July 18th - 25th, Magic to Tortola

[BomaGreg]

I've never done a trip report before, but a handful of people were interested in what the trip was like, so I'll throw in some quick stories and hope that fellow cruise mates fill in the blanks and anything I might have missed.

First off, I'll state for the record that this was my sixth Disney cruise, and I had always been really happy with DCL up until a year and a half ago when we took the 07-08 New Years cruise. For multiple reasons, I felt that nearly everything on that cruise was sub-par, from food to service and everything in between, and we had sort of sworn off Disney because of the extra expense for what we felt we could really get on any other cheaper cruise line. However, a short while later we decided to try Carnival, and it was such a torturous trip that it made the New Year's cruise look stellar in comparison. In the end, we decided to take the dive one more time, crossing our fingers that the previous cruise was just a fluke, and seeing Tortola as one of the ports helped seal the deal for the July 18th cruise.

With that out of the way, let me just say up front that this was hands down the best Disney cruise I've ever taken! :thumbsup2

With that said, let's go straight to the most important stuff...

The Food

The food not only surpassed last trip by leaps and bounds, but was arguably better than it had ever been. I wish that I'd written a journal for everything I had eaten on the trip to help give a recap, but there really wasn't a single thing that I tried that wasn't at least really good, and most of it was great to stellar. On occasion the food tasted like they added a little bit too much salt, but realistically I rarely add salt to anything, so it's very likely that most people won't notice it like I did. At least, not until the water retention sets in.

My wife has a tendency to gravitate toward fish dishes, and I typically bounce back and forth between shellfish and meat dishes, so we both had a pretty good sampling of everything. On top of that, we have two girls, six and nine, who ordered off the adult menus, and are always adventurous eaters, so we got to try various things from their plates, too. (I *highly* recommend trying to get children to venture away from the kid's menu when they see something that appeals to them... just because they have a kid's menu doesn't mean they have to use it! They can always take a trip up to Deck 9 for more standard fare, or order something else from the menu if they don't like it! :) ) Though I'm afraid I can't really remember any specific names of dishes (my wife can probably clarify, I'm sure...), I will say that, on a whole, the fish dishes were fantastic, as were the various shellfish dishes. The steak dishes were sometimes a "miss", but on a whole I was very pleased, and I'll admit to being very picky about the quality of steaks.

The one letdown I remember was the meat dish on Pirate night, which I had read that everyone had raved about. For me, it wasn't cooked particularly well, and I found that it was way too fatty to be enjoyable, but it was more of a speed bump on an otherwise incredibly smooth ride. Also, the burgers at lunch in Lumiere's were not nearly as good as I remember them being, but alternately, the burgers on Deck 9 seemed to be better than I remembered, so I'll call that a push and just give them both passing, if not stellar, marks.

Speaking of Deck 9, they changed the panini selection from the last time I cruised, and that was a slight disappointment. It was one of the culinary highlights from the last cruise, particularly since the food in general wasn't all that great (to put it in perspective, I only gained a pound during that cruise... :) ). Their new panini selection wasn't nearly as interesting, and I ended up only trying a couple, and walked away unimpressed. However, I really enjoyed the tacos, so that offset everything nicely!

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The nifty new menu option that allows you to have three small desserts to try them all!


Oh! And one of my favorite things to eat on the cruise is muesli, which I know several people on the board are a fan of. Oddly enough, it wasn't nearly as good as it used to be, possibly because they stopped using berries, and instead are using various other chunks of fruit which aren't quite as delicious. That's not to say that it wasn't good, just not as good as I remembered it when they served it with fresh berries. I still had a bowl pretty much every morning.

We also had Palo reservations for dinner, brunch (my wife's favorite), and for the first time high tea. I'll go on record as saying that the last time we went to Palo (during that New Year's cruise), it was simply bad in every way. The chefs burnt our food, requiring a re-cook, our server was really, really slow (our normal server, the ever-incredible Sasha, was on vacation), and in the end it took us two hours to get the (mediocre-tasting at best) main course. Half way through eating, my beeper went off to get the children (with that sort of two hour Palo hold time being up), and I missed out on dessert. I was so annoyed at that point that I didn't really care that dinner was interrupted, and the fact that various desserts were wrapped up for me did nothing to alleviate my frustration over the whole incident.

This time, Sasha wasn't available for dinner, and we ended up with Cecilia (from Argentina, if I remember correctly), who turned out to be equally as fantastic as Sasha. She made excellent suggestions, was incredibly prompt, and an absolute pleasure to talk to. We loved her so much that we didn't mind in the least that Sasha wasn't available again for high tea, just as long as we got him for brunch we were fine!

The food was as fantastic as ever, though I can't remember exactly what it was we had ordered for dinner (I'll blame my memory lapse on all the cheesecake blocking the flow of blood to my brain). I'm not really sure there's anything up there that doesn't taste great when properly prepared, so it probably doesn't really matter one way or another. I do remember that, at some point, my wife ordered the chicken parmesan, which was stellar, and that seems like it was probably a dinner thing, so we'll go with that.

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Random dessert food from Palo. I lost track, but trust me, they're all good.


