First the Cast - ages 76, 54, 52, 50, 48, 20, 18, and 15. Planning started back in April as a surprise 50th birthday present and exploded into a cruise for the entire family. We booked the Disney Magic for 10/9 Western Caribbean - with ports of call in Key West, Grand Cayman, Cozumel, and Castaway Cay. Because of the damage from Hurricane Ivan Grand Cayman was re-scheduled to Costa Maya. In order to keep the cost down we booked three staterooms two CAT 9s and one CAT 4. Our rooms were 2100, 2600, and 8076.
We flew down to Florida in four groups on Friday night. , on person was on America West from Phoenix, 2 flew from Harrisburg on US Airways, 3 few from Allentown on Delta, and 2 on AirTran from Philadelphia. All the flights arrived on time, expect for the America West flight that had a one hour delay.
Check in at the Hyatt was easy and they were able to group the four rooms that we had booked very close to each other. 3 had balcony views of the airport atrium; the fourth had a view of north side of the runways/airport parking. If you like to watch aircraft take off/land, this is a great room. The rooms were OK; if we had paid the full daily rate for the rooms I think we may have been disappointed. However were able to secure AAA and Senior discounts on two of the rooms, and the Hyatt Lowest Price Guarantee on 2 other rooms so we paid a total of 490.00 for 4 rooms. If you bring a notebook, there is free wireless internet throughout the entire hotel.
Woke up around 6:30am on Saturday, we were out of the rooms and had our bags outside of the door by 8:00. We had some coffee and breakfast snack at Starbucks. Then we headed back up to the hotel lobby for check-in with the DCL reps at around 8:45. They have a conference room setup with a table and three reps that setup your transfers and assigned us to the Minnie Mouse bus. Then we went back out and sat in the lobby until 9:30 and as a group the cast members take you down to the waiting bus.
The drive to the port was quick, and everyone was filled with excitement and anticipation. We arrived around 10:30, as we went up the escalator and into the terminal building I thought the line was long (little did I know how long it would get later!) I really thought we were LATE getting to the port but I guess not. As you walk up to the check-in line they have two cast members at a table to pre-check documents, before you get in line. I personally thought it was a waste of time, and wish they would have allowed people to bypass this step. There are three separate lines, Non-residents; Castaway Club; and US Citizens. We were in the US Citizens line because nobody in our party has ever said on DCL before. However the Club line and US line end up in the same spot, and are directed to the counter by the same person. However there does not seem to be any consistency in the way they select who gets to go next. I think DCL should reserve 3 or 4 agents to check in only the Castaway Club members this way the line moves faster.
Check-in was painless and took about 20min from the time we entered the terminal until we were in-line waiting for embarkation. We inquired about possible upgrades, we were sent to the end of the check-in desk to talk to the Cast supervisor. Unfortunately there was nothing available. I did read in the Live from 10/9 thread that someone secured an upgrade they must have checked in before us.
Then terminal building was EXTREMELY HOT, not sure if it was a broken air-conditioner but it was very uncomfortable. We switched standing in the embarkation line to go outside to cool off! Outside it looked like the Magic was in need of some serious paint. A large portion of the white paint above the Disney Magic sign was chipped off. I think this could be attributed to the unusual itineraries the past few weeks.
We had our picture taken before we got on, and then had all of our names called out as we boarded the ship. That was one of the surprises that I did not share with anyone in the group that I learned from my time on the DIS Boards that everyone really enjoyed.
It is almost impossible to describe the beauty of the ship in words. Its almost as impossible to take it all in when you first step aboard. While waiting in line we divided up reservation assignments. Three of us would go to the spa for reservations and one would go to Palo then to Guest Services for additional room keys. Our dining rotation was PLAPLAP with second seating at 8:30. With the information I got here we decided that the second day at Animators would be the best day to go to Palo. We were the third or fourth in line at the spa waiting for reservations. The very nice lady that was first in line seems like she was very familure with the way things worked. Either she had cruised on Disney many times before or frequently visits these boards I was going to ask, but didnt. As a group we were able to book 4 Aroma stone massages on the first At Sea Day and other appointments too including Cabana Massages on Castaway Cay.
Palo reservations were set for 6 PM on Thursday, the second At Sea Day and the semi-formal night in the dining rooms everyone except my cousin would attend.
