9/7/06 10 night Wonder Southern Caribbean "Cruising in WONDERland!"

[Amlee]

I'd love to see you Amy, but it will be over Thanksgiving weekend...sure you want to leave the family? I'm sure Clayton would love to see Sally again too. How far away are you from ATL?

Christmas is our big thing around here. As long as I'm here for that, I'll stay in the good grace of others. I'm a few hours from Atl. We go over spend the day shopping and back alot. You will have to give me the dates yall are going to be down. I leave on the 26 for a 7 day cruise.

 

[Stepht5]

Christmas is our big thing around here. As long as I'm here for that, I'll stay in the good grace of others. I'm a few hours from Atl. We go over spend the day shopping and back alot. You will have to give me the dates yall are going to be down. I leave on the 26 for a 7 day cruise.

What Itenerary? Which cruiseline? We have considered doing some cruises out of Galveston. But, what would make it different from Disney? We are not a fan of casinos when we have children with us. That and I HATE smoke.....

We know that the children's clubs are open less hours -- which is fine with us but, Claire may be dissappointed! She prefers to spend as little time with us as possible.

 

[Amlee]

What Itenerary? Which cruiseline? We have considered doing some cruises out of Galveston. But, what would make it different from Disney? We are not a fan of casinos when we have children with us. That and I HATE smoke.....

We know that the children's clubs are open less hours -- which is fine with us but, Claire may be dissappointed! She prefers to spend as little time with us as possible.

My mother and I are doing the 7 day Eastern on Royal Caribbean's Mariner of the Seas. We are looking for something that the family might enjoy doing. I found a TA fam on that ship and had the Southwest Vouchers so we decided to go. I'm not big on casinos either, but my parents are. I guess it helps if you win, which they tend to do. So we are going to see if it's a ship that the family will enjoy. We will be checking out the kids clubs and all the activites. We talked to the nieces and nephews over the weekend about another cruise. The girls (who are older) didn't really want to do the Disney cruise again. While the boys were all for it. So I'm hoping that the Mariner will give us what we are looking for.

I'll let you know what I think. I've already been on this ship when I did a ship inspection, but never sailed on it. So I know what the inside already looks like.

 

[Stepht5]

So we are going to see if it's a ship that the family will enjoy. We will be checking out the kids clubs and all the activites. We talked to the nieces and nephews over the weekend about another cruise. The girls (who are older) didn't really want to do the Disney cruise again. While the boys were all for it. So I'm hoping that the Mariner will give us what we are looking for.

I'll let you know what I think. I've already been on this ship when I did a ship inspection, but never sailed on it. So I know what the inside already looks like.

I can't wait to hear all about it!

 

[bearette]

Amlee
I did a similiar cruise on the Explorer. i liked it but my main complaint was it was just too big. It made shows and the entertainment around the ship more crowded (they did a lot of stuff in the promenade and there just wasn't enough room.) You have to go early to everything to get a good view. Also the tendering is a nightmare. 3,000 people are all trying to leave the ship at one time = nightmare (think 45 minute waits). The entertainment they had was really good and i like all the extra stuff they have like the ice skating rink. I didn't have kids with me when I went but the reports I have heard are wonderful! Your family should have a great time.

 

[Amlee]

I've read and heard about how crowded these class ships are. I'm not big on massive crowds. It looks like the Mariner can hold about 600 more than the Wonder or the Magic. When you look at it that way it doesn't seem so bad.

My mother is getting excited, I just told her the ship was going to have all it's Christmas stuff up. She is already planning what we will wear to have our pictures taken in front of the tree. She was the one who said NO BUYING CLOTHES OR ANYTHING to prepare for this cruise! She is also on a mission for this cruise. I'm still trying to find out WHO told her St. Martin was the place to find Linens! She wants hand made linens from the ports. She wants tableclothes, place mats, napkins, and other stuff. She is bringing the most important part of my dad. His credit card!


I have a HUGE tendering problem. I was so relieved when I learned that we didn't have to tender on our cruise. It's so huge of a problem that I have NEVER been able to tender. I can be on a ship with calm seas and about the time it's time to tender. 9 to 10 foot waves will come out of no where! The only place we will have to tender is their private island. (which my mother has been to before and said it was nothing to right home about.) The Mariner and one other ship will be in St. Martin. There will be several ships in port in St. Thomas including the Magic.


I hope I can talk my mother into bringing everyone back on one of these ships. That is MY MISSION!

 

[Stepht5]

She is also on a mission for this cruise. I'm still trying to find out WHO told her St. Martin was the place to find Linens! She wants hand made linens from the ports. She wants tableclothes, place mats, napkins, and other stuff. She is bringing the most important part of my dad. His credit card!

