First, let me begin by saying that I'm a huge fan of Disney and our first Disney cruise 6 years ago was outstanding in every way. So, it's difficult for me to complain about the poor cruise (June 14-18 Disney Wonder, 4 night) that I just returned from.
Guests: Me, DH (44), DD (12), DD (11)
Traveling buddies: DH (45), DW (43), DS (11), DD (7)
The ship: I know it's getting older, and Disney is concentrating their efforts on the Magic and the new ships, but this ship could really use an overhaul. There was a foul smell in our hallway outside our door during the entire cruise. The curtains in the stateroom were terribly faded and the bathroom floor needed a really good scrubbing. There was also a moldy smell in the room the entire time.
Meals: What a shock! The only good meal we had was at Palo. The others, not so good (and that's what I was looking forward to most on our return cruise). The servers kept pushing particular dishes each night and seemed rather miffed when we chose to order something else. I suspect that the chefs had cooked the suggested course in large quantities to move people out faster, so that's why they were pushing it. On the few nights we went with their suggestions, it was downright awful. Steak had a ton of fat on it. The only saving grace was the desserts. Those were outstanding.
Servers: On our first cruise, I actually tipped 25 percent because we had such wonderful service. Not this time, though. I felt guilty leaving the minimum because they clearly didn't deserve it. The assistant and head server weren't very friendly (no casual bantor or a "how was your day?) to us or to each other. It's almost like they didn't like being paired together. I could sense it and so could the other family we were traveling with.
I asked how long they had been on the ship, thinking that maybe this was their first contract and they were new at this (which would partly explain the slow service). But it was their 3rd contract. Shouldn't they be experts by now?
Also, my iced tea glass sat empty for 30 minutes. I had to track down the assistant server for a refill. I looked around the dining room to see if he was just caught up at another table, but he was nowhere to be found. There were some meals when several members in our party never got their ordered drinks. A quick glance at other tables in our section revealed that I wasn't the only one not getting refills. When the food arrived, it was often lukewarm, like it had been sitting for a while.
And what about that bottle of wine? The family we traveled with ordered a bottle of wine for my DH and I the night we dined at Palo, but it never arrived. When the DH discovered this, he called Guest Services. This happened on night 2 of our cruise. By Day 4 of the cruise they finally sent that bottle of wine; in the middle of the day to our stateroom. Now, we had a bottle of wine to lug home.
Disney Dreams: The show is great, if it works. About 3/4 of the way into it the action stopped. Hydraulics malfuntioned and the big hole on the stage wouldn't close. So, they shut down the show for about 20 minutes. I know that these things happen, but aren't they checking these things in advance? The night before was a movie showing, not a stage show, so there was plenty of time to check equipment, etc. The show never really got its momentum back.
Disembarkation Day: We were assigned Triton's at 7 a.m. We settled in for what we thought would be a nice breakfast. Imagine my surprise when the 2 pancakes and 1 waffle I ordered arrived. They were tiny microwave pancakes that were cold and rubbery. The person who ordered eggs barely got one scoop (and they were terribly runny).
The real kicker happened when we went to get our luggage. This is an area Disney needs help on and I will post about this in another thread. A baggage handler that Disney subcontracts grabbed my bag, gave it to another family and I spent an hour looking for it. It was finally located (only because the family called once they had reached Tampa) and Disney PROMISED I would have my bag at home by Saturday (we disembarked on Thursday). But, since Disney didn't provide the billing info UPS wouldn't pick it up nor would Disney give me the contact info for the passenger who had my bag (got that from UPS and then googled them for a phone number; I got lucky. We've been talking and they said they've been given the run around from Disney. They've waited for 4 days to have my bag picked up). Now they're saying my bag should arrive tomorrow. Disney claims this happens all the time so if it does, why didn't they already know the billing code that UPS wanted so they could pick it up? Disney was paying for it. I feel I got the runaround.
There were plenty more things about this cruise I could tell you about, but I'll stop here. I spent $4800 to take my family on this cruise and another $800 on excursions, etc. I feel that Disney let me down big time. As for the other family, they were even more disappointed because it was their first (and now last) Disney cruise.
Sorry this is so long, but I'm just really depressed about this whole thing. I expected to come off a vacation high as a kite with giddiness, instead it's just been a so-so experience. I'm not used to this from Disney.
Comments anyone?
Guests: Me, DH (44), DD (12), DD (11)
Traveling buddies: DH (45), DW (43), DS (11), DD (7)
The ship: I know it's getting older, and Disney is concentrating their efforts on the Magic and the new ships, but this ship could really use an overhaul. There was a foul smell in our hallway outside our door during the entire cruise. The curtains in the stateroom were terribly faded and the bathroom floor needed a really good scrubbing. There was also a moldy smell in the room the entire time.
