calmom
Just a dream and a wind to carry me...
- Joined
- Jul 2, 2005
- Messages
- 2,159
So we just got back and had a great time! Here are some of the details -
ABOUT US: We were a party of 19, grandparents, siblings, and 9 grandchildren (ages 1-10). Most of our party were on deck 2, my DH, 3 DS were on deck 8.
ON BOARD - We arrived around 10:00-10:15. We had rented a SUV limo to drop us off. That way, the kids could hang out and play in the limo while I checked in. This was our trick in checking in - the first time I tried to get through, they asked if my whole party was with me. I said no, they were in the car. They told me I couldn't check in until we were all here. I walked away and watched - at the door, they ask that question and then ask to see your ticket booklet. So I then went back (to another person at the door). They asked if my party was here, I said it was just me, and then showed my ticket. They waived me in. I then received my boarding number (4). I went upstairs and checked-in - to check in the cruise, they only want one person so it was fine it was just me. I showed all the birth certificates and passports, and received our room/charge keys. I then went back outside and joined my husband and children. By then, the rest of our party arrived and we all entered together around 11am.
CHILDREN CHECK-IN - You need your children to check in in order to get their wrist bands. Under 3 needs to check in on board. There are two lines - "on-line registration" and "pre-registration." That was kinda confusing because we pre-registered on-line! It seemed like you could go in either line, but technically those that registered on-line go to "on-line registration" line. You can check-in without your children, but then once on board you will need to check in to get the wrist bands.
PALO - Palo was booked by 12:30, so if you want to plan around your dinner and couldn't get it on-line - get on board early and go straight to deck 3 Rockin Bar to sign up. We weren't paying attention and went all the way to Palo's - which is closed and says to go to deck 3. The good news is that everyone I know that put their name on a waiting list got called and got a reservation. So even if you get on late, it is worthwhile to go and get your name on the list. By the way, the dinner was EXCELLENT! We weren't a huge fan of the food in the other dining areas (not complaining, just not the same as Celebrity and RCCL in our opinion). But Palo was a highlight. The manager was great - he talked to us for awhile and told us how the west coast cruise had a very different clientelle then the east coast cruises. He mentioned in the main dining areas, they tried to offer more cuisine that "Californians" would enjoy since the majority of the guests were from California. So hence - some attempts for asian fusion menu items in the main dining areas that I don't think quite made the mark. But Palo's - Excellent! Quick fact - the $10 fee is not a tip fee. It does not go to your server. You should tip on top of that. We heard people tip from $10-$30+ per couple. So our meal for 2 at Palo's was $50.
CLUB/LAB/NURSERY- In our party, half the kids enjoyed the club/lab activities at least once a day, the other half didn't get into it at all. We really enjoyed the nursery. We went there right away to see if we could book more since we booked 10 hours on line. They won't let you book anymore, but you can get on a wait list. You have to give specific times for wait list (like 10am-12pm on Wednesday instead of "anytime on Wed"). We got all our times we put down for wait listed, and also throughout the week would call to see if there was an hour opening here or there and they were able to fit him in. Excellent care - felt so much more secure than using in cabin babysitting on RCCL. One of my sons participated in the performance on the last day of the cruise - he got a t-shirt and hat. I went to pick him up and got a t-shirt for my other son who didn't want to partipicate. They ran out of hats. I'd encourage your kids to participate - they just need to check in around an hour before the performance, and then they get to go up on the big Walt Disney stage. Plus they get their t-shirts and hats.
CABINS - Those in our party really enjoyed their cabins on deck 2 - it was nice to have the two separate sinks. 5 were in the "noisy" adjoining rooms - 2146 &2148. It did have some engine noise. Others were further in the center - 2626 & 2628. It was quieter there. We like our cat 4, 8012. It was quiet except trying to get our 2 year old to sleep! It was nice to be next to the elevator, however I would have prefered to have been aft instead of forward. It would have been nicer to be closer to the Mickey pool & topsiders; some other points: the "trunk" area people talk about is really a dresser with shelves. When you have 5 people sleeping, the bed comes down and blocks you from opening it. We didn't realize that and put all the kids clothes in that. Big mistake - so every night we would have to pick out the clothes for the next day and take them out of the trunk dresser. We couldn't get in the trunk until after the cabin was cleaned. I do wish we brought the over the door shoe hanger I read about. I wish we brought more bathing suits - it always took more time than we thought for them to dry, and I never made the trip to the laundry area.
