First Cruise help please...

DisneyDaddy-O

Dis Dads Club Member #286
Joined
Mar 24, 2009
Thought I would start a new thread here as to get some info from fellow Dads and not get lost in the main thread.

We are thinking around Christmas maybe even on Christmas day. Are there any events on Christmas day or Christmas eve that happen that don't during the cruises leading up to Christmas. We are thinking a cabin with a verandah...any recommendations? This is a first cruise for all of us and we are not sure about motion sickness. Any recommendations about cabin choice?

Any helpful hints would be appreciated.
 
Thought I would start a new thread here as to get some info from fellow Dads and not get lost in the main thread. We are thinking around Christmas maybe even on Christmas day. Are there any events on Christmas day or Christmas eve that happen that don't during the cruises leading up to Christmas. We are thinking a cabin with a verandah...any recommendations? This is a first cruise for all of us and we are not sure about motion sickness. Any recommendations about cabin choice? Any helpful hints would be appreciated.

Been on 8 DCL and going on #9 this July and we have sailed all 4 ships. Let me know what sailing you are looking at and I will provide you with my thinking. Feel free to pm me if that is easier for you.
 
Thought I would start a new thread here as to get some info from fellow Dads and not get lost in the main thread.

We are thinking around Christmas maybe even on Christmas day. Are there any events on Christmas day or Christmas eve that happen that don't during the cruises leading up to Christmas. We are thinking a cabin with a verandah...any recommendations? This is a first cruise for all of us and we are not sure about motion sickness. Any recommendations about cabin choice?

Any helpful hints would be appreciated.


We've also done a number of expeditions with DCL and RCCL. We're headed out again in May and will have also been on all four ships at that point.

Christmas pretty much starts the day after Thanksgiving on the ships. There may be one of two slightly different offerings on Christmas day, but probably not something overly exclusive. Veranda cabins are most certainly nice if you can swing it. As for where on the ship... that kind'a depends on which ship but being first timers I'd shoot for being some where around the middle. Decks 6 and 7 are generally good on all the boats but basically if your not right over a theater or right under the pool deck, it stays relativity quite. Motion is not usually all that bad on any of them either, but again staying toward the center of everything helps with that aspect.

ask all the questions you want we'll get them answered.

Also - if your interested - I wrote up a rather extensive TR on one of our journeys and specifically added a lot of detail on what to expect when cursing DCL ships, the things we learned, the stuff that didn't work and some of the hidden bits of knowledge. It's the one down in my signature titled "Experiment 627" you can comment and ask questions in there as well if you like. or just bring the questions back here. We'll be glad to help out in either case.


One word of warning... cruising is addictive.
And DCL cruising is highly addictive.

hope y'all can do it and I hope we can help.
 
Haven't been on DCL - but have done RCCL and CCL before. In terms of sea-sickness - unless you REALLY have a motion/sea sickness problem, it shouldn't be a factor. These ships are so big, you rarely feel the motion. Most of the time that you do it is at night, because the captain is hauling tail to the next stop. Only time we had a real problem with motion was our very first cruise on the 'Empress of the Seas'. It was RCCL's oldest ship and a tugboat compared to the rest of them at the time and ESPECIALLY compared to the more recent models. That ship was getting thrown all over the place and you could clearly feel it during meals and even during shows. One show had acrobats and I was amazed at how they were able to perform with that much movement. :D
 
It has to be pretty rough for the modern ships to really feel the movement. If you are concerned, you will want to book a cabin in the middle of the ship and not on the upper floors.

The balcony is dependent on the number of sea days. With this being your first cruise, I would recommend to save the money unless there is not a big difference in price. You will be doing so much around the ship that you will likely spend very little time in your room. Plus Disney has the magic port holes for the interior rooms which our girls loved.

Last piece of advice is about excursions. As long as the port stop is not really short, like under 6 hours, you can do your own excursions and save a ton of money. Take a look and compare the excursion to what you can do on your own. There will be many people that will tell you to not book outside of the cruise line because they guarantee you will get back to the ship before it leaves. You still could miss the ship, but if on an excursion from the ship, they will get you to the next port. It is unlikely you will miss the ship unless you really lose track of time. An example would be going to the beach in St. Maarten. If you just go grab a cab it, you can get to Orient beach for around $8 per person each way versus spending 5 to 10 times that much with the ship.
 
So I took DD on our first Cruise in October last year, she was 8. I can't speak to the Christmas festivities, but I can share my insights to traveling with a little one just the Two of us. We were in a Inside Cabin Midship, and Let me tell you after 36 hours I really wish I had a room with a verandah! Ventilation on the Inside state room was not adequate for the two of us. Fortunately our room steward was amazing. She provided an in room HEPA filter that cleaned the air very well.

As for the movement of the ship, It took a little getting used to. I joked with my dinner guests that I wasn't sure if the movement was from the sea, or the mixology class that I had just left. lol.

Having said that I've been sailing on small personal sailboat and the movement of the Magic was non existent to say the least. I had an amazing trip and can't wait to do it again. Good luck, and may you have Fair Weather, and following seas!
 


Going on our first dcl on the dream in a little over a month. are the ships decorated for Christmas the first week of January?
 
They tend to come down right after the completion of the cruse for each ship that included New Year's Day.
If you're leaving later in the the first week of January, you may just miss them.

That being said, may I be wrong and may they still be there for you.
Eithere way, y'all should have a wonderful time.
 

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