Feb 24 - March 3 - 7-day Western - TR from 1st Time Cruiser!

[cdndizzylizzy]

Introduction

Having spent the last week in "reflection" mode after returning on Sunday from our first DCL cruise, in fact from our first cruise ever, I am "paying it forward" with this trip report. There is absolutely no question that the quality of our cruise doubled (at least) through the tips, hints and suggestions that I gained through the DIS in the weeks leading up to our cruise on the Magic! So, hopefully I can provide you DIS'ers out there that trip across this trip report with some memories (hi to my fellow Feb 24 DIS meet threaders!), advice (if, like me, you are a lucky traveler reading TRs in advance of your cruise and still have an upcoming cruise to look forward to!).

Cast of Characters:

DH(39) - DH is someone who likes to know what he is getting into on a vacation. This trip was something he could consider because a friend raved about it, so he knew it couldn't be all bad. The DIS helped a lot - I strategically shared TRs with him so that he could mentally prepare for the upcoming vacation. He might not have spent as many days on the DIS as me, but he lurked!

Me(39) - As in most families, I am the vacation planner. DH says - let's go on a vacation, and hundreds of hours later, the trip is booked, passports obtained, clothes/sunscreen/seasick pills/over-the-door shoe holder etc. purchased, laundry done, newspaper cancelled, bags are packed, and we finally get out the door! But it's all good - for me, the planning is half the fun - actually in this case it ended being 1/4 of the fun, based on the amount of fun we had in one week on the Magic!!!!

DD(10)
DD(5)

The Planning Stages

We booked our inaugural cruise in August 2006, having heard rave reviews from a friend and thinking that it was high time that we did something new for a family vacation. With DD(5) now safely into the era of her life where trips will be remembered, it was time to do something really special. For those of you whose kids are all at least 5 and up, do not for a moment think that they are "too old" for Disney. I would say that our youngest was the perfect age for the cruise - old enough to remember everything for years to come, old enough not to need a nap during the day and to make it through long days right through to the fireworks on Wednesday night at the Pirates of the Caribbean party and the "midnight" (11:15 pm) dessert buffet on Thursday night, able to swim in BOTH the Mickey Pool and the Goofy Pool, and yet young enough to BELIEVE she was hugging Cinderella, Belle, Princess Aurora, Mickey and Minnie! I was actually amazed at how much the characters were a draw for all ages - I saw teenaged girls waiting almost as impatiently as the little ones in their princess dresses, waiting for autographs and challenging each other to get the most signature. Anyways, don't misunderstand me - choosing when to cruise based on the age of your children is a personal choice for all families, and there were many families with younger children having a wonderful time, but for us, our timing worked out perfectly!!!!

Based on our friend's recommendation, we spent a few days on Disney's website before booking. Our friend had done a 4-day on the Wonder, and then a 7-day Western on the Magic, and had already warned us that 3 or 4 days would not be enough. So we went straight to the 7-day, and then picked the Western because it had fewer days at sea - this was based on being first time cruisers and a concern re seasickness. As it turned out for us, we LOVED the at sea days, and seasickness was never a problem. I had brought almost every medicine I could find - bonine, dramamine, ginger, as well as non-medicinal option - seabands. I personally took 2 bonines a day in the morning and was fine. DD10 used the seabands a few times and that was it!

So we booked the 7-day Magic in August and then carried on with living until January, when the excitement really started to build!
We were trapped indoors on weekends with the cold and snow of a Canadian winter, and one day I tripped across the DIS! Wow - talk about an eye-opener!

DIS Tips that Made Our Trip Better

Clear Over the Door Shoe Holder and Collapsible Laundry Hamper - we ended up hanging the clips on a coat hanger and then hung the hanger on the hook beside the bathroom door across from the closet in our Inside Stateroom. It was awesome! We stored sunscreen, our Key to the World Cards, our beer tasting tickets, the Oceaneer Club pager, Ipods, etc. etc. Even with it, the desktop was cluttered with everything else - Navigators, the constant letters they kept delivering, etc. What a mess it would have been without it! We also used the laundry hamper extensively - transferring dirty laundry back to empty suitcases every few days. Storing empty suitcases under the bed was also an excellent tip - all in all our stateroom stayed very organized for 4 people over 7 days!!!! Thanks DIS friends!

Digital Clock and Nightlight for our Inside Stateroom

It was really helpful to know the time when you woke up in the middle of the night in the inside stateroom - there is really no way of knowing the difference between 10 am, 2 am and 8 am - the nightlight was perfect for middle of the night trips to the washroom, and I would not have wanted DD5 to be up on the top bunk without a way to get down! We also brought an extension cord, so we could recharge our Ipods and video camera - all great DIS suggestions!

Photo Mattes for Character Signatures

As promised, Guest Services happily took my 2 5x7 photo mattes, and they were returned to our cabin by our cabin steward a few days later with all of the characters signatures. I did not provide Sharpies or anything - they came back with signatures in a variety of colours...

