Booked our first cruise ever... now what? (It's still 9 months away!)

[westcoastminnie]

We are booked on our first ever cruise, Vancouver to San Diego on the Wonder in August 2016. We are a family of 3: myself, DH and DS who will be 14 when we go. We love Disneyland and have been many times, but cruising is new to us.

We booked about a month ago through the DCL website but thanks to these boards, learned that we could transfer our booking to Costco now that they book cruises for Canadians. So, that part is done and we are looking forward to the Costco cash card at the end of the trip

I haven't bought insurance yet... We had no pre-existing conditions that we needed to worry about. For the most part we have excellent out of country medical coverage through our employers so I think we only need trip cancellation insurance before we pay in full? Speaking of paid in full, I plan to just make regular monthly payments between now and May, hoping the Canadian dollar will improve a bit! Costco informed me that their PIF date is about 2 weeks before DCL's, I'm assuming to make sure all the payments go through?

We have late dining, which with a 14 year old seems okay? I have shown him YouTube videos of Vibe and he seems to be looking forward to it. He's a pretty social kid and makes friends easily. Hopefully being August there will be at least a few other teens on board.

Because this is our first cruise, I'm thinking we might not book other dining, and just stick with the rotational schedule. It's only a 4 night cruise.

Anyway, August just seems like such a long way off and I'm wondering if there is anything I'm missing or should be doing at this point

 

[Karlzmom]

Hello fellow Cruiser! I saw the topic and was going to simply weigh in to comfort you that you are not missing anything. A cruise is much different from planning a park visit that seems to take much thought well in advance. A cruise really is book it and relax to a large degree - which I found a bit unsettling the 1st time. We will also be on the Vancouver-San Diego run as out 3d DCL cruise. I'm sure there are some nuances to work out with it only being 4 nights as we have done 2x 7 nights to Alaska. We only have a single day in port, so not much to work out for port adventures for this one. We love late dining and can't imagine trying to eat as early as the 1st meal. The trade-off is that for us to have after dinner adventures means we are up VERY late.

As for your insurance issue. I would also consider what would happen if someone needed to be medically evacuated. Very spendy! Its not all about illness, remember that accidents can happen. Seems like there was a thread not too long ago about a person falling down stairs? Insurance is always a gamble but the point is hedging you risk tolerance and being willing to spend some for "nothing" rather than getting hit with a bill you might not be able to pay if you are unlucky.

Anyway, check out the meet thread or feel free to PM if you'd like to chat directly.

Kate

 

[Aby]

Hi there! I will also be going on a cruise in August, but it will be my third time to Alaska with DCL. You will have a wonderful time!

Honestly, at this point, there isn't anything that you really have to do. As long as you pay the cruise off before you due date, bring your ID and credit card, and show up before sail away you are good to go! But, there are a few things you probably should do before you PIF date occurs and your booking window opens.

Definitely look more into trip insurance and medical coverage. Although your employer coverage includes out of country benefits, make sure you check how much. For example, mine tops out at a million dollars - not nearly enough when travelling to the US - plus travel medical for adults (not sure about kids) is the cheapest part of a trip insurance package. Depending on how comfortable with risk and the chances of something coming up that might impact your ability to travel, trip cancellation/interruption insurance is something to research. Yes, it's pricey, but it can give piece of mind if losing all you investment is not an option. I usually book through CAA but there are of course many other options.

You will probably want to have a look on the DCL port adventurers pages for your one port if you are thinking about doing any excursions. I like to have my choices made quite awhile before my booking window opens, and I like to have backup choices as well, just in case. Don't feel like you have to do an excursion in port though - there is nothing wrong with just exploring locally on your own, and shopping, dining and enjoying the local culture.

It sounds like you aren't planning any adult dining so that you can enjoy all of the MDR experience with your family and there is nothing wrong with that, but we absolutely adore dinner at Palo - such amazing service and food! But you have lots of time to think about it. If you're not 100% sure when your booking window opens, you can always book a slot and then cancel if you decide against it - I belive you can cancel at any time as long as there is at least 1 full days notice.

Other than that, I recommend just exploring lots of threads on these boards as much as possible. You can skim topics daily as they are posted, or can search topics that come up as you think of them. You'll learn so much and I find that it helps me stay excited and remember why I work hard - so I can enjoy my vacation time!

Hope this helps!

Aby

 

[bcwife76]

*waves hello* So excited you booked this cruise!!

Like us, you might not want to get off in Victoria either (been there, done that, right?) For us it was basically like having 3 sea days.

We purchase our travel medical through our local autoplan/insurance place. However, after we got medical for this past trip we went to TD for some US$ for Disneyland and the clerk in the bank told us we could've purchased travel medical through them as well. Who knew? lol

If you recall, we did Palo brunch and it was FABULOUS. If you didn't want to do dinner there, I highly recommend brunch

So excited for you! Just remember to bring lots of PATIENCE on disembarkation morning for the stupid customs clearance (unless San Diego wises up in the next 9 months, gets with the program and changes it to inside the terminal).

 

[TiggerBouncy]

First off, welcome to the cruising family! You will have a GREAT time!

As others have said, the main thing you need to do related to the cruise:
* Make sure your passports are up to date. You want to make sure that every passport has MORE than 6 months left in the expiration date (generally not an issue for around here, but some countries require more than 6 months so it's always a good idea).
* plan now for your shore excursions. You can't make them yet, but if you want to get in on a specific one, book when the window opens.
* Decide if you want any ship-side services (massages, brunch, dinner). Also make those as soon as your window opens.

Besides that, all you can do is read, watch youtube videos and get excited!

 

[Club Disney Chandler]

We did the same cruise this past September. Here is a trip report, not written by me but it includes the Navigators. Enjoy your cruise.

http://www.disboards.com/threads/ou...2015-w-navigators-completed-11-11-15.3454850/

 

[westcoastminnie]

Thanks everyone! I will definitely look further into the insurance coverage options based on your input.

We are lucky to call Vancouver Island home, so will not need to get off the ship in Victoria... unless DH needs to go grab another six pack of beer lol. The funny thing is we will have to take a ferry from Victoria to get to the Vancouver port, to then cruise back to Victoria! But BC Ferries is no Disney Wonder

It sounds like I should look into Palo as well. On a recent trip to Disneyland, DH and I very much enjoyed a date night at Steakhouse 55 in the Disneyland Hotel, so maybe we would enjoy this as well. I'm sure our son wouldn't mind a little extra time at Vibe. I hadn't thought about the spa either, but that sounds relaxing.

Club Disney Chandler... Thanks for the link and I will look more closely at the Navigators. It seems there is so much to do, but I know we can't do it all! I'll have to show the family them as well so they know what to expect. They are so used to me planning our vacation days, but I think they might have fun picking some of the activities

Kate - I will look for the meet thread and see you there! Cheers!