01/02/10- Mickey's New Decade Brigade!

[WDW Princess 71]

Hey everyone, and a special welcome to the newcomers! Its been way too long since I've been on our thread, so I'm eager to get back in the swing of things. Can't wait til we finalize our decision on our Cruise Meet theme title on 7/2!

Has anyone cruised in January? I am a bit concerned about the weather. We live in Colorado so anything will be a nice break than what we will likely have here. The October weather was great when we went. Not to hot and not to cold. It was a bit breezy on deck so we did not use the pool much.But we still had the best time!! It was my first cruise and I have been eager to go on another ever since.

Joleen, I'm concerned about the weather too - more specifically, the water temp. It was pretty chilly in the water at Castaway Cay in March.

Hi and welcome to Joleen and Sara! I would like to try to give you an idea of what to expect as far as weather goes on a January cruise--I just sailed in January of this year. We enjoyed it, warm low 80s temps, and even at night very comfortable. But, the day we got back to PC at the end of the cruise, it was 45 degrees! On our embarkation day it had been 80 degrees! So to summarize January can be really hit or miss. I am going in January only because it is the only time my brother and I can go (he is a freshman at ASU this Fall and I am in grad school). Otherwise, honestly I wouldn't pick January again by choice. I don't mean to be a bummer, but I am very honest and this is the truth--while I wouldn't go in hurricane season since that is even more risky, January is just too iffy for me. I liked my first cruise in March the best, not too hot and not too cool, and more reliable to count on warm temps, not temps in the 60s!

As far as water goes, again I am going to tell you like it is, if you thought the water was breezy on deck and didn't use the pool much in October/March and thought the water at CC was cold, then you are in for a chill on this trip in January. I'm from NJ where the ocean and pool water is freezing even in summer unless you heat the pool, so I thought the pool water was nice and CC water nice too--not too cold to keep me out, sure I would have liked it to be warmer, but nothing to complain about. But if you really dont like cold water I'm sorry but you might want to get a wetsuit then or something because January is as cold as it gets year round- and yes the difference between my trip in January vs. March was definitely noticeable, even just a few degrees makes a difference.

I'm sorry I really don't want to be negative, please dont get me wrong I am so looking forward to this trip just as much as you all are, I just want to try answer your questions from my experience as honestly as I can. I'm confident we will have great weather and a great time on our trip and so much fun doing our DIS stuff!

Speaking of DIS stuff, to all the newcomers, I hope you are interested in participating in the Fish Extender exchange! If you want details or dont know what an FE exchange is, please read my post #91 a couple pages back for details. I am in charge of the list of participants, so please PM me if you are interested with the information I requested in that post. Hope you want to join!

Goodnight for now everyone!
-Nicole

 

[itssarayay]

My sister is also a nursing student. January was about the only time we could do that would fit with her clinical/class schedule.

That's why we're going in January too! I'm actually going to miss the first day of classes (they start on the 6th, I believe). What semester is she in? I only just started this summer.

But if you really dont like cold water I'm sorry but you might want to get a wetsuit then or something because January is as cold as it gets year round- and yes the difference between my trip in January vs. March was definitely noticeable, even just a few degrees makes a difference.

I'm sorry I really don't want to be negative, please dont get me wrong I am so looking forward to this trip just as much as you all are, I just want to try answer your questions from my experience as honestly as I can.

I'm actually really glad you're being honest. I need to know how to prepare. We're from Alabama so anything below 70/75 is actually pretty chilly for me. I'm a wimp so I probably wouldn't be able to get in the water even with a wetsuit. It'll be nice to just lay on the beach with a drink, though!

 

[mmackeymouse]

Melissa you are doing good on the weight loss. I need to dig in my heels and lose again. It was a tough winter. I am a Nurse as well, have been for many years already. Take care all.

Karen

Oh, God bless you! I have actually lost a lot more in inches/sizes than the actual poundage would suggest. I still get pretty depressed when I hear of people that drop like 50 pounds in 2 months by just walking 20 minutes a day. But, I try to keep a positive attitude nonetheless.

I am going in January only because it is the only time my brother and I can go (he is a freshman at ASU this Fall and I am in grad school). Otherwise, honestly I wouldn't pick January again by choice. I don't mean to be a bummer, but I am very honest and this is the truth--while I wouldn't go in hurricane season since that is even more risky, January is just too iffy for me. I liked my first cruise in March the best, not too hot and not too cool, and more reliable to count on warm temps, not temps in the 60s!