Treats for the Shows

I really debated this one - surely we will eat enough all day long, at dinner and after the show, that I did not need to bring treats for the Walt Disney Theatre. However, I did in the end bring some snacks - some Princess Jellybeans in snack-sized bags, some Werthers Originals, and some chocolates (again in snack-sized containers). Every night, we took a few with us to the shows, and they were a huge hit. Because we had snacks with us, we avoided "buying/charging" much larger bags of snacks to our KTTW cards, and we were able to satisfy the urge to snack during the shows. TIP - be VERY careful if you buy a drink from the servers during a show - I bought a beer one evening (couldn't resist the fun of having a beer while watching the premiere of Bridge to Terabithia) and then DD10 hit it with her elbow and half of it spilled on us.... Ooops!!! Anyways, treats were a good idea, believe it or not!!

Ziploc Bags

These were a great idea - we used Ziplocs over and over all week - for fruit, for treats, to look after small items that we purchased (postcards, etc.) to pack shoes, wet bathing suits and various other "dirty" items in our suitcases at the end of the week. Great suggestion, and they take up no room and weigh next to nothing to bring - so no worries!

Multiple Coloured Highlighters for Navigators

Blue for me, Yellow for DH, Pink for DD5, Green for DD10 - we all have it memorized, and we even have all the marked up Navigators as souvenirs - we all enjoyed marking up the Navigators in the waning moments of each evening, planning what we might do the next day. Does anyone else wish that you could get your hands on a Navigator some time sooner than early evening the night before? Since we were carefully organizing parent alone time in tandem with time slots in the Club/Lab where structured activities were taking place (neither of our girls really liked the unstructured time), it would have been helpful to have a bit more time to plan - I think you should get the Navigator for the NEXT day after tomorrow in the evening - gives you a whole day extra to plan!!! Anyways, highlighters are a great thing, and again no biggie to pack! Post-it notes and tape were also a big help in the room. Didn't bring duct tape, and didn't miss it (OK, I did miss it once - our DD5's sandal was falling apart, and I was thinking to myself how this could have been a perfect time for duct tape!) Scissors are also important - just nail scissors or something like that....

Renuzit Air Freshener for the Bathroom

Our bathroom didn't really stink badly or anything, but we use a Vanilla Renuzit at home, and it was nice that the bathroom in our stateroom had the same familiar scent. We had a Cat 11 Stateroom, and therefore did not have the split bathroom. Even with 4 of us, we did not miss the split bathroom, and frankly I am glad that we had a "larger" (LOL) bathroom since it was not split.

Pirate Gear

I hunted and hunted for pirate gear at a costume store in February, but they were sold out of most things. Now that I am no longer a "newbie" to DCL, I know to watch at Halloween time for more pirate stuff for our next cruise. This time, we just brought eye patches. Note - little kids have a hard time walking in a straight line while wearing an eye patch, and will INSIST on keeping it on throughout the evening's festivities! On our cruise, I did not see too many people who REALLY dressed the part for Pirate Night, but there were many colorful skirts etc. and a few ruffly white shirts on the men.

Door Sign

We made a modest door sign before we left, and as posted by others, at the very least it helps you find your stateroom quickly on those long walks down long corridors when everything looks the same. Anyways, the kids had fun doing it, it packed flat and weighed nothing!

Thoughts about Other Tips

Laundry Detergent and Fabric Softener - I brought it, but then we also brought enough clothes for the week, so next time I will either pack less clothes or leave the detergent behind. Note: I went out and spent $20 the week before we left to get more underwear for everyone, and that way avoided doing any laundry - best $20 spent in the month of Feb! Who cares how many loads I did when I got back, doesn't everyone re-wash everything when they get home anyways?

Binoculars - Did not bring them and did not miss them - well, I suppose we may have liked to have had them, but really, who is going to think to bring their binoculars with them from Deck 6 up to Deck 10, and who is going to leave Deck 10 to go back down to Deck 6 to get them, and even if they did, whatever they wanted to look at would be gone by the time they got back.

Walkie Talkies - Did not bring them, and did not miss them - for us, this is because we did not give DD10 sign-out privileges from the club, and therefore there was always at least one parent with one child, and only so many places the other pair could be - see binoculars comment above as well - the few times I would have liked to know where DH had wandered off to, the WTs would not have been with him even if we had them on the trip.

Bottled Water - We thought the water served on the ship was fine. We brought a few bottles with us on board, and cleaned and refilled them from the beverage station on the odd occasion.

Anyways, that's a pretty long first post - I will write more later!!!!!

 

[Madisonznana]

As someone patiently waiting for our first Disney Cruise, your tips are great!! Looking forward to reading more!
Karen

 

[sejejoemmiev]

Wow! Thats quite a start! I sat down to write my trip report for the same voyage as you-but if the rest of your report is as impressive as your opening, I'll just leave it to you as I won't be able to compare. Awe, who am I kidding, I couldn't get enough of these things in the months leading up to our cruise. Looking forward to comparing your experiences and views of the same cruise to ours!

 

[cdndizzylizzy]

Since we live in southwestern Ontario, the cheapest way to get to Orlando was out of the Buffalo airport flying Southwest. So we booked the flight for the Thursday, as we wanted to leave plenty of room for weather delays. I had also read that it is a good idea to have at least one full day of vacation prior to the cruise, so that you are already in "relaxation" mode when the trip begins. After an uneventful flight into Orlando, we were off to the Comfort Inn Lake Buena Vista in our rental car.

