2/01/03 Western

[Gina]

Originally posted by akterrye
Pre-cruise Dis meet: At the Radisson by the pool (or Gina's room! HA!).

ROFL!!! Yep, the conga line starts at my room...

Sail-away Dis meet: So far, the suggestions are Deck 10 above Goofy's pool or Deck 7 *secret* veranda. How big is the veranda, anyway? Since we have approximately 18 families going, will there be enough room? Also, what time would work for everyone? We sail at 5pm and early dinner is when?

I have no idea what time early dinner is -- I barely make it to late on time. LOL! As far as the sailaway party goes, I don't think any of us want to miss the action... my vote is for deck 10, right over the party but out of the crowd. Better to blow bubbles from there, too. The deck 7 veranda isn't huge, but I don't think there will be 18 families at any given meet... I bet it would work out just fine for a mid-cruise get-together to just relax and chat.

If we fill up the 11:15 Capt. Marvin's will they pick us up at the dock where we tender in?

Hey, how cool would that be??

-gina-

 

[BABYJOSIE98]

Gina,

We have the early dinner and our documents from the TA it says 6:00. I have heard they may have changed it to 5:30 but don't know that for sure. I hope not. 6:00 would be ok cause DH and I don't like to eat a bunch late and I know they will feed us good!!

If they do move the first seating to earlier than 6:00 I may just consider changing to Late seating. So many decisions to make!!

I will probably be the only one from my group to meet with you all.
DH won't get into all that and the kiddo will be in the clubs or with Daddy!!! It will be my time to meet with all of you and like you said........Relax and chat!!!! Just let me know when and where??????

I do hope that Capt Marv's picks us up at the dock! I bet we will fill that 11:15 time. Wonder how many they take out???

 

[BABYJOSIE98]

Hey ya'll

Called my TA and she said DCL had moved dining times up anywhere from 30 to 45 minutes. That would mean that we may have to be ready for dinner by 5:15 That is just too much pressure!! She told me the late dinner was 7:45-8:00. That sounded much better to me and so I asked her to change us to the late seating. She took care of it and we are changed!!! I feel much better now. TA said DCL does not have a problem changing me to late. Seem's like the first seating fills up so fast??????

So past cruisers Do you guys think this was a smart move??? I thought maybe some nights I could put DD in the clubs for dinner and DH and I could have a couple nights for dinner alone.

 

[disneygal58]

That's much better! And better for those of us who held late seating, but did not necessarily want to eat at 8:30 - 9:00p.m.
Of course, a benefit to late seating is that you enjoy the second breakfast on the day of disembarkation (I know NO ONE wants to think about that day, yet.....)

Counting, counting to Castaway Cay
Dawn Hope

 

[Cyberkashi]

We were on the 7/27/02 Eastern and had late seating. It was good, but you do miss some one-time events in the family nightclub that start at 7:15. Late seating began at 7:45.

When I booked the 2/1/03 cruise yesterday, I also selected late seating but was told that DCL has not decided whether to keep the new seating times--which are still in an experimental stage.

I was told that "officially" the late seating for our cruise is 8:30.

Late is better in any case because there are lots of options for treats/snacking in the afternoon (high tea, ice cream, pizza, Topsiders buffet) but not so much as the evening wears on. If you are dancing at 11PM and get the munchies, your only option is room service. DCL serves a light pizza snack in the night club areas between 10:30-11:00 but they do not have the "midnight buffet" that so many cruise ships are famous for. I do believe they had a midnight dessert buffet one night of the cruise but we didn't go.

 

[Cyberkashi]

We had some challenges with our dining assignments last cruise (wrong seating--had to be changed, dining companions who didn't speak English). It was worked out in the end, but I am wondering if there are one or two other small families (3-4) with kids (preferably girls) aged 4-8 who would like to share a table at late seating.

Our family is three. My DD will be 6 when we sail. She is well mannered and a night owl. We picked her up in the Oceaneer's club every night at closing time. But we ate our meals as a family.

Anyone want to join our table? I would be happy to put in a seating request. We could request that all the DIS tables be be nearby if there is any interest. That would make for really great dinner interaction.

Email me at JBorman@Comcast.net if you are interested or have any questions.

 

[akterrye]

Posted by mmouse37 on another thread...

According to my 8/3 Western cruise Navigators, the Castaway Club Reception was held on Monday (sea day) from 4:00 pm to 4:45 pm.

Well, there goes having high tea on monday! Sheesh! BACK to thursday, I guess.

BABYJOSIE98: My family LOVES late seating...if we had early seating, it would be more like lunch with the time change. There were a couple of times my son wanted to eat with the clubs, so we let him. I later found out that when they took them to dinner, all he would fill his plate with was fruit. LOL That was ok by me! I guess it has something to do with the quality of fruits we get way up here. I'll bet you and hubby will get at least one night of kid free dining...ah, luxury!

