams: parents & FIL

smooch: & DH, dd8, ds2
smooch: Bro, SIL, dd13

sami90tsi : Samantha ,DH, DS4 , DD2.5, inlaws

bschiffler: DH, DW, DS (5) and DD (2 1/2) late dining

I added our new friends...HI :wave: I can add early or late dining to yours if you pm me or just post it. pirate:
__________________

[bschiffler]

Would anyone be interested in having a trick or treat night maybe towards the end since a lot of us will probably be missing our Halloween parties, celebrations back home?

We could designate a time and day and put signs on the doors of the cabins that are interested in participating.

Might be kinda fun for the kids?

This may be a dumb idea....what do you all think??

[bschiffler]

Sami
My daughter will be 3 on Jan 2. Is your daughter potty trained? I think I am going to tie the potty chair to her until we leave so she is trained!!! I think she would do much better in the 3-4 area.

[sami90tsi]

we are trying!!!! We have had some success this week. Lets see if she keeps improving over the next month.

As for the Trick or treat idea, if we can get a bunch of people to do it, I think it would be great fun for the kids!

[bschiffler]

We are going to work on it this weekend too! Let me know what works for you.

[sami90tsi]

So far the potty training is going ok. She still wont go #2 though. I bought her a Dora toilet insert and she loves it. I just hope I wont have to bring it on the cruise. (lol) I have been potty training her for about 4 days now. I keep telling her that the princesses will be so proud of her and that if she keeps it up I will bring her to the toy store.

[bschiffler]

We are using the Dora Potty seat too! Sometimes she likes it other moments she is mad at her Dora seat......I just have to turn my head and laugh.

I bought her a Cinderella dress at Target today that I am using as an incentive. It probably isn't the best thing to bribe her, but if it is going to make my vacation more enjoyable.....then bring on the bribes!!

My son who just turned 5 didn't potty train until his third birthday....so I am a little worried!!

[sami90tsi]

My son also took a little bit longer than my daughter. But according to my mom who had 5 girls and 2 boys, the girls were easier to train. Boy, I hope so. My daughter is doing great she did not wet her pants today. But, she did go #2 in them today. :sad1: I am going to keep on trying though.

[suz72]

Would anyone be interested in having a trick or treat night maybe towards the end since a lot of us will probably be missing our Halloween parties, celebrations back home?

We could designate a time and day and put signs on the doors of the cabins that are interested in participating.

Might be kinda fun for the kids?

This may be a dumb idea....what do you all think??

Sounds like fun! Since we have 2 dining times (late/early), we would want to do it earlier in the day. We will actually be home on Halloween and trick-or-treat our neighborhood

[Smooch]

So far the potty training is going ok. She still wont go #2 though. I bought her a Dora toilet insert and she loves it. I just hope I wont have to bring it on the cruise. (lol) I have been potty training her for about 4 days now. I keep telling her that the princesses will be so proud of her and that if she keeps it up I will bring her to the toy store.


I started potty training DS2 over the wekeend too. So far it's going well. :thumbsup2 He can't get his clothes off & on though so I don't think they'll let him in Oceaneer club. I just want him to be able to swim in the big pool since there is only one small wading area for kids who aren't potty trained.

I had the same #2 issue with my oldest and solved it by buying a cheap gumball machine that we kept in the bathroom. When she did her duty we gave her a penny to get a gumball. We called it an "incentive" and it helped a lot.

The trick-or-treat idea sounds fun. We'll have to make a list of rooms once we get our assignments. Has anyone got theirs yet?

[bschiffler]

I haven't received my cabin number yet. Just the category. Has anyone received their documents yet?

I am trying to stay motivated with the potty training...it would be so nice if my dd2 could use the regualar pool. Good luck you two....let me know what works for you!

When we get a count of who is interested in the trick or treating...I can make a list of the cabins that are participating. The kids would really enjoy it!

[J&ADisneyMom]

Susan

We have early seating, and my 3 year old is a girl. Thanks for keeping the list and updating it!!