We were all exhausted after a long first haft of the day! If you have never done a Disney cruise before dont count on the first day as part of your vacation its pretty fast paced and not relaxing at all! It is though well worth it! We went up to topsiders for lunch and it was a MAD HOUSE!!!
After Topsiders we headed to check out the staterooms, luggage had already begun to arrive. The Category 4 is excellent; we had the queen bed split into two twin beds, so that the ceiling bed would not need to be pulled down. However if Disney develops new ships my first recommendation would be to move the Murphy bed from the end of the cabin (near the balcony door) to in-between the queen bed and the sofa. This way then the Murphy bed is pulled out it is still possible to get to the balcony. In the morning we had to put the bed up and the chair in front of the bed to keep it up and have access to the chest and balcony. Also this particular cabin was very prone to the dragging chair effect from Deck 9. During the day a constant ruble of chairs dragging across the deck could be heard. If this is something that might bother you dont book a room on Deck 8! Disney might want to investigate the possibility of additional sound proofing between this deck, and or adding some type of smooth sliding surface on the deck chairs.
I would also strongly recommend booking an AFT cabin if possible, Deck 8 is only one flight of steps to the drink station and Deck 7 that has balcony and inside cabins is only 2 decks away. Very nice in the morning or when you need to quench a thirst.
Room 2100 is close to the laundry room. Although I did not stay in this room I didnt hear any complaints from it being too noisy. However when I was down there I could smell the laundry room and if that might bother you this may be an area to avoid. Room 2600 is the same room, just on the opposite side of the ship. Both rooms are well appointed and very spacious.
The first night was in Parrot Cay and was very nice. We met our servers Sachin and Dobrinka! They were absolutely fantastic! Our head server was Simon and he was very engaging and made a point to visit very table each night. I would highly recommend Sachin or Dobrinka, however Sachin said he was on the second to last week of his contract and would be returning home to India. I really hope he will be back so the next time we are on the Magic he will be there. They were a special group of people that went out of their way to make sure we had a great time at dinner. They had their own version of the excellent speech however it wasnt annoying or obnoxious. I do not remember specifically what I had for dinner however the chilled mango soup does stand out!
The 8:30 dinner seating is late. Maybe if you are from the west cost or are very very late eaters on the east cost this might not bother you. However most in the group noticed that by 6pm we were all hungry and it was still more than 2 hours before dinner. Dinner never usually rapped up until after 10p.m.! A suggestion would be to move the dinners from 6:30 and 8:30 to 5:30 and 7:30.
After that it was basically right to bed and crash it had been and extremely long day!
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Part 2
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Sunday Key West
Was up and about around 11am on Sunday It is very nice the ship is not in Key West until 12 it allows everyone to sleep in! Having the split bath is very useful so there is never a time when you cant use the bathroom
Headed up Topsiders for lunch before heading ashore at 11, we were a little early and had to wait until 11:30
We had made reservations for the Conch Train Tour via DCL. We met in Rockin Bar D and to say the least, the CMs were happy to be back at KW! According to them the first time in over 2 months!
The train tour was informative, our tour operator pointed out a lot of the key spots. However a large portion of the time was pointing out houses and trees?! The hour tour could have been easily done in 20min and got very boring towards the end.
After the train ride we walked Duval Street and picked up some souvenirs. We were back on board by 4pm and more than 4 hours before dinner!
A quick shower and change then headed up to the WDT to watch WWTBAM, a young kid won a 7 night cruise! Was a blast to see some of them get up there and answerer the questions. I wish they did this show more often during the cruise.
Dinner was in Lumiers and we watched the ship pull off from Key West. I went up to the top deck and watched us do 360 turn, amazing. After that I think I hit the internet café in Promenade Lounge then a quick stop in Beat Street, but the thick cloud of smoke got to me and I went to bed!
Monday At Sea
Was up bright and early Monday for the Aromastone Therapy massage and had Nina (SP?) from South Africa. It was my first massage and she was very nice and put me at ease very well. She offered some of the products that she used but did not push. After that I was basically putty and went back to the room and was in a coma for hours!
The Golden Mickeys was put together very well. We went to the matinee showing. The blue hair kid during the red carpet arrivals said it was his 5th cruise, and then there was a slight gasp in the theater.
