03/29/08, March 29, 2008 Eastern Magic - Who else?

[cruisecrzy]

My husband went to school in Indiana.

 

[Angelhalo]

tisk tisk, halfway to page 3! Bump!

 

[cruisecrzy]

Bumping us back up.

So what has everyone been doing?

We are working on embroidering our squares for our cruise quilt.

 

[laurencam]

Hi, we are so excited for this cruise, my husband and I have cruised twice before (non-disney - NO KIDS), so this time we decided to bring the kids along and knew we had to do a disney. I am new to the chat lingo, but I will give it a try:
DH (36)
me (34)
DD #1 (9)
DD #2 (7)
from Wisconsin - I am an RN, my husband a teacher, the girls are so excited, it is almost annoying
We havent book any excursions, the one we were going to do (swimming with the dolphins) is not offered, I guess the location is closed for renovation. that is the one thing we wanted to for sure do with the kids, so any suggestions is greatly appreciated. However, I am hesitant to go on a small boat (for a long period) somewhere after spending days on a big boat, and we would like to keep our excursions under $200 for the family. We are only looking to do one (either at st. martin or at st. thomas), and just chillin on a beach for the other stop. so any recommendations for beaches as well would be greatly appreciated.

We signed up for dinner at palo the last night of the cruise (dates and times were VERY limited for us first time cruisers). Our reservation is from 7-9pm, is that going to interfere with the send off party they usually have that last night?
Have SO many more questions, so will post a couple here and there. Any feedback is greatly appreciated. I cant believe how many families have returned to cruise again with disney, it is amazing.
Thanks again and looking forward to 3/29!

 

[cruisecrzy]

Welcome Laurencam.

I will add your information to the cruise list.

As for the Final Farewell it is at 10pm so you should be fine if you go to dinner at 7pm.

On St. Marten we do the water taxi $5.00 per person over 12 and go to Great Bay Beach which is right where the Water Taxi lets you off. Plus there is great shopping right there behind the beach. We find St. Marten cheaper for shopping than St. Thomas. It is not the best beach on the island, but easy to get to, not expensive, and we can do it on our schedule.

You could do a Coki Beach excursion on St. Thomas as an excursion if you wanted to do a beach.

There is a thread on the main board for the St. Thomas and St. Maarten excursion recommendations.

Also, we are doing Fish Extenders and I think your girls would enjoy participating if you are interested. IF you are unsure what they are I can explain it.

I hope you are not too cold and I am sure you are looking forward to the warm cruise weather.

 

[laurencam]

I have read a little bit about this, I think it was one of your posting. How much does it cost and what does it all entail on my end (preparation, cost, items to buy and how many etc) I am sure the girls would LOVE it, but would like to know more about it. thanks for the quick response. Will keep my palo reservation for sure.

another question - my DH booked our return flights for 10:15am from orlando. Has anyone ever had an early flight like this and actually made it? I called disney and they said they hope to be in port by 0300-0400 sat am, and then they have to go through customs, so if there are no problems, us getting off the ship 0730-0800 should not be a problem, just to let them know at check in that we have a VERY early flight on sat. But I am a little worried about it, so much that I looked into changing our flight, but it was going to cost us over $1000 to do that, so if anyone has been in the same situation and can give me any information, it might put me a little at ease about it.... thanks

 

[cruisecrzy]

I cannot help with the flight stuff since I live within driving distance.

I am at work and not able to post pictures, but later today I will post the picture of a fish extender.

A Fish extender is basically something with pockets that you hang off the fish noteholder by your door

Then randomly throughout the week people place gifts in your FE and you place them in theirs. You can buy any kind of gifts you want and they do not need to be too expensive

Ex. My mom got a package of pirate tattoos and cut them apart to put a few in each FE

I did the same with stickers. Bought one package and cut them apart

Here are things that ended up in our FE last cruise
Candy
Rolls of mints
Small lotions
Pencils/pens
Small activity books
bubbles
little jewelry
pirate rings
socks for adults
Post it notes

That is all I can think of right now. You do not have to spend a ton and I buy a lot of things at the one spot in Target and open them up.

Another thing I thought of is you may want to pick up gloe necklaces or glow bracelets that canbe connected to make necklaces for your girls to wear at the Pirate Night Party. Much cheaper to buy them at the dollar store then on the boat.

Also you can always try to change your Palo reservations once onboard. As soon as you board go to Rockin Bar D.

 

[laurencam]

So how would I know who to leave "little surprises" for? Do you meet first day on the cruise, pass out cabin numbers etc? I think the girls would love it - so count us in.... Usually how many people participate in it (roughly). I will start looking around for little stuff... and THANKS for the tip about the glow necklaces. They give us the pirate bandana's right?

anyone else have recommendations for beaches to just chill out at in St. Martin or St. Thomas. We want to have one stop be an excursion, and the other be just a chillin out day - beach, shopping etc. I am jotting things down as I see them in this blog - it is a little overwhelming

Thanks for all your input and suggestions! It is making this a little more stress free!
Take care and for those of you who are in sunny florida, I am so jealous, it is 3 degrees out right now and only suppose to get colder as we get into the weekend.

