Mar. 19, 2009 Wonder: Aye, But We're Loved by Our Mummies and Dads

[Out to Sea Lee]

Hello Everyone!! We will be leaving here around lunch time!! Just wanted to check in and wish everyone a safe trip down. I hope everyone gets to feeling better!!!

Lee Ann

 

[Aliswa]

I tried www.disneycruiseline.com again today and called the toll free number. The web is still blocked out for me and the agent on the phone could not verify if there was seating or not. I wondered if it had to do with out stateroom category but the agent stated that is not their policy. Very frustrating. My husband really wants to go. I'll keep checking.

 

[Txgirl1]

Thank you so much Kim!! That really helps. I have ordered Costco water to our hotel, so I think I am going to take whatever left after our land trip on to the boat!!

We are leaving in 2 days!!

See you there!!

Jessie,

How did you order costco water to your hotel? and do you think Sams does it?

 

[ksoehrlein]

I need to finish packing tonight, and then tomorrow morning the kids and I are hitting the road to head to WDW! Can't wait to meet some of you on the Poly beach on Monday and hope to see the rest of you on Deck 10 during Sail Away. I hope everyone gets healthy soon and stays that way. I was sick last weekend, and even though it was miserable, I was SO glad it was last weekend and not this weekend or, hopefully, not the next either. How wild that all our planning is coming to an end, and soon the actual vacation will be in progress!

 

[MollyMcDaniel]

We have a 6am flight out tomorrow...so this is goodbye until the Poly, or deck 10. Safe travels to all!

 

[PlanoJessie]

We are all packed and leaving in a couple of hours!! See you all soon!!

 

[Txgirl1]

Hey, don't know if any of you will be checking this thread anymore. I'd like to hear about how your trips were. Did you all enjoy the cruise and do all the fun stuff? Did the kids like Oceaneers club?

It was so funny that I actually met MollyMcDaniel on the bus from the resorts to the ship! She and her dd sat right in front of me and we just casually started talking and somehow got around to the boards and there you go! I ran into her at least two more times after that. A very, very nice lady.

I'm sorry we missed the Poly fireworks, m was too tired and we didn't get back to the hotel until at least 10:00. We had to eat off property because apparently even though you are a hotel guest you can't just go downstairs and eat unless you have a reservation that was made 90 days ago! sorry, it just chaffes my stuff. We did go to Downtown Disney and ate at Fulton's--I think, it's the riverboat restaurant. It was perfect though. We sat outside right by the water and the food was wonderful.

We were awarded Family of the Cruise! That was exciting. We got special treats everyday in our cabin and were able to order room service from any of the 3 restaurants. (their normal room service selection is rather limited)

On a very sad note...we, or my dd, was confined to our cabin for the duration of the cruise because of the stomach bug. She/we were not able to enjoy anything except one show the entire time. We are very upset and disappointed. It's a good thing though that we got a veranda---it saved my sanity.(well, that and shopping) The doctor did ok m to go to Castaway Cay--I guess since she wouldn't be in a closed area with people-- and she had fun. It was right back to the cabin after that though.

The Dr. gave her medicine on Fri. and by Sat. she was just fine.

Unfortunately for us this whole Disney trip was a bust. J and I were just not impressed with the parks and m wanted to be in the resort pool more than the parks. The lines were terrible and in the Thunder Mtn. line they stood in for awhile broke down when they got the the head of the line. Little things.

Honestly, m had way more fun at an amusement park called Dutch Wonderland in Pennsylvania last year than at Disney. It's funny how that happens.

I decorated my door. I think I was the only one on my side that did-I never saw another decorated door. I'll try to post a pic. of it soon.

Oh, it was so cool to meet you guys on deck the day we sailed. I hope you all had a blast and Stephanie, I wished I could have talked with you more, being as we are just about neighbors.

