7/13/13 ~~ Eastern Mediterranean Mouseketeers!

[FloridaMom3461]

Hello! Thanks for adding us to the Roll Call!
Disney Name - carolplymartin
DW (Carol), DH (Marty), DD (Savannah 13), DD (Brooke 8)
From Dallas, TX
2nd Dining
Yes, FE & SM

Welcome! Glad to see another 8 year old girl! Looks like a kids club play group in the making!

 

[tajz90]

Hello! Thanks for adding us to the Roll Call!
Disney Name - carolplymartin
DW (Carol), DH (Marty), DD (Savannah 13), DD (Brooke 8)
From Dallas, TX
2nd Dining
Yes, FE & SM

Yeah, another Texan. I have a 14 yr old son.

 

[tinkerbelltwins]

Hello! Thanks for adding us to the Roll Call!
Disney Name - carolplymartin
DW (Carol), DH (Marty), DD (Savannah 13), DD (Brooke 8)
From Dallas, TX
2nd Dining
Yes, FE & SM

Welcome! You have been added to the Roll Call!

Beth

 

[fabulousoldshoes]

So excited we booked our excursions Makes it seem more real now!

Villefranche: Nice and Monaco
La Spezia: Florence and Pisa
Civitavecchia: Vatican City, the Coliseum and Catacombs
Athens: Athens Sightseeing, Acropolis, New Acropolis Museum with Lunch
Kusadasi: Ephesus, Didyma and Miletus with Lunch
Mykonos: Delos Island
Valletta: Gozo Experience

We were able to go back in today and change our Athens and Mykonos excursions to ones that had previously been sold out when we booked. If you didn't get your first choice I would recommend checking again because they do free up sometimes. We're hoping to get to change our Rome tour as well.

 

[LovesToRun]

Hi everyone,

Some of you may have already seen this, but someone on the main Dis boards recommended these guides called "Toms Port Guides" as another resource to plan out what to do at each port (they are free and downloadable online guides). If your ports are already fully planned (like ours are), these are also useful to just familiarize yourself with the port so you know more of what to expect when we arrive. I looked it up, and there is some really useful information (and photos & detailed maps to give more of an idea of what the ports/areas will look like, etc).

He has port guides to lots of ports in the world, so to make it easier, I copied and pasted the links to only the ports we'll be at (to save you the time sifting through all of the ports in his guide to find ours). The only port he does not have is Malta.

This is the main website (in case you are interested where all these guides are located, etc)
http://www.tomsportguides.com/


These are all of our ports (obviously, not listed in the itinerary order):

Rome (Civitavecchia):
http://www.tomsportguides.com/Rome_Civitavecchia_08-07-2012.pdf

Le Spezia
(note: this includes both Le Spezia and Livorno (the other port). LeSpezia (and Cinque Terre) is towards the end of the document, so you have to scroll down to in the doc find Le Spezia):
http://www.tomsportguides.com/Livorno-04-20-2011.pdf

Mykonos
http://www.tomsportguides.com/Mykonos-08-01-2011.pdf

Athens
http://www.tomsportguides.com/Athens-08-12-2011.pdf

Villefranche
http://www.tomsportguides.com/Villefranche-sur-Mer-06-20-2012.pdf

Kusadasi (Ephesus)
http://www.tomsportguides.com/Kusadasi-07-25-2012.pdf

Barcelona
http://www.tomsportguides.com/Barcelona-07-22-2011.pdf


Enjoy!!

 

[disfreaks]

Delos Island is available, but maybe the time won't work for you...

 

[ky71]

Has any other DCL tour sold out since Newfoundland Sailor posted the list?
I still have almost two weeks until I can book

I am interested in Villefranche "Monaco, Monte Carlo and Eze" (I hope it's not sold out) We would also like to do DCL's "Ephesus & Aquapark" - is the water park Adaland? Should I try to look for a cheap private morning tour of Ephesus and do the water park on our own (entry is one quarter of DCL total tour price and includes transfers from Kusadasi) but I am concerned about poor public transport options and being late back to the ship.

