Disney Wonder Jan 23, 2011

[Tigger1313]

So I just booked two nights Friday Jan 21 and Saturady Jan 22 at The Villas at Disney's Grand Californian Hotel® & Spa and there were NO studios for Friday night. I went ahead and got the one bedroom for both nights . It's going to be more points, but I did not want to have to change rooms on Saturday. I'm just soooo glad that we were able to get a room at all. One more thing to check off my list

 

[so_oregon]

I wandered over to look at the 14 day WBTA after looking at the FE thread and seeing everyone talk about bananas, kiwis, pomegrantes, coconuts -- thinking this is a fruit salad group, for sure. WELL....that is one organized group. They have been working on their cruise for over a year (it is in september 2010). They cut off FEs at 15 cabins, and then started a new group; they have groups for Secret Mickey exchange, tea party, pj breakfast, etc.

 

[Kidlette]

Happy to say that my family of 4 will be on board the Wonder! My wife and daughters (13 & 10 at sailing) and I have cruised several times but this will be our first Disney cruise.

Are you guys going to participate in FE's?!?! Either way, would you to share any of the additional information for our groups little website? (http://sites.google.com/site/wonderjan23/home/characters-of-wonder)

We're happy to have you and your family joining us! Trust me, after you do this Disney cruise you're never going to want to sail another cruise line again!

 

[Kidlette]

So I just booked two nights Friday Jan 21 and Saturady Jan 22 at The Villas at Disney's Grand Californian Hotel® & Spa and there were NO studios for Friday night. I went ahead and got the one bedroom for both nights . It's going to be more points, but I did not want to have to change rooms on Saturday. I'm just soooo glad that we were able to get a room at all. One more thing to check off my list

Hi Cathy!

That sounds totally awesome! Have you stayed in the new DVC rooms yet? We have stayed in a studio, but not a 1 bedroom. I would LOVE to see your pics of the 1 bedroom!

 

[Kidlette]

I wandered over to look at the 14 day WBTA after looking at the FE thread and seeing everyone talk about bananas, kiwis, pomegrantes, coconuts -- thinking this is a fruit salad group, for sure. WELL....that is one organized group. They have been working on their cruise for over a year (it is in september 2010). They cut off FEs at 15 cabins, and then started a new group; they have groups for Secret Mickey exchange, tea party, pj breakfast, etc.

Oh my goodness - those sound like SO MUCH FUN! I want to do a Secret Mickey exchange and a PJ breakfast! What does everyone else think?

Great lookin' out Karen! You're awesome!

P.S. no need to be jealous, we are just lucky enough to live here and unlucky enough to have boring lives where there is nothing else for us to do

 

[so_oregon]

I forgot to mention...there's a Kiwi FE, a Coconut FE, etc., etc., they are way way organized. spreadsheets, etc.

 

[Tigger1313]

Hi Cathy!

That sounds totally awesome! Have you stayed in the new DVC rooms yet? We have stayed in a studio, but not a 1 bedroom. I would LOVE to see your pics of the 1 bedroom!

I have stayed in one bedrooms at other hotels in Flordia, but I have never been to CA. I went into the DVC web site and looked at the photos of the one bedroom. They look amazing.

 

[Tigger1313]

Oh my goodness - those sound like SO MUCH FUN! I want to do a Secret Mickey exchange and a PJ breakfast! What does everyone else think?

Great lookin' out Karen! You're awesome!

P.S. no need to be jealous, we are just lucky enough to live here and unlucky enough to have boring lives where there is nothing else for us to do

They are on a 14 day cruise I don't think we would have the time to do everything that they are doing.

 

[Kidlette]

I forgot to mention...there's a Kiwi FE, a Coconut FE, etc., etc., they are way way organized. spreadsheets, etc.

I am the spreadsheet QUEEN! OMG, you should see the spreadsheets I have for figuring dining at WDW!

If we need any kind of spreadsheets let me know - I will volunteer for that!

 

[airtime247]

Hey gang, we're back. We survived three nights in a small, beat-up tent trailer with a hyper kid. We actually had a great time but are happy to be home to our own beds!

It looks like I've got some catching up to do...

Karen - We are just a few miles north of Arcata in McKinleyville but we work in Arcata and Eureka. I just sent you a Friend request in FB.

