2/15/2013 - 8 Night Western Cruise, Galveston, TX

[FloridaFun]

Happy Halloween!

That is a great idea with the cookies and milk. My kids will love that!


I have been busy working on my Fish Extenders. I almost have the first one done for the guys cabin and the one for my Mom, myself, and my DS5 is in the concept stage. Such fun! Of course, I am so tired of my basement remodel that I would do anything to get out of working down there.

 

[juliefsu]

We just booked. We have done a Disney cruise the past 2 years and told the kids we were going to do something different this year. When we saw KSF we couldn't pass it up. We too are from San Jose. DH is looking into flights. Hoping he finds a great deal out of San Jose but SFO usually has the better deals.

This is the first time we have to fly so I need to figure out where to stay and get a car to the port.

Pretty sure we will do FE but want to confirm that with DH (since we are flying he may not want to do it since it takes up so much space)

 

[Dishy24]

Hello fellow cruisers! I just booked my family on this cruise, Dino (Dh), Gavin (Ds- 13) & myself (Tricia). We are so excited to be going back to the Magic again!

I haven't read through the previous 10 pages yet (but I will).. Is there a FE list?

Off to read up!

 

[juliefsu]

Oops! Forgot! It will be myself (Julie), DH (Monte), DS (Beckham-9), and DD (Ainsley-7)

 

[dismom73]

Welcome to the new cruisers!
There is a FE list, FloridaFun is putting the list together. I think we have around 8-10 cabins so far. The thread has really grown since they opened up the ksf offer.

 

[dismom73]

Everything at the Halloween store was 50% off today, so I went by and picked up a pirate costume for my youngest DD. The other 2 don't dress up for pirate night anymore, so I only had to buy one this time around.

 

[FloridaFun]

I too picked up some pirate costume items today at 50% off. I ran into 4 other preschool moms over at Target. I think all of us that the same idea this morning. Drop the kids off and get to the sale!

Dishy24 – I have been working on organizing the FEE. I will send you the link in a PM. We have the list set up in Google Docs. You should be able to add family. Let me know if you are not able to do it yourself and I will get you added.

Juliefsu – Let me know if you and your DH would like to do the FEE and I will also get you the link.

 

[katil5491]

Hi Everyone,

We just booked this sailing the other day. We were originally booked on the April 13th sailing, but DCL switched it to (2) 4-nite ones, so we changed to the Wonder out of Miami on a 5-nite, but hubby got denied the time off. So, here we are taking advantage of the "kids sail free" offer and sailing on this one out of Galveston. Of course, that's if hubby doesn't get denied this time off request. So, we hope to be sailing with you all in February!

 

[katil5491]

Hello fellow cruisers! I just booked my family on this cruise, Dino (Dh), Gavin (Ds- 13) & myself (Tricia). We are so excited to be going back to the Magic again!

I haven't read through the previous 10 pages yet (but I will).. Is there a FE list?

Off to read up!

How do you edit your signature to update your cruises?? Thanks

 

[duck_widow]

We just booked. We have done a Disney cruise the past 2 years and told the kids we were going to do something different this year. When we saw KSF we couldn't pass it up. We too are from San Jose. DH is looking into flights. Hoping he finds a great deal out of San Jose but SFO usually has the better deals.

This is the first time we have to fly so I need to figure out where to stay and get a car to the port.

Pretty sure we will do FE but want to confirm that with DH (since we are flying he may not want to do it since it takes up so much space)

Hi,

We are flying in the day before from SFO and are staying at the Wingate since it had such good reviews. It has a free airport shuttle and free breakfast. I haven't decided on ground transportation yet, but what I've seen so far is that a rental car would cost an outrageous amount and private transfers are even more than the Disney service, so we'll probably end up using the Disney transfers.

-duck_widow

 

[KPetty725]

OMG!!! I had gotten so used to being on this thread by myself (and then just Gina and I), that I gave up checking it often and now I've come back to 10 pages!!!!

I actually started taking notes so I would remember who to reply to (I'm type A like several other people on here )

Florida Fun - We are definitely in for the FEE. I will PM you my gmail account so you can send me the Google doc link. I'm ordering our holder from Etsy but I am in LOVE with your pin board. Amazing stuff on there!! I'm a "copier" when it comes to crafts (not a creative bone in my body, unfortunately) so I love having so many ideas in one place!!!

