May 9, 2012: 5 Night Bahamas Cruise on Disney Magic

[sweetpee_1993]

For giggles I priced a Carnival Cruise and I swear Steve thought I was lying when I told him how much cheaper it was than Disney I may look in to some of the other cruise lines. Anyone know if they have kids clubs and how they are?

I briefly looked at Cruise critic. I may have to look some more.

We have yet to cruise outside of DCL it my brother-in-law is a die-hard RCI fan. His kids are 16 & 17. They started cruising as teens and have always raved about the teen activities/clubs. That's not opinions I put too much weight on, tho, because my boys are the polar opposite of theirs in almost every way. They're extremely social (I think to a fault) and both parents & kids do all they can away from each other. We're super close with ours. & love to be together. My boys are picky with friends, too. If you look at the trip reports section for cruises here there's one called Shrek Takes on Mickey which is a report about sailing on RCI's Allure out of Ft. Lauderdale and contrasts between RCI & Disney. Just be aware that Allure is RCI's newest ship and it's the largest cruise ship sailing. It's a big deal so RCIs older ships won't be what the Allure is. We are sailing the Mariner which was built in 2003 & just came out of drydock. 7 days on the same Disney ship we were just on sailing out of Galveston at about the same time in a large verandah stateroom priced out at about a grand more than the Mariner w/2 staterooms. We won't even attempt a single stateroom on Royal's ships because they don't have a split bath. We need that flexibility. We opt to book a balcony for me & Tracey then put the boys across the hall in an inside stateroom.

I've read that Carnival has better food. My BiL says he thinks the difference is that Carnival offers simpler foods. I would only look at the Carnival Dream or any others in their newest ship class. Just me, tho.

Look for destinations & ports that appeal to you! See the world from your floating resort! It's a good way to see & do some cool stuff you wouldn't otherwise bump a parks vacation to do. Right?

 

[Jaxs27]

I am having the "being at home after the cruise" blues. I told dh I wish we lived in Florida, I just love it there so much. Not sure when we will be able to cruise on DCL again, the Summer prices just seem so crazy expensive. I think we are going to go to WDW again next Summer. Maybe a cruise the next year? The May prices really helped us be able to cruise, with our family of 5. Dh wants him and I to do a cruise just us but I think our kids would flip!

 

[PixieMom712]

Ok, we are actually HOME now. Phew.

We had a wonderful week in Sarasota, including another day at the beach and a trip to the aquarium as well as a boat tour of the bay. And lots of relaxing time and pool time. Now I just have to unpack - ugh. I also caught DS's cold and have to go see the doc today because they are worried I might have pneumonia. Good grief, I want back on the ship!

There were a lot of things we really thought we would do that we ended up not doing. I don't think we feel any real regret about that though. We had a great balance of family time, couple time and alone time. Though really, DH was the one who had the most alone time (he ran a few times).

Things we thought we'd do but didn't:
* Order room service even ONCE! We were right by the aft elevators so the buffet and quick service stuff was SO close. I woke up to see the sunrise Key West day and DH woke up first the other days, so that person just got hot water for DH's french press and hot chocolate for me, and some fruit if it was late enough. I really wanted to try and All Hands On Deck platter, but the timing never quite worked out. With late seating, getting a dessert at 11pm was out of the question!

* Read on deck 4. We did walk around it once, but found other things to do with out quiet times. We did nap every single day except CC day though.

* Buy a coffee at Cove Cafe. That meant no treats for me either! I bought DH a french press mug and he used that instead. He does wish he had tried one latte at least, but again, we seemed to be busy with other things.

* See a movie. We thought we'd catch at least one but both decided we didn't want to spend 2 hours of our cruise watching a movie we could see on land. We had other things to try!

* Do a lot of character meets. We only waited in line to see a few. Donald on formal night (was supposed to be C&D but we weren't early enough), and Hook and Smee on Pirate night. We also saw Mickey on CC but there wasn't really a wait - same with Daisy right before we got back on the ship at CC, and we saw Timon by the pool one day.
DS was just not that into the characters and definitely not interested in waiting in all those lines. Maybe next time! To be honest I was Ok with it, and he did get to meet Pluto, Chip and Dale and Peter Pan during Oceaneer's Club activities, and we were right up front for the sail away party.

