May 12, 2007 -- Taking the Magic to the Mediterranean -- 14 day Repo Cruise!

[CACruisin']

I posted this on the Med Thread, but thought I would post it here as well since several of you are doing the first Med sailing. DH had a conference in Sardinia a few years ago and we all decided to "tag along" and turn it into a 2.5 week trip: 6 days in Rome, 6 days in Sardinia and 3 days in Venice. I found a couple of great travel with kid resources. The first is "Italy with Kids" by Barbara Pape & Michael Calabrese. It is all about kid friendly eating and activities (it had lodging too, but you won't need that!). It also has some fun kid oriented facts and histories. I would compare info from this with Frommers and from there figure out what would be best for us. The other thing we used was "My Italy Discovery Journal" from www.kidseurope.com We downloaded it. It had lots of activities, fun trivia facts, etc related to different sites "Can you find "something" in Michaelangelo's Last Supper in the Sistine Chapel?" type stuff.

The other thing we did is give each of the girls a small sketch book and a box of colored pencils (and pencil sharpener!). That way they could sit down and draw the fountain, statue, etc. They each had a messenger bag with lots of pockets. They kept the sketch book, pencils, and journals in it along with a water bottle, a small umbrella (We were there in early April and it was really rainy!) and a sweater, if they weren't wearing one. Our kids were 8.5 and not quite 10 at the time. (Youngest was 9 months - she just had a diaper bag!)

 

[tig82174]

OK....sifted through all the posts since I got back from coaching at the gym a little while ago.

Littleowensmommy---COOL that we're gonna be together for lots of the excursions and stuff! I'm sure the Aquarium is indeed something we could have done on our own.....but as I said...we're in a position this year to be able to afford paying DCL to do all the "work" for us...and I'm a little lazy and a lot skittish so I decided to let them do it!

As for Ken's question about when we got on, etc. I got on at 3:06 (ish) AM Eastern time and I was able to book a Palo dinner, Palo Brunch, and 6 excursions...I got done about 3:40pm.

Regarding the spa....we actually didn't try to book anything in the spa yet. We feel pretty confident that we'll be able to get in there at least ONCE during such a lengthy stay so we'd rather see what's up with events, entertainment, dinners, etc. to pick a good day and time to get some treatments done.

And regarding filling out the online check-in paperwork. I haven't done it yet but it was available to do last night. I actually logged onto the site wiht my laptop in bed at 3am and our passports were in the basement in our files so I didn't feel like getting up and going all the way down there to get them! I'll probably fill them out today.


Erik

 

[padalyn]

HEY!! How did you get TWO Palo brunches????

Just to let all you know - I was logged in to DCL at 2:45am EST and the system was very slow but worked. I got all our ressies done - but it did take 40 minutes.

I made all the Palo ressies:
High Tea: 5/15
Brunch: 5/18
Dinner: 5/21

All the dates were open and available - but it was 3:02am!!

Good luck to those who had trouble...

I was going to post what we got last night, but after I got everything booked then I couldn't get here!

Firefox was giving me problems (I was trying to have my reservation in Firefox, and my parents in IE) so I had to do all the Palo stuff in IE. The shore excursion was the first thing I booked like at 1:02 MST.

Three of us, in Tenerife, are doing the Mount Teide excursion 12:30 start.

Brunch for 4 5/15 10:30
High Tea for Mom and me 5/17
Dinner for 4 5/19 6:00
Brunch for 4 5/21 11:00
and my parents will be doing dinner on the Barcelona day 5/25 7:00

We're also spreading out our Palo dining, and since we have two rooms we can do it a bunch

We might be adding the Stingray adventure or a snorkeling package at Castaway Cay, but I figured there would be good availability on those and maybe I could get an answer from my parents about what they want to do.

 

[tig82174]

Just wanted to update that the DCL website did come up for me just now and I was able to complete my cruise documents and do the "online check-in" including inputting our passport numbers, the time and airline of our return flight from BCN and input our payment information. We've never done that before....does that mean that we won't get the documetns in the mail to fill out manually now? Or that our check in process at the port is different in some way from usual because we did part of the process online?


