Disney Dream 12/29/2011

[KuyaRomeo]

We too, are very sorry to hear of your loss, as well as the additional worries it brings regarding your vacation. It is certainly understandable.

As others have pointed out - don't make any quick decisions. After a period of grieving, a Disney Vacation may be welcomed as a big step to move forward for everyone. Right now everyone is (rightfully so) focused on the matter at hand. . . give it the full attention it needs right now . . and rethink the cruise later when the smoke has cleared.

Again, very sorry about your loss.

well it is only 218 days away but unfortunatly our plans have taken a change my mother in law who along with my fatherin law were going to be be joining us on this cruise however God decided it was time for her to come home so now she will only be watching us go down the slide from Heaven and my Father in law is of course unsure if he will be up to joining us so please keep us in your prayers if you could my DH is so torn because he of course wants to go but is concerned about his dad coming and how it will feel to have him there without his mom and still make this trip special for our DD (15 almost 16) whos world has just changed ( she was very close to her mommom and is handling things well but has expressed concerned @ the future w/o her) as now for me now trying to manage 2 households I (selfishly) am worried about is this going to be a vacation or a disaster that i am spending my savings on ... anyway thanks for listening will keep you all posted as decisions are made and we all continue to struggle with our new normal

 

[cmclaura]

I've been making our ancillary reservations this week. Got a great deal at Budget for rental car to/from PC. Booked a room at Country Inn & Suites at a good rate. Airfare has me stymied.

We fly Southwest and have often got GREAT rates, usually going down over time (I tend to book well in advance, as you could probably tell). Right now, the cheapest rate is $188 pp from Philadelphia to Orlando, and that's a late day flight -- the one I'd rather take is already $247. Given that we usually pay $74-79 each way, that's steep.

Shall I wait it out a bit and hope the fares go down (as they've often done before)? The trouble is we usually go in early January and this is during the Christmas-New Year's week. Argggh!

 

[SnowWhite2]

Hi folks, I'm back again. Things were getting a bit hectic with the kids both being in HS this year and with lacrosse.

I'm really looking forward to this cruise. It will be two years since our last one, and we have had to cancel two cruises last year. I'm finally finished mourning and getting excited about this trip.

I've missed about 10 pages of "talk" so I'll have to catch up. Are we having a meet the first day on-board?

 

[SnowWhite2]

Link to 5 day Dream Navigators:


http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=2733804

 

[KuyaRomeo]

So, I am working at home today . . . and the phone rings.

It is a very pleasant woman who identifies herself as a Disney Cruise employee, recognizing that I have booked my cruise . . and wanted to ask me a brief survey.

I say sure.

She says that from time to time, they like to get in touch with "return cruisers". . . I say ok . .


She seems very pleasant and very "Disney-esque" But the survey only consisted of one question - Employment:

Wanted to know if I work for any Media related employment (News paper, journal, magazine, public information, web design, television, etc)

I answered yes, because I own a Web Design company here in NY.

She said "wow that's great, I will make a note of it"

And then she wished me well on my upcoming cruise and told me how jealous she was.

That was the only question. Very very strange. Anyone else have any similar experiences??

My first guess, and it is a BIG LONGSHOT (just pulling something out of myhead) is that perhaps they are getting ready to do some room upgrades and are trying to "sneakily" ensure that anyone with a "media" background, or the ability to publicly report about the ship . . gets upgraded, to ensure we speak highly ???

I am probably way off . . but this survey of just one question, wanting to know if I work in a media related field . . was very very strange.

Thoughts?

 

[timtiff11]

Hi All-
I am new to DIS boards, so sorry if I make mistakes along the way. My name is Tiffany and at the time of the cruise I will be 23 and my fiance Tim will be 22.

I am so excited to be on the Disney Dream over New Years!! For multiple reasons:

This cruise is our Honeymoon!!
It will be both mine and my fiance's first cruise ever!!
We are very ready for a relaxing vacation!!

I am not sure how much I will remember to keep up with the threads posted, but I am excited to get to know a few people before we board the ship!

 

[KuyaRomeo]

Hello & welcome timtiff!!

And congrats on your big day. Theo and myself got engaged on a Disney new years cruise 1 1/2 years ago. This will be our 4th Disney cruise together, and our 3rd new years Disney cruise, but our very first time on the Disney dream.

If you have any questions, I'll be happy to help where I can. There are also lots of other great members here who are lots of fun to get to know, and have lots of good info to share.

Welcome!! See u at new years!!

Hi All-
I am new to DIS boards, so sorry if I make mistakes along the way. My name is Tiffany and at the time of the cruise I will be 23 and my fiance Tim will be 22.

I am so excited to be on the Disney Dream over New Years!! For multiple reasons:

This cruise is our Honeymoon!!
It will be both mine and my fiance's first cruise ever!!
We are very ready for a relaxing vacation!!

I am not sure how much I will remember to keep up with the threads posted, but I am excited to get to know a few people before we board the ship!

 

[timtiff11]

Thanks KuyaRomeo!

I do have one question. I have seen this cruise referred to as a "double dip".. What is a double dip exactly ?

My thought was that it was called this because we go to CC twice...?

 

[KuyaRomeo]

They call it a "double dip" when the cruise is a special occasion . . . and they require you to tip the cruise staff Twice . . . while on the cruise. This being a New Years Cruise, there are lots of special events and therefore they require that you tip everyone Twice as much at the end.

JOKING, of course

I have to admit that although I have been on MANY Disney cruises . . .this is my very first time using this forum to get to know folks before hand. It's a new experience for us, as we normally get on board and then meet people during the cruise.