We also didn't do any major adult entertainment stuff at the end of the night, but I don't think either of us planned to anyhow. We hung out in Sessions for a while one night, and wandered through the other venues but that was it.

As for shows, we saw them all except the last night's farewell thing in the atrium. I loved them all but Villains was probably my least favorite? I guess really, it was the only one that didn't make me cry! It was still good and I do love Captain Hook. My son hasn't seen Hercules or Emperor's New Groove (we need to remedy that!) so he wasn't into as much of it but it was entertaining!

We actually really enjoyed Nassau! Our excursion (See and Sea) was really fun. We saw sea turtles and nurse sharks as well as a bunch of other cool sea life. The bus tour of the city was less than I anticipated but I think because there isn't a lot to the city! I wish we had stopped so I could get better pictures of the Governor's House. We enjoyed going up the Queen's Staircase and wandering through Fort Fincastle. When we got dropped back at the port we asked the bus driver for a recommendation of local food that wasn't Senor Frog's or something like that. He directed us to a place that was still touristy in our opinion, but with local, fresh seafood. The bathroom was clean (with soap and paper towels!) and the food was fantastic. Then we wandered very briefly through the straw market. We found the people to be pleasant, friendly and really not as pushy as we thought they might be. DEFINITELY nicer than those in Mexico and we thought it was less pressure than we found in Jamaica as well. I bargained a little and we got a few nice souvenirs. We also got our passports stamped, but I knew approximately where to go based on a TR I read here ahead of time. We would at least get off the boat for a bit if we went back, but figure a beach day would be our plan if we chose another itinerary that includes Nassau.

I am jealous of all you future cruisers! We did book a dummy cruise but won't be able to use it until late summer 2013 at the very earliest as DH's next assignment won't allow for leave. After that we'll have to see where we end up!

I am planning to do a TR but I probably won't start it until later this week when hopefully I will feel a little less sick!

 

[Lainey321]

I am having the "being at home after the cruise" blues. I told dh I wish we lived in Florida, I just love it there so much. Not sure when we will be able to cruise on DCL again, the Summer prices just seem so crazy expensive. I think we are going to go to WDW again next Summer. Maybe a cruise the next year? The May prices really helped us be able to cruise, with our family of 5. Dh wants him and I to do a cruise just us but I think our kids would flip!

I hear ya. I'm the one who really didn't want to cruise again and I can't stop thinking about it

 

[sweetpee_1993]

I hear ya. I'm the one who really didn't want to cruise again and I can't stop thinking about it

I know. It's confusing, huh? When I got off the Dream I wasn't sure how I felt. I built up the anticipation for so long then it was over so fast. After I had time to process it all it really dawned on me how much I enjoyed the experience of it all. Plus, it didn't hurt that after that cruise we went to the parks for 6 days where we really had time to understand how much more we enjoyed the cruise than the parks/resort. That's when it all came into focus.

 

[lzmom_of_twins]

For giggles I priced a Carnival Cruise and I swear Steve thought I was lying when I told him how much cheaper it was than Disney I may look in to some of the other cruise lines. Anyone know if they have kids clubs and how they are?

I briefly looked at Cruise critic. I may have to look some more.

Ack NOT a fan of carnival at all. I would only cruise them again if it were free. I really dont think you can cruise DCL and then cruise Carnival. You will constantly be saying not like Disney! I did a RC cruise and then did Carnival and we were so disappointed in SOO many aspects. If you dont want to do DCL and you want to save a little.. try RC. They really are an awesome cruise line! I cant say anything negative about them! I havent cruised with my kids before this cruise though so I cant compare kids clubs.

