May 13.2006 Eastern [Archive] - The DIS Discussion Forums

DeeCeeSW

01-27-2005, 12:48 PM

Hi Fran! Well, I guess we're still the only ones on this cruise, LOL! I just switched TAs (long story) and will now qualify for the $50 shipboard credit. Hopefully, I will end up with the same cabin-I have requested it, but who knows? Maybe we'll luck out and get upgraded to a Cat. 6! Time is just dragging here and I wish that I could cruise now! Looking forward to the new Passporter coming out so that I have something else to read. Hope you are well!

b&bdiscruisers

01-27-2005, 11:58 PM

DeeCeeSW

01-28-2005, 03:15 PM

We were beginning to think we had the ship to ourselves!

b&bdiscruisers

01-28-2005, 10:10 PM

Squiggle,
I believe that we were on the same cruise back in May, 2003, Eastern & also on the Western Inaugural cruise in 2002! Great minds think alike!

DeeCeeSW: As time goes on this tread will probably be packed! And sometimes people are going on the same cruise, read their thread but just lurk & not reply! I did that with the 10 day Christmas cruise!

SQUIGGLE

01-29-2005, 10:05 AM

Glad to be crusing with you again b&bdiscruisers! We're in 6078 - right down the hall! I'd like to do another Western Cruise; but I really love that extra sea day on the Eastern.
Dee CeeSW - congrats on the $50 credit. Every little bit helps. How did you make out with the snow? My family (around Trenton) got around 16-18".
Just remember we're getting a little closer every day.

fran

DeeCeeSW

01-29-2005, 10:38 PM

Hi Fran,
Yes, I am ecstatic about the switch to DU and the $50 credit! They know what they're doing too. I was pretty sure that I needed to fill out a special form prior to cruising (regarding DS's extensive food allergies) but my former TA told me that the form wasn't necessary. After booking with DU, my agent brought the form up immediately without me having to ask and told me that it is required. Nice to know that they are looking out for us.

The snowstorm was pretty bad; I'd say we had about 16". The snow is still here, as the temps have been very low all week and nothing has melted. We are expecting it to be in the 30's this coming week! A heatwave!!! :Pinkbounc

giljr

01-30-2005, 11:32 AM

My wife and I just booked this cruise while we were on the 1/22 Magic. We have cruised twice before, both in a Cat. 11, but we decided on a Cat. 9 (2070) for this cruise.

I will be starting divinity school at Wake Forest this fall, and this gives me something to look forward to during all of that work.

jcemom

01-31-2005, 10:27 PM

We'll be there! It will be me, DH, DS (then 13), DS (then 12), and DD (then 3 1/2). This is our very first cruise, Disney or otherwise and I am SO excited! We have connecting category 10's...2575 & 2577. We were originally booked on a 4 night in January of next year, but I was really a bit concerned about the weather at that time of year, so I managed to talk DH into the 7 night! :teeth: (Told him it would be more relaxing, better weather in May, more time to pay for it, LOL. ;) )

It seems a long way off but I'm sure the time will fly by... :banana:

DeeCeeSW

02-01-2005, 02:52 PM

Tracey, we will be in 2608. My DS will be 5 by the time we cruise.
giljr, checked out your photos, love the butterflies!

SQUIGGLE

02-05-2005, 11:26 AM

Welcome to our group giljr & jcemom.
DeeCeeSW - I remember those weeks when it didn't get above freezing! I much prefer it down here.
jcemom - it's true the 7 might is much more relaxing. The 3 & 4 night cruises it seems like you 've just unpacked and you have to pack because it's over.
This is a great place to ask questions you may have. If the folks on this thread don't know the answer. Someone on the boards will.
Everyone have a good weekend!
fran

SQUIGGLE

02-17-2005, 07:00 PM

Just wanted to get us back on the first page. Hope everyone is well and keeping warm.
Sure wish the time would go quicker.

fran

SQUIGGLE

03-02-2005, 05:26 AM

Another month down!
Hope all you folks up north are keeping warm. Just keep thinking of lying on the beach at CC soaking up all that nice sun!

fran

DeeCeeSW

03-04-2005, 10:28 AM

It's freezing here!!!! Only 14 months to go!!!

HOWEVER, my DH has asked me to look into RCCL Voyager of the Seas for next year (as a possible replacement for DCL!!) bc the ship travels to the Western Carribean from the Port here in New Jersey. He is not too keen on having to fly to Florida, take transportation to the ship, and then have to deal with all of it again after the cruise. It sure would be a lot easier to just drive over to the port, park the car there and go.

I'm sure our DS would be disappointed if we didn't sail on the Magic...he wants to see characters. If we did switch, it would mean probably taking another trip to WDW before the cruise. Don't know if I'm ready to go back yet (we've been there 7 times in 4 years).

In the meantime, I will plan as though I am sailing on DCL. The Voyager schedule for summer 2006 has not been released yet.

Any thoughts?

MomsPeanut

03-14-2005, 02:24 PM

SQUIGGLE

03-16-2005, 05:55 AM

Welcome MomsPeanut. Glad to have you sailing with us. Sounds like you are trying to get a nice party together.
DeeCeeSW - have only cruised on DCL so can't help you with other lines. Have heard good things about RCCL though.

One more month gone!

All you folks up north keep warm - Spring is almost here. :sunny:
fran

SQUIGGLE

04-05-2005, 10:42 PM

Hey! Only 402 more days!
fran

Verandah Man

04-14-2005, 06:38 AM

I just sent an e-mail of this thread to my niece and her family, as they are booked for this cruise. I'm not sure if she has signed up on the DIS or not, but maybe she might lurk and read this. She is a very busy mother with two young DD's.

Teri, if you read this :wave2: from Uncle Andy. I'm so happy you and Eric decided to take a cruise on Mickey's "ship" the Magic!!!

Tericplus2

04-14-2005, 08:20 AM

Hi everyone!
My husband & myself will be on this cruise in stateroom 6040 & our daughter, her husband & their daughter (by then, 2 and 1/2 year old) will be across from us in 6041. This will be the 6th cruise for all of us on Disney. My husband & I were on the 10 day Christmas cruise in the same stateroom.Had a wonderful time! It does seem like a LONG way off!

Hello There Neighbor! :flower: :wave2:
My family and I and my parents are cruising on the May 13th cruise also. We are in cabins 6036 and 6038. We're really excited. :teeth: My mom was on the cruise before with her brother (The Verandah Man) and she loved it. My husband and I have a two year old and a 7 month old. They will be 3 1/2 and 20 months by the time of the cruise. My friends are also coming with thier two kids and her parents but they are more mid ship on the 6th deck. She will have a 3 1/2 year old and a 15 month old. We can't wait! :hourglass

Verandah Man

04-14-2005, 08:25 AM

Hey Teri--I see you found your way to the thread!!! Great, now you will be able to meet some other DIS'ers that you will be cruising with!!!

Love Ya Kid,

Uncle Andy :wave2:

Tericplus2

04-14-2005, 08:31 AM

Hello, fellow May 13 '06 cruisers! We just got back from the Western cruise last weekend, where we booked our next cruise on the Eastern! We are so excited to be going again- and to be trying this itinerary for the first time. The people in our party- so far- are:

George and Wanda Smith (my parents)
Frank (my husband)
DD (3-1/2 on cruise)
Baby (8 months on cruise)
Sarah (me!)

We have two cabins close to each other on deck 6. We are trying to talk Frank's parents into coming, and his brother might come as well. They've never cruised before, so we're hoping they'll try it this time!

Looking forward to getting to know all of you better over the next SEVERAL months! :sunny:

Sarah

Hello Sarah! :earsboy: My family and I are also cruising the May 13th cruise and we can't wait. Our party will be on deck six also. We are in rooms 6036 and 6038. We're celebrating my 30th and our first time on a cruise (or any vacation for that matter)!! :rolleyes: Our party consists of:

Larry and Vicki (my parents)
Eric (my husband) and I
Lella (3 1/2 on cruise)
Lyse (20 months on cruise)

We can't wait!!!! Do you know your cabin numbers yet? KIT ::MickeyMo

huey duey & luey

04-14-2005, 08:39 AM

Hi everyone,This is the cruise we are planning to do.So far it is myself, dh and my 3 kids (they will be 4 then), and my mom. ALso my friend her dh and their 4 year old dd and my friend's mom. We are waiting for 2 other families to decide. This is our first disney cruise and I am so excited :Pinkbounc
Tara

Tericplus2

04-14-2005, 09:02 AM

Hi Tara! You have to let us know where you will be. So far, from just visiting today, I've found a lot of other families on deck six from the middle to the front of the ship. I'm in 6036 and 6038. We can't wait.

agotta

04-14-2005, 12:39 PM

No longer going. Saving for a house instead! :cool1: Have a great time everyone!

apcall

04-21-2005, 10:32 PM

Hiya all...just booked the may 13th cruise (our first cruise ever) for my 2 daughters (9 & 13 at the time of the cruise) and myself....were staying in 6090...we can't wait (1 yr, 21 days, 13.5 hours)!.....my x-wife and her husband are booked in 6022, but they may have to cancel (long story) ...

be talking at ya later
Alan :cool1:

PS: kinda new to the boards...what does Dh mean (I assume it is husband but what is the 'D')?

10/04 - CBR/WDW
05/03 - CBR/WDW
05/01 - Poly/WDW
05/99 - shades of green/WDW
04/96 - Poly/WDW

SQUIGGLE

04-24-2005, 10:19 PM

Hey, welcome to all our added May 13 cruisers. It looks like we will be filling Deck 6 with DISers. Good Deal!
Looking forward to getting to know you over the coming months.

fran

SQUIGGLE

05-14-2005, 01:04 PM

One year from right now we will be in the middle of the ocean heading for St Maarten! Yes, we have less than a year to go folks!

fran

DrCavin

05-24-2005, 08:24 AM

WOW I just found this thread, glad to see so many responses. I have a Yahoo group setup for anyone on this cruise. We did this last year & it worked out really well. Everyone got to know each other & which rooms they were in, etc. So feel free to join the group & hope to see you on board!! Less than a year to go!!!!

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/DisMay2006

DrCavin

05-24-2005, 08:26 AM

Hanover

05-24-2005, 02:01 PM

Thanks for forwarding this thread Dr. Cavin!
We are really looking forward to spending a week on the Magic. We went on the Wonder 4 day (6546) this past February and loved every second of it. We have 2 boys...they'll be 5 and turning 9 (the day we leave). It will be a surprise for our birthday boy. He thinks we are going when he's 10. We went over his brother's birthday this year so we didn't want him to feel too left out.
We are trying to get 6514 (we had it reserved with Disney but switched to Dreams Unlimited which was by far cheaper for same category, and got deck 7, can't remember the room).
Can anyone recommend excursions our kids would enjoy? They loved the dolphin blue lagoon trip in Nassau and were hoping to do something similar.

DrCavin

05-24-2005, 07:09 PM

Hanover, regarding upgrades yes people using Dreams or any other TA do receive upgrades... they are very rare & random... Here is a really good thread on eastern excursions: http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=801058 We did the butterfly farm on St Marteen & went to the beach on St Thomas.. we did these all on our own.

Deck 6 is certainly going to be the DIS-Deck.. We will be in room 6550, we had this room in May '04 & it worked out great for getting the kids to the clubs... Our DD will be almost 9 & DS will 6 1/2 at cruise time.

