allears
"If I were not upon the sea..." I'd want to be!
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- Jul 20, 2002
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This is a long over due report on our February 1st, Western Caribbean cruise onboard the Disney Magic. Be warned, this will probably be long as there is a lot to report on. Also this disclaimer, we truly enjoy most anything Disney, especially the cruise line, so you wont hear much in the way of criticism here. We tend to have very high expectations of our Disney experiences, but they tend to be fairly realistic, and they have always been met.
Im going to try and break this up into themed sections, but dont hold me to it, I may end up just rambling.
First, the cast; we are a family of five, me (dh) 41, dw, 39, dd, 15, ds, 12 and ds 6. Our very first cruise experience was on the Disney Wonder on a four night cruise in 2000. We were hooked and in 2002 we took our first 7night trip on the Magic. Now were addicted. This was our third cruise, 2nd on the Magic. We have come to the conclusion that this is our perfect vacation and one of the best family vacation experiences we can imagine. We will soon be booking a trip for next year.
We booked this trip last spring, and very much looked forward to it. We were in WDW in December, so right after returning from that trip, planning for this one because the focus. For us planning is a big part of the fun, it serves to heighten the anticipation. Our table mates from last year gave us some of the web sites they used to get information, one being these boards. We fast became frequent surfers of the discussion board and have found all of the information extremely helpful.
The down side to the anticipation is the possible disappointment should something go wrong. Two weeks before we were supposed to leave, dw had a same day surgical procedure to remove a kidney stone. The procedure went well, but shortly after a follow up procedure she developed a fairly severe kidney infection. She is also a diabetic, which only made the problem that much more serious. The Monday before our trip she was admitted to the hospital. This became a roller coaster ride of the worst kind. At one point they talked about a couple of additional procedures that might be needed to unblock her kidney. Thanks to the power of prayer, and we had lots of it going, it was determined that her kidney function was returning to normal. But they still wanted to make sure the infection was being knocked out. It was not until Friday afternoon when she was released with the drs blessing to go that we were sure we were going to make it.
There and back; We left our house on Saturday morning at 5 am for a 7 am flight. It was cold and rainy here in southern New Jersey. I had used US Airs new on line check in to do just that and obtain our boarding passes. Pretty cool and it worked great. The flight was on time and we arrived in Orlando just after 9. One of our favorite parts of the trip is finding the DCL rep in the terminal and being led away to the buses.
While waiting for our bus we heard the incredibly tragic news about the space shuttle Columbia. I had been following this flight a little bit, and we had hoped to possibly catch a glimpse of its landing at Cape Canaveral. News was still very sketchy, but after a couple of calls to folks at home, it didnt sound good.
Soon we were at the port. I really like the fact that the security check in is done before you go into the terminal. Certainly speeds up boarding. We checked in quickly, and waited in line. I think we were in line for about 45 minutes, if that. They started boarding at 12. This process is so fast and easy. So is debarkation.
The nation had stepped up to high alert by the time we returned to Florida. That meant no airport check in at the terminal, which is a bummer. I really love the convienence of that. However, things still ran very smoothly. A porter met us as we got off the escalator. We quickly found all of our luggage (we travel pretty heavily), a quick breeze through customs and we were taken out to the buses. We got right on, our luggage was loaded on the bus. Off to the airport. Once there we secured the services of another porter and into the terminal. US Air had a ticket counter right down stairs so we didnt have to have the luggage hauled upstairs. No line either. A quick note to future travelers. Since the new security measures have gone into place at the airports, all checked luggage is x-rayed by powerful machines. It wasnt until that morning they mentioned not putting film in your checked baggage. It was too late, I couldnt begin to remember which suit case I had thrown my used rolls of film in and I wasnt even sure how many there were. The good news is the film wasnt ruined, however, some of the photos have come out grainy. So make sure you keep your film with you. The regular machines dont hurt the film as long as it is under 800 speed.
The ship: I have always been fascinated by the ocean liners of the past. Disney has done an incredible job at capturing the grace and majesty of those beautiful ships. The Disney ships are elegant, classy and yet warm and inviting. We truly feel very much at home onboard. I think they are also very well laid out and pretty easy to get around on. The ship is only 5 years old, so you would expect it to be in great shape. And despite the constant use she does look good.
We have always booked a category 4 deluxe family stateroom with veranda . Since that was our first type of stateroom, we got hooked on the veranda. We find the room to be plenty big enough for the five of us, and the spilt bath is awesome, especially with a teenage girl. We are always able to unpack and store the suitcases out of the way. We were on the port side, just a couple of doors from the aft elevators. We loved this location, very convenient to the pool deck, Topsiders and the drink station.