I'm surprised about the cruise filling up so quickly. I searched again and there are quite a few Cat 9 and above rooms for 2 adults and up to 1 child but any more than that is sold out. Disney cruises are usually so expensive (especially the third and fourth passenger fees) but this deal makes them very competitive for Mexico cruises.

Yanira - Thanks for the FB link info. I just created my account. It's www.facebook.com\airtime247 if anyone wants to find me.

Jessica - Great job getting on those rides! Hopefully your scary space adventure wasn't just Buzz Lightyear's AstroBlasters! You may not be ziplining in PV by January but that is great progress.

I'm a spreadsheet junkie too. I've created them for nearly everything!

Yes, on the 14-night cruises, there are a lot more days at sea so there is a ton of time to do all the extra activities. There also tends to be a lot more DISers willing to participate.

I'd hate to see a cap on FE cabins. I think we had over 50 on our 14-night westbound Panama Canal cruise. Granted, we couldn't afford to give as nice of gifts to everyone because of the number of people but the gifts I came home with filled a Rubbermaid bin.

We did the PJ breakfast and it was a blast. We had 30-40 people. I think if you only had one table, you would probably get looked at like you were freaks but a large group made it very festive. I'd definitely do it again.

We have done lanyards and wristbands. The wristbands were very cheap but also very hard to see. The lanyards were very visible. I have looked into those before but they are nearly impossible to find customized in quantities under 100. If we ever went with lanyards, we can always just get blank lime green lanyards and make custom cards to put in the badge holder area. I'll see if I have any pictures of how the wristbands turned out but here is a picture of the lanyard that our group made:

I think buttons would be a good, cheap option that would be highly visible. If someone doesn't want to put holes in their clothes, they can always pin one to a lanyard, pouch, or whatever they decide that would help it stand out.

Cathy - We've only stayed in a regular room at the Grand Californian. It was using DVC points before they built the new rooms there. We have a studio booked for September but it looks like we are out of luck for January. I guess we are staying with the MIL!

I saw the VGC 1BR model near the Disneyland Hotel before construction. I don't know how close the finished product turned out but the model looked amazing.

mketting - Good luck with your decision. I have nothing to go by for advice other than to say I'd feel a lot more safe letting my teenager run around a ship than the parks. You know your daughter better than anyone. As long as she knows to only stay in public areas already cleared by you and not go to any new friends' cabins or anything.

Boutit - Welcome!

-steve

 

[Tiggs14]

I just booked the January 23rd Mexican Riveria sailing with the KSF promo and am beyond excited. It'll be me Donna (35), hubby Paul (36), son Carson (6) and son Wyatt (5). This will be our FIRST cruise! We booked a Cat 9 oceanview stateroom and have been assigned to 1068...is that a good cabin (I really have no idea)?

So many details to finalize now...flights, hotels, transfers to port and airport...let the fun begin!

We've at Disney (Pop) for 2 weeks of free DDP from August 18-September 1st but that trip is fully planned including ADR's and flights. Now I have another project to fill my time with

Looking forward to getting to know you guys better and meeting some of you on the cruise...

 

[ymchavez]

Tiggs14 and Boutit! This is our first Disney cruise as well and we are just as excited as you are!

Cathy: Congrats on booking your hotel! I would love to stay at The Villas someday.

We are definitely up for the PJ breakfast and Secret Mickey exchange! We love the lanyard/custom card idea, but do they have to be lime green? Not that there's anything wrong with lime green, but did we chose that officially as our "cruise color?"

I am also a spreadsheet-aholic, but since I'll be starting school soon, I won't have any time to help out with that. Hope Jessica or Steve can come through on that.

Sue and I didn't get to meet this weekend , but we did get to see each other! We were in the same section for WOC, but Sergio and I wanted to be waaaay in the front (but not in the "wet" section), and Sue wanted to be farther back (which is totally understandable to get the full view). WOC was definitely amazing! And yes, Jessica, I teared up almost the entire show! I'm so bad! I can't wait to go see it again from where Sue and her family were standing. The VIP experience was definitely worth it. The food was good (not great, but good), and with our AP discount, we got to save some money!

So a sort of "magical" thing happened to us. Sergio and I collect Vinylmation Mickeys and every time we go to DL or DCA, we pick one up. So this time, it was my turn to choose one. We don't like to open them until we get home, but we got home so late on Sunday, that we opened it up yesterday afternoon. And guess which Mickey we got:

Disney Cruise Line Mickey...isn't that crazy!?!?!? It was totally meant to be...and yes, I cried a little...

