Diez (10) Noches Calientes en la Riviera Mexicana/17 de abril 2011 (4.17.11 Wonder!)

[LV Disney Fan(atic)]

so if you had to take a guess what night do you think the pirate dinner would be?
is it on a sea day or a port day normally?
Thanks

I don't think there's any way to know. On our '08 trip it was in the evening after we left PV, but we are staying in PV longer this time. Later this year I'm going to call DCL and they should be able to tell us when formal nights, Pirate night, etc. are. Hopefully before the Palo bookings open!

what was that one like?
We did a turtle excursion in the Grand Caymans but it wasn't that great it was just walking around looking at tanks of various size turtles and a gift store
In the Mayan we got to help release them that was very cool

Here's a description of the turtle farm excursion we did in Manzanillo, although we booked thru Carnival rather than with Shore Trips. It was a lot of fun.

http://shoretrips.com/common/search4.asp?rcode=MEX&lcode=MZO&tcode=047118

 

[Jareds_mommy]

i am also wondering how Holy week in Mexico will affect our port days,
When we have gone to resorts during that time alot of stuff has been closed in town, and the resorts have closed all water sports in the ocean, it did effect quite a bit of stuff the times we have been and its been on ( I have learned to book around it normally now)
It will be •2011 - April 17 to 24

 

[coffman6]

Any suggestions for an all inclusive resort where we could get a room for the day and enjoy the resort and maybe the beach at any of our ports??

 

[Susiesark]

i am also wondering how Holy week in Mexico will affect our port days,
When we have gone to resorts during that time alot of stuff has been closed in town, and the resorts have closed all water sports in the ocean, it did effect quite a bit of stuff the times we have been and its been on ( I have learned to book around it normally now)
It will be •2011 - April 17 to 24

I was wondering if places might be more crowded, because of it being Spring Break.

 

[True Romance]

We had about 20 in our FE group; that was manageable, but for me about 15 would be ideal.

That sounds like a good number to me too. Let's all plan around that number of families and we will revisit the list in January.

i am also wondering how Holy week in Mexico will affect our port days,
When we have gone to resorts during that time alot of stuff has been closed in town, and the resorts have closed all water sports in the ocean, it did effect quite a bit of stuff the times we have been and its been on ( I have learned to book around it normally now)
It will be •2011 - April 17 to 24

Good point. I think we just might have to get closer to find out. I am starting to email some tour companies, I will ask about that. I am wondering how much in Mazatlan will be open on Easter. At least we know Randi's horses will be operating

Any suggestions for an all inclusive resort where we could get a room for the day and enjoy the resort and maybe the beach at any of our ports??

There are a bunch of All Inclusive resorts at the ports that we can get day passes. The passes include use of their facilities, food & beverage, but does not include a room. I sent Connie a bunch of links for the resorts she will add to the web site when she has time. Most of them you pay per person, some of then (like Las Hadas in Manzanillo) you can go for free and then just pay for what you eat & drink.

 

[Susiesark]

Disneyland prices go up on Thursday. http://disneyparks.disney.go.com/blog/facts-on-disneyland-prices/
If you are planning on using tickets before January 3, 2011, you should purchase them before Thursday. If you purchase through www.arestravel.com the ticket prices are a little less. An adult 6 day hopper ticket jumps from $214 to $256

 

[michellert]

I would really like your feedback on this if you have experience to share...

I have been thinking the Disney Cruise may not be the vacation for us, as I get more information on the Kid's Club. My daughter will be 4 years old and I found out that she will be in the same room as kids up to 12 years old. I am not comfortable with this at all. I guess they just changed to this format recently.

Also, there is one counselor (I use that term loosely as I hear they are high school students most the time, but not sure if that is correct) per 15 toddlers. That is just crazy!

I'm wondering for those of you who have traveled on DCL before with young children, is DCL geared more for the 6 year olds and above? It really seems to be. I may just wait until the kids are a bit older, maybe 6 and 8.

