An Aussie's first Cruise may as well be with Mickey! Cruising the Wonder at Christmas

[queenie82]

As an increasingly regular visitor to the Mouse it should be obvious I love the guy...and especially his pal Stitch.
Of course whether Mickey consider's Stitch a pal is unclear. To me it may all have been started by a Mouse, but Stitch rules the Kingdom
So...
I'm not sure they get on.
But I digress...

I will first say that I have never been on a cruise and never actually wanted to go on a cruise. I don't get why anyone would want to be stuck in a ship with a whole lot of other people for so long? Especially when there are a large number of Sea days. I like my feet on terra firma and being able to drive myself from place to place. It is bad enough being stuck in a tin can for 15 hours just to get to the US.
BUT...
Shortly after getting home from visiting the mouse in Paris and Tokyo (did you know Mickey could speak Japanese...with a squeaky high pitched voice), we ended up planning a trip to the US due to the airfare war over prices for the Syd-LAX route flights and next thing a cruise landed on the itinerary.

We went into intense planning mode and I must thank all those on the DIS boards for all of the wonderful information on here
You guys are amazing.

Most of the planning went into the WDW part of course. It was our first time staying onsite and going on the dining plan and being 'Welcome Home' d.
Thanks to all the info on these boards we now have a DVC member in the family
BUT
As a non cruiser I had no idea what I was getting myself into.
What were the cabins like was my biggest concern. This is where you guys came in most of all.
Being the youngest member of our crew made me the candidate for the 'extra bed'
[Now I will digress in saying that I spent last year trying to complete my 2 university degrees with the trip consuming my mind. WDW was a known, DL was a known. This cruiseship was an unknown... . I have a wonderful family and Mr DVC was doing a wonderful job with all the planning. But knowing I could hop on here for a 1/2hr here and there and find out so much!!! That...was simply wonderful.
(and yes I did completely those degrees somehow)]

Back to being the 'extra' person. I discovered that the extra bed was a rather nifty thing which could cater for someone 174cm tall (not just toddlers). I discovered these cabins were a truly ingenious design. I became aware of the wonderful split bathroom . I learnt that traveling even in the start of December would result in a beautiful decorated ship

Asking about DCL is Australia is like asking an American for Fairy Floss Say What? You want what?

So...thank you all...
____________________________________________
I was planning to give a full trip report but I just haven't gotten around to it. I've written up a few notes though.
These photos might be of help to those going on a cruise soon.

This is our Category 10 room - hidden porthole. It is about the best in the category. 5520 (I think)

This shows the bunk bed.
This is where I slept.
I am about 5'10" and this was really comfortable. If you get up a lot during the night then this isn't ideal for you because the ladder is a little painful on the feet and narrow. But once you are up there is it really comfortable.

A balcony would be wonderful but for just a 3 night cruise I was perfectly happy with our porthole. We were out of the room for almost all daylight hours and didn't have time to sit on a balcony.

 

[queenie82]

My general thoughts

I really enjoyed it but my brother got sea sick on the last night.
It sure was rocking and rolling on that last night as we drove full board back to port.
So pack some sea sickness bands if you think you might be susceptible. They DO keep tablets at guest services in midship deck 3 though.
Once I was asleep I was fine...but the worst was eating dinner while it rocking from side to side.
Even our main server said it wasn't normally quite this bad.

The meals are great
I loved everything. I think the lunch we had while in port at Nassau was great...probably the best of them all

GET TO THE SHIP EARLY ENOUGH TO GET ONBOARD IN TIME FOR LUNCH!
It is Parrot Cay buffet
ALSO it is a time when your kids can use the pool and slide while it is quiet.
My gripe with this ship is that the slide is only for children...and under 12's at that. I believe this was a misstep with Disney.
I also believe that they have seen the error of their ways by making that amazing slide for the Dream.

Castaway cay was AWESOME
Don't bother going to a beach anywhere else. A day here is perfect. (although there are no waves )
[I wil use the term beach but a beach these are not. Sorry...I'm an Aussie and a beach has more than just sand. It has something resembling waves...and no rocks underfoot]

The adult beach really isn't used as a beach. They haven't removed all the sharp rocks in the water so swimming in there is NOT foot friendly.
People just sit there and sun bake and read.
I'm sorry I don't get it...I'm an action girl. I also burn to a crisp if left out in the sun too long so I'm out in the sun slathered in sunscreen I better be having fun.

Again I think Disney did a misstep not allowing people over 12 to play on the equipment in the water. seriously guys. People over 12 like having fun in the water too!

The food for lunch is beautiful and easy to get.
I watched the crab racing which is just between the main beach and where they serve lunch. Not wildly exciting...and I wasn't there for it...but it was ok.
But then Stitch showed up there and did the conga


READ THE NAVIGATOR!!!!
There are LOTS of character meet and greets and the ship is the best place to try and get them. It is so much easier than the parks! And there are LOTS of different characters.