 

[Kidlette]

Yanira: That is so funny! Ryan and I talk about trying to get the Disney Cruise Line Vinylmation all the time! But...we never actually buy it. (We don't collect them, so if we didn't get it we would have wasted money). It's so awesome that you actually got it!

Yanira, I'm also with you on the lime green. Personally, I do not like lime green at all. I think it was originally mentioned as a general idea and lime green was the color that person's group had used before.

Steve: No, not Buzz Lightyear...but I did ride that a couple of times. I LOVE that one! (It's a billion times better at DL than WDW). Also not Astro Orbiter. Actually, I rode that in January at the D23 1-year anniversary event and I will NEVER ride it again! Astro Orbiter is horrible! The tilt on them makes them nearly impossible for me to even get in. The space adventure was in fact Space Mountain! Seriously, they are lucky I didn't throw up! It was super funny at the end because we looked at the picture and I wasn't in it! LOL - no joke! My head was in Ryan's shoulder below head level, so I wasn't visible in the pic

Donna: WELCOME! I will add your family to our website thing sometime tomorrow! Are you guys going to participate in Fish Extender's?

As far as cabin 1068, it's a matter of opinion. On one hand, the lower down on the ship you are, the less motion you feel - so that's good. I would also say it's good that you have cabins above you (and not a kitchen or something), so it should be peaceful in that sense. On the other hand, you are on the deck with the tender lobby. I don't know if we tender in any of these ports (but I think we do in 1), which means the entire ship will be disembarking from your floor. The general thing you hear when you talk to people is that they prefer to be higher up - but I don't know why (maybe they don't know any better). For me it's all about motion and noise, which means low on the ship and mid-deck. You have both of those, so I think you'll be fine. Other people may have opposing views, and I'm sure they'll share them!

We can't wait to meet and get to know you also!

 

[airtime247]

Good evening everyone!

Yanira & Jessica - I don't really care for lime green either. I just threw it out there as it is the official DISboards meets color. They probably use it because it stands out so much. If you are at the parks or on the ship and wonder why some people are wearing it, they are probably DISers. You will see tons of people in bright green W.I.S.H. shirts at Disney races. They are from the W.I.S.H. boards here.

Really, just having anything easily identifiable that we know to look for when walking around would work. Our group may be so small and if we have a meet early in the cruise, between that and having our pictures posted ahead of time, we may have no problem recognizing each other.

Yanira - Great score on the DCL Vinylmation. I don't collect those either but if I could pick one out, that would be it. We do collect pins but only from places (Disney or not) we've visited. We don't trade them or anything.

Donna - Welcome! Hey, we have great friends we met on a Disney Cruise who live just outside of Hamilton, Ontario. Are you anywhere near there?

I couldn't imagine how much fun I'd have planning two weeks of dining at the parks. Free dining would be that much better! You will have to fill us in on that trip when you get back. We'd love to hear all about it.

Congratulations on your first cruise and a Disney cruise at that! Your boys will have so much fun. Be sure you read all about the Oceaneer Club when you start doing your cruise homework. Make sure you order Disney's free planning DVD too.

I have never stayed on Deck 1 but we have stayed on Deck 2 and liked it. I always check the deck plans to make sure I'm not above or below any noisy areas like the Theatre or next to where they drop the anchors.

I think the only real way the Deck 1 and Deck 2 Oceanview Staterooms differ are that Deck 1 has two small round portholes and Deck 2 has one large one.

I checked out your location and it looks pretty good. There is no through traffic so that will cut down on the noise of people passing by. You are near the mid-ship elevator and stairs so you can get to the front or back in equal time. We usually end up near the front or back and it's always a hike to get to the other end. They don't make any front to rear elevators!

One thing nice about being on the tender deck is on tender days, you won't have to wait in the hot, crowded line of people trying to get down several flights of stairs to get off the ship right when the doors open.

Happy planning and welcome again!

-steve

 

[Tiggs14]

Wow you guys are great...thanks so much for the warm welcome!

Paul and I looked at the cabins we had to choose from last night and we decided to change our cabin to 1060...closer to the elevators and it got great reviews in the stateroom thing on here.

I checked out flight prices and while I'm not thrilled with them they aren't that bad...I just wish we could get a direct flight out of Buffalo but it doesn't seem that any of the airlines have direct flights out of there.

We are about 1.5 hours away from Hamilton. We pass through it on our way to Buffalo which is where we normally fly out of because it's much cheaper.