Rona Rivers needs to add some life to pre-show. After that it was Bingo in the Rockin Bar D. No one won the big jackpot and $70 gone. Anyone else besides me think that $30 a card is a little steep for Bingo?
Dinner was in Animators Palate and it was Formal Night. Just as a reminder if you have a large group and want pictures, go to the Mickey Statue on Deck 3 mid-ship. I found it very odd that on a Formal night the normal Evening Rotational Dining Menu is offered instead of a formal dinner menu.
After dinner headed up to The Buena Vista Theater to watch The Alamo. Good movie then it was off to bed.
Tuesday Costa Maya
We had scheduled the Sting Ray City tour for Grand Cayman and we were all looking forward to it, but unfortunately the damage to the island was sever from Hurricane Ivan. We did not plan any excursions. Got off the ship and headed into the shopping area. The shopping was ok, however it is not for the faint at heart. The sales people are very pushy and everyone wants their turn really once you have been in 2 or 3 stores they all basically have the same things. I think we were back on the ship by 12pm. Went to Topsiders for lunch, then down to deck 7 for some sun.
After the sun went down to deck 5 to watch Finding Nemo the first time I have seen the movie. The kids club came in, but most were well behaved.
As we were pulling off from the dock a small plane buzzed the ships port side (if you are standing looking out from the aft overlook) This raised a big question in my mind in regards to safety. How in the world does the cruise line industry prepare for the possibility of a aircraft to ship attack? If this idiot that buzzed us hit the ship out at sea what might possibly happen? Was just a little unsettling.
The Hercules show was on tonight but missed it. Dinner in Parrot Cay with the Around the World menu. Then King Arthur at 11pm another good movie although I thought it was very similar to The Alamo.
Wednesday Cozumel
I awoke to the view of Carnivals ship on the other side of the port. However there were some pretty nasty storm clouds behind the ship. We had the Kayaking Adventure scheduled but decided not to go for fear of the possibility of the storm getting worse. We did however venture outside the ship and into the shopping district. We saw Sachin on our way off the pier. I counted dozens of Diamond International stores; the locals were not as pushy in Cozumel as they were in Costa Maya. However if you ventured off into the secondary streets they were MUCH MUCH worse!!! BE AWARE!
After walking Cozumel the storms looked like they had cleared, we headed back to the ship. Ladder 49 was showing in the Walt Disney Theatre at 5:15pm and 7:45pm. I wish they would have added this to the showing in the Buena Vista Theatre as well. Personally I did not like the movie a little too far fetched. The effects were over-blown to the point that it wasnt believable.
Dinner was Lumiers with the Pirates in the Caribbean theme. Although I dont remember much of what we ordered most night on the ship, this night stands out. The reason it stands out is because of how BAD it was! I had the Snapper and am pretty sure that between everyone in the group we had ordered everything on the menu. Everyone agreed that it was the WORST MEAL of the cruise. Sachin was very concerned that we were not eating like usual. We tried to assure him that it wasnt his fault and there wasnt much he could do, it was just bad! Then came desert Tiramisu from Palo and it was disgusting no one thought we could ever look at another piece of Tiramisu again!
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Part 3
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Thursday At Sea
Sorry, do not remember much of Thursday. Probably spent most of the time on Deck 10 in the sun.
Palo Reservations was at 6pm. It was one of the best things during the cruise. Kristian was our server! He was EXCELLENT! Probably the best of any restaurant I have ever been to. He was extremely attentive and had some great recommendations. He brought out extra appetizers and pizzas to try among the group. After looking at the menu I was worried
that I would have to choose between Lobster and Filet. Kristian said I could order a special surf and turf, my words not his! That way I didnt have to choose 
Kristian also told one person in our party that he couldnt possibly let her order something off the menu, because I cant disappoint you, and that dish will disappoint. My appetizer was some type of tomato with leafy greens and cheese inside, mmm very good! For the main course a personal combination of surf and turf Lobster and Filet 
was probably the BEST meal EVER!!! My best guess is that we each had a meal worth about $150 at a 5 star restaurant for a $10pp fee plus tip!
We did have a small feeling that we were cheating on Sachin!