Dana

 

[laurencam]

here is our info for the fish extenders
laurencam (no cabin # yet) Lauren (9) Camryn (7) Scott and Dana

 

[cruisecrzy]

I have a list of people participating in the fish extender and when you know you room number I will add it. I will post the list when I get home for you. I have the ages of everyone in the room on the list

Yes, they give out the banadana at dinner.

Look at the bottom of the list I posted with all the cruisers on it. There are several links to very helpful information including an everything you ever wanted to know about DCL.

Another thing you could do and not too expensive is the butterfly farm and then walk over to paradise point and take the tram to the top....they have a great bird show there. That is at St. Thomas. You can get the tickets on the ship. It is at Havensight so if we have to tender you will need to take a taxi.

 

[ps17]

To Laurencam - I'll attempt to answer some of your questions but do caveat that some answers are a matter of opinion and there may be conflicting views on this thread or board:

1) Palo. What time can you board? If you can get there early, I would go to Rockin Bar D after boarding - find Palo on another night. Reason for this is that we have found the "last night" to be somewhat of a "sentimental celebretory" farewell meal: This is the night you want to spend with your family - for you and them all to say goodbye to tablemates (if any), servers, etc. etc.

2) St. Maarten beach. The main beach at the port there works but is underwhelming compared to the great beaches around the island. We say, why go all the way there and miss out on some of the greatest beaches around. From the time it takes you to take that boat shuttle the main beach, you could have hopped onto a cab and been on your way to a beach. We love Orient beach - moderate waves for the kids to play in. Blue turqoise waters, great food, tropical refreshments, wave runners, shade, etc. etc. If you want, we can send pics (don't know how to post). There is some nudity that was OK with us and not worth too much of a second look with kids but if that is an issue, you can go to other beaches.

3) Debarkation. You are cutting it close. I would first find out if there is airline checkin for your airline - I would also find out if the DCL busses run that early (7:30) as soon as you get off the ship. (you need the DCL package to take advantage of airline onboard checkin). If the answer is no to either of your questions, then I would make sure you secure a reputable limo type of company to take you to the airport. If you get off the ship at 7:30, you could be there at 8:30 for your flight - however, any delay would be disastrous - AND - the security line at MCO can be a wildcard. Sometimes you get right through. Other times it can be 30-45 minutes and that might cause problems.

PS17

 

[cruisecrzy]

Laurencam,

I will update this list with your information over the weekend. The computer I am on right now does not have the program on it that I created it in. But here is a picture of my FE and the list.

 

[dipdotdarlin']

Laurencam,
I have been on 5 Magic cruises and I have always been to the airport by 10am. But the lines to check in are long and so is security. My flight was changed to 11:25am and I am a very nervous. I have been checking out the new onboard airline check-in. The earliest flight they will do is 11:25am and that is if you are on one of the approved airlines and purchase Disney bus transfers (at about $70 per person for round trips). Disney says to not make a flight before noon. I would not keep your early flight. Even if you booked a private towncar to take you to the airport and you got off as early as possible (7:30am), I think you would have a hard time making a 10:15am flight. YOu would have to check in with the airline and then go security. For peace of mind, I would definitely change the flight. If the ship gets in late or does not clear customs in time, you will still be on the ship for a while. I am praying for ontime docking and debarkation to make our flight. I hope that makes sense to you. If not, ask again.
As far as excursions go, we are not booking any. You can go to any beaches on your own cheaper than an excursion. You can take the water taxi at St. Maarten as stated above and use the beach there. The water taxi gives you a bracelet to ride all day. So you can go back to the ship to eat, or whatever in a short amount of time. The beach is ok, but the kids like it. We love Orient Bay Beach too, but there is some nudity. The kids don't seem to notice it though. It is about $7-8 per person for the taxi to there (one way). The taxi driver will take you to the section that they seem to have an agreement to take their customers. Chairs and umbrellas are about $7-10. That includes the chair and umbrella. Shopping is great in St. Maarten for jewelry.
St. Thomas has great beaches. I am scared to go to St. John on my own for fear of missing the ferry and the ship leaving without me. I don't want to do the excursions there, because they don't have lots of beach time- mostly travel time. We have been to Meagan's Bay. It is very beautiful with lots of people and very calm waters. WE are going to try Sapphire Beach this time. We have taken snorkeling excursions at St. Thomas with Disney. The Doubloon excursion is great, especially for kids. The pirate ship and theme is great, as is the staff. Capt. Nautica was even better, but for adults and older kids. Staying on the ship at both ports is fun too. It is very empty and the kids can do things without all of the usual sea day crowds.
I hope this helps. Keep asking questions. The disboards are how I have found out lots of info for a great trip. Teri

 

[ICEMANPAD]

Hi Dana!

