August 6, 2005 Mexican Riviera..Who's In?

[justmestace]

Jinny, I think they started breakfast at 7:00 am....we had a suite, so we could still get room service. Which reminds me....the room service menu is free, unless you want to order dinner from one of the restaurant menus...and I think that only people in the suites can do that, anyway....I said that wrong...dinner from the restaurants is also free in the suites....or if you order alcohol and maybe even soda...there is a charge for those, I do believe.
Other than the breakfast, we've never used room service. We just run upstairs and get what we want to snack on at Plutos or Pinnochio's. And the free soda fountain

Where did you have breakfast the last morning? Did you bring your bags with you and then leave the ship after your breakfast?

You'll have breakfast in the same dining room that you have dinner in on your last night....but they will tell you that about ten times....
And, yes...we had to take our day bags to breakfast with us. You'll pack all your big bags on the last day at sea, and set them outside your stateroom door by 10:00 (that threw me...it was always 11 pm when returning to Port Canaveral)....so you need to keep one or two daybags to put your pj's in, and any toiletries, documents, etc....and take it to breakfast with you. After you leave the ship, you are directed to the rooms where your luggage are...

 

[Jasak]

The back of the bathroom doors do have hooks on them....but I have also hung the organizer from a towel bar and also a picture frame in the bedroom in our Cat 3. There was nowhere else handy to put it......and I checked...those pictures are hung on the wall TIGHT!

Thanks, Stacey.
Sounds like the hanging door organizer would work.
Now, to remember to pack all the stuff I learned from you all. We hope to be able to make it on the plane!

 

[justmestace]

We spent the better portion of our port days in swimsuits...put them on in the morning with a cover-up (t-shirt for the guys)...went on our excursions, went shopping...and by the time we came back, it was time for showers and dinner or show....so don't try to pack extra shorts and shirts for those days.......

 

[Jasak]

So for those of you with 2nd seating. Will we be eating later? Maybe we should just go to the buffet.

 

[justmestace]

Thanks, Stacey.
Sounds like the hanging door organizer would work.
Now, to remember to pack all the stuff I learned from you all. We hope to be able to make it on the plane!

I had to move items from one bag to another at the airport coming home....one bag weighed 50+ lbs....yet another was only a little over 40....so obviously rather than pay them $50...I stood right there and took things out of one bag, and stuffed them in another. It was all dirty clothes anyway, so I didn't have to worry about wrinkles!

 

[justmestace]

So for those of you with 2nd seating. Will we be eating later? Maybe we should just go to the buffet.

Eating breakfast later? I'd have to look, but I think for the California cruises, they didn't do it by "early dining and late dining"....seems they did the last breakfast by floor number....I may very well be wrong, but there was something different about it....
The buffet will only have "cold" items on the last day.....which is no big deal to us, but thought you might want to know.
Where are you headed after the cruise? If you are going to Disneyland, it's so close, I'd maybe wait (if at all possible) and eat there......avoid the hassle on the ship completely. Or....order some danish and such the night before, and keep them in your room. We take large Zip lock bags (you just never know when you'll need one) and that would be perfect if you wanted to order the night before.
Then you could just run up and get juice, milk or coffee at the drink station.

 

[Jasak]

Yeah, can't forget the 50 lbs. limit.
We're coming straight home. We're not going to Disneyland afterwards. Heard it's crowded there now. And don't plan to go there in the hot summer time. Went there last Nov. and it was so nice to see the holiday lights and all. Thanksgiving day was crowded, started raining and alot of people left! Then, hardly any lines and the kids could go from one ride to another! We plan to go to Disneyland next year - they'll be celebrating the 50th till Dec. 06.
Can't believe you're still up. Must be late?
I'll be signing off soon. I need to get up early.