Meals: What a shock! The only good meal we had was at Palo. The others, not so good (and that's what I was looking forward to most on our return cruise). The servers kept pushing particular dishes each night and seemed rather miffed when we chose to order something else. I suspect that the chefs had cooked the suggested course in large quantities to move people out faster, so that's why they were pushing it. On the few nights we went with their suggestions, it was downright awful. Steak had a ton of fat on it. The only saving grace was the desserts. Those were outstanding.
Servers: On our first cruise, I actually tipped 25 percent because we had such wonderful service. Not this time, though. I felt guilty leaving the minimum because they clearly didn't deserve it. The assistant and head server weren't very friendly (no casual bantor or a "how was your day?) to us or to each other. It's almost like they didn't like being paired together. I could sense it and so could the other family we were traveling with.
I asked how long they had been on the ship, thinking that maybe this was their first contract and they were new at this (which would partly explain the slow service). But it was their 3rd contract. Shouldn't they be experts by now?
Also, my iced tea glass sat empty for 30 minutes. I had to track down the assistant server for a refill. I looked around the dining room to see if he was just caught up at another table, but he was nowhere to be found. There were some meals when several members in our party never got their ordered drinks. A quick glance at other tables in our section revealed that I wasn't the only one not getting refills. When the food arrived, it was often lukewarm, like it had been sitting for a while.
And what about that bottle of wine? The family we traveled with ordered a bottle of wine for my DH and I the night we dined at Palo, but it never arrived. When the DH discovered this, he called Guest Services. This happened on night 2 of our cruise. By Day 4 of the cruise they finally sent that bottle of wine; in the middle of the day to our stateroom. Now, we had a bottle of wine to lug home.
Disney Dreams: The show is great, if it works. About 3/4 of the way into it the action stopped. Hydraulics malfuntioned and the big hole on the stage wouldn't close. So, they shut down the show for about 20 minutes. I know that these things happen, but aren't they checking these things in advance? The night before was a movie showing, not a stage show, so there was plenty of time to check equipment, etc. The show never really got its momentum back.
Disembarkation Day: We were assigned Triton's at 7 a.m. We settled in for what we thought would be a nice breakfast. Imagine my surprise when the 2 pancakes and 1 waffle I ordered arrived. They were tiny microwave pancakes that were cold and rubbery. The person who ordered eggs barely got one scoop (and they were terribly runny).
The real kicker happened when we went to get our luggage. This is an area Disney needs help on and I will post about this in another thread. A baggage handler that Disney subcontracts grabbed my bag, gave it to another family and I spent an hour looking for it. It was finally located (only because the family called once they had reached Tampa) and Disney PROMISED I would have my bag at home by Saturday (we disembarked on Thursday). But, since Disney didn't provide the billing info UPS wouldn't pick it up nor would Disney give me the contact info for the passenger who had my bag (got that from UPS and then googled them for a phone number; I got lucky. We've been talking and they said they've been given the run around from Disney. They've waited for 4 days to have my bag picked up). Now they're saying my bag should arrive tomorrow. Disney claims this happens all the time so if it does, why didn't they already know the billing code that UPS wanted so they could pick it up? Disney was paying for it. I feel I got the runaround.
There were plenty more things about this cruise I could tell you about, but I'll stop here. I spent $4800 to take my family on this cruise and another $800 on excursions, etc. I feel that Disney let me down big time. As for the other family, they were even more disappointed because it was their first (and now last) Disney cruise.
Sorry this is so long, but I'm just really depressed about this whole thing. I expected to come off a vacation high as a kite with giddiness, instead it's just been a so-so experience. I'm not used to this from Disney.
Comments anyone?
, with that said I know the Wonder will prob look a little out of shape when I cruise in August, but that's because it is a little before drydock.
The pirate night menu was OK. The last night at PC the food ranged from great to OK. My DW's food was really good (and I picked off her plate). I had a pork chop that was dry and chewy. Most every dessert was good to great. Just a quick side note, I did come home with a few extra lbs. so I guess it couldn't have been too terrible. We had breakfast everyday at Beach Blanket Buffet (including debarkation day) and thought it was fine. I read on the DIS boards that BBB is a good place to have breakfast on debarkation morning and I would agree.
8 were rescued alive. Disney has lost NONE! Although I did read a report about a teen who jumped from deck 4 on a dare while in port.
