How 7 Days with DCL Trumps 5 Trips to WDW~ Fantasy Eastern Caribbean, Oct 4-11

[mickeystoontown]

Jillian did a great job on capturing the moments when you stepped foot on the ship! Doesn't it make you feel like royalty when the castmembers announce your family's arrival?!

 

[MonsterWDWmom]

Joining in!

Love the ship it is decorated so nice, and being introduced as you walk on that is Disney magic

That is great about M&G times, it must of been really nice to not have to wait in a 3 hour line just to see 2 sisters

 

[Pluto0809]

OK, I somehow missed a few updates. And I think I'm DIS stalking you today, I keep posted in TRs right after you.

I'm going all the way back to the fall decorations because I missed that update. Very cute and I know where you got the Mickey pumpkin.

Your Halloween dinner was cute except for the spider dish. Nope, not doing it, had to scroll quickly past because I HATE spiders! Loved the mummy dogs though.

So excited to see your first glimpses of the boat! I have a feeling after reading your TR I will be booking a cruise for Jim and I.

 

[oopsiDAISY]

Ok - loved the fall themed night - seriously - that food looks delicious... And even though those mummy dogs wouldn't be good for my current eating situation - I think I could scarf one of those down with out a problem! Everything looks soooo good - thankfully I am making dinner.

Eeeep... So cute with the Minnie Ears... Loved that dad grabbed them for little E!

And check out that ship - OMG!!! Some day, I want to do that so badly... Maybe I can talk Josh into it? It would be sooo FUN! Well, for me anyways. LOL

EEEEPppp... The first glimpse of the ship is fantastic!!!

I love your matching shirts - they are so cute! And you are just an adorable family - I love you all to pieces!

Yay - Jillian looked up!!! Awesome photo - love that!!!

Oooh - can't wait to see where you eat.

Some day, when I finally get to go on a cruise - I am going to be calling you, my friend, for all of your tips and tricks!

Super excited for the rest of this TR!

D~

That Halloween dinner has really gotten me missing our movie nights. We were supposed to have one this past weekend...but Brian had too much homework, so we had to cancel.

The ship~ it was love at first sight! I seriously believe Josh would enjoy it. It is not over the top Disney, but if you love Disney it fills that void, too. Seriously, I think he would like it. You know it took a while for Brian to become a Disney lover...but he LOVED this cruise from start to finish.

Those were our FB group t-shirts. I had posted a photo front and back on my PTR, do you remember that? Here ya go:



Stay tuned to find out where we had lunch...it was so fun, the perfect start to the perfect vacation.

That first glimpse of the ship is magical. I remember our excitement and I think I shed a tear or two.

I love the picture Jillian took in the terminal with the ship in the background. I think I'm stealing that picture idea for our cruise next year.

The terminal is completely chaotic, but as you stated, it is organized chaos. I can't wait to hear where you ate. We went to Cabana's.

Yes, I loved that photo too. I wanted some sort of terminal photo, but just hard to get much with the sea of people. We didn't even have time to get photos with Mickey or Minnie in front of the ship model.

Stay tuned to see where we had lunch.

Ahhh that's first glimpse......
Do you find the pictures just don't do it justice?? The ships are just so HUGE, you really can't comprehend unless you have been standing next to one!
Oh I really shouldn't have started following this......now I need a cruise.....

It is so true about pictures not doing it justice. I am a horrible photographer anyhow... so there was no way I was going to capture the beauty. I did the best I could. Yeah, you need a cruise...

I....




LOVE.....




THIS!!!!!!!


Oh a girl after my own heart. She looked up and got a frame worthy picture of that gorgeous chandelier! the tiers of the decks! I cannot tell you how much i am loving every second of following your report.
the decorations are beautiful!
Yes you had a WAY better Halloween on the ship v/s boring ol' trick or treating in the neighborhood!

like Suzi said this ship is ENORMOUS! it dwarfs all the other ships!

Do they announce every family who enters? that must take some time!!!

You did your research on the cruise didn't you!

Umm Ghost walk? and didn't tell me about this?!?!? need to know more!


you cannot leave me hanging now. Need to know all about this amazing Halloween adventure you are having!!!

​

It is so fun to be able to post this report about something that not everyone has "been there, done that, got the t-shirt". I feel like I don't do WDW trip reports very well, because others are so much more knowledgable and have much better photos than I do. It is fun to bring something new to you all.

They do announce every family. Amazingly enough, it goes very quickly. We were genuinely surprised at how quickly our boarding # came up. Just another example of how Disney just has their stuff together, they do it and do it well!

I am sure the Ghost Walk is way more fun and creepy at night time. But yeah, our campus has been around since 1872, so we have a few ghosts around. Several of my friends on campus have had first hand encounters with some of them.

you have crossed the threshold! It must be fun to have your name announced.

