January 10-14 2010!!! 4 nights on the Wonder

[tinkerbarb]

What will you guys be adding due to the rain? I hadn't even thought about taking something for rain... Ponchos? Raincoats? Ugh... it isn't getting any easier!!

I'm not worried about it at all. Nassau looks like it's changed to 0% or rain from 20%, but in Nassau, if I remember right it seemed like alot of the walk to the port had covered areas. You then get to the "gateway" where taxi drivers will be standing outside. Once there you have to walk thru the shops (it's sort of like getting off a Disney ride.. the irony!!) Then a short walk to your taxi drivers vehicle. I tell my driver that I'm checking into the resort so that I don't get dumped at the marina or the shops at Atlantis but the extra walk is really not that bad depending on where your headed. I prefer the main check in area.

If it rains on Castaway day, I don't care. We'll put on suits and put our stuff in ziplocks and just deal with it. There are GREAT covered areas there as well.

I am bringing raincoats for our days at the parks after the cruise.

 

[tinkerbarb]

Baidoo, maybe we can all go together! We can go with Tough Tour Guide TinkerBarb!

HAHAHA That's too funny!! I'm usually just known as Mike's Mom or That Disney Lady.
I'm sure we'll be having breakfast at Parrots Cay around 8:30-9:00, before we attempt to head out. The blackjack tables don't open till 10am and we'll still be deciding if we're going to take the little guy along. If the weather is bad I'll let him stay and play in kids club while the old farts brave the elements for a few hours of all adult time.
Look for the fat lady with shoulder length curly hair, a short bald guy, and the cutest loudest almost 6yr old you've ever seen.
Actually, all three of us are pretty darn loud.
But we're funny, and have no criminal records... oh let me rephrase that... we have no violent crime records.

 

[tinkerbarb]

PLEASE NOTE that you can do this so much cheaper on your own!!
Take a $10 taxi ride over to Atlantis, then get a $20 a ticket to go thru "The Dig" all on your own, then taxi back.

I've done this on my own with my son and also on my own with my son and elderly Aunt. It's easy cheesy! Taxi fares are posted and you will not be ripped off. If it's not crowded you can go for about $5 each. There are kiosks inside of the resort in the casino and near the front entrance to The Dig that sell the tickets. If you are a TA or a FL resident or a CM be sure to tell them and they will sell you tickets for the "locals" cost of $8.


Tinkerbarb...

I think you've talked me into going with our DD since the price is much better on our own. Maybe I can talk my DH into going as well. He's always nervous going in a taxi in a strange country... worried about being kidnapped, etc.

I just realized that your DD is SIX and guess what?... my DS is turning SIX on this trip!

 

[Baidoo]

Yes. She's really 6.5 turning 7 in July. She doesn't want to go to any of the kids clubs and since this is a shorter cruise we might just let her hang with us, although I'd really like to check out the casino at Atlantis a little while.

She never really liked the kids club on our 7 day cruise. I think she'd love another little girl to play with though. Let's hope they click at the meet.

We'll see you at the meet at 3 p.m. Promenade Lounge, I believe. I might be able to convince my husband to come along. He's not into the FE stuff like we are.

 

[tinkerbarb]

Thank you so much for that offer, we will probably take you up on that!

I just have a couple more questions, lol! I'm looking at the Discover Atlantis description from the website and it's a little different than the one you posted. It doesn't make any mention of the harbor cruise? Just the guided cruise at the Ruins thing. So I'm guessing if we do it on our own it isn't a guided tour? Not that that's a really big deal.

And then it sounds like we can just wander the grounds (less the water attractions, which is fine) after? Cuz it makes mention of going to their beach, which I understand is private unless you have access (which I assume we do, lol?).

Thanks so much for your answers, I just know this place is gigantic and trying to decipher it all, haha!

I believe what they mean by harbor cruise is that they take you to Paradise Island (where Atlantis is located) by ferry boat and I'm sure someone will be pointing out things along the way. I don't care for the water transportaion much because of crowding and possible choppy water conditions... that said the taxi rides are not much better HAHA but they are faster.
The guided tour thru The Dig (the ruins) will be a group type deal with someone possibly speaking.. if your in the back of the group you cannot hear and you get a full guide map with information when you purchase tickets anyhow.
So we just do that on our own and at our own pace and leisure.
The grounds are amazing to see and you will see most of it while looking at the marine exhibit (ie the dig, the ruins). You have to wander off the beaten path to see the Dolphin beach (behind the main tower) but you can have a look at their beach (you'll walk over a little bridge while doing a large loop of walking to see the exhibit) if you want, but you're not really supposed to "use" their beach. Meaning this.. all beaches are considered "public" even theirs up to the high tide mark. They will not let you use their chairs and some have been rufused at the bar, but you sure as heck can put your toes in the water and sit in the sand.
If it turns out to be a nice day (warm enough for the water) you can just walk from Atlantis to the Cabbage Beach public entrance(next to the RIU), or take a $1 taxi. Then you'll follow the path over the Dune and down to the beach. You can rent a chair/umbrella from the local vendors. There's no amenities or bathrooms. Pack some snacks from the boat.
There are taxis there all the time.