I think I read this somewhere.... I should get a chance inthe next day or so to go through my links and see if I can fiond the info.

I have a HUGE tendering problem. I was so relieved when I learned that we didn't have to tender on our cruise. It's so huge of a problem that I have NEVER been able to tender. I can be on a ship with calm seas and about the time it's time to tender. 9 to 10 foot waves will come out of no where! The only place we will have to tender is their private island. (which my mother has been to before and said it was nothing to right home about.)

I'm not sure that I could tender EVER. I never thought about needing to do that..... ACK!

 

[Amlee]

Steph, I would love you forever if you could come up with a link to this!! I've asked on the main board, but nobody has replied to me about it.

The 2 times I have sailed RCI to tender it hasn't happened. Once during the summer and once during the winter. Both times the crew talked about how huge and usual the waves were. I swear I'm jinxed!!

 

[DisneyGirlTinkerbell]

When we sailed with DCL in 2000, they tendered in St. Maarten. Pehaps things have changed. I don't remember linens in St. Maarten, but I sure remember Mr. Tablecloth in St. Thomas! They had tons of Christmas linens and I bought some nice things for my Mom. This time we got to St. Thomas on a Sunday and I didn't get into town to shop before the stores closed. I had a few plans of my own for Mr. Tablecloth.

I've read and heard about how crowded these class ships are. I'm not big on massive crowds. It looks like the Mariner can hold about 600 more than the Wonder or the Magic. When you look at it that way it doesn't seem so bad.

My mother is getting excited, I just told her the ship was going to have all it's Christmas stuff up. She is already planning what we will wear to have our pictures taken in front of the tree. She was the one who said NO BUYING CLOTHES OR ANYTHING to prepare for this cruise! She is also on a mission for this cruise. I'm still trying to find out WHO told her St. Martin was the place to find Linens! She wants hand made linens from the ports. She wants tableclothes, place mats, napkins, and other stuff. She is bringing the most important part of my dad. His credit card!


I have a HUGE tendering problem. I was so relieved when I learned that we didn't have to tender on our cruise. It's so huge of a problem that I have NEVER been able to tender. I can be on a ship with calm seas and about the time it's time to tender. 9 to 10 foot waves will come out of no where! The only place we will have to tender is their private island. (which my mother has been to before and said it was nothing to right home about.) The Mariner and one other ship will be in St. Martin. There will be several ships in port in St. Thomas including the Magic.


I hope I can talk my mother into bringing everyone back on one of these ships. That is MY MISSION!

 

[Amlee]

When we sailed with DCL in 2000, they tendered in St. Maarten. Pehaps things have changed. I don't remember linens in St. Maarten, but I sure remember Mr. Tablecloth in St. Thomas! They had tons of Christmas linens and I bought some nice things for my Mom. This time we got to St. Thomas on a Sunday and I didn't get into town to shop before the stores closed. I had a few plans of my own for Mr. Tablecloth.

Ok, don't do this to me!! Please don't do this to me!! There is only suppose to be one other ship in St. Maarten while we are there. About 5 will be in St. Thomas though!

Where do I find this Mr. Tablecloth?

 

[DisneyGirlTinkerbell]

Ok, don't do this to me!! Please don't do this to me!! There is only suppose to be one other ship in St. Maarten while we are there. About 5 will be in St. Thomas though!

Where do I find this Mr. Tablecloth?

Mr. Tablecloth is on Main Street in downtown St. Thomas...not Havensight Mall next to the pier. On my previous cruise, I bought my Mom a Christmas-themed linen tablecloth with 8 napkins VERY reasonably priced. There's also a place called Omni Linens, but I can't vouch for them since I haven't shopped there. They are downtown too, so you could check them out.

As for tenders in St. Maarten...like I said things change. Perhaps they don't tender anymore. Don't panic if RCCL is saying they don't tender there.

 

[micmse2003]

Ok, don't do this to me!! Please don't do this to me!! There is only suppose to be one other ship in St. Maarten while we are there. About 5 will be in St. Thomas though!

Where do I find this Mr. Tablecloth?

I also went to Mr. Tablecloth this past cruise. I forgot my pillowcases so I found them there. It was very reasonable. I got beautiful scalloped pink edged cases, a pair for $4.00. Now the pillowcases are priceless because of the signatures. I found nothing in St Maarten last cruise.

I am jealous you are going on another cruise although I think I prefer DCL but that is just me.

I have to go see three movies for my job this weekend and I am babysitting. No rest for me since the cruise. I need another!!!!!!!!!!!!

I do not think I could tender either. Everytime I was on a smaller boat in the ocean, we either were followed by sharks, or storms. Only big boats for me!!!!!!

Hope everyone is doing great.

 

[Stepht5]

I have to go see three movies for my job this weekend and I am babysitting. No rest for me since the cruise. I need another!!!!!!!!!!!!

