>> April 1, 2012 - Disney Dream Spring Break Frenzy! <<

[RemoCat]

Welcome to the cruise!! I will get you on the FE list ASAP...
Not sure how many gifts you plan on but we currently have about 20 staterooms participating. I am in the process of getting a more detailed list together of # adults, children and ages in each stateroom. We have a cutoff date of 3/1 for joining the FE in order to give everyone time to get their gifts together.
Check post #301 for more FE info...

Debbie

I'm excited to say that as of today I finally have the major part of my FE gifts figured out and things ordered...not finished by any means, but moving in the right direction. That being said, if we get much larger than 25 staterooms, I may need to get creative, especially if they are added late, right before cut-off. I'll keep my eye on the boards to see if it's growing a lot during February.

 

[Deb T.]

I'm excited to say that as of today I finally have the major part of my FE gifts figured out and things ordered...not finished by any means, but moving in the right direction. That being said, if we get much larger than 25 staterooms, I may need to get creative, especially if they are added late, right before cut-off. I'll keep my eye on the boards to see if it's growing a lot during February.

Hate to be the bearer of bad news, but I've organized six DCL FE Exchanges and it's been my experience that a lot of people tend to join at the last minute, often even after the cut-off date. The closer the cruise, the more active the meets threads become. I believe we already have 19 cabins participating, plus at least three others are waiting to see how large this group gets before deciding whether or not to join, and it's still 5-1/2 weeks until the March 1st cut-off date.

On the couple of times that I ran out of my original FE gifts, I just came up with a second gift for everyone who joined in later. Hope this helps!

 

[mubriankoz]

Not to change subjects but a question about CC.

My family are early risers, if we get out to CC right away and get some chairs is it generally safe to leave personal belongings at some chairs? I'm not talking about money and cameras or anything but if we go off to see the stingrays it would be nice to leave the towels and stuff there.

 

[RemoCat]

Hate to be the bearer of bad news, but I've organized six DCL FE Exchanges and it's been my experience that a lot of people tend to join at the last minute, often even after the cut-off date. The closer the cruise, the more active the meets threads become. I believe we already have 19 cabins participating, plus at least three others are waiting to see how large this group gets before deciding whether or not to join, and it's still 5-1/2 weeks until the March 1st cut-off date.

On the couple of times that I ran out of my original FE gifts, I just came up with a second gift for everyone who joined in later. Hope this helps!

Yeah, I'm a bit worried about that, both because a huge group would be difficult for this particular gift for both financial and time reasons ('m really needing to start now since I have to do everything in secret, after the kids are in bed). So, I might have to do what you've done and have something else (i.e. not as cool!) for those who join late. I have read in some places that if the groups get very large, that they get broken into smaller groups. Any interest in that out there? Or does it just grow endlessly? I, personally, would enjoy a smaller group only because gifts could be more personal/well thought out. Just a thought...

 

[Deb T.]

Hello All!

I had some spare time tonight, so I thought I'd post some Dream trivia...

Birthplace: Meyer Werft shipyard - Papenburg, Germany
Maiden Voyage: Jan. 26, 2011
Home Port: Port Canaveral, Fla.
Ship’s Registry: Bahamas
Tonnage: 128,000 gross tons
Length: 1,114 feet
Beam: 121 feet
Draft: 26 feet
Height: 187 feet
Passenger Decks: 14
Speed: 22 knots cruising speed (maximum 23.5 knots)
Crew: 1,453
Capacity: 4,000 passengers
Staterooms: 1,250
150 Inside Staterooms (12%)
199 Ocean View Staterooms
1,100 Outside Staterooms (88%)
860 Verandah Staterooms
41 Suites (with verandah)