Kimbo71 - I'm so excited you have a DD6 too! There were so many boys coming I was thinking my DD6 wouldn't have anyone to play with besides her sister. I've cruised in February multiple times (our anniversary is 2/20) and the water at CC is usually in the 70's. It feels cold at first but usually warms up pretty quickly. When it's rainy out, the water feels warmer b/c the air is cold. Either way, if you've got one really sensitive to cold water, h/she probably won't like it at first. If you can convince him/her to go in for a bit, it will be fun; otherwise, bring lots of sand toys! Also, my kids only ate dinner with us once on our last cruise (and we literally had to force the oldest one). They much prefer eating in the kids club. She even declined eating with us on pirate night this cruise!! I'll probably bring one or two dresses each (just cotton dresses, nothing fancy) but that's it. They didn't wear half of what I brought them last year. Also, Disney is changing up their transportation right now. Currently you can't take a bus directly from park to park. You have to go to a resort and then get on the park bus from there. The monorail works well from MK or Epcot. Hopefully they'll get it changed before we get there because that usually adds about 45 minutes to your travel time.

I<3Mickey - We don't do trip insurance. Many people think that's nuts but we're not sailing during hurricane season (we don't buy it then, either, though) and Disney is pretty good about taking care of people. This is my 8th cruise and I've never had an issue yet. *knocking on wood* Also, I saw you have some younger kids traveling with you! My youngest DD is 3 (or will be when we sail) so maybe the little ones can play together some.

jzandmeplus3 - The last time we went to Key West, my DH and I just walked around a bit and then got back on the ship. We watched the famous Key West sunset from deck 9 and loved it. I thought about doing the Conch train tour (we saw it while we were there last time) but it's too long for my kids to stay focused. I doubt we even get off the ship this year. As for the sales pitch at the spa, if you tell them at the beginning of the treatment that you're not interested in buying any products they'll skip the sales pitch. I've done that the past few cruises (I spend a LOT of time in the spa...my husband spoils me) and it's worked out nicely. I typically give them about $10 more gratuity to make up for lost revenue. Not sure if they get commission but it feels right to me.

I'm gold so we just booked all of our excursions. Ok, I say excursions but really I signed up for the 8:15 bus to MK and booked my spa treatments. I was bummed to see that our anniversary was pirate night (2/20) but I asked my DD6 if she wanted to eat dinner with us that night in her pirate costume and she said no, so Palo, here we come! Both of my girls were pirates for Halloween this year so they would have good costumes.

We decided to do the 8:15 bus to MK because I wanted my DH to be happy and sleeping later makes him happy! We figured we'll make it to MK by 10 and will head straight back to Fantasyland. We're going to do lunch at Be Our Guest b/c it's cheaper and no PS required. After that, we'll probably spend a few hours touring the new attractions and then head back to the ship. The kids are too young to stay all day. I was bummed that Splash is going to be down since it's my favorite and DD6 is tall enough to ride this year. Oh well, next trip for sure!

Ok, this post is turning into a book so I'm signing off now. I'll be sure to check back more often so I can keep up with everything that's going one! So glad there are people to talk to now!

 

[Kimbo71]

Kimbo71 - I'm so excited you have a DD6 too! There were so many boys coming I was thinking my DD6 wouldn't have anyone to play with besides her sister. I've cruised in February multiple times (our anniversary is 2/20) and the water at CC is usually in the 70's. It feels cold at first but usually warms up pretty quickly. When it's rainy out, the water feels warmer b/c the air is cold. Either way, if you've got one really sensitive to cold water, h/she probably won't like it at first. If you can convince him/her to go in for a bit, it will be fun; otherwise, bring lots of sand toys! Also, my kids only ate dinner with us once on our last cruise (and we literally had to force the oldest one). They much prefer eating in the kids club. She even declined eating with us on pirate night this cruise!! I'll probably bring one or two dresses each (just cotton dresses, nothing fancy) but that's it. They didn't wear half of what I brought them last year. Also, Disney is changing up their transportation right now. Currently you can't take a bus directly from park to park. You have to go to a resort and then get on the park bus from there. The monorail works well from MK or Epcot. Hopefully they'll get it changed before we get there because that usually adds about 45 minutes to your travel time.

Yeah-like I said-this is our first time w/ the kids-so this is all new territory for us! I love all the advise!

I am so excited, too, that there are other little girls! I was begining to wonder, lol!

 

[KPetty725]

This will be my third cruise with kids. We've used the nursery and the kids clubs and can't say enough good things! A few things I didn't think about the first time that might help make things go more smoothly and save some $$:

- Bring sand toys! You can usually get cheap ones from Walmart year round but if not, check amazon. They're ridiculously expensive (although super cute) at Castaway Cay.
- Bring your own floats. The tubes you rent at CC are $6 and my kids don't like them. We buy the $1 inflatables from Walmart and then just trash them as we leave (I know, not the most environmentally friendly but we only cruise every two years or so!!)
- Skip the line for photos as you're getting onto the ship. Have a CM take your family's picture when you go up to the buffet instead. Those pics take WAY too long and the background isn't that great. My kids just want to be on board (and in the pool) so we head straight past the photographers and right up to deck 9 for lunch!
- Watch the show from your room on the tv. It's not as fun as being in the theatre but my kids (especially the little one who was just 1 last time we sailed) don't handle the late-night shows as well. My DH and I took turns taking the older one to the shows and the other watched from the room either at nap time or that evening.
- At CC, play on the splash pad to wash off sand/salt water. The kids HATE those showers b/c they're freezing and spray right on your head. They LOVE the splash pad and they get just as clean (the water is just as cold but for some reason it doesn't matter when it comes out of those fun jets...go figure!).

