I have loved reading the trip reports for years, but I’ve never posted one in return. Now it’s time to pay it back. This is a bit late, but I hope it’s of some help for those still to sail the Mexican Riviera this summer.
Background: This was our third trip on the Magic, and our second time doing the Mexico itinerary. We just couldn’t pass up a DCL trip without a flight to Florida, although we knew we would miss Castaway. We have a daughter age 9 and a son age 13, and this might be one of the last times that our DS wouldn’t mind being seen in public with his parents!
Saturday, June 21: We drove down to San Pedro the day before, since our nightmare would be getting stuck in traffic as our ship sailed away! In 2005, we stayed at the Sunrise, and while adequate, we wanted to ensure a better night’s sleep. The Doubletree’s room price included being able to leave your car parked in their parking lot, saving the price of parking at the port. As soon as we checked in, we signed up for the shuttle to the port. The 10:00 one was filled, but there was room on the 10:30. Our room was clean, quiet, and had a beautiful view of the marina.
We headed down to Ports Of Call Village for dinner, thinking that we would find a place there. It wasn’t what I remembered, and it had more of a party atmosphere than I felt like dealing with. We ended up at fairly reliable Marie Callendar’s. If we were doing it again, we would have headed over to Long Beach to the marina area across from the Queen Mary. That’s where we ate in 2005, and it was more family friendly.
Sunday, June 22: We were so ready to go! The Magic pulls into the harbor just about 5:30 AM, but we had too much fog to be able to see it. We had breakfast in the hotel, while letting our DS sleep in as long as possible. Waking a teenager early is a dangerous task! The buffet was just okay, but since I knew I would be onboard in just a few hours, I really didn’t care. Our shuttle was right on time, dropping us off at the port about 10:45. By the time we were checked in, we received boarding number 6. The waiting area was pretty filled, and the band was WAY too loud, so we found a relatively quiet area and just camped out on the floor. Mickey came out for pictures, and by 11:30ish, our number was called and we were on board. Our room was open by about 1:20, and both kids were surprised that we had a veranda (room 6560)…that was a difficult secret to keep for the past year! My DH had arranged for birthday decorations and a cake to be waiting for me, so I had a nice surprise too. Our muster station was on deck 4 in the shade. DH and DS went back to the room with the life jackets, and my DD and I snagged a table on deck 10 for the sailaway party. I like the streamers that they hand out now. After the horn was blown, we moved to the front of deck 10 so we could watch as we sailed away.
Our dinner rotation was PLLAPLA, with a 6:00 seating. Servers were Panya from Thailand and Joe from India, with Yolande from South Africa as the head server.
We went to the welcome aboard show, wandered around, and called it a night.
Monday, June 23: There’s nothing like a day at sea! It was foggy, and the sound of the fog horns could be heard from our room. It was a very relaxing day; one of the benefits of being returning cruisers. We didn’t feel like we had to do everything. We played fusbol and ping pong, made kites, entered the Mickey 200, and played bingo.
DH went to the tequila tasting. During the day, we spotted dolphins and some whales in the distance. Of course, my DD had to do some shopping, too. It was formal night, so we did our best to get all fancy! The show was the Golden Mickeys. Hint: bring a sweater for the theater, as I always found it cold!
Tuesday, June 24: Okay, if I was going to have to turn 40, at least I got to do it in Cabo San Lucas. It was a beautiful day, and I enjoyed watching us pull into the harbor as the sport fishing boats were going out. There was quite a luxury yacht in harbor, too…complete with a helicopter on its landing pad.
In 2005, we booked a tour out to Land’s End. We learned (the hard way) that our DD gets seasick, so all water-based excursions were ruled out this time. Instead, I had contacted Pueblo Bonito Rose resort by email in May and arranged day use of their facilities…for no charge! We took a taxi to the resort, and when asked for our room number at the gate, just told him that we were there for the spa. At the front desk, I exchanged my drivers license for 4 towel cards. These cards are then exchanged for towels near the pool.
We went down to the beach and claimed four lounges in the shade. The pull of the tide was pretty strong, and the water was pretty chilly. Still, it was a nice place to play and relax.
