First Cruise - Disney Magic - eastern Caribbean - May 7, 2011

[Canadian Girl 77]

We were on our way to Islands of Adventure by 7am. We took a bunch of photos of Hailey wearing her robes and lined up to visit Ollivander’s wand Shop again. She wasn’t chosen but she was told to stay behind after the official show. At this point Mr. Ollivander helped a wand choose her. I think they saw that we paid $99 to buy her a costume and figured it would be easy to sell us another $30 wand. It was.

We then went on Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey. The line moved way too quickly to really relish the Hogwarts experience. The ride was great although I did experience a significant amount of motion sickness. A first for me on an amusement park ride! I’m pretty sure some of my medication has been making me sensitive to motion. As a result, I skipped the opportunity to ride the Flight of the Hippogriff again. Steve and Hailey went on it a couple of times though.

We planned on eating breakfast at Cinnabon. However, the shop didn’t open until 9am. So, we ate at the Croissant Moon bakery instead. And shared a bit of our food with the ducklings that were wandering around. After that Hailey went on One Fish Two Fish Red Fish Blue Fish again. We all went on The High in the Sky Seuss Trolley Ride. And then we went Poseidon’s Fury. We then wandered through The Jurassic Park Discovery Centre. And were quite disappointed. Hailey was desperate to go on Pteranodon Flyers again. But I was feeling quite ill. So, I went back to the hotel while Steve and Hailey went on the world’s shortest ride again. While I was headed back to the hotel it started to rain.

I was feeling a bit better by the time they returned to the hotel. Steve was tired so I took Hailey to the pool for a bit. After our swim, the three of us decided to go to Universal Studios. Hailey went on the Woody Woodpecker ride several times. She made quite a few new friends. One of which was also staying at our hotel. We arranged an evening play date at the pool. Steve and Hailey went on The Simpsons Ride again while I rested. Darn, motion sickness. We went on Disaster!: A Major Motion Picture Ride… Starring you! I accidentally volunteered Hailey for the production and Steve was also chosen – he never officially volunteered but he was wearing a green shirt which worked well with the green screen! We also went on Jaws and Revenge of the Mummy: The Ride. I hadn’t realized it was a real rollercoaster but it made my stomach feel 100% better! The park closed early because of Grad night. We tried to go shopping at Citywalk but it turned out that the Universal Studios Store was only open for high school students! That saved us a small fortune, I’m sure!

We had dinner at The Kitchen again. And then headed to the pool to meet Hailey’s new friend. They quickly found each other and had a blast. After the sunset, the pool was going to air Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows part One. However, we had a relatively early start the next morning (heading to Cape Canaveral) so we called it a relatively early night at 10pm!

 

[Canadian Girl 77]

Hard Rock Pool

Scooby Doo in The Kitchen at the Hard Rock Hotel

The Simpsons signage

Woody Woodpecker

Child Swap areas - seats right by the exit - air conditioned room!

Universal's answer to the teacups... on crack

Disaster!

Hogwarts!

Ducklings

One Fish Two Fish etc

JAWS

 

[Canadian Girl 77]

We had breakfast at The Kitchen. A car from Tiffany picked us up at 9 am and drove us to Cape Canaveral. We checked in at the terminal an hour or so later. We were placed in boarding group 9. While we waited, the terminal quickly filled up. We did talk to Disney about upgrades but decided we could spend $1,000 on a lot better things. Turned out that was a very good call since being mid-ship and low in the water was beneficial to my vicious seasickness. While we waited we checked out the model of the ship and Hailey had her photo taken with Captain Mickey. She also made friends with another little girl. They ended up playing together in the club several times during the week.

We lined up for ever to get our pictures taken and board the ship. I wasn’t too impressed when our names were called. There were only two staff members there clapping. It honestly seemed pointless. However, I did see lots of staff there much, much later in the day.

We ate lunch at Topsiders. It was pretty good. We walked around a little bit and literally bumped into Sailor Goofy and Donald. Then we headed to our room and unpacked! I was impressed with how huge the room was. Way bigger than I expected. Hailey and Steve looked out the window while I unpacked. They even saw dolphins!

