Halloween Cruisin' on Disney Wonder to Cabo San Lucas W/Mickey Jack & Minnie Sally, Oct. 11-16, 2015

[pepe3penelope]

Halloween Cruisin’ on Disney Wonder to Cabo San Lucas With Mickey Jack & Minnie Sally! October 11-16, 2015


My name is Amy and my family and I are true Disney freaks!!! We live, breathe, and love Disney! Why the title? This cruise was one of a few West Coast cruises during the fall of 2015. It’s just too bad they didn’t repeat them in 2016. DCL needs to go the West Coast more often! Am I right?!?!?

Here are the reasons for the title:

It was a Halloween on the High Seas Cruise (We’ve never done this before.). It sailed 5 nights out of San Diego with stops at Ensenada. Mexico and Cabo San Lucas, Mexico (never been to Cabo before.)

BACKGROUND INFO:

Our family consists of the following:

DW: Lover of Ariel, Stitch, favorite villain Ursula

DH: Lover of Jack Skellington, Star Wars (he said to say the "Rebel Alliance!"), Avengers

DD8: Lover of Ariel (Awww!!! Must be in her blood! and Elsa; favorite villains are Queen of Hearts and Maleficent

DD4: Lover of Mickey, Minnie, & Stitch; favorite villains are Darth Vader and Stormtroopers

Our family is fortunate to live in Southern California and be annual Disneyland passholders. We are also Disney Vacation Club owners.


I’ve done 3 trip reports for Disneyland last year. The first trip report included my favorite Princess and Prince: Ariel and Eric. Here are two of them:


http://www.disboards.com/threads/a-...ed-dlr-and-villas-at-gch-trip-report.3297545/


http://www.disboards.com/threads/a-mermaids-7th-birthday-weekend-trip-report.3322601/

And some photos from the trip report as well as other Disneyland visits:




































We have a Mickey Mouse that looks like Jack Skellington and Minnie Mouse that looks like Sally. I officially decided that the TWO of them needed to join us on our special voyage! They definitely had an AWESOME voyage! You'll see later that they were such hams for the camera!!!



This was our 3rd cruise. The 1st cruise was also on Disney Wonder out of Los Angeles for a 7 night West Coast Cruise (ports were San Francisco, San Diego, and Ensenada) in 2012. What was also so special about it was it was also a Pixar Cruise. Our 2nd cruise was in 2013 on Disney Fantasy for a 7 night Western Caribbean itinerary.


I REALLY missed being on a Disney cruise. I mean I REALLY missed it! This cruise was only 5 nights and sure went by quickly, but I knew it was going to be awesome! We drive down to the port. When we disembarked, we drove to Disneyland and stayed 2 nights to extend our Disney vacation.

At 95 days out, the cruise was paid in full as a Silver Castaway member. At 90 days (right on the dot), I did the online check-in, registration of the kids, and booked Palo brunch and dinner. I had already prepaid our port parking at one of the hotels down the street. I had done a lot of shopping for the FE gifts and waited for the final lists to get ahead and start working on them. I also had another project planned for the FE gifts. I had ordered the FE, the Disney pirate shirts for DH and I, and the DCL-themed nail decals for DD and me on Etsy. I bought balance bands for DD, DH, and me. At Bed Bath N Beyond, I purchased more travel no-vacuum Space Bags (helps me fit SO much more stuff in the luggage). I ordered on Amazon the pirate outfits for the kiddos. On Etsy, I purchased a FE magnet design and she threw in for free the FE tag design.

BTW, you will rarely see DH in photos. He’d rather be behind the camera than in front of it. I achieved my goal of getting him in more photos during the cruise! I pre-purchased the ALL prints for the cruise (TOTALLY worth it!).

My goal was to really make the most of the cruise while trying to enjoy every moment at the same time. Sounds difficult, right? I’m not sure when we will be able to cruise again. My original goal was to have us go to Aulani in 2017. HOWEVER, DH and I talked about how much we REALLY LOVE cruising w/DCL. Included is the entertainment, dining, drinks, character interaction, no car rental, additional cooking in the villa or shopping for food to eat at Aulani, and NO airfare to Hawaii. This I will let you know: WE BOOKED A PLACEHOLDER!!! Waiting for DCL to release future dates for 2017. Would like to do Panama Canal!!!