Hint: bring your own inflatable raft/floats; they would have been nice to have. We ordered lunch beachside and headed back to the ship shortly after. My overall impressions of Cabo? It’s a beautiful resort town, but it feels so devoted to tourists. Much to my dismay, my husband arranged a birthday cake and song at dinner…evil man! The show that night was a hypnotist (I think…my days are mixed up!)
Wednesday, June 25: Mazatlan. This was our only morning we needed to be up and out early, as we had arranged a trip to Stone Island with Randi’s Happy Horses. It was overcast and humid as we pulled into port, and I loved listening to the sounds of the roosters as the town woke up. We met Randi and her guide Tony in the port buildings, after taking a tram. (Mazatlan is a working, industrial port, and the tourist areas are away from the working areas.) We waited for the rest of the group to come and them took (open-air) taxis to the dock to get to Stone Island. Now, I know many people do not like Mazatlan but I had the opposite feeling. Where Cabo felt polished and on display, Mazatlan felt honest. Just my opinion. We took a water taxi across to Stone Island, which is really the peninsula where I was hearing the roosters earlier.
Another short taxi ride to the stables, where all of us were carefully matched with our horses. I think out of the 20 or so people, only 2 or 3 had ever ridden before. This did not concern Tony and his father, and I felt safe for all of us, including my DD. We crossed the coconut grove and rode down the beach for about 30 minutes.
The guides were wonderful; giving help and encouragement throughout. At the turn-around point, they had us pose on our horses and used our cameras to take pictures. At the end of the ride, we all were taken to Victor’s restaurant on the beach, where we had drinks and really, really good food. Cabo’s food was resort-Mexican, but Victor’s food was REAL Mexican; delicious coconut shrimp. We were welcome to stay as long as we wanted, and the water along this beach was much warmer and less forceful than Cabo…it was a great place to play.
Warning, though. The sand here is very fine, making the water in the shallow waves appear dirty. We found sand everywhere upon returning! Victor’s has a bathroom and a shower area, and once we were ready to leave, Tony arranged all the transportation back to the ship. Mazatlan was my favorite port this time, and I’d love to head back to Stone Island. Twice Charmed was the show tonight.
Thursday, June 26: Puerto Vallarta. We came into port during a lightning storm, and it was wonderful to watch the lightning over the lights of the city.
The scenery in this port is probably my favorite, with the surrounding mountains.
I watched the pirate ship, Marigalante, prepare to leave. We took this excursion in 2005, and had both kids not gotten seasick, I would have been willing to do it again. It’s a lot of fun and the crew is very professional. This time, though, we arranged to go on Los Veranos canopy tour. We booked directly with the company, as all zip line excursions offered through DCL required kids to be at least 10 years old. We had a 12:00 trip planned, so we took a taxi to the Los Veranos office (about a 20 minute ride). We used the white taxis found just inside the gates of the harbor area. From the Los Veranos office, we were on their bus for the 30-40 minute drive to the zip line. At the site, we were provided lockers to store our things; you are allowed to bring our own camera, but it should be on a sturdy neck strap rather than a wrist one. We were fitted with the equipment and off we went. There are a total of 14 lines, with many stairs between each one! There are a couple of water stops throughout the route. One lady on the trip was having trouble with her asthma, and the staff arranged for her to skip the middle lines and meet up with her group for the last few. My daughter didn’t have any trouble making it across the lines, but they were good with pulling the kids in if they needed extra help.
The staff makes a video throughout the trip that is available for purchase at the end, as are pictures taken at the first line. The zip line ends at a restaurant, and the DVDs are delivered before you leave. The bus back to town leaves at 20 minutes before each hour, so check the time before ordering the DVD. We had to hurry to eat and make the bus back. I would recommend booking an earlier time with Los Veranos; there was no hurry to get back to the ship, as it didn’t leave until late, but we were in a rush to make it back in time to get cleaned up for dinner. The bus stopped at the Los Veranos office, but also continued back to the port, stopping at the various resorts/hotels of the people on the bus. Warning – it’s a VERY bumpy ride! This was also pirate night, and the winds on deck 10 were really strong. Once the show started (and the ship stopped for the fireworks, I presume) the wind died down and it was more enjoyable. The seats on deck were all taken early, but some people went and “borrowed” chairs from Topsiders. I don’t find the “pirate show” that thrilling anyway; I was more interested in watching the lightning in the distance. The fireworks, however, are great!