We have private tours booked for Florence/Pisa, Rome and Athens. We are preparing to do Mykonos and Valetta on our own.

Any advice gladly accepted.

 

[tajz90]

Has any other DCL tour sold out since Newfoundland Sailor posted the list?
I still have almost two weeks until I can book

I am interested in Villefranche "Monaco, Monte Carlo and Eze" (I hope it's not sold out) We would also like to do DCL's "Ephesus & Aquapark" - is the water park Adaland? Should I try to look for a cheap private morning tour of Ephesus and do the water park on our own (entry is one quarter of DCL total tour price and includes transfers from Kusadasi) but I am concerned about poor public transport options and being late back to the ship.

We have private tours booked for Florence/Pisa, Rome and Athens. We are preparing to do Mykonos and Valetta on our own.

Any advice gladly accepted.

Monaco, Monte Carlo and Eze was still available yesterday. I just booked it myself.

 

[Newfoundland Sailor]

Has any other DCL tour sold out since Newfoundland Sailor posted the list?
I still have almost two weeks until I can book


Any advice gladly accepted.

I am pretty sure when I was on yesterday that there were many more tours sold out. Why don't I update that post today and then update just before you book? Hopefully that would help.

 

[Newfoundland Sailor]

Has any other DCL tour sold out since Newfoundland Sailor posted the list? I still have almost two weeks until I can book

I have updated the sold out/availability page for anyone wanting an up-date on excursions and Palo. (Post #1210 on this thread)

Let me know if you need any more info.

I'll update the post this weekend and again closer to the booking time for first timers.

http://www.disboards.com/showpost.php?p=48099557&postcount=1210

 

[ky71]

Thanks Heather! I really appreciate your time in doing that for us.

 

[WDW Princess 71]

Hi all,

I have confirmed with DCL Function requests that we will have one of the lounges reserved from 2:30pm to 3:30pm on embarkation day.

best wishes,
Randi

This sounds great! Thanks for organizing the meet. Its a perfect time to get to say hi to everyone and then hopefully recognize faces later in the cruise!

On our last cruise, someone made buttons for the Dis group and we love, love, loved them! Made it SO easy to recognize fellow disers and start a conversation! The buttons were nice because you could pin them to your shirt or lanyard or camera bag, whatever. Honestly, I don't like wearing bracelets of any kind but won't refuse to if that's what everyone decides on.

I love the button idea! I would definitely clip it to my lanyard and wear it proudly. My favorite is still the green rubber bracelet but the button would be a nice addition also.

Hi everyone,

Some of you may have already seen this, but someone on the main Dis boards recommended these guides called "Toms Port Guides" as another resource to plan out what to do at each port (they are free and downloadable online guides). If your ports are already fully planned (like ours are), these are also useful to just familiarize yourself with the port so you know more of what to expect when we arrive. I looked it up, and there is some really useful information (and photos & detailed maps to give more of an idea of what the ports/areas will look like, etc).

I love Tom's Port Guides! I have started using them in the past few weeks putting together the little tips and directions he has for arriving in port, how to walk to train stations, etc. They are so detailed and invaluable.

No Palo Tea left, and Brunch was very limited. Dinner was also sold out some days.

I don't think Palo tea is offered anymore- I believe they stopped it a couple years ago now unless it has changed again.

Hi all!!

We just got back late last night! It was our first time on the Fantasy, and it was definitely a different experience than the classic ships for sure!

I do know after this past week, my heart truly is with the smaller classic ships! (Can't wait to be on the Magic this summer in the Med!)

BUT, we had a great time... we enjoyed all of the adult only areas!! Amazingly, they were hardly ever crowded... we were really surprised at that!! We hit the adult only lounges every evening for a drink and just some "adult only" time, and sometimes we were the only people in the lounge! And, I was in love with the deck 13 adult only area (I have already forgotten the name of that area)... with the fountain you can sit in, and the shaded and sun areas in the front of the ship. LOVED that area and it was rarely crowded.... not even on sea days! So, those areas were our highlights.