This leg of our journey is a prime example of how I will do things differently next time. We had already booked the rental car and hotel as part of a package with the flights all through Southwest, and in retrospect I think the DIS suggestion to stay at the Hyatt at the airport would have been much better, and ultimately less expensive. We spent the day before the cruise enjoying the Florida sunshine (even though it was a bit cooler than normal for February), and doing some shopping at the Florida Mall. We also had a fun dinner experience at the Cafe Tu Tu Tango on International Drive in Orlando. I didn't just want to go to any old place for dinner, so I did some research in advance - it's a pretty neat place - there are artists painting there while you eat, and the menu is all tapas (i.e. appetizers). We ordered 5 different items and shared them for dinner, and then ordered 2 different dessert items - a fun and different dining experience!

The next morning we were up early, ready to get started on our first day with DCL, and armed with all of the tips and suggestions for arrival at the port, where to eat, where to book things, etc. From the DIS, I had tried my best to figure out how early to get to the port so that I could "for sure" obtain Palo reservations, etc. This leads me to my second example of what I will do differently next time. We were up at 7 am to take the rental car back to the airport, and to get on the ground transfers for DCL. This all went very smoothly, except for the fact that about 1,000 people return rental cars on Saturday morning, and we had to hunt for a luggage trolley first and then trek from the rental return area back to the area where DCL ground transfers are stationed. In any event, we were there and ready to board the 2nd ground transfer bus which left the airport at about 10 am. When I had called DCL before we left, they told me that the first bus did not leave the airport until 10:30, so I was there "hoping" that there would be earlier buses. In fact the first bus was full or we would have been on it - it left at about 9:45 am.

Our TA had told us that the video on the bus, and the general experience of being on the bus with fellow cruisers, is a fun way to kick-start the vacation. And I won't deny that it was a comfortable and entertaining way to get to the port. On the flip side, the movie and the ride on the way home the following Saturday was pretty subdued - people were konked out sleeping everywhere, and everyone was just so sad. It seemed like such a short period of time had passed since we had been on that bus. As we left the airport, there were a few people yelling "Move that Bus!" - it was a fun way to really know that we were on our way!!! I think that the next time we cruise, we will follow DIS advice and take a limo, or even rent a car and drop it at PC. I want the flexibility to get to the port a bit earlier on Sat am - for reasons which will become clear in a few moments....

We arrived at the port at about 10:45 am. I do agree that it is quite a sight to come over the bridge and see the ship - I had suspected that DD5 really did not understand the size of the ship that she was about to be on, and that was the case - she gasped when she saw it. "Wow!" was all she said.

We went through security with no incidents, and were handed Boarding Pass 7 - I was wondering since there were 2 escalators, and they were handing out Boarding passes at both sides, whether the other side was getting Boarding Pass 6, but I just moved along and took what I received....

As others who have come before me have posted, the port experience is good fun, and although busy and hectic, it is a beautiful space and DCL keeps things organized and structured. A note to Canadians - even though the video on the bus says that all "aliens" have to keep their family together for registration, that is only the case for folks from Europe, etc. Canadians use the same lineups as Americans for registration. I was actually sorry about that as it turned out, as there was no lineup for alien registration - it was even shorter than the Castaway Cay lineup! The lineup was quite long already, and they were lengthening the structure of the queue as we arrived. DH took the kids off to register them for Oceaneer Club/Lab, and I got in line with all of my paperwork.

Advice - Do the online registration and have everything ready, including passports - it will make things go very smoothly, and fast! Even though the lineup was long, there must have been many before me who also had registered online, as I was completely through the line by 11:20 am. Another note to Canadians and other non-Americans - they take your passports right there at registration, so be sure to bring other photo ID with you (driver's license) so that it's easy to get on and off the ship during port days. You get your passport back at an unearthly hour the following Saturday morning when you go through customs....

As noted in recent posts elsewhere, DCL is no longer requiring older children to wear wristbands. Instead they hand over their KTTW card when they check in, and receive it back when they check out. Since DD10 did not have check out privileges, she did not get her card back until I provided the password. Something that I did not realize about the clubs until I was on board was the fact that the kids are not always in the same place. I had thought that the "Club" was going to be for my DD5, and that DD10 would always be in the Lab. However, sometimes DD5 got to be in the Lab, and sometimes DD10 got to go to Ocean Quest, or elsewhere. The animation session was in Animator's Palate (makes sense....). The CMs did a good job of bringing the appropriate paperwork every time they were somewhere else, and everyone always knew where each age group was.

Boarding started at 11:50 am, and by 12:30 pm they were calling Boarding Group 7. We were handed our first sanitation wipe of the week, and we were on our way. And on that note, I can't believe that our hands weren't washed down to the bone by the end of the week - good thing it was humid in the Caribbean to offset the impact of frequent hand washing for our skin. I have to commend Disney on their commitment to cleanliness - I am sure that someone somewhere on our cruise unfortunately came down with something, but it was reassuring to use tongs at Topsiders knowing that everyone ahead of you in line had just "cleaned up".