I'm thinking deck 10 would be a good place for our DIS meet...something about blowing bubbles just wins me over! Plus, it would be closer to the drinks and the music! But, far enough away from the hectic action where we could actually communicate.

I was wondering if we've lost some of our other cruisers, like DVCBob, bcburgner, and some of the other early posters? Anyone hear from them? *feeling quilty - did I hijack their thread?!*

 

[Gina]

Originally posted by Cyberkashi
Our family is three. My DD will be 6 when we sail. She is well mannered and a night owl. We picked her up in the Oceaneer's club every night at closing time. But we ate our meals as a family.

Anyone want to join our table? I would be happy to put in a seating request. We could request that all the DIS tables be be nearby if there is any interest. That would make for really great dinner interaction.

I would love that!! My DS is 6, it's just he and I, and we're both nightowls too. Every time I'd pick him from the OC at closing time, all the other kids would be sacked out and he'd still be going strong. Then we'd go have chocolate milk and cookies on our veranda and watch the stars. Oh MAN I can't wait to be back!!!!

Oh, sorry, we were talking about dinner, weren't we? We'd love to join you at a dinner table!

-gina-

 

[Cyberkashi]

Gina,

We'd be pleased to have you and your son join us. I presume that you have late seating? Please email me with your full name and cabin number and I will contact DCL.

Anyone else want to join us?

JBorman@Comcast.net

 

[BABYJOSIE98]

So my TA did not change anything yet?? So you guys sound like you think the late seating is better anyway??? Chances are if it works out they will move the times up. 7:45 would be great for dinner. I am supposed to call her back today and let her know if I want to change seating times.

Cyberkashi,

It sure would be fun to be at your table. It would be like we were with people we knew after talking on these boards. Our DD will be almost 5 when we go on the cruise!!! That would be perfect. Ya know what?????? Just count us in and I will call and change to late seating.

Sounds like early interfere's with your day. Our little one is like the energizer bunny. She just keeps going and going.......... So she won't have a problem with late seating.

Do you feel really stuffed after dinner???? If we have late seating then do we go to the shows before dinner???
I am a newbie at this cruise stuff.

By the way I am still up for High tea for whatever day we set it up.

 

[Cyberkashi]

There are two showings of each major production. If you want to see the show, you go before dinner--uaually around 6PM.

You can feel very full after dinner. There are only three courses: appetizer, main, and dessert. They don't have the soup/salad and cheese course of other cruises, but you can order more than one of an item.

I usually order two appetizers or an appetizer and a salad. Even if the salad is not on the menu they can usually provide one. I didn't see anyone order two entrees but I guess you could do that. Two desserts is very common. Sometimes it is hard to choose. The portions are not enourmous so like most restaurants, depending on your appeptite and what you order you can leave the table full or wanting a little more.

I don't eat red meat/pork so I usually order fish or vegetarian. Those tend to be less filling so I suppliment with an extra appetizer--which are often better than the entrees. As an aside, the universal comment I heard was that the beef/steaks were over-cooked and not that good.

We found that yes, early seating does interfer with your day--if like us you are night owls. We did not get up at 6am to go snorkeling. We stayed up late and started our day leisurely. If you have an afternoon snack or go to Palos tea (haven't been but am dying to try) you are going to have a hard time enjoying a 5:30 or 6:30 dinner.

Also, we found others leaving the islands early to rush back to the ship to get ready for dinner while we had more time to relax, shop, etc.

I got your email BABYJOSIE98 and one from GINA and will contact DCL today to request a table together.

 

[BABYJOSIE98]

Sounds good!! We are not ones to stay up really late,but I think that we can handle eating at 8:30. We will have to wait and see if they change dinner to an earlier time.

I just won't let myself get too stuffed during dinner. I really want to enjoy my days on and off the ship. This would give us some extra time.

Cyberkashi,

Did you see that we are trying to get a group together for "High Tea" at Palo's??? That will be fun. I did notice the times were 3:30 to 5:30 and I was thinking that was cuting it close for an early dinner seating.

Does your 5 year old like the clubs. How much time did she spend there on your cruise. I have a feeling our DD will love them. She is very interactive and loves to play!!

 

[Cyberkashi]

I would love the join the high tea. We should get the 3:30 if possible so it doesn't interfer with dinner. We each need to make our reservations for that separateley when we get on the ship so some of us may get and some may not. They don't take advance reservations at Palo or the Spa.

My DD LOVED the club. She calls it the "Kid's Night Club". She would have stayed in there the whole trip if we let her. We tried to have a family night one evening and she kept complaining she wanted to go back to the club. Dancing and singing on deck weren't "fun" enough.

 

[Cyberkashi]

BABYJOSIE98, I got your reservation linked with ours, but they still show you as early seating. DCL says to call your travel agent and have them switch you to late seating.