As far as water goes, again I am going to tell you like it is, if you thought the water was breezy on deck and didn't use the pool much in October/March and thought the water at CC was cold, then you are in for a chill on this trip in January. I'm from NJ where the ocean and pool water is freezing even in summer unless you heat the pool, so I thought the pool water was nice and CC water nice too--not too cold to keep me out, sure I would have liked it to be warmer, but nothing to complain about. But if you really dont like cold water I'm sorry but you might want to get a wetsuit then or something because January is as cold as it gets year round- and yes the difference between my trip in January vs. March was definitely noticeable, even just a few degrees makes a difference.

I'm sorry I really don't want to be negative, please dont get me wrong I am so looking forward to this trip just as much as you all are, I just want to try answer your questions from my experience as honestly as I can. I'm confident we will have great weather and a great time on our trip and so much fun doing our DIS stuff!

Oh man! Thanks for your candid honesty Nicole! But, now I am a little depressed. I was already worried enough as it is; I am just going to have to send up some extra prayers. To tell the truth, I am pretty used to cold water, so hopefully it will not be too terrible. Obviously, I would prefer some nice weather, but.....when life hands ya lemons, ya know? Being from Indiana, I'd like to think we are probably not quite as fussy as people from the Southern part of the country when it comes to tropical weather. (not a dig at anyone from the South. Just trying to point out that someone from Indiana may have a different perspective on the weather than someone from say, Georgia) Again, just trying to keep a positive energy going.

That's why we're going in January too! I'm actually going to miss the first day of classes (they start on the 6th, I believe). What semester is she in? I only just started this summer.

Well, she will be starting her 5th year in the fall. I believe she is in her either fourth or fifth semester of nursing school. I cannot remember if she started her clinicals in Spring or Fall 2008. She is also working this summer at one of the local hospitals. We are hoping she can get on there as a nurse once she graduates. If she commits to two years at this particular hospital, they will pay off her student loans, on top of the pay she will make. It would be hard to say no to that.

Too, too funny......we were talking about flights back, and about possibly flying back on Sunday rather than Saturday. And my mother, I kid you not, says to her, "Eh, it's just school!" And is totally 100% serious. Now, to understand why this is so funny, you just have to know my parents. Education has always been a very big priority and never taken lightly. My sister and I looked at each other as if our mom had been abducted by aliens. Anyway, her classes start on the 11th, but if we do have to fly out on Sunday, she said it will probably just be review anyway.

 

[familyfun5]

Hi everyone!! Though we made our reservation two weeks ago, we have a final confirmation that finances are set for us to go. I am purchasing travel insurance today in fact.

We are still thrilled. A little apprehensive over bringing two babies with us though. Our last cruise we had an almost four month old and it went terrific. Speaking of babies; there is still no baby for us. I still have seven days until my due date. I want so much to get up and swim, take the kids to the park and enjoy summer but my body is saying sit and stay in the air conditioning. Go figure?

As for the school dates, I am right with you folks. I have two more semesters until I get my BA in business management (I graduated with a BA in history last year). So that is also why we are on the January cruise. The alternative was to wait for summer? But why wait six months longer (not to mention the higher prices). It is cold here in January, seems like a great time to cruise>

 

[WDW Princess 71]

Hey Everyone! Hope you all had a nice 4th of July weekend! I can’t believe we have less than 6 months now until the cruise! Are we all ready to select a cruise theme name then? I guess we’ll have to compile the list from the choices we were tossing around several pages back in the thread unless anyone has any more to add, then we can vote for the one we like the best. Sound good?

 

[MightyMike]

We just discovered that we will be joining the rest of you on this cruise. We put a deposit down on two cruises not knowing which one we would take. We settled upon this one when we recently saw a good airfare deal for the holidays.

We did the Western Caribbean itinerary earlier this year for our 5 year old son's birthday. He loved the Oceaneer's club. He has a strict 8pm bedtime, but one night we let him stay as long as he wanted. We never got paged. We finally decided to pick him up at midnight. He was still going strong in the club. He would have stayed up all night there had we let him.

We are going to keep this a secret from him until Christmas. I can't wait to see the look in his eyes when he discovers on Christmas morning that he will return to the Disney Magic in just one week.

I'll admit I haven't fully read this thread yet but plan to read through it tonight and see what all you guys have said so far. We are arriving to Orlando three days early so that we can stay at Coronado Springs and visit Disney's Hollywood Studios. Less than 6 months to go!

