October 16, 2008 3 night

[Smiley22]

How lucky to be going on another cruise so soon. My DH and I are also going on the cruise w/o children( soon to be empty nesters) and then staying at CSR after the cruise. I bet you have a list of things to do for just the two of you after just returning from the long cruise.

I dont think we are going to do any excursions on Nassau. I would like to go into Nassau as we have never been, but only for a quick trip to the Straw Market( I love that kind of stuff....really intimidates my husband though) and walk around Atlantis just to say we've seen it. Then back to the ship to enjoy and relax.

I look forward to hearing more from everyone as the time is getting close. I have such a long list of things to get done before the trip. That just keeps the excitement level up

 

[farscape]

Hi Smiley22,

Congratulations on your upcoming 22nd Anniversary! It sounds like you have a very romantic time arranged for the two of you.

We may follow your example in the Bahamas. Diane likes to shop/bargain and we would like to at least view Atlantis.

I am in the process of deciding what day to schedule Palo.

The first day would probably be great but we want to meet our Servers and the other guests assigned to our table.

I need to check the Navigator but I believe that the second night is formal night so we may not want to miss that.

The last night will be right after spending the whole day at Castaway Cay. We may be too tired to really enjoy the dining experience.

What night do you have reservations to Palo?

Funny, we just experienced a 5.8 magnitude earthquake that lasted about 20 to 30 seconds. I am in a tall building and the rolling swaying motion felt like I was still on the Disney Magic.

I better call and check in on everyone.

TTFN

 

[Smiley22]

We are going to Palo on Oct 18 as that is our actual Anniversary. I didnt want to miss Animators or Parrot Cay (as they have more seafood) I also think that the Pirate night is Friday?? I didnt want to miss that if for nothing more than the fireworks at sea. We booked thru Disney and they have been so very helpful in suggesting which nights to schedule things so as to not miss our choices. We had wanted to do Spa treatments also but just couldnt find the time so we decided to wait until CSR. We are on the cruise for such a short time I really want to enjoy the ship and activities. From some of the things I have read on the Dis boards they try to group together guests w/o children and ages together. So who knows we may be at the same table.

Hope everything is OK with the quake. Any damage??

 

[farscape]

Luckily, there was relatively little damage or injuries sustained from the earthquake.

Anyway we decided to book Palo for October 17th since we just participated in the Pirate night on the Magic and we should be back on board early from Nassau.

Is there a Formal night on the 3 day cruise? If so, is it on Saturday night?

Cheers!

 

[Crazy4Disney06]

Luckily, there was relatively little damage or injuries sustained from the earthquake.

Anyway we decided to book Palo for October 17th since we just participated in the Pirate night on the Magic and we should be back on board early from Nassau.

Is there a Formal night on the 3 day cruise? If so, is it on Saturday night?

Cheers!

I could be wrong as this is our first cruise, however I'm pretty sure I read on DisneyCruise.com that the formal nights are only on longer cruises. Does anyone know for sure?
Our family is pretty laid back and I would rather not have a formal night. Don't get me wrong we enjoy dressing up just not in gowns and a tux.

 

[zulaya]

I could be wrong as this is our first cruise, however I'm pretty sure I read on DisneyCruise.com that the formal nights are only on longer cruises. Does anyone know for sure?
Our family is pretty laid back and I would rather not have a formal night. Don't get me wrong we enjoy dressing up just not in gowns and a tux.

Ditto. I'm very sure of this. It's been confirmed by a number of people who were on ship and didn't have a formal night and I remember someone talking about asking DCL directly about it.

Maybe I'm not fancy enough for cruising, but when I'm on vacation, I want to be on vacation.

 

[Smiley22]

I think I am getting this right???? On the longer cruises there is a special "pirate menu" at the restaurants and then a pirate party on the deck but on the 3 day cruise there is only a party on deck with a dessert buffet?? Not sure if we will "dress up" for the party full force but maybe a little something AARRGGY (like that word??? It comes from my own private dictionary

 

[SeaSickPsycho]

I think I am getting this right???? On the longer cruises there is a special "pirate menu" at the restaurants and then a pirate party on the deck but on the 3 day cruise there is only a party on deck with a dessert buffet?? Not sure if we will "dress up" for the party full force but maybe a little something AARRGGY (like that word??? It comes from my own private dictionary

When we did the three day cruise a few years ago there was a pirate menu and we got our bandanas at dinner.