Erik

 

[hopemax]

HEY!! How did you get TWO Palo brunches????

We have two rooms for our party, so one brunch per room. We also have two dinners

 

[OH 6]

Thanks everyone for your answers and good wishes - we're on the phone with Disney - there seemed to be a light bulb go on this time with the Cast Memeber we got - There's something in particular 'wrong' with our reservation they need to investigate but still no promise to call back - we just need to keep trying.

If we ever get that far we want to book:
Casaway Cay - Banaboat ride + Parasailing + EcoTour (on Jetskis)
Cadiz - Jerez + the RES School/Show - were told by others that you can't miss it if you get the chance to go.
Tenerife - Tenerife, Teide, and the Garden of the Valley
Gibraltar - City Under Seige
Plus Palo

We'll wait to get on the ship to see about the spa...we're not big spa people, but may be on this cruise.

 

[seaulater]

Thanks everyone for your answers and good wishes - we're on the phone with Disney - there seemed to be a light bulb go on this time with the Cast Memeber we got - There's something in particular 'wrong' with our reservation they need to investigate but still no promise to call back - we just need to keep trying.

If we ever get that far we want to book:
Casaway Cay - Banaboat ride + Parasailing + EcoTour (on Jetskis)
Cadiz - Jerez + the RES School/Show - were told by others that you can't miss it if you get the chance to go.
Tenerife - Tenerife, Teide, and the Garden of the Valley
Gibraltar - City Under Seige
Plus Palo

We'll wait to get on the ship to see about the spa...we're not big spa people, but may be on this cruise.

Also, on the last cruises that were longer (the 11 night and the 14 night) they offered some spa special stuff for certain days because their bookings weren't full.

 

[padalyn]

We have two rooms for our party, so one brunch per room. We also have two dinners

Lucky you!!

Hmm - on the med we have 2 rooms also hoorah!

 

[misseulalie]

Hi Jennifer,

We booked the same excursions in Cadiz. We're leaving the kids on the ship that evening and doing the Flamenco dancing without them. Are you planning to take your girls or leave them on the ship?

We booked the catamaran in Tenerife. Amy is 5. I don't know why Disney has the 5 year old age requirement.

Yes, I took your idea and we are going to the horse show with the kids and will be going to the Flamenco show while the kids are on the ship. Thanks for the idea!!!

I was so ticked that we couldn't do the catamaran, I was really looking foward to it...

 

[milestogo]

We booked the Cadiz walking tour and then I booked the flamenco dancing for myself that night. I'm hoping some others want to go as a group or have a second person in their "date night" while Jonathan stays in with Zoe for the night. He had no interest in seeing the dancing and I can't imagine going to Spain without seeing the dancing! It is the birthplace of Flamenco after all I saw flamenco when I very young and fell in love with it.

I've been listening to Frances Mayes (author of Under a Tuscan Sun) book "A year in the world" she begins in Spain and is so very detailed that I feel like I've been to Seville.

 

[milestogo]

Is anyone else doing the morning Cadiz walking tour?

 

[cupcake]

For those that did get in, would you please let me know when you got into the system. Please post the time you made your excursions and time zone you are in.

Thanks
Ken

HMPF!!! We starting hitting refresh shortly before 2:00 a.m. CST. Did dinner ressies first, then shore excursions (pulling from our wishlist, so we were relatively speedy given that we had to do one at a time). We were done around 2:15'ish CST. Hope you get things worked out; my dh and I were talking about this over breakfast today and totally felt they should be really trying to make this right for you. Hope when I keep reading, I will see this!

Cynthia

 

[BobandLee]

For those that did get in, would you please let me know when you got into the system. Please post the time you made your excursions and time zone you are in.

Thanks
Ken

We were online at 3:00 am eastern
At first we were using the AOL (MSIE) browser. Very slow. Not making much progress.
After about 15 minutes of that, I switched to the Netscape 8.0 browser.
No problems. Don't know if it was just luck or what.
Was done by about 3:45

Sorry to hear about all the problems everyone was having. I had similar problems with the bookings on the 11 day cruise.