And you can’t forget the buffet. At least this year, I could send my husband and son out to the veranda as the attacked their turkey legs!
This was also the night that we got to premEAR WALL-e at midnight…too much fun!
Friday, June 27: Day at sea. I was expecting cold weather, but it really wasn’t too bad. The sun came out and the temperatures on deck 9 were fine. We had another lazy day; towel folding, etc. We went to a talk by one of the animators of WALL-e, who was very interesting. I wish it hadn’t have been tagged as adults only, as my DS would have really enjoyed the talk.
Our DD competed in Mr. Toad.
This was also semi-formal night, so we all had to try and look presentable again. Disney Dreams was the show tonight.
Saturday, June 28: Last day at sea; more laziness and relaxation. There was another talk by the animator, and with his permission and encouragement, our DS attended (and enjoyed it as well). We also had the galley tour today; I was surprised at how short it was. I think we were there and back within 20 minutes.
We had to deal with packing today, too, but somehow, it’s more enjoyable when room service delivers treats in the middle of the task.
The show tonight was fun, but I can’t remember the names of the entertainers…sorry! Before the show, we went back to the room and changed into our clothes that we would be wearing tomorrow, allowing us to pack one more outfit in our checked luggage. We enjoyed seeing all the characters in the atrium and were able to get pictures with a few without having long lines.
Our room host delivered our signed pillow cases and photo mats. When I dropped them off at Guest Services on day one, I also included a bag of individual packages of candy to be shared with the cast members…I hope they enjoyed them, but it made me feel better for asking them to do something extra for us. When we delivered our tips, we also included individual bag of jellybeans in the envelope with their thank you note.
Sunday, June 29. Time to go home! I believe our breakfast time was 7:00, and we were off the ship by 8:15 (I think).
Customs was quick, but I thought they were going to confiscate our daughter. She has a tendency to freeze up when asked unexpected questions, and the customs officer asked each of us for our birthdates as he verified it with our passports. Our DD just froze and couldn’t answer the question! Had I warned her in advance, she would have been fine. Live and learn. As soon as we found our luggage, we found a porter and called the Doubletree for the shuttle. I think it arrived within 10 minutes, and we were back at our van and on the road by 9:30, at the very latest.
Feel free to ask questions. Things are completely fresh in my mind, but I’ll do my best!
Background: This was our third trip on the Magic, and our second time doing the Mexico itinerary. We just couldn’t pass up a DCL trip without a flight to Florida, although we knew we would miss Castaway. We have a daughter age 9 and a son age 13, and this might be one of the last times that our DS wouldn’t mind being seen in public with his parents!
Saturday, June 21: We drove down to San Pedro the day before, since our nightmare would be getting stuck in traffic as our ship sailed away! In 2005, we stayed at the Sunrise, and while adequate, we wanted to ensure a better night’s sleep. The Doubletree’s room price included being able to leave your car parked in their parking lot, saving the price of parking at the port. As soon as we checked in, we signed up for the shuttle to the port. The 10:00 one was filled, but there was room on the 10:30. Our room was clean, quiet, and had a beautiful view of the marina.
We headed down to Ports Of Call Village for dinner, thinking that we would find a place there. It wasn’t what I remembered, and it had more of a party atmosphere than I felt like dealing with. We ended up at fairly reliable Marie Callendar’s. If we were doing it again, we would have headed over to Long Beach to the marina area across from the Queen Mary. That’s where we ate in 2005, and it was more family friendly.
Sunday, June 22: We were so ready to go! The Magic pulls into the harbor just about 5:30 AM, but we had too much fog to be able to see it. We had breakfast in the hotel, while letting our DS sleep in as long as possible. Waking a teenager early is a dangerous task! The buffet was just okay, but since I knew I would be onboard in just a few hours, I really didn’t care. Our shuttle was right on time, dropping us off at the port about 10:45. By the time we were checked in, we received boarding number 6. The waiting area was pretty filled, and the band was WAY too loud, so we found a relatively quiet area and just camped out on the floor. Mickey came out for pictures, and by 11:30ish, our number was called and we were on board. Our room was open by about 1:20, and both kids were surprised that we had a veranda (room 6560)…that was a difficult secret to keep for the past year! My DH had arranged for birthday decorations and a cake to be waiting for me, so I had a nice surprise too. Our muster station was on deck 4 in the shade. DH and DS went back to the room with the life jackets, and my DD and I snagged a table on deck 10 for the sailaway party. I like the streamers that they hand out now. After the horn was blown, we moved to the front of deck 10 so we could watch as we sailed away.