Did everyone see the upgrades that will be happening on the Magic during dry-dock in Oct??

Here is the scoop from the President of the cruise line:

The spa area will be remodelled and pushed all the way to the front of the ship and windows will look out over the front of the ship they will add special private rooms for couples massages.

On the upper deck of the ship they are adding a jumbo tron type display so that they can show movies under the stars and also enhance the sailaway parties will be 24 feet wide and I think 15 feet tall.

The conference rooms are being eliminated and replaced with more childrens areas, they will be computer simulations and actually allow the kids to pretend to dock the ship.

On Castaway Cay they are adding swimming with the stingrays

More ships are coming as soon as the exchange rates are better

2007 should see new ports of call mainly from the United States, no plans yet for Hawaii or Foreign Ports.

DeeCeeSW

05-26-2005, 04:51 PM

It looks like we're going to be lonely all the way down on Deck 2....

SQUIGGLE

05-28-2005, 11:30 AM

Glad to see our group is growing. Have to check out that yahoo site.
EVERYONE HAVE A GREAT HOLIDAY!!

Fran

DeeCeeSW

06-13-2005, 10:15 PM

C'mon guys, people cruising the week before us and the week after are really chatting it up, let's get this thread going again!!!

DrCavin

06-14-2005, 07:50 AM

This thread is difficult to find, so I had to subscribe to it. Now if we keep posting to it, it will should be on the first page :-)

Everyone have their passports yet? We will be sending our info in shortly.....

Piglet_Pooh99

06-14-2005, 01:48 PM

Very excited to say that we will be on this cruise!! Our first dis cruise was in May 2002 for our honeymoon. I've been waiting to go back everysince we docked the last time. This trip will be for our 4 year anniversary. We were in a category 9 last time and loved it, however I really wanted to spoil us this time so we are staying in a 1 bedroom suite. room 8548 yeah category 3!! I'm soooo excited!!! Even though we now have two little ones, my parents will be coming down to babysitte while we go just the two of us. They are too young to allow us to enjoy it anyways. Can't wait to keep in touch with you guys! Have a great day!

DeeCeeSW

06-14-2005, 03:46 PM

My DH and I both need to renew and I would like to send them in sooner than later, so we will go to our local library on Sunday to drop off our applications. They take pics there too ($8 for the 2). Our DS's passport expires 7/06, so we can still use his, even though his pic was taken at 4 months old!

SQUIGGLE

06-15-2005, 08:19 PM

DrCavin

06-15-2005, 08:29 PM

Welcome to our group Piglet_Pooh99. Will you be celebrating your anniversary while on the cruise?
We've had our passports for a while. Has anyone heard "officially" from DCL or TA that we need them? A friend going to Cancun in November was told by TA it would be a good idea to get them now.

Everyone take care.

fran

All Seasons Travel sent us an email about a month ago or so indicating that we will need them. I have been reading on the Aruba bullentin board lately because of the Natalee case & that board has a sticky post at the top stating passports will be required in 2006. I do not know why DCL has not posted something more informative about it, they basically state that it is the cruisers responsibility to know what documentation will be required.

We will see many people whining once the deadline approaches & they "just realized" they have to have passports for everyone...

Piglet_Pooh99

06-16-2005, 06:25 AM

Yes it is confirmed that as of December 31st 2005 passports will be required for all cruise/air travel to and from the Carribbean, Bermuda, Central America, and South America.

As of December 31st 2006 you will be required to have a passport for all travel via air and sea to or from Mexico and Canada

As of December 31st 2007 passports will be required for all land, air, and sea border crossings.

I think the 3rd one will have the biggest effect. I'm from Port Huron, MI and the Blue Water Bridge is there to cross over to Sarnia, Canada. We would go over there all the time just to have dinner and to many people there.

Well I hope I could be of some help to everyone. I am a travel agent on the side so I got the inside scoupe as soon as it was released. When I booked this trip the Disney agent informed me of the new rules and then a day later I got the email defining the new rules from my travel agency I work for.

And to answer your question, yes we will be celebrating our anniversary on board. Its May 18th! And did I read one of your posts correctly that Mothers day also falls while we are cruising? How awesome is that! Well I hope you all have a great day!

Katie

SQUIGGLE

06-18-2005, 11:11 AM

DrCavin

06-19-2005, 11:03 AM

I'm wondering what the new Passport rules will mean for anyone close to borders. I know a lot of people from Florida just take their boats over to the Bahamas for the weekend; some even fly over for the day.
Yes, Sunday, May 14 is Mother's Day. I'm sure happy with my present!

fran

I guess if they currently have to show someone a bc/photo-id, then they will have to present a passport. At least they can say that they would be using them frequently, its the people who only plan on doing a Disney cruise that kind-of get in a hard position to justify. For us it will be close to $400+, which comes out to be about 10% of our cruise cost.

I am actually surprised it has taken the US this long to require passports & has spoiled many travelers.

Somehow I don't think I will have it so easy for Mothers day by saying, well I brought you on the cruise what more do you want? ;) I guess I will have to order room service & pass it off as me making breakfast in bed :rolleyes1

Wonder if DCL will have something special for all the Moms on the cruise?

I bet Palo reservations & brunch will go quick that day!!

How many first-time DCL cruisers do we have? This will be our second DCL cruise.

DeeCeeSW

06-19-2005, 02:52 PM

I was hoping to have brunch at Palo on Mother's Day. I think you are right, it will fill up quickly. This is our first DCL cruise. We booked in January, cancelled in March bc we decided to take another trip to WDW this October, had remorse, then booked again in May. Amazingly, I was able to get the same cabin I had originally requested, and the cost is actually LOWER. I don't know how that happened, but I am very happy about it!

SQUIGGLE

06-22-2005, 08:20 PM

We cruised over Mother's Day a few years ago. I don't remember them doing anything special. I think the Navigator had a "Happy Mother's Day" heading.
This will be our 7th DCL cruise - and I can't wait!!

fran

Piglet_Pooh99

06-23-2005, 08:43 AM

This is the one time that being in a suite will pay off. I get to make my reservations for everything at 105 days out instead of 95 like everyone else so I know I will have success getting into Palo for mothers day. I think I will haveto do our spa appt for that day too. The first two full days are at sea aren't they? I'm getting so excited. This trip just won't come fast enough.

DrCavin

06-23-2005, 09:07 AM

The first 2 days are sea days, arriving at in St. Maarten on Tuesday morning. What a site to wake-up & see St. Maarten!!

The online reservations is 105 for concierge guests, 90 for castaway members, & 75 for first-time cruisers. It will be interesting to see how this works out, so far seems like it is working well.

SQUIGGLE

06-26-2005, 12:44 PM

I hope all are well. Our cruise is getting a little closer each day - thank goodness!
Anyone thinking about what excursions they would like to do yet?
fran

DrCavin

06-28-2005, 06:24 PM

I hope all are well. Our cruise is getting a little closer each day - thank goodness!
Anyone thinking about what excursions they would like to do yet?
fran

We were thinking of which excusions to do before we even got off the ship last time :goodvibes

My DD wants to swim with dolphins, so we are going to look into that. I would love to go to St Johns for the day, have heard the most beautiful beaches in the World...

Seeing the planes land in St. Marteen has my interests as well, for those who have never heard of this, all I can say is WOW....

Take care everyone...

SQUIGGLE

06-29-2005, 09:24 PM

We are leaning toward going to St John too. Went there a few years back and it is absolutely fantasic. I have a picture of Trunk Bay on my wall at work; so I know why I have to be there - to pay for my cruises!

fran

SQUIGGLE

07-03-2005, 07:24 PM

We have another month down.
I hope everyone has a Happy & Safe Independence Day!
fran

DeeCeeSW

07-03-2005, 09:48 PM

Hi all,
We're already thinking about transportation to the port next May...can't decide if we should fly in the night before and stay in/near the airport then rent a car and drive to the port or fly in, rent a car and stay near the port. There's also the option of flying in the morning of the cruise and taking the DCL shuttle (or still renting a car). Any advice from past cruisers? The less stress I have to deal with the better!

Verandah Man

07-03-2005, 10:04 PM

For less stress, I would suggest flying in the day before and either stay near the airport if you arrive late, or get a room near the port if time permits. We did this before our first cruise and were so glad we did, especially since there was bad weather on embarkation day.

DrCavin

07-05-2005, 08:30 AM

If at all possible fly in prior. It will be less stressful than flying in day of, the first day is pretty long to begin with I cant imagine doing that after flying for 2 hours or more.

We stayed near PC & rented a SUV from MCO. Then had a mini-Dis meet at Grills on Friday night. On Saturday we drove to the terminal & I unloaded the SUV & left rest of family to get us checked in while I returned the rental. Works out very well!!! I think I paid about $50 for the SUV & about $65 for the hotel room.

DeeCeeSW

07-05-2005, 10:38 AM

Thanks for the advice. I think we will fly in the night before. Unfortunately, my DH will probably have to work that day, so we will more than likely get into MCO after 9pm. I don't know if he will want to drive to PC at that point, so maybe we'll stay near the airport with a rental and drive to the port in the morning. Maybe I can convince him to leave work a little earlier. Reading the posts I see that I can check in for the whole family, that's good!

DrCavin

07-05-2005, 11:06 AM

Arriving that late I would get something near MCO.
Your right, you can check in everyone while he is returning the rental. He will have to have a photo-id to get back into the terminal. Then you can take him back to the CM that checked you in, don't have to wait in the line again just wait near for the CM to finish up who they are checking in currently, then they will give him his KTTW card. I have heard that some CM's will just give you your husbands KTTW card, but that doesn't normally happen.

cass'mom

07-07-2005, 12:12 AM

Hi Everyone! :wave:

I've been lurking and reading and wasn't sure if I should post as we haven't really booked yet! I've been frantically getting quotes for the May 13 sailing! Anyway, I decided to post cuz I'm just so darned excited. :hyper: We went on a 3 night DCL Wonder back in August of 2002 and I have been dying to go back ever since!! It's me, my DH, my DD (who will be 6) and my other DD who will turn 3 on May 19. When we went last time, my 1st DD was turning 3 the following week after we sailed so we got to celebrate her birthday on board! So it's only fair my other DD get to do the same right? ;)

Also, like pooh we are celebrating our wedding anniversary on May 18th!! It will be 10 years. I always said I wanted to do something really special for my 10th. What can be more special than DCL?

This whole trip started out as a 7 day to WDW. I've never been there. So is it weird for me to be cruising without ever having gone to WDW? Anyway, the whole thing got changed when my cousins and aunt wanted to go but they had been to WDW so I thought, hey let's do the Magic!!! :crazy:

Okay now that you know I am nuts, I just wanted to say thanks for all the wonderful tips you've all offered and I hope to book this thing this week! Although it seems all the Cat 10's are almost gone as I will have to book it GTY. Is that bad to book GTY? I can't get worse than a Cat 10 right?

Thanks guys!

Darvina

DrCavin

07-07-2005, 08:00 AM

Welcome CassMom or should I say neighbor??? We are also from Ohio, about an hour from C-Town...