Also, someone earlier mentioned not wanting to eat with others. We got a table to ourselves last time which was nice. I'm not the best at socializing with random people so it was great. My husband and I literally dined alone the entire time! The poor servers kept bringing drinks for the kids but they only joined us once. The big tables aren't terrible, though. We've always been lucky and had really nice people sitting with us. Some liked to socialize while others mainly kept to themselves. Either way, the food is so amazing that it doesn't matter who is around!! :-D

 

[Kimbo71]

This will be my third cruise with kids. We've used the nursery and the kids clubs and can't say enough good things! A few things I didn't think about the first time that might help make things go more smoothly and save some $$:

- Bring sand toys! You can usually get cheap ones from Walmart year round but if not, check amazon. They're ridiculously expensive (although super cute) at Castaway Cay.
- Bring your own floats. The tubes you rent at CC are $6 and my kids don't like them. We buy the $1 inflatables from Walmart and then just trash them as we leave (I know, not the most environmentally friendly but we only cruise every two years or so!!)
- Skip the line for photos as you're getting onto the ship. Have a CM take your family's picture when you go up to the buffet instead. Those pics take WAY too long and the background isn't that great. My kids just want to be on board (and in the pool) so we head straight past the photographers and right up to deck 9 for lunch!
- Watch the show from your room on the tv. It's not as fun as being in the theatre but my kids (especially the little one who was just 1 last time we sailed) don't handle the late-night shows as well. My DH and I took turns taking the older one to the shows and the other watched from the room either at nap time or that evening.
- At CC, play on the splash pad to wash off sand/salt water. The kids HATE those showers b/c they're freezing and spray right on your head. They LOVE the splash pad and they get just as clean (the water is just as cold but for some reason it doesn't matter when it comes out of those fun jets...go figure!).

Also, someone earlier mentioned not wanting to eat with others. We got a table to ourselves last time which was nice. I'm not the best at socializing with random people so it was great. My husband and I literally dined alone the entire time! The poor servers kept bringing drinks for the kids but they only joined us once. The big tables aren't terrible, though. We've always been lucky and had really nice people sitting with us. Some liked to socialize while others mainly kept to themselves. Either way, the food is so amazing that it doesn't matter who is around!! :-D

Thanks for the tips! It's definitely different w/ kids, I'm sure!

BTW....we also spent our honeymoon in the Magic-it's innagural year! & our 10th anniversary was spent on the Wonder! We love DCL, & I am soooo excited to take the kids!!!! (it's a surprise until Christmas!)

 

[KPetty725]

BTW....we also spent our honeymoon in the Magic-it's innagural year! & our 10th anniversary was spent on the Wonder! We love DCL, & I am soooo excited to take the kids!!!! (it's a surprise until Christmas!)

That's SO awesome!!! I love celebrating anniversaries on board because you're so disconnected from the outside world. No cell/computer to distract you!

 

[Kimbo71]

No cell/computer to distract you!

Big benefit, for sure!!!

 

[Ichiban]

Flights are booked! We are coming from MA and Boston is actually the easiest airport for us to use, but I found a great deal from NH. We are arriving late on Thursday and returning on Sunday.

I have a rental car booked for now, but I hope prices come down some. I figure it will come in handy to explore the area on Saturday. I am still deciding about whether to use points for our hotel stays and pay to park somewhere near the port or pay for a hotel that has free parking the night we arrive.

I don't know if I am going to be able to keep this trip a surprise until Christmas! DD13 probably suspects something because she has seen me on Disney websites.

 

[the great cornholeo]

What airline did you to with. I have been looking for flights too

 

[FloridaFun]

A big Disney hello to the newly booked cruisers!

Welcome back KPetty725 – I got you down for the FEE and PM’ed you the link.

FEE Update – We are now at 10 families (12 cabins). I was asked about getting T-shirt sizes as many people are still deciding what FEE gifts to give, so I added a column to the spreadsheet. When you get a chance please go in and add your family T-shirt sizes. If you have problems getting to or editing the spreadsheet, please send me a PM. Also, let me know if you did not get the link that I sent in a PM a little while back.

Beth

 

[I❤MICKEY]

FEE Update – We are now at 10 families (12 cabins). I was asked about getting T-shirt sizes as many people are still deciding what FEE gifts to give, so I added a column to the spreadsheet. When you get a chance please go in and add your family T-shirt sizes. If you have problems getting to or editing the spreadsheet, please send me a PM. Also, let me know if you did not get the link that I sent in a PM a little while back.

Beth

I am able to access the spreadsheet but it says "view only". I'm not able to make any modification.