BrettySpaghetti
Mouseketeer
- Joined
- Jun 4, 2008
- Messages
- 99
We've just returned from our WONDER-ful trip to Nassau and Castaway Cay. It was my third Disney cruise, and as usual, I still feel like we're at sea, rocking back and forth...
It was a spectacular vacation. Not much has changed in the five years since my last Wonder cruise. The highlights:
"Toy Story: The Musical." What an impressive piece of work this is, with Randy Newman's signature "You've Got a Friend in Me" opening the show, followed by a terrific suite of songs, including the impressive march "To Infinity and Beyond." There were whispers that an expanded version of this hour-long staging will open on Broadway sometime in the future, and it's good enough to succeed. The costumes alone were worth sailing to see. "The Golden Mickeys" and "Disney Dreams" opened and closed the trip, respectively, with a 3-D showing of the animated "Bolt" in the Disney Theater on night #3.
Castaway Club Meet & Greet. The ship's captain, Gus, was on hand to answer questions, as were other officers and crew members. Really had fun interacting with other guests and the crew! From what I could ascertain, the two new ships will be roughly 50 percent bigger (mostly in the width, although there were be 15 decks), and will ultimately replace the Wonder & Magic in their current American itineraries. Magic will supposedly take up permanent residence in Europe, and the Wonder will come around to the West Coast of the USA, with a possible Alaskan route on the drawing board.
Live music was provided by Kenné (who sang tributes to Billy Joel, Elton John, Nat King Cole, Barry Manilow, etc.) and AJ Robb, a pianist who did not sing but tickled the ivories with panache.
Some guests who had booked their cruises early were astonished to receive a $99-per-guest offer for a future cruise on the Wonder this fall.
Our Nassau shore excursion to the Atlantis hotel and water park was phenomenal. I recommend it very highly, and don't miss the incredible aquariums. Unfortunately, rough water and high winds led to the cancellation of our Castaway Cay snorkeling adventure, but those who stayed on the beach still got plenty of sunshine and great weather.
This was my first trip as a pin trader, and those who cruised got a special offer to snare a free different pin on three of the nights -- each one showing a separate part of the ship (fore, midship and aft). One of the great thrills of our last night was trading pins with the ship's officers, who wore their official white suits but with the addition of lanyards covered in cool pins!
Lisa did an awesome job with the Art of the Theme walking tour of the ship; she looks just like Marcia Brady and confided that she's been told that a million times. Luke and Christopher really stood out as hosts of various other events.
I didn't get involved in the Pirate celebration, as I tended to busy myself with other events. The trip's only real negative was my inability to connect with others I'd connected with on this board. One member with the alias Alice on the Wonder-land had turned 30 on the ship, so I had purchased a couple of nice gifts for her, which I dutifully had brought to one of our predetermined meeting spots. Unfortunately, she (along with anybody else from the DISboards) failed to show up at 10:30 in WaveBands on Wednesday evening.
I did book my next cruise on board -- a seven-night Western Caribbean trip commencing in one year's time.
Thanks to the entire crew for doing their usual great job making everybody feel welcome and appreciated!
It was a spectacular vacation. Not much has changed in the five years since my last Wonder cruise. The highlights:
"Toy Story: The Musical." What an impressive piece of work this is, with Randy Newman's signature "You've Got a Friend in Me" opening the show, followed by a terrific suite of songs, including the impressive march "To Infinity and Beyond." There were whispers that an expanded version of this hour-long staging will open on Broadway sometime in the future, and it's good enough to succeed. The costumes alone were worth sailing to see. "The Golden Mickeys" and "Disney Dreams" opened and closed the trip, respectively, with a 3-D showing of the animated "Bolt" in the Disney Theater on night #3.
Castaway Club Meet & Greet. The ship's captain, Gus, was on hand to answer questions, as were other officers and crew members. Really had fun interacting with other guests and the crew! From what I could ascertain, the two new ships will be roughly 50 percent bigger (mostly in the width, although there were be 15 decks), and will ultimately replace the Wonder & Magic in their current American itineraries. Magic will supposedly take up permanent residence in Europe, and the Wonder will come around to the West Coast of the USA, with a possible Alaskan route on the drawing board.
Live music was provided by Kenné (who sang tributes to Billy Joel, Elton John, Nat King Cole, Barry Manilow, etc.) and AJ Robb, a pianist who did not sing but tickled the ivories with panache.
Some guests who had booked their cruises early were astonished to receive a $99-per-guest offer for a future cruise on the Wonder this fall.
Our Nassau shore excursion to the Atlantis hotel and water park was phenomenal. I recommend it very highly, and don't miss the incredible aquariums. Unfortunately, rough water and high winds led to the cancellation of our Castaway Cay snorkeling adventure, but those who stayed on the beach still got plenty of sunshine and great weather.
This was my first trip as a pin trader, and those who cruised got a special offer to snare a free different pin on three of the nights -- each one showing a separate part of the ship (fore, midship and aft). One of the great thrills of our last night was trading pins with the ship's officers, who wore their official white suits but with the addition of lanyards covered in cool pins!
Lisa did an awesome job with the Art of the Theme walking tour of the ship; she looks just like Marcia Brady and confided that she's been told that a million times. Luke and Christopher really stood out as hosts of various other events.
I didn't get involved in the Pirate celebration, as I tended to busy myself with other events. The trip's only real negative was my inability to connect with others I'd connected with on this board. One member with the alias Alice on the Wonder-land had turned 30 on the ship, so I had purchased a couple of nice gifts for her, which I dutifully had brought to one of our predetermined meeting spots. Unfortunately, she (along with anybody else from the DISboards) failed to show up at 10:30 in WaveBands on Wednesday evening.
I did book my next cruise on board -- a seven-night Western Caribbean trip commencing in one year's time.
Thanks to the entire crew for doing their usual great job making everybody feel welcome and appreciated!
The only bad thing about them is the crinkling of cellophane from the other audience members. I never had any interest in seeing "Bolt" when it came out in the theaters, but I saw it on the ship and it was very good!