I hope you stick around for our awesome vacation week! I plan on including LOTS of photos!

UP NEXT...Day One: Disney Wonder...Here We Come!!!

 

[GrumpyMom1]

Can't wait to read more. We were on the same cruise.

 

[pepe3penelope]

Can't wait to read more. We were on the same cruise.

Welcome, welcome, welcome! That is SOOOO cool that you were also on the same cruise!!!

 

[jetskigrl]

I'm here, I'm here!!! I can't wait to read your trip report. It will be like I was right there on the cruise with you. Oh wait.....

 

[pepe3penelope]

I'm here, I'm here!!! I can't wait to read your trip report. It will be like I was right there on the cruise with you. Oh wait.....

Hi, Patti!!!

 

[FergusBC]

DCL needs to go the West Coast more often! Am I right?!?!?

You are SO RIGHT!! We may have mentioned to every officer we saw on the ship that Florida has enough ships so the Wonder should stay here! LOL

Looking forward to the rest of your report. Love the Disneyland pics. I'd love to get back there but this cruising bug is taking up too much of our budget!

 

[pepe3penelope]

You are SO RIGHT!! We may have mentioned to every officer we saw on the ship that Florida has enough ships so the Wonder should stay here! LOL

Looking forward to the rest of your report. Love the Disneyland pics. I'd love to get back there but this cruising bug is taking up too much of our budget!

I know what you mean! I was serious when I said we would do Aulani in 2017. But we love DCL cruising so much. I really don't want to jump ship and go with another cruise company. We love DCL so much and know we would be disappointed going elsewhere. I booked a placeholder and am holding out for 2017 summer or fall. Really hoping for west coast, Alaska or Panama Canal.

 

[franandaj]

OK I'm in we were on the same cruise a week later and we met up with Patti as well!

 

[pepe3penelope]

Hi, Alison!!! We were booked on the B2B in May but had to cancel cuz I had major surgery. I had been reading your previous TR's. I just saw your recent TR earlier this evening but didn't have a chance to respond yet. Want to read more 1st.

I live your idea of just relaxing. That's hard for us cuz I'm such a planner & DD is like me...very go, go, go! I really had a hard time that it was only 5 days. It went by too fast and I was so exhausted at the end.

Thanks for joining in!

 

[franandaj]

OK this may sound awful, but I didn't even realize that this was your TR! I totally remember you from the May B2B planning trips, but I never saw any pictures of you and your family. I was just trolling the cruise TR forum to see if there were any other interesting reports and you had the requisite photos on the first post and enough information that got me interested. Now that I realize who you are I am TOTALLY in!

 

[bcwife76]

Joining in! We did our first cruise on the Wonder just a couple weeks before you were on this one (we did the repo from Vancouver to San Diego) and then we drove to Disneyland for 3 days! Loved cruising on DCL, we booked Alaska onboard for August 2016, think we might be hooked ;-) Can't wait to read more!

 

[pepe3penelope]

Joining in! We did our first cruise on the Wonder just a couple weeks before you were on this one (we did the repo from Vancouver to San Diego) and then we drove to Disneyland for 3 days! Loved cruising on DCL, we booked Alaska onboard for August 2016, think we might be hooked ;-) Can't wait to read more!

I'm pretty sure I had already joined your TR as well!

 

[pepe3penelope]

Day One: Sunday, October 11, 2015 (Embarkation Day)- Part One

For the past 2 to 2 ½ weeks before the cruise, I had been packing clothes, toiletries, FE, cabin door magnets, FE gifts, etc., etc., etc.!!! The day had finally come. I was beyond super duper excited. I had taught DS4 for the past 8 days how to approach me each day the 1st time he saw me. He would hold up with his fingers how many days left and do a shakey shakey with his bootie dance. It was so cute to get them as excited as me!

Sleeping the night before a vacation is nearly impossible for me. I’m too excited to sleep. When I finally do, I keep waking up. I finally gave up and woke up at 5:15. I had an early breakfast, woke up DH, got myself ready, got kids up, & packed the remainder of the toiletries & other essentials. (The night before we had already packed 90% of the luggage/bags.)