My son will be two, but he will be in the nursery, which I'm much more comfortable with. If the nursery allowed my 4 year old too, I would be more inclined to use that for both kids.

 

[Jareds_mommy]

i am 99% they are not high school students they would not be able to travel with out parents
I have heard the children tend to break off into their own ages on their own
but you have to do whats best for your family

 

[michellert]

Thanks Jareds Mommy, good point about the counselors.

 

[True Romance]

I would really like your feedback on this if you have experience to share...

I have been thinking the Disney Cruise may not be the vacation for us, as I get more information on the Kid's Club. My daughter will be 4 years old and I found out that she will be in the same room as kids up to 12 years old. I am not comfortable with this at all. I guess they just changed to this format recently.

Also, there is one counselor (I use that term loosely as I hear they are high school students most the time, but not sure if that is correct) per 15 toddlers. That is just crazy!

I'm wondering for those of you who have traveled on DCL before with young children, is DCL geared more for the 6 year olds and above? It really seems to be. I may just wait until the kids are a bit older, maybe 6 and 8.

My son will be two, but he will be in the nursery, which I'm much more comfortable with. If the nursery allowed my 4 year old too, I would be more inclined to use that for both kids.

Michelle,

Here is my take on it. I went on a 7 day Western on the Magic last Oct. with my 4 1/2 year old DS and my 6 1/2 year old DD. My kids spent a lot of time in the clubs and had a blast. They never wanted to leave. I even left them on the ship in the clubs the 2nd day of the cruise and went on a tour in Key West. They were just fine and did not miss me at all.

Granted, my experience on the ship last year was before they made the changes in December. I don't think it is that much different. The counselors are WONDERFUL. They are by no means high school kids. All of the counselors seem to be in their mid 20's and they are from all around the world. There were tons of counselors in clubs. I don't know the exact number, but there were lots. Never did I see any situation that was out of control or that there were more kids than the counselors could handle. My 4 1/2 year old was strictly in the Club and my daughter bounced between the lab and club.

Every night you get a Navigator outlining the next days activities. There is a section on there that is set up like a t.v. guide grid. It outlines each activity that is done every hour in all the kids clubs. It also had the recommended ages. The activities for the little ones in the Club are like Do-Si-Do with Snow White, Plutos Pajama Party, Learn to be a Pirate with Mr. Smee (or Capt. Hook for the older kids), Movie time, Off to Neverland, etc. The Oceaneers Club is set up with a Peter Pan theme. There is a dress up closet, figures for the little kids to climb on, a pirate ship with a slide, and much younger kids toys and activities. I could not see kids over 8 maybe enjoying their time in there.

Now I think the older kids are going to want nothing to do with the younger kids programming. The older kids have the Oceaneers Lab which is across the hall that is full of video games, a kitchen used for experiments and cooking activities, and older kids activities. I really don't think the little ones would like it much in there.

With that being said, I do not think there is too much of cross mingling of the ages. I bet occasionally older kids go into the Club to be with a younger sibling that might be scared or have some separation anxiety and the parents asked the older sibling to stay with the younger. I think it would actually be more of the opposite and the younger kids wanting to be like their older sibling and go into the Lab. However if you want your daughter to stay in the Club, just tell the counselors and they will make a note of that in the computer.

I honestly think 4 is a great age for the cruise. My son had a fantastic time. I think the younger ones really get into it more. They still believe in the Magic and that the characters are real. My son probably had the best time out of everyone. He made friends with all of the counselors, participated in the Dine-n-Play every night after dinner, loved watching the movies on the outdoor pool movie screen, loved the shows, loved being able to go up to the fast service restaurants and ordering his own food. He really got the most out of the cruise.

Now this time I will be bringing my baby. Well I guess he is not much of a baby anymore, he will turn 3 on May 1st. I booked this cruise specifically so he could go into the Club. I got him potty trained early and I am working on him being potty and verbally independent. I have no problems leaving him in the club. Even with the occasional older child. However, I do not want him going to the Lab and I will tell them that. Also I will probably pick him up and feed him myself if they take the kids to the buffet. Remember you have a pager all the time, and if you child is having a hard time they will page you to come and get them.

