crabbygal902
after a lapu lapu, I'm not so crabby anymore
- Joined
- Feb 17, 2007
- Messages
- 1,678
Here's some thoughts from our last cruise on the Magic, February 4th-7th 2016. I hope this helps someone in their planning, but I realize that our experience is just that...our experience. Your mileage may vary. 
Happy Cruising!
Things we will do:
Order room service coffee the evening before. Coffee stays warm in the carafe overnight and you will have it to enjoy first thing in the morning without waiting for room service at a very busy time.
If on the Magic, eat shawarma as many times as possible!
Speaking of the Magic, book it again! What a great ship and fantastic crew members. We loved it as much or more than the Dream.
Go to Cove Cafe for some adult relaxation time with a magazine, coffee, and free snacks. Those chocolate peanut butter bars are delicious. The cheese and olives are a great pre-dinner accompaniment to a drink at the bar beside the Cove.
Express walk-off with our own bags on departure day. We like to skip the MDR breakfast and go to Cabanas instead to get an early start home. We really don't enjoy lingering on the ship on the last day. On the February trip, we zipped right past the throngs of people waiting to be allowed off the ship to collect their luggage. There was a delay getting back to port and luggage was just getting moved to the port when we went through customs.
Stick to simple packing and layers: short sleeve shirts, long pants, jackets/sweaters for February. The temperature went from warm to cold in just 3 days.
Pre-pay for a single day in the Rainforest Room before the cruise. We had to get the length of stay pass since all of the day passes were sold out.
Bring flip flops for the Rainforest room. Their flip flops cut into my toes!
Order the cheese plate and fruit bowl from room service for Sail Away. The party is too crowded for an introvert like me, but wine and cheese on the verandah is my idea of heaven.
Bring our own wine for the stateroom. Even though the amount is limited, it is still a nice perk to be able to bring your favorites.
Book a forward room for less noise and movement when the ship docks than an aft room. Another advantage is that forward rooms also have less-busy elevators than mid-ship. This is our favorite location.
Try Palo brunch next time if on a 4 day cruise or longer.
Schedule Palo dinner at least once, maybe twice if possible. It was that good.
Schedule a cruise when the weather is warmer …the weather is iffy in February and Castaway Cay is a priority for us. We got lucky on this trip. The morning was cold and a little rainy, but the afternoon was warm and pleasant.
Join a forum of cruisers who are going at the same time. It was fun getting to know people and share the excitement of the cruise countdown.
Take advantage of the beverage seminars. It is a cheap way to try lots of drinks and get to know other cruisers.
Really pay attention to where your muster station is for your own safety. We had an incident where there was a possible man-overboard (turned out to be nothing) but we spent over an hour in muster stations on our last evening while everyone on board was accounted for. The drill went on longer than it needed to because the crew was busy locating a few rooms of people who did not report when and/or where they were supposed to. I'm glad everyone was okay, but it was raining and really cold out on that deck. I felt bad for the people who had tired small children with them.
On embarkation day, show up to the port about ½ hour after the doors are opened. We had chosen the 2nd PAT. We walked in with no crowds, no lines. We were assigned boarding group 6 and went straight to the Cabanas buffet without huge crowds. It was nuts by the time we left, though.
Things we won't do:
Bring Shampoo/Conditioner/Lotion—the cruise line toiletries are awesome.
Bring checked luggage. We will stick with carryons only. It is not worth it to chance having our luggage not make it onto the ship with us. We saw this happen to a fellow cruiser...not fun!
Bring a hair dryer.
Bring a beach towel. You are provided with towels when you get off the ship at ports.
Bring a fancy dress or heels….completely unnecessary. A nice pants outfit with flats works at Palo and you don't have to worry about slippery decks or your skirt flying up on windy decks.
Worry about skipping the MDRs if it doesn't fit the evening's plans. We had a great time snacking in the adult lounge area, enjoying the live music, and ordering room service later. That was much more enjoyable than the MDRs for us.
Wash stuff in the sink…it doesn’t dry even after hanging for a couple days! Lesson learned. Bring just enough clothing to last the entire trip.