Jillian did great with the pictures...including looking "up."

I love the picture of Charity in the porthole window.

I can't wait to hear where this secret lunch is.

Them announcing us upon embarkation was just the start of a full week of being treated like royalty. We were so pampered that week, it is why we loved it so much.

Hi Connie! I'm all caught up! Love the look of that ship!! and the fall decorations!! I still haven't seen my neighbor to see if she was in the FB group.

That chandelier is amazing! What a good girl to "look up." I also love the picture sitting in the port hole.

We went on a cruise in January and we went to the Bahamas and when we got there we were docked next to one of the Disney Ships and I tried to get Sken to think about doing one but he wasn't having it. Who knows maybe after this next trip he will want to!

So, Skinder goes on other cruises, but won't try Disney? I realize he is not a Disney fan...but if he is a cruise fan, you MUST get him to try it just once. I promise...no other cruise line will compare after that! Just fact.

Jillian did a great job on capturing the moments when you stepped foot on the ship! Doesn't it make you feel like royalty when the castmembers announce your family's arrival?!

She really did do a great job. I love seeing it all from her perspective. I think I may just hand the camera over to her more often now. I know that Hunter takes a lot of the photos that you use in your TR's. I just may follow suit with Jillian.

Joining in!

Love the ship it is decorated so nice, and being introduced as you walk on that is Disney magic

That is great about M&G times, it must of been really nice to not have to wait in a 3 hour line just to see 2 sisters

Welcome!!!! I hope you stick around for the whole report. I love making new friends on the Disboards! I have been blessed to have met several of my Disfriends in person.

 

[oopsiDAISY]

It's time to head for lunch, anyone hungry?? As I said in the last post, most cruisers head to Cabana's for lunch upon embarkation. BUT, since I am a Diser, and know more than the average bear...we headed downstairs to Enchanted Garden for lunch. EG did have a buffet set up for lunch, but you were seated at a table, and had a server to get drinks, etc for you. MUCH less hectic than the Cabana's cattle call.

We lucked out when we were seated at a table with a view...



And this photo begins my obsession with the folded napkins on the cruise (considered yourself warned):



We promptly placed our drink orders and headed for the buffet. The buffet had an assortment of cold cuts and cheeses, salads, and hot foods. Here is what my ONLY plate looked like....yes, I had but one. I have heard too many horror stories of rapid weight gain on cruises, and I was determined to keep my portions reasonable! Anywho, my plate:



Cold cuts and a few cheese cubes, carrots and snow peas (loved this, I have since made this at home), lamb chop (didn't care for this), rice with the sauce from the lamb on it, and behind the lamb was bacon wrapped salmon with a green pea puree - this was my favorite thing on the plate.

On to dessert (though the photo looks large, the dessert was a mini):



This was so yummy. It was supposed to be chocolate mousse, but it had the taste and texture of a cake or brownie batter...YUM!

During lunch, our waiter decided to entertain Gabe a bit.



Hmmm,. what could he be up to?



He made Gabe a "pet" to keep on the cruise with him. Wait~ I thought only service animals were allowed on this cruise!

He proceeded to hold and pet this little puppy. He told Gabe to pet the puppy, then caused it to POP from his hand when Gabe touched it. It was so cute. And here is the proud owner of the cruise puppy:



He told Gabe he could keep the puppy, so now that puppy has a home on Gabe's dresser at home.

Coming up...our room is ready!!!!!

 

[KatMark]

What a great view from lunch.

I think part of the reason I've not commited to a cruise is the fear of weight gain for both Mark and I. Your dessert looks and sounds very yummy.

What a great thing the waiter did for Gabe and you can tell how proud Gabe is to have it.

 

[solana131]

Oh how fun! Our waiters on cruises have always gone above and beyond....love the customer service you get! That lunch looks yummy.....good thing you are a DISer

 

[Pluto0809]

I think I posted on the previous page at the same time you were.

Looks like a yummy lunch! I'm taking notes now so when I plan our cruise (wishful thinking right now, probably won't be for a few years) I'll know all the secrets!

What a cute little doggy napkin. Already getting some Pixie Dust and you barely on board.

 

[MonsterWDWmom]

What a nice waiter!

Good tip not going to the busier lunch spot, I know if I ever do a cruise to check out the boards first

The food looks and sounds awesome, and go you for keeping your portions in control I am not so sure I would have that restraint.

 

[mickeystoontown]

You are definitely a good Diser to know not to head to the "normal" buffet but Enchanted Gardens instead. The waiter was so nice to make a cruise pet for Gabe.

 

[pierresgirl]

What a fun trip, can't wIt to read more updates. I'm curious to see if your 15 y.o. hit the teen club or if your younger dd went to the tween club.

 

[Chicago Mo]

Oh this is wonderful!!! Yes you are a good Dis'er and knew what you were doing!

