Jan 26th Magic highlights (long)

[Timon]

Hey guys! Just got back last night. We spent one week at WDW then the 7 day cruise then one night at ASMovies.

It was our very first cruise, so we wanted to do it Disney style...wow, wow, wow!!! We completely fell in love with cruising!!!!! I am taking my 28 rolls rolleyes: ) of film in to Costco today and will be writing my trip report by the week-end with pictures included

Thought I would post some highlights first though

THE GOOD

The Magic is absolutely beautiful! I could spend weeks on that ship and still wouldn't get enough of it! Hats off to the designers!

We loved the feel of cruising...it took a few hours to get used to the motion but after that we LOVED it! It felt like we were on a permanent rollercoaster and we love coasters We were rocked to sleep every night and except for one night, I've never slept better!

Deck 4....wow...we spent a lot of time here in those big comfy blue chairs! It was great because we were outside watching the ocean but it wasn't windy like deck 10 was.

DISers...we had a DIS meet after the safety drill and we got to meet some really great people! There was funetics, LisaTxUSA, mom2grace, ktharris, jasonandgroup and SpaceCowboy. We ran into LisaTxUSA quite a bit since we both had the late seating and enjoyed her company along with her charming son! It was great to "know" others on board. We also ran into our fellow Calgarians, funetics & family during the wonderful immigration meets down in Rockin Bar D


Table mates...we were seated with two great ladies from Minnesota. About half way through our first dinner, we found out that one of them was a DISer...Fishbone!!! I don't think Disney could have matched us up with better people! We had a great time every evening with them, talking about our day and sharing great stories! By the end of the cruise, it felt like we were dining with good friends, not just ship mates.

Sasha and Attila....were our servers in the dining room and they were absolutely marvellous!!! They really made the experience unforgettable! Can't say enough....YEAH BABY!!

okay...well there was a lot MORE good but will save for the trip report

THE BAD
Well I can't complain too much since our overall experience was wonderful but there were a few things that we didn't enjoy....

Often times our schedule was a little weird and we found there wasn't enough variety in food for in between meals. Sometimes we would get up at 9:30 am and get ready and then go up deck for breakfast but they were JUST closing the buffet. And for lunch after 2pm, which we often wanted, you only had pinocchios for pizza, which, sadly, we didn't care for or Plutos for burgers and hot dog fare, which we were looking forward to, but again, didn't enjoy at all. We ended up ordering room service a lot but got a little bored of the very limited menu. We were also sad that the fruit bar at Scoops was only open from noon-5pm...we often got hungry at 6pm and would have enjoyed some fruit but instead we would just go hungry until our 8:30pm dinner.

Bad parents
I have to say this was our biggest problem. There were 1100 kids on board with us and it was VERY noticeable!!! Don't get us wrong, we love kids but when parents let their kids run wild, it's NOT fun to be around. I can't tell you how many times I was stepped on, run into at full speed, hit, bumped, kicked, smacked, walked into etc...and poor hubby was injured by so many strollers, it wasn't funny! Obviously, we don't blame the kids....they're just being kids. But we saw so many parents not even paying attention to their kids! Once, when we were in line to get a photo of Mickey, a little girl in front of us started choking...started out just coughing and got a lot worse....I had to TELL her mother, who was too busy talking to a friend of hers, that her daughter was choking!!! But also, on the plus side, I saw some very wonderful parents share some touching moments with their children...and I tried to focus on those parents more than the bad ones.

LINES...lines...lines...everywhere! Lines to get on the ship, to get off the ship, to go for dinner, for breakfast, for lunch, lines for buying things at the shops, long long long lines to get your pictures taken and lines to buy the pictures you had taken. I have to say, I was NOT prepared for so many lines. For the midnight dessert buffet, we waited 35 minutes in line just to get to the buffet and another 10 to get through the buffet! I guess I was just not expecting it!

THE UGLY

Getting off the ship!! Now that was UGLY!!!!! I could have lived on that ship, but they make you get off after 7 short days Those people who did the 7 day cruises back to back: SMART!!!!!! VERY SMART PEOPLE!!!!