 

[mmackeymouse]

Hey Everyone! Hope you all had a nice 4th of July weekend! I can’t believe we have less than 6 months now until the cruise! Are we all ready to select a cruise theme name then? I guess we’ll have to compile the list from the choices we were tossing around several pages back in the thread unless anyone has any more to add, then we can vote for the one we like the best. Sound good?

Man, I cannot believe I totally missed the deadline! The past couple of weeks has been a blur. I am either very busy or very tired....one extreme or the other....not much of a middle ground.

Okay anyway so here is the list:

Pioneering the New Decade Tour

Oh Ten on the Ocean

2010 Year of the Magic

A MAGICal New Year

Mickey's Magical Marauders

The/Mickey’s New Decade Brigade

2010: Let the Magical Decade Begin!


So here is what I propose happen, because I know not everyone checks every day or week. We will take some new entries until Friday evening. Then from that master list we will vote throughout the weekend, and how about Sunday evening, we choose our winner? If you have a choice and know you won't be around over the weekend, you can vote early.

So, what do you think the best idea would be, to vote on the thread, or people can PM me their vote?

 

[MightyMike]

I won't be around this weekend, but from the existing list, the one that caught my interest most was "Mickey's New Decade Brigade."

 

[WDW Princess 71]

I won't be around this weekend, but from the existing list, the one that caught my interest most was "Mickey's New Decade Brigade."

First, I agree with Mike, my vote from the existing list is "Mickey's New Decade Brigade". Secondly, I just want to say welcome to the thread to Mike! I am sure you are busy reading through these lengthy pages catching up on our thread, but let us know if you have any questions about any of the activities we have been planning so far. I am in charge of the Fish Extender exchange, so if you are interested in that the details are in post #91 and you can PM me with any questions or to sign up.

That sounds like a really nice idea that you have to surprise your son on Christmas morning with the news that he will be going on another Disney cruise just a week later, how special! Hopefully we will see your family at the cruise meet early in the cruise and you can tell us all about the priceless moment! And that is great that you are coming to Orlando 3 days early--we are also doing that, we arrive on 12/30 for a 3 night stay at the Pop. We are absolutely going to spend New Years Eve in the Magic Kingdom and I'm sure we will probably be there for like 20 hours since we'll have to arrive at rope drop and stay all day to insure that we get to be in the park at Midnight! I'm sure it will be crazy but it has always been a lifelong dream of mine so I am very excited to do it, and the best part will be that after that magical night is over, I'll have our magical cruise to look forward to on 1/2! I can't wait!!

 

[familyfun5]

I also vote for “The Mickey’s New Decade Brigade.” I will try to check back if any new ones get posted.

I would also like to confirm our sailing party!!!! We had our little girl on 7/7 (her due date). No name yet. DH has been trying to get me to set a name with him for months. I just could not do it; still can’t apparently. However, name or no name she will be with us all on Jan 2nd.

Nice to add you MightyMike and family.

Well I got to go, baby does not like being put down yet. She is great.

 

[itssarayay]

Mickey’s New Decade Brigade sounds great to me!

Familyfun, congrats on your new arrival!

 

[mmackeymouse]

I also vote for “The Mickey’s New Decade Brigade.” I will try to check back if any new ones get posted.

I would also like to confirm our sailing party!!!! We had our little girl on 7/7 (her due date). No name yet. DH has been trying to get me to set a name with him for months. I just could not do it; still can’t apparently. However, name or no name she will be with us all on Jan 2nd.

Nice to add you MightyMike and family.

Well I got to go, baby does not like being put down yet. She is great.

Congrats! Ya know, if you DID want to name her Melissa, hehe, I would not mind.

How about CanDIS? Or MaDISon? Or AdDISon?

Saile? (pronounced Sy'lee): It is Walt's middle name spelled backwards.

I already have a master list of baby names for both boys and girls. Yeah, I am one of THOSE. I hear names that I like and I don't want to forget them, so I just add them to the list.

Yup. I have a list for baby names, but not even the hint of a prospective boyfriend, much less husband. Touche.

 

[MightyMike]

And that is great that you are coming to Orlando 3 days early--we are also doing that, we arrive on 12/30 for a 3 night stay at the Pop. We are absolutely going to spend New Years Eve in the Magic Kingdom and I'm sure we will probably be there for like 20 hours since we'll have to arrive at rope drop and stay all day to insure that we get to be in the park at Midnight!

It sounds like we are similar planners.