The dining rooms were beautiful!! We got lucky with the Royal Palace dining room and our table was in the "prince and princess" room, which is a small room inside the dining room. That was SO nice!! It was quiet and just a more intimate atmosphere compared to the rest of the dining room.

Ship was beautiful, so clean, of course, top notch Disney customer service.

But, for me, it was just TOO big and too busy.... just too much going on all the time, too many people (other than the adult only areas), the kids clubs were SOOOO crowded and my boys actually didn't enjoy them as much (which is so unusual because we usually have to PULL them away from the clubs, but this time, we had to ask them to go to the clubs, and they had NO problems leaving when we said it was time to leave, and toward the end of the week, they started just asking us if they could just stay in the cabin while we went out to hang out in the adult only areas rather than go to the kids clubs). But, don't get me wrong, they did like them, I just wouldn't say they LOVED them like they do the classic ships, only because they were so crowded with kids.

Also, my son who loves basketball was disappointed that the basketball court was closed at 6 PM (which is a great time to play because it's cooler then), but I understand why.... because of Palo and Remy. But, it was disappointing to him.

We LOVED the putt putt golf!!!! We played SOOO many times. Our kids could NOT get enough of that.

The Aqua Duck was awesome!!!! But, we only went on the port days (we got back to ship early when there were no to very little lines) or at night when there were no lines). Didn't even attempt the aqua duck on sea days.

Loved Zip-Lining at Puerto Rico!!!! AWESOME shore excursion for anyone who likes an adventure. Highly recommend it. A highlight of our trip!

The food on the ship..... honestly, I'd say "so-so". I actually think the food on the Magic and Wonder is better. I'm not sure why this would be the case because it's all Disney. But, I can't say I was "wow'd" with any dish in the main dining room. We did go to Palo and LOVED it as usual!! We requested a window table and went at sunset on a sea day!! The view was breathtaking!! Loved Palo.

Oh, and LOVED Meridian.... LOVED LOVE LOVED that place!!! Beautiful!! Our other favorite lounge/bar was Skyline! Also, the champagne bar... I love champagne!!

The stateroom was no different (size/layout-wise) than the classic ships, BUT I swear the walls are thinner! There was so much more noise, I felt. I could hear one set of neighbors on one side snoring at night (seriously!), and the other set of neighbors (with the connecting door) they were not "noisy" by any means, but we could just hear them talking, we could hear their kids talking, we could hear the doors shutting.... just heard a lot more noise. We kept our veranda door open a lot to just drown out the noise, which was really nice!! We love the fresh air, but at night, we kept our veranda door shut, and the noise was just high... it was hard to get to sleep sometimes. Next time we go on the Fantasy, we'll bring a white noise maker with us to drown out cabin noise from neighbors.

Overall, I still love the classic ships more, but the Fantasy was fun. But, my heart will always be with the Magic and Wonder! Much more relaxing to me...

And, we surprised our boys and went to WDW right after we got off the ship for just 2 days. The boys were soooo surprised! They had no idea. We really lucked out in that we went there in between crowded weeks... there were hardly any crowds! In 2 days (not even full days... we pretty much were in the parks a total of 12 hours) we covered 3 parks (Epcot, Hollywood, and Magic Kingdom), and we went on 28 rides! With the exception of a few of the REALLY popular rides, most lines were only 10-15 minutes long, and we got fast passes to the popular rides with longer waits. It was awesome!

We stayed at the Beach Club, so it was a great location to get to parks fast.

Well, that is a summary...

Now, next trip! Our Med cruise/Europe!! SO excited!

Oh, and my parents were able to get the shore excursions they wanted this past weekend (they are silver), and they were able to book Palo! I'm relieved!

Now, I'll have to catch up on all the posts from the past week here.

