July 31 2008 Disney Wonder Roll Call 07/31/08

[MTMom]

Just wondering if anyone else is sailing on the 3-day Disney Wonder cruise on July 31, 2008.

 

[mizcolon]

Hello there... myself, my DH and 2 DD will be on dinsey wonder 7/31!!

 

[MTMom]

Yea!!! I was beginning to think that our family was going to have the entire ship to ourselves! How old are your DD's? We have a 14 yr old DD and a 12 yr old DS. We have sailed twice before on Disney and have always had a fantastic time!

 

[mizcolon]

I was starting to think he same!!!

This is our first Disney cruise..so we are newbies!!

DD's are:

5 and 3...

 

[ssandy]

Hello!
My family will also be cruising on the Wonder on July 31st! That includes myself, my mother, and my DS12 and DD10. We have never been on a cruise before and are super excited! We are doing the Land and Sea vacation and are staying at Animal Kingdom Lodge before the cruise. This is my DS & DD's first trip to Disney World, their first time seeing the ocean (we live in northern MN so lots of lakes) and their first time on an airplane!

 

[MTMom]

Hey ssandy!

We are also doing a Land and Sea. We are staying at Universal's Portofino for our first 3 nights, then on to Disney's Beach Club for the next 4 nights, followed by our 3 night cruise. We will be at WDW at the same time as you, although not at the same resort. We have never stayed at the Animal Kingdom Lodge, but I hear it's wonderful! Our sons are the same age, so I'm sure they'll meet in the Oceaneer's Lab on board ship. We've cruised 4 times, 2 of those being with DCL. I prefer DCL over any other cruise line, for many, many reasons! I am looking forward to getting to know you and the other cruisers who are sailing on July 31st!

Only 6 weeks to go!

 

[ssandy]

Both of my children, especially my DD, really love animals which is why we chose AKL. I am a little worried because of the ongoing construction , but am hoping that it won't be too bad. MTMom, does your son really enjoy the Oceaneer's Lab and do you let him check in and out by himself? I'm leaning towards giving my son that option, but am a little concerned because of the size of the ship.
On another topic, did anyone plan any shore excursions? We are scheduled for Discover Atlantis at Nassau and the Extreme Getaway Package at Castaway Cay. Any thoughts/reviews would be great!

 

[MTMom]

ssandy,
I let my son check himself in and out of the kids club. I don't worry about my kids when we are on board the ship. I feel that it's a very safe environment for them, and I worry more about the other passengers and the ship itself (when encountering my children)!

As far as the excursions, the only drawback (IMPO) to the Discover Atlantis is that it doesn't include access to the pools and water park. If my kids got a glimpse of the amazing swimming area with all the waterfalls and slides, but couldn't get in, they'd be very disappointed and would develop "pouty spoiled vacation child syndrome". But yours might be different, that's just my personal take on the DA excursion.

You can't go wrong with the Extreme Getaway package at CC. It's my absolute favorite place in the entire world, and the only excursions I would personally avoid while in CC would be those that took me away from the island for a long period of time (like deep sea fishing).

I hope I've helped you out! Keep in touch, it won't be long before we're sailing!!!!

 

[ssandy]

I'll definitely keep in touch! I love having the chance to get to know some of the other cruisers that will be sharing our "dream vacation"!

We chose Discover Atlantis because I thought the kids would enjoy the aquarium and because my mother would participate with us (she doesn't swim much and I don't think she's a big fan of waterslides). I didn't think about the kids being disappointed that they couldn't do more. I guess I'll just talk to them about it and hope for the best. I can't wait for CC - from everyone's pictures and trip reports it just looks and sounds beautiful!

I do feel pretty comfortable allowing sign out privileges for my DS. I don't think I will for my DD, however. She will have just turned 10 and she has ASD. I think that overall she will do fine, but there are always some lingering concerns.

Thanks so much for your quick - and very helpful - replies!

 

[tngal]

Hello fellow cruisers!! Myself, DH, and 2 DD's ages 4 and 10 will be sailing on the Disney Wonder this date! It is their first cruise ever, my 2nd cruise. None of us has ever sailed with Disney, so we are super excited and looking forward to it!! Can't wait! It will be their first time seeing the ocean also!

