December 12 - 19, 2009 Western Magic

[pxlbarrel]

Last weekend, I got the Candlelight Processional Dinner package for our family. Alas, Le Cellier was not possible (argggh... I love that place...and so does my dad). In fact, so many places were unavailable. We ended up doing the lunch seating at Coral Reef for the early show. Very interested to see where the Illuminations seating will be. I usually watch the firworks from Germany or China.

Looking over the excursions...we can't book till next weekend! (argh) I'm thinking of the fishing at Castaway Cay? Anybody try that? (we're not beach people...nor are we "in the water" people. We can do on top of water! (good thing too if you're going on a cruise)

I need a opinion. LOL I've always dreamed of doing something Disney on my birthday but it will never happen. Why? Because I don't think I can stand the crowds or the $$$ to go to anything Disney (other than an ice show!) on Christmas Day. One time I went to WDW and we were in Magic Kingdom on Dec 23rd (we flew out on the 24th). That's the closest I've been...I managed to screw up my courage and asked City Hall for a button. I didn't wear it though...I just wanted it as a souvenir (and a reminder of how close I was. hahaha... I'm pretty sad, eh?) Would it be awful or dishonest to say, reserve something at Palo on one of our last days, and tell them it's my birthday? LOL (I told you I was a sad, sad Disneyphile!!) And if you're wondering more about my sad sack story , I've never had a birthday dinner on my birthday unless it was a Chinese restaurant.

 

[Shelebeen]

I usually travel with my laptop or netbook. Is it worth bringing or should I just leave it at home?

We always bring ours... if nothing else to at least download and backup our photos. We always buy some internet minutes as well. You can type all your emails and then just connect to send them rather then use the ship computers and pay for time while you are typing. It's also a good spot to recharge your ipod, etc

 

[khiguchi]

I just found out that I will be able to go on this cruise ((as far as, I got the time off from work)) and hopefully within the next few weeks we'll book and be on board with all you lovely people!!

 

[kcashner]

As to bringing laptop--you can use it on the ship even if you don't use the internet...for stuff like backing up your photos. There is a Starbucks with internet right at the dock in Cozumel and there are some hotels in Grand Cayman with free/cheap internet. There are at least 2 internet cafes in Key West for $5 per hour (can you tell I have a teen).

If you can't live without the internet on the ship, you can download your stuff, log off, answer e-mails, etc. , then log back on to send them. At least it saves your minutes!

Many people celebrate things on the ship that aren't on "the day." We even encountered one elderly lady who said she was sailing for her birthday. DD politely wished her a HB and asked when it was--it was 6 months away!

We have, on some cruises, received special "treats" on the real day. DD celebrated her 18th in Palo and was presented with an amazing spun sugar sculpture. I was on the ship for my 50th, and the cruise director sent chocolate dipped strawberries to my stateroom (no, I wasn't concierge). We think this came about because DD said something to the Rona Rivers character before the Golden Mickeys...in the chat about who is sailing with you, etc... she said that her mom was turning 50 the next day. Things like that have a way of getting passed on.

 

[Scooby3x1y]

I usually travel with my laptop or netbook. Is it worth bringing or should I just leave it at home?

It is up to you. However, we always bring our laptop. We are self-employed, and it is our way of keeping in touch. We just bought the Blackberry Tour's, so we will be able to call as well.

We use our laptops for photo storage as well, it is convenient to "dump" our pictures daily into folders. Also, everyone else we are traveling with, we dump their pictures and then trade at the end of the cruise. At first we just gave everyone a CD, but have since gone to cruzers or thumb drives.

 

[disneyfan19712006]

Joining everyone for our first cruise in Dec. parents + DD 11, DD 7, DS 5. have read a couple of post and excited to see a other kids out there - my kids biggest concern about us taking them out of school is missing their friends right before the holidays. Would love for them to be able to meet a few others ahead of time. What is the FE everyone is talking about? On excursions - has anyone arranged snorkeling through Captain Marvin's in the Cayman's? We have used them when staying on the island - but as this is our first cruise not sure how easy it is to do your own excursions. Looking forward to meeting everyone. Anyone doing DW the week before?

