Christmas Cruise 2005!!!

[tiggerwannabe]

~Hello Ginny~

You are a big help...
I am grateful for your answers, we have plenty of time to plan-
that's the beauty of it-Aisling seems to be an avid organizer like me, it fills the time between vacations very nicely.



My DD is also very interested in visiting the Animator's Palate, is the "show" a part of dinner?

RE: Snorkeling, I think DD is more of a shopper than a swimmer. LOL.

When will we be able to see our cruise's itinerary? Is it part of the "package" we get about 60 days before the cruise?

How/When do you request your dining rotation?


Yes, please PM me the excel sheet.

~Aisling~

I went to the link jgalecpa made with some packing suggestions, it comes with quite a bit of details. In it he shows some folks pack a full suitcase with beverages and they use the empty to take home souvenirs. As Ginny said, some check their cases of beverages with their luggage. Some suggest a soft sided cooler used with a luggage trolley to make it more portable.

I added the link here "for your convenience."

http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?s=&threadid=468132

 

[Aisling]

Ginny,
Please PM me the Excel sheet, I would appreciate it so much!

And Colleen, wow, you're so right about filiing the waiting time with organizing. I love it! About the dinner rotation, I've read that you can only request it if you're concierge or if you have the REAS package. Ginny, please correct me if I'm wrong LOL!
We have the late seating, and hoping for the rotation that gives us formal night in Lumieres, and Pirate night in Parrot Cay. Wouldn't THAT be appropriate!
I've also read that they divide the rotations according to the ages of the diners:

""Have a lot of little ones...count on Animator's, Parrot Cay then Lumiere's.
Have say 7-10 year olds...count on Parrot Cay, Lumiere's and then Animator's
Have older teens, senior citizens, honeymooners, or just adults...count on Lumiere's, Animator's and then Parrot Cay.""

If this is the way it really is, why would they give Lumieres on formal night to the 7-10 year olds instead of to the older people?

I love going through all this information, but I should be working now! First I have to check out the packing link. Thanks, Colleen!

By the way, Golden Eagle looks like so much fun!

 

[3xthecharm]

Glad to be joining you all! We'll be there with our crowd of 19. I've been scanning this board and getting alot of great advice. It helps everything seem less intimidating.

 

[Aisling]

We'll be there with our crowd of 19.

Welcome, 3xthecharm,

Wow!! My kids want to know if you have any 13 and/or 20 year olds in your group LOL!

By the time we leave for our cruise, we'll all be experts because of all the people who share their knowledge here on these boards. When I started planning, I was overwhelmed by all the information, after reading the posts, everything just sinks in and I started to feel confident that I can pull this off, our first cruise. And I only have 4 in my group! With 19, planning should be interesting! At least there's plenty of time to learn everything we need to know.
We're all going to have a wonderful Christmas cruise!

 

[3xthecharm]

Sorry Aisling.

Our kids' ages range from 11-4. There are 9 of them. Atleast the adults still out number them.

And you're right the planning is daunting. Especially since we are spread all over the east coast. Fortunately, my sister is a diser, too. Between the both of us we hope to figure things out.

 

[Aisling]

EDITED: I meant to post this on the formal gown vs dress poll on the cruise board, but I guess I'll leave it here, too LOL!

This is a photo of the dress I bought from that website. It came to $43 with the shawl/wrap (which was $6 itself.)
The quality is pretty good, not a heavy velvet. It looks much prettier in the photo than on my hanger, or on me, but I plan on spending the next 14 months whipping myself into shape! Would this dress be ok for either formal or semi night?

3xthecharm, it's going to be so much fun with little ones. I'm going to enjoy watching all the children having a ball onboard. I told my DH that maybe we can come home with a "little souvenir" (remember the DCL commercial??), and he gave me that look !

 

[3xthecharm]

The dress looks perfect for the holiday season.

It looks plenty dressy for the semi-formal. I have heard others describe what they have seen on formal night. It's difficult to tell from a picture, but with the shaw and the right assesories, I think it would be fine.

About the "little souvenir", so funny!

 

[Ginny]

Aisling -

The dress is truly lovely and the color is perfect for the holidays. I think you will look great in whatever makes you comfortable. I loved the gown I wore last year and will probably wear the same one for the next cruise. If not, I have other ones in alternate sizes.

I promise you will see the whole spectrum on both Formal and Semi-Formal night so it is truly about how you will feel your best.....and what you would like for pictures (that is an important piece). There will probably even be a few folks in shorts or Dockers.

It sounds like your gentleman are all opting for the Tux look and happy about it! Their attitude has a great deal to do with how the pictures turn out! And, with you in that gorgeous red.............you should all look smashing.

I sent you an e-mail via your previous post requesting your e-mail address. If you haven't received it, please e-mail me back or PM me with your home e-mail. I cannot attach any documents to the PM's or E-mails from the DIS. Sorry for the delay!