Brunch was similarly stellar, but in this case there was a very stand out dish for me. Scallops are typically one of those throw-away seafoods that I find good to eat, but I can take it or leave it for the most part. In this case, however, the scallops were so perfectly prepared, so absolutely delicious, that my first bite reminded me of that scene from Ratatouille when Remy mixes the food, and they come together in perfect harmony. If I had nothing other than that during the entire cruise, I probably would've walked off the ship in bliss.

Finally, high tea. I can't believe I missed out on high tea after all these years, which I think was probably one of the main highlights of the trip. I love tea to begin with, but the tea we ordered (chai) was absolutely the best tea I've ever drank (drunk? dranken?). Further, I'm not much of a scone fan, despite my family being British, but I have never had anything so delicious as the scones they served in Palo. I was so frustrated that I'd filled up on all the various other things they had available that I probably would've cried had Cecilia not offered up a take home plate of scones to finish off once I digested everything. :) By dinner, I still wasn't all that hungry, but I found room. :thumbsup2

For those first time cruisers looking for good wait staff, Paula from Jamaica was our server, and I will absolutely be looking for her again next trip. She was actually one of the highlights of our trip, and even our kids couldn't wait to go to dinner so they could see her again. She was going on vacation after the cruise is over, so that might've added to her happiness, but I'd have a hard time believing that she didn't always have such a sunny personality.

Anyway, overall our food experience was easily one of the best dining experiences I've had on a ship, and I commented to my wife on leaving that clearly they listen to comment cards about food quality, and it really showed this time around.

[BomaGreg]

Ports

Let me start by saying that we've never been huge excursion fans. Don't get me wrong, I understand why people take them. However, years ago, when we weren't allowed to take our youngest on any of the excursions because of the age requirements, we quickly learned how to get around on our own. It's really very simple, particularly in ports in which DCL docks, and with a little bit of research before a trip you'll get to see exactly what you want, when and however you want it, and there are plenty of times in which we got to see more simply because we hired a taxi driver and told him to take us where everyone else isn't. There are certainly instances in which I'd gladly take an excursion, but for the most part we wing it, and have a fantastic time. This trip was no exception...

Tortola

For the most part, we aimed at snorkeling trips on the islands. In Tortola, we asked the incredibly pleasant taxi driver to take us to the best beach for snorkeling, and preferably far away from the boat. He dropped us off on Brewer's Bay beach, asked what time we wanted picked up, and then gave us a phone number in which we could call him if we wanted picked up earlier.

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Empty as far as the eye can see. Well, except for the cows. I found that out the hard way, and had to leave my sneakers out on the veranda for two days to air them out.


The beach was completely empty for the first hour or so, and at its peak there were only about thirty people there. The snorkeling was really good, despite an overcast day, and between the quiet and the empty ocean, it was a beautiful afternoon on the beach.

For snorkelers, this is an easy recommendation. The bay kept the water from being in the least bit choppy, and there were literally walls of fish that lined the coral along the left hand wall (Seen below), and if you swim out far enough along the wall there's even nurse sharks to be seen! The only thing I would recommend at this point is to buy yourself a waterproof camera. :)

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There was only one little bar/restaurant on the beach, and I can't recall if they had snorkel gear to rent. I'm pretty sure they did not, so adjust accordingly. We carry our gear with us wherever we go, and a really good, cheap mask and snorkel only cost around $30 at Walmart, and don't add that much weight to a trek. If you have that as an option, definitely do it if you're going to venture out on your own!

Our driver was prompt, and arrived right on time to pick us up. Since we had a bit of time left, we asked if he would show us around the island, which he gladly did. Our trip included a trip up to Sky World, which has one of the best views of the island. It was quiet, with only a few people in the bar, and there wasn't any sense of pushy tourism going on there. They had a little shop that we browsed, took some pictures of the view from the roof, thanked everyone, and were on our way!

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A view from Sky World


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Another view from Sky World


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The Magic off in the distance!

After it was all said and done, for the four of us to get to the beach, take a lengthy driving tour all around the island (love those steep, winding hills!), and get back to the ship, I believe that it only cost us about sixty dollars plus tips, which we felt was a bargain considering how well everything went, and how we had a taxi at our beck and call. We didn't have to pay the driver until we got back to the ship. :)

I should add for those who've never been to Tortola, taxis are really easy to get. When you walk off the boat, there's a person in charge who will arrange a taxi for you. Just tell him where you want to go, and he'll take it from there. There's no real haggling involved. I'm sure that it's possible to talk down the price if you want, but it's cheaper than hiring an excursion, gives you your own personal taxi, and the money goes right into the pockets of locals. We had no problems in Tortola, which seems to be a lot more laid back than places like St. Thomas, but being taken advantage of is always a possibility, so you might want to do some legwork before embarking on your own! :)

That's it for tonight, I think. I'll post St. Thomas/St. John and travel comments later. I hope this helps! :)

[RoyalVizier]

With that out of the way, let me just say up front that this was hands down the best Disney cruise I've ever taken! :thumbsup2

Wonderful! :banana:

Thanks so much for this stellar summary! Can't wait to hear your thoughts on St. Thomas/St. John. We too just got back from the Tortola itinerary about a month ago and this put me right back on the island. Thanks! :)

P.S. I love your avatar photo. No, I didn't try to lick the screen, why would you think that? ;)

[BomaGreg]

Wonderful! :banana:

Thanks so much for this stellar summary! Can't wait to hear your thoughts on St. Thomas/St. John. We too just got back from the Tortola itinerary about a month ago and this put me right back on the island. Thanks! :)

P.S. I love your avatar photo. No, I didn't try to lick the screen, why would you think that? ;)

Thanks! Right when you sent this I updated the original with a couple of dessert shots, so you might want to go back there for dessert happiness, too! :) I hope it's thorough enough... I'm just throwing everything and kitchen sink in there in the hopes that it'll help somebody.