 

[SchultzFamily]

I've had a personal organizer from LL Bean for years that worked great for us instead of an over the door one. I just pack eberything in it at home then open it and hang it when I get wherever I'm going. I'll try to post a link to it and see if it works. http://www.llbean.com/webapp/wcs/st...categoryId=34904&shop_method=pp&catalog_id=UU
Its pricier than the kind you guys are talking about but I've had it forever. I love just being able to pack in it then hang it in the bathroom.
Thanks for the jet ski suggestions. I'll do some research tonight.
Gotta go to work now, earn some money for vacation!!!
Vickie

 

[justmestace]

The over the door thing that I have was made specifically for travel...it has lttle shelves that fold down, and even a mirror....but Jinny was having trouble finding one like that...and at this late date, better to just grab anything....

Something else had popped into my head...and again I forgot what it was...darn it....old age stinks.

 

[Itinkso]

Stacey - Thanks for all of the suggestions and tips...especially the tip on how to get photos home. I bought hanging organizers at the dollar store for our cruise last year and we'll take those as well as our LL Bean organizers. I'll have to see how much I can pack in my day bag before I make the final decision on taking all of the bubbles...my personal porter (DH) won't be of any help this trip!

Instead of taking a large can of air freshener, we're taking the car size spray that can be found in the auto/hardware areas of Long's or Target. This trip I'm packing some suction cup hooks to hold lanyards; post-it notes also worked well for us for leaving notes between us as well as with the room steward. I've also wrapped some duct tape around a pencil to take in case of emergencies. Other than that, if I think of anything I just throw it into my suitcase and will organize it later.

 

[justmestace]

Guest Services will "loan" you duct tape....they have started taking a refundable deposit...you get the deposit back when you return the roll...I'm surprised they don't measure, and charge you for what you use!
BTW...ladies....if you're in port, or it's late at night and the ships' store is closed...and you find in an emergency that you need a certain type of female something that you would need from a drugstore....guest services has "things" packaged up in little brown bags...enough to get you through till the next port...free!

The suction cup hooks are also handy for hanging your necklaces, tangle-free...

I have a supply of the car air fresheners (the hanging cardboard-ish type) from Gold Canyon Candle Co.....I take them on the ship, to hotels....very handy and not overwhelming, because you can remove just a small portion of the plastic covering, a little at a time.....as needed.

 

[Patricia1]

Justmestace.... THANK YOU!!! I never thought about putting "No Sales Please" on those forms... I love the facials, but it always bugs me when they start doing the sales pitch. I do tell them (nicely) that I don't need anything, but it would be nice if they wouldn't do it at all and now I know how to make them Not Start their pitch !!!

 

[Catnip0113]

No takers for Bubbles?? Sonia said quite a few people had bubbles but they were shown up by a woman who had a battery-operated bubble blower!

I would take some bubbles if you have enough. We can see when we are there. That reminds me, one of my three cats loves bubbles, he is so funny. He comes running and meows at them and tries to pop them. The other 2 cats could care less and would rather move away from them. Harvey is also the one who loves to drink water from the faucet and baths in his water dish! We love them all.

Cathy

 

[Catnip0113]

I know we had lots of ideas on the earlier posts, but now I am writing them down. The post-its are a great idea, last time DD didn't roam as much as she might this time and we roamed too to watch us dock/leave a port, etc. which she isn't interested in.

I am glad people are checking in to the thread now that we are 3 weeks away (I am sooo psyched!!) How will I get through work these next two weeks.

Jenny, I can imagine how busy Brynee is. If Jess had done that other play, she would have left at 8am and got home at 10:30pm tonight (with a 2 hour dinner/driving break). Her friend that we carpool with is still doing both and said they rehearsed 6 to 10pm tonight. They are young though and can do it without too much trouble. As long as they have the weekends to sleep in.

Cathy

 

[SchultzFamily]

One of my co-workers just came back to work today after a Carnival cruise to the Bahamas. In all of her pictures on deck when they first boarded the Wonder was in the background. It sure made me anxious and ready to go! She told me she just found out that one of her cousins and her family will be on the same cruise as us. I will see if I can get her on here to meet us before we go.
Vickie

 

[Itinkso]

I would take some bubbles if you have enough.
Cathy

Sure Cathy - We'll have three for you and about 16 more to giveaway to whoever would like them . I just don't want to pack in all of them if not too many are interested. Brynee wouldn't be too thrilled if I were walking around handing out bubbles...may be too Willie Wonka-ish for her. I can always give the unwanted ones to my speech therapy buddies as bubbles are a good therapy tool - just not at the high school level! Jess and Brynee will have a lot to share regarding their summer theater experiences...next Friday is opening night!