ETA... I changed the "friends only" on my cruise album, so you should be able to see them now

 

[lzmom_of_twins]

Tiffany I did buy a coffee at the Cove and I was super disappointed and it was expensive! I can get a venti and Starbucks for the price of my little coffee there. So dont feel bad about missing that We are not cruising again until May of 2014! So you will be sailing before us It was nice meeting you on the cruise. I hope the rest of your pregnancy goes well!

 

[sweetpee_1993]

We did a coffee at Cove Cafe also. It was okay. Not terrible. Best part was conversation with the barrista guy. Name started with an R I think and I want to say he's from Portugal. Nice kid. Very smart fellow. We had a standing order with room service via the concierge for coffee & milk in-room. Also, I was okay with coffee at breakfasts in the restaurants.

Speaking of restaurants, we ate at Topsiders only once: debarkation day! Struck me weird that we didn't go there at any other time. We love eating at Lumieres for breakfast and lunch.

 

[iloverags2]

I wish you were going on the Sept 8, 2013 Dream 4-day!!! I'll be on that cruise! That's the sailing me, Tammy (disneyfalcon), and Holly (hollybelle) are hosting our big girls-only getaway cruise from that other site. It's a cheap way for a lot of ladies to give cruising a try while having a little escape from home. I think we currently have just over 20 gals in like 9 staterooms. Talk about fun! We're gonna have a ball! Wish you and all my new girls from here could come join the fun. You know me, more is better!

Oh man! Now I have reason to keep that reservation in place. Ugh! But we really want the longer sailing. Whelp, my high school buddy I am cruising with this October wants to make our weekend getaway an annual thing and add a few others to the club. Maybe I can talk them into that sailing!

And, Cindy, definitely will be in touch with some RCI questions. It's amazing how different the lines operate! Chandler & I are off to Houston for the day so I'll get with ya in the next few days. I hear lots of good stuff about RCI from DCL fans so I'm not really afraid to book them. It's also nice to be on Cruise Critic after booking & discover your ship just came out of drydock this month.

Oh, good vibes for Chandler! (I am guessing this is the doctor visit?)

For giggles I priced a Carnival Cruise and I swear Steve thought I was lying when I told him how much cheaper it was than Disney I may look in to some of the other cruise lines. Anyone know if they have kids clubs and how they are?

Carnival does have kids clubs, and I have heard good things about them. Unfortunately I am not a fan of Carnival in general though. RCI has kids clubs as well, but I will admit my then 11-year-old niece was less than impressed with it on our cruise in January 2011. I would choose RCI for the overall cruise experience regardless, and just hope the sailing you are on has a decent group of kids in the club.

We won't even attempt a single stateroom on Royal's ships because they don't have a split bath. We need that flexibility. We opt to book a balcony for me & Tracey then put the boys across the hall in an inside stateroom.

I've read that Carnival has better food. My BiL says he thinks the difference is that Carnival offers simpler foods. I would only look at the Carnival Dream or any others in their newest ship class. Just me, tho.

Look for destinations & ports that appeal to you! See the world from your floating resort! It's a good way to see & do some cool stuff you wouldn't otherwise bump a parks vacation to do. Right?

That is definitely one of the things I miss when sailing a line other than Disney...the spaciousness of the staterooms. I miss things like a standard couch.

Carnival used to have better food, but I really do not feel that is the case any longer. And for proof positive, a group of us travel agents did a Carnival ship tour this past January - it was the first one I have done where they set us up for lunch in one of the main dining rooms, all alone. Just us. No one else. Special menu. Nothing to write home about. Honestly, if they were going to try and sell themselves on their food, that was the time to do so. Instead we had nothing that was overly impressive. Just standard fare in my opinion. 'Nuff said.

But I agree with you - find an itinerary that appeals to you, and see those ports!

I am having the "being at home after the cruise" blues. I told dh I wish we lived in Florida, I just love it there so much. Not sure when we will be able to cruise on DCL again, the Summer prices just seem so crazy expensive. I think we are going to go to WDW again next Summer. Maybe a cruise the next year? The May prices really helped us be able to cruise, with our family of 5. Dh wants him and I to do a cruise just us but I think our kids would flip!