We were supposed to leave at 7:00 am, but ended up leaving the house at 7:45 am. We stopped by the Starbucks drive-thru and were on the freeway by 8:00! Usually, DH drives, but I was too excited yet determined to make up time on the road so I DROVE!!! Thank goodness California Highway Patrol (CHP) didn’t pull me over! Whew! The car’s navigation system said 2 hours, but we made it 14 minutes early.

We rarely drive down to San Diego and honestly didn’t remember what it was like. All of a sudden, you can see the bay, tall buildings, airplanes coming in low for the airport…THEN, there she was in all her splendid beauty and glory! I really did not expect to see her so clearly! She was so beautiful. I had been pointing out the landmarks, but when I saw her I was so overwhelmed that I started to cry. I am very sentimental and emotional. It was also the anticipation and planning that had been going on since opening day on May 21, 2014 (17 months ago).

Within minutes, we made it to the port and “Ooooooohed” and “Aaaaaahhhhed” over her. I pulled into the loading/drop off area. We unloaded the luggage and a porter quickly came over when I waved at him.

Here is our trunk full of our 6 checked bags and DD and DS posing!



DH and the kids kept our carry-on items. I drove away to the Wyndham across the street and dropped off the car for the pre-paid valet parking (I had pre-paid in July). I made a restroom trip near the lobby and walked across the street (took some photos).




We entered a security post where they quickly looked at the DCL-assigned blue book. We were given a color-coded square piece of paper and instructed to enter the building and sit to the right. The left side of the room was already full. We would be the next batch. While we waited, I had the family take restroom trips then we sat and waited. I decided to look at my cruise group’s site. I found several people and started conversations with them. The first person was our group’s administrator. The 2nd was a couple who weeks before discovered that she’s pregnant (DD8 loves pregnant women!). The 3rd was a woman who generously allowed each child in our group to choose and keep a Beanie Baby. My children sought her out throughout our trip because she always had a bag of candy for the children!

Not long after, we were called to line up. They inspected our ID’s & birth certificates. Then we walked through security. They spent a lot of time looking at my carry-on through the monitor, but then let it go. That was weird!

We finally entered the DCL check-in area. Overall, this building was older than the one closer to the USS Midway. It was unimpressive and looked like a warehouse. They tried to Disney it up with banners, signs, etc. We went to our Castaway Club line (was definitely shorter than the general public line). The woman and her daughter next to us was also from our cruise group! She was also an administrator to us! Our PAT time was 11:00 and our boarding number was 7! Ugh!



We went to the Disney Vacation Club (DVC) desk to get our lanyards and get confirmation of when the DVC member celebration was. I REALLY liked the new lanyards. The material is softer. It was very cool because they made our left side DVC and the right side Castaway Club.

We were 1st in line for the character meet and greet (which was supposed to start in 5 minutes anyway so may as well be FIRST!). Can you believe that Mickey Jack & Minnie Sally already wanted to be part of the fun?!?!

I told DH it had to be Mickey Mouse and I was right!!!




Then we went to the long line to finish registering the kids. I completed it online and it only took a few minutes in person. I completely forgot to take pictures of the blue DCL bands. It had a picture of Captain Mickey Mouse and it was secured onto the kids. DS4 kept whining about wanting to take it off, but I insisted that he had no choice to wear it.

We sat and waited and waited. I decided to study the navigator. They announced the family of the day and began calling the numbers. Finally, it was OUR TURN!!! Whoo-hoo!

We approached the photographers for the welcome photo backdrop. For the 1st time, I pre-purchased an all PHOTO package. I told DH that we are taking as many photos as possible! He hates to be in pictures, but he knew he didn’t have a choice!

We finally boarded the gangway and decided NOT to take the elevator with the other kazillion people so we took the stairs. All of a sudden, there was the entrance to the lobby atrium. I pulled out my phone to take a video. My FAVORITE part of the beginning of the cruise is when the family name is announced. It officially kicks off the vacation and it really feels like Disney Cruise Line is welcoming the family aboard!

I have read about how some people don't like the Halloween overlay, but we liked it. It was something different to have a themed cruise.

First of all, gotta love that classic DCL chandelier!