Once on board we made reservations for brunch and dinner at Palos. Alas high tea was already filled. On the eastern itinerary you have a third sea day, which gives you a better chance of snagging a reservation for high tea. We also made a change to our dining arrangements. Last year our server was John from Scotland. My kids, especially my youngest son fell in love with him, and have kept in touch with him all year. He is now a Head Server. We requested to be seated in his area through our travel agent, but that isnt always fool proof. So I went to Sessions and had them check. The request had not been fulfilled, but they immediately made the change for us. We were on late seating and wanted to keep that. Plus our table mates from last year were also sailing this week and we had linked our reservations in order to sit together again. DCL made the change for them as well. We kept our seating time, but our rotation changed, which didnt bother us in the least, however, we ended up with a rotation we liked better. Formal nights in Lumieres and Mexicalifragilisticexpialidosious Night in Parrot Cay.
Off we then went to lunch. Embarkation lunch is awesome, dont miss it. We went to Parrot Cay this year, since we had done lunch at Topsiders last year. Parrot Cay is much bigger and I found it easier to get around in. But at Topsiders you can eat on deck. It was a bright sunny day, but a little breezy. So again we opted for lunch indoors.
This seems to be a good place to talk about the meals. This was the first week for all new menus in all of the restaurants. Now, we hadnt become overly familiar or bored with the old menus, but it is good to see DCL trying to keep things fresh and new, especially for repeat cruisers. There were 800 of us on that cruise. We thoroughly enjoyed each and every meal. There were great and varied selections each night. And everything was prepared to perfection. Along with John as head server, our serving team was Adrian from England and his assistant Joyce from St. Vincent. They were awesome.
One of the things we like about late seating is the ability you have to linger over your meal, spending time with your family and friends as well as your serving team. Im pretty sure we were close to one of the last parties to leave the dining rooms every night. Both Adrian and Joyce made us feel welcome and relaxed. And visiting with John again was one of the major highlights for my youngest son.
On Sunday, DW and I had brunch at Palos. A not to be missed experience! Man alive what an incredible selection of good food. Gabrielle from Brazil was our server and she was a lot of fun. Brunch time is a great time to be in Palos because it is day time and you can really appreciate the beautiful view from the wall of windows. We were seated just about smack in the middle of the restaurant at the window. While we ate we enjoyed watching us sail into and dock at Key West.
We had dinner at Palos on Tuesday evening. Wow, what a meal. Dinner in the main dining rooms is always excellent, but dinner at Palo is beyond awesome. Dalibor was our server, and he was a hoot. Simply an outstanding meal and the chocolate soufflé is to die for.
All of us took full advantage of the fast food on deck pretty much every day. Since we didnt have dinner until late an afternoon snack was a must. The chicken tenders are a big hit with our family. And of course ice cream was a daily staple. We also really enjoyed breakfast at Topsiders. Sometimes one of us would bring food to the room and wed eat on the veranda, but most mornings wed eat on deck. There is nothing quite like starting your morning off with a great breakfast overlooking the ocean. A quick note, all of that week the buffets, brunch and the drink station were being served by crew members. Only on Friday did we serve ourselves at breakfast.
On Thursday Topsiders and Parrot Cay offer the seafood buffet in addition to their regular offerings. Big yum here! Dont miss this if you like seafood. I think theyre shrimp is prepared to perfection. Not over- cooked or under-cooked.
One of our favorite nights was Thursday, the semi-formal night. This was special because of our DD and DS (6). DS dressed in a Mickey tux that we bought him for Halloween. It is an adorable replica of Mickeys tails and red pants. Shortly after we got that for him (at an outlet for real cheap) DD saw the Minnie dress in the Disney catalog (not so really cheap). However, she said if we bought it for her she would go trick or treating with her brother and would wear the dress on the ship. Well she was more than true to here word. They looked soooo cute. And when we had their picture taken with Mickey and Minnie that night, the fuss Mickey and Minnie made was worth the price of the cruise. They also caused quite the stir at the table. It was a magical evening.
Weather: We have been experiencing one of the coldest winters in recent memory in NJ. We had gone several weeks without getting above the freezing mark, most of the time not coming within 10 degrees of it. My wife and I actually like the cold weather and winter is one of our favorite seasons. But we were ready for some warmth and sunshine though, after the two weeks leading up to departure. We couldnt have cared less if it rained as long as we were away and on the ship. But the Lord and the sun smiled on us. It was spectacular all week. The sun was shining from the time we got to the port until we sailed back to port. In fact the day we got back and headed home it was raining. Everyday of the trip it was just beautiful, and it got warmer and warmer. By Friday it was like 85 degrees and sunny. What a beautiful day at Castaway Cay. In fact while we were enjoying the sun and the beach, our area here was getting ten inches of snow. My kids ended up missing only 4 days of school. We just could not have asked for more perfect weather. The crew was excited as well, they said it was the best overall weather they had had since the beginning of the year.
Activities: We all found way too much to do and still too little time. Relaxing was big on our agenda, having come out of two of the worse weeks we had had this past year. DW and I managed to do a healthy amount of this. We especially enjoyed lounging on deck 10 Sunday morning, gazing out at the beautiful waters and island just off of Key West. Youngest son really enjoyed the kids club, despite not wanting to go the first day. Once in, he didnt want to come out. We made sure he took advantage of something everyday. He had a blast. He also very much enjoys swimming and the Mickey Pool, which he fondly refers to as his pool. 12 year old DS also made use of his age groups activities. He also enjoys Quartermasters and exploring the ship. One of his favorite activities is the Captains Corner, when the captain comes to the club and answers the kids questions.