Our dinner rotation was PLLAPLA, with a 6:00 seating. Servers were Panya from Thailand and Joe from India, with Yolande from South Africa as the head server.
We went to the welcome aboard show, wandered around, and called it a night.
Monday, June 23: There’s nothing like a day at sea! It was foggy, and the sound of the fog horns could be heard from our room. It was a very relaxing day; one of the benefits of being returning cruisers. We didn’t feel like we had to do everything. We played fusbol and ping pong, made kites, entered the Mickey 200, and played bingo.
DH went to the tequila tasting. During the day, we spotted dolphins and some whales in the distance. Of course, my DD had to do some shopping, too. It was formal night, so we did our best to get all fancy! The show was the Golden Mickeys. Hint: bring a sweater for the theater, as I always found it cold!
Tuesday, June 24: Okay, if I was going to have to turn 40, at least I got to do it in Cabo San Lucas. It was a beautiful day, and I enjoyed watching us pull into the harbor as the sport fishing boats were going out. There was quite a luxury yacht in harbor, too…complete with a helicopter on its landing pad.
In 2005, we booked a tour out to Land’s End. We learned (the hard way) that our DD gets seasick, so all water-based excursions were ruled out this time. Instead, I had contacted Pueblo Bonito Rose resort by email in May and arranged day use of their facilities…for no charge! We took a taxi to the resort, and when asked for our room number at the gate, just told him that we were there for the spa. At the front desk, I exchanged my drivers license for 4 towel cards. These cards are then exchanged for towels near the pool.
We went down to the beach and claimed four lounges in the shade. The pull of the tide was pretty strong, and the water was pretty chilly. Still, it was a nice place to play and relax.
Hint: bring your own inflatable raft/floats; they would have been nice to have. We ordered lunch beachside and headed back to the ship shortly after. My overall impressions of Cabo? It’s a beautiful resort town, but it feels so devoted to tourists. Much to my dismay, my husband arranged a birthday cake and song at dinner…evil man! The show that night was a hypnotist (I think…my days are mixed up!)
Wednesday, June 25: Mazatlan. This was our only morning we needed to be up and out early, as we had arranged a trip to Stone Island with Randi’s Happy Horses. It was overcast and humid as we pulled into port, and I loved listening to the sounds of the roosters as the town woke up. We met Randi and her guide Tony in the port buildings, after taking a tram. (Mazatlan is a working, industrial port, and the tourist areas are away from the working areas.) We waited for the rest of the group to come and them took (open-air) taxis to the dock to get to Stone Island. Now, I know many people do not like Mazatlan but I had the opposite feeling. Where Cabo felt polished and on display, Mazatlan felt honest. Just my opinion. We took a water taxi across to Stone Island, which is really the peninsula where I was hearing the roosters earlier.
Another short taxi ride to the stables, where all of us were carefully matched with our horses. I think out of the 20 or so people, only 2 or 3 had ever ridden before. This did not concern Tony and his father, and I felt safe for all of us, including my DD. We crossed the coconut grove and rode down the beach for about 30 minutes.
The guides were wonderful; giving help and encouragement throughout. At the turn-around point, they had us pose on our horses and used our cameras to take pictures. At the end of the ride, we all were taken to Victor’s restaurant on the beach, where we had drinks and really, really good food. Cabo’s food was resort-Mexican, but Victor’s food was REAL Mexican; delicious coconut shrimp. We were welcome to stay as long as we wanted, and the water along this beach was much warmer and less forceful than Cabo…it was a great place to play.
Warning, though. The sand here is very fine, making the water in the shallow waves appear dirty. We found sand everywhere upon returning! Victor’s has a bathroom and a shower area, and once we were ready to leave, Tony arranged all the transportation back to the ship. Mazatlan was my favorite port this time, and I’d love to head back to Stone Island. Twice Charmed was the show tonight.
Thursday, June 26: Puerto Vallarta. We came into port during a lightning storm, and it was wonderful to watch the lightning over the lights of the city.
The scenery in this port is probably my favorite, with the surrounding mountains.