Nothing bad about booking a GTY, it just does not allow you to pick which room you want. You are guaranteed a room in the category you booked. Check with all the popular TA's if you havent already, they may be able to let you pick your room & save you some money :)

Piglet_Pooh99

07-08-2005, 08:11 AM

We will also be celebrating our anniversary on May 18th. I just don't know whether to go go Palo's for our anniversary or on monthers day. big decision. or one of those nights we could just have a romantic room in our room and have dinner brought to us. I have been told that since we are in a suite that for dinner room service you can order what they are serving in the dining room!

cass'mom

07-09-2005, 12:24 AM

Well, we are booked. I'm so excited!! :cheer2:

DrCavin, thanks for the info! We ended up booking a Cat 9 through DU. I was just so scared to book GTY and end up in noisy room. I never even noticed you live so close! We live 25 minutes east of Cleveland in the burbs. We've passed through Massillon a number of times!

Piglet_Pooh...Ooh, I like the dinner in the suite idea! Nice and quiet!

So where do you guys stay the night before? How do you get good rates? I was thinking of trying Priceline and just staying near MCO like we did last time?

SQUIGGLE

07-09-2005, 03:31 PM

Welcome to the group cass'mom. Glad to see we are getting more DISers for our cruise.
Right now we plan on staying at the Raddison. We've stayed there before and it has worked out well. Anyone else thinking of staying there Friday night?
Piglet_Pooh - dinner in your suite sounds nice and romantic.
Everyone have anice weekend.
fran

DeeCeeSW

07-09-2005, 10:13 PM

Hi Fran!
We were thinking about the Radisson if we end up driving to CB (we may stay by MCO if we get in too late). What kind of rate are you getting?

DrCavin

07-10-2005, 08:55 PM

Last time we stayed at the Holiday Inn in Cocoa, NOT Cocoa Beach. It had just opened & was really nice. Great pool for the kids & was like $60 a night. It is about 20 minutes from the terminal. The Radison wanted about $120 a night & it was booked up over a year out.

Ron Jon had just opened as well, but we already had HI booked. Some fellow Disers stayed at RJ & they said the pool was really awesome. We have not decided where we are going to stay this time. www.dcltribute.com has some great info on most of the areas hotels.

Hope everyone had a great weekend...

SQUIGGLE

07-11-2005, 10:55 AM

Haven't booked yet; didn't think May would be too crowded. But after reading Dr Cavin's post think I will check it out as soon as I'm done here.
Only 305 days to go. I know I'm ready right now!
fran

DeeCeeSW

07-11-2005, 11:00 AM

Thanks, DrCavin! As I mentioned earlier, we will probably arrive at MCO late in the evening, but we are now considering going down on Thursday night instead of Friday, giving us a full day and night at the beach prior to the cruise. I am trying to use my miles to get DS a free ticket but flights are (already) limited. The way it looks now, there is a flight going down, but nothing returning!

I have Hilton points that could be used for the Doubletree Cocoa Beach but I am not seeing/reading much about the hotel. Everyone mentions the Radisson and Ron Jon, but it seems that we do not have $$$ in the budget for either place. I think I have seen the HI Cocoa come up on PL.

DrCavin

07-11-2005, 11:10 AM

I read some reports a while back that the Radisson was not getting good reviews by Disers... I think it came down to which part of the hotel they put you in. I have not seen any bad recent reviews, but then I have not read many reviews on it at all. Seems like if someone asks how is XYZ, you will get a ton of posts... If I was going to spend $100+, I would definitly look at RJ's as my #1 choice...

cass'mom

07-11-2005, 11:33 AM

Is staying near the Port better? So do you rent a car from MCO then? I'm so confused about what to do. We have 7 travelling so we'd need a minivan. Is it easy to get to the Port from MCO? Last time we just used ******** and had them drive us all from the Amerisuites (I got a $49 rate and it was decent) near MCO. What's more cost effective? I don't think we can afford the Radisson. Help me guys!

DrCavin

07-11-2005, 11:42 AM

I wouldnt say one is better than the other. It is about an hour drive from MCO to the port. Can you can get 7 people & the luggage in a van?? The luggage is usually the killer!!

You have plenty of time to get a hotel, the Radisson was booked with some convention when we tried last year. I think there are a lot more choices now as well.

cass'mom

07-15-2005, 12:32 AM

Yea! We hit the 9 month 4 week mark!! :cool1:

For those of you that fly down, how soon do you book your airfare? When we cruised in 2002 we planned the whole thing in a month so there wasn't this nerve-wracking waiting and I knew that everything had to be done immediately!

Hope everyone is well!

Darvina

DrCavin

07-15-2005, 10:06 AM

Last time we booked about 6 months out. Airtran was had a special, so we figured it wasnt going to get any cheaper. I just tried looking on Airtrans website & it only goes to March '06... Are you flying out of Cleveland? Continental usually has some good deals...

cass'mom

07-15-2005, 10:36 AM

DrCavin, Thanks for the heads up...we considered flying out of Akron if it was much cheaper but so far it looks like we'll go to Hopkins. My travelling party is very loyal to Continental so that's all I was focusing on. My friend is flying down to WDW in Dec on USA3000 and for her party of 4 is only paying $500! They don't have our dates yet but nearby dates run about $650 for a family of 4. I'm weird though and would rather spend more and be on Continental, maybe due to my fear of flying!

huey duey & luey

07-15-2005, 03:09 PM

Just wanted to say :wave2: . We are all booked, category 8. it will be myself, dh adn dd 4, ds4, and ds 4 and also my friend her dh and their dd 4. How did you finfd out what rooms you have already?

DrCavin

07-15-2005, 04:46 PM

Just wanted to say :wave2: . We are all booked, category 8. it will be myself, dh adn dd 4, ds4, and ds 4 and also my friend her dh and their dd 4. How did you finfd out what rooms you have already?

I hope you typed too many ds4's, because a cat 8 will not hold 5 ;) We requested room 6550 when we booked. Had it last time we cruised & it worked out well.

Be sure to join our Yahoo group that we have setup...

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/DisMay2006/

cass'mom

07-15-2005, 06:13 PM

Hi huey luey & duey!
We got our room numbers, 2134 & 2136, when we booked. I hope they are okay. We purposely upgraded from Cat 10 to Cat 9 so we could know what rooms we had. I was afraid to book gty having 2 staterooms I didn't want us separated all over the ship.

huey duey & luey

07-15-2005, 06:16 PM

I hope you typed too many ds4's, because a cat 8 will not hold 5 ;) We requested room 6550 when we booked. Had it last time we cruised & it worked out well.

Be sure to join our Yahoo group that we have setup...

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/DisMay2006/

no 3 is right. My dd will actually be staying in my friend's room ( it is her godmother0, and our 2 daughters will never separate anyway :teeth:

cass'mom

07-15-2005, 06:41 PM

You have triplets!? God bless you! I have two dd's 5 & 2 and I love them to absolute pieces but they are making me go gray!!! I think it's so nice your friends are going too and that your daughter will have a friend onboard!

TMTIP

07-15-2005, 06:47 PM

wrong post

SQUIGGLE

07-17-2005, 10:51 AM

Hi everyone! Isn't it great how our group is growing?
Are most of you planning on coming in the day before?

fran

DrCavin

07-17-2005, 09:53 PM

Hi everyone! Isn't it great how our group is growing?
Are most of you planning on coming in the day before?

fran

We will be coming in the day before, have not decided if we will stay a few days after or not.

Less than 300 days to go!!!

SQUIGGLE

07-27-2005, 07:27 PM

Hi everyone! Hope all are well. How is everyone up North doing in the hot weather? Almost aother month gone. We need to get this thread back on the first page.
fran

huey duey & luey

07-27-2005, 07:48 PM

Hi Fran,
I can't believe how hot it is, it is suppossed to break tonight. I keep counting down the months too. I already said to my dh that when summer was over I was going to put our nicer summer clothes in a seperate tote for the cruise. He literally looked at me as if I lost my mind

I was just wondering what dinner seating everyone has. Right now we are waitlisted for the main, but I am not too hopeful. It is going to be interesting trying to hold my kids off until 8:30 to eat. That is already 1 hour past their regular bedtime.
Tara

cass'mom

07-27-2005, 08:02 PM

Hi guys

Here in Ohio the weather broke last night after some nasty storms. It was only 73 degrees today and rainy. I hope it breaks for you too! We had no a/c as it broke 2 weeks ago so I am so happy to see the 70's!

We have main seating and thank God as I have no idea what my 2 little ones would do. When we cruised for our first time we were waitlisted for the main but ended up getting it when we boarded and did the change at Cadillac lounge. I couldn't believe it was that simple. I hope it is for you too huey, luey.

My husband thinks I'm totally insane constantly watching the cruise DVD over and over. I just can't wait!

DrCavin

07-27-2005, 09:01 PM

The storms were pretty nasty last night. Lots of lightening & lost power 3 times, longest outage about 30 minutes. Hall Of Fame festivities start Friday, hot air balloons, fireworks all the stuff that will be cancelled when it rains, course no rain for a month & now we get bad weather for 3 days or so..

Heading to Sunset Beach, NC about 20 minutes north of Myrtle Beach in 2 weeks - hope it is about 95 degrees when we get down there *hehe.....

cass'mom

07-27-2005, 10:58 PM

I know what you mean about the storms. We lost power for a few minutes but I was convinced we were going to be without it for a long time.

Is that the Football Hall of Fame you are talking about? That's already? Where is the time going!? I'm not complaining as every day brings us closer to our cruise!

Have fun in NC and I hope it's nice weather for you!

How's everyone else doing?

DeeCeeSW

07-27-2005, 11:05 PM

Lost power the Sunday before last for 6 hours!!! Of course, the sump pumps were not working, so we had a nice little flood in the basement and crawlspace. If it's not 100 degrees here, it's raining. Huey, Duey & Luey, what part of NJ are you from (amd please don't give me a Turnpike exit, LOL!). We're in Middlesex.

Can't wait till next May!!!!:jumping1:

Piglet_Pooh99

07-28-2005, 06:33 AM

I am so misserable in this heat. And what makes it worse is we are hotter then the inlaws in NC, hotter then the sister in law in Texas, Hotter then family in Atlanta. We are north of them all it just isn't fair that here in Virginia we have to suffer like this. The last two days it has been 100 with the humidity putting the temp up to 114! :sunny: Just way to hot especially with little ones. Thank goodness for air conditioning.

We have the late dining. We had that last time and we really enjoyed it. What we ended up doing was ordering room service at about 330 or 4 in the afternoon and getting something silly like a peanut butter and jelly sandwitch or chicken fingers and then this tided us over till dinner. It worked wonderfully, however we also found oursleves usually ordering more room service at midnight. So needless to say after eating 5 meals a day I had gained 5 lbs by the time we got home, I can only imagine what this 7 night cruise is going to do to be. hehe. Its so worth it though. I'm going nuts for this cruise to come. It will have been 4 years since we had done it last. And far to long as far as i'm concerned. Two babies later though i'm good to go again. hehe!

Katie

DrCavin

07-28-2005, 08:17 AM

Is that the Football Hall of Fame you are talking about? That's already? Where is the time going!? I'm not complaining as every day brings us closer to our cruise!

Yes that is the one....