We decided to go on the Walking Ship Tour at 2 pm. But, we never did find the tour group. Apparently it was really late. However, we were in a perfect spot to watch the launch of a rocket. That was kind of cool. And then we went to the DISmeet at the Promenade at 3. Hailey made fast friends with a bunch of the kids. I was great to finally put faces to the names!

We went from the meet and greet to the Lifeboat Drill. We were in group B which meets in the Walt Disney theatre. After that we went back to our room so that Hailey could get in her swimsuit. We participated in a bit of the Bon Voyage celebrations before Hailey begged us to take her to the Mickey pool. We took her. She had a blast and loved the Mickey slide. I was disappointed at how seldom the slide was open during our trip.

After our swim, we returned to our room and changed. We watched the first show, All Aboard: Let the magic begin. It was quite cute. We dropped Hailey off at the Kids Club before Steve and I headed up to Palo for dinner. Dinner was excellent. However, at this time the ship had started moving and I was feeling a little sea sick. So, we picked Hailey up and headed to bed.

 

[Canadian Girl 77]

We had breakfast at Topsiders. It wasn’t that impressive. Lots of options but it was on par with every buffet I’ve had at Disney World. That’s not a bad thing it just wasn’t quite what I expected. Of course, I was feeling a bit off since the ship was moving. Even though it was smooth sailing. Just not for me.

Hailey couldn’t wait to go to the Oceaneer Club so we dropped her off shortly after breakfast. Steve decided to go the Mickey and Goofy animation sessions from 10-11 am. He went there and I wandered around a bit. Found the spa and bought a 5-day rainforest pass. I then decided to go and play Bingo at 11 am. That was fun. Although it was weird letting an electronic gadget do all the work. I was glad to have the paper sheets to punch.

Hailey didn’t want to have lunch with us. She wanted to stay at the club so Steve and I had lunch at Topsiders. I don’t remember much about it. There was food!

I honestly can’t remember much about the early afternoon. For some reason we were doing our own things and I decided to go to the Martini tasting. I sent Steve a wave message and he met me there. Mmonk and her husband were there too. I must preface this by explaining that I don’t drink much. Probably 3 or 4 drinks a year. Captain Responsibility – that is me. However, I was on vacation so… Yeah. The martini tasting was quite fun! We tried 4 martinis and then they let two people make their own. A man and a woman. Mmonk’s husband was the chosen male martini-maker. His was pretty good. Mind you I was probably three sheets to the wind at that point. Joanna (the chosen woman) happens to be a bartender so hers was expert. Luckily, they shared their creations with us all. So, I was probably totally drunk at that point because the “teachers” offered to let me create a martini. Yes. And so, I created the Trudi-ini. Or as was suggested by the others – the passed-out-ini. There was cherry juice and some other liquor in it and I topped it with champagne. They really didn’t supervise me very well. Even after sharing it with everyone I had three.

Yes. I am an idiot. But that’s only part of it.

I decided to sign us up for the 4 pm tequila and margarita tasting too. I think Steve was too surprised to see me drinking to point out what a bad idea this was. And yes, it was a bad idea.

I fell asleep in our room after the tasting. Supposedly Steve and I talked and decided to skip dinner and formal night and go to the late showing of Cinderella. I slept through that. But Steve took Hailey and they loved it. We also got room service.

On the plus side, I slept well and the rocking of the boat didn’t bother me. I just slept and slept.

Happy Mother’s Day to me.

All the Martinis

Me and those full martinis

Witnesses

Mmonk's husband's creation

Taking a drink

Is that alcohol I taste?

Let's mix some drinks!

Passed-out-ini

Why, yes, that is alcohol!

Tequila

My enabler at the martini tasting. He led the tequila tasting.

 

[Canadian Girl 77]

I wasn’t that great the next morning. No headache but I wasn’t quite right – if you know what I mean. We just weren’t sure if it was a case of seasickness or a hangover. Steve was leaning towards calling it a hangover since I grew up in Bermuda on little boats with no seasickness – ever!

We had breakfast at Lumiere’s. That was great! We really enjoyed breakfast there. Yummy hash browns. “As good as McDonald’s” according to Steve and that actually is a huge compliment from him. I was going to go to the Scrapbooking session but we ate instead. I figure that since I teach classes there probably wasn't much I’d learn.