Then we ordered desert, but didnt get what we ordered!!! When Kristian returned he returned with 7 chocolate soufflés for everybody! He also brought out to the table one of each of the other deserts to try out. We were all a little scared to try Tiramisu because of what happened the night before, but it was EXCELLENT! Ten gold stars to Kristian and Palos!!!
I would recommend booking Palo reservations on either the Formal night or Semi-Formal night, or on the second or third night in Animators Palate. I would highly recommend going at least twice! It is WELL WORTH VERY CENT!
After dinner it was back to the cabin to change and relax after such a stuffing good time!
The Village was playing at 10:30 in the BVT . It was an odd movie and wasnt even remotely believable. A blind woman walking in the forest and finding her way back??? But none the less entertaining.
Friday Castaway Cay
Had to get up early because we all had early AM excursions booked. Cabana Massages at 10am and the rest of us booked the Wave runner Tour at 9:45am. We awoke at 8am to a dark overcast day with some rain.
By 9am all shore excursions were canceled, including the Wave Runner Tour .
Got off around 10am and it looked like the dark dark rain clouds were going around the island. (Later I actually saw some of the pictures at shutters that were taken outside the ship, and looked like nighttime!) Walked from the ship down past the family beach and down to Serenity Bay the beaches were pretty much deserted and it did not look like many people were getting off the ship. We got out to Serenity Bay and walked about haft way out, (if you look directly out you can see the small island) and pitched an umbrella. We sat with the sun and clouds breaking in and out, after about 20minitniues we noticed that the little island that was out in the water had disappeared, and everything had a very calm and surreal look. It was rain coming straight in from the ocean. Everyone that was out on the beach ran! We were drenched and probably ended up having more fun wet from rain
We waited for the rain to calm down and started to return to the ship we took the tram back to the teen/family beach stop. Noticed they were serving lunch still at Cookies so we stopped there to have lunch before going back to the ship. Was a mess!!! Everyone was under the picnic tables for cover and people were trying to eat. The ribs and chicken were very good though!
Back onboard by 12pm but not discouraged was determined to lay out on the beach at Castaway Cay and have some good hours of SUN!!! My fingers were crossed!
Here is where I think Disney fouled up a bit. We were not given a very good outlook on the weather conditions on the island. It is completely understandable that a daily forecast for the island isnt possible. But the ship has some pretty powerful radar and national dopplers would assist the crew in giving a possible outlook on possible rain thought the day. It would have been very nice if they had said we expect that were will be some weather moving in the morning and afternoon but it should clear you may wish to plan accordingly etc. etc But not announcement like that was ever made. Also I was back on board by 12pm and they STILL had not sent out new Navigators with updated activities on board the cruise director was just making announcements that they had decided to add new activities because of the poor weather. This should have been something that was done before we docked or much before 12pm
Anyway by 2pm the weather cleared up, and it was off to the Adult Beach, this time alone no one else was willing to venture off the ship a second time. I found myself a chair and was spend the next 2 hours basking in Mickeys Sun!!!
I might also add that I had my share of BUG BITES when I got home! Not sure if it was because of a bug problem on the island or if it was from the rain. A suggestion is to put some bug spray on!!!
The last night at dinner was so sad! We wanted to take our servers home with us they were all so special!
Overall:
Was the money spent on the vacation worth it? Yes and no. Overall we spent a LOT of money on this vacation (we did have 8 people!)
1. Staterooms, Crew, overall appearance of ship all get an A+ and make the price well worth it.
2. There is a very large gap in activities for the 18-24 age range. Unfortunately they are really out of place . Although from what I understand if you are in the lower end of this age group going to the Stack, isnt out of the question apparently they dont question those who may appear to be within the age group.
3. During the port days there are not many scheduled activities on board.
4. The BVT should have more titles showing and show them more often.
5. Topsiders schedule is very odd and never seemed to coincide when I was ready to eat. Sure you can get something quick at Plutos and Pinocchios but if your not in the mood for chicken fingers, hamburger, or pizza then your out of luck. Sure you can order room service but that usually takes up to an hour. Extending the hours of Topsiders would be very nice. Open from 7:00am-11:00am for Breakfast, then start to add lunch options at 11am and have a Brunch until 12:30 when all lunch options are offered until 3:30. Then start offing dinner between 5-9 So many other cruise lines have 24 hour buffet style restaurants.