We walked through the Mickey Ears, had our picture taken and were announced onto Deck 3 - what a set of thrilling moments. It's a good idea, by the way, to consider which pictures you think you will buy from Shutters and to have a game plan for that. Some have said to skip the embarkation photo opp - having seen the border that is printed, listing the ports of call, etc., I thought it would be a good keepsake so I made sure that we were at least relatively well dressed, and that we put down all our stuff. I saw lots of good pictures later in the week where someone was holding a soother or a bag and likely wished that item was not in the picture - anyways, planning is a good thing! We did end up buying our embarkation picture - it was one of a select few that we did buy, along with DD5 with Cinderella and our family photo from the semi-formal night (turned out better than formal night!). Ah yes, and then the photo people took a great shot of DD5 on Castaway Cay that I could not resist, so I ended up in line with all of the disorganized people on Friday night anyways, even though I had been so organized!!!!!

As soon as we boarded, we headed to Rockin Bar D for our Palo ressies. Some people were also changing their dining rotation. A note to DIS'ers planning their upcoming Western cruises. If I recall correctly, on some past cruises Pirate night was on Thursday, and I believe that some cruisers plan their dining rotation to be in Parrot Cay for pirate night on Wednesday. We had PLA - Parrot Cay, Lumieres, Animator's Palette, early seating (5:45), which would have historically put us in Lumieres for pirate night. However, on our cruise, we had pirate night on Tuesday night, after we had already sailed away from Grand Cayman. I don't know whether that was because of the fireworks mishap that happened a few weeks before our trip, or whether it was because they were planning to stay in port even longer than usual in Cozumel the next night (we didn't leave til 1 am - don't know why). But, if the new schedule is that pirate night is on Tuesday, be careful not to change your dining rotation until finding out when it is - as it turns out, we were in Parrot Cay for pirate night, which was fun! I personally didn't care which restaurant we were in for each night - even in Parrot Cay and Animator's it is nice to see others dressed up when you are, so it doesn't really matter.

So - we had tried to book Palo ressies online, but they were all taken up already. Next time, we will be Castaway Cay members and will be able to book 90 days before instead of 75. I have to admit that I did not understand at 75-days before (I had not yet joined the DIS) that the most important this was Palo. I was actually registered and online that day, but thought the big rush was for shore excursions!!!!!! So, by the time I wised up, it was too late. So off to Rockin Bar D, only to find out that everything was booked - I did end up 4th on the waiting list for Thursday brunch. The fellow I was talking to suggested that I put down that I would take anything. Unfortunately, they called me at 10 pm that night and offered the next morning at 10 am - the kids had not even been to the clubs yet, so I turned it down..... We did end up getting to Palo on Thursday for a 10:30 brunch, but only after I called the Palo dining room manager - don't wait for them to call you - call again if you don't have what you want. We had promised the kids that we would have dinner together every night as a family - our kids are used to eating in restaurants, and we had wonderful meals together every night. I have no regrets over missing a Palo dinner (I know, I know - shock and amazement). I am glad that we went for brunch - we had a good time....

Our second stop on board was at Guest Services for our beer tasting tickets. The sessions were held on Monday and Thursday - the 2 at-sea days. We went to the Monday session, as we didn't want to go to a beer tasting on the same day as our Palo brunch. We found out during the presentation on Monday that they feature 4 different beers at each of the 2 sessions. If we had known that, we would have booked both sessions. A note to beer fans - if you are signing up for the beer tasting, order yourself a pint before the presentation begins. They serve you your first glass, but you are not "supposed" to drink from it until the presenter discusses the beer. It took him 20 minutes to get to that, and all the while we were staring at the yummy-looking refreshing beer. The talk was excellent. A final note regarding beer - DH and I do enjoy drinking different beers, echoing the presenter's suggestion that North Americans are getting more discerning in their beer tastes. We like drinking different beers from different places. Being Canadian, we also are not familiar with many of the American beers. I was amazed that DCL did not have a beer list. In the restaurant on the first day, I asked our assistant server what kind of beer was on the ship. She asked me what kind I wanted. Can you imagine if that was the response when someone asked for a wine list? Anyways, after much trial and error I did find something to enjoy, but I do think that DCL should build a beer list and should expand their offering!!!!

As a well-educated DIS'er we headed up to Topsiders with our bathing suits safely underneath our boarding gear, had a GREAT first meal on board in the sunshine on the deck, and then headed straight to the pools. Far too many people are reading the DIS, as the Mickey Pool was already PACKED and it was barely 1 pm. So we went to the Goofy pool instead!

Trent and Pikey were at the Goofy pool doing dance prep for the Sail Away party later in the afternoon. We had a wonderful afternoon watching kids doing the Cha Cha Slide and "Hey Baby, Will you be my Girl - ooh, ah"). DD10 was "too cool" to ever get up and participate, but DD5 was right in there. The first of many priceless moments that were to come....

So - we completely missed checking out the clubs, and didn't worrry about even seeing our staterooms until it was after 3:30 and getting close to lifejacket drill time! By 3:45, 2 of 4 suitcases had arrived (nerve-wracking to have some, but not all). The other 2 had arrived by the time the drill was over, so we were able to go to the Sail Away party secure in the knowledge that we had clothes for all!

Note re Deck 4 - we found that DD5 was scared of Deck 4 - maybe it was because there is nothing but water below - she wasn't scared of the drill, and went happily enough for that, but on days when we were at sea and any time at night, she would NOT go onto Deck 4. I never did sit in a comfortable chair on Deck 4, but we did have a REALLY fun game of shuffleboard as a family on Wednesday afternoon while the ship was docked in Cozumel....

Next - Sail Away Party and the Rest of Day 1 - Hope you are enjoying my TR!!!