DD got right into the teen grove. She was excited to be back on the ship and was even more excited when the counselors remembered her from last year. She fell right into the usual schedule. Sleep late, get up, take a shower, put on sun screen, go tan for a while, shower again, go with the family to the show and dinner, then out until late with the group. She made some great friends and had an awesome time.
DW and I did take advantage of some of the adult activities. Last year she attended all of the Art of Entertaining sessions and I went to all the behind the scenes and navigator series sessions. This year we went to the Q & A session with the captain and his steering committee. We also went to the Q & A session with the main stage cast. That was really excellent. The Magic 10 Main Stage Cast is a group of very talented, nice and enthusiastic people. It was very interesting hearing about how they got the jobs, what life on board is like and their perspective on the shows. Hercules by the way is their favorite show to do because they love the music so much.
The spa is also one of my favorite places to spend time. DW had her hair cut at the salon, since being in the hospital the entire week before departure kind of messed up her plans to do this before leaving. I went for two treatments. The alpha capsule and a half body massage. I just love the whole spa environment: very relaxing and rejuvenating. We also made sure we spent and hour or two in the rain forest room. Perhaps one of our favorite places on the ship.
I also took advantage of the opportunity to ride the segway human transporter. I did this on the ship on our first full day at sea. It was a lot of fun and very easy to get the hang of. It would be a blast to try it out in a wide open area, just to see how fast you could go.
Two of the most special times for DW and I were times we got to spend worshiping while on board. We really enjoy the non-denominational worship service on Sunday morning. Since we felt sure God had done some amazing healing on my wife the previous week, we owed Him at least a little of our time. The service really helps keep a correct perspective on the week. We feel truly blessed to be enjoying such an incredible vacation and privileged to see parts of Gods creation that we just dont always get to experience.
Upon hearing that we were going to be going to the service, our assistant server, Joyce invited us to the service the crew has on Sunday nights and the prayer meeting they hold on Wednesday nights. We didnt make Sunday night, I think we were already in bed (we had more early nights than usual this trip, understandable given the health situation we had been dealing with) but we did make the prayer meeting on Wednesday. It is conducted by crew members but open to everyone. They use one of the conference rooms on deck two. It was a tremendous blessing for us to share a time of praise, prayer and study with some new friends. We now have some very special friends (brothers and sisters) on the ship, and we keep them in our prayers constantly as we know they do for us. If you are a believer, we really encourage you to make the time to go. You wont regret it.
Entertainment: We love all of the shows, even though weve seen them twice before. The cast was great, and very energetic. We really appreciate the high caliber of performers Disney recruits. And we appreciate the first class productions they produce. We really like Hercules as much as the cast does, because of the music and the singing. Of course Disney Dreams is incredible, I still get misty eyed at the end. There were four entertainers on during the week, three of which we had seen last year. We totally enjoyed each one and made sure we caught their family cabaret shows before dinner. Our children also loved the shows and the entertainers.
On Who Wants to be a Mousekateer night, my 12 year old son was picked as a contestant, so he and I got to go on stage and play the game. We did pretty well, got up to the $175.00 question, which we missed. But, he won $80 in ship board credit and received the highly collectable Mousekateer contestant pin. With his credit he bought himself a DCL watch, a pin and a pair of sunglasses. He was so thrilled with the experience it pretty much made his trip. Later on in the week we were also picked to play Walk the Plank, which we actually won! You get a winners coin and medal for that. Again, he was excited.
We also all enjoyed the entertainment at meals, the first night at Animators, Mexicali Night and International Night. We made it to a couple of the deck parties as well, which are always a lot of fun. Because DW and I were hitting the hay around 11:30 or 12:00, we didnt get to any of the dance parties, like 80s night. We enjoy these and enjoy dancing, so well just have to hit them all next year.
Ports of call: For us the main destination is the ship. We love the ship, we pretty much dont care where its going, we just enjoy life on board. That being said, the consensus since getting home seems to be that we all liked the western itinerary better than the eastern, but would go on either in a heart beat. We liked the extra port on the western, for one it gives some place additional and new to see and secondly the ship is really empty on port days. So if you like to stay on board and play, you have the run of the ship.
Stop number one was Key West, which we really liked. We ventured off on our own. We ran into our friends from Toronto (our table mates) while strolling around and all ended up taking the trolley tour together. We feel very lucky to have made such wonderful friends, that a year later we can again be sharing this great trip and getting to know one another better. The trolley tour was really very nice, I would recommend it. It gives you an excellent overview of the island and the opportunity to get off and on a various stops. We didnt go ashore until about 1:30, so by the time the tour was over, it lasts about 90 plus minutes, we were ready to head back for a snack. Next year I would like to do some more exploring in Key West. We watched the spectacular sun set from our veranda, which was just incredible.