Shhhhhhhhhhh...DH and I did a few cruises on our own when his daughter still lived at home. I say go for it! (It's easy for me to say those things...my mom and dad - who were the ideal couple - always made time for just themselves. I have always strived to be like them!) By the way, Florida gets old...quick.

We had a wonderful week in Sarasota, including another day at the beach and a trip to the aquarium as well as a boat tour of the bay. And lots of relaxing time and pool time. Now I just have to unpack - ugh. I also caught DS's cold and have to go see the doc today because they are worried I might have pneumonia. Good grief, I want back on the ship!

* See a movie. We thought we'd catch at least one but both decided we didn't want to spend 2 hours of our cruise watching a movie we could see on land. We had other things to try!

We actually really enjoyed Nassau! Our excursion (See and Sea) was really fun. We saw sea turtles and nurse sharks as well as a bunch of other cool sea life. The bus tour of the city was less than I anticipated but I think because there isn't a lot to the city! I wish we had stopped so I could get better pictures of the Governor's House. We enjoyed going up the Queen's Staircase and wandering through Fort Fincastle. When we got dropped back at the port we asked the bus driver for a recommendation of local food that wasn't Senor Frog's or something like that. He directed us to a place that was still touristy in our opinion, but with local, fresh seafood. The bathroom was clean (with soap and paper towels!) and the food was fantastic. Then we wandered very briefly through the straw market. We found the people to be pleasant, friendly and really not as pushy as we thought they might be. DEFINITELY nicer than those in Mexico and we thought it was less pressure than we found in Jamaica as well. I bargained a little and we got a few nice souvenirs. We also got our passports stamped, but I knew approximately where to go based on a TR I read here ahead of time. We would at least get off the boat for a bit if we went back, but figure a beach day would be our plan if we chose another itinerary that includes Nassau.

I am planning to do a TR but I probably won't start it until later this week when hopefully I will feel a little less sick!

Oh no! I hope you are feeling better soon!

We were the same way about seeing a movie onboard. It was in our plans, but when it came down to it we wanted to spend our time enjoying the ship, and decided to just watch flicks at home.

So glad you liked Nassau! We always love our port calls there. Growing up in Chicago I have learned to just always be aware of my surroundings. And honestly, Nassau is a heck of a lot better than my days in Miami! (j/k...well, for the most part!) I always look at it as the folks there (at least the ones hanging around by the port) surely aren't badgering people because they want to...it's basically how they make a living and get through life. It must be pretty difficult for them to watch cruisers come into port by the hordes day in and day out, when they can most likely only dream of ever taking a cruise themselves. We have often found most of the locals very pleasant anyway (although my DH has a tendency to strike up friendly conversations with just about anyone!).

Oh, and awesome you were able to check out Fort Fincastle and Queen's Staircase...two of my favorite Nassau spots!

Looking forward to your TR!

Ack NOT a fan of carnival at all. I would only cruise them again if it were free. I really dont think you can cruise DCL and then cruise Carnival. You will constantly be saying not like Disney! I did a RC cruise and then did Carnival and we were so disappointed in SOO many aspects. If you dont want to do DCL and you want to save a little.. try RC. They really are an awesome cruise line! I cant say anything negative about them! I havent cruised with my kids before this cruise though so I cant compare kids clubs.

ETA... I changed the "friends only" on my cruise album, so you should be able to see them now

Yea! I could see your pics! Very nice...some really cute shots of your two little ones. They look like they had a blast!

I am so with you on Carnival. Not. A. Fan. At. All. Like you, I had sailed RCI first, and was constantly comparing Carnival to it...and it just did not stack up. Having said that, I do have clients who love Carnival. There is a fan base there, I'm just not in it! LOL


You guys, can I just say you all have been the best group we have sailed with from these boards? The chattiness, the thank you emails (honestly, a first!), and just the general camaraderie. I guess this is my teary-weepy-miss-my-cruise moment!