I don't really know why I chose the avatar... It makes me hungry every time I see it, and it's more like torturing myself at this point.

Where did you go in Tortola? And what did you think?

[BomaGreg]

St. Thomas/St. John

St. Thomas is a great stop, particularly if you get adventurous and get off the beaten path. There's a lot to see and do other than shopping, but to be honest, we've been there so many times that it's sort of lost its appeal for me for the time being. It seems as though every cruise I've been on has to stop there at some point in the journey, and I wouldn't be the least bit surprised to see a Baltic cruise itinerary include it at some point. :)

So this trip, keeping with the snorkeling theme, we decided to take the ferry over to St. John. This was a bit more of a grueling journey to attempt on your own due to the traveling requirements (particularly with kids), so be prepared! The ferry leaves from the other side of the bay, and is a nice fifteen or-so minute drive through the town. After that, it's another twenty minute trip by ferry (which leaves on the hour and includes the fill-the-ferry wait that can be brutal in the heat), and then you have to grab another taxi to get where you're going once on the island. All in all, it took a little over an hour to get from the boat to Trunk Bay, which, round trip, takes a serious chunk out of your fairly short shore time.

Still, it's definitely worth the trip, and St. John was easily my favorite stop of the entire cruise. The island is covered in forests with well-marked trails, wonderful people, great vistas, and some fantastic beaches and snorkeling opportunities. I don't remember how much it cost to do the entire trip on our own, though it was definitely cheaper than the excursion to Trunk Bay, but I remember getting nickel and dimed pretty heavily with all the taxi rides, so bring a lot of cash. Further, we had a bit of a disagreement with the taxi driver who was clearly trying to pull a fast one on us, but my wife managed to straighten it out in short order. In the end, he was still a reliable ride and was there for pickup, but I would pay special attention to your drivers in St. Thomas.

Anyway, St. John's taxi driver did a great job of stopping off to let us take a few pictures, and was incredibly friendly, like most of the locals. There are a ton of taxis waiting for you at Trunk Bay, so returning is definitely NOT a problem!

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Trunk Island from the hillside


Trunk Bay is part of the island's park system (as is, apparently, a good chunk of the island), and is kept as such. There are a lot of great amenities, including snorkel renting, nice showers, nice bathrooms, food and drink, and a souvenir stand. Even better, the beach features lifeguards, who not only serve to keep you safe, but also to keep the tourists off the beautiful reef, and keep them from stirring up the sand and sea life. I should also mention, keeping with the nickel and diming theme, there's a small fee to get into the park... $4 per adult, and $3 (I think) for children, but it's well worth it!

The best snorkeling is around a small rock island a short distance off shore. On one side, the left side, there are markers under water telling you what everything is, and a little something about them. This is where most of the tourists go, but the opposite side is equally as great for snorkeling, and doesn't feature all the kicks-to-the-face that you're likely to get from the crowds of people.

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Trunk Island, right hand side. (See: Fewer snorkelers)


The sea life on this area makes for absolutely spectacular snorkeling opportunities. And there's a great living coral with a ton of interesting fish, including stingrays, (as one friend who went with us found) blowfish, and tons of colorful (and sometimes camouflaged) fish who seem quite content with swimming right up to you. Again, I will always beat myself for not bringing a waterproof camera! :)

Anyway, the real advantage of going on your own isn't really the money you save as much as it is how you can manage your time as you see fit. We got there before the trips began to arrive, which allows you a little bit of breathing room before the reef is crowded. Then you can leave as you wish, and still have time to go into town on the way back if you want. It was a trek, but it was definitely worth it!

Just make sure to give yourself plenty of time to get back!

[pperfectmom]

I love how you started out with my favorite subject-the FOOD!!!!:thumbsup2

[lwilliam]

you can talk more than that! seriously, thanks for starting this:love:

We were fortunate to have Sasha for brunch and dinner! As I remember, we were at PALO the same night and we were lucky enough to have him. But, like you said, any wait staff in PALO has been great.:woohoo::woohoo:

Want me to add to your report? You know how much I can chat:lmao::lmao::lmao::lmao::lmao:

Your family was a delight, Greg.:grouphug:

[BomaGreg]

Ship

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I'm not going to spend too much time here, since most people have either already been on the Magic, or can readily find general information about it.

