8 Night Magic out of Galveston Cruisers

[Wshop]

How were the lines at the airport (IAH) after the Disney shuttle? When we cruised the last time, the line to check luggage took over an hour and I am hoping that this is not the case on this trip.

[NikkiFB]

Originally Posted by SunshineCruiser

Wondering how much earlier than your scheduled bus time for WDW did you have to meet and leave the ship. For example if you were on the 8:15 bus to epcot then how much earlier did you have to meet to leave the ship?

If I'm remembering correctly, I think they said to come down (to the gangway on deck 1) about 20 minutes before your scheduled bus time.

[jules4172]

Originally Posted by gramfrog

Epcot Future World opened early on our trip 8:00AM We arrived at the gates ahead of time by taking the 6:30 bus at Port Canaveral (Topsiders is open early around 5:45 AM to accommodate us crazy people

Pray that early day is another park; aside from running top speed to Race Track and Soaring, we were outta there by 9:30 to Magic Kingdom. The Worlds at Epcot don't open until 11

how long was the bus ride from port to epcott? wondering to MK will be almost same distance. trying to figure out what time we should book our transportation. thnx.

[Lankysmom]

Originally Posted by MAD4EEYORE

Thank you so much. Sounds good. Hard to decide what to do in such a short time. I want to see the southern most point, maybe the Hemingway museum, and definitely some key lime pie.

You will have plenty of time to do this and more. We rented an electric car to get us around.

[javaj]

Anyone know a good time to head back to the ship from WDW without dealing with too much traffic?

Ideally, we'd probably want to head back late afternoon but if rush hour traffic will extend the commute, we'll stay a little longer and take a later bus.

[Lankysmom]

We had a great time on the ship. A few notes, Castaway Cay water was really cold but the weather that day was wonderful. It was a very warm day which helped with the cold water. It seemed that many people left for the ship early as we saw lots of hammocks available that afternoon for those hammock lovers.

One day at Disney World resort is just not enough time for our family. We love the parks and would not choose this option again. It's too much of a teaser for us. This is just our personal opinion but the ship doesn't have that same "majic" as the parks, either.

Key West was too short. It was a waste of time almost. We toured the island in an electric car but would have loved to have done something a little more involved.

We had a fantastic time with the cruise staff. We LOVED our server/asst server Juni and Taner. Marvin, our stateroom host, was super friendly. The only problem we ran into was some bullies in the Edge. I think the counselors felt their hands were tied as to how to treat the problem and the kids wouldn't speak up about the matter because they didn't want to be snitches. By the very end of the cruise, the ship's oficers had to step in. It kind of ruined the experience for the kids to have to deal with those bullies, but outside of that, my son LOVED the Edge and my daughter LOVED the Oceanier's Club/Lab. They never wanted to leave.

The weather the whole trip was EXCELLENT! We never even ran into rough seas. I've been on 3 other cruises and have always had at least a day of rough seas but not this trip. I saw some rain on the portholes one evening but that was the only rain that I saw. As someone said earlier, WDW day was chilly and cloudy. I didn't hear of any major illnesses. They were very good about handing out wipes before every meal and hand sanitizer before boarding the ship from each port of call. I loved that the public bathrooms promoted using paper towels to open the bathroom door before leaving. Overall it was a great time to be had!

[MedicGoofy]

I have to say, as the PP stated about the water being cold, it was absolutely gorgeous!! It will definitely be subjective with who you are talking to, but I could not have asked for warmer water. Really.

The day at CC could not have been nicer. Super warm, super sunny. Great tanning weather. Serenity Bay was very quiet and not busy at all. There were mostly older couples there, and they all had their beach chairs sitting in the water. The water was spectacular!!

I was expecting cold because of what I have read on here, but it was quite the opposite.

And our weather coming back in Galveston was beautiful. At least 70 degrees and sunny.

Our WDW day was warm but a cool breeze. I ended up in a sweatshirt only because I was badly burnt from CC and had the chills the entire day (and the rest of the cruise).

We had rain on evening on our cruise, but was still able to use the balcony. Overall, could not have asked for a better time!!

[Lankysmom]

Originally Posted by MedicGoofy

I have to say, as the PP stated about the water being cold, it was absolutely gorgeous!! It will definitely be subjective with who you are talking to, but I could not have asked for warmer water. Really.

The day at CC could not have been nicer. Super warm, super sunny. Great tanning weather. Serenity Bay was very quiet and not busy at all. There were mostly older couples there, and they all had their beach chairs sitting in the water. The water was spectacular!!

I was expecting cold because of what I have read on here, but it was quite the opposite.

And our weather coming back in Galveston was beautiful. At least 70 degrees and sunny.

Our WDW day was warm but a cool breeze. I ended up in a sweatshirt only because I was badly burnt from CC and had the chills the entire day (and the rest of the cruise).

We had rain on evening on our cruise, but was still able to use the balcony. Overall, could not have asked for a better time!!

LOL!! About CC water temp, I'm from Louisiana so to us it was freezing water! I see you are from Canada and probably accustomed to the cold so I can see where you think differently!! I think it was in the 50s on embarkation day. I kept saying it must be Canadians in the pool that day! There's no way I was getting in!! Ha!!

[IFlossU]

Originally Posted by NikkiFB

If I'm remembering correctly, I think they said to come down (to the gangway on deck 1) about 20 minutes before your scheduled bus time.

Thank you for answering this question!

[IFlossU]

Originally Posted by gramfrog

Rotations varied by stateroom. We were APPLAPLA
we were treated to a Character Breakfast the second P(Parrot Cay) in the morning-- bring your autograph books!!!!!. Second night was Prince and Princess menu in all three dining rooms; Fifth night was buffet (WDW excursion day) "Master Chef" night; day 6, Pirates in the Carribbean in all three dining rooms; day 7 Captain's Gala in all three-- LOBSTER TAILS!; and day 8 was Til We Meet Again in all three. Otherwise, P=Pirate's Cay Island DInner menu, A= Animator's Palate Show Dinner, L= Lumiere's French dinner

Thank you for posting this! Do you happen to remember what time the character breakfast started?

Still waiting for the navigators..hint hint

[catislander]

Thanks so much to all those who have been posting their thoughts, reviews and recommendations. We're really looking forward to our cruise which leaves in just over four weeks -- I'm hoping the water in CC warms up a bit before then.

[rkbk03]

Originally Posted by SunshineCruiser

Wondering how much earlier than your scheduled bus time for WDW did you have to meet and leave the ship. For example if you were on the 8:15 bus to epcot then how much earlier did you have to meet to leave the ship?

They told us to be down 15 minutes early, but I think at the prime time they were just filling the buses and leaving as they were full. We weren't on time for our 8:15 schedule and they didn't even look at our tickets or anything, there was just a line and they put you on the bus for the park you wanted to go to and when it was full it left. It might have been different if you had one of the earliest departures. They might have been making sure people didn't go earlier than scheduled that early.

[rkbk03]

Originally Posted by IFlossU

Thank you for posting this! Do you happen to remember what time the character breakfast started?

It was at 8am.

[PrincessShmoo]

Originally Posted by IFlossU

Thank you for posting this! Do you happen to remember what time the character breakfast started?

Still waiting for the navigators..hint hint

Character breakfast times are based on your dinner seating. There is an early time and a late time.

[bjcaed]

I did not know there was a character breakfast!! My girls will be so excited! How do I find out about it and what characters might be there??? Can't wait!!