Deck 4: walking/jogging 2-1/2 times around = 1 mile

Ship corridor carpet has globe map: North points forward, South points aft

A "Bright Star" announcement indicates a grave emergency onboard

Nautical Terms:
Aft - rear or stern
Stern - The rear or back of a ship
Faintail - The rear or aft overhang of a cruise ship, the area after the end of the main deck
Fore - The front (bow) of a ship or the forward mast on the ship
Stem - The extreme front of the ship, also known as: prow, front, bow
Prow - The front of the cruise ship, also known as bow, front, stem
Knot - A unit of speed equal to one nautical mile (6,076 feet) per hour
Nautical Mile - One minute of latitude or 6,076 feet; about 1/8 longer than a land mile of 5,280 feet
Port - The left side of the ship looking forward - remember that port and left each have four letters
Starboard - The right side of the ship when looking forward towards the bow, opposite of port

 

[RemoCat]

Hello All!
Port - The left side of the ship looking forward - remember that port and left each have four letters

The way I really learned port from starboard was to think "the ship has LEFT the PORT"....never forgot it after I heard it that way!

Great trivia, Deb T! Thanks!!!

 

[Deb T.]

Yeah, I'm a bit worried about that, both because a huge group would be difficult for this particular gift for both financial and time reasons ('m really needing to start now since I have to do everything in secret, after the kids are in bed). So, I might have to do what you've done and have something else (i.e. not as cool!) for those who join late. I have read in some places that if the groups get very large, that they get broken into smaller groups. Any interest in that out there? Or does it just grow endlessly? I, personally, would enjoy a smaller group only because gifts could be more personal/well thought out. Just a thought...

Our Spring Break cruise last year had a very large number of people participating in the FE Exchange. Several times it was suggested that it should be broken down into smaller groups, but each time I tried, very few wanted to leave the larger original group. In the end, after multiple attempts, we ended up with only 3 who wanted to do a small group. It was a logistical nightmare, but I did manage to finally break it down by creating three sub-groups: a small group of ten (with the 3 who wanted a smaller group plus 7 who wanted to participate with everyone), a large group (who participated with everyone except the 3 in the small group), and the biggest group who actually participated with everyone. It was a ton of work to get in contact with each participant individually to see what their preferences were... which is one of the reasons why I am still too burnt out to even consider organizing another exchange!! In the end, it will be up to Debbie to decide what to do with this one. Personally, for me, the more the merrier!

 

[Deb T.]

Not to change subjects but a question about CC.

My family are early risers, if we get out to CC right away and get some chairs is it generally safe to leave personal belongings at some chairs? I'm not talking about money and cameras or anything but if we go off to see the stingrays it would be nice to leave the towels and stuff there.

It would definitely be at your own risk. There have been lots and lots of posts on the main thread page about people losing their chairs while gone for short periods of time.

Most of the time, we've been able to leave our things on lounge chairs on Serenity Bay with no issues. However, we did have one very strange experience several years ago. We had left everything on our two lounge chairs under an umbrella on SB while we went to the Air Bar to eat lunch and when we returned about 20 minutes later we found an older couple in our chairs and all of our belongings pushed off the chairs into the sand! We walked up and stared at the couple with shocked looks on our faces, and they completely ignored us!! Neither of us are confrontational, so we just picked up our stuff, brushed it all off, and walked two umbrellas down to another set of empty lounge chairs. Yes, that's right, there were MANY empty sets of lounge chairs under umbrellas on the beach!!!! Crazy!

 

[Deb T.]

The way I really learned port from starboard was to think "the ship has LEFT the PORT"....never forgot it after I heard it that way!

Great trivia, Deb T! Thanks!!!

Very clever! Great way to remember port!!!

 

[RemoCat]

I've obviously never organized one of these, so I may be over-simplifying things, but....maybe there is just an automatic dividing line once the list is compiled (if it gets huge)? Like, say, the first 20 cabins and the second 20 cabins, etc...or whatever number Debbie wants to insert there...? Then if people want to give gifts to everyone, they can, but it's not required..? Again, maybe that's not as simple as it sounds, just a thought.