 

[livinthedisneydream]

DH and I are also doing our first cruise ever on the 16th. We're celebrating my 40th birthday which is the 15th. We had originally booked the 7 night with the kids but DH has a meeting earlier in the week so we decided to go on a shorter one---3 night is better than no night, right?!

We also found sitters for the kids (10,6, and 3) They going to be upset that we're going without them but we figure we can "check everything out for them" and rebook a family cruise onboard.

We have booked Palo on the first night and are going to book the CS for Atlantis. I know we won't save a whole lot of money but we like the freedom---especially with the lunch. If anyone wants to go in on the room--party of two---we may be interested in splitting that as well.

We spent the last 4 nights of our honeymoon after Disney at Atlantis 11 years ago and it seemed huge then. It will be fun to go back and "check it out" for the kids for next time.

Looking forward to hearing about everyone's plans!

 

[zulaya]

Well, I buckled down and made one of those Fish Extenders yesterday while I was watching the Olympics. I had gotten the materials before when we were originally planning on a different cruise.

I don't know if the group is planning on anything, but I couldn't let the materials go to waste.

I'm so not a sewing person; my fingers are a little tender from the hot glue gun burns.

If we decide to do the Fish Extender thing as a group, great. If not...well, you'll all know where we are. I'm going to see if I can take a picture and upload it later.

 

[952LisaR]

We are so excited.

It will be me (Lisa) and my DH (Keith) and our 2 DD (ages 6 and 7).

This is our second Disney Cruise, we were on the Magic in 2006.

We too, will be flying in and driving to Cape Canaveral on 10/15. Still trying to decide on hotel and rental car - any suggestions for the best deals?

Looking forward to meeting everyone.

 

[zulaya]

952LisaR - have you got your flights yet? We're flying down on Oct 15 as well from MN so maybe we'll be on the same one!

 

[brucechase]

Just book the Comfort Suites for the Atlantis excursion. The rate was $157.00 on the Comfort Suites site, so it was a tremendous savings over the DCL rate (even if only 2 of you are going - about $150 savings and about $400 for us). At one time I saw Expedia had $120 but it didn't work for me tonight. I could always cancel if it comes back.

My wife will be trying to do the fish extender thing soon so any pictures and measurements will help. I think she might try the hem tape instead of sewing or the glue gun. I'll let everyone know how it turns out (or if it gets thrown away!)

 

[zulaya]

Have her read the Fish Extender thread. The first 2 pages give you the meat of the info. I'll try and post a picture of my attempt later.

 

[brucechase]

Finally added all the names on the front page. It looks like we have quite a crew going.

It seems like time is flying by faster and faster. The kids started school yesterday and in no time we will be cruising. I need to pack!!!

We signed up for Atlantis and the stingray/snorkling at CC. Does anyone have any experience with these?

 

[Smiley22]

Being new to these boards I have been soaking up lots of new information....some not what I want to hear. We have usually drove in the past and the flights we did take were usually on time. Due to work schedules we can not leave before the morning of the cruise. My Air Tran flight was due to leave Flint, MI at 6:30 am. It has changed twice with the flight now leaving at 8:00 am. Still leaves time but after reading all the problems others have had with flights being cancelled at the last minute,I am really starting to worry. Everyone say a prayer and cross your fingers there is no more changes. (of couse if the plane flight is cancelled on the way home.........what could I do)

 

[zulaya]

Yeah, the airlines are in a world of hurt. Airtran has the reputation for messing with schedules ALL the time. Not what you want to hear, I know. We don't sail until what, 4pm or 5pm? You have a couple of hours cushion.

Is there any way you can look at a flight coming in late the night before? I know Airtran from MSP usually has a connecting flight that gets in around 11pm. Sure, connecting sucks rocks, but then maybe you could leave work, go straight to the airport, fly in to MCO and just crash at the airport Hyatt for the night.