The first thing I'll say is that we were on the eighth floor, and had heard reports that it can get really loud up there at night, particularly from the scraping of chairs. While I could definitely hear it from time to time, it was never really bad, not even during the Pirate party when we went back early due to sleepy children. Unless you're a really light sleeper, this shouldn't be a problem. :)

Our first day at sea was a stormy one, and our deck party was moved indoors, but living in Florida allows me to get all the sun and heat I'll ever want, so this wasn't much of a problem as far as I was concerned. It made for some good picture ops! :)

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That's a Carnival ship in the background. Sooooo, to the passengers... Good luck with that! :)

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Rocky seas for the win!

The shows were up to their typical fantastic quality. After several trips on the Magic, I'm ready for a change... I'd love to see Hercules back on the seven day, but we still went to, and enjoyed, almost every show!

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There was a slight hiccup with the stage not raising correctly on the first day, but the entertainers were ready for such an occasion, and got the crowd singing and dancing until the show was ready to proceed.

Other than that, all the days at sea went perfectly. We met a lot of families and friends from the Disboards, and had a blast with them. In fact, the trip wouldn't have been nearly as fun without them, and I look forward to getting to cruise with them all again in the near future! :)

I should also mention that debarkation was an absolute breeze this time around, and seems to get easier with each trip. Since we live in Florida, we can get off the ship at our leisure, and we ended up staying in our room until just shy of 8am. After that, we went up to Topsiders which was amazingly empty, grabbed breakfast, then headed off the ship. There were no lines, and the luggage handlers were so efficient that it literally took five minutes for us to get from the ship to the van!

Hmmmm... I think that about covers everything I can think of off the top of my head, but if anybody has any questions, I'll gladly answer them! :) It really was one of the best cruises I've ever had, and I'm jealous of all of you who are already making plans for packing in the next few weeks. Have a safe trip! If you have half the fun I had, you'll have a fantastic time! :)

[BomaGreg]

you can talk more than that! seriously, thanks for starting this:love:

We were fortunate to have Sasha for brunch and dinner! As I remember, we were at PALO the same night and we were lucky enough to have him. But, like you said, any wait staff in PALO has been great.:woohoo::woohoo:

Want me to add to your report? You know how much I can chat:lmao::lmao::lmao::lmao::lmao:

Your family was a delight, Greg.:grouphug:

As were you! I wish I'd had more time to spend with you! That meet was over WAAAAAY too fast! :)

As for how much I can talk, I was afraid that I was getting too wordy, and that people would just get bored and quit reading half-way through! :) I could go on forever! :thumbsup2 (Especially on the food part)

[BomaGreg]

I love how you started out with my favorite subject-the FOOD!!!!:thumbsup2

ALWAYS!!! :goodvibes

[RoyalVizier]

Trunk Bay is part of the island's park system (as is, apparently, a good chunk of the island), and is kept as such. There are a lot of great amenities, including snorkel renting, nice showers, nice bathrooms, food and drink, and a souvenir stand.

Ahhhhh, you did it again! You put me right back on Trunk Bay which we visited on our cruise two years ago. We feel that Trunk Bay is one of the planets most stunning places. :cloud9:

Our first day at sea was a stormy one, and our deck party was moved indoors, but living in Florida allows me to get all the sun and heat I'll ever want, so this wasn't much of a problem as far as I was concerned.

I've always been curious... what is the Sail Away party like indoors? Where do they do it? Luckily we've never had to experience that.

[BomaGreg]

Ahhhhh, you did it again! You put me right back on Trunk Bay which we visited on our cruise two years ago. We feel that Trunk Bay is one of the planets most stunning places. :cloud9:



I've always been curious... what is the Sail Away party like indoors? Where do they do it? Luckily we've never had to experience that.

Crowded, and claustrophobic. :)

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To be honest, we didn't stay very long. I don't do crowds like that very well, and we used the time to explore the ship (including the decks... the weather wasn't that bad) while everyone was preoccupied. But, if you're the type who loves the sail away party, you'd probably be disappointed. Without the horn or the ship pulling away from port, it would definitely be a letdown. They did shoot off streamers, and there was music and dancing, but that was all that I saw... :confused3

[BomaGreg]

As for Trunk Bay, it really was fantastic! St. John is probably one of the only cruise islands that I'd ever consider going back for an extended vacation. There just seemed like so much to do (we saw forest trails EVERYWHERE), the locals were incredibly nice, and the island was beautiful! Tortola was similarly, nice, though, and I imagine a week spent there would go by pretty fast as well. :) I'd love to explore some of the backroads, and hidden locales.

[luv2boys]

great report greg!

[MarcyIn Florida]

The one letdown I remember was the meat dish on Pirate night, which I had read that everyone had raved about. For me, it wasn't cooked particularly well, and I found that it was way too fatty to be enjoyable, but it was more of a speed bump on an otherwise incredibly smooth ride.



It was the spiced ribeye, and it was gross. Not just a letdown, but pretty darn bad.


The food was as fantastic as ever, though I can't remember exactly what it was we had ordered for dinner (I'll blame my memory lapse on all the cheesecake blocking the flow of blood to my brain). I'm not really sure there's anything up there that doesn't taste great when properly prepared, so it probably doesn't really matter one way or another. I do remember that, at some point, my wife ordered the chicken parmesan, which was stellar, and that seems like it was probably a dinner thing, so we'll go with that.



