HELP!! First time cruise - I'm overwhelmed!!

[kbkids]

Okay - I've been reading through all of the threads, but I'm getting totally overwhelmed - and my "notes" have turned into a novel!!

We're going in October (3 night cruise) me, DH, DD8, and DS4. This is our first cruise anywhere, and I don't want to miss anything. I know - 3 days isn't going to be enough - but what should we definitely plan for this time? What do I need to NOT forget to take? Anything I don't know that I should?

It is our 10th anniversary, and our TA has our 2nd night set up for celebrating this. Now, what does this mean? Do they just do something special at dinner? I would like for this meal to be at Triton's because this was the night that we kinda have planned for the kids to have dinner with the kid's club. If we do the REAS, we can choose which rotation we're wanting, right? We also wanted to do the massage - so, I'm assuming we may as well do the REAS package. Not really wanting to do Palo's on this trip - just not into getting all that dressed up! And, the kids will be in the same stateroom, so we loose some of the "benefit" of the package but I think they'll get a kick out of it anyway. Or, is it worth it since the only "MUSTS" that I'm wanting out of it is the massage and the ability to pick our dining rotation? In other words, I know we can purchase the massage separately, so is there a way to pick your dining rotation without doing the REAS package?

We don't plan on going ashore at Nasseau - we live on the beach - and would just like to relax and play on the ship. We do plan on going ashore at Castaway Cay. Anything I'm missing by doing this? The youngest is only 4 so alot of the excursions, he is too young for.

Some of the tips I've read and noted are:
Have the kids wear their swimsuits under their clothes when they're boarding so they can jump in the Mickey pool immediately.

The over-the-door bag for all the small items, hooks for hanging stuff (now what kinds of hooks are you meaning?), collapsible cooler on wheels.

Is there anything I'm missing? Anything I should know?

Thanks!

 

[Ratt45]

My experience has been that they will bring a small round cake to you to celebrate your anniversary. They may sing "Happy Anniversary" as well.

I'm sure others will tell you about any excursions that you little one can do and enjoy.

Definitely, anybody that wants swim once on board should have their swimwear on underneath their clothes. The pools fill up later in the day.

 

[mickeyboat]

Take a deep breath ... relax.

One of the down sides of the boards for me (it's hard to admit that there is one) is that I tended stress out over the little things. With small kids, I had to adjust and compensate for them, so we didn't get to do everything we wanted, but we still had a great time. For example, I was shocked at how tired my kids got. They needed naps in the afternoons and several evenings fell asleep at early seating dinner.

Good idea to skip Nassau, it will give you some time on board when things aren't so crowded. You may want to consider bringing some sand toys for your 4 year old. Purchasing them at CC is very expensive, and we were glad to have them for our girls (3 and 4).

For "hooks" we brought suction cup type hooks and attached them to the inside of the shower. A good point brought up on another post is to bring more than one (2-3) swimsuits. It takes a long time for them to dry enough to be comfortable to wear again.

On the Magic, they did matinees of the shows on a couple of days. It was a great way to take a break from the sun, and we didn't have to worry about keeping the kids up too late in the evening. Even at the matinees, my kids fell asleep every time.

Hope you have a great, and relaxing, time.

Denae

 

[Memaw2Wm]

Camera

Film or Media Cards

Batteries

Electrical Outlet thingie (can't remember what they're called ...)

Have fun!