1st timer - anything I should know??

[Kpapiez]

Hi all!
My family (DH, DS 7 and DS 4) and my best friends family (DD5) are going on our first cruise next month! We're WDW veterans but this cruise will be new for everyone.

My husband and I are the only ones traveling with passports. My kids and the other family will have birth certificates only. Opinions??

We fly into MCO and have a transfer scheduled with happy limos to our hotel, the international palms,in coco beach.
We stay there 2 nights until our ship leaves. Anyone ever stayed there? We booked through Hotwire for the first time. I hope it's ok! Planning on taking a cab to the port.

We're on the magic for a 3 night Bahama cruise. No big plans for Nassau, besides getting a drink at Senor Frogs Castaway cay will be our beach day. Is there recommendations? Things we should know?

Then when we come back, we have another transfer scheduled to take us to POP and we will have the arrival day to hang out (no park tickets) and then 1 day in MK before we leave.

Any advice, opinions, comments are extremely welcome!!

Thanks so much!

 

[PrincessShmoo]

Hi all!
My family (DH, DS 7 and DS 4) and my best friends family (DD5) are going on our first cruise next month! We're WDW veterans but this cruise will be new for everyone.

My husband and I are the only ones traveling with passports. My kids and the other family will have birth certificates only. Opinions??

We fly into MCO and have a transfer scheduled with happy limos to our hotel, the international palms,in coco beach.
We stay there 2 nights until our ship leaves. Anyone ever stayed there? We booked through Hotwire for the first time. I hope it's ok! Planning on taking a cab to the port.

We're on the magic for a 3 night Bahama cruise. No big plans for Nassau, besides getting a drink at Senor Frogs Castaway cay will be our beach day. Is there recommendations? Things we should know?

Then when we come back, we have another transfer scheduled to take us to POP and we will have the arrival day to hang out (no park tickets) and then 1 day in MK before we leave.

Any advice, opinions, comments are extremely welcome!!

Thanks so much!

My thoughts/opinions:
I'm a firm believer in Passports. While the risk of actually having to leave the ship and fly home from a foreign port is slim, it's still there. You have to have a passport to fly from a foreign country back to the US. Yes, you can get an emergency passport, if the need arises, but that could take up to a day or two added on top of whatever stress you are already going through if you must leave the ship.

3 night cruises are too short me. You barely get on the ship before you have to pack up to leave. In reality you only have 2 days onboard.

But, any cruise is better than none. Have a Magical trip.

 

[TestingH2O]

I'm a firm believer in Passports.

We traveled with passports for my peace of mind. That being said, considering I live in a state where my drivers license will not be accepted as valid ID soon, I think having a passport is going to become more important. I actually wonder if the cruise lines will start to change their policies about proper documentation.

http://www.dhs.gov/real-id-public-faqs

 

[Weedy]

You will receive a Navigator (newsletter) the day you board and each evening in your cabin. Take time to read this everyday. It will list all the events happening.
**on the day you board it will list where to pick up tickets for any special events such as Princess and Frozen meet and greets. These events will be listed on the front right of the Navigator. You need to get these as soon as you board becase they do book up.






Here is a link that shows past Navigators so you can get an idea of what to look for: http://disneycruiselineblog.com/personal-navigators/

 

[Pooh2]

Sounds like wonderful getaway! Enjoy!