Samantha

I'm upstate, east of Syracuse. I have a very good friend that lives in Middletown. Her family was originally supposed to sail with us but had to cancel. I've been in your area many, many times!!! We'll be down that way again at the end of Sept. I'm reading all of your potty training woes and laughing. Hope things are going better for all of you. My dd will be three next week and for some reason she decided to potty train herself a year ago. By Halloween last year, she was in panties full time, including overnights. I can't take any credit, so sorry, no advice! My son trained at about 2 yrs 10 months, but he was ready. We tried a couple times before that and he just wasn't ready.

I think we'll skip the treat or treating, since we'll be getting candy at MNSSHP prior to sailing. Plus we have two parties before our trip where we'll be getting a ton of candy.

ONLY 45 more days!!

Shell

[sami90tsi]

My DD is doing ok with potty training but I still have the problem with #2. She wants nothing to do with it. I keep trying to bribe her but so far its not working. She starts pre school today so hopefully that will be a big help. As for the trick or treating I think it will be great for the kids.
We haven't recieved our documents yet either. I heard we will most likely get them a month before sailing.

For anyone interested I think we should set up a time and place to meet on the ship to get to know everyone?

[suz72]

DisneyZell : Deanna, Drew, ds8, ds4 late seating (waitlisted for early)
Neighbors a la Zell: DH, DW, ds9, dd6 late seating waitlisted for early

Jpoo: Jennifer, DH, ds9, ds5 late seating

Suz72: Susan, Jon, dd3, dd6 early dining

Cheryl N WI: Cheryl, DH, dd12

Nrslady: Tracy, DH, ds12

J & A Disney Mom: Shell, Tom, ds5, dd3 early dining
J & A Disney Mom: Mom and Dad
J & A Disney Mom: Sis, BIL, DS5, DS3

Tinkerfun: Julie, DH, dd11, ds9

Duane: Duane, Claudine, dd10

DVCKatie, Katie, DH, dd21

kecall: Karen, DH, dd9, dd13

abitjaded: Carla, Brad ds10, ds13

sunshinegirl: Tricia, DH, DD5, & DD3

msr709: Milly & Lolly(DSIS) & Jim ( DBIL)late seating

gottaluv & DH, DD, MIL

Belle17: Belle17, Mom, Dad, Br14 &Br16

surf'un: & DH, ds13, ds7, ds5, dd11

hank56: hank, dw & ds12, ds13

teamwilliams: Kathy, DH Mark, DD8, DD5
teamwilliams: Sis, BIL, kids (5,3,1)
teamwilliams: parents & FIL

smooch: & DH, dd8, ds2
smooch: Bro, SIL, dd13

sami90tsi : Samantha ,DH, DS4 , DD2.5, inlaws

bschiffler: DH, DW, DS (5) and DD (2 1/2) late dining

I added our new friends...HI :wave: I can add early or late dining to yours if you pm me or just post it. pirate:
__________________


Here is the list...updated. Let me know if you have info you want me to change or add.

Shell - Sorry about your DD3...I fixed it. My DD3 is turning 4 in 10 days...she is so excited!

[msr709]

We are: Milly (MSR709), Lolly (DSis) and Jim (DBIL) late dinning

[bschiffler]

It would definetly be fun to all meet up! This is our first cruise, so I would be a bad one to suggest a place or time. Any suggestions?

The potty training isn't going so well....someone please send me some pixy dust....I really need a potty trained child on this cruise :)

[tinkerfun]

Good luck to everyone on the potty training! I sure am happy to be done with that phase of child rearing!!! Although the trick-or-treating sounds fun, I would probably say no for my kids, mostly because they really aren't going to need the candy. Although my daughter will be missing her friends' Halloween party back in California, we will be at MNSSHP for Halloween, so the kids are pretty excited about that. Actually, I think they are MORE excited about staying at the Nick Hotel than going to MNSSHP!
Oh, and we have the early seating for dinner this time. Last time we did the late seating because several people recommended it so that the kids were awake enough to watch the shows, but we had to feed the kids before the show and then they were pretty bored at dinner after the show because they weren't hungry and usually left dinner early to go back to the kids club. So I am hoping the early seating will work better for us this time.
We also have our room number already, but that is because we picked our room when we booked, we didn't just book a catagory. Unless they change our room, I guess! (But they didn't last cruise.)
-Julie

[J&ADisneyMom]