3Xthecharm -

Welcome to our group! How exciting to be sailing with 19. That seems like organizing a troop movement. LOL. It will be fun to work with your sister on the planning.

 

[tiggerwannabe]

Hello 3xthecharm,

~Glad to see you joining in~ Wow! 19 people! You're gonna need a vacation after your vacation-LOL.
Is that your sister's dog? That photo looks very familiar...

Hey Aisling,

Beautiful dress! I'm jealous...
Did you order the Mickey cooler yet?
I'm looking into getting one and am interested in your opinion please.

Hi Ginny,

Thanks again for the excel sheets. I am using both!
Love the format you have...all I had to do was change the dates.

~I just heard the 2005 DCL Birnbaum's guide is out~
Gotta get to the library-I like to preview to see if in fact it's worth the purchase. My Mom uses Passporter-I have yet to see it.

Some recommend the Passporter over any other guidebook.
Do you use a guide book? Any suggestions in particular?

 

[3xthecharm]

Well acctually tiggerwannabe,

We are planning WDW for 12/31-1/3.
From the sound of this thread, it doesn't look like we'll be the only ones.

It is not her dog. It was among the provided selection. However ,it looks just like my recently passed Sheltie.

 

[3xthecharm]

We are traveling with boys ages 11,10,8,7 and girls 10,9,6,5,4. Hopefully the youngest girls will still believe in Santa for the cruise. Does anyone have ideas for gifts that we could buy on board on Christmas Eve, or that we can pack easily?

Here are our current ideas:
Older kids:arcade cards, parasailing on CC suprise

Younger kids:character pjs or night gowns

Girls: charms for Disney bracelettes

Your help is appreciated.

 

[Aisling]

Colleen,
I did get the cooler, and it 's bigger than it appears in the picture, but not too big. I think it's a good bargain, with the sale price. I'm so glad I bought it. It looks really cute, too. I might use it as my overnight bag when Jesse and I go visit my sister for the weekend. I can easliy fit clothes for the two of us for the weekend.
Now the question is, what do I put in the cooler when I take it on the cruise LOL! I was originally planning on taking water and wine coolers, but now I don't know. So I have to say my cooler recommendation is

Ginny, I'm about to check my e-mail, and I think it's the Excel sheet...thank you very much!

And 3xthecharm, I have older kids, and they love your idea of arcade cards and parasailing! I'll keep thinking!

Now I'm off to do some Saturday morning errands, and I can hard wait to get back on the Dis tonight when I have more time to savor it all. I'm so addicted to these boards, it's so much fun.

Hey, what happened to the others? I hope I didn't scare anyone away with all my postings!

 

[tiggerwannabe]

3xthecharm: Aisling had a great idea for gifts-
All mentioned in her trip reports-
http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?s=&threadid=608186

I'm wondering if the cruise line can do the same for you;
she secretly pre-purchased gifts for the family that were delivered
to the room every night at "turn down." She did stuff like towels, books & jewelry.

DCL could also have your "presents" in your room when you arrive on Christmas Eve. I am going to order champagne & strawberries for my Mom & me & a cheese tray for the girls to be in the room when we arrive along with the gift packages~I have yet to decide exactly what to put in their gifts-you can customize the gifts with sand/pool toys, towels, stuffed animals, & the arcade cards you mentioned.

Aisling: Now that I've shamelessly plugged your trip report, you have to finish the CR report (hint hint)...

Thanks for the cooler info, I'm definitely getting one now.
I plan on packing water & some soda for the girls & prob bailey's & kahlua coolers for me. My Mom packs her own, she's really into kamikaze's...

 

[tiggerwannabe]

I got my cooler pullman!

My hubby tried to get me the Mickey silverware & pasta strainer for the kitchen for my birthday~the strainer was out of stock & the silverware had a 14 week shipping date

So I asked him for the cooler pullman & he ordered it for me today...he IS the best

I'm doin my Minnie Happy Dance!

 

[Aisling]

Colleen, what a sweet DH you have!! When I bought mine, my DH said, "WHAT!! Another Disney thing! Don't you have enough already?!" ROFL I calmly said, "actually, no!!" But he's fine with it, let's me indulge myself. Don't you think it's a good size?
So now I have 2 suitcases, the rolling cooler, a large toiletries bag, a garment bad, and a rolling carry-on. That should be enough, I hope!

I noticed only 3 kids posting on the Teen Christmas Cruise 2005 board. Maybe we can get some more to join, they might enjoy it.
Aladdin's Clone is my son Jesse.

I've started Atkins, and in 2 weeks I've lost 11 pounds. Since I like to cook, I keep coming up with great meals, sans bread, rice, and pasta. I get my carbd from veggies only, and it's working out great. That red dress I bought is 2 sized too small, but I'm determined to fit it by Dec. 2005! I will, I have lots of time. I want to make this a life-style change, until I get on board the ship, of course!