After a full day at sea, which I really enjoy, we were at Grand Cayman. There no one can dock, so all of the cruise ships have to tender you in. We had already determined that we were going to stay on board and treat this as a sea day. It was beautiful being in the harbor with several other ships, and it was nice to swim and enjoy the pool deck with so few people. My older son and I did take a tender ride into port, then right back, just for the experience and I can say I at least stepped onto Grand Cayman.
Next stop Cozumel. We booked the San Gervasio ruins and beach tour for the afternoon. We left the ship around 12:15 and headed to the tour buses. Once again our friends had booked the same tour, so we enjoyed the afternoon together. We had a wonderful guide, Moy. He was very knowledgeable about the island and the ruins. Despite not being the most visually spectacular ruins in Mexico, we found the site to be really interesting, and again Moy knew a lot about them. Everyone in our family enjoyed this tour. So much so, my dd made me buy a book on the Mayan culture, and she really doesnt like books. The beach portion of the afternoon was at Playa Sol. It was a nice beach area, and not as crowed at 3:30 as it must have been earlier in the day. The water was refreshing and a good time was had by all. DW and I are not big beach people so this worked out great, because we only had an hour or so there. By the time we got back to the Magic the cruise ship that was docked next to us had left, giving us an excellent view of the city, from our veranda. I like that the Disney Magic seems to stay in the ports later that some of the other ships. It gives you a chance to enjoy the lights at night and the sunset from Key West. We were the only ship still in port at sunset on Key West day.
The final stop is the phenomenal island of Castaway Cay. The weather was spectacular, the island is beautiful and we had a blast. DD and I went parasailing for the first time. Man alive was that awesome. What an incredible view of the island, the water and the ship. It was just great. DW and DSs spent the time on the beach and in the water. After parasailing I met up with the family while DD went off to meet her friends and get her hair braided. We always enjoy the food a Cookies and shopping for exclusive CC merchandise. The only complaint about CC day is that it is the last one of the week, and when we leave that means were heading home. DW and DS (6) finished off the day with a bike ride, which we all did last year and loved. DS (12) and I went back to the ship, where I enjoyed some lounger time while practically alone around the Goofy pool.
Other thoughts and ramblings: For any of you reading these boards and trying to decide if a Disney Cruise is worth the money, I say go for it. I understand that Disney is a more expensive that some of the other main stream lines, and part of that is because there is no casino on board to generate more revenue. This is a good thing for us. We love the wholesome atmosphere and the laid back elegance of the Disney Magic. We have also come to notice some more subtle differences between Disney and the other lines. Differences we obviously pay for but which tend to be worth it to us.
One of these is the ease and simplicity of Disneys embarkation and debarkation process. From what Ive read and heard, they are the best at this. Another difference comes into play at the ports of call. No matter where youre going, the Disney ship seems to dock at the premium location, despite only bringing one ship to these ports every other week. Examples, Key West, we docked right in the heart of town on the bigger of the two piers. The Carnival Pride was docked right behind us, however, right behind us was at the old naval base, which meant that their passengers had to take a 15 minute trolley ride through the base to get to the down town area. And as I said before, we were the only ship still in port during sunset.
Despite having to tender in Grand Cayman, we seem to be parked closest to the piers, and held position much better that some of the other ships. I also noted that when you are coming back to the ship, Disney was the only line with their own canopies set up so you were shielded from the sun. The day we were in Cozumel there were maybe nine other cruise ships in port. Carnival had three of its ships there. Most of the ships were docked at the older pier, about five miles from the center of town, and one of Carnivals ships had to tender passengers in. We were docked at the new pier, right in the middle of the downtown area. So once again you walk off the ship and youre right in the center of the action. I also believe Disney is one of the only cruise lines where they actually dock at their private island. Other lines have to tender passengers to their islands.
The other big plus with Disney is their commitment to service and excellence. When the cruise director stands up on stage and tells you in no uncertain terms that their goal is to meet or exceed your expectations in all areas, that is a big commitment to live up to. Our serving team said the same words. And in all cases we found everyone doing their best to rise to the challenge. We were more that satisfied with the result. There really is nothing quite like Disney service. Though it makes coming back to the real world a little harder. You get used to everyone being friendly and stopping to say hi to you, even if they are scrubbing the carpet as you walk by.
The other major highlight of our trip was re-uniting with the friends we made last year. We had such a nice time last year and have so very much enjoyed keeping in touch with each other over the year, it was just a blast to be back together again. To our friends from Canada, thanks for making the week even more magical. It is truly a blessing to find people whose company you enjoy and who it turns out you have so many things in common with. We really hope that we can make a tradition out of this.
As you can all tell, we had just the best time. We will be booking another trip for next February. I know this was very long, thanks for hanging in there. If anyone has any questions or we didnt cover something youre interested in knowing, just ask. We are officially DCL geeks and happy about it, so ask away. If youre thinking about a trip and just arent sure, go for it. Will there be some things that you might not like or might not go so well, sure, but we figure the worst day on a beautiful cruise ship in the warm Caribbean in the dead of winter, is better that a great day at work!