6. Make at least 1 or more lounges on Beat Street non-smoking. I never went to the clubs at night. On the last night I was at guest services for a while and the smoke was almost overpowering in the lobby!
7. The WWTBAM show should be done a few more days during the cruise but they really need to find someone else to host!
We flew down to Florida in four groups on Friday night. , on person was on America West from Phoenix, 2 flew from Harrisburg on US Airways, 3 few from Allentown on Delta, and 2 on AirTran from Philadelphia. All the flights arrived on time, expect for the America West flight that had a one hour delay.
Check in at the Hyatt was easy and they were able to group the four rooms that we had booked very close to each other. 3 had balcony views of the airport atrium; the fourth had a view of north side of the runways/airport parking. If you like to watch aircraft take off/land, this is a great room. The rooms were OK; if we had paid the full daily rate for the rooms I think we may have been disappointed. However were able to secure AAA and Senior discounts on two of the rooms, and the Hyatt Lowest Price Guarantee on 2 other rooms so we paid a total of 490.00 for 4 rooms. If you bring a notebook, there is free wireless internet throughout the entire hotel.
Woke up around 6:30am on Saturday, we were out of the rooms and had our bags outside of the door by 8:00. We had some coffee and breakfast snack at Starbucks. Then we headed back up to the hotel lobby for check-in with the DCL reps at around 8:45. They have a conference room setup with a table and three reps that setup your transfers and assigned us to the Minnie Mouse bus. Then we went back out and sat in the lobby until 9:30 and as a group the cast members take you down to the waiting bus.
The drive to the port was quick, and everyone was filled with excitement and anticipation. We arrived around 10:30, as we went up the escalator and into the terminal building I thought the line was long (little did I know how long it would get later!) I really thought we were LATE getting to the port but I guess not. As you walk up to the check-in line they have two cast members at a table to pre-check documents, before you get in line. I personally thought it was a waste of time, and wish they would have allowed people to bypass this step. There are three separate lines, Non-residents; Castaway Club; and US Citizens. We were in the US Citizens line because nobody in our party has ever said on DCL before. However the Club line and US line end up in the same spot, and are directed to the counter by the same person. However there does not seem to be any consistency in the way they select who gets to go next. I think DCL should reserve 3 or 4 agents to check in only the Castaway Club members this way the line moves faster.
Check-in was painless and took about 20min from the time we entered the terminal until we were in-line waiting for embarkation. We inquired about possible upgrades, we were sent to the end of the check-in desk to talk to the Cast supervisor. Unfortunately there was nothing available. I did read in the Live from 10/9 thread that someone secured an upgrade they must have checked in before us.
Then terminal building was EXTREMELY HOT, not sure if it was a broken air-conditioner but it was very uncomfortable. We switched standing in the embarkation line to go outside to cool off! Outside it looked like the Magic was in need of some serious paint. A large portion of the white paint above the Disney Magic sign was chipped off. I think this could be attributed to the unusual itineraries the past few weeks.
We had our picture taken before we got on, and then had all of our names called out as we boarded the ship. That was one of the surprises that I did not share with anyone in the group that I learned from my time on the DIS Boards that everyone really enjoyed.
It is almost impossible to describe the beauty of the ship in words. Its almost as impossible to take it all in when you first step aboard. While waiting in line we divided up reservation assignments. Three of us would go to the spa for reservations and one would go to Palo then to Guest Services for additional room keys. Our dining rotation was PLAPLAP with second seating at 8:30. With the information I got here we decided that the second day at Animators would be the best day to go to Palo. We were the third or fourth in line at the spa waiting for reservations. The very nice lady that was first in line seems like she was very familure with the way things worked. Either she had cruised on Disney many times before or frequently visits these boards I was going to ask, but didnt. As a group we were able to book 4 Aroma stone massages on the first At Sea Day and other appointments too including Cabana Massages on Castaway Cay.
Palo reservations were set for 6 PM on Thursday, the second At Sea Day and the semi-formal night in the dining rooms everyone except my cousin would attend.
We were all exhausted after a long first haft of the day! If you have never done a Disney cruise before dont count on the first day as part of your vacation its pretty fast paced and not relaxing at all! It is though well worth it! We went up to topsiders for lunch and it was a MAD HOUSE!!!