I have a question about the veranda...is it lighted, and if so, can I turn the light off? I want to put up Christmas loights on the veranda, and it would look so lovely in the darkness of the open sea at night.

One more thing, I we're almost at the 12 month mark; it's going so fast. After this Christmas, the real countdown begins!

Oh another thing...I was thinking of having Shirley do a basket for us upon arrival, and I think movie candy would be a great idea. But do many people actually go to the movies on the ship? It seems like there are so many other things to do, I wonder if there will be time to sit and se a ovie. I just want to do it all!

 

[tiggerwannabe]

DH has tried to fight my Disney obsession, alas after soooo many years, he's given in to it.

It was his idea to do the kitchen in Mickey~lol~

I'll have my new bag for the beverages, a carry on for our day pack, we'll also pack 2 suitcases, and a garment bag (for the semi & formal gear.) My only advantage is my mom and DD's friend will be packing for themselves...it's oh so different when you have to pack for the whole family.

jgalecpa's list suggests minimizing your carry on luggage so you don't look like pack mules in your boarding photo.

I checked the teen link-it's hard to tell how it's going if they're all IM'ing each other...do Chad or Jesse have an IM address?

Good luck with your lifestyle change-I have every intention of starting mine, maybe I need a beautiful dress in my closet as a motivator? Vacations are always a diet killer aren't they?

Christmas lights will be in our luggage & a breaker bar (power cord) for extra outlets. Anyone out there know the answer to Aisling's verandah lights question?

My packing list also includes skittles (movie candy). I'd like to do a movie with my DD as one of our "family" functions and Brittany prefers candy over popcorn.

~Hey! Where did everybody go?~

Ginny? Jim? Franco? Grim? Don?

Hellooooooo~echo~echo~echo~echo~

 

[jgalecpa]

Hi Everybody!

Just was cruising the main board and found out about this thread.

My family will be on the Xmas 2005 (and probably Xmas 2007, just to plan ahead a bit) cruise with you guys.

It is a wonderful group of people and we'll all have a great time.

With Colleen, Aisling and all we will have the Irish well represented, it sounds like.

to introduce ourselves, we are

Jim, 45. (I'm the Irishman your mother warned you about.)
Rieann, 39 (hey, if it works for Bonnie, it's ok for Rieann too),
Caitlin 16
Shannon 13

By the way Aisling. Great dress, but I was going to wear the same one!

Jim

 

[3xthecharm]

Welcome!

Our group is a mixture of mutts, but lots of Irish mixed in.

 

[tiggerwannabe]

Hi Jim!

~Nice Fish~Sea Bass?
"cruisin on the main board"-pun intended? lol.

Our Crew:

Jill- Me Mom (where my Irish comes from)-will be 60!
(acts like she's 23)
Brittany-my daughter-currently 16, 17 next July.
Stefanie-Britt's best friend-also 16, 17 next July.
& Me-(recently turned 37), Disneyholic & avid planner-got my Mom hooked on Disney.

~A little history~

In October 1999, Stef's Mom and I took our girl scout troop to WDW and I invited my Mom. 41 of us stayed at the All Star Movies for 4 nights and me-mom loved the trip soooo much she came home and booked herself a room at SOG for November and went right back down. She's visited WDW at least 3 or 4 times since then.

~Back to now~

This year she booked her first cruise, took my sister and niece. They were on the first ever 10 day western cruise (thanks to hurricane Frances.) Mom called me about 2 days after they sailed to tell me she was booking the Christmas Cruise for 2005 and wanted my daughter and I to join her. You know it didn't take me long to say yes! On about the 6th or 7th day, during one of our "update" calls, Mom asked us to invite DD's GF. (They gave us a pretty quick yes as well.)

I had to explain to my husband that we were cruisin next Christmas (without him), he of course paused before saying yes. He really is the best...no matter what it is, if it is something to make my Mom happy-he tells me to do it for her.

~So here we are~

Planning for a wonderful experience with wonderful friends. I feel priviledged to have found such a nice group to spend our Christmas with.

Thank you again, for being part of the DIS-
a group of helpful, friendly, disneyophites, like me.



and Jim, Aisling showed hers first, proper educate says you're going to have to find another dress to wear...

 

[Aisling]

Our group is a mixture of mutts, but lots of Irish mixed in.

ROFL How true this is, my DH is from the Philippines!! He's been here since he was 12 years old, though, and is more of a "New Yawker" than anything else!

Jim,
hello! I'll make a deal with you. If I can't fit in the dress by cruise-time, it;s yours! LOL! Anyway, you sound like a fun guy, and I echo Colleen by saying how much I appreciate the Disers we'll be cruising with.