 

[PurdyBertnie]

Aww I am sorry to here that you did not have a good trip. We had a blast in fact I didn't want to get off the boat , if I could find a way to get a job on the boat I would, IN A HEARTBEAT. Our dinner mates were awesome and so much fun. I seriously haven't been able to concentrate much because I am so busy reliving the fun in my mind lol sorry that your dd was sick that is not fun at all. Kim it was really great talking to you I am so glad you saw us and hope you had a great time and maybe got to see some dolphins lol

 

[Aliswa]

Vivian, i'm sorry you daughter was sick. It was nice meeting you the first day after the deck party. We had a great time as well. I"m still trying to get unpacked. The cruise was very magical for my girls. I regret not meeting more of the board members. I think i saw lee anne a time or two. Was that her husband that danced the first day at the sail away party?

I would love to take another disney cruise. Will definatly be after my daughter is potty trained. I was sadly disappointed they wouldnt let swim diapers in the mickey pool. My daughter loves to swim!

Hope to hear from the rest of you!

 

[PlanoJessie]

Glad to see you all back on this board again. Alison, it was nice meeting you, Alan and the girls! Too bad we didn't find each other on the boat.

Vivian, sorry to hear that your girl was sick!! I think we were on the same deck, we were the first 2 rooms right outside the forward elevator. I walked several times from my room to the aft elevator, but I didn't remember your room number. I was a little disappointed that I didn't see any other door decorated, I guess I didn't see yours then. It was nice talking to you briefly at the sail away party though...Dylan said he saw dolphins jumping along the boat and wanted me to take pictures, so I went and stayed with them for a little bit, and when I come back to where we were, I guess both you and Kim were gone. But it was a really warm feeling that there are people I "know" on that boat, and I want to say I really appreciate all of you that have offered help and answers to my questions.

The boys really enjoyed the tip!! They didn't go to the kids club often, instead they hang out in the room and watch movies over and over again. And since they are usually too excited to go to sleep at night, we had to sleep in in the moring and missed all the characters. If you ask Dylan, his favorite part was Pirate night, when he and I watched the whole movie on Pirate night on Deck 10, under the blankets and with a cup of hot chocolate.

Our dining arrangement was also perfect. It turns out that the second seating was a problem at all, and in fact, I enjoyed the early show. I booked Palo on the first night, and Parrot Cay was our restaraunt that night so it worked out perfectly.

I hope you all had fun too. And again it was really a pleasure to "know" you all, and thanks for all the help which makes our first cruise sails a smooth and fun one!!

Jessie

 

[MollyMcDaniel]

Thank you Vivian for the kind words! I'm so sorry that we didn't make the Polynesian fireworks. Our dd started w/a runny nose and cough the day before we left (Fri 3/13)....by Sunday it was a full blown virus w/fever. Luckily we didn't have stomach issues, but Monday was spent in the room and didn't want to spread the germs at the fireworks. All seemed ok until the morning of the cruise....she woke up w/an earache. Gave her some Tylenol and on we went. She fell asleep on the bus...while Viv and I were chatting....and woke up just miserable and her ear was killing her. So, we were the ones in line w/the crying little girl waiting to check-in. Our embarkation photos were fabulous. Our first stop was shipboard doctor who diagnosed a nasty ear infection. He was very thorough and kind, but I could have had a non-stop martini in hand the whole cruise for what we paid.

I was standing in line to register her for the kids club when sail away came along. I hustled up to deck 10 and looked for mickey heads, but didn't see any. I was so bummed out....really looking forward to meeting you. I did see out to sea lee decorating her door when we were trying to find the health center....that was me that walked by you a half dozen times trying to find the mystery door. I wanted to say hi, but had a crying child in tow. The icing on the cake was before dinner when I went to change my clothes. The verbal dialogue in our cabin went something like this:

me "honey, where is my suitcase?"
dh "what suitcase?"
me "the suitcase you carried to the bus and loaded up"
dh "hmmmm, check the closet"
me "nope, not in the closet"
dh "hmmmm, I'm pretty sure it's here somewhere"
me "I'm pretty sure you're a ding dong and left it on the bus"

Yep, the suitcase that contained all of my clothes, except for what I had on my body, was left underneath the bus. Panic set in and I bolted for guest services. I told them what happened, described a black roller suitcase with zero identification because we were keeping it with us and he disappeared in the back for about 5 minutes. Out he comes with my suitcase!!!! Unbelievable...the driver went ahead and took it off the bus and tagged it for guest services. He asked if I wanted it delivered to my cabin....uh, no thanks....it will not be leaving my sight again. I carried that thing like a baby all the way back.

