May 6, 2010 Wonder-ful chance to get away [Archive] - The DIS Discussion Forums

Cobbo

01-17-2010, 11:42 AM

Alright, so after months of keeping an eye out for it, there does not appear to be an existing cruise meet discussion for this little 3-day venture, so I figured I'd start one since we'll be aboard for this trip....

Anyone else going to be aboard or will we have the ship all to ourselves?

-Cobbo

IrishCowboy

01-26-2010, 11:15 PM

I have added your thread to the cruise meet list :thumbsup2

Princess Momma X2

02-05-2010, 11:35 AM

Hi! We are looking at this trip too. We've never taken a 3-day before. And, we've never been on the Wonder. So, you may not be alone! We are making our decision this weekend.

Have you ever been on a 3-day? Is it long enough to truly relax?

Princess Momma X2

02-08-2010, 01:44 PM

Hello again. Well we made our decision. We are just going to WDW, so we won't be traveling on the ship with you all. But, have fun and say hi to Mickey at Castaway Cay for us!

Cobbo

02-15-2010, 01:50 PM

I'm sure you'll have fun on WDW...we always do & were just there last weekend - and I'm sure we'll do another weekend or so before this cruise, but we're still looking forward to this get away....anyone else out there lurking?...

WeLuvDCL

02-23-2010, 03:45 PM

Hi Cobbo,
We will be joining you on this cruise! FL resident rates just came out and I couldn't pass it up. My DH will be celebrating his birthday on this cruise. I actually have not told him about it yet. I'm trying to figure out a way for it to be a surprise but he does need to take one day off work.

We have a DD who 2. Great to see someone else on the cruise with kids her age.

Hope to chat and get to know each other before we sail!

WeLuvDCL

02-25-2010, 01:58 PM

Giving this thread a bump!

A co-worker of my DH just booked this cruise too.

Anyone else taking advantage of the FL resident rates that just came out?

FLORIDA_DAD

03-04-2010, 08:24 PM

Hi all, we just got off the Wonder four days ago, and just booked this cruise. We love DCL too. My wife and I will of course have our kids DS6 and DD4 on board. I think we are trying to get to be Platinum Castaway Club members by this time next year. We live 45 minutes south of the Port.

Again HI!!!!

Chris

Cobbo

03-04-2010, 08:54 PM

Welcome aboard ya'll! Sorry for the delay in responding....postings had been kind of slow so I hadn't check in for a few days....glad to see there will be some other Dis'ers on board....the DW & I are looking forward to the trip but we still haven't told the DDs....figure they'll enjoy the excitement once we pull out the bags to pack....

Cobbo

03-04-2010, 08:59 PM

I actually have not told him about it yet. I'm trying to figure out a way for it to be a surprise but he does need to take one day off work.

That sounds familiar as the first Disney cruise we did was one that I surprised DW with and since she is a teacher I actually had to figure out how to use her sub-central stuff and get one of her administrators involved in order to keep it a surprise for her......managed to keep it a surprise all the way until we were on the bridge to the port (it helped that she was pregnant w/DD2 and fell asleep before we got to WDW - which is where she thought I was taking her once she knew something was up that day)....

WeLuvDCL

03-04-2010, 09:55 PM

I think we are trying to get to be Platinum Castaway Club members by this time next year. We live 45 minutes south of the Port.

Hi Chris,
Becoming platinum was actually my main reason for booking this cruise, just a bonus that it's also DH birthday weekend. We want to be platinum before we go on the Panama Canal cruise in January.

We live about an hour north of the port. We are usually one of the first 5 cars in line to checkin at the port, we like to start our vacation as soon as possible. :goodvibes

FLORIDA_DAD

03-09-2010, 07:46 AM

WeLuvDCL - We tend to be there very early as well, typically the first to stand in line (Castaway Club line - of course). Good Luck with getting 10 cruises under your belt before January. We have 4 cruises booked, getting us to 10 in April, but I want to take a cruise in the September timeframe, to bring.

