Fish Extenders-Be Honest

[Day at sea]

I am considering doing the fish extenders for our Alaskan cruise but it honestly seems like a lot of work and since we are flying to our port, it would take more luggage. Is it really worth it? I don't want to sounds selfish but it seems like we would have a lot of people to do gifts for. Please tell me your experiences.....good or bad.

Go for it!! FE is like Christmas the whole cruise!!!

 

[savage1117]

I enjoyed participating in an FE exchange on our first cruise and we enjoyed getting all of our gifts. We aren't doing it on our second cruise because I want a different experience. It was stressful trying to think of something creative/thoughtful. I hope people didn't think our gift was crappy. DD enjoyed the whole process.

 

[ForMyBoys]

My kids want to do the FE after they saw them our last cruise so I'm having one made. BUT I haven't decided if i will join a group or simply have our family friends do a mini-christmas type gift exchange. I think it would be neat to see what my son's surprise us with and vice versa. There are 7 of us on the cruise and I think it would just be more fun and less stressful to do our own thing.

 

[chirurgeon]

I know what everyone means about cost. I'm part of a general FE group on a certain social website. Some people are talking about spending almost $500 on their FE gifts. I'm sorry, that's crazy. And you look at these things they are planning, I just don't have the time to plan a gift for every person in a cabin. I'm cruising with an adult group of friends and we may do an FE for just us. As far as my PC Repo next year, I'll think long and hard about that one.

 

[Mickeyhugger]

I love the FE exchanges. I could really care less about the gifts we get. It's just fun to come back to the room and see something. I don't make individualized gifts. We make one per stateroom. My expectations are not high so if I get candy, so be it. My kids are 10 and 14 and will sometimes get little kid gifts but their eyes still light up because they got something. Let's not forget that it's suppose to be fun. People complain about the room it takes up and the amount of time they put into it but don't appreciate when someone just brings candy. Maybe they didn't have room in their luggage but still wanted to participate.

Very well said.

After reading some of the complaints (with exclamation points) here, I'd NEVER want to participate in a FE (if I were a first-time cruiser.) What a shame that people are that disappointed. I'm not creative, but very much enjoyed putting together the gift-candy bags, and our DD and her BFF liked delivering them. I thought kids would enjoy the Disney PEZ dispensers. And, I apologize if I misspelled names.

 

[alldiz]

I am considering doing the fish extenders for our Alaskan cruise but it honestly seems like a lot of work and since we are flying to our port, it would take more luggage. Is it really worth it? I don't want to sounds selfish but it seems like we would have a lot of people to do gifts for. Please tell me your experiences.....good or bad.

Personally I have never done it and have no intention of doing so. I am not a souvenir person either though. I travel too often to buy gifts.
I don't ever want my vacation to feel stressed or like work.
To each is own though
Kerri

 

[sweetpee_1993]

Very well said.

After reading some of the complaints (with exclamation points) here, I'd NEVER want to participate in a FE (if I were a first-time cruiser.) What a shame that people are that disappointed. I'm not creative, but very much enjoyed putting together the gift-candy bags, and our DD and her BFF liked delivering them. I thought kids would enjoy the Disney PEZ dispensers. And, I apologize if I misspelled names.

Isn't this the other side of the double-edged sword, though? I appreciated everything we ever received and had fun sorting thru it all. But we didn't use or keep everything and I felt bad not doing so. If we're being honest like the thread title asks, how does one convey the downsides without it coming off unappreciative or negative? That's tough! Another reason I made the shift away. Because I felt bad about what we didn't use or keep. I stressed over trying to give things that weren't an inconvenience to take home or that could be used during the cruise.

If I had my first DCL cruise to do over again I think I wouldn't do the FE then. Of course it was only a 3-night cruise. I felt those 3 days were such a whirlwind...I was so overwhelmed. There was so much to see, do, take in, and absorb. I'd keep that time as simple as possible so I could wrap my brain around it all.

 

[sweetpee_1993]

Personally I have never done it and have no intention of doing so. I am not a souvenir person either though. I travel too often to buy gifts.
I don't ever want my vacation to feel stressed or like work.
To each is own though
Kerri

This is the direction I'm evolving in. The more we travel the less I buy or gather aside from pics & written journaling. We're packing to move right now and I have soooooo much stuff, bins full of things, that I have no idea what to do with now. I should get rid of stuff but it all has meaning so I don't. It's hard!

 

[KBinCO]

I know that the people on our sailing loved the FEs. We opted not to participate and I don't regret it. It seems like a lot of time and pressure to come up with something good and I just don't have the time or creativity. My kids LOVED the cruise so I don't think they feel as though they missed out on anything. We also had an insane luggage issue. No space left. That said, it is great for some people, but I am happy we didn't get involved.

 

[Yooperroo]

I'd say if it feels like there would be a ton of pressure and you wouldn't enjoy actually making/putting together the gifts, then it's not worth it. Other people like myself like to look for any excuse to do a craft project! Haha! I do it not because I look forward to the actual exchange and receiving of gifts, but because I love trying to come up with creative ideas and executing them.

 

[alldiz]

I'd say if it feels like there would be a ton of pressure and you wouldn't enjoy actually making/putting together the gifts, then it's not worth it. Other people like myself like to look for any excuse to do a craft project! Haha! I do it not because I look forward to the actual exchange and receiving of gifts, but because I love trying to come up with creative ideas and executing them.