Anyone start packing yet?? :rotfl2: We still have not applied for passports, something tells me this is going to end up being a last minute fiasco for us!! Our luck we would send in the birth certificates & would then need one for something *hehe

DeeCeeSW

07-28-2005, 12:25 PM

We still have not applied for passports, something tells me this is going to end up being a last minute fiasco for us!! Our luck we would send in the birth certificates & would then need one for something *hehe

I sent in my renewal form this past Saturday, so I'll let you know how long it took to process. My DS's passport expires in July of 2006, so he's safe. DH's passport expires in Feb., so we are waiting until January to send his out.

cass'mom

07-28-2005, 03:31 PM

I was just thinking about the passport thing today while I was at the Post Office! I'm wondering when I should start that whole process as my entire family needs one. I guess more importantly, I should try to come up with the $360 or so first! :rolleyes1

Thinking ahead for 10 years, how much is a renewal? :rotfl:

DrCavin

07-28-2005, 03:33 PM

Currently it would be $67 to renew

Piglet_Pooh99

07-28-2005, 07:13 PM

I have our forms all filled out. I just need to wait till we have the money to pay for them. One question though, do they return your birth certificate? We had gotten a certified copy of my husbands but we had to mail that in for something else and so all we have is his original and the raised seal isn't exactly raised anymore even though you can tell the thing is real. Should i not worry about it or send in for another copy. I was really hoping i didn't have to do that but I will if it comes down to it. Just trying to get some advice before I start the crazy process.

Katie

huey duey & luey

07-28-2005, 08:25 PM

DeeCeeSW

07-28-2005, 09:18 PM

Tara, we are also in Old Bridge. Now you're going to tell me that you have kids in Tot & Blocks...do you, LOL??

Katie-I believe that all of your documents are returned with your passport.

cass'mom

07-28-2005, 09:34 PM

So if you go to the post office and do your passports, all you do is present your bc and they look at it and then give it back? I guess I never realized that I may not get them back so I'd have to order copies.

DeeCeeSW

07-29-2005, 09:44 AM

No, they do take it and send it in with your application and you get it back with your passport. Did I say something other than that? If I did, sorry. It does need to have a raised seal. When I went to my local library for my renewal, a man had just come back with his BC because the copy he brought with his original application was not acceptable.

cass'mom

07-29-2005, 10:17 AM

So you definitely get it back when they mail the passports? Have you bought extra copies just in case it never comes back? Why am I so paranoid about that b/c?

DeeCeeSW

07-29-2005, 11:00 AM

I remember getting mine back. As I mentioned, I just sent in a renewal, which did not require me to send in any other documentation, only my expired passport. **I just called the passport office in my township and they told me that the BC does come back with your passport.** Remember that it can take 5-6 weeks before you get it back.

cass'mom

07-29-2005, 03:41 PM

You are so sweet to call! Thanks so much for all of your help on this passport stuff! As you can see, we aren't extensive travelers! In fact, the first time I ever flew in a plane was in 2002 for our first Disney cruise! So in May, it'll be my second time! It'll be my 6 year old's second time as well and I have 29 years on her!

bpd196

07-29-2005, 11:25 PM

:cool1: Just wanted to say Hello, we are booked for May 13th. We will be celebrating our 10th anniversary along with our 2 dd who will be 6 and 4. We will be going down on the 12th. Don't know where we are staying yet.

Chris
Kerri
Ashlyn
Morgan

New Jersey

cass'mom

07-29-2005, 11:51 PM

Hi bpd196!

We are also celebrating our 10th anniversary on the cruise! So is Piglet_Pooh!

We also have a 6 yo dd and a dd who will turn 3 on the cruise!

We also don't know where we are staying the night before. Most likely will use priceline and stay near the airport as we will get in to Orlando after 9 pm.

Welcome! :flower:

huey duey & luey

07-30-2005, 07:33 PM

[QUOTE=DeeCeeSW]Tara, we are also in Old Bridge. Now you're going to tell me that you have kids in Tot & Blocks...do you, LOL??

That is so funny PM where you are? We almost sent our kids to Tots and Blocks, but we are doing teh township preschool this year. it was much more affordable for the 3 of them.
Tara

SQUIGGLE

07-31-2005, 11:39 AM

Good morning everyone. It looks like down here in South Florida is the place to be for cooler temps.
We have always had main seating for dinner so I am guessing that will be it this time too.
There was a big article in the Travel section of the paper today about having to get passports. They say the wait right now is 6 weeks; but this will obviously get longer as the time gets closer.
Article said the Bahamas is already setting up the equipment they will need to scan the passports.
One more month gone officially tomorrow. Yippee!
OH! Welcome bpd196. Our little group is growing.

fran

bpd196

07-31-2005, 10:39 PM

Thanks Fran
We are so excited. I keep showing my DD 6 &3 pics and they can't wait.
I'm already looking for the pillowcases and Fabric paint to get them signed.
I feel like it is so far away. We are going to start looking into the passport info. I just want to get it out of the way. ONe less thing to worry about.

DrCavin

08-03-2005, 10:52 AM

Just filled out all the documentation last night for the passports.. I used the online form, which made it much faster when filling out the forms for the kids, since much of the info is the same. here is the link to the form: http://travel.state.gov/passport/forms/ds11/ds11_842.html

cass'mom

08-04-2005, 12:22 AM

Thanks Dr. Cavin! That is a wonderful thing and wasn't aware I could fill it out like that. Saves a lot of writing!

If we did our passports in November, do you guys think we'd get them in time with all the rush coming at the end of the year? Will it be worse in January?

littlebunny

08-05-2005, 10:33 AM

Hi Everyone!

We just booked our first Disney Cruise for this date, and I'm so Excited!!!! :cool1:

I don't know our room numbers yet, but I do know we'll be on Deck 5 Aft. Should find out the rooms later today from our TA.

It will be:
Me
DH
DD 4
DD 6
DD 8
My mom
My brother, his wife and their new baby!

I'm so excited to get to know everyone and countdown to our cruise!!

Lee

DrCavin

08-05-2005, 07:27 PM

Welcome littlebunny.. Down to ~279 long days...

Had our pictures taken today at Wal-Greens for our passports. $7.95 per person. two steps down one expensive one to go... ;)

littlebunny

08-05-2005, 10:22 PM

Thanks for the welcome DrCavin!

Good to know about the passport photos at walgreens. Was wondering how much they charged. I'm waiting for DH's birth certificate before I apply for our passports.

Well I just got our rooms numbers and we're on deck 5 aft 5627, 5629, 5631. We luckily somehow got 1st seating, don't know how my TA pulled that one.

Look forward to getting to know everyone!

cass'mom

08-06-2005, 11:26 AM

Hi littlebunny! Welcome and congratulations on booking your rooms! I was happy to get first seating as well. I know my two little ones would not nicely sit at dinner at 8:30! Heck, if this week was any indication, they may not sit nicely at all!! :teeth:
If you have a Costco membership they do passport photos as well for $5 for 2 photos. We are waiting on the passports until we get the money!

Dr.Cavin, Congrats on the pictures and doing the forms...you are well on your way!

How's everyone doing? Is everyone still excited? I'm obsessed and driving everyone nuts all around me! :Pinkbounc :bounce:

SQUIGGLE

08-07-2005, 10:43 AM

Welcome littlebunny.
cass'mom - just my opinon; but I would try to get the Passports asap. Wait times will only get longer as more and more people realize they need them.

By the way, has anyone who booked thru DCL heard from them that we will need passports yet? We haven't heard anything.

Pretty soon we can get into "what am I going to wear?" Can't wait!

fran

cass'mom

08-08-2005, 01:17 AM

Hi fran

Thanks, I know you are so right and it's driving me a bit batty having to wait for the money before getting the passports! I'm really hoping within the month...
We booked through DU and we haven't heard anything about passports...

I have a question for everyone...has everyone booked their air (if they need it) yet? What about the night before hotel? Transportation? I'm not sure what's too early to do or if I'm already late!

9 months to go!! Yeah! :cheer2:

Piglet_Pooh99

08-08-2005, 06:14 AM

We booked through DCL and she told me on the phone when I made the reservation that passports were going to be required for the trip. On our previous cruise we just included air and transportation with the cruise package and I'm so glad we did. It just made it so easy and the way they take care of your luggage so that you never have to touch it is just awesome! I couldn't believe how smooth the whole thing went. So I certainly didn't have a problem doing it that way again.

Katie

DrCavin

08-08-2005, 08:59 AM

I have a question for everyone...has everyone booked their air (if they need it) yet? What about the night before hotel? Transportation? I'm not sure what's too early to do or if I'm already late!

9 months to go!! Yeah! :cheer2:

Nothing booked here yet.. I think it is too eary to book airfare, unless some special comes up. We will wait unitl about 3 months before & look for airfare.

We haven't even decided where to stay the night before yet.

We will rent a vehicle from Budget to get us there & back...

littlebunny

08-08-2005, 11:56 AM

We haven't booked air fare yet either. The airline we usually use ATA isn't even booking that far in advance yet. We did book our hotel for the night before and after. We're going to stay in a 2 bedroom villa at Ron Jon's.

Still need to book the rental car too. So many things to do!

cass'mom

08-08-2005, 10:49 PM

Thanks guys! You made me more at ease as I don't have the airfare, hotel or transportation yet! We know what we'll do for air, we'll do priceline for airport hotel as we'll get in late, and we'll use some car service (don't know who, yet!) to take us to the port--7 of us with luggage just won't happen in a minivan and my travelling party is too chicken to have anyone drive but me. I'm not sure I can handle driving a big van and the rental rates are about what we'd pay to just have someone drive us!

Yep, littlebunny, lots to do!!

I was thinking when summer is over to just go ahead and pack clothes into the suitcases instead of putting them away for the winter and then fine tuning in May. Anyone else planning something similar or am I just too darn hyper :hyper: about this whole thing? I think it's I just can't wait to get away on a vacation!

huey duey & luey

08-09-2005, 07:10 PM

I was thinking when summer is over to just go ahead and pack clothes into the suitcases instead of putting them away for the winter and then fine tuning in May. Anyone else planning something similar or am I just too darn hyper :hyper: about this whole thing? I think it's I just can't wait to get away on a vacation!

Then I am just as hyper. I told my dh that when summer is over I am going to pack a seperate tote for cruise clothes. He seriously looked at me like I was completely nuts :banana:

cass'mom

08-09-2005, 07:18 PM

Thank God I am not alone!! That's exactly what I want to do!

My hubby thinks I've totally lost it. :crazy2: So I just tell him that we are both obsessed but by different things...me, the cruise obviously, and he is obsessed with his podcasting!

bpd196

08-09-2005, 07:48 PM

Does anyone know DCL reasoning with who gets early and who gets late seating? We requested the early since we have 2 DD's 4 and 6. We got the late seating and was told by our TA that we would be put on the waiting list for the early seating. Just wondering if anyone has any input, since I see people still getting the early sitting. Do you get preference if you've cruised before?

cass'mom

08-09-2005, 11:54 PM

bpd196 I'm sorry that I have no idea how DCL does this. I was under the impression that cruisers with young ones, like yourself, get main seating priority over others. What was weird with us was that while we were deciding which category and staterooms we wanted there was a switch. At first we were going with Cat 10 and then our TA told us we would be at the late seating. I was a bit upset but thought I'd try to change it while on board. Then when we found out we'd only be gty with cat 10, we switched to cat 9 and lo and behold we got main seating. It may be just a fluke so I don't really know but I found it kinda odd that it opened up within a few hours.

As for us, we like the main seating. I know how my 2 dd's act as the night goes on and I think I will have much better luck controlling them at a show later than if dinner was later. The show will be more action-packed than dinner so it will hold their attention. At least it did with my oldest DD when we cruised 3 years ago. My baby (3 when we cruise) is the wildcard! Who knows what she'll do!