After Topsiders we headed to check out the staterooms, luggage had already begun to arrive. The Category 4 is excellent; we had the queen bed split into two twin beds, so that the ceiling bed would not need to be pulled down. However if Disney develops new ships my first recommendation would be to move the Murphy bed from the end of the cabin (near the balcony door) to in-between the queen bed and the sofa. This way then the Murphy bed is pulled out it is still possible to get to the balcony. In the morning we had to put the bed up and the chair in front of the bed to keep it up and have access to the chest and balcony. Also this particular cabin was very prone to the dragging chair effect from Deck 9. During the day a constant ruble of chairs dragging across the deck could be heard. If this is something that might bother you dont book a room on Deck 8! Disney might want to investigate the possibility of additional sound proofing between this deck, and or adding some type of smooth sliding surface on the deck chairs.
I would also strongly recommend booking an AFT cabin if possible, Deck 8 is only one flight of steps to the drink station and Deck 7 that has balcony and inside cabins is only 2 decks away. Very nice in the morning or when you need to quench a thirst.
Room 2100 is close to the laundry room. Although I did not stay in this room I didnt hear any complaints from it being too noisy. However when I was down there I could smell the laundry room and if that might bother you this may be an area to avoid. Room 2600 is the same room, just on the opposite side of the ship. Both rooms are well appointed and very spacious.
The first night was in Parrot Cay and was very nice. We met our servers Sachin and Dobrinka! They were absolutely fantastic! Our head server was Simon and he was very engaging and made a point to visit very table each night. I would highly recommend Sachin or Dobrinka, however Sachin said he was on the second to last week of his contract and would be returning home to India. I really hope he will be back so the next time we are on the Magic he will be there. They were a special group of people that went out of their way to make sure we had a great time at dinner. They had their own version of the excellent speech however it wasnt annoying or obnoxious. I do not remember specifically what I had for dinner however the chilled mango soup does stand out!
The 8:30 dinner seating is late. Maybe if you are from the west cost or are very very late eaters on the east cost this might not bother you. However most in the group noticed that by 6pm we were all hungry and it was still more than 2 hours before dinner. Dinner never usually rapped up until after 10p.m.! A suggestion would be to move the dinners from 6:30 and 8:30 to 5:30 and 7:30.
After that it was basically right to bed and crash it had been and extremely long day!
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Part 2
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Sunday Key West
Was up and about around 11am on Sunday It is very nice the ship is not in Key West until 12 it allows everyone to sleep in! Having the split bath is very useful so there is never a time when you cant use the bathroom
Headed up Topsiders for lunch before heading ashore at 11, we were a little early and had to wait until 11:30
We had made reservations for the Conch Train Tour via DCL. We met in Rockin Bar D and to say the least, the CMs were happy to be back at KW! According to them the first time in over 2 months!
The train tour was informative, our tour operator pointed out a lot of the key spots. However a large portion of the time was pointing out houses and trees?! The hour tour could have been easily done in 20min and got very boring towards the end.
After the train ride we walked Duval Street and picked up some souvenirs. We were back on board by 4pm and more than 4 hours before dinner!
A quick shower and change then headed up to the WDT to watch WWTBAM, a young kid won a 7 night cruise! Was a blast to see some of them get up there and answerer the questions. I wish they did this show more often during the cruise.
Dinner was in Lumiers and we watched the ship pull off from Key West. I went up to the top deck and watched us do 360 turn, amazing. After that I think I hit the internet café in Promenade Lounge then a quick stop in Beat Street, but the thick cloud of smoke got to me and I went to bed!
Monday At Sea
Was up bright and early Monday for the Aromastone Therapy massage and had Nina (SP?) from South Africa. It was my first massage and she was very nice and put me at ease very well. She offered some of the products that she used but did not push. After that I was basically putty and went back to the room and was in a coma for hours!
The Golden Mickeys was put together very well. We went to the matinee showing. The blue hair kid during the red carpet arrivals said it was his 5th cruise, and then there was a slight gasp in the theater.