As you can imagine, Hailey insisted on spending most of the day at the club. Steve went to the Art of Entertaining to learn how to make phyllo-wrapped salmon fillet. He said it was interesting but he learnt nothing. It wasn’t hands on and most of it was pre-done. I tried the rainforest room. It was nice but I really wasn’t feeling well. I swear I slept most of the day. Actually, Steve and I did attend one of the shopping sessions.

However, I made it to Villains tonight! We enjoyed it. Although I am in no rush to see it again. I loved the audience participation! And oh! Did I feel the boat move! After the show and before dinner, I went to see the shopping guy to get all the coupons. Woot!

We went to our dinner rotation for the first time! It was the show dinner at Animator’s Palate. It was quite nice but it was really, really, really loud. And I felt like the service was lacking. Took forever to get our drinks, etc… But we liked our tablemates. We were with three-generations. 6-year-old, her mother and grandmother. They were nice and the kids adored each other. Not so much this night though. Hailey had a bad headache. I actually think it may have been a migraine. So, we all went to bed.

Steve also went on an Art of the Ship tour. He thought it was interesting but there was a lot of talk about the carpets. He told me the guide was obsessed with the carpet.

By the end of the evening I knew it was seasickness. I was suffering. As it turns out, one of the medications I am taking for Crohn's causes this side effect in some lucky people. Not many. But my specialist believes that I am one of the "lucky" few. A heightened sensitivity to motion. Which would explain some issues I had with rides all of a sudden and a lower tolerance for airplanes in the last few months. At least it is only a short-term medication. Blah!

 

[KristiMc]

My enabler at the martini tasting. He led the tequila tasting.

Great report! We were on the March 26th Eastern. We loved Nur - he was great for the tastings and we visited him a few times at Sessions.

 

[Canadian Girl 77]

Tuesday was St. Maarten/St. Martin day! Woo Hoo! After all this meant the boat was docked!

We signed up for the French Riviera Beach Rendezvous. We met at the Rockin Bar D and were taken via greycoach style bus to Orient Beach. As soon as we got off the bus we were given a fruit punch. They would throw rum in it if you were an adult. Steve and I passed on the rum. I never actually drank mine because I got sand in it. Ah well! Included in our package were lounge chairs. We had to pay an extra $3 for the umbrella. We did. Why not? But – I don’t understand the nickel and diming at that point. The whole time we sat on the chairs people came up to us trying to sell us crap or get our hair braided. We paid $3 to get one braid in Hailey’s hair. The woman tried to keep braiding but we stopped her since Hailey didn’t like it. The beach was great. Lot and lots of waves. Great fun!

Lunch was also included. You had to eat it at a little restaurant. We had a choice of chicken, ribs or fish. Steve skipped the food but Hailey and I went. Lunch also came with fries and a soda. We really went for the soda. It was hot!

Storm clouds started rolling in so we decided to take a taxi to St. Martin to check out the shops. We let the tour leader know we were leaving and took off. It took a while to find a taxi but – whatever.

We wandered the shops and spent $12 on ice-cream at Haagen Daz. The Star Wars/Yoda guy shop is a total tourist trap. We had fun though, going around and collecting our free loot.

We then headed back to the ship (via taxi). We got some hot dogs and hung out for a bit. I even went an used the Rainforest room again. It was so much better this time! I was all alone and the boat wasn’t moving. So heavenly. Although the steam room with the scent was crazy hot!

It was Pirates in the Caribbean night so we wandered around and took pictures with Pirate Mickey and Minnie. Even met the captain. Took some nice night photos too.

Dinner was okay. I did prefer the menu the night before – steak that melted in the mouth! Hailey and her friend kept busy playing with all the glow bracelets I had brought. They planned to give them out to kids during the show. We ended up sticking with our tablemates for the rest of the evening. LOVED THE FIREWORKS! That was pretty awesome! The kids also enjoyed the dance party. We didn’t line up for the buffet. We were tired. So, we slept.

 

[Canadian Girl 77]

Thanks KristiMc!

 

[Canadian Girl 77]

I couldn’t wait to get off the ship! I felt every. Single. Wave.