Does anyone know how to get the trip tickers at the bottom of your posts? (Where is states how long until your next cruise). Thanks

Chris

WeLuvDCL

03-09-2010, 10:48 AM

Does anyone know how to get the trip tickers at the bottom of your posts? (Where is states how long until your next cruise). Thanks

Chris

I use the http://www.mickeypath.com website. There are others I can find if you don't like the option on that website. It's easy to use, once you select your countdown type, description and time it will generate code for you. Just copy and paste the information in the box below "PseudoHTML, UBBCode or BBCode, used boards that don't allow HTML:" into your DIS signature (Go to User CP and edit signature). Let me know if you have any problems.

work4vacation

03-10-2010, 07:06 PM

I just booked this cruise and will bringing my DN (nephew) who is 9. I've been on several cruises but this is my first Disney. It will be DNs first cruise. We're so excited!:earsboy:

WeLuvDCL

03-10-2010, 09:23 PM

I just booked this cruise and will bringing my DN (nephew) who is 9. I've been on several cruises but this is my first Disney. It will be DNs first cruise. We're so excited!:earsboy:

:welcome:

FLORIDA_DAD

03-10-2010, 10:26 PM

Welcome work4vacation. You will love the Disney Wonder!!!

Thanks WeLuvDCL for the info!

SteffyLou

03-15-2010, 07:05 PM

WeLuvDCL

03-15-2010, 09:22 PM

Hi Everyone,

My family and I are FL residents and have been thinking about booking this cruise. We are just checking if work will give us the go.

Does anyone know how full the boat is? I'm wondering if they will take the FL resident rate away if it gets too crowded. Anyone hear any details?

Thanks!
Hi, They do only offer so many cabins at the FL resident rate for each cruise. But they have released the rates for most of the April and May cruises. So there are a lot more dates available to even out the demand. I checked the website and they still have cat 12 cabins available for this cruise. Those are usually the first ones to sell out so I really don't think the ship is anywhere near full yet.
How long will it be until you find out if you can get the time off? If you book through the DCL website (use booking code FLR) you can put a cabin on hold for either 2 or 3 business days.
Good luck and hope you will be joining us!

FLORIDA_DAD

03-16-2010, 01:48 PM

SteffyLou,
It is very hard to know when they will pull the FLR rates. I have not checked, but if there still are cat 12 that is a good predictor that DCL is trying to fill the boat. I believe they open the cat 12s, to bring folks in, and they upgrade most of them, in order to draw in more cruisers (this happened to us a few cruises ago). Also, you may get a good feel if you see dozens of lower cat rooms available. I think time may be on your side for a week or so, but after that I don't know. Just my thoughts.

Hope you can join us!

FLORIDA_DAD

03-28-2010, 07:24 PM

Is it just me, or is time just not going by fast enough for our cruise?

Should we start a list of families, a possible meetup location/time, and fish extenders? Thoughts?

Mrs.Tavano2006

04-01-2010, 12:26 AM

My family and I will be cruising on this cruise as well! My dh and I have cruised Disney twice before and once on Carnival. It will be my daughter's 1st Disney Cruise! She LOVES Mickey so I am looking forward to it so much! I'm new to the fish extender bit... Should I make one for this cruise? Does DCL put things in your extender or only other cruise meet's?! Thanks!!!

WeLuvDCL

04-01-2010, 12:56 PM

:welcome: Mrs.Tavano2006
The FE is only fellow dis'ers. It's a blast. My DD loves coming back to the room to find little surprises in her Stitch. Me and DH love it too. :)

FLORIDA_DAD, We'd love to participate in the FE. I'm also up for a meetup but I can't guarantee we can make it. It always seems like something comes up whenever I try to make a meet (DD napping, characters out, changing dining, etc.) But I'll try my best.

If you would like to keep the list, here is our info for the FE:

Cabin 2592 Rob, Dawn and Emily (DD2)
Cabin 2590 Joe, Shasta and Kourtney (DD4)

Cobbo

04-04-2010, 04:25 AM

So it seems no matter how much I'm looking forward to this cruise next month, that I just can't remember to pop over & keep up with this meet board....sorry for my absence...:rolleyes1

Anyway, I agree that time seems to be moving very slowly for this trip to get here...I was just thinking that I probably need to start thinking about if we have everything we need clothing/toy-wise for the trip - although we did just pick up some nice disney sand toys from the dollar store last night (very exciting date night, I know....:lmao: )

We're certainly up for doing the FE thing though.....haven't done it before, but have gotten the gist from readings so much on the Dis... for us, we'd be:

5020 Jennifer, Fred, Josie (4), Leilani (2)

And may I also say, how psyched I am so see a bunch of other families with similarly aged children on board (not that I'd expect there not to be young kids on DCL, but it's still nice to see).

