February 14, 2008 Roll Call 2/14/2008 Valentines 3-Night Wonder

[scottie]

Seeing the view is probably a good idea for your first cruise! Luckily we wont miss any big productions by going to Palo the first night (that I can think of). I am keeping fingers crossed the new Toy Story production is up and running when we cruise, which should be the show for the first night. We plan on catching the show, heading to Palo and then finish off the night with a visit to a couple of the clubs.

 

[nkkilala]

Scottie could you (or anyone) tell me a bit more about the clubs??

I went on RCL once and they seemed kind of lame....I assume the Disney ones are better but would love to hear of your experiences with them!

Thank you!

 

[scottie]

Lets see clubs, well DW and myself have not ventured to them a whole lot on our past Disney cruises because always had the kids sailing with us and grandma could only handle them on her own for so long But we have snuck out for bit here and there...

We try to catch the comedy acts in the club because they are more adult orientated and have always been amusing. I think they may take place when scheduled in WaveBands. We have also watched the 80s night act and karaokee in the past and they were a blast. We are not into dancing much so havent gave that a try. Also havent visted Cadillac Lounge to listen to the great piano playing but heard it was worth a stop and will try this time!

Here is some Disney Info on the areas:

WaveBands
Dance to the music at this cool club that features live bands that really swing, a DJ who knows exactly what to spin and an awesome atmosphere amid vintage radios and classic albums.

Diversions
Keep up on all the scores all the time in this sports pub with big-screen plasma TVs tuned into ESPN. Cheer for your favorites in this casual hangout.

Cadillac Lounge
Delight in drinks and light hors d'oeuvres in this intimate lounge with its classic bucket-seat bar and Cadillac fins. Select music at personal listening stations or enjoy live performances at the piano.

 

[scottie]

I just got off the phone with DCL. We had a room booked for a 7 night sailing in Oct 08 and I flipped it today to a May 09 sailing (announced today). Looking forward to trying the 7 night sailing!

 

[scottie]

How exciting, we are all under 60 days till fun in the sun aboard the Wonder!

Now I just need to figure out what else I have left to do, like book the town car and I'm sure a bunch of other stuff!

 

[nkkilala]

I've been thinking about a car service however every time I price them out Disney is cheaper for the two of us.....

Does anyone have any suggested car services (or alternative ways to the port) that would be comparable to Disney for just 2 people?


Thanks!

 

[scottie]

As for transport.... I did a bunch of back and forth when deciding between using the DCL bus to port or a car service. I decided on a car service since we will be coming from Animal Kingdom lodge. Basically if we used the bus from the hotel, we would not be picked up till around 12:30 and not arrive at port till around 1:30, hence missing possibly an hour or so of onboard time. By using a town car service from the hotel to port, we can be picked up whenever we want and be at port an hour later. This will allow us to schedule a pickup around 9:30 and be at the port when it opens to hang out for a little while then board the ship when the doors open. With being a short cruise, we wanted to make sure to have every min. we could onboard.

On the flip side, if you are coming from the airport to the port- from what I have read you could very easily catch the DCL bus and be at the port fairly quickly since the have buses going quite often from the airport. I don’t know specifics of how often etc. though.
We are actually using the bus for the trip from the port to the airport for the way back home.

Now for pricing… I checked every town car service I could find. We are going with one that has good reviews and the lowest price of anyone I could find… Tiffany Towncar. From Animal Kingdom lodge to port, the trip is $105 plus tip. So really not much more then doing the bus and we can ride in a nice car by ourselves and travel when we want. If you are going from airport to port and not Disney to port, I believe the fare is lower like maybe $90 or so plus tip.

If you are trying to save some money, you could also consider renting a car. It can be dropped off near the port and a shuttle taken to the port. I have read that people manage to find good rental deals online and it ends up being less then the dcl bus.

 

[plutolovr]

Hubby and I are taking our first Disney Cruise Feb. 14. Just decided to do so. We're driving down from our So. Carolina home and then attending the Daytona 500 after disembarking.

 

[scottie]

Welcome aboard plutolovr! Your first Disney cruise and then the big race... that should make for some real fun! Do you have any special plans during the cruise?

 

[staceyj2]

We will be crusing on 2/14 also. This is our 2nd Disney cruise. We did the 3 night last May. It will be me, DH, DS (7, almost 8) and DD (5). We are really looking forward to it. I had hoped to book the dolphin excursion on Nassau, but I waited too long and it looks like it is booked up. We don't have anything else booked. This trip will be celebrating DS's birthday. Does anyone know of anything special I can do for him?

 

[Mariabug]

Hello-

DH and 3 yo DD and I will be on the Disney Cruise on Valentine's Day. This will be our first Disney cruise and DD's first Disney trip. We are hoping to have a wonderful time. DH and I are trying to decide which shore excursions to do. Any opinions? I'd love to hear from others going on this trip, especially with kids of similar ages.

Maria

 

[plutolovr]

Welcome aboard plutolovr! Your first Disney cruise and then the big race... that should make for some real fun! Do you have any special plans during the cruise?

Thanks Scottie!

We don't have anything special planned. However, we were thinking about maybe getting the couples massage on Castaway Cay. This is being planned very last minute. I had originally booked a stay at the Polynesian before the race and just decided to look into the cruise. We're actually saving money. I would like to try Palo, but realize it may be too late, but we're happy eating anywhere. Just looking to unwind and recharge

 

[scottie]

We will be crusing on 2/14 also. This is our 2nd Disney cruise. We did the 3 night last May. It will be me, DH, DS (7, almost 8) and DD (5). We are really looking forward to it. I had hoped to book the dolphin excursion on Nassau, but I waited too long and it looks like it is booked up. We don't have anything else booked. This trip will be celebrating DS's birthday. Does anyone know of anything special I can do for him?