 

[RoyalVizier]

Hope you are enjoying my TR!!!

Heck yes!

You're doing a fantastic job. Great detail! Can't wait to read more!

 

[Disney owl]

Great tips thanks

 

[cdndizzylizzy]

It's funny how quickly the most organized planners lose sight of all of their notes and plans when on the Magic. I had dutifully noted to check out the clubs during the open house time frame on Saturday afternoon, and I even knew that Saturday evening was another prime opportunity - never happened! I also knew that the hair braiding team would be booking appointments during the sailing away party, but did I remember that then? No! Luckily, we were able to get the appointment time slot that we wanted when we checked in with them first thing the next morning. But they did get booked up....

Unpacking in the room was pretty quick - got the Over-the-Door holder set up and then stole every drawer, nook and cranny for clothes as they came out of the suitcases - we used the nightstands, the cupboard above the cooler unit/TV, and the 4 drawers in the desk, as well as any available shelf space in the closet - in the end, we got everything put somewhere! Note to Cat 11 cruisers out there - we did not have a storage trunk, that must be for Cat 10 with the split bathroom? Not sure....

We tried every day while on the cruise to pull together our room into some semblance of order before dinner - I think it helped our room steward to turn down everything and convert the couch to a bed, lower down the bed for DD5 out of the ceiling that he was not tripping over dirty laundry etc. etc. And it was nice to come back to a turned down room complete with towel animals each night. Our steward was friendly and accommodating, and would open our door for us if we happened to run into him in the hallway. We were "ships passing in the night" (LOL) for the most part though - he quietly kept us organized, and everything was always in order when we needed it. Truthfully, I never missed a larger cabin or a porthole or veranda. Given the ages of our kids, we were able to keep them up a bit later than home bedtime, and with the curtain we were able to stay up an hour or so more than them at night. But otherwise, we all just kept the same hours, kept the room clean and spent most of our time on the ship. If we can stick with our Cat11 stateroom, we can cruise more often!!!!!

Maybe we are the epitome of boring, but I actually found the "Report from the Captain" on Channel 12 to be entertaining to review once a day or so. It's cool to know the number of nautical miles we have travelled, and how many more there are to the next port, and to get a sense of the roughness of the sea and the height of the waves currently being experienced. Although I have to admit that I was a bit worried by the phrase "gale". Sounds ominous, but it was nothing the Magi couldn't handle! Speaking of the Captain, it was neat that DD10 had an opportunity through the clubs during Thursday's at sea day to ask the captain anything she wanted. Wouldn't you know she decided to ask him about the infamous toilets. He must just shudder when it's time for the obligatory hour with the kids - what kind of nutty questions will they come up with this week! She wanted to know why they couldn't just use some of the desalinated water they created to provide flush toilets for everyone. A reasonable question. Not sure if he satisfied her with his answer or not!!!!

Sail Away Party

There isn't much new that I can write about this awesome time. It's just so exciting - you have the whole week ahead of you, the sun is shining, your childrens' eyes are shining even brighter than the sun, the CMs are drumming up ever more excitement - what a memorable 1/2 hour..... We opted in the end not to try and bring bubbles, due to liquid restrictions in flight carryons and not wanting bubbles to explode in our packed luggage. I can see that it would be fun to do some time, but I don't think our two missed it this time. DD5 was too busy trying to get as close to the action as possible, and DD10 was too busy "looking cool" and standing back watching. She taught me a lesson about ten-year-olds later that night when I asked why she didn't get out there and dance - she said, "Mom, I am NOT going to embarrass myself in front of people I am stuck on a boat with for the next 7 days".

We were PLAPLAP

So, we were branded PLAPLAP on our KTTW card, with the 5:45 early seating. We arrived right on time (with everyone else - big lineup) at Parrot Cay for our first of seven awesome dining experiences with the Magic dining crew. We spent the week with Ivan from Croatia as our Main Server. Ivan went home the Saturday that we left - he said he had been working with DCL for 5 years! - and we would never have known that he was cruising towards his 2-month break - he even served us breakfast on Saturday morning and then slipped out for his own check-in with customs!!! Don't you think DCL could let someone not work on the day they are leaving? I guess that they wanted us to have our dedicated serving team for the whole week, and there must be someone out there who would have complained about having an alternate server for their departure day breakfast, but we would NOT have minded at all. So he worked right up to the last minute.... Our Assistant Server was Andrea from Chile. Both Ivan and Andrea were good servers - they worked quickly and efficiently together, and made a conscious effort to make our dining experience fun and friendly. They learned our names quickly, and remembered our drink orders from day to day.

Note of Caution about Drinks - It was our experience that our hard-working assistant server travelled a good many miles in her walking shoes to obtain drinks and bring them back to the table. I am a bit confused how other DIS'ers could describe drinks materializing on their tables within moments of their arrival. She would take drink orders for 3 tables and then disappear for quite a while, returning with a tray full of drinks for everyone. If you want a different drink with your main course, you would be wise to give your assistant server a good chunk of lead time. I think it's just the logistics of where the soda, juice, etc. is located in the kitchen. She certainly was trying hard to please!!! I was also pleased by the extra effort made throughout the week with our children. Ivan treated DD10 like a little grown-up and she had fun ordering and trying new meals from the adult menu. And Ivan organized the delivery of our favorite dessert from earlier in the week on our last meal on Friday, even though that dessert was not on the menu... DD5 was thrilled when her Chocolate Mint Sundae materialized...