Thats awesome. I am sooooo uncrafty! I missed that gene
Kerri

 

[sambycat]

when we cruise with friends or family, i often make magnets for our group and stick them on their doors. on one cruise, i toyed with joining an FE group and quickly realized the cost and (for us) hassle of it all was not something we wanted to do or needed to do.

 

[nearlyfallinstar]

I'd say if it feels like there would be a ton of pressure and you wouldn't enjoy actually making/putting together the gifts, then it's not worth it. Other people like myself like to look for any excuse to do a craft project! Haha! I do it not because I look forward to the actual exchange and receiving of gifts, but because I love trying to come up with creative ideas and executing them.

I am exactly the same way! I love an excuse to make something new.

 

[chrisrunty]

We've done many FEs over the years. I think they are fun. Larger groups are harder though. Our last cruise it was limited to 10 cabins per group. I thought that was brilliant! So easy to do with only a few staterooms and the fun/magic for my DS was priceless. We also don't have any expectations with the gifts we've received amazing over the top gifts and candy/stickers. It all even's out, and it's about the fun. I would point out again anyone doing an FE should try to get the groups small... once we had a group of 60. That was nuts and not so fun. Limit them to 10!!

 

[jacqueline702]

We did one last year (my kids are older than 10, except for the baby) and enjoyed it. We're doing it again on our Alaska cruise this June. I do appreciate thoughtfulness and, of course, enjoyed some of the gifts more than others, but I feel like people are missing the point! It's not meant to be a replacement for spending money in the souvenir shop. We enjoy connecting with people (even in such a small way) that we would never get to "meet" otherwise. We hope that our gifts bring an extra smile or squeal of excitement the same way that our kids do when they see what they've received.

I am not crafty and we are not wealthy. Last year, we did an assortment of chocolates (we live near Hershey) in Minnie Mouse gift bags. It wasn't much, but our family was going through a very difficult time. We're in a better spot this year and I was able to put more energy and time into ordering gifts that I hope families will cherish for years (or at least enjoy on the cruise!). I still treasure some of the gifts we received last year and they inspired me to "step it up" this year. I look forward to the variety of gifts that we'll receive from families who I will assume are just doing their best. I will also encourage my kids in appreciating all gifts they receive - fancy or not!

 

[Mickeyhugger]

We did one last year (my kids are older than 10, except for the baby) and enjoyed it. We're doing it again on our Alaska cruise this June. I do appreciate thoughtfulness and, of course, enjoyed some of the gifts more than others, but I feel like people are missing the point! It's not meant to be a replacement for spending money in the souvenir shop. We enjoy connecting with people (even in such a small way) that we would never get to "meet" otherwise. We hope that our gifts bring an extra smile or squeal of excitement the same way that our kids do when they see what they've received.

I am not crafty and we are not wealthy. Last year, we did an assortment of chocolates (we live near Hershey) in Minnie Mouse gift bags. It wasn't much, but our family was going through a very difficult time. We're in a better spot this year and I was able to put more energy and time into ordering gifts that I hope families will cherish for years (or at least enjoy on the cruise!). I still treasure some of the gifts we received last year and they inspired me to "step it up" this year. I look forward to the variety of gifts that we'll receive from families who I will assume are just doing their best. I will also encourage my kids in appreciating all gifts they receive - fancy or not!

This.

I've been to pot-luck dinners where I've gone "all out" with my dessert creations. I do it because I enjoy baking, and am happy that others enjoy it. Some people show up with a cake that they purchased from a grocery store bakery, or food from a fast food restaurant. "I'm not good at cooking/baking" most will say. So what? I think it's great that they still wanted to come, and enjoy the fun.

 

[savage1117]

We've done many FEs over the years. I think they are fun. Larger groups are harder though. Our last cruise it was limited to 10 cabins per group. I thought that was brilliant! So easy to do with only a few staterooms and the fun/magic for my DS was priceless. We also don't have any expectations with the gifts we've received amazing over the top gifts and candy/stickers. It all even's out, and it's about the fun. I would point out again anyone doing an FE should try to get the groups small... once we had a group of 60. That was nuts and not so fun. Limit them to 10!!

I totally agree, our FE exchange was 20 people including myself and I couldn't imagine 60!!! Smaller groups worked well for us and you could be in more than one if you wanted.

 

[sweetpee_1993]

It is hard when it's a big group! I was in a group once that was well over 100 people and the group elected not to split. I think that was the one that I finally said "Okay. Done." LOL!

 

[nearlyfallinstar]

It is hard when it's a big group! I was in a group once that was well over 100 people and the group elected not to split. I think that was the one that I finally said "Okay. Done." LOL!

I would have told them that was fine for them, but I couldn't do that much! That's crazy!

 

[SoozCruise]

From what I understand, FEs started as a way to spread pixie dust, and some of the comments in this thread do not seem in keeping with that spirit. We have participated in two FE exchanges (one in Alaska) and are signed up for a third. It's a thrill for our kids to get to the door and find gifts, and we enjoy walking around the ship to the different floors - delivering 15 gifts probably took us 20-30 minutes total, and it was easy to deliver a few on our way to dinner/movie/show/ice cream station. We have received some things we consumed immediately, some we use every day, and others we will probably never find a use for but appreciated anyway. I usually dedicate about half of a carryon suitcase to FE gifts, which I package in ziplock bags because they are easy to compact and are useful for the recipients to reuse when they are packing to go home.