So, I hope ya'll are having a Happy Easter or Passover (or whatever other holiday you might be enjoying/suffering through)...as for me, I'm at the point where I'm tired of matzah and already looking forward to going out for pizza on Tuesday night...

FLORIDA_DAD

04-04-2010, 07:36 PM

Nice date night Cobbo!!! HA HA
Just so you know we will be right around the corner from your Secret Porthole room. We (DH, DW, DS6, DD4) will be in room 5509.

We will partake in FEs.

Hope everyone had a great Easter!

WeLuvDCL

04-07-2010, 09:38 PM

One month to go!!!:goodvibes

Where is everyone? DCL website shows that cats 12, 11, 9 and 8 are sold out for this cruise. I have enough FE gifts for at least 4 more cabins if anyone is lurking.

randyamy

04-10-2010, 10:04 AM

One month to go!!!:goodvibes

Where is everyone? DCL website shows that cats 12, 11, 9 and 8 are sold out for this cruise. I have enough FE gifts for at least 4 more cabins if anyone is lurking.

We just found these boards...thank goodness! This is our first Disney cruise and we'll be sailing with our DS (4) and DS (19mos). The kids love crafts, so we'll be making an FE in the coming weeks and definitely will participate.

Cabin 2043 Randy, Amy, Drew (4) and Benjamin (19mos)

beth london

04-11-2010, 01:42 PM

hi all

Ive just found this site as will be going disney world to my parents disney timeshare and will also be going on this cruise too. my mum n dad have been on the 4day one before and says itds fab and it does look lovely.
il be travelling with my parents and my son who is 8, im 32.

Beth x

WeLuvDCL

04-11-2010, 02:46 PM

WeLuvDCL

04-16-2010, 03:18 PM

Less than 3 weeks to go!

FLORIDA_DAD

04-18-2010, 01:27 PM

Hey everyone - Just about 2 1/2 weeks to go! :banana:
Last count, I had 5 families interested in FE (Mrs. Tarano, WeLuvDCL, Cobbo, RandyAmy, and Florida Dad). Am I missing anyone?

I hope the next few weeks fly by!

mrspml

04-19-2010, 09:50 PM

randyamy

04-20-2010, 09:45 AM

Just found this website...just joined and excited to read about others that will be joining this cruise with us. It is our 1st Disney cruise and we are so looking forward to it. A little apprehensive because we will have our 9 month old baby with us (and a 6 yr old). Not sure we made the right decision for a cruise with a baby, but we will soon find out.

BTW, what is a "fish extender"?

We have cruised with an 8 month old and 11 month old before and survived, but your schedule will be tied to your little one. I don't recon we ever saw more than 10 minutes of a show, but you're lucky in that Disney has the Flounder's Reef where you can take advantage of babysitting. Not all babies do well with this, but you might get lucky. We'll see you onboard!

Oh, and the fish extender is a hanging thing with pockets or pouches to put little gifts (hangs from the fish by your door). I know, sounds strange to us Disney newbies, but we've signed up. Search the main cruise forum and you will find a thread all about it (including photos). That reminds me...we have a craft project to finish!

randyamy

04-20-2010, 09:50 AM

:welcome: Randy, Amy and Beth. So glad you all found this thread. Great to see some first tiem cruisers as well. This will be our 10th Disney cruise so if you have any questions in the coming weeks, just ask.

Our 4 year old is getting a bit freaked out about the characters...what to do? Are there any secrets to cruising with Disney (ie special things we won't want to miss)?

FLORIDA_DAD

04-24-2010, 12:43 PM

Hey randyamy and mrspml,
Just wanted to welcome the two of you. Only a week and a half left before our cruise. Are both of you interested in participating in FE? I think randyamy was a definite. We will post a list of names and room numbers for all those interested soon, so we can prepare. Thanks

randyamy

04-25-2010, 08:39 AM

FLORIDA_DAD

04-25-2010, 11:29 AM

Here is the list I have so far. Please verify or provide your rm #.
Cobbo (DD4,DD2): 5020
RandyAmy (DS4,DS19mo):2043
Florida_Dad (DS6,DD4):5509
WeLuvDCL (DD2):2592 / (DD4):2590
Mrs. Tarano (DD?):

If there is anyone else I am missing, please provide ages and room numbers. Thanks!!!