Elvis is going to see Flicka this morning with some friends (and a few moms ).
I'm not sure if I could sit through 3 movies in a weekend! If they were comedies.... YES!
I'm sure the babysitting is the fun part! Will you have just your gd or the baby, also? If we were near you my kids would LOVE to come help you! They love small children and babies. That is why 15dd works in a Montessori preschool 2 mornings a week. And Elvis hopes he can when he is older! I reminded him that he is only 8 so he has a while to go!

 

[Stepht5]

Steph, I would love you forever if you could come up with a link to this!! I've asked on the main board, but nobody has replied to me about it.

I can't find the information that I had read in the past but, I was going to post to you that I know several people that bought linens in St Thomas BUT, I see that has already been mentioned.

 

[Amlee]

Thanks for the info! I went in Omni (Got my grandmother something there.) but I missed Mr. Tablecloth.

I don't mind tendering if I can do it. But the seas always seem to act up when it comes to doing that. I was talking to my mother last night and she said Coco Cay is no Castaway Cay and she would rather stay on the ship.

I wish some of yall were closer to me. I have 12 extra Disney on Ice tickets and nobody wants them. Everyone has plans that day and can't go.

I'm going to see Flicka this weekend also.

 

[Stepht5]

I wish some of yall were closer to me. I have 12 extra Disney on Ice tickets and nobody wants them. Everyone has plans that day and can't go..

OMGosh!!! We would so go! LOL! Which show is it? Monster Inc is going to be here soon BUT, we've already seen that one.... so, I'm trying to decide if I want to spend that much money to see a show we've already seen.... With 5 tickets add up QUICK! We saw Princess on Ice earlier this year (or was it last fall?) If the tickets are FREE I'ld go see a show I've seen before! LOL!

I'm going to see Flicka this weekend also.

Have fun! When Elvis found out which movie it was he nearly had a heart attack *WHAT WOULD MAKE YOU THINK I WANT TO SEE A GIRL MOVIE!* I was pretty hacked off this morning since the only reason I'm not in WDW is because he wanted to do something with this group of friends today!!!! I told him that I should have left him here and then the girls & I would be riding the monorail at that moment! Today I am not feeling like Mother Of the Year material!

 

[Stepht5]

I don't know if y'all saw this or not BUT, the Dis has a new board to talk about these trips! Several people have already gone on a few and have posted trip reports! YEA!!!!!!

We had thought we would do one of the Italy ones in 2007 but, yesterday when i was talking to dh (he has been in Italy the last few days) he told me that he thought it would too much for either of the younger two. I told him that is because he just wants to do the Costa Rica trip He went deep sea fishing there this past Spring and has wanted me and the kids to go there every since!

Of course 23dd is getting married in the Fall of 2007 so, who knows if I will have time to do anything then! LOL! I like to travel in the late summer/ early fall... Unless I'm going North then I prefer the Summer.

 

[Amlee]

I'm not sure why, but Birmingham gets the new runs on Disney on Ice. This year it's Finding Nemo, and The Incredables. We had the Princes last year. Now it's not until Nov 4th. Yall could fly out and still come see the show!

Poor Elivs! Not only does he have to watch a girlie movie, but he's having a bad mommy monent!

 

[Amlee]

I don't know if y'all saw this or not BUT, the Dis has a new board to talk about these trips! Several people have already gone on a few and have posted trip reports! YEA!!!!!!

We had thought we would do one of the Italy ones in 2007 but, yesterday when i was talking to dh (he has been in Italy the last few days) he told me that he thought it would too much for either of the younger two. I told him that is because he just wants to do the Costa Rica trip He went deep sea fishing there this past Spring and has wanted me and the kids to go there every since!

Of course 23dd is getting married in the Fall of 2007 so, who knows if I will have time to do anything then! LOL! I like to travel in the late summer/ early fall... Unless I'm going North then I prefer the Summer.

Oh my District Sales Manager is doing the Costa Rica next month. He is suppose to give a report as to what he and his family got to do. He has a son about Elvis age. I'll let you know what he thought about it.

I want to go!!!!!!!!!!!!! I got some brochures on it, my sister in law and I were like OH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Let's GO!!

 

[Stepht5]

I'm not sure why, but Birmingham gets the new runs on Disney on Ice. This year it's Finding Nemo, and The Incredables. We had the Princes last year. Now it's not until Nov 4th. Yall could fly out and still come see the show!

Too cool! And you're right we could fly out -- AA is running such great deals now that the Wright Admendment is out of the equation and they are competing with SWA One of the reasons I wanted to go to WDW was the flight costs are only $160 a pp!!!!!
I usually pay around $250 a person. It adds up fast with this many people! I've never been to Alabama......