Honestly, not trying to be a pain, but if it gets REALLY large, it will become more of a stressor for me than if I could focus on smaller groups. But, I don't want to be a pain so will go with whatever...I'm a team player...just those poor souls who sign up after 25-ish cabins (I don't know, or maybe 30 or 40) will just have to be happy with whatever else I come up with. I'm just not able to wait until March to get them started, but I realize my situation is not the norm.

 

[Brookie1972]

I've obviously never organized one of these, so I may be over-simplifying things, but....maybe there is just an automatic dividing line once the list is compiled (if it gets huge)? Like, say, the first 20 cabins and the second 20 cabins, etc...or whatever number Debbie wants to insert there...? Then if people want to give gifts to everyone, they can, but it's not required..? Again, maybe that's not as simple as it sounds, just a thought.

Honestly, not trying to be a pain, but if it gets REALLY large, it will become more of a stressor for me than if I could focus on smaller groups. But, I don't want to be a pain so will go with whatever...I'm a team player...just those poor souls who sign up after 25-ish cabins (I don't know, or maybe 30 or 40) will just have to be happy with whatever else I come up with. I'm just not able to wait until March to get them started, but I realize my situation is not the norm.

Ideally, I would like to stay under 20-25....only because of the space in our luggage. I don't want to have to add another bag....already paying $25 per checked bag, ugh!

 

[RemoCat]

Ideally, I would like to stay under 20-25....only because of the space in our luggage. I don't want to have to add another bag....already paying $25 per checked bag, ugh!

Glad to hear I'm not alone in this wish, then. I guess we'll see how others feel...? I guess my biggest concern would be if it went to 50 or 100 folks...just wasn't picturing that because, maybe incorrectly, I had assumed that if it got that large, that it'd be divided (I think from reading about similar situations on the boards). Plus, I would have picked a cheaper, less time-consuming gift!

 

[SSinWYO]

You know, I think it's only fair that since the cutoff for the FE has been clearly stated as March 1 that it should remain firm. It's going to be tough enough to make sure that everyone who makes the cutoff is covered, especially for those who like to plan well in advance and make things personal. Of course it's not my decision to make but I would also do something different for those that were allowed to join after the deadline if I didn't have enough to cover.

As far as group sizes go, I don't really have a preference. I just need a count by 3/1 so I can plan/purchase accordingly.

That said, for people who don't join this thread or the FE before the cutoff date, I'm sorry...

 

[RemoCat]

You know, I think it's only fair that since the cutoff for the FE has been clearly stated as March 1 that it should remain firm. It's going to be tough enough to make sure that everyone who makes the cutoff is covered, especially for those who like to plan well in advance and make things personal. Of course it's not my decision to make but I would also do something different for those that were allowed to join after the deadline if I didn't have enough to cover.

As far as group sizes go, I don't really have a preference. I just need a count by 3/1 so I can plan/purchase accordingly.

That said, for people who don't join this thread or the FE before the cutoff date, I'm sorry...

I went to press "like" and remembered I'm not on FB!! So...well said, SSinWYO!

 

[peytoncolts]

For what it's worth. . . I would love to see the FE group at around 20-25. I think that it would be difficult to buy, pack and deliver 50 gifts X 4 days. Just my opinion!

 

[Deb T.]

I'm sorry... I didn't mean to stir everyone up over the size of the FE Exchange. After Erin's post about what she might do if if the FE reached 25, I wanted to at least give fair warning that this is entirely possible.

One inherent problem with organizing a FE Exchange is not knowing how many people will end up wanting to participate. Last Spring Break, we had 36 cabins participating, which was an amazing number considering it was just a 4-night cruise. On all of my previous 4-night spring break cruises, we only had anywhere from 3 to 8 cabins participating.