I watched the pirate ship, Marigalante, prepare to leave. We took this excursion in 2005, and had both kids not gotten seasick, I would have been willing to do it again. It’s a lot of fun and the crew is very professional. This time, though, we arranged to go on Los Veranos canopy tour. We booked directly with the company, as all zip line excursions offered through DCL required kids to be at least 10 years old. We had a 12:00 trip planned, so we took a taxi to the Los Veranos office (about a 20 minute ride). We used the white taxis found just inside the gates of the harbor area. From the Los Veranos office, we were on their bus for the 30-40 minute drive to the zip line. At the site, we were provided lockers to store our things; you are allowed to bring our own camera, but it should be on a sturdy neck strap rather than a wrist one. We were fitted with the equipment and off we went. There are a total of 14 lines, with many stairs between each one! There are a couple of water stops throughout the route. One lady on the trip was having trouble with her asthma, and the staff arranged for her to skip the middle lines and meet up with her group for the last few. My daughter didn’t have any trouble making it across the lines, but they were good with pulling the kids in if they needed extra help.
The staff makes a video throughout the trip that is available for purchase at the end, as are pictures taken at the first line. The zip line ends at a restaurant, and the DVDs are delivered before you leave. The bus back to town leaves at 20 minutes before each hour, so check the time before ordering the DVD. We had to hurry to eat and make the bus back. I would recommend booking an earlier time with Los Veranos; there was no hurry to get back to the ship, as it didn’t leave until late, but we were in a rush to make it back in time to get cleaned up for dinner. The bus stopped at the Los Veranos office, but also continued back to the port, stopping at the various resorts/hotels of the people on the bus. Warning – it’s a VERY bumpy ride! This was also pirate night, and the winds on deck 10 were really strong. Once the show started (and the ship stopped for the fireworks, I presume) the wind died down and it was more enjoyable. The seats on deck were all taken early, but some people went and “borrowed” chairs from Topsiders. I don’t find the “pirate show” that thrilling anyway; I was more interested in watching the lightning in the distance. The fireworks, however, are great!
And you can’t forget the buffet. At least this year, I could send my husband and son out to the veranda as the attacked their turkey legs!
This was also the night that we got to premEAR WALL-e at midnight…too much fun!
Friday, June 27: Day at sea. I was expecting cold weather, but it really wasn’t too bad. The sun came out and the temperatures on deck 9 were fine. We had another lazy day; towel folding, etc. We went to a talk by one of the animators of WALL-e, who was very interesting. I wish it hadn’t have been tagged as adults only, as my DS would have really enjoyed the talk.
Our DD competed in Mr. Toad.
This was also semi-formal night, so we all had to try and look presentable again. Disney Dreams was the show tonight.
Saturday, June 28: Last day at sea; more laziness and relaxation. There was another talk by the animator, and with his permission and encouragement, our DS attended (and enjoyed it as well). We also had the galley tour today; I was surprised at how short it was. I think we were there and back within 20 minutes.
We had to deal with packing today, too, but somehow, it’s more enjoyable when room service delivers treats in the middle of the task.
The show tonight was fun, but I can’t remember the names of the entertainers…sorry! Before the show, we went back to the room and changed into our clothes that we would be wearing tomorrow, allowing us to pack one more outfit in our checked luggage. We enjoyed seeing all the characters in the atrium and were able to get pictures with a few without having long lines.
Our room host delivered our signed pillow cases and photo mats. When I dropped them off at Guest Services on day one, I also included a bag of individual packages of candy to be shared with the cast members…I hope they enjoyed them, but it made me feel better for asking them to do something extra for us. When we delivered our tips, we also included individual bag of jellybeans in the envelope with their thank you note.
Sunday, June 29. Time to go home! I believe our breakfast time was 7:00, and we were off the ship by 8:15 (I think).
Customs was quick, but I thought they were going to confiscate our daughter. She has a tendency to freeze up when asked unexpected questions, and the customs officer asked each of us for our birthdates as he verified it with our passports. Our DD just froze and couldn’t answer the question! Had I warned her in advance, she would have been fine. Live and learn. As soon as we found our luggage, we found a porter and called the Doubletree for the shuttle. I think it arrived within 10 minutes, and we were back at our van and on the road by 9:30, at the very latest.
Feel free to ask questions. Things are completely fresh in my mind, but I’ll do my best!