Is there a way to keep calling DCL every few weeks to see if something has changed? I bet you will get main at the end of February when all the money is due and people cancel!

SQUIGGLE

08-10-2005, 11:51 AM

Hi everyone.
cass'mom - you are not alone! When we lived up North and used to come to Florida at the end of September or October. I would always wash, fold and pack the summer things rather than put them away. That way they were ready to go.
bpd196 - I don't know how DCL decides which dinner seating to put you. We requested main seating on our first DCL Cruise and we seem to get it automatically. Which is just fine with us! No little ones; but we don't like to eat too late.
We're leaning to staying Friday night at the Radisson; but I do want to check out the new place going up near the Radisson that is supposed to be owned by the same company. I saw on another thread it is to be completed in December. I'm sure other DISers will stay there before our cruie and let us know the score.

fran

DrCavin

08-10-2005, 06:15 PM

We have always been asked which time we wanted... I just assumed that once one of them is full they start filling the other, but maybe not.... :confused3

bpd196

08-10-2005, 11:12 PM

The only thing we can hope for is like Cass said maybe in Feb when money comes due we will get a cancellation. Otherwise I don't know what we will do our kids are in bed by 8:30.

DrCavin

08-11-2005, 08:22 AM

The only thing we can hope for is like Cass said maybe in Feb when money comes due we will get a cancellation. Otherwise I don't know what we will do our kids are in bed by 8:30.

Good luck getting them to bed at 8:30 while on the cruise ;)

DeeCeeSW

08-11-2005, 09:56 AM

My jpeg is not coming up! Is anyone else having trouble getting to the wdwinfo site?

cass'mom

08-11-2005, 10:16 AM

Good luck getting them to bed at 8:30 while on the cruise ;)

Amen! I have no intentions of that happening! In fact the last time we went my dd almost 3 at the time stayed up until 11 pm every night and no naps! She was remarkably behaved though and I didn't care as we don't do that on a regular basis. I am just wondering if my other dd (who'll turn 3 on the cruise) will be able to pull off the same thing. I know she can stay up it's the behaving part I worry about!

DeeCeeSW--I know Dreams Unlimited was having problems with their site yesterday and so was this site having problems as they are the sponsors so it must still be happening. I couldn't access any of the wdinfo stuff either...

bpd196

08-12-2005, 11:18 PM

I see alot of people from NJ going on this cruise, I just booked Continental from Newark for $159 r/t. Jump on it oil is going to send the prices through the roof very shortly. We are leaving on the 12th.

cass'mom

08-12-2005, 11:25 PM

Dang I wish I could get those rates for Ohio! I've been monitoring it and it's been $252 r/t!

Congrats! Are you a bit more excited now that you have airfare? Does it feel more real? :flower:

fairyG

08-12-2005, 11:58 PM

fairyG

08-13-2005, 12:09 AM

Way to Go ! Now where to stay----- :Pinkbounc

cass'mom

08-15-2005, 11:58 PM

How's everyone doing?

So what's everyone's take about the whole passport controversy? Will you still get yours, will you wait? It's all so very interesting and confusing at the same time! :confused3

DeeCeeSW

08-16-2005, 09:18 AM

My passport expired this February, so I had to renew it. DH's passport expires next February , so it's the same situation. Only my DS will not have his renewed as his expires in July 2006. The picture of him was when he was 4 months old. I was worried that this would be a problem, but now that passports are not required, I'm sure it won't be (as birth certificates don't have pics).

littlebunny

08-16-2005, 11:30 AM

DrCavin

08-22-2005, 03:56 PM

I talked to my TA yesterday and he said Disney told him as of the end of last week that passports are still required as of Jan 1 2006, so we are going to get ours just to be safe. I know it's a big cost, but I'd rather be safe than sorry besides the gov website says that phases will be implemented, so there's still a chance we'll need the passports anyway.

Dont you just love the State Department for putting us in this dilema. If DCL says they are still required then I guess it doesn't really matter what the govt. says. I am pretty sure we will still get ours, have not sent in the applications yet.....

DeeCeeSW

08-25-2005, 06:42 PM

Just thought I would share that I received my (renewed) passport today. It took 33 days.

cass'mom

08-25-2005, 07:00 PM

DeeCeeW That was good timing! Congratulations! One less thing for you to worry about so that's awesome.

I'm doing a wait and see about the passports...it's mainly the money thing as I think it's a good idea to have them. It's the kids' passports that upset me. I just can't get over it costing $82 and it's only good for 5 years. I guess we'll see if the government comes up with a solidified plan. Hahaha... :rotfl: that may take years...

Piglet_Pooh99

08-26-2005, 07:04 AM

DrCavin

08-26-2005, 10:08 AM

A friend of ours is a pilot for AA and he was telling us about the new passports that will be coming out. He was making it sound like all new ones after October approx of this year would have them but I just did a search for the new one and I found this article. The new ones with a smart chip in it and everything won't fully be released till later in 06. i'm bummed, i wanted the new one. I guess in 10 years when I renew mine I'll finally get it. Hopefully i'm able to send in our applications in the next 2-3 months. Luckily the kids aren't going.

http://www.computerworld.com/securitytopics/security/story/0,10801,103864,00.html

Katie

They were supposed to have implemented that technology Jan 1, 2005, but decided to hold off. It is an RFID tag that is used to store the data. Wal-Mart & others are requiring it's suppliers to use RFID tags in the near future to help with inventory. We have looked at using it here at work, but it is still pretty pricey.

The tag is similar to a barcode expect that you do not physically have to point a scanning device at the label, it transmits a radio frequency that is picked up by a receiving device when the item passes near.

Originally they were not going to have any security so anyone with a receiving device could get your data by being within a few feet of your passport!!! Looks like they are taking measures to prevent this now, so maybe that was why they did not implement in 2005.

SQUIGGLE

08-27-2005, 05:57 PM

I thought I heard there was an article in USA Today that passports won't be needed for the Caribbean December 31, 2005; the schedule is being moved back. Sorry, I don't know if it was an "official" announcement.

Hope everyone is having a nice weekend.

fran

cass'mom

08-27-2005, 06:41 PM

fran, I read the same thing...it's a thread I believe as well? Then I read that the cruise ships could require passports even if the government doesn't? I just really wish we would get some real and final information as it's driving me nuts. Or I wish money wasn't such an issue and I'd just go buy the stupid things! :teeth:

Have good weekend everyone!

DrCavin

09-01-2005, 10:21 AM

We are just going to get them & be done with it. My DW thinks we are going to Ireland next summer, so we would need them anyway...

Hope no one in our "group" has been affected by the terrible diaster down south....

DrCavin

09-02-2005, 08:11 PM

Well the State Department has released the new proposed time-line for passport requirements.... We will NOT be required to have them for our May '06 cruise.. Won't get into the debate whether it is better to have one or not ;)

Here is a link to the proposed time-line:

http://travel.state.gov/travel/cbpmc/cbpmc_2225.html

Cruise is getting closer, once we get through winter it will be here in a flash!!

SQUIGGLE

09-04-2005, 08:55 PM

Been busy moving the past few days; but have seen the news of the devastation on the Gulf Coast. I too hope none of our "group" or families/friends has been hurt by it.

Everyone have a nice Holiday weekend.

fran

DeeCeeSW

09-05-2005, 03:21 PM

Hi all,
Hope everyone is doing well. My heart goes out to any and all affected by Katrina. Hope your move went well, Fran.

On the topic of our cruise, I have finally earned enough Hilton Honors points to make us eligible for a pre-cruise hotel room. I have read Dave's site and checked out TripAdvisor, etc., and decided to go with the Hampton Inn in Cocoa Beach. Has anyone stayed there? I would love to hear about your experiences. I still have plenty of time to change...

SQUIGGLE

09-08-2005, 07:53 PM

We've stayed at the Radisson a few times and it worked out well. I'd like to see about this new resort going up near the Radisson. I thought I heard it is to open in the late Fall.

Move went well - thanks. Now the putting away part!

Hey! We are a month closer!

fran

DrCavin

09-16-2005, 12:02 PM

Just a shameless bump to make this quicker to find...

cass'mom

09-16-2005, 01:35 PM

Just a shameless bump to make this quicker to find...

Good idea!! Thanks! I hope everyone is doing well...

Have a great weekend! :wave2:

SQUIGGLE

09-18-2005, 12:24 PM

Hope everyone is having a nice weekend. Why does May 13 seem soooo far away?

fran

DrCavin

09-19-2005, 11:51 AM

Seems a lot closer than it did in June :)

cass'mom

09-19-2005, 12:10 PM

I'll be more happy in 35 days, cuz then we'll see Dr. Cavin's counter go down to under 200 days! :flower:

SQUIGGLE

09-24-2005, 07:29 PM

My, my need to get this thread back on page 1.

In just 73 days we will be at WDW for our annual Christmas present to us. Then we need to get serious about the cruise. Under 200 days sure sounds good!

Everyone have a nice weekend.

fran

DrCavin

09-26-2005, 02:59 PM

I'll be more happy in 35 days, cuz then we'll see Dr. Cavin's counter go down to under 200 days! :flower:

My counter is based on arriving in Florida May 12, 2006.. We only have winter to get through... :rotfl2:

SQUIGGLE

10-02-2005, 11:47 AM

One more month down! :Pinkbounc :Pinkbounc

fran

Piglet_Pooh99

10-05-2005, 11:06 AM

Our glorious Disney Magic is here in Virginia. The Wonder was here last year for a coupld days and the Magic just pulled in a couple days ago. Its in the shipyards in Norfolk. What a glorious site she is!! My husbands office is directly accoross the river from it. I'm going to send him with the camera tomorrow (he forgot to take it today) to take pictures of it. Its so incredible to see that ship out of water. Its so big! Coming from Norfolk to Portsmouth on the freeway that I was on you come over this hill and right in front of you is this glorious ship!! I makes my heart just race whenever I see it. I'll post the link to my site as soon as I get them uploaded! Hope you are all having a wonderful week. I know i'm enjoying the cooler weather. Its just been too hot here. Looking forward to Winter! Talk to you all soon!

Katie

DrCavin

10-05-2005, 11:38 AM

I know i'm enjoying the cooler weather. Its just been too hot here. Looking forward to Winter! Talk to you all soon!

Katie

Bite your tounge.. Never too hot!!!!! :sunny: We are supposed to have a low of 38 on Friday or Saturday... :cold:

Piglet_Pooh99

10-05-2005, 01:38 PM

Hey I miss the cold weather. I'm from farther north then you are. I'm from Michigan an hour north of Detroit so we got all sorts of lovely wintery weather there. And my husband and I both miss it. We had two winters here now we miss it up there. Luckily we still go back to Michigan for Christmas so we still at least get a white christmas. The humidity is what the killer is here. The 90 degree's doesn't bother me as long as there isn't any humidity but we are never that lucky.

Katie

cass'mom

10-05-2005, 09:39 PM

Piglet_Pooh...thanks for your post and update on the Magic! That must be so exciting to see! If you ever get pictures, I'd love to see them as I'm sure would everyone!