We had breakfast in Lumiere’s. I didn’t book any excursions because I heard it made more sense to just do things yourself in St. Thomas. We decided to head for the shopping area and then decide what to do. We took one of the weird, open air type taxis into town.

We started wandering around the shops to collect our freebies. And Steve really wanted to buy me a nice ring. I’ve been wearing my grandmother’s engagement for the last few years. After my pregnancy with Hailey I developed an allergy to platinum. Which my wedding bands and engagement ring happen to be. I didn’t think it was necessary to buy a new set when I already had the set I had inherited. Anyway, he decided this was a good opportunity for him to buy me jewellery.

However, there was a crazy power outage in St. Thomas on May 11. Thus, the stores had no lights or air conditioning. So, we pretty much just ended up wandering around. In the end I got the Omega R necklace (although they were sold out so it is being sent to us – shopping guy from the ship assured me this was cool) and a gorgeous coloured sapphire ring which my friends says suits my personality to a “T”. I’m going to assume that is a positive thing. Hailey also scored some goodies.

Because it was so hot and the power was iffy, we didn’t go to Coral World. Instead, we went back to the ship so I could enjoy some of the amenities while the ship was docked. Hailey and I went swimming in the pool. The kiddie pool was shut down – guess somebody had an “accident” and it took forever to clean it up!

I must say that when the ship was docked it was awesome!

We did pin trading with the officers. A highlight for both Steve and Hailey. Hailey also convinced us to let her get some vinamations since they can be traded!

We had dinner at Parrot Cay. For the second day in a row. Whatever. It was food. Not that it really mattered to me. I ordered the appetizer and then had to leave as they brought it to me. The seasickness got me big time that night.

I actually tried to get in to see the doctor but it seems they are only open for 2 hours in the morning and 2 hours in the evening. Unless it is an emergency. I figured it wasn’t a life or death situation. Although I did think of the movie 2012 and decided that if that was me I wouldn’t get on the ship - drowning seemed like the better option at that point.

 

[Canadian Girl 77]

I have never wished a day to end so much in my life. At least I knew I was going to have Hailey after finishing labour.

It was a rough day at sea.

We had our character breakfast at Parrot Cay today. Hailey wasn’t too impressed with the hats. Actually, she couldn’t be bothered to wait for all the characters. She had a bit of a headache so we went back to the room. After a little while I convinced her to go to the club. Why? Because we had brunch reservations at Palo.

That was darn good food! Wow! A must do. Even if the waves are rocking and driving you batty. And hubby wasn’t impressed with my constant state of seasickness. Not that I can blame him. I was sick of it too.

Hailey wanted to stay at the club so we went and checked out the sushi buffet. Well, I had a Coke while Steve ate. He said it was good. I slept away the afternoon because I was suffering. Steve watched Tron. However, we did go to the Friendship Rocks production. Of course, we did. And it was great! And Hailey loved being a part of the show. Although some of the other parents seemed to forget that everyone was there to see their kid and it’s not cool to block other people from seeing the stage so you can get the “perfect picture” of junior.

We picked her up at the club much later. We got to see Dreams that night. I was impressed by the special effects but the story isn’t all that impressive. But the effects are amazing. I would watch this again.

We had dinner at Lumiere’s. Although I didn’t love the Captain’s Gala menu this restaurant was much quieter. I did make it through the main course but the waves killed me before dessert. I staggered back to the room while Steve and Hailey finished dinner.

I swear she usually likes Minnie.

Hailey is so proud of this shirt.

 

[shoppgirl]

Hey Canadian Girl, I am really enjoying your TR, from one Canadian to another! We are going on our first Disney cruise in a couple of months too! We took our girls (8 and 6 at the time) on their very first cruise on RCCL last summer and they absolutely loved it. So we are going to give Disney a try this time. Your pre cruise trip to Universal sounded great too! We plan to do Sea World instead since my girls are not ride freaks (much to my dismay because I Love them!). I am sorry you weren't feeling well with all that motion sickness, I hope that it improved as your cruise went on! I look forward to reading the rest and seeing more great photos!

 

[Canadian Girl 77]

I was so happy when I woke up on Friday morning. The boat was going really, really slowly so I knew we were docking. Which meant a. I wouldn’t be seasick all day and b. we were going to get to do Castaway Cay!

