August 30th 2014, 7 night Mediterranean Cruise - Disney Magic

[mazz1]

just popping in to say Hello

we have just booked this cruise, we are Roger & Marie from the UK and we have two older young people (cannot really call them children anymore) who are Jo and James

we have been on the magic 3 times in the past, twice from port Canaveral and once in the med for a repositioning cruise from dover to Barcelona

we last got off the ship just 10 short days ago and the newly reimagined magic is looking great

we are so looking forward to the planning and to celebrating a 21st birthday for my daughter and a 18th for my son whilst being onboard

so that's it really from me introduction wise , now i can see i need to go back and read 14 pages to catch up and also find the face book group to put faces to names

Marie

 

[debsters41]

Hello Roger and Marie!!

 

[lelalittlelegs]

Just popping back to say that I have managed to convince my Mum and Dad to come with us on this cruise and they've just booked. I don't know who is more excited, me at the thought of going on a Disney cruise with my Mum and Dad (they first took me to WDW in 1981) or my DD for having Nanny, Grandad AND Mickey Mouse all in one place. Only 214 days until we head to Barcelona!!!

 

[debsters41]

Your daughter is going to have memories to last a lifetime!!

 

[scrawny]

Hello new comers. Welcome aboard. Question to those who have been to Barcelona before...is it possible to see most of the areas on your own or should we book a tour. Was looking to get hop on hop off bus tickets. Any info would be appreciated.

 

[scrawny]

Welcome aboard. Question for those who have been to Barcelona. ..bpossible to see lots ok n your iwn ir should we book a tour. Will pre order tickets to churches. Thought about getting tickets for the hop on hop off bus. Any thoughts would be appreciated.

 

[Baloo2003]

I am being a good son and taking my DM on this cruise. This is my first Disney Cruise, although as a DVC member, I've tried to do everything else Disney. We used FF miles for our flight, so based on availability, we are spending a few days before and after at Disneyland Paris and Paris itself.
We won't used DVC points for the cruise as we are using them for DLPR hotels. Since this is our first Disney Cruise (we have no cruise member staus ...at all ), how likely will we be able to get the Disney excursions that we want? I'm hoping it will help that some of the Excursions listed are broken into 2 excursions....one of them being Adults only. I know the cruise is really family oriented, so I have a little bit of reservations regarding that and it is probably not the best choice as a Singles cruise, but that's OK, I still think we should be able to enjoy the ship as we are both long-time Disney Park fans. Any suggestions or thoughts would be appreciated! Can't wait to do this trip. I'm currently reviewing the Disney Excursions to see which we want to do....like others on here, we will likely do Villefranche on our own.

 

[Baloo2003]

Thats a shame when you do such a tough job. Mine is nowhere near as important which is why its easy for me!

DH is an electrical engineer at a nuclear power plant and his various deadlines make things tough for us.

At this stage we already have our room and are fine with the choice. We are Starboard side. I think I chose this side from a trip report that said the Starboard side faces Naples and Vesuvius when you are in the Naples port. Then it looks like all other ports (except Barcelona) the Port side faces land. How accurate are my assumptions? What side of the ship was your room?

 

[Baloo2003]

So now she's in for her drydock what changes are we all most looking forward to?

Auadunk and newly refurbisheed rooms.....and it sounds like Artist Palette got a little more technology.

 

[debsters41]

The DW and I booked this cruise while we were on the Dream in December, not really sure if we were going to do it or switch to something else. But the more the DW looks at the excursions and ports the more she wanted to do it. So yesterday booked the Renaissance using Marriott points for two days before the cruise and the Hilton for the day after. Now all we have to do is see if we want to wait on the air to see if prices go down a bit or just say what the heck and book them now.

We've been on the Wonder twice and three times on the Dream, looking forward to see what the upgrades on the Magic are like. We were docked next to her in Nassau last month, don't remember the Magic/Wonder class ship being that smalll

Hello and welcome! I missed your post for some reason so sorry for being so late In my experience air only goes up, but then again, after I book I virtually never check the price again for fear of finding a better rate. The ports are great and your DW will love them

We have our air too. Is anyone looking into going to to cinque terre? We are thinking about doing this instead of going to pisa. Has anyone done this? This is our first trip here and just want enjoy. Should we do pisa or the coast. Booked our tour in Rome. Planning is half of my fun...

Hi again scrawny! We are most likely doing Cinque Terre this time, or at least a couple of them, on our own. I am not sure if I will be able to convince DH to walk to the train station again like I did last year, so we may just catch a ferry. As far as Pisa, it is easy DIY, It is a good idea to book a tower visit for 12, it worked out perfect for us having caught the 9:24 train. Our tickets were checked on the way back, as I had been warned they would be. If you want to DIY, we can compare notes .

Hello new comers. Welcome aboard. Question to those who have been to Barcelona before...is it possible to see most of the areas on your own or should we book a tour. Was looking to get hop on hop off bus tickets. Any info would be appreciated.

We saw a lot on our own walking and using Metro and one city bus (for Parc Guell). I highly recommend doing the free (apart from tips) runnerbean tour of the gothic area. We made the mistake of doing it on our last day before the cruise, so we didn't get to go back and see some of the interesting areas again. It was very informative and to tell you the truth, listening to another free (I hope) guide, it sounded like our guide was knowledgeable and the other guide was a clown. You won't regret the runnerbean tour. We will do it again.