So, like you . . . I am new to some of the lingo used on this forum/site. But, I would have to agree with you. I think the Double Dip is simply because this cruise stops twice at Castaway Cay. Although someone may chime in and correct us.

Have you been on any cruises before? Any Disney cruises? The NYE cruise is LOTS of fun. . Last year we got a lil tipsy . . (ok a lot tipsy) and danced and partied for a few hours up top . . to bring in the New Years . . had a lot of fun. The year before that, we got engaged on the Disney Wonder, just after the fireworks on NYE . . I was soooo nervous in all of the planning and working with the ship staff to get it done, that I really had no time to enjoy the NYE Party . .

But this year, like last year . . . we are gonna Drink the NY in, with style.

Make sure you stop by for a toast, if you see us!! Just don't laugh at how awful we dance, yet how great we think we are dancing . . when we are a little tipsy.

 

[timtiff11]

Have you been on any cruises before? Any Disney cruises? The NYE cruise is LOTS of fun. . Last year we got a lil tipsy . . (ok a lot tipsy) and danced and partied for a few hours up top . . to bring in the New Years . . had a lot of fun. The year before that, we got engaged on the Disney Wonder, just after the fireworks on NYE . . I was soooo nervous in all of the planning and working with the ship staff to get it done, that I really had no time to enjoy the NYE Party . .

But this year, like last year . . . we are gonna Drink the NY in, with style.

Make sure you stop by for a toast, if you see us!! Just don't laugh at how awful we dance, yet how great we think we are dancing . . when we are a little tipsy.

Neither of us has ever been on a cruise before.. So we really have no idea what to expect at all! I am super excited to soak in all the fun of the cruise and celebrating NY at sea.
And I promise not to laugh at any bad dancing, as Tim and I are horrible dancers as well! And I will make it part of my mission to find you at the party! (Could be fun!) .. If you look for us it will be the tall red headed guy, and the brown curly haired girl.

 

[KuyaRomeo]

We will be on the look out for a tall redhead and a curly haired!!! LOL

We are SUPER EASY to locate . . look for the two gay guys! Actually, there are normally a few gay couples on each cruise . . . but still, we are very very easy to spot.

Also . . don't hesitate to ask if you need any info. We have been to the Bahamas many times . . . and have some good insight on the NYE cruise, Nassau, and Cast Away . . .

 

[Harlemgirl720]

Its been a while since I have been on this thread.

Well. I am still looking for airfare. Its still sky high. I will be arriving at AKV on Christmas Eve and then BLT from 12/26 to 12/29 and then its cruise time!!!!

My son is excited. I am excited. I thought about booking Palo and the other adult restaurant but since my son is not of age and I will be alone, I think I will skip it.

I look forward to meeting everyone.

 

[cmclaura]

You may find others here who would also like to try Palo but are hesitant to dine solo. It would be nice if perhaps a group of people wanted to book together.

On our last cruise, we met up for tea and brunch with other cruisers. It's nice to have a group together. We took up lots of room for tea and took over the center space at Palo with a table for 9!

Is anyone interested in perhaps doing that again this time? It worked out especially well as some of us couldn't get tea reservations but, when we boarded we went straight to the reservations section and managed to get us all booked for a group tea, no problem.

 

[SnowWhite2]

I'd be interested in a group tea or brunch. DH and I never have made it to tea - I don't think Gregg was too excited about it anyway. We've done brunch on several of our cruises and it's wonderful. Since we only have one day at sea I wonder if they will have brunch on CC days.

 

[KuyaRomeo]

I have always wanted to eat at Palo . . . but in my many years of Disney Cruising, we never have. I eat so much on the ship that when the time comes, I can't even think of booking a restaurant . . . I really need to learn to pace myself hahaha.

Also, we have always lucked out and ended up with GREAT table-mates and wonderful servers in the main restaurants . . making the dining experience a lot of fun. So much that we did not want to give that up.

One day . . . we will make the effort to dine in Palo.

 

[cmclaura]

I'm so used to 7 day cruises, I keep forgetting this is a 5 (particularly as it looks that we'll be B2Bing with the cruise right after (also a 5), so I'm not even sure if there will be brunch and tea available at Palo on this voyage.

You have to try Palo at least once in your life!!!

 

[cmclaura]

I was reading another thread where someone suggested:

Deck 13 forward is a nice area and pretty empty at that time. Lots of seating also.

Don't know if we have a place picked out yet so wanted to note this as a suggestion. On the Magic, we always met in the Promenade Lounge.

 

[SnowWhite2]

Hi Laura,

I just spent my weekend in Downingtown at a lacrosse tournament and stayed in King of Prussia near the mall. What a beast! There had to be every store imaginable there. With the hoards of people to match. It was a nice weekend and a nice area. Really enjoyed it.

Are you near that area?

 

[cmclaura]

Laurie,

You would not believe how close! We are in Phoenixville, which is very near to King of Prussia; only Valley Forge Park separates us. In fact, I was in King of Prussia myself yesterday, at a Girl Scouts awards banquet, as my daughter had received a Good Citizenship award from the Union League.

Phoenixville is a small town but we are MEGA-FAMOUS for being a major site used in the filming of the 1958 film, The Blob, which was Steve McQueen's first film. Every July, the town holds Blobfest to commemorate the film. It's astounding! http://theblobsite.filmbuffonline.com/category/blobfest/ Check out the re-enactment of the "running out of the theatre" scene.

 

[IAFigment]

Only 198 days until we are on the boat!! I can't believe its finally under 200 days.

Still waiting to get flights though. Come on Allegient give me some flight options.

I so can not wait for this vacation!