Just back from West Coast Cruise - any questions?

[skeegan]

We just got back from the West Coast Cruise. Went on the Las Caletas Hideaway in Puerto Vallarta Went on the Sierra Madre tour in Mazatlan (much better than we expected - Husband's pick). Went on the Chileno Bay Snorkeling Adventure in Cabo. Cabo is beautiful, but shopping prices are higher.

They don't allow you to purchase the soda mugs anymore ($3) even though they were listed in our first day navigator. The bartender said they were having a problem with the children refilling them and not ever cleaning them out.

Took super shuttle to/from the pier - worked out great.

Let me know if you have any questions and I will try to answer.

 

[Hgomes]

We're doing this on the Aug Repo - how was the water temp on your trip? - People on the May Repo said it was cold and murky. Did you have any problems with jelly fish? We are really excited about this excursion and would love a little more detail. Thanks!

 

[jlawall]

What's the super shuttle??

 

[JSCTRico4]

Yes! Please, details on Chileno Bay Snorkeling!

 

[skeegan]

Hgomes,

The water was a little chilly, they said around 76 degrees, but we got use to it quickly. Even my husband who will hardly get in a pool because he is freezing agreed and stayed in the water for the entire hour.

There were jellyfish in the area and they offered to refund the tour as soon as you got on the boat since they had been seen in the last 48 hours. I am not sure if anyone took them up on it. My husband, son, and I stayed the entire hour and were not stung. My husband and son saw a small jellyfish and went the other way. They said they were not agressive but will bite if touched. The worst incidence, one girl, about 12 years old got stung 14 times, she said she had swam into a school of them. She appeared to be doing okay, but smelled alot like the vinegar they had put on her. They also have a small boat that will pick you up in the water if you are having any problem, or shuttle you over to the beach if you don't want to touch the water.

The catamaran was the nicest we have ever been on. The bathroom was bigger than the one in the stateroom and just as clean.

 

[skeegan]

jlawall,

Super Shuttle is a door to door transportation service located in several metropolitan areas, NY, Seattle, Orange County, LA, etc. There website is www.supershuttle.com. For $70/$72 we had a private shuttle for the family from the Disneyland Hotel to the pier and from the pier to John Wayne Airport at the time we specified we wanted to go. On the return we thought we would have to wait 20 minutes until the time we had booked. They said no problem and we were on the way to the airport in less than 5 minutes after the porter had dropped off the luggage at the super shuttle counter. We even made a 2 hour earlier flight home. It is like having a taxi waiting for you with less expense and no worries about paying more for being stuck in traffic.

 

[windermerejudy]

Hey Susan, Miss you guys. Drew and Dane say they really enjoyed meeting Katie and want you guys to come down here. Sorry I dropped in on the thread. BTW we did Las Caletas and went downtown for shopping afterward, wentto El Cid in M andshopping, and chartered a boat to do Lovers Beach and a tour of Seal rock, Los Arcos....we then were dropped at beach. We want to go back to Cabo. It was great fun.

 

[windermerejudy]

Also we stayed at LAX at Embassy Suites South and took Primetime Shuttle. It was also private and went when you wanted. $83 going and $50 returning. for 6 of us. It was great in that we were off the boat at 8:45 and at LAX at 9:15.

 

[Meskamooska]

Hi and welcome back!

I hope you and your family had a wonderful time. We are preparing for our first ever cruise on 7/2 and I have been trying to get as much information as possible to make everything smooth as silk.

So, here are the things that I am wondering...What time did you arrive at the port and what time were you allowed to board? Are they doing auctions on the West Coast cruises? Is there any special merchandise available to commemorate the event? What time did you disembark and what time did you have your shuttle scheduled to come and get you? What pier does the ship leave from? Do you by any chance know if Shutter's will download pictures and put them on disk so that you can reuse your memory card? Do we need an adapter for any plug in items? What did you like best on the menu? Was there anything that you did not like on the menus? Did you do the Tea at Palo and is it worth trying to get a reservation for that? If you have the main dinner seating does that mean that you have breakfast & lunch at the "main" times as well? Are the beverages at the beverage bar limited to water, coffee & tea or are there sodas as well? Should we bring our own container if we want to bring drinks back to the stateroom?

Thank you in advance for being so kind to share your information with all of us and to let us benefit from your knowledge.