Susan, thanks. My dd's birthday is next week end as well (she'll be 3)... She's just getting to the point of understanding. She told me she wants cupcakes for her birthday. I asked "Is that it"? "Yes Mom". OK, easy... In a few years, it won't be that easy. :0)

Shell

[Cheryl N. WI]

Hi Everyone, :wave:

My DD is 12 and looking for a friend. If any one would want their children to have a friend before the cruise we can PM and get our children talking. She has had friends before hand the last 2 cruises we took and it's the way to go! :rotfl:

Cheryl

[WiseMan]

Hi everyone, my DW just changed our reservations from Jan 07 to the Oct 21st sailing. Of course all of the Palo ressies were booked already but we were able to reserve some Flounder's Reef time for our DS 7 months.

Look forward to sailing next month.

[myshells]

Hi Everyone, :wave:

My DD is 12 and looking for a friend. If any one would want their children to have a friend before the cruise we can PM and get our children talking. She has had friends before hand the last 2 cruises we took and it's the way to go! :rotfl:

Cheryl
Hello Cheryl. We are first time cruisers. My daughter will be turning 10 on the cruise. I have been looking for a friend for my daugter as well. My daughter is just a little shy, but she tends to loosen up quickly to kids. It would be great them to start talking.... Hope to talk to you soon. Thanks. Michelle :

[Duane]

Cheryl, Michelle, My daughter Ashleigh, would love to meet your daughters.... that is if I can remember to tell her about your daughters. Cheryl, I got the PM from your daughter night before last, but I keep forgetting to tell her about it.

Ashleigh is 10 and is in the 5th grade.

I'll do my best to remember to tell her about this tomorrow.....

Duane

[Cheryl N. WI]

Hi Ashleigh I sent you a PM! :cheer2: Hope you can send me one back sometime tomorrow. Did you know there's a kids thread for our cruise?

Rachel :wave2:

[Jpoo]

My son started the kids thread. :cool1: I'm hoping to see more activity on it. Maybe as the cruise gets closer it will pick up. If your kids are interested, please encourage them to join the thread! You can register them with their own name (if under certain age, need permission form), or just use yours!
The cruise is getting closer!! :woohoo: How soon is too soon to start packing? I still need to get a dress for formal night! Ugh. Now that the kids are back to school, I will have a little more shopping time!
So, are we officially having our DIS meet at the promenade lounge at 3pm on sail away day? I have my green mickey heads! ::MickeyMo

[Smooch]

Thanks for suggesting a meet time - we'll be there!

Is anyone else driving their family nuts with planning details? I think I'm a little obsessed with planning. DH actually suggested I switch careers and become a travel agent!

I switched my Stingray excursion reservations from disney to Captain Marvin's. Thanks for the tips on that. DS2 can ride along for free through Captain Marvin's. We are debating about going parasailing at CC, has anyone tried it and is it worth the money? If you go tandem, do they charge for 2 people or just one?

[hank56]

Smooch, we did the parasailing at CC in 2004, as non of us had ever done it it was worth it because never did anything like it before. Could live with the cost that time but I don't think its worth it a second time. Cost is per person so I suggest you do it solo if you can, that way you feel you get more for the money. It was a lot of fun :thumbsup2

[surf'un]

This is our first cruise, and we are wondering if you need to pack beach towels for the excursions or are they provided by the companies? Also, castway cay, etc.? Do the kids get dressed up for formal night (suit and tie, long dresses)? Could someone also repeat what these green items are? We missed that at the beginning of this thread. Is there a lot of standing or walking at certain points during the cruise. I just had knee surgery, and wonder if its worth it to get a wheelchair for those times I'll need to just sit down. Thanks for answering all of our inquiries.

Surf'un (at least not for several more months)

[tinkerfun]

My husband and son signed up to parasail at Castaway Cay. I think they have to do it together because of his age (my son's, not my husband's!), I know all the info is on the disney cruise website. My husband wanted to sail on our last cruise in 2004, but he sprained his ankle the day before on the ship!
My dd11 wants to chat with other kids, but hasn't had any extra time to go on-line since school started. Sixth grade has brought along a lot of extra homework :teacher: with it and she is cheerleading this year. :cheer2: We are all looking forward to this cruise!!! party:
Julie

[lrodptl]

Would anyone be interested in having a trick or treat night maybe towards the end since a lot of us will probably be missing our Halloween parties, celebrations back home?