See you on the high seas next year!
Im going to try and break this up into themed sections, but dont hold me to it, I may end up just rambling.
First, the cast; we are a family of five, me (dh) 41, dw, 39, dd, 15, ds, 12 and ds 6. Our very first cruise experience was on the Disney Wonder on a four night cruise in 2000. We were hooked and in 2002 we took our first 7night trip on the Magic. Now were addicted. This was our third cruise, 2nd on the Magic. We have come to the conclusion that this is our perfect vacation and one of the best family vacation experiences we can imagine. We will soon be booking a trip for next year.
We booked this trip last spring, and very much looked forward to it. We were in WDW in December, so right after returning from that trip, planning for this one because the focus. For us planning is a big part of the fun, it serves to heighten the anticipation. Our table mates from last year gave us some of the web sites they used to get information, one being these boards. We fast became frequent surfers of the discussion board and have found all of the information extremely helpful.
The down side to the anticipation is the possible disappointment should something go wrong. Two weeks before we were supposed to leave, dw had a same day surgical procedure to remove a kidney stone. The procedure went well, but shortly after a follow up procedure she developed a fairly severe kidney infection. She is also a diabetic, which only made the problem that much more serious. The Monday before our trip she was admitted to the hospital. This became a roller coaster ride of the worst kind. At one point they talked about a couple of additional procedures that might be needed to unblock her kidney. Thanks to the power of prayer, and we had lots of it going, it was determined that her kidney function was returning to normal. But they still wanted to make sure the infection was being knocked out. It was not until Friday afternoon when she was released with the drs blessing to go that we were sure we were going to make it.
There and back; We left our house on Saturday morning at 5 am for a 7 am flight. It was cold and rainy here in southern New Jersey. I had used US Airs new on line check in to do just that and obtain our boarding passes. Pretty cool and it worked great. The flight was on time and we arrived in Orlando just after 9. One of our favorite parts of the trip is finding the DCL rep in the terminal and being led away to the buses.
While waiting for our bus we heard the incredibly tragic news about the space shuttle Columbia. I had been following this flight a little bit, and we had hoped to possibly catch a glimpse of its landing at Cape Canaveral. News was still very sketchy, but after a couple of calls to folks at home, it didnt sound good.
Soon we were at the port. I really like the fact that the security check in is done before you go into the terminal. Certainly speeds up boarding. We checked in quickly, and waited in line. I think we were in line for about 45 minutes, if that. They started boarding at 12. This process is so fast and easy. So is debarkation.
The nation had stepped up to high alert by the time we returned to Florida. That meant no airport check in at the terminal, which is a bummer. I really love the convienence of that. However, things still ran very smoothly. A porter met us as we got off the escalator. We quickly found all of our luggage (we travel pretty heavily), a quick breeze through customs and we were taken out to the buses. We got right on, our luggage was loaded on the bus. Off to the airport. Once there we secured the services of another porter and into the terminal. US Air had a ticket counter right down stairs so we didnt have to have the luggage hauled upstairs. No line either. A quick note to future travelers. Since the new security measures have gone into place at the airports, all checked luggage is x-rayed by powerful machines. It wasnt until that morning they mentioned not putting film in your checked baggage. It was too late, I couldnt begin to remember which suit case I had thrown my used rolls of film in and I wasnt even sure how many there were. The good news is the film wasnt ruined, however, some of the photos have come out grainy. So make sure you keep your film with you. The regular machines dont hurt the film as long as it is under 800 speed.
The ship: I have always been fascinated by the ocean liners of the past. Disney has done an incredible job at capturing the grace and majesty of those beautiful ships. The Disney ships are elegant, classy and yet warm and inviting. We truly feel very much at home onboard. I think they are also very well laid out and pretty easy to get around on. The ship is only 5 years old, so you would expect it to be in great shape. And despite the constant use she does look good.
We have always booked a category 4 deluxe family stateroom with veranda . Since that was our first type of stateroom, we got hooked on the veranda. We find the room to be plenty big enough for the five of us, and the spilt bath is awesome, especially with a teenage girl. We are always able to unpack and store the suitcases out of the way. We were on the port side, just a couple of doors from the aft elevators. We loved this location, very convenient to the pool deck, Topsiders and the drink station.
Once on board we made reservations for brunch and dinner at Palos. Alas high tea was already filled. On the eastern itinerary you have a third sea day, which gives you a better chance of snagging a reservation for high tea. We also made a change to our dining arrangements. Last year our server was John from Scotland. My kids, especially my youngest son fell in love with him, and have kept in touch with him all year. He is now a Head Server. We requested to be seated in his area through our travel agent, but that isnt always fool proof. So I went to Sessions and had them check. The request had not been fulfilled, but they immediately made the change for us. We were on late seating and wanted to keep that. Plus our table mates from last year were also sailing this week and we had linked our reservations in order to sit together again. DCL made the change for them as well. We kept our seating time, but our rotation changed, which didnt bother us in the least, however, we ended up with a rotation we liked better. Formal nights in Lumieres and Mexicalifragilisticexpialidosious Night in Parrot Cay.