It's really difficult to set a cut-off number to split up an FE Exchange because it is impossible to predict how many more will join after each cut-off level. In other words, lets say there is a cut-off of 25 to a group, and then only 5 more join... then do you go back and re-split the group 15-15? If so, those who prepared gifts for 25 will end up with 10 extra unused FE gifts. You see, there is no way to make everyone happy. In a perfect world, it would end up all neat and pretty, but in reality, there are too many variables.

So, my suggestion would be to sit tight and see how high we climb, and then Debbie can make a decision on what to do with our group. The good thing is it seems a majority is in favor of splitting the group, which I didn't have last year.

 

[clc053103]

My vote would definitely be to split the group up into smaller groups, and I do agree we should hold to the March 1 cut off to be fair.

What if it was stated "groups will be no more than 20" ( or whatever number people like) so advance planners can work on the gifts with a maximum number in mind, and then when March 1 rolls around Debbie can divide them so each group includes 20 or less cabins?

 

[RemoCat]

No worries, Deb T.! I'm certainly not upset, nor trying to sound that way. I went ahead and ordered 25 of my main cabin gift so I can get a jump start since they are homemade. I realized when I ordered that I might be re-ordering another smaller order, but I needed to go ahead and get started. My worry was when you stated that they've gotten very large in the past, was that this thing could balloon into 75 staterooms or something...and like someone else said, with only being 4 days, I don't really want to spend an entire day running around delivering gifts, not to mention the cost involved. But, with you saying that last year's was very large for a 4 day cruise and had 36 participating, that would be easier to swallow/handle. I'm prepared to order/make another 10 or 15....just not another 50!

So again, no worries...just trying to get a feel for what would happen should it turn out to be even larger than last year's was. I'll go ahead and get mine started, then sit back and see what happens. I know I'll have this certain gift for at least the first 25 folks on the list. And don't go getting hopes up about some awe-inspiring gift - ha! I'm just trying to something personalized and a bit crafty...but no promises that it will even turn out!!

 

[guarn3md]

WOW! Nothing like a FE to get this thread moving! I have a horrendous sinus infection and my head is swirling. Read the past 10 posts and now my head is really swirling...but I am laughing about it all!! So here are my thoughts... and remember this is the first time I have organized a FE, I learned it all from Deb T.!
I participated in the FE that Deb T referenced a few posts ago and it was huge and I remember the logistical nightmare of having to split the groups. There were people who wanted a large group, people who wanted a small group, people who wanted to be in both groups...we had lists everywhere!
I was overwhelmed with the number of people who participated and I wish I had pulled out of the large group and went with the small group. Last time I drove to Florida so I didn't have the space issue that I will have this time with flying. Also my DH is coming with us this time and he just doesn't get it... So I am all for splittling the group if it gets to be too big. I like the idea of the first twenty staterooms...then the next twenty. I will get the group organized and post an updated list today. We have a teacher workday today and although I do have to get something done it's a pretty flexible day. Let me get the group chart organized so we know exactly what we are looking at. I am still waiting for some people to PM with the details of their group.
Debbie

 

[RemoCat]

Oh Debbie! So sorry you have a sinus infection, and REALLY sorry that I caused such a ruckus with the FE! It all started when I decided to post that I was just happy and relieved to have come up with an idea! Please forgive me!!

Ha! Now, in all seriousness, I'm (obviously - duh!) in support of just stating now that it will be kept at 20 or fewer, and as people join in, they get put into the next group, etc., or however you choose to do it. Looks like we're at around 20 now, so maybe that's the first group?? That would be helpful to know, too, once you get the detailed lists out, then we know exactly who we're gifting. Ah, the pains of being such a planner...We planners are more of a pain the butt for everyone else - sorry, all! My name is Erin, and I'm a planner. There, I admit it. It doesn't help that I'm doing all of this cruise stuff "under cover" so my kids have no idea...definitely limits the time I have to work on stuff!!

So Debbie, please work on getting yourself better before worrying about all of this. I'm just grateful to you for organizing it all!!

Thanks!
Erin