WeLuvDCL

04-29-2010, 09:17 PM

There's not a lot of activity on this thread! We should be getting ready this weekend. :cool1:

We and our friends are def doing the FE.

RandyAmy, I don't know how much advice I can give you about your 4yo and the characters. We are in the complete opposite situation. Our DD LOVES the characters and we always have to explain to her why she can't spend all day with them. You will see a lot of characters on the cruise, much more than at the parks. But they are avoidable if they freak him out too much (except when they are in the lobby on your way to dinner). The navigator will tell you what time and where they are.

I know it's probably a little late to be posting this, but you can drop off a t-shirt, pillow case, picture frame or some other small item at guest services on the first day of the cruise and all the characters will sign it and they will return it to your stateroom on the last day of the cruise. I made my DD and our friend's DD personalized pillow cases for this cruise.

randyamy

04-30-2010, 09:23 AM

RandyAmy, I don't know how much advice I can give you about your 4yo and the characters...

Thanks for the info. If you see a screaming child it will probably be ours. :)

I had seen the signature thing mentioned somewhere, but totally forgot...thanks for reminding me!

Our FE is freshly made and hopefully it looks okay. Our 4 year-old is very excited about the concept.

FLORIDA_DAD

04-30-2010, 01:20 PM

Our FE is freshly made and hopefully it looks okay. Our 4 year-old is very excited about the concept.

Our FE is home-made as well, made with small bags we decorated. The kids loved it when we made it a year or so ago.

5 more full DAYS!!!! :banana:

TT526

04-30-2010, 02:12 PM

Hey fellow cruisers!! We will be on board as well!! Can't wait!! Hubby and I, dd9 and DD7 and my mother-in-law also joining us. My cousin and his wife and DD10 and DD7 also aboard. Interested in the FE but need to read a bit more about it since I don't have a clue. My cousin took our girls on this same cruise last year but this is our first time on a Disney cruise. We have sailed on Carnival 2 times. Our girls do not know we are going on this cruise yet. I started packing today!! Have to hide everything!!

Well gonna try to search a bit more about the FE thingy!!

:banana: gotta love this banana!!!

okay...just did some searching...oh boy...what an awesome idea those fish extenders are!! Well, since my girls do not know about this cruise, and there are only 5 days left, I hate to say that I have to pass on the FE. Honestly have no time to make one without my girls knowing!! Wish I would have found this thread earlier!! Just found a cool post about making magnets that decorate the porthole on the doors so trying to work on that project for my girls as well as other magnets for our door for them to decorate. Just running out of time!!! I could probably find one at the store but then still no time to figure out the gifts to give...or to make...again wout my girls knowing!! So you guys have fun with that and maybe we can meet onboard!!

FLORIDA_DAD

05-03-2010, 08:55 AM

WELCOME TT526 -
I hope your girl have a great suprise. We have done that a few times with past, and are doing it again on our May 30th cruise. Our kids are younger (6 and 4).

BOARDING IN 3 DAYS! :yay::yay::yay::yay::yay:

WeLuvDCL

05-03-2010, 08:56 AM

okay...just did some searching...oh boy...what an awesome idea those fish extenders are!! Well, since my girls do not know about this cruise, and there are only 5 days left, I hate to say that I have to pass on the FE. Honestly have no time to make one without my girls knowing!! Wish I would have found this thread earlier!!

It doesn't have to be anything fancy. On our last cruise someone just hung a gift bag from their fish. I have an extra FE gift so if you woudl like to post or PM me your cabin number, I woudl be happy to leave your girls a gift. No worries on recipocating...tis better to give than receive. :thumbsup2

TT526

05-03-2010, 10:23 AM

It doesn't have to be anything fancy. On our last cruise someone just hung a gift bag from their fish. I have an extra FE gift so if you woudl like to post or PM me your cabin number, I woudl be happy to leave your girls a gift. No worries on recipocating...tis better to give than receive. :thumbsup2

Thank you so much! I will see what I can come up with!! I found a thread on door magnets...om goodness...they are so cool so trying to work on getting something personalized for our door...so hard to do things wout my girls knowing!!