I had been studying the navigator while waiting and had already told DH my plan of attack. 1) Go to Wavebands and get tickets for the Frozen Meet and Greet and the Princess Meet and Greet (opened at 12pm), 2) Go to Guest Services to add cash and lots of Disney gift cards to our account, change our onboard account credit card (did this since step 3 didn’t open until 12:30), 3) Went to Triton’s to book an alcohol tasting session for DH (already had group mixology on sea day #2)- limited so he booked Whiskey on Day #3 10:30 pm AND talked to Palo about changing dinner to brunch (having 2 brunches, no dinner; we LOVE their brunches) and to ask for Tony our previous Palo server. “Tony is no longer on Disney Wonder.” My response: “What?!?!?” I had read about fabulous things about Sasha on Wonder through DISboards. My next response: “Can I request Sasha?” His response: “Why yes, of course.” SCORE!!!

Finally, all tasks were completed and we went to Beach Blanket Buffet on Deck 9 aft. We had previously done Parrot Cay on embarkation and wanted to try BBB. It was already fully crowded. We were lucky to get a table close to the end of buffet line & near the drink station. We were so hungry and began pigging out!

Side note: DH and I had been on a new diet for over a month. He lost 14 pounds and I lost 13 pounds! Slowly but surely, we sure gained that infamous water weight on cruises as well as just plain “eating a lot of food” weight! (By the morning of day 3, I could tell my clothes were getting tight!) As of now, I had lost the weight but still packed 3 pounds. DH and I were good with this meal by not putting so much on our plates. Well, as the cruise went on, our plates did get more crowded!!!

By the time we finished eating, it was already about 1:40ish and the stateroom had already been open since 1:30. We went down to Deck 2 aft port #2114…our home for the next 5 nights! For the 1st time, we actually had quite a few bags already waiting outside our door. We rushed inside and took it all in. The kids played & we tried to unpack as much as we could.



We left at 2:25 pm for the DVC member celebration on deck 4 at Studio Sea. We each got a DVC Tervis-style cup.





We got our forms for the $200 OBC raffle and sat at a table near the front. Things were already getting started. DH and I helped ourselves to the yummy Drink of the Day (DOTD). Sorry, but I don’t remember the name. The member celebration was fun. We saw a few people there from our cruise group. The celebration was scheduled for 2:30-3:30 and our cruise group had a group photo scheduled for 3:15 at Diversions. We stuck it out until 3:20. DH stayed for the raffle and I took the kids with me. We barely made it! They were just about to take the photo when they let us in! We talked to a few people for a few minutes then headed back to Studio Sea to get DH.

I could see that many people were leaving Studio Sea and wondered how am I going to find him? Then the couple that was sitting in front of us said, “Your husband won!” I said, “No way!” (I really didn’t believe him.) The next couple (who I remembered) confirmed it. We hightailed it back and I saw that he was the last person in line trying to leave. I said, “Someone said you won the raffle. Is it true?!?” I could see it in his eyes that he did! Whoo-hoo!!! $200 OBC!!! I think I was still in shock for several minutes and definitely told him how happy it made me!

Seriously, can you tell how excited I was?!?!?

We went back to the cabin, changed, unpacked some more. We went to our muster drill. It was our 1st time having it outdoors. It actually wasn’t bad because we weren’t in the sun and we could see the ocean and the airplanes taking off and landing.




We were excited because DD4 could finally go to the KIDS CLUB!!! Whoo-hool No more nursery! We brought them w/us during open time, hoping he'd love it. They didn't like Oceaneer Lab, but they BOTH LOVED Oceaneer Club!!!

We headed up to deck 10 for the end of the sail away party. At the end, the ship’s horns played, “When you wish upon a star.” I ABSOLUTELY love the horns. We walked to the bow of the ship and could already feel the ship moving! DH and DD stayed with us for awhile. She was too hungry to wait for dinner which was supposed to start in less than ½ an hour. She was only supposed to get some fruit from Goofy’s Galley, but instead got a hot dog! Oh, well! DS and I went to front middle of the ship and stayed until we left the bay entirely and entered the open seas! He started complaining of his new shoes hurting him so I had to carry him. We found DH and DD then went to dinner at my favorite Wonder MDR, Triton’s. We headed back to our cabin.

Coming up: Bring on the food! Hmmmm…should we keep our servers or change?