I, too, love the change of seasons. The only thing I am enjoying with this little heat wave Cleveland is having is not having to turn on the furnace yet! All that money saved can be used for the drink of the day in May! :rotfl:

Piglet_Pooh99

10-06-2005, 10:04 PM

Ok everyone, my husband was a good boy and remember to take pictures today so I am able to share them with you. If the link doesn't work then please let me know and i'll email them to you. Pictures don't due it justice but its still cool to see. Hope you all enjoy!

http://spaces.msn.com/members/PigletPooh99/

Katie

cass'mom

10-06-2005, 11:21 PM

Katie you guys are awesome!!! Those pictures were absolutely phenomenal! Thanks so much for sharing. I wasn't prepared to see so many bins for hauling off trash. I didn't realize they had that much to do but I guess that was my "duh" moment. :rolleyes1 I bet it will be awesome to see it when they hoist that jumbotron up there! Sorry but I also saw a peek of the pictures of your children! They are beautiful!! God Bless you guys!

Piglet_Pooh99

10-07-2005, 08:48 AM

I wasn't prepared to see so many bins for hauling off trash. I didn't realize they had that much to do but I guess that was my "duh" moment.

I'm not sure what bins you are taking about for trash. The part covering the site of the ship is the wall of the drydock that the ship is sitting in. Its completely pulled out of the water. I'm not sure what you saw?

Katie

cass'mom

10-07-2005, 05:03 PM

I'm not sure what bins you are taking about for trash. The part covering the site of the ship is the wall of the drydock that the ship is sitting in. Its completely pulled out of the water. I'm not sure what you saw?

Katie

I meant the blue metal bins at the forward part of the ship...deck 7? Also 2 red ones on deck 10... I admit I've watched too much "RCCL's Dry Dock" on the Travel Channel! Sorry! :blush: :blush:

SQUIGGLE

10-09-2005, 11:18 AM

Katie - thanks so much for sharing. It must be a spectacular sight up close.
We're almost tothe 200 day mark!
Everyone have a good week end.

fran

bpd196

10-09-2005, 11:31 PM

Thanks Katie
Even a glimpse on a dry dock gets us excited.. great pics.
Kerri & Chris is NJ
DDs Ashlyn 6 and Morgan almost 4:banana:

Piglet_Pooh99

10-11-2005, 08:29 AM

I spoke to the documentation department for DCL to ask about passports and she said that it was HIGHLY HIGHLY RECCOMENDED. Since the govt. has already changed there mind once already she said they weren't going to rely on any possible changes in the near future. I know we all hate the thought of the extra expense but is our awesome cruise vacation really worth the risk? Hopefully by Christmas I will have our forms filled out and submitted to get ours. I hope everyone had a wonderful weekend! So when the time gets closer to our sailing date are we all going to make plans to meet on the ship?

Katie

TSirgey

10-11-2005, 01:01 PM

Hello! I am glad to see there are fellow Disers on the 5/13 cruise! We booked a guarantee Cat 6 for our 10-year anniversary cruise. It is our first cruise, so we are completely excited and overwhelmed!! Thank goodness for all the good info on the Dis!

cass'mom

10-11-2005, 02:39 PM

TSirgey

10-11-2005, 04:53 PM

Welcome to the group! We are celebrating our 10th anniversary as well! Nice to have you with us!

How wonderful! Is anyone doing the REAS package? We were going to until we found out it is changing to exclude the massage in 2006. It now includes entrance to the rainforest spa which is like a big sauna. I saw pictures and I'm not sure if it is for us. I would rather just book Palo and a massage individually now.

It sounds like everyone is getting passports although technically they are not needed until the end of the year. I believe we are getting our's just in case. We travel to Canada at times and it will come in handy.

I'm so excited!!! I wish it was tomorrow!!! :cool1:

ragdoll

10-11-2005, 08:28 PM

This will be DCL cruise #9 for us. We just returned from the Magic a couple of weeks ago. We were on the Eastern that was diverted to the Western due to whatever hurricane was out there at the time. Since we already had the 9/16/06 Western booked for a year at a really good rate we decided to do the Eastern in May. All I can say is that we seem to enjoy each cruise more than the last. Yes, we are DCL addicts!

DeeCeeSW

10-12-2005, 03:34 PM

Welcome TSirgey...glad to see you made it over.

cass'mom

10-12-2005, 04:44 PM

TSirgey

10-13-2005, 08:55 AM

We saw Disney Princess on Ice last night and boy did that get me in the mood for the cruise!! It was an amazing show.

Is anyone flying into MCO for the cruise? We are waiting to book our flight on Southwest once they release the dates. Do most of you rent a car for a one way deal or do the transportation service?

DrCavin

10-13-2005, 07:04 PM

TSirgey:
We will be flying into MCO the day before. We will rent a vehicle, probably from Budget. We rented an SUV last year & it was like ~$45 each leg, total of ~$90
Worked out really well....

DeeCeeSW

10-13-2005, 08:20 PM

After months of waiting, I see that JetBlue finally has their schedule up for May 2006. However, the fares are much more than I anticipated, $99 each way. Continental is still offering lower rates depending on when you travel. We plan to fly down the day before as well and have already reserved midsize cars from Budget for both ways, at a grand total of $68.00. Much less expensive than taking the DCL bus. Maybe I'll look into Southwest out of Philly as well.

cass'mom

10-13-2005, 11:59 PM

TSirgey:

We will fly into MCO the night before and most likely stay near the airport as it'll be late by the time we get in. We will get transportation to the port the next morning as there will be 7 of us (as of right now) and no one wants to drive but me and I don't think a minivan will cut it!

SQUIGGLE

10-16-2005, 12:34 PM

Hi everyone.
Welcome TSirgey & ragdoll. It is so great that our group keeps growing.

ragdoll - you beat us. This is only our 7th DCL cruise. It is so easy to become a DCL addict.

Katie - as the time gets closer hopefully we can get a meet together.

Has anyone given any thoguht to excusions yet?

Have a great weekend!

fran

SQUIGGLE

10-23-2005, 12:41 PM

Whoa we were way down on page 3!

Everyone in South Florida stay safe this week end.

fran

cass'mom

10-24-2005, 12:23 AM

Thanks Fran for getting us out of the gutter!

Hey guys! We've officially gone below 200 days!! :hourglass

Yeah!! :cool1: :banana: :cheer2:

I hope everyone is staying well and prayers out to those in Wilma's way!

cass'mom

10-29-2005, 12:33 AM

Just wanted to get us off of page 3! Have a great weekend everyone! :goodvibes

ragdoll

11-01-2005, 10:31 AM

Hi everybody! Well, we are into November now. Soon we will be at the six month point. Sounds good to me!

Surely there are more DISer's out there who are cruising with us. Where is everybody?

Donna

DrCavin

11-01-2005, 10:35 AM

I think this is going to be the Ohio cruise.. *hehe I think we are upto about 3 families from NE Ohio on this cruise now :)

TSirgey

11-01-2005, 01:15 PM

What is everyone planning for shore excursions for this cruise? Any suggestions from people that have done this cruise before? I'm getting so excited now that we are into November!

DrCavin

11-01-2005, 03:26 PM

What is everyone planning for shore excursions for this cruise? Any suggestions from people that have done this cruise before? I'm getting so excited now that we are into November!

Depending on the age, if any, of your children. Last time we went to the Butterfly farm, a couple beaches & Coral World. Our kids were 4 & 6 at the time, so they enjoyed the excursions. DCL really limits the excursions for the under 5 group. We did all of them on our own.

This time we will probably have to find something to suite their interests a little better. Beach is always a popular choice for us. Many people have said the 12 meter regatta is pretty fun. A trip to St. Johns has always received rave reviews....

TSirgey

11-02-2005, 10:44 AM

Depending on the age, if any, of your children.

Our dd is 5 and loves to swim. She is also a bit of a daredevil and swam with the sharks at Typhoon Lagoon earlier this year :-)

SQUIGGLE

11-02-2005, 07:29 PM

Hi everyone.
You might want to Swim with the Stingrays at Castaway Cay. I'm thinking of that one.
Has anyone done the Anguilla excursion on St Maarten?

fran

DrCavin

11-04-2005, 10:54 AM

The stingray excursion does sound interesting & since they rays just came back it may be on our list as well...

Since some new people have joined us, I have setup a Yahoo Group to allow people to get to know each other before our cruise. I think this link will get you to the group: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/DisMay2006/

You will have to create a Yahoo account & they are free.

The group has some things that can't be done here on Dis, like share files, post photos, send emails to just people in the group, ect.

Feel free to join & hopefully we will get some activity going on it. Our cruise last year did this & it worked pretty well.

ragdoll

11-06-2005, 11:51 AM

DH and I have been to St. Thomas twice and found it very easy to do excursions on our own. It is very convenient and much cheaper to just hire a taxi for a tour of the island or to take you to a beach. We don't like to plan ahead or stick to a schedule so this works very well for us. We have not yet been to St. Marteen due to being diverted by hurricanes. Hopefully we will make it there this time since it will not yet be hurricane season.

SQUIGGLE

11-10-2005, 09:09 PM

Wow! Way down on page 3. Just had to get up on page 1 again.
Hope everyone is well.

fran

SQUIGGLE

11-21-2005, 04:46 PM

Good grief! We sure were way down there.
I guess we haven't picked up any new friends.
Everyone have a great Thanksgiving!

fran

DrCavin

11-21-2005, 05:08 PM

Maybe just a bunch of other posts on the other threads are keeping us down ;)

TSirgey

11-22-2005, 08:48 AM

Got our plane tickets and hotel booked at the Radisson for the the night before. Now it feels real! Yippee!!!

DrCavin

11-22-2005, 07:22 PM

Got our plane tickets and hotel booked at the Radisson for the the night before. Now it feels real! Yippee!!!

Oh just wait until you see the Magic sitting in port on Saturday morning!!! :wizard:

Hanover

11-30-2005, 12:30 AM

Anyone planning to make cruise t-shirts, bracelets or anything else to identify yourself as a Disboarder?

DeeCeeSW

12-01-2005, 05:53 PM

Hi all,
Hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving! I can't believe it is already December 1st!!!

DCL experts: I have a question about our dining rotation. We have a 5-year-old, so I'm assuming that our rotation will be Animator's Palate, Parrot Cay, Lumiere's, etc. So I guess this means that our formal night will be held in Parrot Cay? If this is the case, I am considering skipping formal night for dinner at Palo (we'll feed DS beforehand). However, I am reading that the 4th night is popular for Palo ressies due to the rotation starting again. We would have an opportunity to eat at Parrot Cay on the 5th night, right?? I am not sure what to do. We also want to try brunch at Palo. Does this take place on sea days only?

Thanks in advance!

DrCavin

12-01-2005, 06:13 PM

DeeCeeSW:

Yes time is flying, is anyone starting to pack? ;)

You have a pretty good chance that you will have APL, but NOT definitly. IMO which rotation you get is over-rated.

Yes the formal night will be on Sunday, semi-formal on Thursday, so if you get APL you will be in Parrot Cay.

Brunch is only offered on sea-days & IMO is NOT to be missed! You can't imagine the amount & quality of food! :love:

hth....

DeeCeeSW

12-01-2005, 06:48 PM

Thanks, DrCavin!

I just can't imagine what formal night will be like in Parrot Cay. JMHO, but the decor just doesn't scream "elegance" to me. Lumiere's would seem more appropriate. Is the formal night dinner/menu itself a "must do? Would I be missing out?

I have heard wonderful things about brunch so we wll definitely try to fit that in. At one time, I was considering skipping dinner at Palo and just going for brunch.