I have to read up on FE's...I'm not sure what that is?! Yes you guys have inherited a real newbie here! I am feeling a bit overwhelmed with planning a trip with no car to a place we've never been before. I'm glad I found you guys and more importantly that we're on your sailing.

 

[disneydad123]

Hello Everyone!!

We just booked the KSF promo for the Jan 23 MR cruise, and I am so excited I can't sit still!!

I have MANY pages to catch up on but I wanted to say hi and introduce ourselves:
Mark(DH 36)
Emily (ME!! 39)
Madison (14 at sailing)
McKenna (turns 10 on sailing)

We would love to join a FE group and my girls would like to meet friends.
We have sailed DCL before but each time feels like the 1st time and we love it!!

--Emily

 

[denversees4me]

to all of our new ocean family members !!!!! We are so excited you are sailing with our fun little group!

OK So we went to see WOC lastnight LOL It wasnt as crazy busy as I expected but we also didnt use the fast pass system either .... We got there at 830 and walked around to the side where muhullan madness ride is and viewed it there by the area where the fast pass viewing is - Since I cant really see much I cant tell you how good the viewing is but I had several people with me who said it was pretty good . I am going to go back and get seats in the disabled section next time ( in a couple of weeks on a Thurs night hint hint hint if anyone wants to meet us ) So I will let you know what I think from that view point . I would have pushed the issue lastnight because by law Disney has to accomidate me there with or without a fastpass because that is the ONLY real Disabled section they offer BUT I had a party of 10 with me and sometimes my fights can get pretty ugly - so I decided to just go with the flow and sit where everyone wanted to - Who cares I couldnt see it anyways right so more to come on that !!!
We havent kept up with the boards Im so busy lately but Im trying LOL soooo trying .... What color if we dont do lime green ? how about a group name with ocean family in it i like that steve says we are an ocean family anyways thats all for now

 

[Kidlette]

to all of our new ocean family members !!!!! We are so excited you are sailing with our fun little group!

OK So we went to see WOC lastnight LOL It wasnt as crazy busy as I expected but we also didnt use the fast pass system either .... We got there at 830 and walked around to the side where muhullan madness ride is and viewed it there by the area where the fast pass viewing is - Since I cant really see much I cant tell you how good the viewing is but I had several people with me who said it was pretty good . I am going to go back and get seats in the disabled section next time ( in a couple of weeks on a Thurs night hint hint hint if anyone wants to meet us ) So I will let you know what I think from that view point . I would have pushed the issue lastnight because by law Disney has to accomidate me there with or without a fastpass because that is the ONLY real Disabled section they offer BUT I had a party of 10 with me and sometimes my fights can get pretty ugly - so I decided to just go with the flow and sit where everyone wanted to - Who cares I couldnt see it anyways right so more to come on that !!!
We havent kept up with the boards Im so busy lately but Im trying LOL soooo trying .... What color if we dont do lime green ? how about a group name with ocean family in it i like that steve says we are an ocean family anyways thats all for now

Hi Cari,

I'm glad to hear you got a chance to go to DL! Just as a note about WOC, technically we have seen it 3 times because one night we decided to watch the show without a fast pass from exactly the location you are talking about (just to see how it compared). I know your friends said it was good, but I encourage you to talk them into going to the real seating area. Although you can hear the music and see some things from Mulholland Madness area - there is no way to see everything. Plus, the images in the water have a 3D affect to them, and you do not get that effect at all from the area you were in. Anyway - I'm glad to hear you went, but I would strongly encourage you to talk your friends into going to the real seating area!

We would love to go Thursday, but our passes expired on Sunday We are not renewing until September.

 

[Kidlette]

Welcome to all of the new people!

I just want to let everyone know that I woke up feeling awful this morning. My throat hurts so much I have been in tears, I have horrible sinus and post nasal drip...I just don't feel well at all! I almost started crying at my desk today (pathetic, I know). Anyway - I just want to let everyone know that I am going to lay down, pretty much until I get better! If I don't post for a few days, it means I'm still sick. Also, for all the new people - I will get all of your info added to our website and for fish extender's once I'm up and running again..PROMISE!

Well, that's all for now...I'm going to fall asleep now and hopefully not choke from not being able to breathe!

 

[Tiggs14]

Okay I've done some reading and yes we'd like to join the FE Our boys will get a real kick out of checking for mail.