 

[BobandLee]

Our excursions....

Tenerife- North Coast and Pueblo Chico

Cadiz- A Taste of Cadiz & Jerez

Gibralter- Marbella and Puerto Banus

Barcelona- Discover Barcelona and the Spanish Village

Brunch May 16
Tea May 15
Palo Dinner May 19

Considering the BIG snowstorm heading this way, I am ready big time for this cruise.

 

[littleowensmommy]

Our excursions....

Tenerife- North Coast and Pueblo Chico

Cadiz- A Taste of Cadiz & Jerez

Gibralter- Marbella and Puerto Banus

Barcelona- Discover Barcelona and the Spanish Village

Brunch May 16
Tea May 15
Palo Dinner May 19

Considering the BIG snowstorm heading this way, I am ready big time for this cruise.

We're also doing the Discover Barcelona and the Spanish Village. We booked the morning. Which one are you doing?

 

[wrabitdad]

Just received this reply to an email sent to DCL at 4 a.m. this morning. Doesn't help much and doesn't explain why some were able to book this morning and others not.


2/11/07

Dear Robert,

Thank you for choosing a Disney Cruise Line Vacation!

I sincerely regret the challenge you have encountered online. I would
also like to thank you for bringing this matter to our attention. We
are now diligently working towards resolving this issue.

When they loaded the Transatlantic shore excursions, it caused some type
of system glitch that will not allow any of our Guests to pre-reserve
shore excursions or Palo. I just spoke to one of the Managers and was
advised they are working on the issue as we speak.

If you require further assistance in planning your visit, please feel
free to contact us.

We look forward to sailing with you "across the pond"!

Angela
Reservations Department
Disney Cruise Vacations

 

[tig82174]

Just received this reply to an email sent to DCL at 4 a.m. this morning. Doesn't help much and doesn't explain why some were able to book this morning and others not.


2/11/07

Dear Robert,

Thank you for choosing a Disney Cruise Line Vacation!

I sincerely regret the challenge you have encountered online. I would
also like to thank you for bringing this matter to our attention. We
are now diligently working towards resolving this issue.

When they loaded the Transatlantic shore excursions, it caused some type
of system glitch that will not allow any of our Guests to pre-reserve
shore excursions or Palo. I just spoke to one of the Managers and was
advised they are working on the issue as we speak.

If you require further assistance in planning your visit, please feel
free to contact us.

We look forward to sailing with you "across the pond"!

Angela
Reservations Department
Disney Cruise Vacations

Yeah I think it's wierd that several of you have been told that it was an across the board system area that barred everyone from making reservations at all....which is clearly an out-&-out lie since so many of us on this very board had basically no trouble at all. They must think none of us talk to each other or have the good sense to check in with our traveling peers to see if others are having the same challenges.

I'm thrilled that I didn't have to face the challenges so many did....but disturbed and disappointed that their official response thus far has basically been NO response!

Well hopefully when all is said and done nobody will be closed out of anything as a result of all this troulbe.....and if you are I hope you'll raise holy H-E-double-hockey-sticks over it!



Erik

 

[kpros]

I got the same E-mail - word for word.

This is the reply I just sent to DCL:

Thanks for the reply. I would really like to be notified when the system is
avaialble again so that I don't have to check it every hour.

Also, while the "systems glitch" has locked me and other people out, I know of
many people that completed their reservations for excursion and Palo dates
without problem this morning right at opening and for several hours after. So
to tell me that the "system isn't allowing any of our Guests to pre-reserve
their shore excursions" is not true and I don't appreciate the mis-information.

Ken

I would be nice if they would be truthful and just say that their system has locked some people out and they are trying to fix it.

No disney magic around here today.

Ken

 

[misseulalie]

Oh great, just what we need, bad news about exploring the Canary Islands...at least none of us would be doing these activities, but still....

http://news.aol.com/topnews/article.../n20070211134909990001?ncid=NWS00010000000001

 

[gydell]

It's has to be something that DCL has done to your reservation because I just this minute booked another excursion, so there system is working. I would not be as calm as you if I was one of the ones who could not make excursions.