SHOWS - By far, the best from any of the cruise lines we have been on (RCCL, Celebrity, NCL, Princess). Very entertaining (except the last show - the Disney part was great, but the guest performers weren't as good as the ones that started the cruise). We went to one of the matinees and it was very relaxing - a lot more seats available so no stress about getting a good seat. A lot of the shows they have performers running down the aisle, so we tended to sit on the aisle so the kids could be close to them. All our kids in our group (2-10) loved the shows. But more impressive - all the adults loved them too!
POOL - So my 2 1/2 year LOVES to swim and has never had an accident. Plus, we always triple protect him (disposable swim diaper, plastic swim diaper, swim suit). So I was pretty upset about the whole no children in diaper can swim. My son actually is somewhat potty-trained, but I like a diaper on in the pool "just in case." The fountain area in the Mickey pool is like a bake sauna - just enough water to keep them nice and damp to get burned, but not enough to really play with. When we first went to the pool, my son just walked into the main pool area himself. He swam around, then got out and went to the little pool in one mickey ear. I watched as the CM just eyed him waiting for some parent to "own" him so she could tell them he needs to get out. He was able to lay low for awhile, but then he came over to me and she said he had to stay in the fountain. The next day, we went to goofy and spent the morning swimming there. No CM watching there. The next day, we went to the fountain area, and then he jumped in the mickey pool. I went in and got him (the CM was starring). I then brought him over to Goofy pool. Within 30 minutes, the CM was then at the goofy pool - I was a bit paronoid and thought maybe she was following us! I mention all this for those that are traveling with a swimming toddler so they know what to expect. I wish Disney would at least make the small pool area in the other Mickey ear for toddler's too. It is shame they can't swim. Regarding the Mickey pool - it is only a foot or so deep, so older children really can't swim. The goofy pool is around 3-4 ft deep. That pool was usually pretty packed on sea days.
FOOD - as I mentioned, the food wasn't 5 star, but we didn't expect it. I never ate the pizza by the poolside, but was so glad it was there for the kids. Food was always available for kids - chicken nuggets, pizza, tacos, hot dogs. That was just great! I would much rather have 3-4 star food and have my kids be happy during dinner than have 5 star with nothing for the kids to eat. I don't mean to say the food is bad - it just wasn't (for us) on the same level as some other cruise lines. It was simliar to NCL - but not Celebrity. Some of it might be them trying to change the menu for the west coast - so maybe it is differet (better) on the east coast.
WEATHER - We have done the mexican cruise before and weather has been better. However, it always seems like it is a bit chilly the first day, and then the last day is a bit chilly and windy. This trip, we did get more overcast weather and some rain during the cruise, mostly in P.V. Mazatlan was cloudy in the morning, then warmed up. Cabo was nice, a bit cooler than Mazatlan but still nice beach weather. We never needed a sweater - it wasn't that cold (except depart day). Just not clear skies.
SHORE EXCURSIONS - We went on the pirate tour in P.V. and loved it! http*//www*marigalante*com*mx . We had heard some horror stories about people getting sick. It was a bit rocky (it is a boat). But nothing extreme. It was raining off and on that day, but they have tents to cover the ship we were covered. It was pretty warm, so the rain wasn't terrible - it kept us from baking too much. But it was pretty overcast. From the moment you board the pirate ship, the entertainment begins. The service was great - very first class in my opinion. It was about 2 hours to get to the beach area. You take smaller boats in - this would be a tough trip for those w/physical disabilities. At least on the day we went - it was a little rough to get in and out of the smaller boat. We decided not to snorkel as the crew said there were a lot of jellyfish out, and it wasn't recommended for children. Some people did feel a little sick (overhead) from the ride to the beach. We did fine - one of our parties had a patch. But like I said, it is a boat and I don't know many boats that travel for 2 hours that aren't going to rock back and forth. So if you tend to get motion sickness and medicine doesn't help, than I wouldn't take this trip. But if medicine helps, or you normally do fine - in my opinion, you should be fine. The bathrooms on the pirate boat were nicer than I thought - there were about 5 in the women's bathroom. There are no bathrooms on the beach. The beach was a bit chaotic, mostly because of the occasional rain (towels getting wet). There are a few canopies, and a handful of chairs. So it does pay to be one of the first people off to the beach. If you want to go snorkeling, you will wait until the end to get off the pirate ship as they take you on the smaller boat to a cove area for about 40 minutes, then will take you to the beach. After 2 hours on the beach, we returned to the pirate ship. There was another show, with audience participation. The staff went around constantly asking if anyone wanted anything to drink. They said the ice was from a filtered system. No one got sick from the ice or food, as far as I know. There was some people who got to eat in the main deck in a room towards the back. I think it was a first come, first serve situation with that. We ate down below (where the buffet breakfast was). The food was good - ribs and chicken, corn, salad. There were a lot of fans so it was well ventilated. You can book this tour directly with the company to save money, but by the time we learned of that it was sold out. I had read that Disney was mad they sold tickets outside of their group, so not sure if Disney is going to make them cancel those reservations made already. There was nobody on our trip that wasn't from Disney. You might want to keep double checking with the company if you made them direct to make sure they will honor your reservation. Disney doesn't allow under 5, but the company does. So if you book direct, you could bring a toddler for free. That being said, I was glad we didn't bring our 2 year old. It would have been tough to have to watch him. It really isn't a great tour for toddlers. Getting in and out of the little boats to the beach would have been tough with him.