A note about the PLA rotation - Lumieres would likely be the best first restaurant if you are prone to sea-sickness, as opposed to PC or AP. While I was safe due to my bonine dosage earlier in the day before embarking, with Parrot Cay being at the aft of the ship, I noticed a few people looking a bit queasy - I also took some extra precautions by sitting in the same direction as the ship was sailing - made a big difference...

All Aboard Show

I have to admit that I was not thrilled with the 5:45 dinner seating, but I knew that DD5 would never make it to 10 pm in the dining room, so it was the better of the 2 options. As it turned out, we loved our dinner time. It forces you to make the transition from day to night - we would get back to the room, get ourselves and the room cleaned up for night-time, and then head down to dinner. Dinner, even with 4 courses - appetizer, soup/salad, main course and dessert - would typically end by 7:15 or so, leaving us with an hour to take in an event, go for a walk or whatever before the show, and then after the show we would head up to Deck 9 for ice cream before hitting the hay for the night. It became a wonderful and comfortable routine very quickly.... sigh.....

I was not a huge fan throughout the week of the variety shows, and in the end it was the full productions - Twice Charmed and Disney Dreams - that were our favorites. Having said that, for any new cruiser any of the shows are definitely worth the hour of your time. This week, the All Aboard show included the Disney performers as well as Gary de Lena and Lynn Trefzger, a ventriloquist. We liked Gary de Lena. We LOVED Lynn Trefzger, and made a point of tracking her down later in the week for her encore performance at Rockin Bar Ds (which was PACKED - standing room only for her act). My daughters are still saying, "Orange... I like orange" and "studmuffin from Canada"- jokes which simply cannot be explained but have to be experienced. Definitely find her show.

I am curious - does anyone know what happens to these people when they are done performing? Do they get to spend the rest of the week in the spa, or are they flown by private or commercial jet back home, or what? They seem to materialize and then disappear, and they must want to get home to their family at some point????

Dessert on Deck 9

After the show, we headed up to Deck 9 for dessert #2, a glass of milk/coffee/tea and then we were off to bed! What a full and amazing day!


Up Next - Chapter 3 - Key West on Sunday!

 

[tamim]

Your report is awesome so far. Keep it up!
I appreciate any "Canadian" prospective you can throw in as we will be cruising with Disney as first timers in September!

 

[michelle9343]

Excellent trip report.. Can not wait to read the rest!!

 

[LITTLEKID58]

Great Tr waiting for the rest

Liz

 

[professorandmom]

"Orange... I like orange" [/B]

Don't worry, there are LOTS of people who get this....on our cruise, this joke was done with a 13 year old boy....same age as my twin sons....this has been a joke in my house ever since

I had to laugh about your comment about ordering a beer before the beer tasting. I was one of only two women in the room and was sitting with several other DISer husbands at my beer tasting. When the talking was finally done we drank. I looked up - everyone had finished the first beer. OK, I knew I could do this for one or two beers but all four - I was in trouble....my kids have not stopped teasing me for being very RELAXED after my beer tasting....great fun

Thanks and keep up the great report!
Barb

 

[curlybop]

Thanks for such an excellent report so far! Reading the part about all the folks returning the cars on Sat. morning just confirmed to me we made a good choice getting a towncar that day.

 

[LovableGluttons]

Your DD10 sounds like my DS10. I practically forced him to dance with me. I knew he was trying to look cool too.

Great trip report!!

 

[Downrivermama]

Hi!

We were on the same cruise with you! My dd8 loves the Oceaneer Lab. She has been signing "Hey, hey baby" since we got home and does the moves! I like the channel with the captain's report and channel 10 that tells you how far you have traveled and which way the wind is blowing across the deck. Sounds like you had a blast. We did too.

 

[praisehisname]

We LOVED Lynn Trefzger, and made a point of tracking her down later in the week for her encore performance at Rockin Bar Ds (which was PACKED - standing room only for her act). My daughters are still saying, "Orange... I like orange"

We saw and LOVED Lynn on both of our DCL cruises! Like you, we also went and saw the adult version in Rockin Bar D, and my hubby got picked to do the baby in a blanket trick. She is hilarious!!!

Denise

 

[cdndizzylizzy]

We woke up Sunday morning, eager to get started on our first full day on the Magic, with the first stop being Topsiders for breakfast. We LOVED Topsiders as a breakfast experience - food available immediately instead of having to wait for it to be served, lots of choice, the omelet station - all experienced in the sunshine out on deck. Topsiders provides different seating options for different strokes - but for us, we always had breakfast outside in the open air and sunshine. As the week progressed, we sought out the shade, but we always ate outside.

Also as the week progressed, we learned not to pile up our plates in the preliminary buffet line - for example, if you are an egg lover, you may prefer an omelet made to your own specifications as opposed to taking scrambled eggs from the buffet. On the second day, I found the berry bowl - be sure to check out the fresh fruit and muesli bar, which is located in between the two omelet stations closer to where everyone sits indoors and the exits to the outside seating. From Day 2 onwards, I only took a bit of bacon and melon, and perhaps a bagel and cream cheese from the first buffet line, and then got a bowl-full of strawberries, blueberries and raspberries to round off breakfast (after sneaking back to top it with the whipping cream near the Mickey waffles!). The berries were fresh and wonderful all week, and it was only on Thurs/Fri that the blueberries and raspberries disappeared (I read somewhere that all of the food is loaded on board before we sail, so I was not surprised that the more delicate berries were gone by the end of the week)....