Skip the Tangled show on the Magic. It is fantastic!
Miss the fireworks show again because we aren't paying attention to the Navigator. How did we manage that???
Happy Cruising!
Things we will do:
Order room service coffee the evening before. Coffee stays warm in the carafe overnight and you will have it to enjoy first thing in the morning without waiting for room service at a very busy time.
If on the Magic, eat shawarma as many times as possible!
Speaking of the Magic, book it again! What a great ship and fantastic crew members. We loved it as much or more than the Dream.
Go to Cove Cafe for some adult relaxation time with a magazine, coffee, and free snacks. Those chocolate peanut butter bars are delicious. The cheese and olives are a great pre-dinner accompaniment to a drink at the bar beside the Cove.
Express walk-off with our own bags on departure day. We like to skip the MDR breakfast and go to Cabanas instead to get an early start home. We really don't enjoy lingering on the ship on the last day. On the February trip, we zipped right past the throngs of people waiting to be allowed off the ship to collect their luggage. There was a delay getting back to port and luggage was just getting moved to the port when we went through customs.
Stick to simple packing and layers: short sleeve shirts, long pants, jackets/sweaters for February. The temperature went from warm to cold in just 3 days.
Pre-pay for a single day in the Rainforest Room before the cruise. We had to get the length of stay pass since all of the day passes were sold out.
Bring flip flops for the Rainforest room. Their flip flops cut into my toes!
Order the cheese plate and fruit bowl from room service for Sail Away. The party is too crowded for an introvert like me, but wine and cheese on the verandah is my idea of heaven.
Bring our own wine for the stateroom. Even though the amount is limited, it is still a nice perk to be able to bring your favorites.
Book a forward room for less noise and movement when the ship docks than an aft room. Another advantage is that forward rooms also have less-busy elevators than mid-ship. This is our favorite location.
Try Palo brunch next time if on a 4 day cruise or longer.
Schedule Palo dinner at least once, maybe twice if possible. It was that good.
Schedule a cruise when the weather is warmer …the weather is iffy in February and Castaway Cay is a priority for us. We got lucky on this trip. The morning was cold and a little rainy, but the afternoon was warm and pleasant.
Join a forum of cruisers who are going at the same time. It was fun getting to know people and share the excitement of the cruise countdown.
Take advantage of the beverage seminars. It is a cheap way to try lots of drinks and get to know other cruisers.
Really pay attention to where your muster station is for your own safety. We had an incident where there was a possible man-overboard (turned out to be nothing) but we spent over an hour in muster stations on our last evening while everyone on board was accounted for. The drill went on longer than it needed to because the crew was busy locating a few rooms of people who did not report when and/or where they were supposed to. I'm glad everyone was okay, but it was raining and really cold out on that deck. I felt bad for the people who had tired small children with them.
On embarkation day, show up to the port about ½ hour after the doors are opened. We had chosen the 2nd PAT. We walked in with no crowds, no lines. We were assigned boarding group 6 and went straight to the Cabanas buffet without huge crowds. It was nuts by the time we left, though.
Things we won't do:
Bring Shampoo/Conditioner/Lotion—the cruise line toiletries are awesome.
Bring checked luggage. We will stick with carryons only. It is not worth it to chance having our luggage not make it onto the ship with us. We saw this happen to a fellow cruiser...not fun!
Bring a hair dryer.
Bring a beach towel. You are provided with towels when you get off the ship at ports.
Bring a fancy dress or heels….completely unnecessary. A nice pants outfit with flats works at Palo and you don't have to worry about slippery decks or your skirt flying up on windy decks.
Worry about skipping the MDRs if it doesn't fit the evening's plans. We had a great time snacking in the adult lounge area, enjoying the live music, and ordering room service later. That was much more enjoyable than the MDRs for us.
Wash stuff in the sink…it doesn’t dry even after hanging for a couple days! Lesson learned. Bring just enough clothing to last the entire trip.
Skip the Tangled show on the Magic. It is fantastic!
Miss the fireworks show again because we aren't paying attention to the Navigator. How did we manage that???
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