In Mazatlan, we arranged a head of time through email for a half-day rate at Pueblo Bonito hotel. We have stayed there before - it has a nice beach area, great pool with swim up bar that the kids loved (you swim under a waterfall). The rate was 50% off their normal rate, so it ended up around $90. We got a room, 5 free drink coupon and 10% off of all the food/drinks we got. We have gone here before from a cruise and just crashed - paid the towel person $20 for towels, and sat by the pool. This was more relaxing, and it was nice to have a room to shower in after swimming. My 7 year old did get stung by jellyfish, and was only walking along the beach. Hopefully they will be going away soon.
Cabo - we did this on our own, took a water taxi tour of the caves/lover's beach/arch; he drop us off at the beach and then he came back later to return us to the port. It cost $25 for 2 adults, 3 children.
DEPART - they will give you a set time to go to sit down breakfast. You are suppose to be out of your room before breakfast. Around 8:15, they started to call groups to disembark. We had an early seating at Lum, so we had a 8am breakfast time. After breakfast, I went up to check out our room for next cruise (aft balcony on deck 7, handicap room for mother-in-law). I also went to look at the Walt Disney suite and 2 bedroom suites - they were great! We are waitlisted for the 2 bedroom for our next cruise - although we might need to sell a car to pay for it!
We were called around 9am, left the ship around 9:30am, found our luggage and was on our shuttle back to the airport by 10am.
Great cruise, we have our next one booked for Nov 2006 and are very excited!
ABOUT US: We were a party of 19, grandparents, siblings, and 9 grandchildren (ages 1-10). Most of our party were on deck 2, my DH, 3 DS were on deck 8.
ON BOARD - We arrived around 10:00-10:15. We had rented a SUV limo to drop us off. That way, the kids could hang out and play in the limo while I checked in. This was our trick in checking in - the first time I tried to get through, they asked if my whole party was with me. I said no, they were in the car. They told me I couldn't check in until we were all here. I walked away and watched - at the door, they ask that question and then ask to see your ticket booklet. So I then went back (to another person at the door). They asked if my party was here, I said it was just me, and then showed my ticket. They waived me in. I then received my boarding number (4). I went upstairs and checked-in - to check in the cruise, they only want one person so it was fine it was just me. I showed all the birth certificates and passports, and received our room/charge keys. I then went back outside and joined my husband and children. By then, the rest of our party arrived and we all entered together around 11am.
CHILDREN CHECK-IN - You need your children to check in in order to get their wrist bands. Under 3 needs to check in on board. There are two lines - "on-line registration" and "pre-registration." That was kinda confusing because we pre-registered on-line! It seemed like you could go in either line, but technically those that registered on-line go to "on-line registration" line. You can check-in without your children, but then once on board you will need to check in to get the wrist bands.
PALO - Palo was booked by 12:30, so if you want to plan around your dinner and couldn't get it on-line - get on board early and go straight to deck 3 Rockin Bar to sign up. We weren't paying attention and went all the way to Palo's - which is closed and says to go to deck 3. The good news is that everyone I know that put their name on a waiting list got called and got a reservation. So even if you get on late, it is worthwhile to go and get your name on the list. By the way, the dinner was EXCELLENT! We weren't a huge fan of the food in the other dining areas (not complaining, just not the same as Celebrity and RCCL in our opinion). But Palo was a highlight. The manager was great - he talked to us for awhile and told us how the west coast cruise had a very different clientelle then the east coast cruises. He mentioned in the main dining areas, they tried to offer more cuisine that "Californians" would enjoy since the majority of the guests were from California. So hence - some attempts for asian fusion menu items in the main dining areas that I don't think quite made the mark. But Palo's - Excellent! Quick fact - the $10 fee is not a tip fee. It does not go to your server. You should tip on top of that. We heard people tip from $10-$30+ per couple. So our meal for 2 at Palo's was $50.