 

[EllaEnchanted]

We made it! We're here! We flew down yesterday and the flight was fine.....uneventful really. Then we stepped off the plane and FROZE our butts off. We're still freezing. We have on long pants and a warm shirt with a light jacket and it's not enough. The heat in the hotel is not good either. We need our snow gear to exist comfortably down here. So be forewarned, bring winter clothing. It's FREEZING here.

 

[tinkerbarb]

We made it! We're here! We flew down yesterday and the flight was fine.....uneventful really. Then we stepped off the plane and FROZE our butts off. We're still freezing. We have on long pants and a warm shirt with a light jacket and it's not enough. The heat in the hotel is not good either. We need our snow gear to exist comfortably down here. So be forewarned, bring winter clothing. It's FREEZING here.

Hopefully it's just part of the front we are all dealing with on the East Coast right now. I'm actually going to have to drive thru ice and snow in Jacksonville on my way down from South Carolina!! That is not the norm believe me!! The extended forecast looks really good for Orlando next week, should be in the mid 70's. If the extended is right, we'll be warmer in Orlando after the cruise than we will be in the Bahamas!! Go Figure!! hahaha

 

[maberlyne]

We just got here, too! We got upgraded from the airport hotel we booked to its neighbor... suites! We have a one bedroom suite and we feel so fancy!

Now we're just trying to figure out what time to head back to the airport tomorrow for transportation to the cruise... I'm thinking about 9-10? I think that's what I read!

 

[maberlyne]

Just FYI, my friend and I will be in 2050. Tinkerbarb, we will try to meet up
with you tomorrow probably... I think I'll try to look up your stateroom and maybe give you a call!

 

[natale1980]

hey guys! We had lots of fun! Thanks for all the gifts.
did anyone else see the shark at Castaway Cay? It was AWESOME

 

[andrewsmommy]

The FE gifts were awesome - it really made the kids SO excited.

Didn't see a shark, but did see 2 whales while out parasailing!

 

[HallsofVA]

Made it back home tonight without any problems. Spent the day in Downtown Disney to celebrate DS' 6th birthday before catching our afternoon flight.

We had an awesome cruise! We were glad we got to meet some of you guys in person. The fish extender gifts were awesome. Cool, practical, beautiful, and absolutely amazing! What a creative bunch!

Though this was our 4th Disney cruise, it was our 1st time for so many things. Here are just some of the firsts this cruise represented for us.

Our first time....
...on Wonder
...sailing outside of December
...sailing outside of the Christmas holiday period
...on cruise shorter than 7 days
...sailing without other friends and family on the ship with us
...sailing in the room that we booked
...on a deck other than Deck 8
...not in a concierge suite
...staying on the ship at a port and not getting off at all
...not doing dinner at Palo
...winning something! (I won $300 OBC at a DVC presentation)
...not ordering the wine package
...venturing past the Conched Out Bar and seeing the rest of Castaway Cay (including bike riding)
...seeing the Adult beach on Castaway Cay (though we still didn't get to enjoy it)
...parking a car at the port (got a super cheap rental car for the full trip, which made it cheaper to park at the port than to do two rentals)
...having every meal served to us on a cruise, including all buffets even brunch at Palo
...combining a WDW visit with a cruise
...seeing the fireworks and pirate party live with my whole family there
...seeing and experiencing the late night buffets outside the adult areas and clubs

There are many others I'm sure, but those are some I can think of for now.

 

[AnnMarBill]

THANK YOU so much for all the wonderful FE gifts! DD had a blast coming to the room and seeing all the goodies left for her!

 

[mommy2paris]

Thanks for the fun with the FE gifts! The girls were so excited to come back to the room and see everything! So were Mommy & Daddy, lol!

On a sadder note, both of our girls contracted the GI Virus that was going around the boat... 3 visits to the ship medical office and we spent 48 hours isolated in our tiny cabin, cleaning up vomit and poop... It really put a damper on things, but they did enjoy the little bit we got to do and loved the time they spent in the kids club.

Thankfully they were feeling better by the time we got off on Thursday and we got to spend a few fun, warmer days in Disney. We stayed at Caribbean beach resort for the first time and loved it! I would definetely recommend it to anyone wanting to give it a try.