We could designate a time and day and put signs on the doors of the cabins that are interested in participating.

Might be kinda fun for the kids?

This may be a dumb idea....what do you all think??
Sounds like fun for DD5 and DD6. Please let us know.

[WiseMan]

BTW, how many of you are dressing up on Pirates IN the Caribbean Night?

[sami90tsi]

We will be. We already have the costumes for the kids.

[Jpoo]

I am debating the pirate costumes. I have to get commitments from the family that they will wear them before I go out and buy costumes. I have seen a lot of pirate costumes coming into the stores lately, so they shouldn't be too hard to find.

Green items- surf'un referred to are the alien green mickey head paint chips from Home Depot. I guess that the official color that DISers use to identify eachother is this 'alien green' color, and Home Depot carries the Disney color by BEHR, you can get the paint chips in the form of a small Mickey Mouse head. Grab a few and use them as you please to adorn yourself for the DIS meet on board, or just to identify yourself as a DISer. I'm not sure how I am going to use mine, I probably will just attach one to my top with double sided tape the day we embark. You could also use them to decorate a magnetic door sign, too.

[lrodptl]

My kids area ready for Pirate night and we will be as well

[tinkerfun]

My family is dressing for pirate night. Mostly we are wearing black pants, white shirts and red sashes. They hand out red pirate bandanas at dinner. Then we will re-wear them for MNSSHP, except my daughter is making a few adjustments to hers and making it a gypsy costume.
Julie pirate:

[DisneyZell]

We will be dressing up as well. I know Disney store has the Pirates in the Caribbean shirts on sale right now if that helps anyone. My kids will also be wearing their pirate attire for MNSSHP too.

[Lisa888]

Hello everyone!

I just booked to go on this cruise last week. It will be myself (Lisa), my DH Jeff, my DD10 and my DS who will turn 8 while we are on the cruise. I have been to DW many times (I grew up in Florida and live there now) but have never been on a DC before. We are all very excited. I haven't booked any excursions yet, I am still amazed that we are going on this cruise at all. Now I just have to figure out what to pack, etc. Actually this is our very first cruise ever, so I guess I have a lot to figure out! Fortunately we are only a few hours drive from Cape Canaveral, so we will get there early. I have read most of this thread and have already picked up many useful tips. My daughter is already making friends over on the kids' board. Life is good!
Also, my DH is British - are there any other UK citizens on this cruise?
See you all in a month! :yay:

[suz72]

So, are we officially having our DIS meet at the promenade lounge at 3pm on sail away day? I have my green mickey heads! ::MickeyMo


O.K. been a little busy. I guess 3pm is our official meet time at the promenade lounge. Sounds great!

[suz72]

DisneyZell : Deanna, Drew, ds8, ds4 late seating (waitlisted for early)
Neighbors a la Zell: DH, DW, ds9, dd6 late seating waitlisted for early

Jpoo: Jennifer, DH, ds9, ds5 late seating

Suz72: Susan, Jon, dd4, dd6 early dining

Cheryl N WI: Cheryl, DH, dd12

Nrslady: Tracy, DH, ds12

J & A Disney Mom: Shell, Tom, ds5, dd3 early dining
J & A Disney Mom: Mom and Dad
J & A Disney Mom: Sis, BIL, DS5, DS3

Tinkerfun: Julie, DH, dd11, ds9

Duane: Duane, Claudine, dd10

DVCKatie, Katie, DH, dd21

kecall: Karen, DH, dd9, dd13

abitjaded: Carla, Brad ds10, ds13

sunshinegirl: Tricia, DH, DD5, & DD3

msr709: Milly, & Lolly( DSIS) & DBIL

gottaluv & DH, DD, MIL

Belle17: Belle17, Mom, Dad, Br14 &Br16

surf'un: & DH, ds13, ds7, ds5, dd11early dining

hank56: hank, dw, & ds12, ds13early dining


teamwilliams: Kathy, DH Mark, DD8, DD5
teamwilliams: Sis, BIL, kids (5,3,1)
teamwilliams: parents & FIL

smooch: & DH, dd8, ds2
smooch: Bro, SIL, dd13

sami90tsi : Samantha ,DH, DS4 , DD2.5, inlaws

bschiffler: DH, DW, DS (5) and DD (2 1/2) late dining

lisa888: & DH Jeff, DD10, DS8

Hi all! I guess this is our list as of now...I can make changes as necessary.