 

[pepe3penelope]

Additional Photos from Embarkation Day:

Here are a couple more photos of us approaching Wonder:




Here's DD and DS posing when we first arrived in the stateroom.



Mickey Jack and Minnie Sally were having such a great time posing for us! Look at the excitement on their faces!!!

This was when they couldn't wait to board Disney Wonder:



When we got in the stateroom, can you believe they jumped onto the bed and posed right away for me?!?!



They loved looking out of the porthole window. They REALLY love the sea!



Here are some photos of Route 66 that DH took:




Coming up: Embarkation Day continues!!!

 

[bcwife76]

Ahhhh this is bringing back so many memories for me (you know, since I got off a whole 10 days before you got on LOL). Congrats to your dh on the $200OBC win, what a great start to your cruise!!!

I forgot the name of our server in Palo but now that you say Sasha that's ringing a bell. Guess I'll have to keep reading to see if he was ours too ;-)

 

[pepe3penelope]

Day One: Sunday, October 11, 2015 (Embarkation Day)- Part Two

First of all, I forgot to post the obligatory photo of our FE and the door magnets:





So I last left off where we left deck 9 and headed back to our cabin. I always want us to change our clothes before dinner (feel clean and refreshed this way).

Side Note: I had called months ago w/certain requests that included sitting in a four top table for the MDR’s, for the dress up night to be in Triton’s, and to only be in Parrot Cay once (our least favorite restarant). The 1st and 3rd requests were granted. Our rotation was TAPTA.

We headed to Deck 3 and entered Triton’s. We were escorted to Table 77. It was very near where we were seated for our 1st Wonder voyage.




Our head server was Oscar from Chile. Really loved his enthusiasm. He had a way of being sincere, like he genuinely cared that everything was perfect for us without being fake. He was so sweet and I enjoyed talking to him whenever he came over. Honestly, on our 1st cruise, our head server was seriously non-existent. Our main server was Noel from the Philippines and our assistant server was Giuseppe from Italy.

The food was very good. DH always looks forward to the escargot (none for me, thank you!).





I was so proud of DD & DS trying burgers on the cruise. They usually gobbled up the broccoli that was served, too!



I’m a dessert kinda gal so I always save from for the soufflé AND the crème brulee (no sharing; these are mine!). The soufflé was a disappointment…it was overcooked and barely warm. I gobbled it up anyway! LOL! Here's are before and after pictures. Look...nothing left!






DD always wanted a Mickey bar for dessert.


The service was really slow…I mean REALLY slow! We realized later it may have been because it was the 1st night, some people came late, & the servers are getting used to us, etc. Also, our assistant server revealed that he just came off Fantasy and we were his 1st guests on Wonder. He seemed like he was inexperienced, still learning the ropes. Our inside joke was that he NEVER got DD’s drink order correctly. He had lemonade waiting every time. I told him that we asked for Sprite and he’d say, “Ok. No problem.” He continued to bring the lemonade and I’d ask, “Can we get her Sprite instead of the lemonade?” “Ok. No problem.” Oh, well!

We wanted to make it to the pin trading (DH and DD8 love to pin trade at Disneyland and they brought a hefty supply along). We saw Cruise Director Clayton with some other officers in the lobby atrium near Guest Services. We LOVED him on Fantasy 2 years ago. I stopped by to tell him that. He is so geniune, doesn't seem fake, and gives you focused attention when he talks to you. If I knew how to do the Carlton dance, I would have shown it to him!


By the time we left the restaurant, it was 20 minutes before the 1st Pumpkin Tree story event. When we passed by the atrium, it was already very crowded. Instead, DH went to do some pin trading and the kids sat on a decent spot on the lobby floor. They loved hearing the story and looking at its progress as the cruise went on.



After this, momma needed to do some major shopping!!! We went to Mickey’s Mates 1st. It isn’t as large as Fantasy’s, but they had a decent selection. Some things lacking were a variety of Christmas ornaments. There weren’t any pins specific to our itinerary for the West Coast or Baja Mexico.

The kids were begging to go to the "kids club." I had DH take them to Oceaneer Club while I continued my shopping w/o interruption. He returned and we really took my time...I mean, our time browsing.