I would say overall we enjoyed ourselves. We have been on many other cruises, but this was our first Disney. Customer service can't be beat...just awesome. Also, the shows were top notch. If I had to make one statement regarding the cruise it would be this.....I could go on 2-3 Royal Caribbean cruises for what Disney charges for 1. If I had to pay full price for a Disney cruise then no, I most likely would not sail them again. I just don't think their niche is so amazing that it justifies so much $$$$$$. Just my .02. I am glad so many of you had such a magical vacation.

 

[Txgirl1]

Thanks, guys for the kind thoughts. Of course dd is just as well as can be now. For that I am Thankful.

I finally got a couple of pics of my door. I'm still up (yikes!--it's amazing how quickly one falls back into old habits) so will post them as tomorrow I have lots of unpacking to do. I took the day off today because I'm still not feeling well and wanted a day off to rest, as it were.

Me with my handy work.

The princess image I actually found on a photographers site
but noticed it was also used on this board.
I did the lettering myself but used a saying I saw on here.

The mickey heads I finished working on the day my
back seized up on me while at the Poly.
I saw someone do this (the heads) on this
board and thought it was a very clever idea.

Chip and Dale (the whole image) I found on this site,
I added all the wording myself. The top says: Our Wonderful Cruise.
The date, our name and cabin #

As I said before, there are some very kind and talented people on this board who share their time and talent, who helped make what I did -or didn't do myself--possible.

 

[Aunt Stepody]

It was so funny that I actually met MollyMcDaniel on the bus from the resorts to the ship! She and her dd sat right in front of me and we just casually started talking and somehow got around to the boards and there you go! I ran into her at least two more times after that. A very, very nice lady. How funny...It's a small world after all!"

I'm sorry we missed the Poly fireworks, m was too tired and we didn't get back to the hotel until at least 10:00. That's okay, Viv! None of us actually met up at the Poly. My family enjoyed the water parade and the fireworks. Afterwards, my DH and I sat on the big swings on the beach by torch light while the kids played in the sand. It was kinda romantic as much as it could be with the kiddos there.

We were awarded Family of the Cruise! That was exciting. We got special treats everyday in our cabin and were able to order room service from any of the 3 restaurants. (their normal room service selection is rather limited)Yeah! I am so glad Disney did something to make things a bit more pleasant for you guys considering your circumstances.

On a very sad note...we, or my dd, was confined to our cabin for the duration of the cruise because of the stomach bug. She/we were not able to enjoy anything except one show the entire time. We are very upset and disappointed. It's a good thing though that we got a veranda---it saved my sanity.(well, that and shopping) The doctor did ok m to go to Castaway Cay--I guess since she wouldn't be in a closed area with people-- and she had fun. It was right back to the cabin after that though.

The Dr. gave her medicine on Fri. and by Sat. she was just fine.

Unfortunately for us this whole Disney trip was a bust. J and I were just not impressed with the parks and m wanted to be in the resort pool more than the parks. The lines were terrible and in the Thunder Mtn. line they stood in for awhile broke down when they got the the head of the line. Little things.Oh man...I am so sorry you had a bad experience. It can be quite crowded both at Spring Break and during the summer months. Our next door neighbor went for the first time while we were there. She said it was extremely crowded. I bet it was even crowded moreso because of their 7nights for the price of 4 promotion. I do hope you can try it again someday in the less crowded months. It can be a truly magical experience. As for that darn Big Thunder Mountain...we have had that happen to us before also. You get right up to the entrance and the crazy thing breaks down.

I decorated my door. I think I was the only one on my side that did-I never saw another decorated door. Your door looked great! Good job!