We had breakfast at Topsiders. Nothing too memorable. Let’s face it. It’s a breakfast buffet. And then we grabbed our stuff and went on the island. Our tablemates called us on the wave phone and told us they had saved a spot next to them on the first family beach. We walked there. Decided against taking the tram. We also skipped the line up to see Jack Sparrow. We met him several years ago at the Pirates and Princess Party so we didn’t think it necessary to repeat it. Hailey just wanted to swim.

We found our tablemates relatively easily. The girls played in the sand while I picked up our floaters. I had preordered three. I really could have gotten away with just one. There were no waves and Hailey had a blast. We were right by the Stingray area and we had a session there at noon. It was a great experience. I really liked the life jackets. The sea was so calm that Hailey had no problem dealing with the snorkel. We’ve found that she can handle the equipment in the bathtub and swimming pool just fine. But in the actual ocean she has problems. Not this time. We preordered our Stingray tickets the week before. Our tablemates hadn’t been able to book a session when they tried on the ship. It was a fabulous experience.

We got hotdogs and chips for lunch. The chips are actually small bags of Lays potato chips. Very easy to carry back to the beach. Later in the afternoon I checked out the shops. I was stunned at how pricey all the Bahamian good were. I shouldn’t have been though. It’s just I’ve been to Nassau. I know how cheap the items at the straw market usually are. It was similar merchandise for way, way more. There also wasn’t that much in the Seashell shops. Of course, I still spent some money.

Servers came around the beach asking if you wanted to order drinks. That was nice. They weren’t pushy at all. I also ended up getting a virgin daiquiri in a really neat plastic coconut shaped cup. It is one of Hailey’s favourite souvenirs. We basically spent the day relaxing in the sun, playing in the sand and swimming in the sea.

We reboarded at about 4. I figured I should pack our bags before the ship set sail. By this time I had accepted my seasickness and decided to work with it. And of course, I knew we were going to be back at Port in the morning! It’s sad how happy I was to have the trip end.

Hailey spent some time at the Lab. She actually skipped the final show because she did not want to leave. Steve and I went to see it and were quite impressed with how they weaved all the shows together for the Til We Meet Again show. Very cute. We picked Hailey up so that we could have dinner together. We had dinner at Animator’s Palate. It really wasn’t that impressive. Of course, the ship was sailing so that may have affected my appetite. We wandered around the ship one last time and put our bags out. Then we went to bed. I was pleased to know that we would dock sometime in the middle of the night.

 

[mandymouse]

Hey Canadian Girl, loving your trip report and photos Would you cruise again ? I really felt for everyone on that sea day back to Castaway Cay, thankfully I don't suffer with sea-sickness, but that ship sure rocked. I look forward to your next installment

I have made a start on my trip report over on the UK Trip Report forums, if you'd like to take a look http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=2724315

Mandy

 

[Canadian Girl 77]

We had breakfast at Animator’s Palate. The menu wasn’t as vast as normal. They even ran out of granola. Our waiter offered to go to a different restaurant to get some but I didn’t think that was necessary.

We found our luggage quite easily. It’s very distinctive. We did get someone to help us with our luggage. Well worth the tip. We got through the non-US resident line quickly. I had prepaid for a car rental with Budget. We took a cab instead of the free shuttle. Thank goodness! We had a huge enough line up as it was. But that was mainly because they had run out of cars. Well, for anyone that hadn’t prepaid! By the time the shuttle buses started arriving the line up was out the door!

The drive from Port Canaveral was very relaxing. I loved being back in control of my mode of transportation. Perhaps I should have asked the captain to let me steer the ship? We ended up going to the Florida Mall. Wow! I still had sea legs so I didn’t shop as much as I could have. The M&M World store was a big hit! There was also a Star Tours promotion in the mall. Steve decided against waiting 15-20 minutes to get our pictures with Jedi Mickey or C3PO and R2D2. In retrospect, I should have insisted. It was too hot to buy chocolate or I could have done some serious damage in Dylan’s Candy Bar!

We were going to go to the Outlet mall but there wasn’t any parking. And it wasn’t the outlet mall I had been thinking about from my trip in 1994. So, we went to Downtown Disney.