HOW sweet of the waiter and an awesome napkin friend!!!

So... When i start planning a cruise your going to help right?

as for your reply on trip reports.
You do a fantastic job. your pictures are FANTASTIC too! son't sell yourself short! I love reading all about everyone's trips! learn something new with each report you read!!!

 

[DMGeurts]

Mmmm... Mmmmm... MMMMMmmmmm That plate of food looks absolutely devine!!! Exactly the stuff I would have chosen too... Lots of meat... Lots of veggies... Little bit of rice... Tasty!

The dessert looks great too, but you all know I am all about the meat. LOL

Awww... I Gabe's little Cruise Puppy... Sooo cute!!!

Looks like a great start! Can't wait to hear more!

D~

 

[chicagolaw]

Thanks for the report. I am going on the Eastern Caribbean in January and am reading up as much as possible. I am getting so excited. This will be our second cruise. We did the Western Caribbean last year and I too shed a tear when I saw the ship for the first time. It is an amazing sight.

 

[petals]

Yay you're on the ship.. I love Gabe's puppy as well

 

[oopsiDAISY]

What a great view from lunch.

I think part of the reason I've not commited to a cruise is the fear of weight gain for both Mark and I. Your dessert looks and sounds very yummy.

What a great thing the waiter did for Gabe and you can tell how proud Gabe is to have it.

Yes, weight gain was a concern for me as well. Portion control is definitely the key. I feel like I was able to eat pretty normally. I was actually proud of myself. Since I try not to live by the scale, I have no idea if I actually gained anything...but my clothes still fit fine, so I felt good!

Oh how fun! Our waiters on cruises have always gone above and beyond....love the customer service you get! That lunch looks yummy.....good thing you are a DISer

The CM's on the cruise were fantastic. We felt so totally pampered all week. It is a major reason we loved it so much!

I think I posted on the previous page at the same time you were.

Looks like a yummy lunch! I'm taking notes now so when I plan our cruise (wishful thinking right now, probably won't be for a few years) I'll know all the secrets!

What a cute little doggy napkin. Already getting some Pixie Dust and you barely on board.

Ariana, I HIGHLY suggest a cruise!!! It is just awesome...AND, as you will see later in the report, they have FANTASTIC chicken fingers and fries.

What a nice waiter!

Good tip not going to the busier lunch spot, I know if I ever do a cruise to check out the boards first

The food looks and sounds awesome, and go you for keeping your portions in control I am not so sure I would have that restraint.

The food was pretty fancy/ rich, so portion control really wasn't that hard for me. We loved Enchanted Garden for lunch that first day.

You are definitely a good Diser to know not to head to the "normal" buffet but Enchanted Gardens instead. The waiter was so nice to make a cruise pet for Gabe.

Yep, I read lots of reports, participated in a fantastic FB page, subscribed to Cruise Critic...I was as prepared as I think I could have been!

What a fun trip, can't wIt to read more updates. I'm curious to see if your 15 y.o. hit the teen club or if your younger dd went to the tween club.

Oh, they LIVED in those clubs! Seriously, we pretty much had to MAKE them spend some time with us on the cruise or we would have only seen them with their eyes closed...in bed!

Oh this is wonderful!!! Yes you are a good Dis'er and knew what you were doing!

HOW sweet of the waiter and an awesome napkin friend!!!

So... When i start planning a cruise your going to help right?

as for your reply on trip reports.
You do a fantastic job. your pictures are FANTASTIC too! son't sell yourself short! I love reading all about everyone's trips! learn something new with each report you read!!!

I totally want to help you plan your cruise, when you get ready to do one!!!

Thank you for being so kind. I just love my Disfriends!

Mmmm... Mmmmm... MMMMMmmmmm That plate of food looks absolutely devine!!! Exactly the stuff I would have chosen too... Lots of meat... Lots of veggies... Little bit of rice... Tasty!

The dessert looks great too, but you all know I am all about the meat. LOL

Awww... I Gabe's little Cruise Puppy... Sooo cute!!!

Looks like a great start! Can't wait to hear more!

D~

Some of those cold cuts were....interesting. They were all sorts of italian cuts, and I actually spit one out. My kids were mortified, since I don't allow them to do that. It wasn't chewed up, though...first bit was HORRIFIC! Not even sure what it was, but it was gross. For the rest of the week, I stayed clear of foods that did not have a flavor description.

Thanks for the report. I am going on the Eastern Caribbean in January and am reading up as much as possible. I am getting so excited. This will be our second cruise. We did the Western Caribbean last year and I too shed a tear when I saw the ship for the first time. It is an amazing sight.

That is great. We want to do the Western Caribbean next time. We would LOVE to do the two week Panama Canal, BUT! Alas, we will NOT be paying $11,000 for a cruise, PLUS the price of flying out to San Diego to board, PLUS flying home from Miami upon debarkation. That one will have to wait until the kids are gone, and Brian and I can do it, just the two of us.