This change in the clubs came about last December, so 9 months ago. I have not read any problems with the change. I would post a message in the main forum specifically asking parents of the little ones if they had problems with older kids in the Club since the change took effect. I bet you will get some good feedback from recent cruises that could help you make your decision.

Let me see if I can find some pics of my kids in the Club and I will post them.

Hope this helps.

 

[Susiesark]

This is my first DCL also, so Kristi, thanks for all the information. My DD will be 6 1/2 at cruise time and it looks like a lot of you have kids the same age. I hope we can meet some of you beforehand so my daughter will feel comfortable being left in the clubs. I'm sure she'll love it, she's a social butterfly.
So how do you previous cruisers feel about leaving the kids in the club while you do the 12 and over shore excursions?

 

[michellert]

Thanks so much Kristi, that helps so much, I really needed to hear about actual experience with the little ones, so I do appreciate your feedback.

I feel much more comfortable knowing I can request that my daughter stay in the club and not venture into the lab. I guess I don't feel 100% comfortable with her being by herself any place at any time and that affects my outlook on the whole thing.

I found a link on the main board that got me wondering in the first place, that was not good at all regarding experiences with the kid's clubs, when a family had a younger child. Reviews from those with older kids (6 +) were pretty much great!

Thanks again!

 

[Brooklyn]

I was one who was VERY vocal about the changes that DCL started with the Kids Clubs last year. I was not happy about the changes one bit. I have to tell you though, the last time we were on the Disney Magic was for 25 nights and I did not have one complaint about the new system.

First, the kids in the clubs on the Wonder should only be up to age 10 by the time we sail. They are adding and Ocean Quest type club for the tweens 11-13 in December.

The fact that the kids get to go to either the club or the lab now is GREAT! My girls loved being able to chose what activites they wanted to do. I have to say the one draw back is never knowing what club to pick them up in. I sware I always went to the wrong one. The counselors were great though, they would just tell me that one girl was in the lab if I went to the club or vice versa.

I was very concearned about 10 yo's interacting with my 4 yo. To be honest it rarely ever happened. My girls were 4 & 8 at the time of the cruise. They rarely ever chose to do the same activity. Sometimes there would be younger ones with older ones or the opposite but it always seemed to work out in the end. The activities geared towards the younger ones, like Jo Jo's circus, is something that a 10yo is not going to want to do anyway. Wither that being said things like Do Si Do with Snow White tended to have a wide range of kids.

One advantage to the new changes is that they offered the same activities over and over. It was great bc you never had to feel like you were missing out on something.

I am so much better expressing things in words rather then typing but I hope I am getting my point across.

I was VERY against the changes but after experiencing them I am so happy with it! My concearns at the time were valid but Disney did a great job accomadating everyone.

As for 1 counselor per 15 kids, I have never seen that. There are more "yellow" shirts roaming around those rooms then probably need be at some times. I 100% felt safe leaving my kids there. They never had an issue at all. We spent a lot of nights trying out this new system along with other friends and no one had an issue. If anything we all really liked it!

There were times when our 8 yo and her friends were in the club and our 4 yo and her friends were in the lab. They kids def mixed in ages but they tend to do activities with their age groups.

On another note....the dine and play program for late dining is wonderful! Our girls love the shows so late dining works great for us. They are nice and awake for the shows. We head to a dance party or game show and then off to dinner. 45 mins into dinner the kids club shows up at the restaurant and takes your kids off to the clubs. Then the adults get to finish their meals without having to get up to take the kids to the clubs. Our family LOVES this program!

 

[Brooklyn]

On a side note....anyone on this cruise going to be at Disneyland this weekend? We will be there Fri-Sun. PM me if you will be there. It would be great to meet some folks before the cruise!

We have 2 dd's who are 9 and 5.

 

[Brooklyn]

Also, there is one counselor (I use that term loosely as I hear they are high school students most the time, but not sure if that is correct) per 15 toddlers. That is just crazy!