A FE is like a little gift exchange. You hang it on the Fish by your door and your fellow cruisers leave little gifts during the cruise. You also drop off little gifts in their fish extenders. You can do gifts related to where you live, gifts per person or (the best) homemade gifts. Spend as little or as much as you like the choice is yours. FE's can be purchased on ebay or made yourself. You can look through the thread for those on making FE's. It a fun thing to do and there will be a couple of meets scheduled as well after we find out how many of us there are. All DIS are invited to the meets even if not participating in the FE exchange.

 

[disneyfan19712006]

I don't know, it was weird....I asked an agent the other day and he said that it opened at 9 am est on Sunday. I logged into my account early and got right on to make the ressie. Go figure...

I had booked mine on 9/11 they started the new tier levels that day.

 

[disneyfan19712006]

Anyone want to do High Tea together? I don't want to do it solo.

I am booked with my daughter Melody on the first sea day. We would be happy to have you join us.

 

[disneyfan19712006]

Yes, my daughter is 13 1/2. Gets along great with others, and is very social.

Has anyone done the ziplines in Cozumel? We've done them in Puerto Vallarta and Costa Rica. Any comparison?

My daughter and son in law are planning on doing the zip lines.

 

[bevtoy]

My daughter and son in law are planning on doing the zip lines.

Would you post the updated list of FE participants so we can get a idea of ages number of staterooms etc? and of course I forgot the cut off date to sign up.
Thanks!
Would you prefer to just put it in a spreadsheet at the offsite group so we can check it there? I am having a blast creating goodie bags!


Anyone wanting a offsite invitation can PM me their e-mail address and I will send you a invitation!

 

[yiddles]

Yiddles--$125 for a family of 4 at 7 Mile Beach is a RIP OFF. The beach is free. That's right, ALL beaches at Grand Cayman are free. The beach runs from the tender area and extends for about (you guessed it) 7 miles. There is a beach shuttle bus for $3 per person each way. A taxi to 7 mile or Sea Grape is about $5 each way. Hmmmm...taxi 2 ways, 4 people = $40. $125 - $40 = one heck of a lot of beach chairs and snacks. Besides, doing it on your own means that you can stay as long as you want.

A thought....Captain Marvin's island tour (includes turtle farm, hell, rum tasting) is $30 per person and they'll drop you at the beach afterward if you desire. So, for $140 your family of 4 could do an island tour AND a beach. The island tour is more grown up, but the turtle farm is fun for all ages. Boatswain's park (where the turtle farm is) is another great place--prices depend on what you want to do there.

Thanks for the advice, would rather spend the $ on others things (i.e. cocktails!). Ok so thanks for that. now, are people meeting up and how can we get involved?

 

[yiddles]

I sent you a PM and some links to show you what it is all about.

Hey can I get some info on the FE's...it's right up my girls alley!

 

[bevtoy]

I don't think anyone has discussed a meeting time or place yet. Any ideas?

Yiddles--$125 for a family of 4 at 7 Mile Beach is a RIP OFF. The beach is free. That's right, ALL beaches at Grand Cayman are free. The beach runs from the tender area and extends for about (you guessed it) 7 miles. There is a beach shuttle bus for $3 per person each way. A taxi to 7 mile or Sea Grape is about $5 each way. Hmmmm...taxi 2 ways, 4 people = $40. $125 - $40 = one heck of a lot of beach chairs and snacks. Besides, doing it on your own means that you can stay as long as you want.

A thought....Captain Marvin's island tour (includes turtle farm, hell, rum tasting) is $30 per person and they'll drop you at the beach afterward if you desire. So, for $140 your family of 4 could do an island tour AND a beach. The island tour is more grown up, but the turtle farm is fun for all ages. Boatswain's park (where the turtle farm is) is another great place--prices depend on what you want to do there.