Another hint - at Topsiders they have traditional trays for adults and larger kids, and then segmented trays for the little set. By the middle of the week, DD10 had figured out that she also wanted a segmented tray - ultimately it means that your tray IS your plate, and there are 6 different sections for different foods. If you have kids that won't eat one food that has inadvertently touched another food, then ask for the kiddie trays. One CM handed ME their cutlery and napkin instead of using up one of the segments and giving them the task of having to handle that expectation - and that was also a very good idea!

DH and DD10 had an omelet each morning, and really enjoyed them. You say what you want, they give you a number, and then a CM will deliver it to your table once it is ready.

The CMs in Topsiders work really hard at constantly cleaning up trays, plates and tables so that the prime seating areas are available as quickly as possible for the next guests - but be careful, one lady lost her breakfast when she went back inside to get her coffee while dining alone - a CM came along and scooped up her tray and full plate of food - I guess they are used to seeing left over food on plates, and didn't realize she hadn't even touched it yet! She had to start all over!

We only missed breakfast at Topsiders twice - once for the character breakfast (was on Thursday for our PLAPLAP early dinner rotation) and on the disembarkation day / Saturday.

After breakfast, we booked DD's hair braiding appointment for 2:30 pm that day. The two ladies who do the hair braiding are really great, and they work really hard. They are there on Deck 9 near the pools by 8:30 every morning, and work well into the early evening - basically a 12-hour day. Imagine braiding hair constantly all day long like that! Hair braiding on board cost $2 per braid. DD10 selected corn rows - which basically means that the braids go halfway back to the top of her head and then are sealed off with beads. The ladies have a book where you can select from various different styles. Her style required 12 braids, and took 1/2 hour to complete. She had to go back the next day and ask the ladies to take the braids out closest to her ears, as she had a painful evening and a lot of trouble sleeping due to the tightness of the braids at the side of her head and lying on the beads trying to sleep. This is apparently a common problem - they happily loosened the braids and removed the beads for her - and she went away happy. If you are considering hair braids for your DD(s), it's important to bring spray-on sunscreen and to apply it very carefully. DD burned her scalp in a few places despite the fact that we were really careful with the spray-on sunscreen. She wanted to have the braids for the cruise week, and it certainly made it easy for her to care for her hair, but all week long we had to spend more time applying sunscreen between her corn rows. Next time, I might consider saving the hair braiding until the middle of the week. As I compose this chapter, it is the Saturday 3 weeks after we embarked, so tomorrow she will have had the braids for 3 weeks. They are looking a bit ragged, so she is taking them out tomorrow night. All in all, she enjoyed the experience.

Mid-morning on Sunday, we decided it was time for the kids to discover the clubs. Both the 5-7 and 10-12 age groups had structured activities going on, so we asked the kids to check out the clubs just for an hour to "get their feet wet" and DH and I went to a digital camera seminar, which was reasonably educational.

DH and I spent almost an hour between 11 and 12 noon on Deck 10 watching the ship sail into Key West. There were MANY guests doing this - it was pretty hard to get a spot at the rail. We went to get the kids so that they could experience it as well. NOTE: It takes a LONG time to get from Deck 10 to the clubs and back - by the time I had visited 2 locations (Club, Lab), washed my hands, extricated kids from programs, and travelled back to Deck 10, the ship wasn't even moving any more and there wasn't much left to look at.

We headed down to Topsiders for lunch. I tried the pasta bar, which is kind of like the omelet station - i.e. "make your own" choosing your favorite ingredients. It was excellent - sun-dried tomatoes - mmmm - my favorite.

We had planned on going into Key West for only a short stroll, as I had already researched the port and had decided that as first-time cruisers, we were more interested in having a full day on board the Magic with fewer guests vying for its amenities! As it turned out, we had so much fun that we never ended up making it off the ship at all!! Later in the afternoon, we watched streams of people walking in the heat back from Duval Street to the ship - and we were confident that for us, we had made the best decision! As soon as Christiaan announced that guests were cleared to disembark, we watched hordes of people disappear, and went to get our bathing suits on.

We spent the entire afternoon by the pools. DD5 got her first chance to swim in the Mickey Pool and literally ran (as I repeatedly reminded her to walk quickly, but not run!) back and forth from the bottom of the slide back up the stairs to take the slide down again and again. With fewer guests around, there were no lineups for the slide, and you could actually see the Mickey ears at the bottom the pool. At 2:30, DD10 got her hair braided, and then came back for more sunbathing at the Goofy Pool.

We all really liked the quality and selection of pizza that was available poolside, and to her credit, DD10 often went for the healthier options of sliced melon or wraps. Of course, the ice cream was a draw as well! After a few mishaps with ice cream dripping right out of the small cups that are provided at the ice cream bar, we started getting coffee cups from the self-serve beverage station and using those for ice cream - we didn't actually take more ice cream, but it made it easier to continue eating the ice cream after it was melting in the heat!