Take care,

Tisza

 

[Hgomes]

Thanks. That was great info - We were wondering if you could get to the beach and the question was answered. Hope the jellies are gone by August!

 

[tarheel_girl]

Hi and welcome back!

I hope you and your family had a wonderful time. We are preparing for our first ever cruise on 7/2 and I have been trying to get as much information as possible to make everything smooth as silk.

So, here are the things that I am wondering...What time did you arrive at the port and what time were you allowed to board? Are they doing auctions on the West Coast cruises? Is there any special merchandise available to commemorate the event? What time did you disembark and what time did you have your shuttle scheduled to come and get you? What pier does the ship leave from? Do you by any chance know if Shutter's will download pictures and put them on disk so that you can reuse your memory card? Do we need an adapter for any plug in items? What did you like best on the menu? Was there anything that you did not like on the menus? Did you do the Tea at Palo and is it worth trying to get a reservation for that? If you have the main dinner seating does that mean that you have breakfast & lunch at the "main" times as well? Are the beverages at the beverage bar limited to water, coffee & tea or are there sodas as well? Should we bring our own container if we want to bring drinks back to the stateroom?

Thank you in advance for being so kind to share your information with all of us and to let us benefit from your knowledge.

Take care,

Tisza

I too was on board on June 4th! I'll try to answer a couple of your questions. Susan and Judy, you get to answer all the hard ones. We got to the port at 9:15 from the airport. We were allowed to board around 12:30pm. You will get a number when you enter the terminal. They will then call the numbers in order and that's how you'll board. Totally up to you if you want to wait in the terminal and be one of the first to board, or come later and basically walk on. I choose to go early, but I have no kids. They did a huge art auction on board. It is not a silent auction though. There were picture frames, post cards, glasses, shirts and hoodies with the Mexican theme available at Mickey's Mates. TAKE some warm clothes or you'll be purchasing a zip-up hoodie, if your cruise was anything like ours. Disembarking I really liked. I hope that when the ship comes back to Florida they continue this. Disembarking was based on what restaurant you were in. You'll be in the same restaurant for breakfast on the last day as you were for your final dinner. For us, it was Lumiere's. We had main dinner, so our breakfast time was 7am. We got to disembark first. The head servers came around and gave you a sticker. Based on the character and color of your sticker is when you could disembark. The other two restaurants began breakfast at 7:30am. The announcement was made around 8:00/8:15 that disembarking could begin. We were through customs and had luggage in hand by 8:25. I didn't have a shuttle, purchased transfers through DCL. The bus left the terminal at 8:40 and we were at the airport by 9:10am. The ship leaves from San Pedro. I don't know what pier but it's the one with the big pretty ship docked at it. Sorry, maybe some of my fellow cruisers can answer that one. I also don't know about Shutters. Good idea though if they don't already do that. I doubt you will need any adapters. If your hair dryer or anything else has a 'black box' that actually plugs in, you will need to pull the TV out and plug it in there. It won't fit on the plugs in the desk. I loved all the menus!! I guess the thing I liked best about it is there are choices for everyone. There is a chicken, beef, pork(sometimes lamb or veal), and seafood choice each night. There are also veggie dishes and 'lighter fare' options. I didn't do Tea at Palo but I highly recommend brunch at Palo!! Welll worth it. If you have main dining the only day that breakfast is assigned is on the last day. Other than that you can eat breakfast and lunch whenever you wish. There are sodas, Coke products, at the bev. station. They do have lids and straws there if you only wish to take a serving of the bev. back to your room. On the first port day, they were selling a soft sided cooler and either cokes or bottled water. The cost was $15. I bought that and used it each day. For that price we received the cooler and 6 bottled waters. We used two at each port. The cooler also has a shoulder strap. Just thought I'd tell you about that. Hope all this helps!

 

[windermerejudy]

OK I will take a stab at a couple of the other questions. We presceduled our shuttle with Primetime as did the Keegans. I 'll let Susan tell you about hers but for Primetime I told them 9:30 which I was scared we would not make due to late disembarkments the 1st week but as Tarheel girl said (and BTW Hi we miss you guys too) our week was smooth. I too loved the way we disembarked the ship no waiting in lines it was walk right off. Also we forgot to mention, if you have a flight before noon you are in the predisembarking group. We were also off early and actually before our scheduled time but when you exit the building the luggage dude will take you to these stands depending on which shuttle you have booked and he calls up the next waiting shuttle van. Immediately you are off.