Lisa

 

[MTMom]

Welcome Lisa!

You are the 4th DIS-er to join the group. So far, our group has the following people:

MTMom - DW-44, DH-42, DD-14 and DS-12 (Arkansas)
ssandy - DD (adult), DM, DS-12 and DD - 10 (Minnesota)
mizcolon - DW, DH, DD-5 and DD - 3 (Georgia)
tngal - DW, DH, DD-10 and DD-4

Are you from Tennessee? I thought maybe "tngal" meant Tennessee. If so, where in TN are you from? We live just across the river from Memphis in Arkansas.

Welcome and we look forward to getting to know you! I am getting so excited about our upcoming Disney vacation, I know that you must be also. Are you spending time at WDW prior to your cruise?

 

[MTMom]

Would anyone in our little group (which I am sure will get bigger over the next month) be interested in meeting while on the ship? I've found that an informal get-together for drinks works well. What do you think?

 

[Steve's Wife]

Hi there!
We finally found something we wanted to do with our developer points. . . and booked this cruise this morning. It's just DH Steve and me, but we're really looking forward to it.

Lori

 

[tngal]

Welcome Lisa!

You are the 4th DIS-er to join the group. So far, our group has the following people:

MTMom - DW-44, DH-42, DD-14 and DS-12 (Arkansas)
ssandy - DD (adult), DM, DS-12 and DD - 10 (Minnesota)
mizcolon - DW, DH, DD-5 and DD - 3 (Georgia)
tngal - DW, DH, DD-10 and DD-4

Are you from Tennessee? I thought maybe "tngal" meant Tennessee. If so, where in TN are you from? We live just across the river from Memphis in Arkansas.

Welcome and we look forward to getting to know you! I am getting so excited about our upcoming Disney vacation, I know that you must be also. Are you spending time at WDW prior to your cruise?

Hi and thanks for the welcome! Yes, I am from TN but I'm from Southeast tn, close to Chattanooga. I am getting very excited about our upcoming cruise. I don't know who's more excited, myself or my kids!! We are not going to WDW, just doing the cruise for now. Looking forward to getting to know all of you too. Won't be long until we sail!!!!

 

[MTMom]

So far, this is what our group looks like:

MTMom - DW-Annetta,44, DH-Lance,42, DD-Lindsay,14 and DS-Luke,12 (Helena, Arkansas)
ssandy - DD (adult), DM, DS-12 and DD - 10 (Minnesota)
mizcolon - DW, DH, DD-5 and DD - 3 (Dallas, Georgia)
tngal - DW, DH, DD-10 and DD-4 (Chattanooga, TN)
Steve's Wife - DH - Steve, DW - Lori (Evergreen Park, IL)

Has everyone made their Palo reservations? We have ours booked for the last night. It's not to be missed!

I have a document that I've compiled with all the best DCL tips (IMPO) I've read over the past few months. I just copied and pasted while I was on the boards. If anyone would like a copy, I can email it to them, or PM it, or post it. Just let me know.

Annetta

 

[Steve's Wife]

MTMom -- you are sooo right about Palo. We have reservations for Friday night -- can't wait!

Lori

 

[mizcolon]

I have Palo Sat @8pm..

 

[mizcolon]

Has anyone gotten upgraded yet?

 

[tngal]

Getting closer! Cant wait! I haven't gotten upgraded yet, but then I don't expect to, lol. Is anyone staying in Cape Canavaral the night before?

Lisa



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[MTMom]

Hi everyone!

I doubt we'll get upgraded either, we booked a specific cabin number. It's one of those "secret porthole" cabins. We are not staying in Port Canaveral, we'll be coming from WDW. The cruise is actually the end of a 10-day trip for us (3 days Universal, 4 days WDW, 3 day cruise).

tngal - are you and your family staying in PC the night before? Are ya'll flying or driving?

mizcolon - our Palo reservations are same night and time! Did you get the tips?

Not much longer till we sail!!!

Annetta