We are arriving a few days early in case of bad winter weather. A few years ago we took a cruise out of San Diego just after New Years. Our flights were on the same day as embarkation. Our flight connection was in Chicago. A snowstorm closed Denver airport one day earlier and was headed toward Chicago. O'Hare airport closed about 30 minutes after our connecting flight took off. Our friends on the cruise never thought we would make it. Actually, because of the time changes flying West, we landed in San Diego in late morning and were among the first on the ship after noon. Several people with connecting flights in Denver never made it.

We aren't really sure what to do about the theme parks. Are they too busy to enjoy between Christmas and New Years? Our plan for now is to spend New Years Eve at Hollywood Studios and purchase the Fantasmic Dinner Package. We plan to spend New Years Day relaxing at Coronado Springs and its pool. If it looks like the parks are too busy or if they are closing admissions due to capacity constraints, we might just end up spending the entire time at Coronado Springs.

Here the cruise is over five months away and I already feel behind on planning. Today I purchased a town car ride to the port, Disney transfers back to the airport, and travel insurance. Disney Cruise Line buses don't pick people up at Coronado Springs, which is why we are using a town car to get to port. It will also get us on the ship a little earlier than the buses. We really like the onboard airline check-in service that Disney provides after the cruise. Remember never to purchase trip insurance from the cruise line! (Not only is it often more expensive, but it is designed more to protect the cruise line than the passenger.)

I think we will be able to reserve shore excrusions starting in early-October. We might take it easy on the shore excursions this time. We are considering the tram ride up Paradise Point in St. Thomas and the Stingray Adventure in Castaway Cay. Let us know if you guys design door magnets with our cruise theme. We have a SPH cabin on deck 5. Our 5 year old just loves the Oceaneer Club--which will be just down the hall from our room this time.

 

[WDW Princess 71]

It sounds like we are similar planners.

We are arriving a few days early in case of bad winter weather. A few years ago we took a cruise out of San Diego just after New Years. Our flights were on the same day as embarkation. Our flight connection was in Chicago. A snowstorm closed Denver airport one day earlier and was headed toward Chicago. O'Hare airport closed about 30 minutes after our connecting flight took off. Our friends on the cruise never thought we would make it. Actually, because of the time changes flying West, we landed in San Diego in late morning and were among the first on the ship after noon. Several people with connecting flights in Denver never made it.

We aren't really sure what to do about the theme parks. Are they too busy to enjoy between Christmas and New Years? Our plan for now is to spend New Years Eve at Hollywood Studios and purchase the Fantasmic Dinner Package. We plan to spend New Years Day relaxing at Coronado Springs and its pool. If it looks like the parks are too busy or if they are closing admissions due to capacity constraints, we might just end up spending the entire time at Coronado Springs.

Here the cruise is over five months away and I already feel behind on planning. Today I purchased a town car ride to the port, Disney transfers back to the airport, and travel insurance. Disney Cruise Line buses don't pick people up at Coronado Springs, which is why we are using a town car to get to port. It will also get us on the ship a little earlier than the buses. We really like the onboard airline check-in service that Disney provides after the cruise. Remember never to purchase trip insurance from the cruise line! (Not only is it often more expensive, but it is designed more to protect the cruise line than the passenger.)

I think we will be able to reserve shore excrusions starting in early-October. We might take it easy on the shore excursions this time. We are considering the tram ride up Paradise Point in St. Thomas and the Stingray Adventure in Castaway Cay. Let us know if you guys design door magnets with our cruise theme. We have a SPH cabin on deck 5. Our 5 year old just loves the Oceaneer Club--which will be just down the hall from our room this time.

I completely agree with your reasoning about flying in advance of the cruise in case of weather delays! We are coming from NJ so you never know with our winter weather! Plus, I love getting to the port as soon as it opens at 10:00 AM, then being one of the first to board at 12:00. The ship is so nice and uncrowded those first few hours! Since you are taking a towncar from Coronado Springs to the port I suggest getting picked up by 9:00 AM so that you can arrive at the port when it opens. Yes, you will have an hour and a half or so to kill before they start boarding shortly before 12, but it is so worth it once you get onboard and have an uncrowded dining room for lunch and plenty of space by the pool! I wouldn’t have it any other way. By the time the DCL buses start arriving at the port around 1:00 PM and later, it gets to be a zoo to check in and have lunch, etc.

