The Cast:
Me and DH - Reine and Paul, 50 somethings
Mom and Aunt, 80 somethings, aka "the ladies"
DD the CM, Robyn, 24, meeting at the port
7:00 am The wake up call was WAY too early. Our room has a balcony which DH enjoyed since he smokes and was able to indulge without offending anyone else. The night was way too short since we got to bed at 4:00am. Took some time to get out of bed but we are up and beginning to function by 7:45.
BTW the pillows at the Hyatt are horrible. Way too hard and large. I did find one softer one in the closet so didn't have to open my bag to get the one I brought from home but the rest of the family suffered. I plan to notify them of that later this week but at the time we just got our stuff together for breakfast.
8:00 Went down to get our luggage tags as we were picking up our docs at the port. Had been told by DCL that someone would be available at the hotel starting at 8:00. Misinformation. No one will be here until 8:30 or 9:00. The sign said to meet starting at 9:30 for the trip to the port. Bell person says they do continuous runs in multiple busses until everyone is transported. Rats, if I'd known that we could have slept an hour more.
Checked out breakfast opportunities on the way back to the room and decided that the Hyatt was too pricey. Couldn't see spending $9.95 each for a continental breakfast buffet, especially after DH had his coffee in the room.
Went back to give everyone the news about the breakfast. The ladies (what we took to calling Mom and Aunt) were almost ready so we decided to get the luggage and carry ons all closed up and ready to go then go get breakfast in the food court at the airport.
Went back downstairs about 8:45 and found Disney cast members getting together to begin to organize their day. They weren't ready for us but a wonderful cast member named Debbie checked the manifest and gave us our luggage tags and the docs to fill out as well as a"ticket" for the bus. I really appreciated her going out of her way since we were kinda frazzled from lack of sleep. (Since DD booked our staterooms Crew Confirmed only two weeks before the cruise we were picking up our docs at the port)
Went up to the room and tagged the luggage and set it in the hall. I LOVE DCL transfers, especially when travelling with senior citizens. No hassle, no worries. We left the carryons in the room and went to the food court in the Airport for breakfast. This killed the wait time and we got muffins and OJ for about $15.00 for the 4 of us.
Did I mention I'm a cheapskate. This was the most expensive vacation we've ever been on. Last summer we went camping to Guadalupe Mountains National Park for 4 of us including Carlsbad Caverns tours for less than $500.00 so you can understand the sticker shock.
9:30 After breakfast, back to the room to freshen up and then collected carryons and went down to meet the Bus. DCL transfer folks were wonderfully organized, We only waited about 10 minutes for a bus group to form and then followed the guy with the Pinochio sign to the bus. Left about 10:00 I think.
11:30 ish. WOW, the MAGIC looks MARVELOUS. Just like the pictures. We get off the bus and claim our carry-ons and walk around the corner to see DD sitting on a bench waiting for us. We had already talked to her a couple of times that morning so knew she had signed off the ship and done her customs thing.
Through security and then in the lines to check in. Claimed our docs and found that the forms given to us at the Hyatt that we'd already filled in were fine. DD mentioned that she'd already met someone from the Cruise Meet disboards with a son named Justin who recognized her from the picture I posted. Just like a CM in the Club. Ignore the parents and focus on the kids.
This is getting long and the medicine I took a while ago is kicking in so I'll add more tomorrow. It's taken me so long to post the trip reports cause I got sick on the way home and have felt crummy the past several days.
Link to Boarding the Ship
Me and DH - Reine and Paul, 50 somethings
Mom and Aunt, 80 somethings, aka "the ladies"
DD the CM, Robyn, 24, meeting at the port
7:00 am The wake up call was WAY too early. Our room has a balcony which DH enjoyed since he smokes and was able to indulge without offending anyone else. The night was way too short since we got to bed at 4:00am. Took some time to get out of bed but we are up and beginning to function by 7:45.
BTW the pillows at the Hyatt are horrible. Way too hard and large. I did find one softer one in the closet so didn't have to open my bag to get the one I brought from home but the rest of the family suffered. I plan to notify them of that later this week but at the time we just got our stuff together for breakfast.
8:00 Went down to get our luggage tags as we were picking up our docs at the port. Had been told by DCL that someone would be available at the hotel starting at 8:00. Misinformation. No one will be here until 8:30 or 9:00. The sign said to meet starting at 9:30 for the trip to the port. Bell person says they do continuous runs in multiple busses until everyone is transported. Rats, if I'd known that we could have slept an hour more.
Checked out breakfast opportunities on the way back to the room and decided that the Hyatt was too pricey. Couldn't see spending $9.95 each for a continental breakfast buffet, especially after DH had his coffee in the room.
Went back to give everyone the news about the breakfast. The ladies (what we took to calling Mom and Aunt) were almost ready so we decided to get the luggage and carry ons all closed up and ready to go then go get breakfast in the food court at the airport.
Went back downstairs about 8:45 and found Disney cast members getting together to begin to organize their day. They weren't ready for us but a wonderful cast member named Debbie checked the manifest and gave us our luggage tags and the docs to fill out as well as a"ticket" for the bus. I really appreciated her going out of her way since we were kinda frazzled from lack of sleep. (Since DD booked our staterooms Crew Confirmed only two weeks before the cruise we were picking up our docs at the port)
Went up to the room and tagged the luggage and set it in the hall. I LOVE DCL transfers, especially when travelling with senior citizens. No hassle, no worries. We left the carryons in the room and went to the food court in the Airport for breakfast. This killed the wait time and we got muffins and OJ for about $15.00 for the 4 of us.
Did I mention I'm a cheapskate. This was the most expensive vacation we've ever been on. Last summer we went camping to Guadalupe Mountains National Park for 4 of us including Carlsbad Caverns tours for less than $500.00 so you can understand the sticker shock.
9:30 After breakfast, back to the room to freshen up and then collected carryons and went down to meet the Bus. DCL transfer folks were wonderfully organized, We only waited about 10 minutes for a bus group to form and then followed the guy with the Pinochio sign to the bus. Left about 10:00 I think.
11:30 ish. WOW, the MAGIC looks MARVELOUS. Just like the pictures. We get off the bus and claim our carry-ons and walk around the corner to see DD sitting on a bench waiting for us. We had already talked to her a couple of times that morning so knew she had signed off the ship and done her customs thing.
Through security and then in the lines to check in. Claimed our docs and found that the forms given to us at the Hyatt that we'd already filled in were fine. DD mentioned that she'd already met someone from the Cruise Meet disboards with a son named Justin who recognized her from the picture I posted. Just like a CM in the Club. Ignore the parents and focus on the kids.
This is getting long and the medicine I took a while ago is kicking in so I'll add more tomorrow. It's taken me so long to post the trip reports cause I got sick on the way home and have felt crummy the past several days.
Link to Boarding the Ship
(I usually just post ALL days in ONE big post, so its easier for everyone to read!)