I see a lot of people reporting being able to get the Hyatt for less than $100 for the night via Hotwire and Priceline.

Might be worth looking into.

 

[Smiley22]

Tried to get late flight on the 15 but we live in such a rural area the closest airport is 2 hours away and we wouldnt make their late flight. The closet airport with a really late flight is 4 hours away. I guess I just have to pray. Hope to see everyone on the ship. If we dont make it I am sure everyone will hear me crying from Michigan. So far Airtran has only changed my flight by a couple of hours. Anyone know if they cancel nonstop or connecting more often??

 

[zulaya]

Well, I can't speak for Flint, only what's happened here in MSP.

Sometimes, you are fine. Sometimes, you aren't.

Two cases in point:
1. My friend was going to WDW in October, flying out on a Tuesday, on a non-stop. Closer to departure...I can't remember exactly how close it was, but it was more than 1 month, but less than 3 months...Airtran cancelled the single non-stop for that day. My friend could have taken an itinerary with a stop, switching planes in ATL, or moved her trip to a different date that had a non-stop. She chose to back her trip up to Monday because Monday still had the non-stop.

2. Another family friend booked the non-stop not only because they wanted a non-stop, but it was a 9am departure and it was good for her family. The non-stop time then moved several times, getting backed up later into the day, until the departure time was sometime after 2pm. She stuck with the non stop, but it kind of messed up her day in that she didn't land until 6pm and they had to give up their first night's ADR.

I don't know if you've been over to the Transportation Board, but there was a post that said as of September 3, I believe, 169 Airtran pilots were being laid off.

So I guess you need to keep on top of the situation. You seem to be stuck between a rock and a hard place with Airtran's fickle business operations and your having to work on Weds. I think if I were you, I'd scope out what other airlines could get you to MCO, specifically airlines that are not flirting with the problems Airtran seems to be having. Know what flight numbers to watch. Then if Airtran pulls a change on you that doesn't work for you, take your refund and book with another airline. It may not be as cheap, but then you know you can get there.

 

[zulaya]

Did some poking around...I think you are significantly hampered in going out of Flint. A lot of the airlines are starting to fly MCO direct only "seasonally".

The last departure time I could find was a 7pm. I gather that you are unable to get to FNT by 5:30pm from work?

If you are still thinking leaving on Oct 16, I'd consider Delta or Northwest. Both are connecting, but to be honest, connecting is not as bad as some people lead you to believe.

For example, so many people think that connecting in ATL is the kiss of death...that it's too big and too many problems, yadda, yadda yadda. I've gone from MSP-MCO on Delta, connecting through ATL, with a 4 and 5 year old in tow and all the requisite crap that you hall along for those ages. We had a 1 hour layover. We went literally, from the E terminal to the A Terminal (which essentially is from one end of the airport to the other) and we still had gobs of time. The underground tram system is fabulous and fast!

Anyway, I digress a bit.

Delta would be my first choice for you as a backup option should Airtran seriously mess with the flights. Delta leaves at 5:45am. I know, it's early, but are you really going to be able to sleep anyway? Anyhow, you connect in ATL and there are 3 flights to connect to and get you there in time, but the first one will give you around an hour layover (enough to stretch your legs and get a snack) and gets you to MCO at 10:12am. Plenty of time!

NWA would be my second choice for you. NWA takes you up to Detroit. You have a 50 minute layover, but don't sweat it. NWA has their own terminal at DTW with its own high speed tram. The last time I connected there, I got off the plane, went up the escalator to the tram, had to go literally to the other end of the terminal for my flight and was there within 6 minutes of getting off my first plane. NWA leaves FNT at 7am and then gets you to MCO at 11:29am - still leaving you plenty of time to get where you need to be. They did have another option, but it didn't land until I think 1:45ish and I didn't know if you'd like to cut it that short.

By the way, Delta I think was priced at $160 ROUNDTRIP. I don't know what you paid for to get on Airtran, but anything sub-200 nowadays I think is a steal. I think NWA was a bit more, but I don't remember exactly.

Hope this helps.