Hope everyone has a great year!!

 

[HallsofVA]

Thanks for the fun with the FE gifts! The girls were so excited to come back to the room and see everything! So were Mommy & Daddy, lol!

On a sadder note, both of our girls contracted the GI Virus that was going around the boat... 3 visits to the ship medical office and we spent 48 hours isolated in our tiny cabin, cleaning up vomit and poop... It really put a damper on things, but they did enjoy the little bit we got to do and loved the time they spent in the kids club.

Thankfully they were feeling better by the time we got off on Thursday and we got to spend a few fun, warmer days in Disney. We stayed at Caribbean beach resort for the first time and loved it! I would definetely recommend it to anyone wanting to give it a try.

Hope everyone has a great year!!

So sad to hear your little ones were ill. That can't have been any fun! Glad they were better by the end to enjoy the Disney World days.

 

[Baidoo]

Hi All,

Thank you, thank you, thank you for all the FE gifts. They were truly amazing! We were so excited going back to the room and enjoying all the creative and cool stuff.

Sorry to hear about the sick little girls. We're glad they got better to enjoy the rest of the trip.

We ventured to Atlantis at Nassau and enjoyed the beautiful grounds. We thought the Wonder was good although think the 7-day Magic cruise was better. Our DD enjoyed all the fish she saw at Castaway Cay. We were a couple of the crazy people swimming in the cold ocean. What was very good is that we were one of the first ones off the boat and enjoyed the beach without a crowd.

Glad it warmed up and we enjoyed the Magic Kingdom and Epcot for a few days after the trip. Flights, Blue Tree Resort and rental car experiences were all excellent. And to top it off when we came home to Wisconsin, it was 38 degrees out! Nice way to ease back into the daily routine.

Thank you all for a very enjoyable cruise! We also enjoyed being in room 2058 and highly recommend it for future cruisers. It was close to everything, very quiet, and with the cool weather, we didn't miss not having the verandah.

The juggler-comedian the last night was great!

Hope to be cruising again some time in the future with such a nice FE group!

 

[roxyrose]

Thank you everyone for the great FE gifts. When I was out delivering some I had a man stop me to say what a great thing we we doing. He said twice he passed little kids coming back to their rooms and squealing with delight.

We wound up having a memorable trip both with 'incidences' and a lot of laughs. We got lost several times (thank you mapquest), lost and recovered a wallet, lost and recovered a suitcase (between leaving the ship and getting to the resort), had our stateroom flooded on the day at sea (which also included no water or electricity and not being able to get back in the room until 5:00), endured the record cold day at the Magic Kingdom the Saturday before the cruise, lost a camera at CC (didn't recover that).

Sorry to hear about all the people who got sick on or after the cruise. At least we didn't have to deal with that on top of everything else.

 

[natale1980]

Thanks for the fun with the FE gifts! The girls were so excited to come back to the room and see everything! So were Mommy & Daddy, lol!

On a sadder note, both of our girls contracted the GI Virus that was going around the boat... 3 visits to the ship medical office and we spent 48 hours isolated in our tiny cabin, cleaning up vomit and poop... It really put a damper on things, but they did enjoy the little bit we got to do and loved the time they spent in the kids club.

Thankfully they were feeling better by the time we got off on Thursday and we got to spend a few fun, warmer days in Disney. We stayed at Caribbean beach resort for the first time and loved it! I would definetely recommend it to anyone wanting to give it a try.

Hope everyone has a great year!!

We all got sick too. Skylar was sick on the ship, but it wasn't too bad. But once we got off it was all down hill. We spent alot of time in our resort. Good thing it was Bay Lake Towers.

Ours was like 8-12 hours of being really sick (each) and then slowly getting better. Now we all have colds.

The cruise was AWESOME! And the FE was so much fun! Thanks everyone!

-nat

 

[natale1980]

had our stateroom flooded on the day at sea (which also included no water or electricity and not being able to get back in the room until 5:00).

Can't believe they didn't give you a new room.
So... did they at least give you a really good discount on your next cruise?

-nat

 

[roxyrose]

We had a Palo brunch res at 10:30 and when we tried to go back after that the carpet and bed was torn up in the room, so we couldn't go in. We went to a movie and wondered around for a little while, my DH went to cust. service at about 3 and they gave us another room to rest in. When we finally got back to our room there was a message that they had another room for us, but they left it after we had already left for Palo and we couldn't get back into the room to hear it.

We wound up getting our spa services (rainforest package for 2) and brunch paid for. Plus when we got back in the room there was a bottle of wine, tray of goodies, and arcade cards for the kids. We later got a call from one of management asking if they could send us a 20% card good for our next cruise if used in 2 years