Our cabin is 8028F

WooHoo!! 3 days to go!!!!!

juanlori

05-03-2010, 07:04 PM

This is our 5th time sailing and we cannot wait till 3 more days to leave!!! But I have read about this Fish Extenders program and wanted to see if anyone knows the details about it. I was reading in this forum and noticed that people are talking about it, so just wanted to get more of an understanding on it. And also, what about the postcard signed by all the Characters? How do we get this?
Funny, been on sooo many cruises and just now learned about this...Anyone??

I will be in room 8506 and 8508. Going with my Mom who is turning 60 on Friday and 2 sisters with 14, 13, 9, 6 kids. I wonder if there is something that can be done also for my sister....she is 35yrs old and was diagnosed with Breast Cancer. This is her first cruise and she is very scared. Also, a bit nervous because the Chemo has made her loose all of her hair and makes her sick....Hmm I wonder what is good for her.....

TT526

05-03-2010, 10:25 PM

I know this is late notice...but we would like to participate in the fish exchange...still have not made one yet but I know my girls would love to find all of your rooms and leave you a surprise...please do not feel obligated to leave us anything...it is very late notice...

btw...trying to create something custom for the kids...Chris...can you tell me your son and daughters names? I think everyone else has posted theirs.

My daughters are Selena (10 end of May) and Vanessa 7. My name is Teresa and my dh is George.

btw...what is the earliest time you can get onboard? We have a 3 hr drive.

2 more days peeps!!:cool1:

casper71

05-04-2010, 07:38 AM

My wife and I will be bringing our 3 yr old on his first cruise. It will be our 1st time on DCL. Living in Tampa we wished it departed here but no big deal driving to port Canaveral.

casper71

05-04-2010, 07:41 AM

TT526

05-04-2010, 08:38 AM

Welcome Casper!

The FE is a Fish Extender ( there is a fish on the wall outside of your cabin) that people hang something (fish extender) to collect goodies from other people who are involved in exchanging...I found this thread last minute so this would b our first time doing this but sounds like fun! Some people make their fish extender...do a search...you can see alot of pictures on this forum. Leave your cabin # and childs name and age...I will leave a surprise!! Happy cruising!!

casper71

05-04-2010, 08:43 AM

TT526

05-04-2010, 10:40 AM

Casper--

You mind giving me his name?? I am making personalized FE gifts...thx!
As far as getting other gifts...would just depend on the others on this post if they have extra gifts....kind of last minute...just like me!!

I figured it would be fun to have it up so I can just surprise my girls throughout the cruise by placing items in their FE!

WeLuvDCL

05-04-2010, 02:04 PM

casper71 and TT526, You are both added to my FE list. I'm giving several items from our 2 cabins and I'm only short on one item but you will get the others.

2 more days!!!!!!!!!!:banana::banana:

WeLuvDCL

05-04-2010, 02:13 PM

btw...what is the earliest time you can get onboard? We have a 3 hr drive.

The earliest you can get into the terminal is 10am.
The soonest you can board is somewhere between noon and 1pm, it depends how quickly they get everything ready.
If you get there early, you are given numbers as you checking which determines when you board. We like to start our vacation as soon as possible so we get there at 10am and get into the terminal. It does start to get crowded around 11:00-11:30am which is about the time they brign our characters for pictures in front of the ship model.
If you want to avoid crowds, I would recommend getting there around 2pm. You can checkin and walk right onto the ship.

WeLuvDCL

05-04-2010, 02:20 PM

I wonder if there is something that can be done also for my sister....she is 35yrs old and was diagnosed with Breast Cancer. This is her first cruise and she is very scared. Also, a bit nervous because the Chemo has made her loose all of her hair and makes her sick....Hmm I wonder what is good for her.....

I've added you to me FE list and will leave you some goodies. I'm not sure what, if anything, Disney will do for your sister. I would ask at Guest services when you board. I know what she is going through. I had Lymphoma when I was 18 and it's very scary! I wish her the best and pray that she makes a full recovery. I've been cancer free for 17 years.

Maybe you could give her a spa or salon day to be pampered or get a mani/pedi? Or a day pass to the Rainforest room? She probably shouldn't go in the sauna but the heated lounge chairs are fabulous!

WeLuvDCL

05-04-2010, 02:27 PM

And also, what about the postcard signed by all the Characters? How do we get this?