Greg had the filet for dinner and I had the tuna steak. Both were fantastic.

The chicken parm was brunch, and for a girl who grew up eating Italian food on Arthur Avenue and in Little Italy in NYC, it was a shock to eat the best chicken parm of my life at Palo. THE BEST OF MY LIFE. Seriously.



Brunch was similarly stellar, but in this case there was a very stand out dish for me. Scallops are typically one of those throw-away seafoods that I find good to eat, but I can take it or leave it for the most part. In this case, however, the scallops were so perfectly prepared, so absolutely delicious, that my first bite reminded me of that scene from Ratatouille when Remy mixes the food, and they come together in perfect harmony. If I had nothing other than that during the entire cruise, I probably would've walked off the ship in bliss.


Those were the cold scallops on the brunch I-died-and-went-to-seafood-heaven buffet.

[MarcyIn Florida]

As were you! I wish I'd had more time to spend with you! That meet was over WAAAAAY too fast! :)

As for how much I can talk, I was afraid that I was getting too wordy, and that people would just get bored and quit reading half-way through! :) I could go on forever! :thumbsup2 (Especially on the food part)

Just so you know, trip reports often go on for pages and pages. :)

You really can't be too wordy with trip reports because new DCL cruisers like them to get a feel for everything and the old timers like to live vicariously through them.

I will add my 4 cents later this week when I get out from under a ton of work!

[BomaGreg]

Thanks! It bothers me that you remember this stuff, and makes me question if my brain is really working, anymore. :)

Oh! Also, the prizes have changed!

I haven't yet dug out the new Mousketeer prize from our luggage... It's hidden somewhere that I haven't found, yet. But the "soap dish" has been replaced by a slightly-less awesome magnetic platform with Mickey head clips that can be stacked ala novelty office magnetic sculptures. Don't get me wrong, they were cool, but I prefer the hefty worthlessness of the soap dish. Its worthlessness makes it feel all the more trophy-esque, I guess. :)

Also, we won pirate trivia, which was cake for someone who loved pirates before pirates were "cool". For that, we won the cup to the left (It says that I'm a WINNER!) and the button/ribbon also pictured.

Finally, we won a clock at the Castaway Club party, which I'm fascinated by because, similar to the soap dish, it weighs a ton for absolutely no reason, thereby making it seem like it's worth so much more.

If anyone's interested I'll dig up the magnet sculpture later, and post a picture. Also, I think my daughter received a button for being a contestant (with my every-so-lovely wife) on Mickey Mania which I can post.

I should also state that my daughter claimed the magnets for herself, having been my partner in the Who Wants To Be A Mousketeer game. This means that I have to have another cruise in the near future so I can get one for myself. :thumbsup2

[disnutz]

Greg -

Just to comment on a couple of things - and I promise to try to work on my report later this week -

The tacos. I swear to you someone in our family ate them everyday. Usually all of us. We kept swearing we would get something different, and then we would get tacos. I do not remember if I just didn't see them before or what, but this trip, we loved them too!

Scallops at Palo - one of my favorite things from the trip. That buffet was to die for. I love seafood, and I died and went to heaven.

The food in general - all pretty good. Our family is split on breakfast - DH and I hate the topsiders buffet because it is so hectic - kids love it. I love Lumiere's benedict. We compromise and do a little of each.

For specifics - I can tell you I had the lamb a couple times- delicious, the veal chops - a little fatty, and the lobster ravioili, which for some reason had a mint taste to it?? We also tried a great variety of other foods, most were great. (We even tried and loved the escargot, well except for the 15 yo).

[BomaGreg]

Just so you know, trip reports often go on for pages and pages. :)

You really can't be too wordy with trip reports because new DCL cruisers like them to get a feel for everything and the old timers like to live vicariously through them.

I will add my 4 cents later this week when I get out from under a ton of work!

I was hoping you would. I didn't want to give any bad information, and I figured that you'd remember prices, etc... better than me. :) Next time, I'll bring my laptop and blog as I go. Plus, I'll have a waterproof camera to document it better. :thumbsup2

[BomaGreg]

Greg -

Just to comment on a couple of things - and I promise to try to work on my report later this week -

The tacos. I swear to you someone in our family ate them everyday. Usually all of us. We kept swearing we would get something different, and then we would get tacos. I do not remember if I just didn't see them before or what, but this trip, we loved them too!

Scallops at Palo - one of my favorite things from the trip. That buffet was to die for. I love seafood, and I died and went to heaven.

The food in general - all pretty good. Our family is split on breakfast - DH and I hate the topsiders buffet because it is so hectic - kids love it. I love Lumiere's benedict. We compromise and do a little of each.

For specifics - I can tell you I had the lamb a couple times- delicious, the veal chops - a little fatty, and the lobster ravioili, which for some reason had a mint taste to it?? We also tried a great variety of other foods, most were great. (We even tried and loved the escargot, well except for the 15 yo).