I didn’t buy certain shirts and/or sweatshirts because they didn’t have the size we were looking for. Treasuse Ketch has the nicer clothes, jewelry, artwork, perfume, etc. I was shocked that they didn’t have any Alex and Ani bracelets. I really wanted the DCL one. There were soooo many watches that were non-refundable, non-exchangable. They had such a small selection of Disney watches. (DH and I bought ours on Fantasy 2 years ago.)

The huge positive that was also a surprise was finding Star Wars at Sea merchandise!!! SCORE!!!


We love Star Wars and know we won’t be going to the Western Caribbean Star Wars at Sea sailings. I got short sleeves for DH, DD, & DS and a long sleeve for myself (didn’t have my size in the short sleeve). They also had 2 postcards so I got sets for us and our 2 best friends. We got the Halloween on the High Seas pin (DH didn’t notice until we got home that it doesn’t state 2015 on it). I got myself a gray DCL sweatshirt.

I really love to shop. Admittedly, everyday that the shops were open, I made it a point to visit. I thought it would just be to browse. But, who am I kidding? I bought something every single time. By the end of the cruise, I also got a set of Crislu DCL earrings, a round DCL Christmas ornament, a Cars car for DS, & a set of mystery Tsum Tsum pins for DD. On the last day after our Palo brunch and cruise group mixology, I got one of the new Pandora DCL charms. On the last night, I bought the new DCL Dooney and Bourke Kimberly crossbody bag. I LOVE that bag…I’ve been using it everyday since!!!



We picked up the kids from the club and finally returned to the cabin. We are all so tired. It had been a long day. To be honest, I don't remember what time it was...probably around 10-10:30. Look what we found!




I sent DH off to watch Avengers while I got the kids to sleep. I finished unpacking and took my shower Then I looked at the next day's navigator, planning for the next day.

Up next: Day Two..Ensenada Day!

 

[pepe3penelope]

Ahhhh this is bringing back so many memories for me (you know, since I got off a whole 10 days before you got on LOL). Congrats to your dh on the $200OBC win, what a great start to your cruise!!!

I forgot the name of our server in Palo but now that you say Sasha that's ringing a bell. Guess I'll have to keep reading to see if he was ours too ;-)

Yes, Sasha was AMAZING! He's very attentive and is soooo good at anticipating what you need. On our 2nd Palo brunch, I forgot to ask for a peach almond souffle for DH and I. I was going to request it when he came with it already in hand!!! He has a refined way about him, doesn't he?

That $200 OBC was such an awesome surprise!!! I was beyond happy!

 

[jetskigrl]

Day One: Sunday, October 11, 2015 (Embarkation Day)- Part Two




We wanted to make it to the pin trading (DH and DD8 love to pin trade at Disneyland and they brought a hefty supply along). We saw Cruise Director Clayton with some other officers in the lobby atrium near Guest Services. We LOVED him on Fantasy 2 years ago. I stopped by to tell him that. He is so geniune, doesn't seem fake, and gives you focused attention when he talks to you. If I knew how to do the Carlton dance, I would have shown it to him!





Up next: Day Two..Ensenada Day!

Oh yes, surprise, surprise, a bag just like that followed me home also


Did you get a chance to chat with any of the officers? The gentleman second from the right is Walter (don't know last name) and we were chatting with him on the Tender back from Cabo. Then we ran into him later at one of the receptions. Really nice man

 

[bcwife76]

Oh those D&B bags are sooooo nice. I was eyeing one our entire cruise, but sadly it didn't make it home with me. Perhaps next year...... ;-)

Clayton is the best! "Who's on vacation?!!!!"

 

[pepe3penelope]

Oh yes, surprise, surprise, a bag just like that followed me home also


Did you get a chance to chat with any of the officers? The gentleman second from the right is Walter (don't know last name) and we were chatting with him on the Tender back from Cabo. Then we ran into him later at one of the receptions. Really nice man

Hi, Patti! You and I have GREAT tastes in bags!

Unfortunately, I have to admit that we didn't spend time talking to any other officers that occasion. The last night I made DH and DD go to the officer pin trading. He said it was very cool but crowded so I don't think he was able to chat much w/them.

That's so cool that you and John were able to chat with him. Do you remember what kind of officer he is?