 

[Darkrobe]

I think my DW Timon posted everything that should be said so far, she does a great job!
The biggest beef I have is that those darn parents have poor hygiene habits for themselves and their kids, especially when it comes to colds and flu. I have been sick since Friday night on the cruise because I had several children and parents coughing because of colds in front or AT me without covering their mouths!Other then that, the trip was great (but I wish they had a cruise for adults only).
TTFN!

 

[badger5]

I couldn't agree with you more that the LINES were unbearable. It really put a damper on our cruise experience. I think that the ship was way to crowded. We waited in line for everything. I felt like the whole cruise was one long line.

And what about that Mickey pool - give me a break! At one point I counted 55 kids and 23 adults all in that little pool. Yikes!! Not to mention that the goofy pool was closed at one point because of a vomiting accident.

I would have to think long and hard if I were ever going to consider cruising again.

 

[LisaTxUsa]

Cass .. I couldn't have said it better! You pointed out all the good and bad on this trip! I was stunned to find that the boat was SO crowded. It really wasn't fun during the days at sea. The pools were so crowded you couldn't get near them .. and if you did get near them you got trampled by ill-mannered children and their ill-mannered parents!

PS, Cass .. Garrett wants to know when y'all are going on your next cruise because he wants to sit with you & Rob

 

[Fishbone†]

Sorry Garrett, but Rob and Cass are my tablemates for life, but considering what a perfect gentleman you are, I may consider letting you sit with us. You don't have any idea how many people I have told about the polite young man I met on the boat. You give the world hope Garrett - someone is going to be one LUCKY girl someday to be the one you fall in love with (don't laugh, it will happen). Hats off to you Lisa for raising such a fine young man!!!

TRIPLE SUPER HIP HIP HOORAY for Disney on the table matchup. We had a blast at supper - one of the highlights of the day. We couldn't wait to tell Timon and her DH about what we'd seen, and even better were the stories she had for us. Thanks for the entertainment Rob. I hope you're feeling better.

I have to laugh though, because as an eyewitness to Timon's terrible luck with personal space invasions, you couldn't believe how many times her chair was bumped during suppertime - and many times it was right in the middle of a story about how she had been bumped constantly throughout the day. POOR TIMON - she couldn't win for losing.

I, however, am addicted to cruising for life - I want to go next week. Timon was right, the worst part of the whole cruise was getting off - another round please.

I actually commented to my parents and friends that I didn't think the ship felt crowded at all (of course I don't have Timon's magnetic personality, so people weren't pulled by some unknown force into my personal space). Considering the 964 ft ship had 3700 people on it (which is more people then my town and the three surrounding towns put together), I thought there was plenty of space!! But maybe that's just me - I did avoid both the swimming areas, and the character lines, so that may have made a difference.

And the kids, yes there were a lot, and no they weren't always having a tiggerific time, but I have to say, although I agree that an adult only cruise for us BIG DISNEY KIDS would be very nice, other then some very selfish parents who didn't feel the need to remove their crying baby from the shows, and some others that needed a lesson in discipline and respect for others' time, space and privacy, I didn't notice the kids so much. Late seating really helped with that though! And again, I didn't spend time around the pools or the characters.

The all around experience for me was very positive, and I'm already planning for next year.

Thanks Rob and Cass for adding to the experience. It was nice to meet you Lisa, and Garrett - it was a pleasure meeting you.

Fish

 

[LisaTxUsa]

It was great meeting y'all, too !! I didn't run into Nicole (funetics) and her family again until the last day!

I'm already checking into the Western Cruise for Jan 4-11 of next year. I am sooooooo bummed about being home!!!

Thanks for the kind words regarding the Gman ... I will have to print them out and frame them so I can be reminded of what a great kid he can be .... when he's mad at me because I'm making him do his homework or chores!!!

I only took 4 rolls of film and an hours worth of video. I feel like a slacker next to Cass' 28 rolls !! We may have to take up a collection for her so she can get her film ! Geez .. that'll be a bill, girlfriend!

Take care y'all !