Later in the afternoon, it was time for our fair-haired DDs to get out of the sun for a while, so they agreed to check out the clubs again. DD5 went to "Picture This" and made a picture frame, and DD10 to Imagination Hour. DH and I went for a brisk walk on Deck 4 in what ended up being our last real example of committed exercise for the week. I am glad that we did get that walk in - it was a lot of fun - as long as CMs aren't actively working on maintenance activities it is wide open you can go right around the ship, and at one point you are seeing some of the inner workings of the ship itself (all cordoned off, of course).

Then we retrieved the kids, got cleaned up for the evening and headed off for our first dinner at Lumiere's. I really like the ambiance of Lumiere's, and I can see why adult cruise guests travelling without children or travelling with extended family who have other parents to care for them check out Lumieres for lunch as well. One of the disadvantages (if you are CM working at Lumieres) / advantages (if you are a guest with children) of Lumieres is that you can sneal out in the middle of dinner to obtain a character picture and autograph. In what was to become routine when we were eating at Lumieres, our DDs got Cinderella's, Belle's and Pocahantas' autographs in between dinner courses at Lumieres.

We were seated all week at our own table of 4, but there were 2 other families of 4 to the immediate left and right of us, which created opportunities for some interaction. It was fun to chat each night with the parents at the other two tables as to their families' exploits and memories from the day. It also helped me to understand how easily the same cruise generates a completely different experience for each family. To our left, there were 2 daughters who REFUSED to have dinner with their parents at least twice - they wanted to eat at the clubs, despite their parents actually inviting them to join them. They missed pirate night, for example, opting instead for the clubs. In contrast, at one point during the week we were a few minutes late picking up DD5 from the club, and the 5-7s were being prepared by the CMs to go to dinner - she was so upset that she was going to have to eat with the club instead of us that she burst into tears when she saw me (tears of relief, I think). She was having a great time in the club, she just didn't want to eat there. Just goes to show you - every kid is different. Similarly, on our right, there were 3 kids who were the same approximate age as DD10. While they ate happily from the kids' menu all week long, focusing on chicken tenders, pizza and hamburgers, DD10 turned up her nose at that and focused on being "grown up" by ordering from the adult menu. And she did a good job, for the most part, at eating what she had ordered!

Gary de Lena's Rock n Roll Comedy was the show on Sunday evening, and it was competing with the Academy Awards which was being shown in the Promenade Lounge as well as on the Ariel View television near the Goofy Pool on Deck 9. After taking in Gary's show (can't have been particularly remarkable, as I honestly don't remember much about it) we spent some time up on Deck 9 watching the Academy Awards. I have noticed that some other cruise lines emphasize "movies under the stars" and DCL was also taking full advantage of the Ariel projection screen to provide alternate entertainment at night at various times throughout the week. It was exciting to watch the Academy Awards while at sea somewhere off Florida, particularly when the segment on movie songs was playing. We also took in the full-length movie CARS later in the week up on Deck 9. We snuggled together to keep warm under towels (it gets damp later in the evening when you are sitting still on Deck 9, even if it's not cold), ate ice cream and watched Cars for the ??th time.

I have no idea how some parents manage to take in the late-night activities after their kids go to sleep - they have more stamina than I. After a full day of sunshine, sunbathing, swimming, brisk walk on Deck 4, shows, Academy Awards, meals, running up and down from Deck 10 to Deck 3 to Deck 6, to Deck 4, to Deck 9, to Deck 6 etc. (we tried to take the stairs as much as possible), we were ready to go to bed by 10 pm, along with the DDs. We got back to our room, glanced through the Navigator for Monday, and then it was off to dreamland.



Next Chapter - Monday at Sea - Cinderella, Beer, and a Temper Tantrum of Sorts

 

[Madisonznana]

Thanks Elizabeth! This wa a great installment. Did your younger DD get her braided too? Rumor has it that it is slightly painful and we are taking our DGD age 5 in May. I want to know all I can in case I have to talk her out of it!
Karen

 

[cdndizzylizzy]

Thanks Elizabeth! This wa a great installment. Did your younger DD get her braided too? Rumor has it that it is slightly painful and we are taking our DGD age 5 in May. I want to know all I can in case I have to talk her out of it!
Karen

Hi Karen!

DD5 has really short hair, so it was not an option. I saw many girls of various ages getting their hair braided. I also saw a girl weeping openly while getting the braids done, but at the same time insisting to her mom that she wanted to see it through to the end. You might want to work on convincing your DGD to get a style that does not require braiding near the delicate parts near the ears on the side of her head - apparently that is where it hurts the most. The other thing I would recommend is that she stand and watch it being done for others and then make up her mind. There is lots of room around the braiding area to stand and watch, and lots of girls were watching others get it done - ultimately, it was an excellent form of marketing!

Hope that helps!

 

[mom_of_2_princesses]

Sorry to step on OP Report but my DD got her hair done is September she had just turned 4 and this was the style we selected. It came out cute and no tears.

By the way Great Report.

 

[Madisonznana]

Sorry to step on OP Report but my DD got her hair done is September she had just turned 4 and this was the style we selected. It cam out cute and not tears.

By the way Great Report.

That is cute and DGD has hair slightly longer than you DD, but I would love to have something to keep the hair out of her face for a few days! Maybe she would be okay for just that much. But I will have her watch to see if she would still want it!
Karen