CLUB/LAB/NURSERY- In our party, half the kids enjoyed the club/lab activities at least once a day, the other half didn't get into it at all. We really enjoyed the nursery. We went there right away to see if we could book more since we booked 10 hours on line. They won't let you book anymore, but you can get on a wait list. You have to give specific times for wait list (like 10am-12pm on Wednesday instead of "anytime on Wed"). We got all our times we put down for wait listed, and also throughout the week would call to see if there was an hour opening here or there and they were able to fit him in. Excellent care - felt so much more secure than using in cabin babysitting on RCCL. One of my sons participated in the performance on the last day of the cruise - he got a t-shirt and hat. I went to pick him up and got a t-shirt for my other son who didn't want to partipicate. They ran out of hats. I'd encourage your kids to participate - they just need to check in around an hour before the performance, and then they get to go up on the big Walt Disney stage. Plus they get their t-shirts and hats.
CABINS - Those in our party really enjoyed their cabins on deck 2 - it was nice to have the two separate sinks. 5 were in the "noisy" adjoining rooms - 2146 &2148. It did have some engine noise. Others were further in the center - 2626 & 2628. It was quieter there. We like our cat 4, 8012. It was quiet except trying to get our 2 year old to sleep! It was nice to be next to the elevator, however I would have prefered to have been aft instead of forward. It would have been nicer to be closer to the Mickey pool & topsiders; some other points: the "trunk" area people talk about is really a dresser with shelves. When you have 5 people sleeping, the bed comes down and blocks you from opening it. We didn't realize that and put all the kids clothes in that. Big mistake - so every night we would have to pick out the clothes for the next day and take them out of the trunk dresser. We couldn't get in the trunk until after the cabin was cleaned. I do wish we brought the over the door shoe hanger I read about. I wish we brought more bathing suits - it always took more time than we thought for them to dry, and I never made the trip to the laundry area.
SHOWS - By far, the best from any of the cruise lines we have been on (RCCL, Celebrity, NCL, Princess). Very entertaining (except the last show - the Disney part was great, but the guest performers weren't as good as the ones that started the cruise). We went to one of the matinees and it was very relaxing - a lot more seats available so no stress about getting a good seat. A lot of the shows they have performers running down the aisle, so we tended to sit on the aisle so the kids could be close to them. All our kids in our group (2-10) loved the shows. But more impressive - all the adults loved them too!
POOL - So my 2 1/2 year LOVES to swim and has never had an accident. Plus, we always triple protect him (disposable swim diaper, plastic swim diaper, swim suit). So I was pretty upset about the whole no children in diaper can swim. My son actually is somewhat potty-trained, but I like a diaper on in the pool "just in case." The fountain area in the Mickey pool is like a bake sauna - just enough water to keep them nice and damp to get burned, but not enough to really play with. When we first went to the pool, my son just walked into the main pool area himself. He swam around, then got out and went to the little pool in one mickey ear. I watched as the CM just eyed him waiting for some parent to "own" him so she could tell them he needs to get out. He was able to lay low for awhile, but then he came over to me and she said he had to stay in the fountain. The next day, we went to goofy and spent the morning swimming there. No CM watching there. The next day, we went to the fountain area, and then he jumped in the mickey pool. I went in and got him (the CM was starring). I then brought him over to Goofy pool. Within 30 minutes, the CM was then at the goofy pool - I was a bit paronoid and thought maybe she was following us! I mention all this for those that are traveling with a swimming toddler so they know what to expect. I wish Disney would at least make the small pool area in the other Mickey ear for toddler's too. It is shame they can't swim. Regarding the Mickey pool - it is only a foot or so deep, so older children really can't swim. The goofy pool is around 3-4 ft deep. That pool was usually pretty packed on sea days.
FOOD - as I mentioned, the food wasn't 5 star, but we didn't expect it. I never ate the pizza by the poolside, but was so glad it was there for the kids. Food was always available for kids - chicken nuggets, pizza, tacos, hot dogs. That was just great! I would much rather have 3-4 star food and have my kids be happy during dinner than have 5 star with nothing for the kids to eat. I don't mean to say the food is bad - it just wasn't (for us) on the same level as some other cruise lines. It was simliar to NCL - but not Celebrity. Some of it might be them trying to change the menu for the west coast - so maybe it is differet (better) on the east coast.
