We just returned from our Wonder Cruise and despite the windy conditions and not docking on Castaway Cay we had a great time. I am not one to write a long trip report (although I do love reading them). Here goes my attempt at a short and sweet rendition of the good, the bad and the ugly.
First, I want to thank all of the prior Dissers before me whose trip reports and advise I have been reading for the past year in preparation for this cruise. Your suggestions were priceless. Here are my top ones:
1) Bonine, bonine, bonine!! We started taking them Saturday morning. I felt no inkling of motion sickness entire cruise despite the rocking and rolling we did. My dh (who was not religious in taking his - did not think he needed it) complained of a "heavy feeling" in his head). My dd (8 & 6) were ok except at some of the peak of the waves also complained of their heads but no one actually got sick.
2) Shoe holder - was pefect for holding our "stuff"
3) Perfect Gift - Shirley's basket for my girls was awesome (even if they did not get to use the sand toys - YET)
OK, on to the rest of the report...and the rest of the GOOD (aka GREAT):
1)I thought all of the food on the ship was very good. My dh and I are not fancy restaurant/fancy food people, probably just your average person. There was not a single item we tried that we did not like during dinner. We did not go to any restaurants for lunch, only Beach Blanket, so I can't comment on those. The panninis and burgers/chicken strips out by the pool were also very good.
2)Our servers Francisco and Carlton were good. They were very friendly and catered to the girls to make sure they were happy with their food. I cannot give one complaint about their service.
3)The club and the lab. Both of my dd's had a blast. I was worried about dd(6) at first thinking it would be too baby for her but I was relieved that she loved it. She is not shy to tell you when something is boring but she wanted to go to the club from morning to night. My dd (8) also enjoyed her time in the lab, mostly I think because she had a friend she already "met" online before getting on the ship. They had a great time with the activities, especially cookies and flubber.
4)The Spa. I could have spent my entire cruise in the rainforest room. It was heavenly. I had the hot stone massage and it was worth every penny.
5)Palo. This restaurant lives up to its reputation. The food there was amazing as was the service. We were there for dinner and brunch and my only complaint is that I was so full I could not keep eating.
6)The shows. We saw Toy Story, Golden Mickey's and Disney Dreams. Unfortunately, I found Toy Story to have been very boring. My girls were not impressed either and they both like the Toy Story movie. The Golden Mickey's and Disney Dreams were both awesome shows which I would definitely see again.
OK, onto the BAD.
1)Pools. While I understand this is a cruise ship and there is not the room for large pools, these were tiny!I will tell you my DD's loved every second they spent going from the pools to the slide to the hot tubs but it was like a can of sardines and if you wanted to try to enjoy it with them you had to be brave to venture into that oversided bath tub. Having had to spend two days at sea...it was pretty tight in the pool. I also think their decks could have more lounge chairs. I understand they could not fit any more around the pool but deck 10 needed more chairs, especially when a ship is stuck hanging out at sea.
And, the UGLY:
1)Mother Nature!! I know Disney can't control the weather and I could plainly see the current was very strong and working against us 100% in trying to dock on CC. I do think Disney needs to have alternative plans on getting passengers to the island. The second day of attempts the seas were not bad and I do not see why there could not have been tenders to CC. That perhaps is something they should look into.
I agree with another poster that they were slow in getting backup plans going for activities. We spent 2 half days with our beach bags packed looking off the balcony at the captain trying to dock only to be told it was a no go. They delayed opening the club - which was ok for us because dd is 6, almost 7 but we almost thought we would have to cancel Palo brunch because it had not been opened yet. The only real changes to the activites was some added bingo and trivia games and such, paperplane making and the one thing we took advantage of was matinees of the shows.
All in all we had a great time with the windy conditions being the only downer. While I did not care for the crowded tiny pools my girls had a blast, and to me that's all that matters. Yes it was a lot of money to spend just for that but I do not regret for one second taking the trip and will try one more time to get to Castaway Cay. We went on to Wilderness Lodge where we continued our fun going to the parks and hanging at their pool.