As we parked, the heavens opened and it poured! But it was a lovely, warm rain. We had fun in the Lego store. Hailey recently discovered the joy of Lego. We traded pins in Pin Traders, traded Vinylmations in the stores and shopped a bit. We also made our own treats in Goofy’s Candy Shop. We finished out the day with dinner at Ragan Road! We love the bread and Guinness dip.

It was about 7 pm when we got to our hotel – the Hyatt at the airport. I’d gotten a great deal online – one of those Pay us and then we’ll tell you where you are staying. But you can easily figure it out before you pay. The hotel was great! It was so nice to not have to go anywhere. We dropped the luggage and Steve off at the valet. And then Hailey and I returned the car in the terminal. The room was great! We also wandered around the airport mall for a bit and I got our tickets with Southwest figured out for the morning. Group A! Although I had paid the extra $30 for us all to be guaranteed in group A.

 

[Canadian Girl 77]

Our flight left MCO at 8:45. We went downstairs at about 7 am. As suggested by the SouthWest rep the night before. We checked our luggage and then lined up for security. That seemed to take FOREVER!

Got some breakfast in the terminal and then got on the airplane. I slept most of the way. We landed in Buffalo at 11 or so. I left Steve and Hailey at the airport with our luggage and took the shuttle to the airport. Because it was just me I was able to go in an earlier shuttle that had one seat left and no extra room for luggage. I got the car and drove back to the airport. Loaded the car - thank goodness for the awning because it was raining. We went to Target and then we drove over the border. Didn't have to pay taxes. And then went back home to Oakville where I got to start doing laundry and unpacking.

Sadly I was just really really happy to not be on a boat.

Next post... Lessons learned or I didn't drink the Disney Kool Aid.

 

[Canadian Girl 77]

I may add some later but so far...

1. Don’t take it for granted that you won’t get seasick. So what, if you grew up on an island and frequently went out on the open sea in small boats? Even if you were on a small boat in rough seas in August and were fine – that doesn’t mean that your new cocktail of medications won’t cause you to experience motion sickness. I should have got a prescription before I left. I had sea bands and gravol but they didn’t work.

2. The service on the cruise ship isn’t that impressive. Our waiter and assistant waiter only had four tables during our seating. It took forever to get our drinks – and we’re talking milk and soda here! Plus, I ALWAYS ordered Coke and it seemed to blow the assistant’s mind every single time. I just never actually felt like they got to know us or vice versa. Our room steward was nice but couldn’t always take a hint. Went back to the room because of a bathroom emergency and it took a good 10 minutes to get him out of the room. He wanted to chat. Similar situation a few days later when I raced back to the room to vomit. In that case I was just rude. Although I guess it would have been ruder to not make it to the bathroom in time?

3. Give the recommended tip at a minimum. They work 14 hours a day for a lot less than minimum wage. And they’re living away from their families for that entire time. Our waiting team members were not divorced – just found this was the best way to provide for their wives and children and parents.

4. Go to the shopping seminars and get all the coupons for free stuff. If you want to shop at all.

5. Book your excursions ahead of time. Especially the Stingray adventure on Castaway Cay.

6. I have been spoilt by the beaches of Bermuda. I wasn’t impressed with any of the beaches including Castaway Cay. I hate having people come up to me trying to guilt me into buying their cheap trinkets.

7. I don’t think I will cruise again. Maybe in a few years but it won’t be a Caribbean cruise. I need to be busy and there wasn’t enough on the boat to interest me. Really. There was a lot of stuff but it didn’t appeal to me. I’m not a beach girl. Even in Bermuda we spend some time on the beach but we also visit various historical attractions, etc… Disney World and Universal are great because there is SO much you can do. Plus, neither of us want to risk another vacation ruined thanks to seasickness. And really, once you’ve been on the Bermudian beaches where nobody tries to sell you crap and the sand is heavenly, you really don’t want to go anywhere else.

8. The Kids programming is fabulous! Hailey loved it and I was happy knowing that she was in a fun, safe, secure place.

9. I LOVE Universal. It’s so much more compact than Disney and it is just as well themed. And the people that work there are just as nice. And the hotels are nicer. Their fast pass type system kicks ***!