Oh, it was so cool to meet you guys on deck the day we sailed. I hope you all had a blast and Stephanie, I wished I could have talked with you more, being as we are just about neighbors. Yes, I wish I visited with you more as well. I saw someone who favored you at the pool one day. I started to ask her how her daughter was doing, but then I realized it wasn't you. My DH and I felt so bad for you and your family. I wanted to give you a big hug the next time I saw you on the ship. So, since I didn't see you...here ya go...

Viv, maybe we can get the kids together sometime and have our own party. Take care and keep in touch!

 

[Aunt Stepody]

Thank you Vivian for the kind words! I'm so sorry that we didn't make the Polynesian fireworks. Our dd started w/a runny nose and cough the day before we left (Fri 3/13)....by Sunday it was a full blown virus w/fever. Luckily we didn't have stomach issues, but Monday was spent in the room and didn't want to spread the germs at the fireworks. All seemed ok until the morning of the cruise....she woke up w/an earache. Gave her some Tylenol and on we went. She fell asleep on the bus...while Viv and I were chatting....and woke up just miserable and her ear was killing her. So, we were the ones in line w/the crying little girl waiting to check-in. Our embarkation photos were fabulous. Our first stop was shipboard doctor who diagnosed a nasty ear infection. He was very thorough and kind, but I could have had a non-stop martini in hand the whole cruise for what we paid.

I was standing in line to register her for the kids club when sail away came along. I hustled up to deck 10 and looked for mickey heads, but didn't see any. I was so bummed out....really looking forward to meeting you. I did see out to sea lee decorating her door when we were trying to find the health center....that was me that walked by you a half dozen times trying to find the mystery door. I wanted to say hi, but had a crying child in tow. The icing on the cake was before dinner when I went to change my clothes. The verbal dialogue in our cabin went something like this:

me "honey, where is my suitcase?"
dh "what suitcase?"
me "the suitcase you carried to the bus and loaded up"
dh "hmmmm, check the closet"
me "nope, not in the closet"
dh "hmmmm, I'm pretty sure it's here somewhere"
me "I'm pretty sure you're a ding dong and left it on the bus"

Yep, the suitcase that contained all of my clothes, except for what I had on my body, was left underneath the bus. Panic set in and I bolted for guest services. I told them what happened, described a black roller suitcase with zero identification because we were keeping it with us and he disappeared in the back for about 5 minutes. Out he comes with my suitcase!!!! Unbelievable...the driver went ahead and took it off the bus and tagged it for guest services. He asked if I wanted it delivered to my cabin....uh, no thanks....it will not be leaving my sight again. I carried that thing like a baby all the way back.

I would say overall we enjoyed ourselves. We have been on many other cruises, but this was our first Disney. Customer service can't be beat...just awesome. Also, the shows were top notch. If I had to make one statement regarding the cruise it would be this.....I could go on 2-3 Royal Caribbean cruises for what Disney charges for 1. If I had to pay full price for a Disney cruise then no, I most likely would not sail them again. I just don't think their niche is so amazing that it justifies so much $$$$$$. Just my .02. I am glad so many of you had such a magical vacation.

Sorry, we didn't get to meet you either, Molly. I kept thinking about how you said you would be the one walking up to everybody on the beach. Don't worry...that was me. I found one large group of people and I thought for sure it was you guys. They just kinda looked at me like I was crazy when I walked up to them. I forgot our lime green Mickey name tags so I thought we had just totally missed out on the meet.

I hate it that your daughter was sick also. I hope she felt better quickly. I had a sinus infection start up and my throat was killing me the night before we departed. I called my doctor's office the morning we set sail. My doc called in an antibiotic to the pharmacy at Cocoa Beach. Thank goodness my DH got it before we left...I had heard about the cost of the onboard physician. We did not have any kind of trip insurance, so I knew I didn't want to go see him. Maybe your trip insurance will reimburse you for the visit?

OMG, I can't believe how you must have felt when you discovered your luggage didn't make it on board. SCARY! I am glad that bus driver checked it into guest services for you.