My DH went to a few of the art auctions. Every day at sea there is one.

We arrived at 9:30 as well, our week was late boarding at 1 pm but it sounds like this week they started at 12:00. Like Sherry said it just depends on your preference. We had fun getting to know the Keegans and tarheelgirl/Megara13 in the terminal, however I will say if they had taken much longer I was willing to lead a mutiny or takeover attempt.

Yes I know for a fact that Shetters does this. On the Xmas cruise everyoone needed to do this due to the length of the trip. Don't know the cost however.

No adapters are needed for plugs.

A couple of my favorite menu items are: the butternut acorn squash soup and tableside caesar salad on AP regular menu. I am a big salad person and I wish they offered more diner salads. My favorite dessert was something I had never tried before (don't know if I missed it somehow before or if it is new) the chocolate lava cake on Captain's Gala night. Probably the best entree I had was on the last night on the Farewell menu at it was the red snapper. Tasted so fresh. YUM. Be sure and go to brunch at Palos. I like it better than dinner myself. I love the pesto olives, the hummus, shrimp, crab legs, stone crab claws, stollen bread shortcake thing, chocolate strawberries......I am hungry all over again.

One last thing on the own container thing. They stopped selling the drink mugs and souvenir glasses because they are trying to keep the cups and drink stations fresh and clean. I did take a nonspill cup and they glared at me the first time so I never used it again. Probably better to use their drink cups and then take it to your table or room and then pour it into your own cup.

Hope that helps. If you want to know more about how to get to any places once at the ports we are all happy to tell. (don't you guys like how I volunteered you)

 

[diznefan76]

We were also on this cruise...in PV we did the Pirate sail & Snorkel. Let me tell you....this excursion was an absolute BLAST! But I must warn all those that are thinking about doing it...this is an actual sail boat and so if you are prone to seasickness then you might want to think twice about going. The Pirates are the greatest! They do give out dramamine for those that need it. We had so much FUN on this excursion. They feed you breakfast, then they have aprox. 1 1/2 hours of "Pirate" entertainment. Then you go to this private, secluded beach....you will need to board a speed boat to get to the island and there is no dock so make sure you take your shoes off and are wearing shorts, otherwise your pants will get wet. While at the beach you can snorkel, swim, they have banana boat rides, volleyball or just lay out on the beach. After about 2 hours at the beach you'll board the ship again (by speed boat) you'll have lunch, and then it's entertainment time again. These "Pirates" work sooooooo hard and they are great. Not to mention really cute! ARGHHHHH We loved this excursion and HIGHLY recommend it.

In Mazatlan we did the Beach escape. We were supposed to go to Los Sabalos hotel but they were unavailable for the cruise ship passengers so instead we went to the Hotel Playa Mazatlan....which was absolutely beautiful. They have towels available there for you to use. The hotel is right on the beach and they have 5 different pools that you can swim in. They are also approx. 1 block away from the Golden Zone shopping area...they also have a buffet lunch that is sooo good! I loved the chips and salsa!!! yummy!!!

In Cabo we took the Harbor cruise and scenic drive. Let me just say that Cabo is gorgeous!! The cruise takes you out to see lover's beach, Los Arcos and other rock formations. They take you the Sea of Cortez side and then take over along the Pacific side where there are beautiful white sand beaches, and very expensive homes. After the cruise they take you on an air conditioned bus to a restaurant (name is Gorgios) on a cliff where you get a beverage and a beautiful view of the Cabo and the Magic in port! You will spend about 40min there at the restaurant and then you get back on the bus...they will give you the option to be dropped off in town ( where you can do more shopping.) right across the street from the Hard Rock Cafe. This was a very relaxing day in port.

If any of you have questions I'll be glad to answer them!

Skeegan, Windermerejudy, & Tarheelgirl.....
Hi girls! I miss all of you! Just think this time last week we were getting ready for the Pirate deck party!!!! Wish we were doing it all over again!

 

[gouodux]

We will be staying in Pacific Palisades the night before we depart. What is the parking situation like? Is it hard to find spots? How far of a hike is it to the terminal? What is the cost per day for parking? Can the family be let off, park, and then meet up with everyone? Lots of questions, but hopefully someone will have answers. Thank you in advance.

 

[AUDREY BELCHER]

They have trans that ride around the parking lot and pick you up and take you to the main entrance. La port is our home port we have cruised out of there a few days.