Thanks for the advice, would rather spend the $ on others things (i.e. cocktails!). Ok so thanks for that. now, are people meeting up and how can we get involved?

 

[yiddles]

OK where to meet? Hmmm, it has been almost 2 years since our last cruise, but I guess it depends on if we want kids or not. If we do the 'family' thing I'd suggest maybe the area next to the gingerbread house (I think there is a bar/karaoke area there that is more family friendly). For 'adults' @ any of the bars, they have all sorts from mellow piano to sports.

As for FE's what are the dos & dont's?

 

[yiddles]

 

[Juney]

I have a dumb question about the internet usage. On the wdwinfo site it says:

Cell phone service is available through most major providers (AT&T, Verizon, Sprint, Team Mobile, etc.) The ship must be 8 to 10 miles out to sea before you can access cell service. NOTE THAT SERVICE IS LIMITED TO THE STATEROOMS. Some common areas will not have cell access.

Disney recommends that you contact your cell provider prior to sailing. They can advise what is needed to arrange for access. International roaming fees will be billed to your account. (These charges vary and can take up to 90 days to appear on your statement.)

I haven't contacted my carrier yet, but if standard charges apply and I have a usb internet account, will it work in my stateroom as well?

 

[kcashner]

You lost me on the high tech talk. However, cellular at sea is $2.98 per minute + and charges from your carrier. Internet is 75 cents per minute unless you buy a package.

As to a Dis-meet...common places are by the Goofy pool (hard to hear, but the kids can swim), Promenade Lounge (probably best--can sit, can hear, but kids have to get out of pool!), outside Studio Sea (no place to sit, hear all the noise from boarding announcements). The usual time is 3 pm because most are on board by then.

We had one group that wanted to meet in the terminal about 11:15. Nice idea, but excludes anyone coming from WDW on DCL transportation. If we do a terminal meeting, I'd strongly suggest a brief one on board also.

 

[pxlbarrel]

I have another question. I was reading on Mousesavers that the transfer from the Disney resort to Port Canaveral is more expensive than arranging for a town car to get us there. I looked at our booking... for four of us, the roundtrip transfer is $276. Have any of you booked a car to get to Port Canaveral instead of using Disney transportation? They say the advantage is you get to arrive at the ship sooner and without a busload of other passengers... That actually sounds good to me...and riding in a car as opposed to a bus appeals to me too...especially if we save a few bucks.

 

[Shelebeen]

I have another question. I was reading on Mousesavers that the transfer from the Disney resort to Port Canaveral is more expensive than arranging for a town car to get us there. I looked at our booking... for four of us, the roundtrip transfer is $276. Have any of you booked a car to get to Port Canaveral instead of using Disney transportation? They say the advantage is you get to arrive at the ship sooner and without a busload of other passengers... That actually sounds good to me...and riding in a car as opposed to a bus appeals to me too...especially if we save a few bucks.

We have. In August 08 we had a town car from Happy Limo pick us up at the Poly and take us to Canaveral. This time we are renting a stretch limo to take us from the same company. We are also having them pick us up a the airport and taking us to the Poly pre cruise. I like the idea of a nice quiet ride, going when we want to go, etc...

 

[HallsofVA]

OK where to meet? Hmmm, it has been almost 2 years since our last cruise, but I guess it depends on if we want kids or not. If we do the 'family' thing I'd suggest maybe the area next to the gingerbread house (I think there is a bar/karaoke area there that is more family friendly). For 'adults' @ any of the bars, they have all sorts from mellow piano to sports.

Both of my prior cruises had a DIS meet at 3pm in the Promenade Lounge. Seemed to work out well. On the first cruise, one of the cruisers even handed out little gifts to everyone at the meet since we hadn't discussed Fish Extenders at all. I was too busy checking out my stateroom on the last cruise to make it to the 3pm meet, but we also caught up in the terminal when we met the person who ordered the wristbands to pay and pick them up. (Even having missed the big meet, the wristbands were a great way to tell who was part of the board group ahead of time.)