 

[lzmom_of_twins]

Chatting here makes me somehow still feel connected to the cruise I long to still be on Cindy Im glad you were able to see the pics. My twins had an absolute blast on this cruise!

 

[Britster18]

Right now our dummy date is the 3 day Dream in Oct 2013. Last night we were talking about what we really want to do and are torn... a few days at Disney and few days at sea OR big week on Fantasy??!!

Leah is only so little once but I think AAALLLL the characters on the cruise satisfied her character fix I think everyone enjoys the parks no matter what your age.. same with a cruise! UGH! This is hard!!
I kinda wish new itineraries would come out already.. that would help!

I do want to do MK when the new section opens...

 

[Lainey321]

We did a coffee at Cove Cafe also. It was okay. Not terrible. Best part was conversation with the barrista guy. Name started with an R I think and I want to say he's from Portugal. Nice kid. Very smart fellow. We had a standing order with room service via the concierge for coffee & milk in-room. Also, I was okay with coffee at breakfasts in the restaurants.

Speaking of restaurants, we ate at Topsiders only once: debarkation day! Struck me weird that we didn't go there at any other time. We love eating at Lumieres for breakfast and lunch.

That did seem like a deep conversation you guys were having. I had coffee one time there. I don't do dairy and all they had was soy milk, that soy milk stuck with me **blech**

We did Topsiders a couple of times. The coffee there was icky but I loved the after dinner coffee at all the restaurants. That CANNOT be the same coffee.

Carnival does have kids clubs, and I have heard good things about them. Unfortunately I am not a fan of Carnival in general though. RCI has kids clubs as well, but I will admit my then 11-year-old niece was less than impressed with it on our cruise in January 2011. I would choose RCI for the overall cruise experience regardless, and just hope the sailing you are on has a decent group of kids in the club.

That is definitely one of the things I miss when sailing a line other than Disney...the spaciousness of the staterooms. I miss things like a standard couch.

Carnival used to have better food, but I really do not feel that is the case any longer. And for proof positive, a group of us travel agents did a Carnival ship tour this past January - it was the first one I have done where they set us up for lunch in one of the main dining rooms, all alone. Just us. No one else. Special menu. Nothing to write home about. Honestly, if they were going to try and sell themselves on their food, that was the time to do so. Instead we had nothing that was overly impressive. Just standard fare in my opinion. 'Nuff said.

But I agree with you - find an itinerary that appeals to you, and see those ports!

Shhhhhhhhhhh...DH and I did a few cruises on our own when his daughter still lived at home. I say go for it! (It's easy for me to say those things...my mom and dad - who were the ideal couple - always made time for just themselves. I have always strived to be like them!) By the way, Florida gets old...quick.

I am not planning on Carnival with the kids. DH and I are always talking about going sometime without them. I just had seen so many people observe how much more DCL is so I wanted to see. However, when I went to the Norwegian website (some friends of ours are big fans) their cruise wasn't all that much cheaper than Disney and there seemed to be more "extra" charges

Chatting here makes me somehow still feel connected to the cruise I long to still be on

I agree!

 

[lzmom_of_twins]

Leslee I have cruise NCL 1 time and it was a great experience! I had no complaints. I think you would be happy with them... and they are cheaper. They are always running specials too like free balcony upgrades. I really want to try their Epic ship someday.

Brittany looks like we are sailing on the same dummy cruise. My whole family is doing Disney parks next May. So this helps with my dilemma of land and sea or 1 week Fantasy. Land next year and 1 week Fantasy May 2014

 

[Britster18]

Leslee I have cruise NCL 1 time and it was a great experience! I had no complaints. I think you would be happy with them... and they are cheaper. They are always running specials too like free balcony upgrades. I really want to try their Epic ship someday.

Brittany looks like we are sailing on the same dummy cruise. My whole family is doing Disney parks next May. So this helps with my dilemma of land and sea or 1 week Fantasy. Land next year and 1 week Fantasy May 2014

I would SOOO do that but don't know if I can hold out that long for a cruise

May is a decent price for the Fantasy...kind of. And since when did I think that 7,000 for a CRUISE is a GOOD price!!?? DCL has me going crazy.