 

[GrumpyMom1]

diznefan76 - Thanks for the information about the Pirate Sail & Snorkel. Just how much movement is there on the pirate boat? Is it kind of rocky or really rocky? We have it reserved and I really want to do it, but I'm concerned about motion sickness.

 

[dreamflight99]

They don't allow you to purchase the soda mugs anymore ($3) even though they were listed in our first day navigator. The bartender said they were having a problem with the children refilling them and not ever cleaning them out.

Not true! We were on the same cruise, and I bought "10" of these from the preludes bartender "LENROY" on the last eve aboard the ship! He had someone go to a storeroom, and pull them for me. They were all wrapped nicely in shrinkwrap, and make lovely gifts for family/friends. Just ask any of the CM's at the bars, etc. -- or even guest services.

*Sorry you were unable to obtain any Skeegan. They are really nice ones, and different from the others we used to HAVE to buy for the soda package.

DF99

 

[skeegan]

Meskamooska,

It seems like most of your questions have been answered (thanks guys). We were on the late seating so were next to last to get off the ship. We had a 10:20 a.m. reservation, but were at the curb a little before 10 a.m. and left right away. The ship leaves from Pier 93. I saw a sign at Shutters selling memory cards, but looked for a sign about copying pictures on CD due to previous posts. I never saw one, but didn't use all my memory cards so I never asked whether it was available. I was able to plug my black box hairdryer plug and my digital camera battery recharger into the desk and didn't need an adapter. My favorite meal was on Golden Mickey night, the spiced shrimp, chicken parmesan. I was really disappointed in the desserts. Most looked fabulous but tasted okay. We had brunch at Palo but not tea. Our table mates had tea and said it was terrific, particularly the scones. Next time I would bring mugs onto the boat to refill for sodas, but we are big soda drinkers and I got tired of going upstairs at night and having the machines turned off. They even turned off the water. I would go to Pinochios and ask for a glass of ice water which I took back to my room, but I really wanted soda (too cheap to pay for the can at the bar (okay I broke down a couple of times) - it is the principle of the thing).

Let me know if I missed anything or if you have other questions.

 

[Mickeyfan66]

So, here are the things that I am wondering...What time did you arrive at the port and what time were you allowed to board? Are they doing auctions on the West Coast cruises? Is there any special merchandise available to commemorate the event? What time did you disembark and what time did you have your shuttle scheduled to come and get you? What pier does the ship leave from? Do you by any chance know if Shutter's will download pictures and put them on disk so that you can reuse your memory card? Do we need an adapter for any plug in items? What did you like best on the menu? Was there anything that you did not like on the menus? Did you do the Tea at Palo and is it worth trying to get a reservation for that? If you have the main dinner seating does that mean that you have breakfast & lunch at the "main" times as well? Are the beverages at the beverage bar limited to water, coffee & tea or are there sodas as well? Should we bring our own container if we want to bring drinks back to the stateroom?

First off, I wanted to say HI to everyone. I so wish we were all back on the ship.

OK, now I will try and anwer some of the questions that the others have not yet answered. (Although I think they covered them all.)

As far as getting off the ship. We were in about the middle. It took about 30-45 minutes total. Not nearly as long as I thought it would. If you book transfers through DCL, the buses are there and waiting. We were on the road to airport in less then 10 minutes after we got our bags.

Shutters will download pictures to a disc. I asked as I was worried about the same thing. I didn't need to do this, but if I remember correctly it was $15 to have them do this.

As far the outlets in the staterooms, we took an extension cord. That way would could plug in what ever we needed to and have it reach to both the bathroom and the vanity.

I loved the menu's. The only thing I had that I didn't like was the grouper. I didn't like the sauce they put on it. Everything else I tried was great.

We did brunch at Palo. Probably the best meal on the ship. Loved it! I want to try and figure out how to make Palo my main place for dinning instead of doing the roation dinning.

Other then dinner, the only 2 meals that are assigned are your Character breakfast and breakfast the last day. Other then that, you can pretty much eat when ever and where ever you want.

The drink station has a full array of options. It has Pop, Coffee, Tea, Water, Juice, and Hot Chocolate. Cups, Lids, and Straws are provided.

Hope this helps.

 

[skeegan]

Dreamflight99, no fair. I asked on the second day of the cruise. I asked the two bars on deck 9 and was told the same thing both times, that they were not allowed to sell them anymore.