Off we then went to lunch. Embarkation lunch is awesome, dont miss it. We went to Parrot Cay this year, since we had done lunch at Topsiders last year. Parrot Cay is much bigger and I found it easier to get around in. But at Topsiders you can eat on deck. It was a bright sunny day, but a little breezy. So again we opted for lunch indoors.
This seems to be a good place to talk about the meals. This was the first week for all new menus in all of the restaurants. Now, we hadnt become overly familiar or bored with the old menus, but it is good to see DCL trying to keep things fresh and new, especially for repeat cruisers. There were 800 of us on that cruise. We thoroughly enjoyed each and every meal. There were great and varied selections each night. And everything was prepared to perfection. Along with John as head server, our serving team was Adrian from England and his assistant Joyce from St. Vincent. They were awesome.
One of the things we like about late seating is the ability you have to linger over your meal, spending time with your family and friends as well as your serving team. Im pretty sure we were close to one of the last parties to leave the dining rooms every night. Both Adrian and Joyce made us feel welcome and relaxed. And visiting with John again was one of the major highlights for my youngest son.
On Sunday, DW and I had brunch at Palos. A not to be missed experience! Man alive what an incredible selection of good food. Gabrielle from Brazil was our server and she was a lot of fun. Brunch time is a great time to be in Palos because it is day time and you can really appreciate the beautiful view from the wall of windows. We were seated just about smack in the middle of the restaurant at the window. While we ate we enjoyed watching us sail into and dock at Key West.
We had dinner at Palos on Tuesday evening. Wow, what a meal. Dinner in the main dining rooms is always excellent, but dinner at Palo is beyond awesome. Dalibor was our server, and he was a hoot. Simply an outstanding meal and the chocolate soufflé is to die for.
All of us took full advantage of the fast food on deck pretty much every day. Since we didnt have dinner until late an afternoon snack was a must. The chicken tenders are a big hit with our family. And of course ice cream was a daily staple. We also really enjoyed breakfast at Topsiders. Sometimes one of us would bring food to the room and wed eat on the veranda, but most mornings wed eat on deck. There is nothing quite like starting your morning off with a great breakfast overlooking the ocean. A quick note, all of that week the buffets, brunch and the drink station were being served by crew members. Only on Friday did we serve ourselves at breakfast.
On Thursday Topsiders and Parrot Cay offer the seafood buffet in addition to their regular offerings. Big yum here! Dont miss this if you like seafood. I think theyre shrimp is prepared to perfection. Not over- cooked or under-cooked.
One of our favorite nights was Thursday, the semi-formal night. This was special because of our DD and DS (6). DS dressed in a Mickey tux that we bought him for Halloween. It is an adorable replica of Mickeys tails and red pants. Shortly after we got that for him (at an outlet for real cheap) DD saw the Minnie dress in the Disney catalog (not so really cheap). However, she said if we bought it for her she would go trick or treating with her brother and would wear the dress on the ship. Well she was more than true to here word. They looked soooo cute. And when we had their picture taken with Mickey and Minnie that night, the fuss Mickey and Minnie made was worth the price of the cruise. They also caused quite the stir at the table. It was a magical evening.
Weather: We have been experiencing one of the coldest winters in recent memory in NJ. We had gone several weeks without getting above the freezing mark, most of the time not coming within 10 degrees of it. My wife and I actually like the cold weather and winter is one of our favorite seasons. But we were ready for some warmth and sunshine though, after the two weeks leading up to departure. We couldnt have cared less if it rained as long as we were away and on the ship. But the Lord and the sun smiled on us. It was spectacular all week. The sun was shining from the time we got to the port until we sailed back to port. In fact the day we got back and headed home it was raining. Everyday of the trip it was just beautiful, and it got warmer and warmer. By Friday it was like 85 degrees and sunny. What a beautiful day at Castaway Cay. In fact while we were enjoying the sun and the beach, our area here was getting ten inches of snow. My kids ended up missing only 4 days of school. We just could not have asked for more perfect weather. The crew was excited as well, they said it was the best overall weather they had had since the beginning of the year.
Activities: We all found way too much to do and still too little time. Relaxing was big on our agenda, having come out of two of the worse weeks we had had this past year. DW and I managed to do a healthy amount of this. We especially enjoyed lounging on deck 10 Sunday morning, gazing out at the beautiful waters and island just off of Key West. Youngest son really enjoyed the kids club, despite not wanting to go the first day. Once in, he didnt want to come out. We made sure he took advantage of something everyday. He had a blast. He also very much enjoys swimming and the Mickey Pool, which he fondly refers to as his pool. 12 year old DS also made use of his age groups activities. He also enjoys Quartermasters and exploring the ship. One of his favorite activities is the Captains Corner, when the captain comes to the club and answers the kids questions.