Rona Rivers needs to add some life to pre-show. After that it was Bingo in the Rockin Bar D. No one won the big jackpot and $70 gone. Anyone else besides me think that $30 a card is a little steep for Bingo? Dinner was in Animators Palate and it was Formal Night. Just as a reminder if you have a large group and want pictures, go to the Mickey Statue on Deck 3 mid-ship. I found it very odd that on a Formal night the normal Evening Rotational Dining Menu is offered instead of a formal dinner menu.
After dinner headed up to The Buena Vista Theater to watch The Alamo. Good movie then it was off to bed.
Tuesday Costa Maya
We had scheduled the Sting Ray City tour for Grand Cayman and we were all looking forward to it, but unfortunately the damage to the island was sever from Hurricane Ivan. We did not plan any excursions. Got off the ship and headed into the shopping area. The shopping was ok, however it is not for the faint at heart. The sales people are very pushy and everyone wants their turn really once you have been in 2 or 3 stores they all basically have the same things. I think we were back on the ship by 12pm. Went to Topsiders for lunch, then down to deck 7 for some sun.
After the sun went down to deck 5 to watch Finding Nemo the first time I have seen the movie. The kids club came in, but most were well behaved.
As we were pulling off from the dock a small plane buzzed the ships port side (if you are standing looking out from the aft overlook) This raised a big question in my mind in regards to safety. How in the world does the cruise line industry prepare for the possibility of a aircraft to ship attack? If this idiot that buzzed us hit the ship out at sea what might possibly happen? Was just a little unsettling.
The Hercules show was on tonight but missed it. Dinner in Parrot Cay with the Around the World menu. Then King Arthur at 11pm another good movie although I thought it was very similar to The Alamo.
Wednesday Cozumel
I awoke to the view of Carnivals ship on the other side of the port. However there were some pretty nasty storm clouds behind the ship. We had the Kayaking Adventure scheduled but decided not to go for fear of the possibility of the storm getting worse. We did however venture outside the ship and into the shopping district. We saw Sachin on our way off the pier. I counted dozens of Diamond International stores; the locals were not as pushy in Cozumel as they were in Costa Maya. However if you ventured off into the secondary streets they were MUCH MUCH worse!!! BE AWARE!
After walking Cozumel the storms looked like they had cleared, we headed back to the ship. Ladder 49 was showing in the Walt Disney Theatre at 5:15pm and 7:45pm. I wish they would have added this to the showing in the Buena Vista Theatre as well. Personally I did not like the movie a little too far fetched. The effects were over-blown to the point that it wasnt believable.
Dinner was Lumiers with the Pirates in the Caribbean theme. Although I dont remember much of what we ordered most night on the ship, this night stands out. The reason it stands out is because of how BAD it was! I had the Snapper and am pretty sure that between everyone in the group we had ordered everything on the menu. Everyone agreed that it was the WORST MEAL of the cruise. Sachin was very concerned that we were not eating like usual. We tried to assure him that it wasnt his fault and there wasnt much he could do, it was just bad! Then came desert Tiramisu from Palo and it was disgusting no one thought we could ever look at another piece of Tiramisu again!
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Part 3
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Thursday At Sea
Sorry, do not remember much of Thursday. Probably spent most of the time on Deck 10 in the sun.
Palo Reservations was at 6pm. It was one of the best things during the cruise. Kristian was our server! He was EXCELLENT! Probably the best of any restaurant I have ever been to. He was extremely attentive and had some great recommendations. He brought out extra appetizers and pizzas to try among the group. After looking at the menu I was worried
that I would have to choose between Lobster and Filet. Kristian said I could order a special surf and turf, my words not his! That way I didnt have to choose Kristian also told one person in our party that he couldnt possibly let her order something off the menu, because I cant disappoint you, and that dish will disappoint. My appetizer was some type of tomato with leafy greens and cheese inside, mmm very good! For the main course a personal combination of surf and turf Lobster and Filet was probably the BEST meal EVER!!! My best guess is that we each had a meal worth about $150 at a 5 star restaurant for a $10pp fee plus tip!We did have a small feeling that we were cheating on Sachin!
Then we ordered desert, but didnt get what we ordered!!! When Kristian returned he returned with 7 chocolate soufflés for everybody! He also brought out to the table one of each of the other deserts to try out. We were all a little scared to try Tiramisu because of what happened the night before, but it was EXCELLENT! Ten gold stars to Kristian and Palos!!!