Welcome to this thread!! Our DS, Mason, is 8--right between your children's ages!! One of Mason's favorite places on board is the Lab. He loves the children's activities!!

Michelle is creating a list of names and cabin #s for the fish extenders. It is great fun!! Mason loved going around the ship w/ his dad passing out goodies and then returning to our cabin to see what he had received!!

I can't give advice about flight times because we live in Florida and drive to the port.

It's great to see so many midwesterners on board!!

Chuck's parents also went to school in Indiana--they both graduated from Purdue!!

Enjoy!!

Lisa

 

[cruisecrzy]

I have done St. John before and it is a lot of traveling time. We went to a beach and walked an old Sugar Refinary. We had a great time, but it was lots of travel and the boat that takes you from St. Thomas to St. John was tiny and tossed about.

I am going to say that Teri has some great points about Great Bay. We do it for the fact that we just pay $5.00 for the two of us for all day transportation, our DD just wants sand and water and could care less how pretty it is. They have chairs and umbrellas for rent, one of us can walk to the shops and look around if we want a beach break, and most important to us is it is easy and quick to get back to the ship. Now we have done the taxi and rental care thing before, but with a child in tow we find Great Bay to be the best.

And we too have always done things on our own versus the excursions. We just like to be on our own schedule.

Lisa,
Look now Chuck and John have more to talk about. He is a Boilermaker. Are you guys still planning that Disney trip for Prez Day?

 

[ICEMANPAD]

While we dp drive to the port, I suggest trying to change that flight...you probably will not make it, given the time to clear customs, get a bus back to Orlando and then clear security. Any flight time before noon is going to be cutting it close.

As to Palo, like was said above, go to Rockin' Bar D as soon as you board the ship and see if you can change it. The last night is sentimental, the food tends to be good and there are a couple othe surprises I won't mention so as not to play spoiler for any of the first timers. Also, last night is when you tip your servers, so if you do go to Palo, I suggest making arrangments for that matter.

As to FE's, the easiest way to get stuff ata good price is the Oriental trading company website. This past Thanksgiving, we had about 40 kids involved (which also meant tons of exercise covering 5 decks both fore and aft), but we loaded up on stuff from OTC for a total under $100 and still all were very happy w/the loot they got.

Chuck

 

[ICEMANPAD]

One other thing to consider for shore excursions. Our DS(8) much prefers the kids lab to most of the excursions, or for that matter to doing much of anything w/us adults. We therefore take some excursions and he stays at the lab. In St maarten, we are doing the racing 12-meter yachts.

Chuck

 

[laurencam]

Thanks for all the info and suggestions - it has been so helpful, as well as the links with all the info. Another question - do you bring your own sand toys for your kids? I saw that you can buy some at castaway, but that is the last day and I would think that we would need it before then.
We are looking into changing the flights, or seeing if purchasing flight insurance would cover a missed flight... we really do not want to worry about it... Need a clarification - can you bring your own alcoholic beverages onto the ship? and then again on your ports? Would you recommend packing your own bottled water? is it really as bad as others have posted on the boards?

PS17 - I see you are from Eden Prairie - we are from Hudson, not too far from you. After this weather we are suppose to have this weekend, I am so looking forward to this cruise!
Anyways, just wanted to say thanks to everyone, you have all been very helpful.
Dana

 

[cruisecrzy]

We bring our own sand toys. Just a small thing that has a few shovels and molds and a rake I think that is it. We bring it so she has something to use at the beaches before Castaway Cay. We also bring a Neat Sheet (that is the outdoor blanket made by the Kleenex company that nothing gets through). We love it for not just sitting ourselves on the sand to play with our daughter, but as a place to put our stuff that protects it from laying in the sand.

As for alcohol and water. We bring two full water bottles on board and then refill them with Mickey Water and keep them in the cooler fridge in the room. We have filtered water in our house and we are fine with the Mickey Water. But if you are considering water than defiantely bring your own case. It is very expensive on board.

Yes you can bring your own alcohol on board. I'd just pack it in your carry on. I have seen people roll soft sided coolers on. I am sure someone else can elaborate. As for bringing it off the boat to the ports I will let someone else advise because I have no idea.

Goodluck with the flights.

 

[ICEMANPAD]

Yes you can bring alcohol onto the boat, but there will be a corkage charge if you bring your own wine to dinner. However, unless you get a cabin with a new frig in place of the cooler, not too many of those, it is hard to keep beer suitably cold...trust me, I know.

Chuck