Final Segment on our Dream Cruise (sorry it has taken me a couple of days to post!):
So the final day we were headed to
Castaway Cay. We woke up to some bright sunshine (yay) and as the ship started to slow down we could see land ahead. The Dream backed into the slot at the port and we counted down the time when we could walk the gangplank, so to speak. In the meantime before passengers disembarked, Steve worked out, I got java, and we packed our Castaway Cay bag with lots of sunscreen (not that we needed it as we found out with our Cabana Rental).
Just before 9am we walked off the ship and got on the tram that first took us to Pelican Plunge. From there we caught another tram to Serenity Bay. There, our Cabana person met us and took us on a golf cart to #19. The Cabana was fabulous! Lots of lounge chairs, a refrigerator full of soft drinks and water, a safe if we needed it, fan slowly making a breeze over a sofa, travel magazines and other fun pieces of literature to read if we got motivated, a hammock outside to swing upon, an outside shower if we wanted it, and the list goes on. We took one look at the amenities, turned to our host (Duki) to ask about bikes (he said he'd go get some for us asap) and then we ran out to stick our toes into the blue water of Castaway Cay. After a short stint in the ocean, we went back to our cabana, hopped on the bikes and made our way to the end of the airstrip and then over to the observatory tower. There were people running/walking the 5K and we cheered them on as we rode by.
Our day at Castway Cay was fabulous. Weather terrific. Bike rides to check out a side of the island we had never gone to, walks along the beach, great swimming, snorkeling (the equipment was provided as part of the cabana package), great bbq at Cookies, you name it, we enjoyed it. It was a fabulous day. Though it was a splurge, it was my birthday and I enjoyed every minute of it with my husband. The cabana was great and we'd do it again if it came available (not in the cards, though for our August cruise!) Serenity Bay wasn't all that crowded (many lounge chairs were open) and it looked like people were spread out in the other areas too.
At the end of our time on Castaway Cay, we said good-bye to our host Duki, bought some gifts for the kids at Sea Shells, and got back on the ship. Since we still had our swimsuits on, yours truly agreed to ride Aqua Duck with Steve. I've gotta say that it certainly is something to do. I'm not a big water slider but I wanted to test it out to see how our twins (age 7) would do in August. It was fun, pretty to ride out over the ocean, and not scary at all.
About that time the ship started blasting the different tunes in its memory banks -- from wish upon a star to some of the other memorable ones (ha, they escape me now, but believe me it was cool to hear) -- and then we watched from our verandah as the ropes were dropped and we slipped away from Castaway Cay.
Next up on our list was a dinner at Remy. Before that, we went had a drink at Not-So-Quiet Cove (everyone was having a great time). There was also happy hour going on in the Concierge Lounge, then we got ready for dinner at Remy's.
Our time at Remy's was fabulous. It was an incredible dinner and well worth the expense (for those of you wondering, it is $75 a person, plus if you want to get wine, you can get a pairing for each part of the 5 course meal for $99. I passed, but Steve did do this. With tip at the end, though I never saw the check, my bet is that it was $300 plus.) Again, this is something over the top, so it might not be something for everyone. For us, it was the crown jewel on the whole cruise. We've traveled widely and had some fabulous meals over the years, and this is up there (not at the top, but close) in terms of a premiere dining experience. We decided to go with the chef's two different suggestion options so between us there must have been 10 different things on the menu. Steve, who is a bit of a wine person, felt that the pairings that went with his meal were perfect. That is saying a lot coming from him. I mostly drank sparkling water and took a sip out of his glass when he said, you've gotta have a taste of this.
For those of you who are wondering, should I do Remy's? I say, if your budget can squeeze it in, then go for it. If not, maybe another time. It definitely was wonderful for us. For the August cruise, when my booking window opened, I did go ahead and make a reservation. I second guessed it thinking that maybe it wouldn't be something we'd end up doing, since the May cruise was special. Well, now that we've done it, we'll definitely be showing up there again in August. So.... a ringing endorsement by me.
We got back to our cabin and put our luggage outside. Boo hoo. We knew that we wouldn't see them again so I made sure to leave out our clothes for the next morning. I had read horror stories of people who had forgot and ended up flying home in their jammies! Then we made one last walk around the decks, went down to the shops (they were packed with people), said our thank yous to our stateroom host Odell (he was wonderful) and made our way back up to our room to catch some shut-eye.
The next morning, we got coffee and nibbles from the Concierge Lounge, said goodbye to Julia, Rodrigo and Alice (the concierge people) made our way down to the exit and went through the terminal. The line wasn't a big deal at all. We got on the
DCL bus to MCO around 9:30 and we were at the airport in less than an hour.
The rest is history. Our flight back to DC was uneventful. Upon our return to the house, we walked into it and discovered it empty of little children! Apparently our kids were at a birthday party down the street. When we crashed the party we found them on a trampoline having fun. Skye and Hope gave us the once over and said (still jumping away) "Hi Mommy and Daddy, Glad you are back!" That was it ... no tears!
We can't wait to see all of you in August! If I think of more things about the May cruise, I'll post them. Otherwise, feel free to ask my questions and I'll try to answer them. Just know, the ship is beautiful and I know that we will all have a Dreamy time on our double dip vacation!
Beth
As I have said, organizing FE lists can be a challenge and it is always great when someone volunteers to take care of it. THANK YOU! 
it was a wonderful party !!!
moments ...
is still up and GOOD !!!!!
laura 
GROUP 3 in my next WELCOME TO THE WEEKEND !! 
Hopefully I'll know by next Friday 
what to write !!! 