Yay you're on the ship.. I love Gabe's puppy as well

Yep, we are on the ship!!! Wanna go see our room now! Keep scrolling....

 

[oopsiDAISY]

After leaving lunch, rooms were finally ready. I heard from several on our FB group that some very naughty guests actually dropped the rope themselves before rooms were ready, and room stewards were still cleaning and prepping rooms when guests were already arriving. That is just RUDE! Those poor folks work so hard, and keep such great attitudes while serving us all week... that fact that folks took advantage of the politeness, and refused to exercise any amount of patience just "burns my biscuit"...as we in the south say!

So, anyhow. Our room was fully ready when we arrived. In fact, there was a gift waiting for us when we went in:



Should you ever book a Disney cruise, book through Dreams Unlimited Travel Agency! We got $300 on board credit from them, AND this awesome gift bag was waiting in our room as well. It had all sorts of great stuff in it: Water bottles, travel coffee mugs, magnetic clips, highlighters, a magnetic white board for our door, gummy fruit snacks for port days, and so much more that I am even forgetting. It was a great way to be greeted when we got to the room.

Only half of our luggage was there, but we knew we would get it all eventually. We only hoped it would all be there by dinner time, so we could be all "gussied up" for our first dinner on board.

Brian immediately went to the tv, because we knew there would be important information broadcasted, regarding life vests, muster drill, etc.



See our room? It was fabulous. The couch let down flat for a twin bad, there was one that came down from the ceiling, AND there was a murphy bed in the wall just past the couch. Each kid would have his/her own bed for the week! Also, as you can clearly see in this next photo, the queen bed sits rather high off the floor so that luggage can be stored under it. That was wonderful!



The new DCL ships have the split bathrooms, we loved this! In the first one, a sink and "head":



In the next one a sink and a tub/shower:





We found that the room and bathrooms were much rooomier than we had anticipated. We never felt like we were tripping on each other at all. I have purposefully not taken photos of the verandah yet, because it was time to head down to muster drill.

Muster drill... This was the one miserable time we had the whole week. We are folks that feel like if you are not early for something, you are late. So, we showed up about 10 minutes early. They immediately start lining you up in VERY TIGHT lines with others from your deck. We were lined up SO tightly that we were all thanking each other for wearing deodorant that day.

We ended up having to stand there in those tight lines for over thirty minutes BEFORE the drill actually started...because some folks were not showing up for muster. (Probably the same ones who bum-rushed their way into rooms before they were ready ) Muster drill finally over, we headed right up to deck 12 for the PARTAY!!! What party, you ask? THIS ONE:



Our FB group had planned our first official meet up on Deck 12 during the party. While we were able to find some of them, it all seemed really random. No one seemed to be clustered together for the party. We walked around and tried to say hi to as many of them that we recognized. There was one thing on my MUST DO list for my very first cruise Sailaway Party:



This drink was strawberry daquairi on the bottom, pina colada on the top...So delcious! The bartender selling them was shouting "de docta is in da house, come get ya medication!" in a very Jamaican accent. It was fabulous! Vacation was officially underway, folks!

Everyone wave goodbye to the Disney Cruise Line terminal!



We really didn't have a great view of the stage, so I don't have photos of the actual show. I wanted to be on the outside of the ship to actually watch us sail away as opposed to watching the crew sing and dance. It was a fun party, with lots of dancing and loud music. A great, festive spirit to get us underway. LOVED IT!

After the party, we headed back to the room. A few more of our bags had arrived, but still not all. We got busy unpacking what had arrived...and decorating our new home. Here are photos of our door decorations:







Our Fish Extender:



Gabe put the decorations on our verandah door:



He wanted a picture of him with his handiwork:



As you can see in this photo, his bags had arrived, and he was dressed and ready for dinner. Brian and I had our bags, as well...but the girls still had no suitcases. Would they arrive in time for dinner...which we needed to be at in less than thirty minutes?

 

[Chicago Mo]

Oh My goodness your door is simply adorable amazing LOVE that Daisy face around your room number!!! did you make all that?!?!

Love the rooms! you weren't squished?! that's my one fear is no space. love the fact your waving goodbye to.. No one on the dock!
ohhh i hope the girls get their luggage soon!!!!

 

[livsmom04]

I'm following this trip report!

Reading your report makes me want to be able to go ahead and book a disney cruise. We've never sailed either so reading all about yours makes me think we will be fine too.

Can't wait to read more!

 

[mickeystoontown]

Yep, burns my biscuits (a/k/a chaps my butt) when people try to go around the rules. When we cruised, there wasn't even a thought in my mind that we'd sneak or push our way to our room early.

Your cabin looks really roomy. What category stateroom did you book? We had a family room, I believe, and we loved the split bathrooms too.