April 2, 2005 Magic-First DCL cruise-anyone going?

[RachelTori]

Correct - NO hurricanes in April!! Frances really something else. Last I heard they thought it would hit overnight or early tomorrow morning (?). I just hope that when it finally comes ashore it moves quickly because the longer it stays in one spot, the worse the flooding will be. We have lots of Floridians here in Atlanta this weekend. I can't imagine how nerve-wracking it must be waiting to see what Frances does.

Oh, and I NEVER thought I would EVER go up in a hot air balloon. When we 1st became airborn, I was as close to the middle as possible and wouldn't look out - but little by little I got brave and after about 15 minutes, I was totally comfortable! It was one of the most beautiful and peaceful things I've ever done!

 

[anlashokna]

Wow what the heck? Hurricane Ivan is now on the way ?!

I'm so glad I waited till spring to sail! Hoping to hear from friends in Tampa at some point.

Don't take down the boards off the windows just yet! Everyone take care down there!

 

[mousecrazy]

Hi All.
For those of you who have sailed in early April before, will the ship be maxed out with kids? There have been several threads on the other board about 'too many' kids on board. I'm definitely not against kids - have two of my own. They will be 7 and almost 4, so I'm curious to know approximately how many of their age group will be on the ship.

P.S. We're under 200 days to go!

 

[greytlady]

Wow - Finally made it to less than 200 days mark! I could use a cruise now (okay maybe after all the hurricanes are over).

Mousecrazy, I sailed on the Wonder last May when it was sold out. It never seemed overcrowded. The only time I noticed was by the pool on sea days but other than that I never noticed the crowd. Of course, it does make the sail away party that much more fun with everybody getting into the mood.


Nena

 

[RachelTori]

Good to see this thread again!! I know we're all very busy; time sure is flying - we're officially under 200 !!

Mousecrazy, I think DCL has a really good handle on the passenger situation so that even if they are at the "kid limit", it'll be fine. I know our April 2003 cruise there were plenty of kids but it never seemed like too many (and our cruise was sold out). There's so much going on that the crowds always seem well dispersed!!

Have you all been following the saga of the Magic & the Wonder? Guess you just have to be willing to "roll with it" when you book during hurricane season. Nice to see how seriously DCL takes safety - for sure!

Laura

 

[BriarfoxinWA]

We cruised the week before RachelTori in April 2003. Our cruise was also full but it's really not an issue. They do a great job of handling all the passengers.

I have never heard of them having too many children and refusing to book you on a cruise until just recently. I don't think that it happens very often.

On another note- Hope Ivan isn't as bad as they think....was born and raised in Picayune MS, about 50 miles from New Orleans. I'm off to email my old friends and find out how their going to ride this one out.

 

[RachelTori]

I was wondering where you were!! I hope all will be well with your friends. We're watching Ivan very carefully here. We shouldn't get the winds we got here in Atlanta w/Frances, but we'll probably have flooding. From what I've seen on the news, most of the families in harms way along the Gulf coast, have boarded up and hit the road.

 

[mousecrazy]

Thanks for all the comments. I wasn't too worried, just want to get the right info to my DD so she can be prepared.

My prayers go out to the people in Ivan's path. It sure has been a horrible hurricane season.

Lisa

 

[BriarfoxinWA]

Just been lurking! All of the farmer's I finance are busy with harvest at the moment so I have some breathing room! They've been keeping this poor banker busy this fall!

I just can't wait until April! We're planning on spending the 3 days prior to the cruise at Hard Rock Hotel & Universal. Boy I wish April would get here!

 

[RachelTori]

Originally posted by BriarfoxinWA
I just can't wait until April! We're planning on spending the 3 days prior to the cruise at Hard Rock Hotel & Universal. Boy I wish April would get here!

I know what you mean! I know we're all getting excited, but it still seems so far off - we've got winter to get thru 1st (yuck!).

Hard Rock/Universal sounds great! Have you been before? We haven't gone to Universal in about 3 years; have never stayed @ Hard Rock, but that's on my short list! What kind of rate did you get? Is it a package or are you doing passes separately?

Anyway, good to hear you're getting a bit of a break at work - enjoy it while it lasts!!!

Laura

 

[cwf1028]

great to see this thread active again. I've been spending so much time reading about the hurricanes that I haven't had time to post.

Mousecrazy, my two kids will be 7 and 4 on the cruise also. Two DDs.

I have a pretty big list of things I want to get done or make before the cruise and I have now felt like I can do them and it not be way too early. Just picked up some matching princess shirts for the girls to wear the first day. Had my mother in law put the girls names on the back of their Minnie ears. Fixed my drivers license (three hours at the DMV because my middle initial was wrong, has been for 10 years, but figured I didn't want to be waving as the boat pulls away because of a technicality). Just to name a few of the things that I have on my list that I've worked on the past couple of weeks. Now I'm just going to prepare for yet some more rain from Ivan....

 

[BriarfoxinWA]

Made our HRH reservations today - rate is High! $294 with no discounts available right now. But I'm planning on checking back. We've been to US/IOA before and had a great time. We decided that since three days wasn't reallly long enough to do "everything" at WDW we'd do Universal instead.

 

[RachelTori]

That was smart ! This way you'll "have" to make another trip back to FL as soon as possible for WDW !!!

$294 - ouch! Not even any AAA discounts? (I know you can use your AAA card at US/IOA for discounts on food & souvenirs.) From time to time I've gotten emails from them for 3 or 4 night "packages" that seem like a pretty good deal. Do you get emails from Universal? Maybe as we get closer to "spring break" time they'll come up with specials to compete with Disney.

Watching the hurricane coverage on Fox - the mayor of New Orleans was just on and said they don't expect to get the "brunt" of the storm there. Keeping our fingers crossed for the coast - hoping for the best. We're already feeling the effects here in metro Atlanta.