Anything you want signed by the characters, postcard, pillowcase, t-shirt, etc. You can take to guest services on the first day of the cruise and ask them to have the characters sign. I think they limit it to one item per person. I put the item in a ziplog bag with permanent markers and write our cabin number and last name on the outside of the bag. They will return it to your stateroom on the last day of the cruise. Here are the pillow shams I made for this cruise:
http://i16.photobucket.com/albums/b41/weluvdcl/DSC03926.jpg?t=1273001193
http://i16.photobucket.com/albums/b41/weluvdcl/DSC03927.jpg?t=1273001222

FLORIDA_DAD

05-04-2010, 08:53 PM

Here is the list I have so far. Please verify or provide your rm #.
Cobbo (DD4,DD2): 5020
RandyAmy (DS4,DS19mo):2043
Florida_Dad (DS6,DD4):5509
WeLuvDCL (DD2):2592 / (DD4):2590
Casper71 (DS3): 5142
Mrs. Tarano (DD?):
TT526 (DD7, DD10):

CAN'T WAIT!!!

TT526

05-04-2010, 09:03 PM

here is the list i have so far. Please verify or provide your rm #.
Cobbo (dd4,dd2): 5020
randyamy (ds4,ds19mo):2043
florida_dad (ds6,dd4):5509
weluvdcl (dd2):2592 / (dd4):2590
casper71 (ds3): 5142
mrs. Tarano (dd?):
Tt526 (dd7, dd10):

Can't wait!!!

tt526...8028f

I found two bags that my daughters decorated at a birthday party with puffy paint....so going to hand them one under the other to use for our FE!!! It will just have to do!! Get packing everyone!!!

FLORIDA_DAD

05-05-2010, 08:18 AM

tt526...8028f

I found two bags that my daughters decorated at a birthday party with puffy paint....so going to hand them one under the other to use for our FE!!! It will just have to do!! Get packing everyone!!!

tt526 - That sounds fine. Everyone has different FEs. You can get ideas from everyone and have time to construct new ones (if you like).

I should be one of the first in line at tomorrow's checkin, and the rest of the family will be sitting at one of the kiddy TVs opposite checkin. Hope to meet some of you.

casper71

05-05-2010, 10:43 AM

Brady 3, #5142

Cobbo

05-05-2010, 09:57 PM

Whew....a whole flurry of activity on here...glad I checked in to write down & verify the room #s for the FE :) Thanks a bunch Florida_Dad for keeping up on all of it....now I've got to go finish packing & make sure I've got all the gifts good to go! See ya'll on board tomorrow!

:cool1:

TT526

05-10-2010, 07:40 AM

A special thanks for all of the gifts from everyone! My girls LOVED checking their fish extenders every time we returned to our cabin!! Hope everyone had a great time!! I did remember to bring 2 t-shirts to desk services for the characters to sign..my girls were really happy when they were delivered to our cabin...they wore them to school today!!

FLORIDA_DAD

05-10-2010, 09:32 AM

I think the Fish Extender exchange went well. Thank you everyone!!! Our kids were excited to see all sorts of goodies and such. I hope everyone enjoyed the weather and all the activities!

randyamy

05-13-2010, 10:21 AM

I think the Fish Extender exchange went well. Thank you everyone!!! Our kids were excited to see all sorts of goodies and such. I hope everyone enjoyed the weather and all the activities!

Thanks again for putting this together...our kids loved it! They got some great gifts and we were happy to share some goodies with others. My apologies to those late additions - we were already sailing (on the Sensation) when you were added.

FLORIDA_DAD - I thought I saw you in the terminal...we were actually the first to get through security and up there (we came over from the Sensation). I think I saw you again in the Oceaneer Lab, but was fleeing to get 10 minutes to myself while the kids were making cookies!

We absolutely loved Disney...we are already planning to go again once the little one turns 3.

Cobbo

05-18-2010, 06:49 AM

Thanks to all the folks who participated in the FE....my girls loved the gifts....and Josie enjoyed going around giving out gifts with me in the middle of the night....next time I'll have to remember to put in the little ID cards to let ya'll know it was us....I liked that idea....:)

Anyway, we're settling back in on dry land & I'm already looking forward to our next 5-day next year......happy sailing!