I LOVED the 2 shows....Disney Dreams – An Enchanted Classic and Golden Mickeys.
Disney Dreams – An Enchanted Classic is beautiful
I didn't like Toy Story the Musical...very disappointing. Too clunky scene changes and just not very good.
Maybe if you don't go expecting much it will be better though.

If you have girls that like princesses then they usually have 3 out at a time and you can queue up and move from one to another. Sometimes there are separate queues.

There are official photographers who do like a photo pass but I found the photos too washed out. There was no contrast in the faces. Sort of too much flash. Not that mine were especially better. But I wasn't paying hundreds for photos which I wasn't satisfied with.
The areas are fairly dimly lit (which is why mine weren't great) so I think they overcompensate, but I still think they should have been doing a better job for the price.
You can take your own photos no worries though...that is fine. If there is an assistant CM with the photographer they may take it for you with your camera. The photographer won't though.

Back to dining...
Tell the head server if you have a celebration...they will bring out a special cake and do a little celebration clap thing. [This is included...no extra fee]

 

[queenie82]

NASSAU

We just looked around the town which is literally just 2mins from the port. You do NOT need to get a taxi. We had done the talk about shopping in Nassau on the cruise the night before the day in port which was very informative and helpful. We didn't buy much but we got all the "free gifts" with the coupons in the $25 book you can buy. It is actually good value if you put the time into going into the different shops which are interesting. I even won a $500 gemstone in one of the shop's contests for Disney cruise ship guests.

As you walk through the town you see police walking through all over the place.
Once you step beyond that main strip though you see more derelict buildings and it gets a bit creepy. We stopped at that point.

We were warned to always be aware of our surroundings and carry ONLY what you need. Stay in a group...avoid walking alone.
We felt safe in the town but as I say...beyond that I just didn't feel safe.


For me...I wouldn't bother with any of the excursions. I think they are all a waste of money.
If you want an Aquarium Australia has some of the best...and the Atlanta one is pretty good.
If you want to Snorkel...great barrier reef.
If you want a beach...castaway cay.
If you want a water park...Disney has 2.
If you want a Segway tour...Disney has them.

I was on the cruise to enjoy the cruise SHIP!!
We went back for lunch which was DIVINE. One of the best meals was that lunch.
I enjoyed seeing the town but to me the rest of the island is of little interest.

 

[queenie82]

CRUISE LINE ALBUM

 

[shushh]

Ahhh, such wonderful photos which bring back wonderful memories! And I hear you on the beach thing...must really appreciate the beaches at home more.

 

[Ms. Shuttergirl]

How gorgeous, lovely photos and great info Queenie.

 

[jockey]

Brill pics

 

[Jade+3]

Great photos Queenie. My 4 year old is disappointed that he did not get Pluto ketchup (though we did get plenty of Mickey ketchup). Totally agree with your comments on Nassau. We wandered around for a couple of hours and were back on board by lunch.

 

[jenshell75]

Loving all the photos, and the TR. We want to do a trip to WDW and a Disney Christmas Cruise and these photos make me want to go NOW. Only 200 days till christmas. YAY

Thanks

 

[queenie82]

Thank you for all the kind words.
These are photos I really love too. The beautiful sunny days helped with the exterior shots. It was rather hit and miss inside due to so much being dimly lit...but...they are good enough to bring back the memories
All in all I really loved it and would recommend people go on a Disney Cruise.

The Christmas magic made it extra special too.
I do understand 'worries' about the water temps but especially for an Aussie who goes hurtling into the water at a Sydney or Qld beach...it didn't seem colder than that.
As 'beaches' go though...well...lets just say the sand isn't exactly that beautiful soft white sand we are used to.

I'm definitely not a 'cruise' person. I'm simply a Disney person.
I would like to go on the Dream once it comes online at some point. The slide on it and all the new additions to the ship look really cool...and ultimately it is all about the ship and the Disney magic.

For people worried about the alcohol situation most people just bring it on board themselves to save them money. I'm not a big drinker so only 'splurged' on a smoothie as it came with a bonus light up pirate 'glass' (plastic actually)

On the service front we found a Kiwi at the Guest Services desk who was really great. He went out of his way to try and fix any problems and help out.

You will find people from all over. Especially the UK for the Kids Clubs. (they have WAYYYYY too much energy and are WAYYY too loud )

One gripe of mine was the lack of Disney music. In the departing party etc it wasn't Disney music...only 'dancing' music.
Now...anyone who knows Disney music KNOWS there are CDs full of dance versions of many of the favourites and 'pop' versions and so on.
So that was disappointing. Even in the ship it wasn't there as much as in the parks.
But...

All in all...a great time

 

[Ets80]

I have done a cruise and a visit to Disney in Orlando and I am unsure which I like better. I think I will try them both again to see.