DD got right into the teen grove. She was excited to be back on the ship and was even more excited when the counselors remembered her from last year. She fell right into the usual schedule. Sleep late, get up, take a shower, put on sun screen, go tan for a while, shower again, go with the family to the show and dinner, then out until late with the group. She made some great friends and had an awesome time.
DW and I did take advantage of some of the adult activities. Last year she attended all of the Art of Entertaining sessions and I went to all the behind the scenes and navigator series sessions. This year we went to the Q & A session with the captain and his steering committee. We also went to the Q & A session with the main stage cast. That was really excellent. The Magic 10 Main Stage Cast is a group of very talented, nice and enthusiastic people. It was very interesting hearing about how they got the jobs, what life on board is like and their perspective on the shows. Hercules by the way is their favorite show to do because they love the music so much.
The spa is also one of my favorite places to spend time. DW had her hair cut at the salon, since being in the hospital the entire week before departure kind of messed up her plans to do this before leaving. I went for two treatments. The alpha capsule and a half body massage. I just love the whole spa environment: very relaxing and rejuvenating. We also made sure we spent and hour or two in the rain forest room. Perhaps one of our favorite places on the ship.
I also took advantage of the opportunity to ride the segway human transporter. I did this on the ship on our first full day at sea. It was a lot of fun and very easy to get the hang of. It would be a blast to try it out in a wide open area, just to see how fast you could go.
Two of the most special times for DW and I were times we got to spend worshiping while on board. We really enjoy the non-denominational worship service on Sunday morning. Since we felt sure God had done some amazing healing on my wife the previous week, we owed Him at least a little of our time. The service really helps keep a correct perspective on the week. We feel truly blessed to be enjoying such an incredible vacation and privileged to see parts of Gods creation that we just dont always get to experience.
Upon hearing that we were going to be going to the service, our assistant server, Joyce invited us to the service the crew has on Sunday nights and the prayer meeting they hold on Wednesday nights. We didnt make Sunday night, I think we were already in bed (we had more early nights than usual this trip, understandable given the health situation we had been dealing with) but we did make the prayer meeting on Wednesday. It is conducted by crew members but open to everyone. They use one of the conference rooms on deck two. It was a tremendous blessing for us to share a time of praise, prayer and study with some new friends. We now have some very special friends (brothers and sisters) on the ship, and we keep them in our prayers constantly as we know they do for us. If you are a believer, we really encourage you to make the time to go. You wont regret it.
Entertainment: We love all of the shows, even though weve seen them twice before. The cast was great, and very energetic. We really appreciate the high caliber of performers Disney recruits. And we appreciate the first class productions they produce. We really like Hercules as much as the cast does, because of the music and the singing. Of course Disney Dreams is incredible, I still get misty eyed at the end. There were four entertainers on during the week, three of which we had seen last year. We totally enjoyed each one and made sure we caught their family cabaret shows before dinner. Our children also loved the shows and the entertainers.
On Who Wants to be a Mousekateer night, my 12 year old son was picked as a contestant, so he and I got to go on stage and play the game. We did pretty well, got up to the $175.00 question, which we missed. But, he won $80 in ship board credit and received the highly collectable Mousekateer contestant pin. With his credit he bought himself a DCL watch, a pin and a pair of sunglasses. He was so thrilled with the experience it pretty much made his trip. Later on in the week we were also picked to play Walk the Plank, which we actually won! You get a winners coin and medal for that. Again, he was excited.
We also all enjoyed the entertainment at meals, the first night at Animators, Mexicali Night and International Night. We made it to a couple of the deck parties as well, which are always a lot of fun. Because DW and I were hitting the hay around 11:30 or 12:00, we didnt get to any of the dance parties, like 80s night. We enjoy these and enjoy dancing, so well just have to hit them all next year.
Ports of call: For us the main destination is the ship. We love the ship, we pretty much dont care where its going, we just enjoy life on board. That being said, the consensus since getting home seems to be that we all liked the western itinerary better than the eastern, but would go on either in a heart beat. We liked the extra port on the western, for one it gives some place additional and new to see and secondly the ship is really empty on port days. So if you like to stay on board and play, you have the run of the ship.
Stop number one was Key West, which we really liked. We ventured off on our own. We ran into our friends from Toronto (our table mates) while strolling around and all ended up taking the trolley tour together. We feel very lucky to have made such wonderful friends, that a year later we can again be sharing this great trip and getting to know one another better. The trolley tour was really very nice, I would recommend it. It gives you an excellent overview of the island and the opportunity to get off and on a various stops. We didnt go ashore until about 1:30, so by the time the tour was over, it lasts about 90 plus minutes, we were ready to head back for a snack. Next year I would like to do some more exploring in Key West. We watched the spectacular sun set from our veranda, which was just incredible.
After a full day at sea, which I really enjoy, we were at Grand Cayman. There no one can dock, so all of the cruise ships have to tender you in. We had already determined that we were going to stay on board and treat this as a sea day. It was beautiful being in the harbor with several other ships, and it was nice to swim and enjoy the pool deck with so few people. My older son and I did take a tender ride into port, then right back, just for the experience and I can say I at least stepped onto Grand Cayman.
