February 4th, 2012 MAGIC 7 night Western cruise

[magic458]

Karen ~

There's a formal night and a semi-formal night, probably just like Carnival.

I'm still not sure about emails but will figure it out soon and let everyone know. I'm considering creating a place where everyone can go and print the map but it's still in the planning stages. If I can't figure that out soon, I'll collect emails and send out the map. Thanks for your patience!

Sharon

If you need to I can "host" the file. Just let me know and I can get it on a download link that everyone can get to.

 

[partymama]

Hi, how many Palo meals did you book? Asking because we are going to have to cancel my husbands bday dinner there due to it being on Pirate Deck party night. Dinner is at 8:30p and would hate to rush...how likely you think we can get a different date or time once on the ship? Any chance of trading?

Thank you, just thought id ask.

I only have one reservation and it is on Sunday night at 7, let me take a look about changing, will have to check
I think if you go to your reservations and check all availability for Palo all days, you might have some options

 

[Roxy217]

Roxy: Are you guys doing the all day Maya Ruin tour or the shorter one?

Can someone tell me what I should prepare for the cruise? I have been so busy lately, other than getting my suit altered, I really can't think of what I have to do to get ready.

Our tour starts at 10 am and ends at 2:30. I think that is enough trecking for one day

As far as getting ready, make sure you have extra pants other than your suit. There are NO SHORTS ALLOWED at dinner time - even at the buffet. That goes for women as well. I am not sure how strict DCL is regarding this but I packed 2 extra pants for my boys. Also, I spoke to friends who traveled at this time and they said be sure to bring a light jacket if you want to go on deck at night. It may be a bit chilly and definitely windy.

 

[TifffanyD]

Our tour starts at 10 am and ends at 2:30. I think that is enough trecking for one day

As far as getting ready, make sure you have extra pants other than your suit. There are NO SHORTS ALLOWED at dinner time - even at the buffet. That goes for women as well. I am not sure how strict DCL is regarding this but I packed 2 extra pants for my boys. Also, I spoke to friends who traveled at this time and they said be sure to bring a light jacket if you want to go on deck at night. It may be a bit chilly and definitely windy.

In our experience (6 DCL cruises) the no shorts isn't really enforced and some ppl dress quite casually (especially children). My husband wears dressy shorts at dinners. HOWEVER, at Palo there is absolutely no shorts (they will ask you to change) even if they are super nice ones. They did let a guy in in track pants tho... so go figure that one out

 

[sopandbass]

Anyone planning anything for "at sea" days? I briefly looked over some offerings but not exactly sure how to sign up Is it first come first serve?

If you want to go to any of the tastings - martini, tequila, etc - you need to go to Guest Services and reserve a spot. We'd never been to those but I hear they fill up quickly.

If you want to have Tea with Alice (or Peter Pan or whoever they send to have tea with you and the kids), you need to go to GS and get those tickets as well.

DH went on a Galley tour, which he found really interesting. They have other tours as well. Again, get tickets at GS.

We've been to a couple of the, oh, I forget what they're called...but where they do cooking demonstations of one of the courses you might have in a dining room. Those are fun and I think we just showed up for those.

I just saw the 7-night Western itineraries posted recently here on the disboards. If you scan through them, you will see what tours or events are offered that need reservations and you can go to Guest Services the first day if you really have your heart set on going.

But, here's what I have learned: You cannot get to everything. Some things may not be exactly the way they've been on past itineraries. There are going to be 2 things going on at the same time and you will have to choose. And how lucky are we all because we have to be flexible with those kind of decisions?

Still, planning is good because...at least with us...if we don't do some planning then we end up missing out on things we really want to see or do.

May we all be blessed with a good balance of planning and spontaneity!!!

 

[partymama]

Hi, how many Palo meals did you book? Asking because we are going to have to cancel my husbands bday dinner there due to it being on Pirate Deck party night. Dinner is at 8:30p and would hate to rush...how likely you think we can get a different date or time once on the ship? Any chance of trading?

Thank you, just thought id ask.