That sounds very similar to us! :) I hate Topsiders, generally speaking, and did everything I could to eat in the dining room ever day. It's always so chaotic that it stresses me out long after I'm done eating there. Also, it was the first time I ever ate eggs benedict! I don't know why I never ate them before, but they were glorious, and fat filled, and bad for me, and generally wonderful.

I was also not a fan of the veal. It was fine, but I wouldn't order it again. Not with so much wonderful food to choose from. :)

And I loooooove me some escargot. It was a little salty, but really, really good. The girls have had it before and loved it, but they didn't like it as much on the ship and didn't manage to finish it.

That's not to say that it didn't get finished, though. :cool1:

And oddly enough, I don't remember there being tacos, either. Can anyone tell me if they're new?

[BomaGreg]

Another thing I forgot to mention was the 3D movies. We saw both Bolt and G-Force in 3D on the ship, and they were amazing fun. For the techno-geeks out there, I'm not sure they used polarized lenses for the 3D effect. The glasses had a faint color to each eye, and coupled with the fact that the 3D never really "jumped" off the screen, leads me to believe it's some form of anaglyph showing. However, unlike other two-color glasses methods, the movies still looked sharp and colorful, and possibly even brighter than poloraized glasses movies I've seen.

Oddly, both my wife and I commented on how much more comfortable it was to watch the movie than other 3D movies we had been to before. Helping to make the 3D even better, G-Force was letterboxed on the screen, and actually utilized the black bar space for explosions and debris to add extra umph to the 3D effect. I'd love to know if anyone who reads this has any insight into how the 3D is done in the movie!

Anyway, tech stuff said, they were both fantastic movies (I'd never seen Bolt before, either), and I highly recommend seeing both if given the chance!

[MarcyIn Florida]

Okay, so I am going to usurp my husband's thread a little, but I'll have to draw it out over a few days. :)

First, I think it's worth mentioning that we had a pretty big group of DIS-ers going on this cruise, and it made it so much fun! Even though this was our 6th DCL cruise, it was our first fish extender participant cruise, and I'm so glad we did it, even though the preparation was a bit harrowing! (Well, for me. Not for my dh.) We had 40 -- yes, forty -- people for the FE exchange and since we booked just three weeks before sailing, it was a hectic three weeks! I will post my homemade FE later (or dh can do it for me!), but for a first timer without a sewing machine, I was quite pleased in the end.

For anyone who hasn't done the FE exchange -- do it! It was so much fun coming back to the cabin to check the FE throughout the cruise, even if my kids had some fist fights over it. (And my dd6 almost killed me when I ate one of the pieces of candy. "There were four!" I said. "I was saving the one you ate for last!" she yelled. Note to self: white secret flavor Airheads are really yummy.) And delivering the FEs was fun, too, because we got to see everyone's doors and FEs.

T-2 and Counting

The Thursday night before the cruise, some of the DISers got together for evening drinks at Disney, and then two of the families met us for dinner at Downtown Disney's The Earl of Sandwich. Whether by accident, fate, or good planning, our kids (all girls) really clicked, which made my kids even more excited about the cruise. The adults all got along wonderfully as well, and it really felt like we had known each other for quite some time. After dinner with the Earl, we hit Goofy's Candy Company for fudge and handmade treats and then left each other with sugared up kids until Saturday. My kids talked about their new friends for a full day and a half between the DTD meeting and the port, so we knew going into this cruise that it was going to be really special. My older dd (dd9) had emailed a few kids of DIS-ers before the cruise, so she was really excited to meet them as well. It was really exciting to see her acting so grown up and planning her social calendar.

To be continued . . . .

[MarcyIn Florida]

Embarkation Day


Since we live about 45 minutes from the Port, we have our embarkation day routine pretty well rehearsed. The only difference this time was that we did NOT have to make the obligatory Target run before we left!

We left our house at about 9:20 -- 20 minutes later than expected, but still in the noise and early enough for mommy (that’s me!) not to have a total control freak meltdown. We had just gotten on the 528 when our youngest dd told us that she closed her bedroom door before she left, making us have a moment of duress over whether she closed the cat in to her room. We came to a consensus that she did not and would not have to turn around. Whew!

We got to the port at about 10:00, but went one exit too far – I think they’ve expanded the exits since we last sailed. Either that, or middle aged dementia has set in. After some not so choice words, we got to the terminal, dropped off our luggage (a lot of it!) with the porters, paid them the “I’m going to give you a huge tip just in case it makes a difference as to whether or not you lose my luggage” tip, and then parked the van in our usual very close parking spot.

There was a line going into the terminal, which made my dh a little upset (we’re often in the first 10 to get there), but it was no longer than 5 minutes. While we were in line, a few people said my dd6 and dh’s names, which was really odd. We finally figured out that they were from the DIS boards and recognized us from a picture we had posted! It was a very cool way to start the cruise.

We also got some really odd looks from others in line and couldn’t quite figure out why. Then we remembered that we were in matching DIS-green shirts that I had made:

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2467/3709114830_45d650ce8d.jpg

No one understands a DIS-er except a DIS-er, I guess!