Any chance that DCL would be able to tell me what rotation I'll have?

DrCavin

12-01-2005, 08:04 PM

I understand the decor thing, but we really didn't notice it hindered much. We were too involved in seeing how nice "most" people were dressed....

I wouldn't say the menu is much different than any other night, but hey I am just a male looking for a meal by that time ;)

I would definitly try to do both brunch & dinner. Dinner is very good as well, was more impressed with how quiet it was! After eating with 400 or so people every night it sure can be noisey!!

I have read that DCL does not even set the rotation until a few days before the cruise. You can "request" a rotation, but they won't gaurantee they will fullfill the request.

About 5 more months to go!!!!!

DeeCeeSW

12-01-2005, 08:25 PM

Yes, almost 5 months away! Woo hoo! And now 200 posts on this thread, LOL!

I will just assume (although I normally don't like to do that...) that we'll have APL and plan accordingly.

DeeCeeSW

12-10-2005, 04:17 PM

I imagine that we are all getting ready for the holidays, shopping and such. I am thinking more and more about how our cruise is only 5 months away!!!! I checked DCL's website to see how the ship is filling up and it looks as though there are no more cabins available on Deck 2 (Cat. 9). Does this mean there's a small chance that some of us (meaning me, LOL) might get an upgrade before we sail? That would be lovely (I am not getting my hopes up).

Hope everyone is doing well.

TSirgey

12-12-2005, 08:28 AM

We finally got our airfare and hotel, and rental car booked. Now it really feels real! The best part is that we do not fly out until Sunday afternoon. That gives us a day to visit the MK when we get back. I'm hoping we won't be too exhausted! Is it actually possible to relax on a cruise? Our last few vacations have been so high energy that I feel like I need a vacation when we get home!

Hanover

12-12-2005, 06:06 PM

Only 5 months from tomorrow!

Tsirgey- are you dropping off your rental before the cruise or leaving it in the parking area? We left our rental van in the parking area in February while on the 4 day Wonder cruise, but were considering using a company where we could drop off the rental van and get a shuttle back to the Port. We are anxiously waiting for Southwest to open up bookings for May flights.

We decided to go down 2 days early and leave one day after the cruise. In February, we flew out the same day we returned to Port Canaveral and were so jealous of everyone else heading to the parks that day (even though we had 7 days before the cruise at the parks, it was still depressing).
We are hoping that MGM will have started Star Wars weekends so our boys (now 4 and 8) can check it all out. They have absolutely no idea we are doing the cruise, or that their grandparents have also decided recently to join us. They are going to be estatic. They have asked almost on a weekly basis when they can go back on a Disney cruise. They think we are only going for a few days to the parks to celebrate our older son's birthday. We still haven't figured out how we are going to surprise them yet. Our oldest (will turn 9 on the 13th of May) thinks we are going to see Cape Canaveral that day , so we thought we may tell them we were going to just drop by the Magic to see it in Port. Once he realizes we are actually going on the cruise, we were going to have him call his grandparents and tell them, while they show up wherever we are at the time (we'll arrange a place by then). Hopefully we can keep the secret going....it's been really hard to keep the last 9 months!

DrCavin

12-13-2005, 11:42 AM

Hanover:
Too bad the next 5 months are winter.. UGHHHHH

Budget definitly has a shuttle to/from the terminal to their rental office. Hertz & Avis I believe also offer a shuttle. Budget is the closest to the terminal ~3 miles. They do not charge the one-way rental fee either, so we drop it off & have another rental scheduled for when we get back. Saves the $70 in parking fees.

If you are arriving on Thurs, you could drive past the terminal & see the Wonder in port, it should depart around 5:00 or 5:30.

Hanover

12-13-2005, 02:35 PM

Thanks for the advice on the rentals. I definitely would rather save my parking money and spend it on board or in ports on pictures or other souvenirs!

It certainly is freezing cold here today. We've still got snow on the ground and we are looking at a high in the mid 20's! I'm looking forward to a quick 5 day trip to WDW in a month to get some kind of warmth!

DrCavin

12-13-2005, 06:58 PM

We have about 4 inches on the ground, expecting more later in the week as well I think. We dont even live in the snow-belt, but have received more snow this early than I can remember in a long while. High of 30 tomorrow.. heat-wave ;)

Waiting for some airlines to post some deals, right now they are running about $260 pp. Holding out for $200, but may not get that lucky.

Hanover

12-20-2005, 10:34 PM

We got our DCL Eastern cruise excursion, stateroom gift selection, on board information etc. guide book and "welcome back" letter in the mail yesterday. I couldn't wait until the kids fell asleep to read it (the trip is a surprise for them). It all looks so great.
Now I can't wait until we can book excursions, Palo, etc. on February 12, 2006. The cruise will be here before we know it!

TSirgey

12-21-2005, 01:53 PM

Tsirgey- are you dropping off your rental before the cruise or leaving it in the parking area? We left our rental van in the parking area in February while on the 4 day Wonder cruise, but were considering using a company where we could drop off the rental van and get a shuttle back to the Port. We are anxiously waiting for Southwest to open up bookings for May flights.

Yes, we are getting the rental through Budget on the way from the airport to port because it was so much cheaper than any other method of transportation. I was able to get a midsized car for the three of us for $45. We will just drop off the car in the morning and take a shuttle to port.

On the way back, we are renting through Enterprise for again about $45 (SUV) because we are staying until Sunday and going to the MK after we dock. We would have used Enterprise for both because I had a coupon, but Enterprise did not have shuttle to the port. Budget is the closest and best price.

We got our airfare a few weeks ago and we are flying into the Sanford airport. The only hitch was that we had to fly back out on Sunday. No problem for us! We have no problem spending an extra day in Orlando!

Now that I'm finished my holiday shopping, I can start thinking about the cruise again!

Not sure if I mentioned this on this thread, but we got our room assignment: 6586. I was shocked it was assigned so early.

Hanover

12-21-2005, 02:36 PM

Thanks for the information.

We got our room assignment months ago from Dreams Unlimited: 6508. It was about our only option at the time we booked (April 05) on the side we wanted and deck we wanted. We also didn't want a connecting room since last time we could hear a lot of what the other people next to us were doing.

I didn't think we'd miss having a balcony at the time we booked, but I'm now wishing we would have gone ahead with it. We had one on the Wonder (6546), but didn't use it a whole lot. I think we would use it a lot more with the extra sea days on the 7 day. I think we might be out of luck with hoping to pay for the upgrade at the Port because the ship looks pretty full now.
My parents are also going on the same cruise and they will have a balcony, so I guess we could always hang out there pulling into and out of ports. Our boys loved watching our docking on our last cruise.

I'll have to check into any balcony room openings once the last payments are due.

DrCavin

12-22-2005, 03:32 PM

Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays to everyone....

Some rooms do open up once the final payment date passes. People cancel just before getting dinged for some $$. If you want to take a chance, you can upgrade at the port cheaper than doing it before, BUT may not have anything available - decisions.. .decisions....

We are in 6550, requested it when we booked - which seems like years ago now ;)

SQUIGGLE

12-26-2005, 09:32 AM

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to all.
We got our welcome back, excursion envelope just before Christmas. What a pleasant surprize! But I didn't see the Swim with the Stingrays on CC. Does anyone know if this has been discontinued?
Just a few more days and we can say we are going "this year"!

Hanover

12-26-2005, 03:44 PM

Hope everyone had a nice Christmas/Holiday. We got our flights booked for our May WDW/cruise trip through Southwest yesterday. It's nice to finalize that aspect of our trip. We had gotten an email from them with a "ding" rate that had to be booked by midnight yesterday for flights in January and February from BWI to MCO.We ended up getting our January WDW trip flight tickets for $39/each way from BWI to Orlando ($93/round trip including taxes, etc.) and got a nice credit towards our May tickets. Our tickets weren't that cheap for May, but we are hoping they'll go down and we can get another credit later. What a nice Christmas gift from Southwest!

SQUIGGLE

12-27-2005, 04:37 PM

That's great news Hanover. Hope everyone has good luck with plane fare. :Pinkbounc
fran

huey duey & luey

01-01-2006, 09:14 AM

Hi all
hope everyone had a fantastic new year. I am so happy to finally be able to say that we go this year :Pinkbounc !!!
Tara

SQUIGGLE

01-01-2006, 04:05 PM

Happy New Year to all our fellow crusiers. May it be what everyone is hoping for. :cheer2:

fran

TSirgey

01-03-2006, 10:48 AM

Do any of the fellow Disers cruising on 5/13 have any kids in the 5-6 range? Our dd is 5 and she is hoping to make some friends.

Hanover

01-03-2006, 11:06 AM

We have a 4 year old boy (who will be 5 by then) and an 8 year old boy who will turn 9 on May 13th.

DrCavin

01-03-2006, 12:19 PM

DD will be almost 9 (July b-day) & DS will be 6.

jodifla

01-06-2006, 07:50 PM

I was thinking DH would want to cancel, but it looks like we're in!

It's me, DH and DS, 4.....We're South FLoridan refugees who are currently located in chilly Michigan.

Now I need to book airfare, hotel, car....

DrCavin

01-07-2006, 11:15 AM

Now I need to book airfare, hotel, car....

Same here, haven't found a flight for less than $265 pp.... Haven't even decided if we are coming in on Thursday & going to WDW. The time is starting to fly-by, the last week goes way to fast & have to run around like crazy getting stuff packed..

hooksenemy

01-07-2006, 09:33 PM

:earsboy: We will be joining you on the May 13 sail - and although I have skimmed through the 15 pages of posts, I haven't really seen to many details of everyone.

Hopefully as it gets closer I will be caught up. As for us - we are a party of "9" :scared1:

4 adults in the age range of 35-40 (Carolyn (me)& Dan; Mark & Michelle)
5 kids (DS 9, DS 7 they are mine) We are traveling with friends and their kids are ages (Daughters 10 & 8 and a son who is also 8 (twins)) All the kids are looking forward to the camp our boys have told their friends much about it but I think until you experience it you just can't get the true feel!

This will be our 5th cruise (2nd DCL) and our first to Eastern Carribean.

I have just started flagging the shore excursions we are most intersed in and of course am ready to book our spa days :banana:

Last cruise with DCL 2 years ago you couldn't book anything online, I am looking forward to having a shot at Palo this trip, our last trip despite arriving within the first 1hr. of boarding of the ship, we couldn't get the days we wanted!

Does anyone know when our dining rotation will come out?

I am hoping Michelle will log into this thread as this is their first cruise and they are enormous WDW fans so we convinced them based on a great rate and good time of year for us Hockey Parents to go on a trip! Hockey winds down - just before Baseball heats up!

Hope to check in again soon.

hooksenemy

01-07-2006, 09:41 PM

Our kids none of the 5 have any idea we are going in May, 2005 - they think we are booked for May, 2007 - they have all agreed since late August to give up any and all soda until our cruise which they think is 2007 and would be about 1 1/2 years from when they started! None are real soda drinkers but it was kind of a fun trick to play on them :rotfl2: - they really watch each others back to make sure they don't lose out! If they complete the task they each get $100 for the cruise and to kids 10 and under that is alot of CASH ::MickeyMo

Also, we booked our airfare 3 weeks ago and got approx. $120 (taxes/fees incl.) from Providence on Southwest we arrive Thurs. night and will do a park on Friday - we are pretty sure it is grad weekend so we don't think MK will work since it is usually closed early on Friday night for a private party so we are still debating where to go!