Hey BKJlove... I checked today and there is still availability for Palo for Sat, anywhere from 7:30-8:30 and then Sunday, when we go at the same time (7 pm).
I am a little concerned about the Pirate Party as well because we have a ship excursion that day and hoping we have enough time to get dressed up when we get back. I think we are going to keep our time for Palo as there are kids activities that coincide at the same time so it works for us... (sorry)

 

[bkjlove]

Hey BKJlove... I checked today and there is still availability for Palo for Sat, anywhere from 7:30-8:30 and then Sunday, when we go at the same time (7 pm).
I am a little concerned about the Pirate Party as well because we have a ship excursion that day and hoping we have enough time to get dressed up when we get back. I think we are going to keep our time for Palo as there are kids activities that coincide at the same time so it works for us... (sorry)

Thank you for the info, going to check now. Hope to see you there.

 

[bkjlove]

I only have one reservation and it is on Sunday night at 7, let me take a look about changing, will have to check
I think if you go to your reservations and check all availability for Palo all days, you might have some options

I checked and sail date is available. I booked it, but a bit sad, as it's my son's 5th bday that day and he is super shy around other kids until he gets going. Not sure how well he will do in the kids club, plus this whole vacation is completley new for him. Never flown or on a ship. Will have to play by ear and maybe i can check for cancelllations once on the ship.

Thank you for the info.

 

[partymama]

I checked and sail date is available. I booked it, but a bit sad, as it's my son's 5th bday that day and he is super shy around other kids until he gets going. Not sure how well he will do in the kids club, plus this whole vacation is completley new for him. Never flown or on a ship. Will have to play by ear and maybe i can check for cancelllations once on the ship.

Thank you for the info.

Hey, just a tip...
You might want to double check that the kids club is open on the first night (sail date). Last year, my DH and I were on another ship and had made reservations to go to the Mystery Dinner theatre, got onboard to find out that it is only OpenHouse and registration in the kids club on sail date. Sorry to be the bearer of bad news.. .
And... I am not sure what the cancellation policy is for Palo as there is an extra charge but maybe someone else on this board can speak to that
We had pre paid for the theatre which was $50 each and had to go to guest services on the ship (they had a no refund policy) plus follow up with emails and phone calls until we got our money back. It took awhile but they did give us our full refund.
The staff is wonderful so if your son is a little shy, they will be sure to engage him but be sensitive to that and he will probably make friends before he knows it and beg you to drop him off

 

[bkjlove]

Hey, just a tip...
You might want to double check that the kids club is open on the first night (sail date). Last year, my DH and I were on another ship and had made reservations to go to the Mystery Dinner theatre, got onboard to find out that it is only OpenHouse and registration in the kids club on sail date. Sorry to be the bearer of bad news.. .
And... I am not sure what the cancellation policy is for Palo as there is an extra charge but maybe someone else on this board can speak to that
We had pre paid for the theatre which was $50 each and had to go to guest services on the ship (they had a no refund policy) plus follow up with emails and phone calls until we got our money back. It took awhile but they did give us our full refund.
The staff is wonderful so if your son is a little shy, they will be sure to engage him but be sensitive to that and he will probably make friends before he knows it and beg you to drop him off

Thank you for the tip...yea I was really up in the air about this but definately do not want to miss the Pirate Deck party. That was the original Palo dinner night at 8:30pm If we cant do sail date dinner or find another cancellation date for Palo, I will def. have to make it up to my DH.

 

[Roxy217]

In our experience (6 DCL cruises) the no shorts isn't really enforced and some ppl dress quite casually (especially children). My husband wears dressy shorts at dinners. HOWEVER, at Palo there is absolutely no shorts (they will ask you to change) even if they are super nice ones. They did let a guy in in track pants tho... so go figure that one out

I'm so glad you mentioned that! I was so stressing the dinners - I bought really cute dressy shorts for my daughter and was afraid that she wouldn't be able to wear them. This is our first cruise & I am not so familiar with the "rules"

I have a question that has come up in our family. How do you keep your FE goodies safe? I really don't want to believe that folks on a Disney cruise could be so mean as to take something that didn't belong to them . . . but I have heard stories Any suggestions? I was trying to think of a way to tie or attach my gifts for all of you to your FE - not sure how to do it though.