 

[anlashokna]

Can anyone here give me some feedback on the swan and dolphin hotel? Looks like after cruise plans are changing, since the vacation rental I had booked is no longer being rented

Stacey


Who missed her timer dropping below 200 because I was stuck in D.C without the internet.

 

[RachelTori]

Anlashokna,

I hope you had a nice time in D.C. I haven't been in a # of years and would really like to get back there soon - just to sightsee!

It was fun to see the timers go from 200 to 199!! Finally feels like we're making progress!!

I don't know much about the Swan & Dolphin. I had thought of maybe trying either on a future trip, but have heard a few negative remarks. A girlfriend of mine was recently there for a work-related meeting. She thought it was "OK", but has no plans to book her family trip there! I think the smaller of the 2 (would that be the Swan?) is considered "nicer".

What kind of room are you looking for? Is it just for you? I think you'd enjoy one of the Moderates or WL or AKL. Do you plan to visit the parks after the cruise?

I know there are lots of other "rentals" and I think AllEars or Mousesavers would have reliable info on that.

 

[anlashokna]

Had a good time in DC. Tied in up classes most of the time though. Did get out in the early evenings to see memorials,etc. Wish I had another couple of days.

Thats exactly what I'm looking for (friends comments) to see if its worth it or not The only reason we're considering it because they do offer gov/military rates which actually save a few $$$'s. The resort I was pushing was the Wilderness. Really enjoyed it the last time and know my parents would like it. The Grand Floridian was to "posh" for them! But at the time it was to commerate there anniversary and the last trip before that to WDW they were just building the Floridian. Oh well..that didn't work the way I had hoped. Everyone has there own tastes though.

The only bad thing about the counter getting closer is now i really do have to get this trip payed off

 

[RachelTori]

Yeah - we're getting closer to the final payment date. I think it's somewhere around the end of January. Did you see the new deposit requirements? They just went into effect about a week ago. I think they doubled the amount of deposit you have to pay when you 1st book; plus they moved the final payment date from 60 days to 75 days prior. Lots of people were wondering if that would change our final due date, but we've heard it's only for new bookings; does not apply to ressies already booked (phew!)

If you feel your parents would like WL, they'd probably like AKL too. I'm not sure what kinds of discounts will be around in April because that's a pretty popular travel time. Neither WL nor AKL is a good deal @ rack rate.

I think you can probably get some good information about the Swan & Dolphin from AllEars: www.allearsnet.com (I think that's it). Also, check out the disboard thread under Disney Resorts that is devoted exclusively to those resorts. In fact, the very 1st post will give you so much information about the resorts, you should have a good idea if it'll suit your needs or not. Let me know if you have any trouble getting to that site or the thread, or if you have any other questions. Bye for now!

Laura

 

[anlashokna]

Will check that out. Had two TA's give me quotes for the Wilderness. Ouchie. I payed the amount they're quoting for a trip a year ago in November and went on the gold plan! These quotes were just for rooms!

I showed them the AKL. They thought it was neat until they started in about the restaurants...and that one was lost. At least they ate at one of the WL restaurants once and liked it

Why did that darn company have to drop the vacation rental? Now they're ticked and don't want a rental. And its back to square one finding a place to stay. And of course I can't get it through there heads that we need to get this settled because rooms disappear the closer you get ...arggh.

On the cruise deposits...is that going to effect onboard booking too?

 

[mousecrazy]

Hi There.
I read about the deposit changes on the Yahoo DCL newsgroup dealy-do (not sure of it's exact name). Here's the info posted there by the moderator of the group (he's a TA)

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Disney Cruise LineR Deposit and Payment Policy Changes

In order to keep as much "popular cruise" inventory available as possible, Disney Cruise Line is making some changes to the deposit and payment policies. These changes should help eliminate last-minute client cancellations and will help to
ensure that more of those clients who want to book a Disney Cruise vacation are able to do so in a timely fashion rather than waiting to see if there are cancellations. These new policy changes will take effect on Wednesday, Sept. 8.

The changes are as follows:
The required deposit for all Disney Cruises in the extremely popular suite category is increasing. For three- or four-night cruises, the deposit will change from $200 to $400. For six- or seven-night cruises, the deposit will increase from
$250 to $500. And, for cruises that are 10 or more nights in length, the deposit will increase from $250 to $700. In addition, the deposit for room categories 4-12
will increase on cruises that are 10 or more nights in length from $250 to $350.

Deposits for suites for all cruises will be required within three days of booking rather than seven days. Deposits for staterooms in categories 4-12 will be required in five days rather than seven days.

Final payment for suites is changing from 60 days to 90 days, and final payments for staterooms in categories 4-12 will change from 60 days to 75 days for three to seven-night cruises, and from 90 days to 75 days for 10+ night cruises.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

P.S. Here's the link to subscribe if you're interested (most of the Q and A here is redundant with DIS, but every once in a while they talk about something different).

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/disneycruise/

 

[BriarfoxinWA]

anlashonkna - have you looked at some of the timeshare properties that are available? They are offsite - but there are some pretty good deals there. We stayed at the Sheraton Vistana and liked it. It wasn't as posh as some but it was nice. We had a two bedroom unit for the first 4 days (as an owner referral that I found on a timeshare users group website) and the cost was only around $70/day if I remember right. We paid for the other 3 days (in a 1 bedroom unit) through Sheraton at a cost of around $85/day with a government discount. Might be worth checking out.

I really had wanted to stay at the Swan/Dolphin on that trip too - but there were now government discounts available and rack rate was well over $200/night. A good friend of mine has stayed there a few times - and it sounds like the $120/night is reasonable for what you get - but not $200+...