Welcome aboard staceyj2, it sure is nice to know the ship is finally filling up with DISers!

I know I have read posts from time to time on the main cruise board about people booking the dolphin excursion on their own, either to save money or because DCL was booked up or both in some cases. I would post something or do a search to see if you can find out what company offers the excursion for DCL and just look up their website to see what they have to offer for a direct booking if you are interested in that one.
If your DS will be eating dinner with you and not with the clubs, you can let DCL or your travel agent know ahead of time and they will have a small cake sent to the table one night for his b-day. I believe you get to tell them what night you prefer.
If he will be hanging out in the kids club a lot you may want to mention something to the staff of the club. Something makes me think they would do at least a little something for him, but not positive.
You could also look into ordering something like decorations for the room or a gift basket from DCL. You could also consider Shirley from the main cruise board to make up something special to have waiting for him in the room.

 

[scottie]

Hello-

DH and 3 yo DD and I will be on the Disney Cruise on Valentine's Day. This will be our first Disney cruise and DD's first Disney trip. We are hoping to have a wonderful time. DH and I are trying to decide which shore excursions to do. Any opinions? I'd love to hear from others going on this trip, especially with kids of similar ages.

Maria

And welcome aboard to the Wonder Valentines day cruise to you too Maria!! That’s a special way to live up a first Disney experience for the little one... cruising Disney style!

Shore excursions, well if the water temp is ok at Castaway Cay I would say give the snorkeling a try for sure. Renting one of the rafts/tubes is always nice too. As for Nassau, we tend to stay on the boat other then to get off to buy some t-shirts or other quick items. But one time we did do a tour of the city and got dropped off at Atlantis for a bit to look around. We didn’t book this thru DCL, we just got off the boat and picked one of the vans waiting near by and worked up a price for all of us. He took us around for a little while and we got out to check out some of the major sites then headed over to Atlantis with him. It wasn’t expensive at all and ok for something to try- but not a must do in my personal opinion. I think DCL offers a tour or something of Nassau too.
Some people also rent rooms at Atlantis or the Comfort Suites so they can use the pool areas at Atlantis while the boat is docked.
We prefer to just mostly hang out on the ship in Nassau and relax and let the kids swim onboard or do some the kids club stuff during the day.

Each time we have sailed we have had a child around the age of 2-5 with us and find just swimming and relaxing onboard to be the most fun for us and the little ones. Swimming and chilling at Castaway Cay cant be beat! We haven’t sailed in Feb before so I am keeping fingers crossed for nice weather and water at Castaway Cay!! If your DD is potty trained, I would defiantly let her give the club a try... Our kids have loved them and allows us adults some time to do adult activities for a while. Or if DD is not potty trained, you can check her into the nursery for a couple of hours a day or night or two. We did this with DS this past May and he liked the nursery and we liked the quiet time at dinner.

 

[scottie]

Thanks Scottie!

We don't have anything special planned. However, we were thinking about maybe getting the couples massage on Castaway Cay. This is being planned very last minute. I had originally booked a stay at the Polynesian before the race and just decided to look into the cruise. We're actually saving money. I would like to try Palo, but realize it may be too late, but we're happy eating anywhere. Just looking to unwind and recharge

We were talking about a couples massage too. I am shying away from one on Castaway Cay due to not being sure how the weather would be there. I am sure it will be great but who knows. I was reading a long report recently on the couples massage onboard with the upgraded facilities and it sounds wonderful too so either on the ship or on the island should be a nice relaxing time!
As for Palos, it does appear most spots are filled online except for one or two times. However, I have read they leave a number of openings for Palos that you can book once you board the ship the first day in the early afternoon. So fear not if you want to give Palos a try this cruise. All the food onboard is good though!

 

[hueydewielouie]

I agree with Scottie...it is great to see the ship finally filling up . This is our first Disney cruise and we are so excited . We have a bigger group going (8 cabins of people ). OUr little family is me, DH and DS (4) also have family, in-laws and friends coming along. Right now our only real plans are to have a great time and do as much as possible. Here's to a wonderful cruise for all Cheers!!

 

[scottie]

It just kind of hit me yesterday when I was looking at the calendar how close we are to actually being on vacation... time flys!
I think I will figure out how much I need to bring in tips for our stay at AKL, the towncar/suv transfer to the ship, and onboard.
I also need to finally decide who we are going to use for the transfer from AKL to Port!
I am going to hit the local dollar store in search for a cheap over the door show hanger to hold misc stuff in while onboard

 

[scottie]

The excitement is growing... just received mail today that included all our info for the Magical Express transport from MCO to Animal Kingdom Lodge!

 

[staceyj2]

The excitement is growing... just received mail today that included all our info for the Magical Express transport from MCO to Animal Kingdom Lodge!

It's getting close isn't it??? I'm getting really excited too. I booked a hotel for the night before and a rental car yesterday. The shore excursions I wanted were booked, so I guess we will be playing it by ear in Nassau. We have a "GTY" room. Anyone have an idea when an actual room # will be assigned?

 

[scottie]

It's getting close isn't it??? I'm getting really excited too. I booked a hotel for the night before and a rental car yesterday. The shore excursions I wanted were booked, so I guess we will be playing it by ear in Nassau. We have a "GTY" room. Anyone have an idea when an actual room # will be assigned?

I just sent an email to my co-workers reminding them I will be gone on a plane in 36 days 20 hours and counting!

From what I have read on the boards, some seem to stumble upon their assigned room number while checking out their reservation on the DCL site as early as several weeks in advance and some have had to wait all the way up till very close to the sail date. Hopefully they will give you a room upgrade too!