We got into the terminal, pulled out our pre-printed online forms (I love these!), certified that we didn’t have fevers or vomiting, got in the Castaway Club line, and were checked in within 5 minutes. We got our CC lanyards, which we were very excited to see were still being handed out, and got ready for boarding. We did really enjoy when the CM who checked us in said, “Wow – you guys have been on a lot of cruises!” I’m not sure why, but this seemed to excite the whole family, especially the kids. The kids, however, like to fight over their DCL cruise numbers, particularly over whether an in utero cruise counts toward the number. As the family arbiter, I say it does not, which gives dd9 a one cruise advantage over dd6.

We staked out a seat to dump the carry on luggage, which included a one gallon bottle of sangria. (More stories on that bottle on day 7.) I checked the girls into the kids’ clubs while dh sat back and waited with the luggage.

We immediately ran into GeorgiaJamie and family, who we had met at Downtown Disney, and my dd9 and her dd9 ran into each others’ arms. Just thinking about that moment of joy for them makes me a little emotional. But I digress. While they were hugging and planning their itineraries, I found out that several of our DIS friends had been the first people at the port and had been upgraded to a Cat 1. WOW! I was so happy for them, especially since two of them were taking a mother-daughter cruise together. Her daughter, who is this amazing, kind, beautiful, and graceful 16 year old, gives me faith in the next generation of kids nearing adulthood. So much bad stuff is said about teenagers nowadays, but the teens I met through the DIS-families were just wonderful, and I was so happy to see that two of them would up in the Roy Suite.

We continued to run into a lot of DIS-ers in the terminal, which was really fun and made the time pass quickly. Before we knew it, they were calling our boarding number and we were heading through the mickey ears to take our first picture!

To be continued . . . .

[BomaGreg]

Yeah... Being there twenty minutes later, and seeing all the people fill the terminal already, was kind of a bummer. We never had to really wait for anything, but I always like being there when it's nearly empty. :)

And next time we get a smaller bottle of sangria. :)

[MagicMe]

Oh this is fun!!! Two for the price of one!!!! :cool1:

[MarcyIn Florida]

Oh this is fun!!! Two for the price of one!!!! :cool1:


We're basically Statler and Waldorf in a tad younger form.

http://img.thesun.co.uk/multimedia/archive/00443/SNF2708A_443254a.jpg

[MarcyIn Florida]

Embarkation Day, part deux
(Saturday, July 18, 2009)

We finally head through the mickey ears. I realized I hadn't taken my obligatory "kids in front of the ears" picture because we had been chatting so much in the terminal, but oh well.

We were going to skip the first picture, but decided to go for it. In the end, it was the one picture we bought from Shutters and the best picture of our family ever! Plus, it's proof that my family loves me enough to all wear matching shirts and not complain about it. (At least not to my face.)

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3475/3770016758_efb9b5f2a7.jpg

As we approached the ship, we looked at each other. DD6 and I did the countdown to vacation as we approched the entryway. 5. 4. 3. 2. 1.

JUMP!

(She has to jump onto the ship.)

There was a lot of good karma when they announced our name because that was something we really missed on Carnival. A CM came to us and started to chat. I realized that this 110 pound woman was the one thing between me and Palo reservations, and tried to speed her up.

"Have you sailed with us before?"
"Yes, this is our 6th time."
"Great! Welcome back! Can I show you around?"
"No, I think we're all set, thanks!"
"Where are you planning on going first?"
"I'm going to run and make Palo reservations now."
"Do you know where it is?"
"Yes, Rockin Bar D!! Gotta go!"

And I literally ran off.

I recall my youngest saying something like, "Mommy, this hallway is cool!" and pointing to the cityscape, but I left her in the dust. And yes, she understands, because she knows that our vacation officially begins after mommy makes Palo reservations!

RBD was empty except for a couple of people mulling over whether Palo was worth it. So I quickly made my reservations and although we didn't get the exact days we wanted, we did book tea, brunch and dinner. We had never done high tea before, but now that the kids are a little older and we thought they'd be more likely to ditch us for their friends, we decided to try the tea, too.

After I walked away from the Palo table, we all looked at each other, mouthed "shrimp", and headed to Parrot Cay.

There was a group of a people crowded around at Parrot Cay, and when we approached, the CM told us there was a 40 minute wait, but that Topsiders was available. We said we would wait, and put our stuff down in the Promenade Lounge. Dh headed to the restroom and the girls went to pull out their DS games. Before the DSes could boot up, the CM told us our table was ready. Dh was still in the bathroom (and to protect his manliness, it was a really quick bathroom break, but not nearly as quick as the decrease from a 40 minute wait to a 45 second wait), but the shrimp were calling us and we figured he would find us. I asked the CM at the door to please keep an eye out for my husband, and said he'd be easy to recognize because he's a 6'3" guy wearing the same shirt as his three female family members.

The girls went up to the buffet while I stayed with our bags. I was starting to worry about dh, but he finally came in and told me that he was waiting in the Promenade Lounge and no one had told him we were in Parrot Cay. Oopsie.

Did I mention that Parrot Cay was only about 30% full?

We hung out in Parrot Cay for quite some time, just enjoying the room (that restaurant always makes me happy) and the quiet. We really don't like Topsiders because of the pushing and dodging, so we really enjoyed the quiet of PC and were in no hurry to leave. It was, after all, the start of our vacation . . . .

to be continued . . . .