WEATHER - We have done the mexican cruise before and weather has been better. However, it always seems like it is a bit chilly the first day, and then the last day is a bit chilly and windy. This trip, we did get more overcast weather and some rain during the cruise, mostly in P.V. Mazatlan was cloudy in the morning, then warmed up. Cabo was nice, a bit cooler than Mazatlan but still nice beach weather. We never needed a sweater - it wasn't that cold (except depart day). Just not clear skies.
SHORE EXCURSIONS - We went on the pirate tour in P.V. and loved it! http*//www*marigalante*com*mx . We had heard some horror stories about people getting sick. It was a bit rocky (it is a boat). But nothing extreme. It was raining off and on that day, but they have tents to cover the ship we were covered. It was pretty warm, so the rain wasn't terrible - it kept us from baking too much. But it was pretty overcast. From the moment you board the pirate ship, the entertainment begins. The service was great - very first class in my opinion. It was about 2 hours to get to the beach area. You take smaller boats in - this would be a tough trip for those w/physical disabilities. At least on the day we went - it was a little rough to get in and out of the smaller boat. We decided not to snorkel as the crew said there were a lot of jellyfish out, and it wasn't recommended for children. Some people did feel a little sick (overhead) from the ride to the beach. We did fine - one of our parties had a patch. But like I said, it is a boat and I don't know many boats that travel for 2 hours that aren't going to rock back and forth. So if you tend to get motion sickness and medicine doesn't help, than I wouldn't take this trip. But if medicine helps, or you normally do fine - in my opinion, you should be fine. The bathrooms on the pirate boat were nicer than I thought - there were about 5 in the women's bathroom. There are no bathrooms on the beach. The beach was a bit chaotic, mostly because of the occasional rain (towels getting wet). There are a few canopies, and a handful of chairs. So it does pay to be one of the first people off to the beach. If you want to go snorkeling, you will wait until the end to get off the pirate ship as they take you on the smaller boat to a cove area for about 40 minutes, then will take you to the beach. After 2 hours on the beach, we returned to the pirate ship. There was another show, with audience participation. The staff went around constantly asking if anyone wanted anything to drink. They said the ice was from a filtered system. No one got sick from the ice or food, as far as I know. There was some people who got to eat in the main deck in a room towards the back. I think it was a first come, first serve situation with that. We ate down below (where the buffet breakfast was). The food was good - ribs and chicken, corn, salad. There were a lot of fans so it was well ventilated. You can book this tour directly with the company to save money, but by the time we learned of that it was sold out. I had read that Disney was mad they sold tickets outside of their group, so not sure if Disney is going to make them cancel those reservations made already. There was nobody on our trip that wasn't from Disney. You might want to keep double checking with the company if you made them direct to make sure they will honor your reservation. Disney doesn't allow under 5, but the company does. So if you book direct, you could bring a toddler for free. That being said, I was glad we didn't bring our 2 year old. It would have been tough to have to watch him. It really isn't a great tour for toddlers. Getting in and out of the little boats to the beach would have been tough with him.
In Mazatlan, we arranged a head of time through email for a half-day rate at Pueblo Bonito hotel. We have stayed there before - it has a nice beach area, great pool with swim up bar that the kids loved (you swim under a waterfall). The rate was 50% off their normal rate, so it ended up around $90. We got a room, 5 free drink coupon and 10% off of all the food/drinks we got. We have gone here before from a cruise and just crashed - paid the towel person $20 for towels, and sat by the pool. This was more relaxing, and it was nice to have a room to shower in after swimming. My 7 year old did get stung by jellyfish, and was only walking along the beach. Hopefully they will be going away soon.
Cabo - we did this on our own, took a water taxi tour of the caves/lover's beach/arch; he drop us off at the beach and then he came back later to return us to the port. It cost $25 for 2 adults, 3 children.
DEPART - they will give you a set time to go to sit down breakfast. You are suppose to be out of your room before breakfast. Around 8:15, they started to call groups to disembark. We had an early seating at Lum, so we had a 8am breakfast time. After breakfast, I went up to check out our room for next cruise (aft balcony on deck 7, handicap room for mother-in-law). I also went to look at the Walt Disney suite and 2 bedroom suites - they were great! We are waitlisted for the 2 bedroom for our next cruise - although we might need to sell a car to pay for it!
We were called around 9am, left the ship around 9:30am, found our luggage and was on our shuttle back to the airport by 10am.
Great cruise, we have our next one booked for Nov 2006 and are very excited!
Great trip report1 Glad to hear your family enjoyed themselves. Did anyone get sick? Thanks for posting a wonderful trip report.