 

[iloverags2]

Chatting here makes me somehow still feel connected to the cruise I long to still be on Cindy Im glad you were able to see the pics. My twins had an absolute blast on this cruise!

Agreed!

I am not planning on Carnival with the kids. DH and I are always talking about going sometime without them. I just had seen so many people observe how much more DCL is so I wanted to see. However, when I went to the Norwegian website (some friends of ours are big fans) their cruise wasn't all that much cheaper than Disney and there seemed to be more "extra" charges

Actually, as Christina said, NCL runs good specials often. Sign-up for their email newsletter...they send blasts on a regular basis.

I do agree about the extra charges - there seem to be plenty of them on NCL. You can still go and skip the specialty restaurants and extra charge shows, and still have a good time though!

Leslee I have cruise NCL 1 time and it was a great experience! I had no complaints. I think you would be happy with them... and they are cheaper. They are always running specials too like free balcony upgrades. I really want to try their Epic ship someday.

I have a client sailing the Med on the Epic right now! So anxious for her to return and give me the scoop. (And her thoughts on those crazy staterooms with the sinks in the room, and somewhat open bathroom/shower area!)

I would SOOO do that but don't know if I can hold out that long for a cruise

May is a decent price for the Fantasy...kind of. And since when did I think that 7,000 for a CRUISE is a GOOD price!!?? DCL has me going crazy.

Ha! We have all been partaking of the Disney Kool-Aid! ("But honey, we get "free" soda!")

 

[sweetpee_1993]

That did seem like a deep conversation you guys were having. I had coffee one time there. I don't do dairy and all they had was soy milk, that soy milk stuck with me **blech**

We did Topsiders a couple of times. The coffee there was icky but I loved the after dinner coffee at all the restaurants. That CANNOT be the same coffee.

It was a pretty involved conversation. I felt sorta bad when I considered excusing myself. But then you seemed sorta maybe annoyed or distracted. If I remember I think Brian said something to me that morning about Camille getting in trouble for being out too late or something like that so I was sorta thinking maybe I better not say anything since I was the one who was so pro-let-the-teens-stay-out-all-hours. I was afraid I'd be joining Camille in the doghouse. I know I was hoping for a lull in the conversation to make my escape...but that guy could talk and then you were gone. I felt so bad all the way around...

Yeah, I thought I was just being dramatic with the Topsiders coffee being icky since we were about to leave the ship. I agree, the after-dinner coffees were NOT the same stuff. Or the food had us on such a high that we might have been drinking recycled mud from the spa treatments...

Brittany looks like we are sailing on the same dummy cruise. My whole family is doing Disney parks next May. So this helps with my dilemma of land and sea or 1 week Fantasy. Land next year and 1 week Fantasy May 2014

I think she put everyone who requested a dummy on the same sailing. We're all sailing a Dream 3-day in October 2013!!!! J/K!

I would SOOO do that but don't know if I can hold out that long for a cruise

May is a decent price for the Fantasy...kind of. And since when did I think that 7,000 for a CRUISE is a GOOD price!!?? DCL has me going crazy.

I know, right?! Isn't it insane???? A few months ago I was amazed to see special rates on the Fantasy of the summer. They didn't last long but they were there. I'm feelin' all good about booking an aft balcony on the Fantasy for the end of May 2013 for the bargain price of $5300 and that's AFTER the 10% discount.

Ha! We have all been partaking of the Disney Kool-Aid! ("But honey, we get "free" soda!")

Um, yeah! And we can mix the free soda with the liquor we were able to carry onboard without having to brush up on our rum-runner skills!

I was questioning my BiL about the soda passes & bar drink prices on RCI. He said he thought the fountain sodas they got with the pass tasted very watered down. If you think about it, at the $5-$7.50/day for those soda passes you could buy 2 or 3 of the canned sodas at $2.50 each. Do you really need to drink more sodas than that per day? He said the bar drinks were pretty reasonable and the drink-of-the-day was even cheaper. We rarely drink so we're pretty cheap drunks. Think we'll get the boys the soda passes and go free-style for us on the RCI cruises.