[MarcyIn Florida]

(I've edited the above to say that we had never done high tea before, rather than brunch -- we've always done brunch and LOVE it!)

[BomaGreg]

(I've edited the above to say that we had never done high tea before, rather than brunch -- we've always done brunch and LOVE it!)

Mmmmmm... Scallops. I will go on a Disney cruise just to eat those again. I swear it.

[ibouncetoo]

Mmmmmm... Scallops. I will go on a Disney cruise just to eat those again. I swear it.


:thumbsup2:thumbsup2

I was very sad to see the Couquil St Jacques has gone from the Luminere's menu. But DCL does provide plenty of other opportunities for scallops. They had a FABULOUS scallop appetizer one night on the WBPC and I was hoping it would appear on the new menus...but alas, it wasn't to be. It had a slice of deviled egg and a tiny caviar garnish...oh it was yummmy!

[MarcyIn Florida]

:thumbsup2:thumbsup2

I was very sad to see the Couquil St Jacques has gone from the Luminere's menu. But DCL does provide plenty of other opportunities for scallops. They had a FABULOUS scallop appetizer one night on the WBPC and I was hoping it would appear on the new menus...but alas, it wasn't to be. It had a slice of deviled egg and a tiny caviar garnish...oh it was yummmy!


There were definitely scallops on menus other than Palo on the Magic. I just can't remember which nights. But nothing beat those chilled scallops at the Palo brucnh.

[Dizzyworld]

Embarkation Day, part deux
(Saturday, July 18, 2009)

We were going to skip the first picture, but decided to go for it. In the end, it was the one picture we bought from Shutters and the best picture of our family ever! Plus, it's proof that my family loves me enough to all wear matching shirts and not complain about it. (At least not to my face.)

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3475/3770016758_efb9b5f2a7.jpg



Love your picture. How did you make your shirts?

Add more to your report. It is interesting to read.

[MarcyIn Florida]

Love your picture. How did you make your shirts?

Add more to your report. It is interesting to read.


Sorry, I've been out of town for work but will add more soon!

I bought green t-shirts and drew the Mickey head swirls on them with a bleach pen. :)

[NotSoLittleMermaid]

Sorry, I've been out of town for work but will add more soon!

I bought green t-shirts and drew the Mickey head swirls on them with a bleach pen. :)

Bleach Pen!! What a great idea! :idea: I was going to post the same question. OK if I steal your idea? Thanks!:worship:

[ibouncetoo]

Bleach Pen!! What a great idea! :idea: I was going to post the same question. OK if I steal your idea? Thanks!:worship:

I'm already thinking of ways to salvage shirts I've ruined trying to get spots out! :lmao:

[NotSoLittleMermaid]

I'm already thinking of ways to salvage shirts I've ruined trying to get spots out! :lmao:

Me too, exactly!:goodvibes

[MarcyIn Florida]

I'm already thinking of ways to salvage shirts I've ruined trying to get spots out! :lmao:



Tie dye is the fixer of all ruined shirts. :)

[BomaGreg]

Scones.

It's wasn't entirely successful (well... it was the Grand Floridian recipe, so it could differ from Palo), but they were edible, which frankly is some sort of miracle considering the fact I made them. :)

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2475/3795667121_edb901a837_o.jpg

[MarcyIn Florida]

Where is the Devonshire Cream? And the jam? And the fluffiness and light dusting of pixie dust on top? :(

[BomaGreg]

Where is the Devonshire Cream? And the jam? And the fluffiness and light dusting of pixie dust on top? :(

Why do you hate me?

[stric12345]

[QUOTE=BomaGreg;32891661]Ship
The first thing I'll say is that we were on the eighth floor, and had heard reports that it can get really loud up there at night, particularly from the scraping of chairs. While I could definitely hear it from time to time, it was never really bad, not even during the Pirate party when we went back early due to sleepy children. Unless you're a really light sleeper, this shouldn't be a problem. :)


What cabin did you have? I have been upgraded to a category 4 cabin for my September cruise, and while I am really excited to have the extra space, I am also really worried about noise!

[BomaGreg]

[QUOTE=BomaGreg;32891661]Ship
The first thing I'll say is that we were on the eighth floor, and had heard reports that it can get really loud up there at night, particularly from the scraping of chairs. While I could definitely hear it from time to time, it was never really bad, not even during the Pirate party when we went back early due to sleepy children. Unless you're a really light sleeper, this shouldn't be a problem. :)


What cabin did you have? I have been upgraded to a category 4 cabin for my September cruise, and while I am really excited to have the extra space, I am also really worried about noise!

8576. If it was a problem, we would've had it where we were located, so I don't think you'll have a problem regardless. Is there noise? Yeah. But trust me when I say that, unless you are the pickiest person in the world, or simply can't stand the slightest bit of noise, you should be fine. I'm a pretty light sleeper, and it never woke me up. When I WAS up, I could make it out faintly overhead, but the neighbors caused WAY more sound problems than the scooting of chairs. So I'd be much more concerned about noisy neighbors. :-)