Welcome back! Glad you enjoyed your trip on the Fantasy! That is funny you experienced the adult areas uncrowded. I think it varies tremendously from one cruise to the next. As I said my Fantasy cruise was very crowded with adults on pool deck, sun deck and the nightlife, but my 2 Dream cruises were lacking in adults. But either way, I agree, the adult areas on the new ships are stunning. The bars theming are so cool, its hard to fit them all in! Meridian is wonderful too for the views and my parents and I appreciated the cigar side. I do prefer the adult pool area on the classics though since they are larger and more open.

 

[LovesToRun]

I love the button idea! I would definitely clip it to my lanyard and wear it proudly. My favorite is still the green rubber bracelet but the button would be a nice addition also.


Welcome back! Glad you enjoyed your trip on the Fantasy! That is funny you experienced the adult areas uncrowded. I think it varies tremendously from one cruise to the next. As I said my Fantasy cruise was very crowded with adults on pool deck, sun deck and the nightlife, but my 2 Dream cruises were lacking in adults. But either way, I agree, the adult areas on the new ships are stunning. The bars theming are so cool, its hard to fit them all in! Meridian is wonderful too for the views and my parents and I appreciated the cigar side. I do prefer the adult pool area on the classics though since they are larger and more open.

Buttons would for sure work, even for those who don't use the lanyards... I can pin a button to my shoulder bag strap or our day pack. I can't guarantee I will wear a rubber bracelet. I don't even wear a watch. BUT, I think we should do what makes the most sense with the majority. I'm super easy going and flexible, so I'm happy with whatever the majority wants.

Yes, we were super surprised the adult areas were so empty!! I agree, it just depends on the week. We talked with a cast member in one of the adult only lounges and asked if this was normal for the adult only areas to be so empty, and they said the exact same thing as you.... it just depends on the week. Some weeks they are super crowded and other weeks they are empty. It must be on this cruise, the adults just enjoyed being in the family areas more because the family pools were CRAZY crowded on the sea days (didn't even appeal to our kids or us to be in the pools or those areas on sea days).

Regardless, we lucked out with the adult only areas. We are booked on the Fantasy for the exact same week next year.... it will be interesting to see if we have the same experience.

Speaking of kids, for those who have been on the Med cruise before with Disney, do these cruises tend to be more adults and less kids, or do you find there are a lot of kids on these cruises? Since it's summer, I would guess there will be a lot of kids, but on the flip side, given it's so port intensive (ie, LONG days) I am wondering if this cruise has less kids? Just curious. I'm thinking more of the kids clubs and wondering how crowded they may be on our Med cruise.

I can't believe 3 months from now we'll all be ON the Magic in the Med!!! Wow!!!

 

[calihannah]

I don't think Palo tea is offered anymore- I believe they stopped it a couple years ago now unless it has changed again.

Must be more recent than that -- we definitely had tea in Alaska last summer (2012, on the Wonder).

 

[Disney_fans]

We were on the June 18, 2011 Med cruise and there appeared to be the same number of kids as there were on our other cruises. I think the only difference may be that the July and August cruises may have more European families since they don't get out of school as early as American children.

 

[Newfoundland Sailor]

Thanks Heather! I really appreciate your time in doing that for us.

No problem. We were all relegated to the last check in day once. I understand how hard it is not knowing what is available and what's not.

 

[Eleblanc]

Thank you everyone for your responses and input on the FE and SM.

I have just closed off the sign up sheet for the FE on page 1, post #4. At the moment we have exactly 25 people signed up for the FE so I am going to limit the group to that. If we get a rush of more people interested I can make a second group.

If anyone is still interested in signing up for the Secret Mickeys please let me know, I can still take names for this till April 24th and I will let everyone know their names the weekend after.

 

[FloridaMom3461]

If you are a member of the facebook group, and have an opinion about what you prefer for an ID such as a wristband, button, lanyard trinket etc, please vote on the facebook page poll.
thanks all,
Randi

 

[LovesToRun]

Does anyone know who the captain will be for the Med cruise, or if there is a way to find out? I'm only curious.

 

[FloridaMom3461]

Found a site with some video blogs and navigators from a 2010 Magic in the Med fyi...
http://www.wdwinfo.com/disney-cruise-line/magic-mediterranean.htm