 

[funetics]

I must agree with the long line ups! I was not prepared for them. I also was very surprised about the number of people on board. I mistakenly thought since children had just started back to school it would be a little quieter No such luck. We avoided the pools a lot because it was just too crowded to keep a good eye on our DD3.
As for rude parents and children, we experience it too a tee. I even have a ruined formal dress to prove it. Still very upset over it as well. While our DD3 was a big handful at times we did try to not let her run in front of characters, to walk on the ship in the halls and to cover her mouth when she coughed. I know she got her cough standing in line while on little girl coughed, literally, all over her.
We all had a very very magical time and are already planning for back to back Eastern Western cruises.
Nicole

 

[dbcruise]

I was on 1-26 and missed you all ? I could not remember where meet was so never made that .Timom I did think i recognized you from a photo on your site went up to a lady in palos ' brunch and said this may sound crazy but are you timon from the Dis board she said no But i have visited dis boards so i don't think your ? is crazy . Overall it was a great cruise weather,ports of calls . You hit the down sides except for those tiny elevators that you had to stand back a mile to see which one was going to open then you had a 50/50 chance of getting it before it closed or before someone came around the corner and just walked right in !!!! I used the stairs alot ......I wished they would print what charactors would be out when , we saw some several times and others never saw at all and always waited in those lines .I have been sick since Sat am with the worst flu I have ever had but thankgoodness the cruise was bascically over . Over all gave it great rating . Timon I had Atilla from Hungary and Zama from south Africa.as servers . where were your Sasha and Attila from ? Maybe well meet next time Doreen

 

[Timon]

I have to say, it is SO cool to read posts from people you've met before

fishbone: It was our absolute pleasure to share our cruise and silly experiences with you both! We thought about you guys all day Saturday, hoping you got to your plane on time and that you were feeling better. Thanks for the great memories!!!

LisaTxUSA: I am glad we met you and Garrett! I know it's not easy being a single mom (my sister is to my incredible Godson) and I am impressed with how you have raised your son to be such a smart little gentleman! Kudos! You were one of the parents that I admired on that ship!

funetics:It musn't have been easy for you guys with a toddler, but from what I saw, you were wonderful parents to Alyssa. I felt for you guys everyday when we walked by the Mickey and Goofy pools, it was so crowded we couldn't even SEE the pool! Sorry about your dress!!!! That must be some story!

dbcruise: it's too bad we missed you. It was great sharing the cruise with the DISers! Well, at least that lady understood why you were asking HAHA We never did go to Palo, but maybe we bumped into each other one day! We kept an eye out for green ribbons during the whole cruise but never found any others. We gave up on the elevators the first evening on board! I have never climbed so many stairs before!! The elevators were quite ridiculous.


We are thinking about taking advantage of the $99 offer in October for our 4th Anniversary, but it costs us about $1300 CDN just to fly to Orlando, so were not sure about that yet.

It would be great to have our ressies linked next time with DISers, since we've had wonderful luck so far! Maybe we can do a Jan 26th reunion cruise one day

We are both VERY eager to get back on a ship...we wore our DCL shirts on the plane home and got quite a few comments...we told EVERYONE that they HAD to cruise I think we convinced one flight attendant


Looking forward to everyone's trip reports!!!!

 

[LisaTxUsa]

I'm hoping to book the $99 deal for October 10th. As much as I love my kiddo ... he will remain behind on this trip. Me & my best pal will be sailing to enjoy a few 'mommy only' hours (and to commiserate the fact that we both are leaving our 30s this year!)

It'd be way too cool if y'all booked the same time !!

I'll get to do more of the grown up stuff this time around

 

[Timon]

Forgot to add...

Sasha from Croatia was our head server and Attila from Hungary was our Asst. Server. Both were phenomenal!!

If we do go back in the fall, we would be on the October 17th cruise, since that is our Anniversary. I just checked the DCL reservation site and they want over $1100 for this cruise for the two of us! We payed that for the 7 day almost!!! Whew! That $99 deal is looking even better now!

 

[redpants]

Hey dbCruise--here's a little tidbit of info we happened upon accidentally...We asked one of the photographers in Shutters about an upcoming Formal Portrair time, and he whipped out this huge MASTER schedule of the all the photographers on-board, what they were doing, when, and with WHAT CHARACTER!!! Bonanza!

You might want to try that next time you cruise--that way you'll have the insdie info as to when the characetrs will be out!

Good luck!

 

[dbcruise]

Thanks redpants I will remember that and pass it along .I wish they would published that list . Oh well next time we'll know who to ask . Thanks