Well, if you got this far, thanks for reading! I can try to answer any questions.
First, I want to thank all of the prior Dissers before me whose trip reports and advise I have been reading for the past year in preparation for this cruise. Your suggestions were priceless. Here are my top ones:
1) Bonine, bonine, bonine!! We started taking them Saturday morning. I felt no inkling of motion sickness entire cruise despite the rocking and rolling we did. My dh (who was not religious in taking his - did not think he needed it) complained of a "heavy feeling" in his head). My dd (8 & 6) were ok except at some of the peak of the waves also complained of their heads but no one actually got sick.
2) Shoe holder - was pefect for holding our "stuff"
3) Perfect Gift - Shirley's basket for my girls was awesome (even if they did not get to use the sand toys - YET)
OK, on to the rest of the report...and the rest of the GOOD (aka GREAT):
1)I thought all of the food on the ship was very good. My dh and I are not fancy restaurant/fancy food people, probably just your average person. There was not a single item we tried that we did not like during dinner. We did not go to any restaurants for lunch, only Beach Blanket, so I can't comment on those. The panninis and burgers/chicken strips out by the pool were also very good.
2)Our servers Francisco and Carlton were good. They were very friendly and catered to the girls to make sure they were happy with their food. I cannot give one complaint about their service.
3)The club and the lab. Both of my dd's had a blast. I was worried about dd(6) at first thinking it would be too baby for her but I was relieved that she loved it. She is not shy to tell you when something is boring but she wanted to go to the club from morning to night. My dd (8) also enjoyed her time in the lab, mostly I think because she had a friend she already "met" online before getting on the ship. They had a great time with the activities, especially cookies and flubber.
4)The Spa. I could have spent my entire cruise in the rainforest room. It was heavenly. I had the hot stone massage and it was worth every penny.
5)Palo. This restaurant lives up to its reputation. The food there was amazing as was the service. We were there for dinner and brunch and my only complaint is that I was so full I could not keep eating.
6)The shows. We saw Toy Story, Golden Mickey's and Disney Dreams. Unfortunately, I found Toy Story to have been very boring. My girls were not impressed either and they both like the Toy Story movie. The Golden Mickey's and Disney Dreams were both awesome shows which I would definitely see again.
OK, onto the BAD.
1)Pools. While I understand this is a cruise ship and there is not the room for large pools, these were tiny!I will tell you my DD's loved every second they spent going from the pools to the slide to the hot tubs but it was like a can of sardines and if you wanted to try to enjoy it with them you had to be brave to venture into that oversided bath tub. Having had to spend two days at sea...it was pretty tight in the pool. I also think their decks could have more lounge chairs. I understand they could not fit any more around the pool but deck 10 needed more chairs, especially when a ship is stuck hanging out at sea.
And, the UGLY:
1)Mother Nature!! I know Disney can't control the weather and I could plainly see the current was very strong and working against us 100% in trying to dock on CC. I do think Disney needs to have alternative plans on getting passengers to the island. The second day of attempts the seas were not bad and I do not see why there could not have been tenders to CC. That perhaps is something they should look into.
I agree with another poster that they were slow in getting backup plans going for activities. We spent 2 half days with our beach bags packed looking off the balcony at the captain trying to dock only to be told it was a no go. They delayed opening the club - which was ok for us because dd is 6, almost 7 but we almost thought we would have to cancel Palo brunch because it had not been opened yet. The only real changes to the activites was some added bingo and trivia games and such, paperplane making and the one thing we took advantage of was matinees of the shows.
All in all we had a great time with the windy conditions being the only downer. While I did not care for the crowded tiny pools my girls had a blast, and to me that's all that matters. Yes it was a lot of money to spend just for that but I do not regret for one second taking the trip and will try one more time to get to Castaway Cay. We went on to Wilderness Lodge where we continued our fun going to the parks and hanging at their pool.
Well, if you got this far, thanks for reading! I can try to answer any questions.