We started taking Disney cruises when our DD was 18 months. She is now 5. I have never seen a counselor that is a High School Student. The counselors are some of the most AMAZING people! They are wonderful with the kids!!! Some of them are why we keep going back! Our DD's look forward to seeing them over and over! The friendships they have made will always be something to them!

 

[michellert]

Brooklyn, thanks for your input, good to know you have a 4-year old and that she had a great time in the lab/club. I didn't know about the new area/activities being planned for the 10 and up, that's nice!

 

[Susiesark]

On a side note....anyone on this cruise going to be at Disneyland this weekend? We will be there Fri-Sun. PM me if you will be there. It would be great to meet some folks before the cruise!

We have 2 dd's who are 9 and 5.

We can go this weekend! We are going this afternoon, then early tomorrow morning, but we can meet you on the weekend as well. I'll PM you my info.

 

[True Romance]

Brooklyn,

I am so envious of being on the Magic for 25 nights. What a fabulous cruise your family had.

Thanks for the great review of the current kids clubs. It is good to hear that you were against it at first and was happily surprised at how well it worked. It is nice to hear that it is running smoothly and both the kids and parents are happy. I knew Disney could do it right

I am curious of how the procedure works when a kid is in the Club and a new activity is going to start in the Lab. Do the counselors make an announcement of this new activity and see who want to go over? Also do the counselors walk the kids over in their secret hallway or do they send the kids on their own? I was just curious.

Michelle,
I totally understand your concerns, it is hard to know what it is like until you actually see it. That thread in the main forum was started back in December before the changes took place. I think most of the posters were venting their concerns of how they thought it would be. Now that the system is actually in place, I have not heard of problems.

 

[Brooklyn]

Brooklyn,

I am so envious of being on the Magic for 25 nights. What a fabulous cruise your family had.

Thanks for the great review of the current kids clubs. It is good to hear that you were against it at first and was happily surprised at how well it worked. It is nice to hear that it is running smoothly and both the kids and parents are happy. I knew Disney could do it right

I am curious of how the procedure works when a kid is in the Club and a new activity is going to start in the Lab. Do the counselors make an announcement of this new activity and see who want to go over? Also do the counselors walk the kids over in their secret hallway or do they send the kids on their own? I was just curious.

Michelle,
I totally understand your concerns, it is hard to know what it is like until you actually see it. That thread in the main forum was started back in December before the changes took place. I think most of the posters were venting their concerns of how they thought it would be. Now that the system is actually in place, I have not heard of problems.

They don't always make an announcement. That is something that I hope they make a little better in the future. My girls did miss things simply bc they did not know it was time to ask to move over. The counselors are moving kids back and forth all day. They never walk on their own. Even if it is just one kid that wants to go to the other area someone will walk them. They did not use the "secret hallway" but I think mostly bc it was being used as storage for most of our time on board. They were bringing tons of new toys and supplies for the summer in the med so the hallway was pretty full.

Yes the vacation was truly amazing! We were surrounded by amazing friends, the med and the magic! It was just wonderful. By the time we got to the med though the girls loved being on board so much they did not want to be off the ship! When we were at the collisium in Rome all they kept asking was to go back to the ship. I told them I waited my whole life to be there, lol!

Yes I was one of the most vocal people on these boards about not being happy about the changes. We were about to be on the ship for 25 nights and I was NOT ready for change. Surprisingly though the girls just LOVED it! They loved the freedom of being able to chose.

I am just wondering who we will have for staff in the clubs. We have come to know and love so many on the Magic! Once the Dream sets sail there will be so many people moving around!

 

[Brooklyn]

True Romance....we are also on the 2 night cruise in Jan!

Brooklyn, I see that your DH is a Marine, mine just retired from the Marines. They will at least have something to talk about.

It is funny because I just looked at the website before I say your post and I said he has to be a Marine! Yes it will be nice for them! I think there will be lots more as time gets closer too!