I would recommend booking Palo reservations on either the Formal night or Semi-Formal night, or on the second or third night in Animators Palate. I would highly recommend going at least twice! It is WELL WORTH VERY CENT!
After dinner it was back to the cabin to change and relax after such a stuffing good time!
The Village was playing at 10:30 in the BVT . It was an odd movie and wasnt even remotely believable. A blind woman walking in the forest and finding her way back??? But none the less entertaining.
Friday Castaway Cay
Had to get up early because we all had early AM excursions booked. Cabana Massages at 10am and the rest of us booked the Wave runner Tour at 9:45am. We awoke at 8am to a dark overcast day with some rain.
By 9am all shore excursions were canceled, including the Wave Runner Tour .
Got off around 10am and it looked like the dark dark rain clouds were going around the island. (Later I actually saw some of the pictures at shutters that were taken outside the ship, and looked like nighttime!) Walked from the ship down past the family beach and down to Serenity Bay the beaches were pretty much deserted and it did not look like many people were getting off the ship. We got out to Serenity Bay and walked about haft way out, (if you look directly out you can see the small island) and pitched an umbrella. We sat with the sun and clouds breaking in and out, after about 20minitniues we noticed that the little island that was out in the water had disappeared, and everything had a very calm and surreal look. It was rain coming straight in from the ocean. Everyone that was out on the beach ran! We were drenched and probably ended up having more fun wet from rain
We waited for the rain to calm down and started to return to the ship we took the tram back to the teen/family beach stop. Noticed they were serving lunch still at Cookies so we stopped there to have lunch before going back to the ship. Was a mess!!! Everyone was under the picnic tables for cover and people were trying to eat. The ribs and chicken were very good though!
Back onboard by 12pm but not discouraged was determined to lay out on the beach at Castaway Cay and have some good hours of SUN!!! My fingers were crossed!
Here is where I think Disney fouled up a bit. We were not given a very good outlook on the weather conditions on the island. It is completely understandable that a daily forecast for the island isnt possible. But the ship has some pretty powerful radar and national dopplers would assist the crew in giving a possible outlook on possible rain thought the day. It would have been very nice if they had said we expect that were will be some weather moving in the morning and afternoon but it should clear you may wish to plan accordingly etc. etc But not announcement like that was ever made. Also I was back on board by 12pm and they STILL had not sent out new Navigators with updated activities on board the cruise director was just making announcements that they had decided to add new activities because of the poor weather. This should have been something that was done before we docked or much before 12pm
Anyway by 2pm the weather cleared up, and it was off to the Adult Beach, this time alone no one else was willing to venture off the ship a second time. I found myself a chair and was spend the next 2 hours basking in Mickeys Sun!!!
I might also add that I had my share of BUG BITES when I got home! Not sure if it was because of a bug problem on the island or if it was from the rain. A suggestion is to put some bug spray on!!!
The last night at dinner was so sad! We wanted to take our servers home with us they were all so special!
Overall:
Was the money spent on the vacation worth it? Yes and no. Overall we spent a LOT of money on this vacation (we did have 8 people!)
1. Staterooms, Crew, overall appearance of ship all get an A+ and make the price well worth it.
2. There is a very large gap in activities for the 18-24 age range. Unfortunately they are really out of place . Although from what I understand if you are in the lower end of this age group going to the Stack, isnt out of the question apparently they dont question those who may appear to be within the age group.
3. During the port days there are not many scheduled activities on board.
4. The BVT should have more titles showing and show them more often.
5. Topsiders schedule is very odd and never seemed to coincide when I was ready to eat. Sure you can get something quick at Plutos and Pinocchios but if your not in the mood for chicken fingers, hamburger, or pizza then your out of luck. Sure you can order room service but that usually takes up to an hour. Extending the hours of Topsiders would be very nice. Open from 7:00am-11:00am for Breakfast, then start to add lunch options at 11am and have a Brunch until 12:30 when all lunch options are offered until 3:30. Then start offing dinner between 5-9 So many other cruise lines have 24 hour buffet style restaurants.
6. Make at least 1 or more lounges on Beat Street non-smoking. I never went to the clubs at night. On the last night I was at guest services for a while and the smoke was almost overpowering in the lobby!
7. The WWTBAM show should be done a few more days during the cruise but they really need to find someone else to host!