 

[Roxy217]

If you want to go to any of the tastings - martini, tequila, etc - you need to go to Guest Services and reserve a spot. We'd never been to those but I hear they fill up quickly.

If you want to have Tea with Alice (or Peter Pan or whoever they send to have tea with you and the kids), you need to go to GS and get those tickets as well.

DH went on a Galley tour, which he found really interesting. They have other tours as well. Again, get tickets at GS.

We've been to a couple of the, oh, I forget what they're called...but where they do cooking demonstations of one of the courses you might have in a dining room. Those are fun and I think we just showed up for those.

I just saw the 7-night Western itineraries posted recently here on the disboards. If you scan through them, you will see what tours or events are offered that need reservations and you can go to Guest Services the first day if you really have your heart set on going.

But, here's what I have learned: You cannot get to everything. Some things may not be exactly the way they've been on past itineraries. There are going to be 2 things going on at the same time and you will have to choose. And how lucky are we all because we have to be flexible with those kind of decisions?

Still, planning is good because...at least with us...if we don't do some planning then we end up missing out on things we really want to see or do.

May we all be blessed with a good balance of planning and spontaneity!!!

Thanks for the info Sharon Your the best

 

[Mrs.Goofy39.3]

I have a question that has come up in our family. How do you keep your FE goodies safe? I really don't want to believe that folks on a Disney cruise could be so mean as to take something that didn't belong to them . . . but I have heard stories Any suggestions? I was trying to think of a way to tie or attach my gifts for all of you to your FE - not sure how to do it though.

We are not going to worry about the risk of somebody messing with the FE gifts. I believe the odds of it actually happening are low enough that to take extra precautions would not be worth it. I have to have faith in my fellow cruisers. The point of the cruise is to get away from the real world where we have to be on guard all the time.

 

[ClassicPooh2]

We did decide to book the Cozumel Highlights tour from www.cozumelcruiseexcursions.com. At least we'll have an overview of the island for future trips and get to taste the great Mexican Tequilla!

Now, on to the next thing on the list. How come the list doesn't seem to be getting any shorter??

 

[partymama]

I would hate to imagine that there are people who spend all that coin on the cruise yet need to 'borrow' from others
But hey, I guess anything is possible...I just don't want to worry about it either so I have faith in my fellow cruisers

 

[Roxy217]

We are not going to worry about the risk of somebody messing with the FE gifts. I believe the odds of it actually happening are low enough that to take extra precautions would not be worth it. I have to have faith in my fellow cruisers. The point of the cruise is to get away from the real world where we have to be on guard all the time.

Thanks
That makes me feel a whole lot better

 

[JohnsonsFour]

I use plastic zip ties to secure our Fish Extender. They are very discreet.

I have a pair of small manicure scissors that I had pack to cut it down. Turns out our stateroom host cut the ties for us when he saw us pack up the last night. He was helping others take their F/E down, too.

 

[schimj]

To the best of our knowledge, we've never had any theft of FE gifts, and our FE has always remained where it should (we did use zip ties a time or two. They were actually FE gifts from a prior cruise), but on a recent cruise, we did have a small issue with magnets. One night we were walking around the ship and saw a magnet just like one we'd received a few cruises prior (lime green mickey made out of Styrofoam balls) on a cabin door with no other magnets. When we got back to our stateroom, that very same magnet was missing. Since there was only one magnet on the door where we saw it, I would assume it wasn't someone in that cabin that stole the magnet. I just grabbed my magnet the next time we walked by that room.

 

[JohnsonsFour]

We've experienced people moving our magnets around on our door. There was a little girl a few doors down who was enchanted with our door. A few times she would run ahead of her family and stop at our door. We could hear them tell her not to touch. I placed a few magnet down low for her to play with and that was fun for her (and her family appreciated it when I told them it was perfectly fine to touch- they planned to do magnets on their next cruise)

We have been told that on longer cruises kids/teens have pulled pranks with FE and magnets. They redistribute items. We didn't experience this but you never know, I guess.

 

[sopandbass]

Has anyone heard from Mom22Divas? Does anyone know this group? I want to make sure they're included in the FE exchange but we need to finalize the delivery map.