Stacey - Thanks for the duct tape and personal items info! And your necklace holder suggestion is great! I wasn't sure if I should pack all 4 hooks but they'll be handy. The Gold Canyon Cinnamon-Vanilla is my favorite scent - I'll have to try the hanging fresheners.

 

[justmestace]

Barb e-mailed, she said to tell you all HI! She's in Lake Havasu City, AZ...the second hottest spot in the nation. I don't know what she was complaining about ....it was only 118°!


I can't think of anything else to tell you that you don't already know...I'm still trying to think if there is absolutely anything....
Take your cameras to dinner, and with you everywhere on the ship. I can't tell you how many times I've said "Darn! I don't have my camera" because you'll run into characters in the hallways...especially on Deck Four.

Go to the Pirate Night Party & Fireworks using the forward or mid ship stairs or elevators....they close the aft stairwells and elevators.....because they shoot the fireworks from the Palo area...and be on the Starboard side of Deck 10 for the best pictures.

I'll make notes this weekend if I think of anything else....

 

[Kidoctr]

My TA says she got our DCL documents but hasn't gotten our DL ones so she's waiting to send them. No passports for the kids yet. I'm starting to worry a little because we also sent their birth certificates with the applications.....

Renegade (do you have a first name? ) - DH and I have been to the Drum and Bugle Corp competition here in town for the last few years and are always SO impressed with the groups that we have seen. What instrument did you play? This will be the first year we will miss the competition because we will be out of town. Hey, I'll be right there with 'ya at those wine, martini, beer and tequila tastings!

Lauren - you stole my idea! I was going to order the same dresses for DD and I and get the "boys" the matching tropical shirts. I just haven't gotten around to it and I'm afraid it's too late because starting Saturday we won't be home more than 2 days in a row. Have you checked the DCL website to see if you've gotten a cabin yet? When I log in and check my profile, it told me what room we were in.

Stacey - thanks for all the tips! I've written them all down. I really need to find the over-the-door shoe organizer that we used on our last cruise...haven't seen it (or needed it) since we moved last year.

Jenny - we saw War of the Worlds last week. The effects were great but I was a little disappointed with the ending.... Can we have some bubbles please? I know the kids will love them.

It finally hit me that I've been researching our Disney cruise since before I joined this thread and I just now (2 days ago) started researching for our Breckenridge trip that we leave for on Monday! Priorities, you know. LOL!

I'm not sure where I'm going to get my internet fix next week so if I'm not around a whole lot, it's 'cause we're having a fun time in CO. We just booked a train ride, a chuckwagon dinner/show, breakfast horseback riding, and day-at-the-spa-for-the-ladies tonight. Should be really fun.

Have a great weekend everyone - I'm off to pick up my kids on Saturday before heading to Breckenridge ~

 

[justmestace]

When you go to Shutters to look for your pictures, try to go during one of the dinner times....right before and right after each dinner are terribly crowded.
I've only gotten their "Photo Package" once, and it wasn't worth it. They don't shoot enough of the smaller pictures to make it worth it...and the "formal" pics are all 8x10's, which aren't included in the package. So I just buy them as I see them. I don't stack our pictures in a pile on a rack (like some people suggest) because they get moved, and other people thumb through them, kids drop them on the floor. I go every day and buy any that might have been taken of us or the kids. They have pics from the restaurants, embarkation, taken randomly by the pool, ping pong.....so look all around if you think there may be shots of you or your kids.

 

[Kidoctr]

BTW, has anyone used RideMax at DL? I just bought a 90 day subscription and am going to play around with the program and see what it comes up with for our 3 days at DL. DH just rolled his eyes when I told him about the program.