I am being a good son and taking my DM on this cruise. This is my first Disney Cruise, although as a DVC member, I've tried to do everything else Disney. We used FF miles for our flight, so based on availability, we are spending a few days before and after at Disneyland Paris and Paris itself.
We won't used DVC points for the cruise as we are using them for DLPR hotels. Since this is our first Disney Cruise (we have no cruise member staus ...at all ), how likely will we be able to get the Disney excursions that we want? I'm hoping it will help that some of the Excursions listed are broken into 2 excursions....one of them being Adults only. I know the cruise is really family oriented, so I have a little bit of reservations regarding that and it is probably not the best choice as a Singles cruise, but that's OK, I still think we should be able to enjoy the ship as we are both long-time Disney Park fans. Any suggestions or thoughts would be appreciated! Can't wait to do this trip. I'm currently reviewing the Disney Excursions to see which we want to do....like others on here, we will likely do Villefranche on our own.

What a great son! I can tell you that I suspect that the last med cruise last year may have offered kids sail free for Spanish residents, because boy there was an inordinate number of under 8's! That being said, I only noticed them in line for the characters. We had (and will always have, I believe) late dining and I did not see half the kids that I saw in line for the characters. A lot of the activities that we Disney fans like (like trivia, and animation drawing) did not seem to be that popular with the younger set, so I truly believe that you will have a nice time! Villefranche is a very very easy port to do on your own. This year we plan on doing Eze and getting back to the ship early. Any questions, fire away!

 

[debsters41]

At this stage we already have our room and are fine with the choice. We are Starboard side. I think I chose this side from a trip report that said the Starboard side faces Naples and Vesuvius when you are in the Naples port. Then it looks like all other ports (except Barcelona) the Port side faces land. How accurate are my assumptions? What side of the ship was your room?

You are 100% correct! Although while she was in Villefranche she was anchored in such a way that starboard side had the best views until the Iberia boat 'parked' in between the Magic and the land. Port side was nice to look out while moving.

 

[Baloo2003]

Hi again! Having the weekend in Barcelona afterwards will make it a little easier to get off the boat, won't it? We have to fly back immediately. As far as hotels are concerned, only you can know what kind of experience you want. Do you want to be by the beach, city center, neighborhood, etc? Also, only you can know your budget.

I myself am torn between an economy by the beach or a modern independent (not a chain) in the center.

May I recommend a site called trip advisor? It is loaded with information by real travelers.

11 month dance!

When viewing and booking hotels, has anyone used Booking.com before? I have found great hotel options on their site but don't know much about them or their reputation.

 

[debsters41]

When viewing and booking hotels, has anyone used Booking.com before? I have found great hotel options on their site but don't know much about them or their reputation.

I have friends who travel extensively (3 or 4 times a year) and use them exclusively. I usually find a better deal on the actual website of the hotel, but not always, and I almost booked another hotel through booking.com I trust them because of my friends' experiences.

 

[Baloo2003]

We have room 7122 which I believe is the same kind of balcony. We haven't got our flights yet as I am still waiting to confirm time off of work and I don't have seniority.

I was curious so I checked. You have a Navigator's Verandah, which has a wall wil a large porthole opening. We have the same on the Starboard side.

 

[marym933]

We're in 7634, a 6A with a white wall.

 

[LPsMommy]

I just wanted to take a sec to say Hi! I'm new or the forum, as well as new to DCL! I'm cruising with my DH & DD (age 7 at sailing) and possibly my DM & DD! we are looking forward to our trip and are anxious to possibly meet new friends aboard the Magic! Any tips or helpful hints for 'newbies' will be greatly appreciated! My DH has sailed before (on a Navy ship) so we really don't count that!

I'm looking forward to getting to know you all!

Happy cruising!

 

[WAMUMOF4]

I just wanted to take a sec to say Hi! I'm new or the forum, as well as new to DCL! I'm cruising with my DH & DD (age 7 at sailing) and possibly my DM & DD! we are looking forward to our trip and are anxious to possibly meet new friends aboard the Magic! Any tips or helpful hints for 'newbies' will be greatly appreciated! My DH has sailed before (on a Navy ship) so we really don't count that!

I'm looking forward to getting to know you all!

Happy cruising!

Welcome to the boards and to your first Disney cruise

 

[debsters41]

I just wanted to take a sec to say Hi! I'm new or the forum, as well as new to DCL! I'm cruising with my DH & DD (age 7 at sailing) and possibly my DM & DD! we are looking forward to our trip and are anxious to possibly meet new friends aboard the Magic! Any tips or helpful hints for 'newbies' will be greatly appreciated! My DH has sailed before (on a Navy ship) so we really don't count that!

I'm looking forward to getting to know you all!

Happy cruising!

Hello and Welcome aboard! I hope you find both the boards and cruising on DCL as wonderful as we do.

Advice #1, have a camera on you and at the ready at all times!

 

[debsters41]

Hello Cruisers! It's February and it's cold even here in Athens! That means thinking about summer time! So, on the facebook group we have been discussing (among other things) trying to get enough people together for a private mixology group.

Mixology is a 'class' where the participants learn about making different, fun cocktails. There are samples to be drunk, of course. There is a charge of around 15 dollars (although that may rise, everything else has but it wouldn't rise by much)

If you search the Cruise Line Forum here on the Dis, there is tons of information out there.

I am keeping a list of those who would like to sign up. We need 25 participants at least, but can have as many as we want. I will try arranging this for the first sea day, and a lot of us are looking forward to it as a way of getting to know one another.

So, if anyone here who is not on the facebook group would like some more information or would like to sign up, just let me know

 

[scrawny]

Hi all. When is spring. I'm so tired of snow and cold. We dodged a bullet this weekend and we are going to miss a noreaster. Earlier this week they were calling for 2-3 feet now were looking at inches. Yeah. Well how is the planning going? Anyone have snything