We are in agreement with you about the cruise. We were talking about it on the way home. If we had to pay full Disney prices, then we would not go again. Overall, we had a good time. The shows were our favorite as well. I got teary-eyed at the Disney Dreams show. It was so beautiful! I also had some trouble with motion sickness especially on departure and return. I am still feeling the rocking as I sit here. I think we might just be landlovers.

Again, I wish I could have met more of you. I hope everyone else had a good trip.

 

[Aunt Stepody]

Aww I am sorry to here that you did not have a good trip. We had a blast in fact I didn't want to get off the boat , if I could find a way to get a job on the boat I would, IN A HEARTBEAT. Our dinner mates were awesome and so much fun. I seriously haven't been able to concentrate much because I am so busy reliving the fun in my mind lol sorry that your dd was sick that is not fun at all. Kim it was really great talking to you I am so glad you saw us and hope you had a great time and maybe got to see some dolphins lol

I am glad to hear ya'll had a good time. I hope you have a blast on your 2010 cruise.

 

[PurdyBertnie]

I am glad to hear ya'll had a good time. I hope you have a blast on your 2010 cruise.

Thanks!!

 

[ksoehrlein]

Molly and Viv, I'm so sorry to hear about your sick little girls. Viv, I kept hoping Maggie would feel better and get out of quarantine. I hope she enjoyed her time on Castaway Cay at least.

Richard had watched the planning DVD a few too many times, so he kept expressing regret that we weren't doing the 7-day cruise because of all the kids' activities that are offered only aboard the Magic. Life's rough, huh? Other than his disappointment , we all truly enjoyed the cruise. Chuck and I loved our dinner at Palo. The kids loved the clubs. Chuck loved the refillable beer mug. I loved the Rainforest Room, and we all adored the shows. I never did see a gosh-darn dolphin, though!

We came home resolving to eat dinners out much less often. It had become an almost daily habit for us, but I'd much rather save that money and then spend it on a 7-night (or longer!) return voyage. Guess I'll be spending some time on the Budget Board to help keep us all motivated.

Thanks, everyone, for sharing in the pre-trip planning. It was great to see so many of you on board and know that we were sailing with friends!

 

[PurdyBertnie]

I never did see a gosh-darn dolphin, though!

We came home resolving to eat dinners out much less often. It had become an almost daily habit for us, but I'd much rather save that money and then spend it on a 7-night (or longer!) return voyage. Guess I'll be spending some time on the Budget Board to help keep us all motivated.

Thanks, everyone, for sharing in the pre-trip planning. It was great to see so many of you on board and know that we were sailing with friends!

Aww that is too bad I wish you had seen one. I know what you mean about wanting a longer cruise I could not wait to re-book and have already started saving for the next one I have decided to dial back on my luxuries (twilight merchandise mostly lol) but it will be worth it to get back on that boat.

 

[Juliet25]

Hi all! Sorry we didn't get a chance to meet with any of you. We spent the morning of the cruise in urgent care in Orlando. DD was sick before the trip and wasn't doing too well on the way down. Turns out she had bronchitis. We spent a lot of time in our cabin. She felt better with antibiotics and we had a great trip, but it was pretty low key. I do want to do a 7 night!

 

[Txgirl1]

Hi all! Sorry we didn't get a chance to meet with any of you. We spent the morning of the cruise in urgent care in Orlando. DD was sick before the trip and wasn't doing too well on the way down. Turns out she had bronchitis. We spent a lot of time in our cabin. She felt better with antibiotics and we had a great trip, but it was pretty low key. I do want to do a 7 night!

Stephanie,

I'm sorry to hear your dd was ill. I'm sure you read we (and Molly) had sick kiddos too.

We were confined to our cabin for 48 hrs.--basically the whole trip and insurance didn't reimburse as much as I thought they would since we were forced (let me tell you, they keep an eye out to make sure you stay put) to stay in and our trip was interrupted.

I want to do another cruise, maybe next year but maybe on a different ship...not sure yet--the whole Disney thing wasn't so great for us and I would love to do an Alaskan cruise.

What do you think of the new ships Disney is building?

~vivian