Next stop Cozumel. We booked the San Gervasio ruins and beach tour for the afternoon. We left the ship around 12:15 and headed to the tour buses. Once again our friends had booked the same tour, so we enjoyed the afternoon together. We had a wonderful guide, Moy. He was very knowledgeable about the island and the ruins. Despite not being the most visually spectacular ruins in Mexico, we found the site to be really interesting, and again Moy knew a lot about them. Everyone in our family enjoyed this tour. So much so, my dd made me buy a book on the Mayan culture, and she really doesnt like books. The beach portion of the afternoon was at Playa Sol. It was a nice beach area, and not as crowed at 3:30 as it must have been earlier in the day. The water was refreshing and a good time was had by all. DW and I are not big beach people so this worked out great, because we only had an hour or so there. By the time we got back to the Magic the cruise ship that was docked next to us had left, giving us an excellent view of the city, from our veranda. I like that the Disney Magic seems to stay in the ports later that some of the other ships. It gives you a chance to enjoy the lights at night and the sunset from Key West. We were the only ship still in port at sunset on Key West day.
The final stop is the phenomenal island of Castaway Cay. The weather was spectacular, the island is beautiful and we had a blast. DD and I went parasailing for the first time. Man alive was that awesome. What an incredible view of the island, the water and the ship. It was just great. DW and DSs spent the time on the beach and in the water. After parasailing I met up with the family while DD went off to meet her friends and get her hair braided. We always enjoy the food a Cookies and shopping for exclusive CC merchandise. The only complaint about CC day is that it is the last one of the week, and when we leave that means were heading home. DW and DS (6) finished off the day with a bike ride, which we all did last year and loved. DS (12) and I went back to the ship, where I enjoyed some lounger time while practically alone around the Goofy pool.
Other thoughts and ramblings: For any of you reading these boards and trying to decide if a Disney Cruise is worth the money, I say go for it. I understand that Disney is a more expensive that some of the other main stream lines, and part of that is because there is no casino on board to generate more revenue. This is a good thing for us. We love the wholesome atmosphere and the laid back elegance of the Disney Magic. We have also come to notice some more subtle differences between Disney and the other lines. Differences we obviously pay for but which tend to be worth it to us.
One of these is the ease and simplicity of Disneys embarkation and debarkation process. From what Ive read and heard, they are the best at this. Another difference comes into play at the ports of call. No matter where youre going, the Disney ship seems to dock at the premium location, despite only bringing one ship to these ports every other week. Examples, Key West, we docked right in the heart of town on the bigger of the two piers. The Carnival Pride was docked right behind us, however, right behind us was at the old naval base, which meant that their passengers had to take a 15 minute trolley ride through the base to get to the down town area. And as I said before, we were the only ship still in port during sunset.
Despite having to tender in Grand Cayman, we seem to be parked closest to the piers, and held position much better that some of the other ships. I also noted that when you are coming back to the ship, Disney was the only line with their own canopies set up so you were shielded from the sun. The day we were in Cozumel there were maybe nine other cruise ships in port. Carnival had three of its ships there. Most of the ships were docked at the older pier, about five miles from the center of town, and one of Carnivals ships had to tender passengers in. We were docked at the new pier, right in the middle of the downtown area. So once again you walk off the ship and youre right in the center of the action. I also believe Disney is one of the only cruise lines where they actually dock at their private island. Other lines have to tender passengers to their islands.
The other big plus with Disney is their commitment to service and excellence. When the cruise director stands up on stage and tells you in no uncertain terms that their goal is to meet or exceed your expectations in all areas, that is a big commitment to live up to. Our serving team said the same words. And in all cases we found everyone doing their best to rise to the challenge. We were more that satisfied with the result. There really is nothing quite like Disney service. Though it makes coming back to the real world a little harder. You get used to everyone being friendly and stopping to say hi to you, even if they are scrubbing the carpet as you walk by.
The other major highlight of our trip was re-uniting with the friends we made last year. We had such a nice time last year and have so very much enjoyed keeping in touch with each other over the year, it was just a blast to be back together again. To our friends from Canada, thanks for making the week even more magical. It is truly a blessing to find people whose company you enjoy and who it turns out you have so many things in common with. We really hope that we can make a tradition out of this.
As you can all tell, we had just the best time. We will be booking another trip for next February. I know this was very long, thanks for hanging in there. If anyone has any questions or we didnt cover something youre interested in knowing, just ask. We are officially DCL geeks and happy about it, so ask away. If youre thinking about a trip and just arent sure, go for it. Will there be some things that you might not like or might not go so well, sure, but we figure the worst day on a beautiful cruise ship in the warm Caribbean in the dead of winter, is better that a great day at work!
See you on the high seas next year!
The anticipation is so much fun
When I read posts like this one, it makes it more fun. I hope someone scans the new mavigator menus so that we can look at them. Blessings 2 you and your family.