 

[sweetpee_1993]

Cindy, you are so right about this group! I thought the way it went after our Dream 3-day last year was how it worked. We got back, a few people posted something along the lines of: "That was fun. See ya." That was it. This group has kept the fun going and helped each other survive the big post-cruise blues. Love that we're building each other up for future fun and enabling each other for future cruises both with Disney and other lines. This is just awesome. I'd love to cruise with you all more! I you!!!!

 

[Lainey321]

It was a pretty involved conversation. I felt sorta bad when I considered excusing myself. But then you seemed sorta maybe annoyed or distracted. If I remember I think Brian said something to me that morning about Camille getting in trouble for being out too late or something like that so I was sorta thinking maybe I better not say anything since I was the one who was so pro-let-the-teens-stay-out-all-hours. I was afraid I'd be joining Camille in the doghouse. I know I was hoping for a lull in the conversation to make my escape...but that guy could talk and then you were gone. I felt so bad all the way around...

Yeah, I thought I was just being dramatic with the Topsiders coffee being icky since we were about to leave the ship. I agree, the after-dinner coffees were NOT the same stuff. Or the food had us on such a high that we might have been drinking recycled mud from the spa treatments...

Nah, I was just on a mission. Plus I think I had taken a couple wrong turns before I found the place I was going to stay and chat but it didn't seem that conversation wasn't going to stop anytime soon. The barista seemed to be on a rant

 

[Denine]

We have only cruised Princess twice and that was before Kaleigh. Ships were nice, smaller cabins, very different atmosphere. Don't think they have much in the way of kids clubs. From my understanding, kids clubs on other lines are only a few hours here and a few hours there, not all the time like DCL. I think when Kaleigh gets older (she will be 10 in September, so maybe 11 or 12) we will look at other lines for the itineraries. We are booked on a 6-night out of Galveston, but not for the itinerary!

The cruises are such a different experience than the parks. We like them both for different reasons, although, my waist-line likes the parks better! I like to feel pampered now and then. They cater to your every whim, though I don't have many. Someone is always there to refill your wine glass or ask if you need anything. I love to be on the ocean and look at the stars at night. I love to hear the waves off the ship. But, I love walking around Epcot and seeing the differnt countries. If we had the time and money, I would be on a 12-day Med cruise in a heartbeat!

Cruises, for us, are very easy going. That is one reason we almost never do shore excursions or the shows before dinner. We want to be outside as much as possible, since we are inside so much of the time at home because of weather. I still say, some cruise, I am not bringing any dresses and I am dining at Topsiders everynight. No dining room to be at a certain time. But, right now, we get all dressed up every night because we don't at home.

 

[PixieMom712]

I agree, it's so awesome that this has stayed a chatty bunch, even if I haven't had as much time to contribute my own chattiness as I'd like!

The good news is that I don't have pneumonia (though I did have to have chest x-rays yesterday to rule it out), the bad news is that I do have major bronchitis and possibly a sinus infection too. Good grief!

Christina - it was great to meet you too! And all the rest of you as well. We saw Kelly and Crew EVERYWHERE and I joked a few times that I should just take surreptitious pictures every time and add them to my TR - Kelly Stalking Moments or something . I refrained, and I think I only have a few pics while we were sailing out of Port Canaveral with you and Tracey in them. But I saw Tracey on the Key West morning as he was coming down from watching the sunrise on Deck 10, then we saw you on the bus back to the port. We saw you at Palo, we saw you at Twice Charmed. And at least 4 or 5 other times I would lean over to Brian and say, "There they are again!" Sometimes it's a small world!

Thank you all for your coffee thoughts - I will tell DH. He really REALLY didn't like the coffee, even after dinner. And one night he got a cappuccino in the dining room and said it was just as bad. I can't imagine they use the same coffee in the Cove, but maybe so!