To answer your question about whether or not the parks are too busy to enjoy between Christmas and New Years, I can’t say from experience because I’ve never gone then, but I have done a lot of research including getting lots of advice from other DISers on the “Theme park attractions and strategies” forum, that yes it is THE MOST CROWDED time of the year. It is essential to get to the park on the holidays like New Years Eve first thing in the morning and stay all day, because if you leave it is very likely the park will fill to capacity and you won’t be readmitted even with a park hopper pass. And supposedly the lines to the best rides are at a minimum of 2 hours long, some much longer, and the streets are wall to wall with people. I think the people that don’t know this ahead of time who go down there thinking it is going to be like average attendance are the ones who say they hate it and would never do it again. If you go down knowing what to expect and are okay with that, then I think it will be enjoyable. For me, just the once in a lifetime experience of being at the castle for New Years Eve fireworks is worth it enough for me, I wouldn’t care if I had to sit in one spot all day and night long to be there…I am planning to do some rides, but if the lines are too long and I don’t do many I’m fine with that. I figure it will be a nice day to try to get more character greetings in, savor a few sit down meals, and just people watch in anticipation of the several parades and multiple fireworks shows they’ll have. And for sure, on New Years Day, I’m following in your footsteps and relaxing by the pool all day : )

Designing door magnets with our cruise theme sounds like a great idea. If someone wants to organize that when we get closer to the cruise, I would definitely participate. We are definitely already organizing a Fish Extender gift exchange…so far we only have 5 families signed up but we are still 6 months away so I’m hoping as we get closer more people will join. It is a really fun thing to do, and the “gifts” do not need to be expensive or elaborate at all—some of the best ones include like dollar store type trinkets or handmade gifts are always so nice. Let me know if you want to join!

Well, today is my birthday so I’m off to dinner with my family after a relaxing day on my waverunner and by the pool. One day I would love to be in Disney on my birthday if I can handle the July heat (we just went in May and it was so hot!!) : )

 

[WDW Princess 71]

sorry i double posted...anybody know how to delete a post? i click on where it says edit/delete and i know how to edit but i cant figure out how to delete...if anyone knows please let me know for the future

 

[mmackeymouse]

Designing door magnets with our cruise theme sounds like a great idea. If someone wants to organize that when we get closer to the cruise, I would definitely participate. We are definitely already organizing a Fish Extender gift exchange…so far we only have 5 families signed up but we are still 6 months away so I’m hoping as we get closer more people will join. It is a really fun thing to do, and the “gifts” do not need to be expensive or elaborate at all—some of the best ones include like dollar store type trinkets or handmade gifts are always so nice. Let me know if you want to join!

Hey all! I can volunteer to put together a magnet for our cruise! From everything I have seen, I would say the official theme is Mickey's New Decade Brigade.

When I get free time, I have been tinkering on my laptop, putting together some magnets for our door. I will work on getting some magnet options together.

 

[itssarayay]

I don't mind coming up with a couple of magnet ideas either. My best friend is also going to school for graphic design and she's looking for anything and everything to put in her portfolio.

Also, just a little idea I had: if we come up with a cute design, we could always upload it to cafepress and have cruise t-shirts! They could easily be customized with family names, as well.


Also, just wanted to let ya'll know we'll be at Disney two days before the cruise... Of course we won't be going to the parks (I don't want to even think about the crowds), but we'll be enjoying Kidani Village.

 

[WDW Princess 71]

Sara and Melissa- thanks for your interest in volunteering to do something with a magnet for the cruise! Sounds like fun. Have either of you done this on a prior cruise or heard about people doing this before? We only did the Fish Extender exchange on my last cruise so I don't know much about it...is this something where we pass around a big magnet board room to room and sign things on it (i've heard about something like that on the DIS before) or are we thinking more like someone designing and "official" logo for our cruise meet and printing out magnets for everyone to put on our doors? What do you guys think?

Sara- I also love the t-shirt idea. If we uploaded a design, is that something like we could all log on to the website and then purchase our own shirts with the main design and our own names on it? That would be so cool!

 

[MontanaMouse]

Hello everyone! My family and I are joining you all on the cruise too! Our family consists of DH (44), Me (37), and DD (7). We went on a 3-night Wonder cruise last year around the same time and enjoyed it so much! We can't wait to get on the Magic and check it all out.

I was trying to find Navigators for a seven day Eastern that would give us an idea of what to expect, but I haven't found one. Has anyone else had any luck?

We are also taking the cautious route for travel plans because of the high potential for bad weather. Sounds like many of us think alike!

Well, I just wanted to say hello and if anyone knows where to locate any helpful Navigators, it would be greatly appreciated.

On to more planning!

 

[MightyMike]

I was trying to find Navigators for a seven day Eastern that would give us an idea of what to expect, but I haven't found one. Has anyone else had any luck?

http://www.magicalkingdoms.com/cruise/onboard/personalnav.html