Hanover

01-07-2006, 10:39 PM

We booked our May 10th/May 21st flights for $79 each way on Southwest ($707 for the 4 of us including taxes.) It would be nice if we got the "ding" rate of $39/each way ($93 round trip including taxes) we got Christmas day for our trip next week. We have a nice credit from the difference of the original flight we had previously booked for next week and the ding rate to use towards the May flights.
We also booked a SUV from Alamo for $250 from May 10 through May 21. Thought that was pretty good. We are planning to go to parks May 11th and 12th and then again on the 20th. Our older son really wants to do Universal, so we may do that on the 12th if MK has a Grad night. We are still debating whether to leave the vehicle in parking or drop it off.
We'll be staying at the Embassy Suites Buena Vista (on points unless I can persuade my husband to save them for another trip and stay on- site instead). After staying on- site for our last several trips and using the dining plan, and taking advantage of EMH hours, it's going to be hard to go back to off site.
We are still figuring out how to break the surprise to our sons that they are going on a week long cruise and not going to Cape Canaveral for the day. Our oldest son, Keegan, will remember his 9th birthday (May 13th) the rest of his life that's for sure! It's getting harder and harder to keep it from them. My parents and my husband's dad are also going on the cruise and they've almost slipped quite a few times.
Over the last year, we've been saving single dollar bills and change for the boys for spending money and it's really adding up these days. I think we just may be transferring half of that money into our excursion and Shutters accounts. I wish that Shutters would offer the $99 CD that the parks just started offering for up to 300 photopass pictures. Anyone think that the cruise ships will ever do photo pass type cards?
We are really looking forward to being able to do our Palo, excursion, spa, Oceaneer's Club/Lab, etc. reservations next month! It will be here before we know it.
We are heading to the Disney parks next Wednesday for a week, but my husband and I just can't stop thinking about how we wish we were going on the cruise instead.

hooksenemy

01-08-2006, 10:26 AM

Hanover, looks like your children and min are in for quite a surprise in May! We to have had a difficult time keeping the secret! My mother almost slipped at lunch yesterday when she was talking to my son (9). I think that will be my greatest bummer if someone blows it for us! Shopping needs to begin fairly soon and I am sure some red flags will start flying I just hope I can keep my Poker face :cool1:

We are located in deck 2 and I unfortunately think we are in a noisy cabin 2628 I need to check with dcltribute site to confirm that it was so long ago we booked!

Have a great day, it is snowing here in Boston so I am in cleaning :sad:

Carolyn

SQUIGGLE

01-08-2006, 07:39 PM

jodifla - what in the world are you doing in Michigan at this time of year?!
It might make you feel better to hear I had to scrape my car windows this morning!!! And it wasn't fun! OK, I'm tired of winter - shoo, go away!!

Hey final payments are duw next month - can you believe it?

fran

Hanover

01-08-2006, 10:28 PM

Hooksenemy (Carolyn)-
We really hope we can pull the surprise off. I'm worried about them not noticing I'm packing their dress shirts, pants and suits. They know that they will not be needing those kinds of clothes at the parks! I am also probably going to order them tuxes off of Ebay. l have to measure the boys before ordering them, and I'll have to make up some excuse for that one!
We are cold here as well, but at least we don't have any snow. I'm am so looking forward to flying into 76 degrees on Wedneday in Orlando. I hope the weather report is correct. Then again, anything out of the 30's and 40's is a plus.

I'm wondering how many rooms will open after the last payments are due next month. I've been considering upgrading to a balcony (we have a port hole) if a decent location opens up. Then again, that's an extra excursion worth of money. Decisions

Have a great week

Danielle (can't remember if I've ever written my real name on this thread)

My husband is Derek and our sons are Keegan (8) and Brennan (4)

huey duey & luey

01-09-2006, 09:14 AM

Hi everyone
I finally convinced my party that we should go down before sat. I was really hoping to go Thursday and go to the MK on fri, they would rather just go down on Fri and go near the port. Can anyone tell me of a nice hotel that is near the port? Also do you rent a car then or take a cab from MCO to the hotel etc.? Thanks so much
My kids and I are getting SO excited :cool1:
eta: Hi Danielle I just wanyed to say that I have 2 boys who will be 4 in March
Tara

TSirgey

01-09-2006, 10:48 AM

We are staying at the Radisson Resort at the Port. We are arriving Friday afternoon. We decided to rent a car through Budget because it is MUCH cheaper than the transportation. For $40 we have our own car for the day and they have shuttle service right to the port.

TSirgey

01-09-2006, 10:51 AM

Oh also...

eta: Hi Danielle I just wanyed to say that I have 2 boys who will be 4 in March

My name is Tara too and I have a DD who is 5.

huey duey & luey

01-09-2006, 11:23 AM

Oh also...

My name is Tara too and I have a DD who is 5.

Hi Tara
my daughter is 4 also (they are triplets)
thsi was also for our 10th anniversary, a few months early. Our anniversary is August but I didn't want to cruise in the summer. I am definitely going to look at the Radisson thanks
Tara

DrCavin

01-09-2006, 12:53 PM

Huey....

Check www.dcltribute.com the site has some great info on hotels near the port. It has not been updated for awhile, but is still some great info. Last time we stayed at the Holiday Inn Express in Coco, NOT Coco Beach. We paid like $60 for the night, the hotel had just recently opened, had a great pool and was about 15 minutes from the port. I just looked & here is the hotel http://www.ichotelsgroup.com/h/d/ex/1/en/hd/coiaa It is about $90 for May 12 this year.

huey duey & luey

01-09-2006, 02:03 PM

:teeth: Thanks Dr. Cavin

huey duey & luey

01-09-2006, 06:17 PM

one more question, does anyone have any suggestions on what would be the best transportaion from MCO to the hotel.? Thanks

DrCavin

01-09-2006, 07:21 PM

I just read that this year Grad Nights are 4/28, 4/29, 5/5, & 5/6..

DrCavin

01-09-2006, 07:25 PM

one more question, does anyone have any suggestions on what would be the best transportaion from MCO to the hotel.? Thanks

I would rent a vehicle. Budget and Avis have free shuttles from port to rental office. We used Budget last time & they were great.

DeeCeeSW

01-11-2006, 09:04 PM

Hi all,
DH and I made the difficult decision this week to cancel our booking as our 5-year-old DS was talking about not wanting to cruise. He is apparently not ready for a trip like this just yet. Believe me, we tried to persuade him to go. He has seen the DCL dvd several times, the Travel channel special, etc. It would be a horrible situation if we arrived at the port and our DS refused to board the ship or had some sort of meltdown once we were on board. I will not force him into doing something he does not want to do. I guess we'll try again for 2007 or 2008.

The good news is that we will be taking another trip to WDW in place of the cruise, just after you all have arrived back at the Cape.

I hope everyone has a WONDERFUL time! We'll be thinking of you! Happy sailing!

littlebunny

01-11-2006, 10:39 PM

What a bummer! I can't imagine getting this close and then having to cancel. Sorry DeeCeeSW. Hopefully in a couple of years he'll be jumping to go!

TSirgey, I have 3 daughters 8, 6 & 4. They're all so excited! Now that the holidays are over and we finally moved into our new house I'm catching up with our board. I can't believe how close the cruise is now!

Has anyone bought insurance? I was thinking now was the time to do that.

DrCavin

01-12-2006, 08:26 AM

DeeSeeSW Sorry to see you have to delay your cruise, that would be a difficult decision.

littlebunny, we did not purchase insurance last cruise & wont this time. FYI, you don't have to buy insurance through DCL, there are many that will insure your trip, usually at a better rate & more protection than DCL.

DeeCeeSW

01-12-2006, 08:52 AM

Thanks, but surprisingly, I am not that bummed about it. It's weird. We still get to go to WDW, so I'm just as happy. The important thing is that the whole family is happy, that means all of us, especially DS. My 5-year-old does not "run the show," here, however, his feelings needed to be considered. We imagine there's nothing worse than an unhappy 5-year-old "trapped" on a ship (except, maybe an unhappy 2-year old, LOL).

We'll sail one day, I don't doubt that!

Have fun!!!!!

jodifla

01-13-2006, 05:19 PM

Hey there...just got a rate of $126 RT from Detroit to Orlando on Spirit Airlines for the cruise!

bxirishrn

01-13-2006, 08:29 PM

Hi Everyone,

We just booked this afternoon!! It'll be me, DH, and DD (7 yo). The travel agent is looking for a cat 9, or if it's full she'll start looking at cat 8's. :wizard:

It'll be 119 days tomorrow!! We are going to try to fly in the day before and head to the space coast and check into a hotel. I know the Radisson on the coast has a shuttle service that goes to the port. I know DH would like to go to the Space Center :worship: DH wants to keep it a secret from DD, but I can't wait to tell her!!!

DrCavin

01-14-2006, 01:41 PM

Welcome bxirishrn, In no time we will be packing & invading Orlando.

SQUIGGLE

01-14-2006, 02:46 PM

DeeCeeSW - sorry you won't be joining us. Hopefully you will get to go soon.

huey duey & luey - can't help you with the car rental - we drive up to the Port; but just booked Best Western Oceanfront in Coco Beach for $94.50 + tax about 1/2 hour ago. Have stayed at the Radisson and it is very nice; but this is a bit cheaper; and only about 5 minutes farther from the terminal.

little bunny - IMHO insurance is a must. you never know what can happen;and this is a big investment to lose. There was an article in our paper not too long ago where some folks had to cancel a cruise (not DCL) at the last minute and could not get a refund. They were upset; but guy at the paper agreed that is what insurance is for. As noted you don't have to buy from DCL you can get it from anyone.

Oh! welcome to our group bxirishrn.

Everyone have a great weekend!
fran

DrCavin

01-14-2006, 05:53 PM

Hey there...just got a rate of $126 RT from Detroit to Orlando on Spirit Airlines for the cruise!

Must be flying weekdays or did you find a special for a weekend flight? I am still debating if we should fly or drive. Drive is about 15 hours, which isnt terrible but not nearly as short as a 2 hour flight...

Plan A is arrive Thursday & stay all All Star Movies Thursday/Friday. Go to MK on Friday & drive to port on Saturday morning...

ragdoll

01-15-2006, 08:55 PM

Fifteen hour drive?!?!? Dr. Cavin, how fast do you drive? LOL

jodifla

01-15-2006, 09:47 PM

Must be flying weekdays or did you find a special for a weekend flight? I am still debating if we should fly or drive. Drive is about 15 hours, which isnt terrible but not nearly as short as a 2 hour flight...

Plan A is arrive Thursday & stay all All Star Movies Thursday/Friday. Go to MK on Friday & drive to port on Saturday morning...

leaving Friday the 12th and coming back Monday the 22nd...they were having a big sale, apparently.

bxirishrn

01-15-2006, 11:29 PM

DrCavin

01-16-2006, 04:52 PM

Squiggle, does The Best Western you booked have a shuttle to the port?
Does anyone know how far away the Radisson is from the port? :confused3
Do alot of people stay at the Radisson, and are the shuttles hard to book?

Thanks
Kathleen :flower3:

Radisson is 2.6 miles from the port. Many people stay at the Radisson, generally biggest reason is the free parking/shuttle. Many other hotels are cheaper than the Radisson, check out www.dcltribute.com for some hotel options.