I am dreaming....of a cruise

[dreamingofacruise]

Hello everyone, I am pretty new to this whole world of cruising. Recently we started thinking/dreaming/planning of a Disney Cruise probably in February 2014, maybe March. My son will be 4 years old then. In fact, this is how we would like to celebrate his birthday which is on February 14th. He is only 2.5 years old now, but he recently became the biggest Mickey Mouse, Donald Duck etc. fan. He is practically addicted to it, so is his mom to this whole Disney Cruise thing, and Daddy is getting there too. Anyway, none of us has taken any cruises yet, nor have been to the Caribbean region. So this shall be the first time for all of us in all aspects. We were thinking either a 4-day Bahamian cruise or a 5 day Western Caribbean cruise (with stops at Grand Cayman and Cozumel, Mexico) out of Miami would be something good to start with.
We do not like when it is super hot, we just need mild temperatures, even if we have to wear a sweater in the evening, we are fine. I assume weather-wise the Caribbean one would be better. Are the pools heated on the ship?
Those who have already taken one and/or both of these cruises, what were your experiences? How about safety both on ship, and on land? I am asking these especially in terms of the Bahamas when the ship docks in Nassau. I am a bit concerned. How safe is it to walk around in the city? How about shore excursions? Are they worth the money? The Atlantic looks tempting, although pretty expensive. Has anyone tried a submerging boat? It would be cool to take a peek what’s under the water, but I am not a diver, and I would be afraid of going down to the bottom with a submarine.
Any thoughts of experienced cruisers?

 

[Cosine]

Can't believe no one has replied to you yet. We are 2 dreaming of a cruise and are not sure what would be best first Disney cruise for our twin 5 year old boys. We have done DW several times but are look for a new experience. A must have for us is a pirate night ... our boys love pirates ... Do all of the cruises have pirate nights? Have you gotten any assistance on this forum or any others? Cheers!!

 

[joemama987]

Nov will be our 9th Disney Cruise and in my opinion, there is no better way to spend a family vacation! 5yr olds are perfect for their first cruise! they will LOVE PIRATE NIGHT! My kids were teenagers the first time we went. Now, we go with daughter-in-laws and grandkids! Nassau is fine as long as you stay around the tourist areas, we always take a cab to Atlantis and just do the free stuff (you can see plenty of the aquarium for free and can walk all around the lobby and stores) Then we walk down the road 1-2 hotels to public access to the beach and swim! Just ignore anyone trying to approch you to buy anything!

 

[BreauCat]

Our children were 3 and 1 when we did our first Disney cruise on the Magic in 2011. Both enjoyed the experience, although each for different reasons. My then 3 year old said "I don't want to go home, I want to sail next week too." when it was time to disembark and said repeatedly "I want to cruise again when I'm four." after we returned home. It was a great vacation for my husband and I as well. We are booked for our second cruise in March 2013 and are all getting excited about it. I don't know if there is a perfect age to go on a Disney cruise - its a great vacation no matter what your age because Disney makes sure there is something for everyone on board.

 

[Lreip]

grandkids! Nassau is fine as long as you stay around the tourist areas, we always take a cab to Atlantis and just do the free stuff (you can see plenty of the aquarium for free and can walk all around the lobby and stores) Then we walk down the road 1-2 hotels to public access to the beach and swim! Just ignore anyone trying to approch you to buy anything![/QUOTE]

Hi joemama

Did you book the cab thru DC? And if you dont mind me asking how much did they charge? The first time we went to the Bahamas the locals wanted to charge us $35 per person just to go to Atlantis. On our second trip we decided to book an excursion to Atlantis and tour the aquarium. I didnt know they had free access to the beach. Good to know!