We will meet at 3pm on Sat at the Promenade lounge

[myshells]

Hello Lisa. I will be on this cruise as well with my DD 10 and my DH. I have been looking for friends for my DD. This will be our first ever cruise. We can not wait. This is a surprise for my DD 10th birthday. She has no idea. Boy is she going to be excited... I hope to talk to you soon!

[sami90tsi]

Well, I just convinced some friends to come with us!
They are: Ralph, Stacy, Jaya (4) and Ralph (2). This sure is shaping up to be a great trip!

[Lisa888]

Hello Myshells. What a great surprise for your DD. How soon before the cruise will you tell her? I would have such a hard time keeping it a secret - I'm so excited myself. Feel free to PM me - I look forward to hearing from you.

[myshells]

Hello Lisa. It has been really hard to keep it a secret from her. We are not going to tell her anything. We are in Virginia so we are leaving to go to Florida on the 20th. We are going to stay in Cocoa Beach. We are going to pick her up from school on the 20th in a limo. This is really killing me.... But I know it will be worth everything to see her face light up..... Feel free to PM me as well.... It would be wonderful for her to meet some friends and keep in touch with them. I look forward to hearing from you...... Thanks. Michelle

[DisneyZell]

we are keeping our trip a secret from our kids (DS 4,8) as well. Our neighbors are going and are doing the same. we will all meet down there and put them on the ship, they will love it. It is so hard though, because we so want to talk about it, and frequently catch ourselves saying things we shouldn't! Luckily they have yet to figure that out ;)

anyway, welcome! I can't wait to meet everyone!

pirate:

[kecall]

We are going to pick her up from school on the 20th in a limo. Michelle

Oh, my!! Will you come pick me up in a limo too???!!!! :goodvibes

It's nice to see that my dds are going to have others their age to play with....My dds are 9 and 13.....

Ohhh, I am just now starting to think about the trip, and I'm getting soooo excited!!! :Pinkbounc :dance3: :Pinkbounc :dance3: :Pinkbounc

karen :)

[nrsldy]

Well we dug out the suitcases today. I started packing and putting up summer clothes. I need to look for a garment bag. I have a list going of things to pick up before the trip.
I am up for a meet the first day. I have our lime green mickey heads. I am working on a door sign.
We have first dinning. I am not sure I would be able to stay awake for the later seating. ;)
Impatiently Waiting pirate: pirate: pirate:

[bschiffler]

I am going to start getting things organized too since I have really busy October. And since it is freezing cold here in MN I can pack all our shorts and suits. We didn't get a fall here, it went straight to winter. Now I really can't wait for the lazy warm days on the ship!!

[teamwilliams]

Hi fellow cruisers! Been busy with the start of school and a new job, but I'm kicking it into high gear now!! :banana: DD5 and I picked up our lime green mickey heads - and a variety of other colors too! - and found a couple of great pirate shirts on clearance at The Disney Store. Found one for DH and one for DDad. The selection of dollar Disney items at Target are fun. I haven't started packing yet, but I have definitely started "piling"! :rotfl: DH thinks the cardboard drink carriers are going a bit too far, but we'll see what he thinks once we're on the ship! It has been a gloomy, rainy day here in WI, making us all more excited for the Caribbean sunshine. :sunny:

[msr709]

Has anyone received their documents yet? Need to know when to expect because I'm moving on Oct. 15....Anyone? TIA :confused3

[lrodptl]

Has anyone received their documents yet? Need to know when to expect because I'm moving on Oct. 15....Anyone? TIA :confused3
Nothing yet,last cruise we got them right about this time.

[tinkerfun]

I filled out all my forms on line this time, so I'm not sure if I will be receiving any documents. The only thing I have left to do is print out a one page form, have the adults sign it and turn it in upon check-in.
Julie :woohoo: