April 29, 2012 ~ Aloha! ~ Wonder to Hawaii- who is with me?

[LittleDisneyLovers]

check out dreams unlimited for obc $300-$400 depending on what cabin you booked...easy transfer process too..just a suggestion

I was thinking about transferring my reservation aswell. My concerns are - Do I lose all control over my booking? Can I book my own excursions and Palo or do I have to go through the TA? How successful are they at securing the bookings you want? Sorry for all the questions, I am a bit of a control freak, OK a lot of a control freak!

I love hearing about all of you who are planning on doing vow renewals. Sp sweet! I say do it...take it from me, we are not always guaranteed tomorrow with the love of our lives. I only got 14 years with mine, married for 7 1/2 of those. I miss my Dh terribly.

I am so sorry to hear of your loss, from your photo's you look similar ages to myself and my husband, and I can't even imagine what you've gone through.
Sending big hugs
Your kids look gorgeous, are they coming with you on this cruise? Mine will be 9, 11 and I am currently pregnant, so he will be 8 months.

OK, Husband is home this morning and shaking his head at me. He knows how much time DIS and planning took up before the WBTA and is scared he is going to be neglected for a whole year again while I plan. Need to tear myself away and try to look after my family, LOL!

 

[MrsMork]

Albert, I think John is coming round nicely. He was asking today what I was thinking of doing either side!!!!!!!!! In our house it usually goes with me making all the suggestions and John throwing out most if not all of them. Big decision. Do we fly over to Orlando for a couple of weeks prior and fly over to LA a couple of days before the cruise or do we miss Orlando out altogether! Do we stay around LA, go up to SF or go to Arizona? Do we go to DL for any time at all? Oh dear.

Will polish our pins before we go!!!

It would be a wonderful time to head north along the coast. Amtrack Coast Starlight is an amazing ride from LA to SF. Maybe even up to Oregon. May in Oregon is absolutely beautiful! I would think AZ would be heading into their warmer time.

Thank you for sharing your very special photographs. I am so sorry to read about your husband. He looks a lovely lovely man.

Yes, what she said. Beautiful photos.

 

[MrsMork]

I was thinking about transferring my reservation aswell. My concerns are - Do I lose all control over my booking? Can I book my own excursions and Palo or do I have to go through the TA? How successful are they at securing the bookings you want? Sorry for all the questions, I am a bit of a control freak, OK a lot of a control freak!

You make your own ressies for Palo, excursions, etc. You just can't make any changes to the actually reservation yourself, i.e. add a person, change to another cat. You also make your payments thru the TA. DU has been wonderful working for us. This booking I slept in, woke to check my messages and had a cabin. TA called me, we talked and she arranged to move us to a sideways CAT 11. Plus they give me extra OBC AND they sponsor this board which has brought many wonderful people into our lives.

 

[dolphingirl47]

One important point for anyone from countries that require an ESTA to gain admittance to the US. Please make a copy of your ESTA and take it with you. I know on the ESTA website they say you don't need to but....!

Though you will already have been through immigration to actually get into the US in the first place, they could very well demand to see them again when you arrive back at LA after the cruise. If so, DCL will demand to see your print out at check in and if you don't have it will make you go to a designated laptop to bring it up and print it out. Best to take them with you and avoid this annoyance!!! Hopefully we won't need it. DCL do send a card telling you this, but we didn't get it until we had actually already left home!!!

We had to do this for the TA which was reasonably understandable as Port Canaveral was our port of entry, but we were all surprised to have to do it again for the PC cruise after we had already been granted admittance.

Perhaps something to put on Page 1??

That is a lesson that I have learned and will never forget. I finally got my card about this a week after I got back from the cruise. They had posted mine First class post on December 22nd and did not even use airmail. No surprise that it did not get here in time. I have to redo our ESTAs this year as ours expire in June and as soon as this is done, the confirmations will go in the holiday box.

Well, just changed staterooms and saved $594!!! Had to book a 5A on Saturday, but got changed to a 5C!!! Same room, different position!

Wow, that is quite a saving.

That sounds cool. We usually just walk in aways, past the really touristy stuff and & have a good, authentic mexican lunch....... except for a time we took a group of kids on an excursion to a movie museum about an hour away near Rosarita Beach - it was great for the kids with lots of stunt photo ops & they filmed Titanic there so lots of memorabilia & we stopped to have a family style lobster fest on the way back.

That sounds tempting as well apart from the lobster part. I don't eat seafood.

I was thinking about transferring my reservation aswell. My concerns are - Do I lose all control over my booking? Can I book my own excursions and Palo or do I have to go through the TA? How successful are they at securing the bookings you want? Sorry for all the questions, I am a bit of a control freak, OK a lot of a control freak!

I have no regrets. Initially I transferred two cruise to my travel agent in 2008 out of greed as they offered a nice onboard credit. With the first two cruises I made sure that everything was exactly how I wanted and then transferred the cruises. Since then, I have given up more and more control to my travel agent as we have built up a relationship. This one is the first cruise that I have let her book from the start and I am pretty sure that we would not be on this cruise if it was not for her. She got me precisely what I wanted at first tier pricing. I still do my own reservations for Palo, excursions, etc. and will continue doing so.

Corinna

 

[yukongirl123]

I JUST BOOKED THIS CRUISE!

...now to catch up on all the posts..it will be me, Janice and my DS Trevor

 

[dolphingirl47]

I JUST BOOKED THIS CRUISE!

...now to catch up on all the posts..it will be me, Janice and my DS Trevor

Hi Janice, I saw you on the roll call earlier. It will be great to see you and Trevor again.

Corinna

 

[aan1701]

When it comes to TA's, I am not a fan of the middle man. I live by the motto if you want something done right do it yourself. So I never use a TA. I am sure there are some good ones, but I like to keep control over my affairs if I can. Sure the DU OBC that can be added to my Platinum OBC us nice, but not enough to make me want to trust someone else.

 

[Sorcerer-Mickey]

Aloha to all of you out there... We are looking forward to meeting the new and old friends we have with us. I moved our Fantasy 06/23/12 rese. Now, we are in a cat 07A Navigator's Verandah. This is a new cat for us. We usually stay in a cat 05B mid ship. I'm really nerves to be in a cat 07A aft. I hope there isn't a lot of motion. Either way, we are happy to be sailing with y'all to a fantastic location.

 

[Janis]

My condolences on the loss of your husband. When I was only 29 I lost a spouse but was fortunate enough to meet another wonderful man to whom I have been married for almost 26 years. I will also be traveling solo on this trip and look forward to meeting you as well.

Thank you for your condolences. I am also cruising on the Fantasy MV so I'll see you there!

 

[birkner]

Thank you for your condolences. I am also cruising on the Fantasy MV so I'll see you there!

We will have twice the amount of time to get to know each other!

 

[socababy]

I am so sorry to hear of your loss, from your photo's you look similar ages to myself and my husband, and I can't even imagine what you've gone through.
Sending big hugs
Your kids look gorgeous, are they coming with you on this cruise? Mine will be 9, 11 and I am currently pregnant, so he will be 8 months.
QUOTE]


Thank you everyone for your kind words, and yes, he was a lovely man. Wonderful father and fantastic husband.

No I am going without the kids. My two oldest will be in 3rd and 1st grade and I just don't want them missing that much school. On top of that, my oldest has state testing in the beginning of May. As of right now I am hoping to go with a girlfriend but she needs to check with her parents to see if they can help watch her 2 kids. If she doesn't go, I will probably go solo. I will turn 34 soon and have never traveled by myself. I met Dh when I was 17 and we never went anywhere without the other from then on. So this is an independence trip of sorts although I am sure he will be with me in spirit. Dh was so outgoing that in a way, I feel like I have to live 2 lives fully now, one for me and one for him.

 

[socababy]

Thank you for your condolences. I am also cruising on the Fantasy MV so I'll see you there!

Janis I am so sorry about your Dh.

 

[valbob89]

I wouldn't put to much stock in the map on the web site. That's just my opinion. I am sure the Nav officer on the Wonder has not even thought about our course around the islands. I would think they are to busy charting the courses through Alaska.

I agree - wouldn't have thought so until we went on a bridge tour of the Wonder after the PC cruise once we had docking in LA. They were trying to decide their course for the 2 day cruise they were leaving on in 4 hours!! When my husband told them he was retired Coast Guard and had been a navigator on a ship out of San Diego they asked him his opinion as to a course to plot. Long and short of it, I think if Kilauea is putting on a show they could/would very well take us to that side of the island. After all, they would most likely enjoy seeing it too.

Val

 

[2canadianfans]

Great to see you again! Welcome to the crew!!!!

We will have to get off the ship at Ensenada to replenish my Mexican Vanilla supply

Hi Lynn..oddly ..good vanilla is always on our to buy list when we travel..

 

[MousseauMob]

I must say....thinking about this cruise is overshadowing my Alaska cruise that starts in 3 weeks. I REALLY LOVE sea days & am really looking forward to them. I'm also looking forward to seeing all my friends too (and making new ones).

Oh good it's not just me. We leave for Alaska in about 5.5 weeks, and this cruise is all I can think about. Of course, I thnk the fact that cruise meet board for that cruise only has 12 total posts, with 4 of them being mine might be part of the reason.

I didn't know about this volcano till I was on this thread. I was excited and now I am bummed.

Although I haven't used the wave phones yet I hear they can come in handy. If you decide to use them and anything happens you will have to pay 250.00. I believe you can text each other on them.

Thanks for the info on the wave phones. As for Kilauea, I'm going to hold out hope, they change this.

I want to go to the Arizona. After doing a little research, looks Luke if you take a tour you are going to get over. If you walk up it is first come first serve. I may be off on this, but that was my impression. I want to do thus so badly I can't even really put it into words. I also really want to go to Volcano park. I want to go into a lava tube.

The Thurston Lava tube was really awesome, they have the first part lit, and then an exit. You are allowed to continue further through the tube, but it's no longer lit so bring good flashlights.

I love HAWAII and cannot wait for this cruise.

Hugs to you and your family! Lovely pictures, thanks so much for sharing. I need to look into the sugar cane train.

I wouldn't put to much stock in the map on the web site. That's just my opinion. I am sure the Nav officer on the Wonder has not even thought about our course around the islands. I would think they are to busy charting the courses through Alaska.

pixie dust and hope!

 

[birkner]

Oh good it's not just me. We leave for Alaska in about 5.5 weeks, and this cruise is all I can think about. Of course, I thnk the fact that cruise meet board for that cruise only has 12 total posts, with 4 of them being mine might be part of the reason.
Thanks for the info on the wave phones. As for Kilauea, I'm going to hold out hope, they change this.

The Thurston Lava tube was really awesome, they have the first part lit, and then an exit. You are allowed to continue further through the tube, but it's no longer lit so bring good flashlights.

Hugs to you and your family! Lovely pictures, thanks so much for sharing. I need to look into the sugar cane train.

pixie dust and hope!

I loved the Thurston Lava tube. Here are a couple of links for those who have not heard of it before.

Thurston Lava Tube 1
Thurston Lava Tube 2

 

[tomoyo]

For those of you that want to go to Iolani Palace, it is open that particular Sunday (for now, like DCL, it's subject to change). First Sundays are free to local residents but visitors may also pay the regular rate to enter. It doesn't say whether or not you need to be entering with a local resident:

http://iolanipalace.org/index.php/visit/kamaaina-sunday/13.html

Shaka???

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shaka_sign

The shaka sign is a common greeting gesture. It is often associated with Hawai'i. It consists of extending the thumb and smallest finger while keeping the three middle fingers curled, and raising the hand as in salutation with the back of the hand facing the person that is being greeted; sometimes the hand is rotated back and forth to emphasize the sign.

You can search on youtube to see it in action. It's easiest to plug in "Obama" and "shaka" to get the right results.

 

[Sorcerer-Mickey]

I JUST BOOKED THIS CRUISE!

...now to catch up on all the posts..it will be me, Janice and my DS Trevor

I am there with you. In just a short period of time we already have 49 pages to read. Sitting down with a cup of Alice in Wonderland English Tea from WDW, Disney music and my computer.

 

[Tinkerbel129]

As much as I love my computer, I still love the feel & look of a real book. So I went and bought a new one today.

"Hawaii by Cruise Ship" by Anne Vipond!!

Porch swing, sweet tea & new book...woohoo!

 

[Sorcerer-Mickey]

As much as I love my computer, I still love the feel & look of a real book. So I went and bought a new one today.

"Hawaii by Cruise Ship" by Anne Vipond!!

Porch swing, sweet tea & new book...woohoo!

Sounds sweet... lol
Tell us what you think. Maybe we can start a book club.