I requested what I think is the best rotation LAPLAPL (explained below) and they put that on the reservation. It is not guaranteed, but they usually do honor those requests. In case you didn't know, there are three main restaurants (plus the buffet where you can go anytime). Each night you are in a different restaurant--then the rotation repeats. I think that Lumiere's (L) has the best food and nicest surroundings so I chose the LAPLAPL rotation so that we would be in that restaurant 3x.

GINA...you are all set. Your reservation is also linked with ours and have requested that you be seated at our table. This should be fun!

 

[BABYJOSIE98]

Gina,Cyberkashi,

TA took care of changing my dining times to late! So we are set.


I talked to some girls at work and they all said they had the late seating on their cruises and loved it. I think it was a good move.

My TA says the time we have will probably stick cause people will think 5:30 is too early to get ready and make it to dinner???

I our family is the only first time cruisers on this thread!! Glad you are all so helpful!!

Thanks again......

 

[Cyberkashi]

Okay, I arrived late and skimmed the thread the first time. I reread it and have a few comments (big surprise as the newest blabbermouth on the board).

TERRYE: Are you still booked on the 8:30 Capt Marv or did you switch to 11:15? I was also thinking about the longer trip, but the ship often didn't clear customs each port until 8:30-9:00. You would have to get off the ship by 7:45 to make an 8:30 reservation and might not be permitted to do so. (I am talking myself into the 11:15). I think that we should talk to him about picking us up at the ship if there are so many of us going. We also want to be sure we are on the same boat (does he have more than one?) Maybe you could get a roll call on that. I would be happy to email him and ask.

SAIL-AWAY PARTY: The deck above the Goofy pool is possible for a "private party" but is still really loud and crowded. We blew bubbles from the sports deck (deck 10) on our cruise. It is in the front of the ship, the view is perfect (open sea ahead), and it is less crowded and less noisy than midship. It is also a little easier to get a railing view. We could order a box of bubble necklaces (we use them for party favors all the time) from Oriental Trading ($5/dozen) and hand them out to our group.
http://www.oriental.com/webapp/comm...1&PREFIX=IN&CURRENCY=USD&KIT=I&GROUP=N&CASE=0

BABYJOSIE98: You mentioned about taking Josie to tea with you if you are unable to hook up with the rest of the group. The tea is in Palos's which is Adult's Only all the time. Sorry.

HIGH TEA: It seems from the posts that they are moving the Castaway reception around depending on the week. Maybe someone (TERRYE any volunteers?) can contact DCL a couple of weeks before and try and get the advance schedule. BTW...I read on other message strings that many people sign up for tea and then don't go. It may be possible to go to tea even if you can't get a reservation just by showing up. No guarantees though.

T-SHIRTS: I did some quick checking and think that we could get some great custom designed T-Shirts with 2-3 color design for under $20 (less for less colors). I would be willing to put together a design and coordinate if there is any interest. T-Shirts are available (depending on the site) in youth XS-adult 3X. We would need about 24 orders for that price range. More might make it less--less might make it more. I don't think I would select lime green as a shirt color though--something we would not be embarrassed to wear after the cruise!

GINA: I love the color-coded packing. My DH thought I was anal because I listed the contents of each suitcase (all 6 of them). It came in REALLY handy. But color-coding would be even better.

PRE-PAYNG EXPENSES: Disney Dollars are okay, but you can't use them on the islands in non-disney locations. For cash, I have a little zipper pouch where I try to stash $20/week--sometime a few dollars here and there after breaking a larger bill. I also "over-payed" my American Express bill before we left. I hate coming back from vacation with credit card dept, but the credit card gives you the best protection on purchases should something go wrong. So I pre-pay the bill as much as I can. If I don't spend it on the trip (yeah..right) it will get used up the next month during our normal spending.

...I think I am now caught up with the earlier posts. Whew...

 

[cruisinpenguin]

Hi Everyone!! My company does imprinted promotional products and wearables....such as T-shirts, Caps, etc. I'll check on prices on doing T-shirts if you like our minimum order is 12 pieces. Get back to you on prices.
Laurie

 

[Gina]

My parents tried to book the room that I got for $99 but the special was gone(visit florida special) so they were only able to get a standard room as well.

Hey Felicia --

Don't know if your parents are still interested in the suite, but the $99 special is showing up again for that night at the Radisson website! You might want to go check it out right quick!

-gina-

 

[sitchu2]

Thanks Gina,

Dad is at the Raddison site now looking!!

 

[Cyberkashi]

Thanks Gina!!!! I read your post and upgraded our $99/night Raddison "Holiday Inn" room to a 2-king Bed suite. Sweet.


Laurie...Do they have the nice heavier weight T's? That's the one I got the quote on. Do they have the full range of sizes? I don't think it would be hard to put an order together for 12. We'd buy at least three. What about custom designs and number of colors? I have some ideas I could put together in Photoshop and put up on the board for feedback.