October 17, 2009 Western

[NCjenn]

I don't have any experience, but that is precisely why I decided to go with a verandah. At first, I booked an inside stateroom, and then I decided to upgrade. What if I hated the inside room and felt claustrophobic? I just didn't want my frugality to be the reason I didn't enjoy myself. I think, hey, you only live once! We could afford it, so we went for it. There are day-to-day ways we save money so that we can splurge on our vacations (like we brown-bag it to work everyday).

Yep, I am definitly frugal so my cruise budget is not the same as my husband's. But...I couldn't go too frugal for this cruise since I was afraid of feeling claustraphobic, etc. I am a BIG coupon clipper like the ones on tv lately who get their groceries for a couple of dollars, etc. I am SO frugal in certain ways and big on saving money so that we can do some things like this on occassion. Just have had a hard time knowing how much to spend on the room though since we've never done this kind of trip before.

So...right now I am waiting on the TA to get back with me on what rooms are available for the cat 8 on deck 6 and then select and book it. So by tonight I should officially join the group!

Thanks everyone for the advice! I'll officially introduce myself and my family tonight when it is all confirmed.

Jennifer

 

[yazee1]

Good luck, Jenn. Dh and I have learned through experience that we value a balcony more than any other consideration when it comes to our room. We learned this the hard way when we booked an inside room for our last cruise. It was just the two of us on that last cruise and we wanted to do the whole thing as cheaply as possible. We did have an excellent time except when we were in the room. We value a private bit of outdoors in which to relax, read, watch the ocean waves , read, have some quiet time in the morning, etc. Like someone else said it depends on how you use your room. We weren't there much but when we were, the veranda made all the difference to us.

 

[kimberleeJohnston]

We are the type that could never cruise without the balcony. I love a glass of wine out there at night after we put the little ones down! The way we look at it is, since our kids are still quite young we do not do many excursions, so we spend the extra money on the room. It is true that you are not in there a whole lot, but some nights on our last cruise the kids were so wiped that they were in bed by 8, the balcony was nice so dh and I could still enjoy ourselves and not have to be lying in bed!! Whichever way you choose you will still have a magical time!!

 

[NCjenn]

Ok, let me "officially" introduce myself and my family. We will be joining you all on the 7 night western cruise on October 17th! This is our first cruise of any kind and we are VERY excited!

My name is Jennifer, my DH is Rob and our children are Lauren (8) and Josh (5). We are from Charlotte, NC. We will be celebrating Rob's 40th birthday and our 12th wedding anniversary. My daughter would like to consider it her birthday celebration too since she'll have a birthday about 3 weeks later!

I am loving the message boards and have borrowed my neighbor's Passporter 2008 book trying to take in as much info as possible. I've gone back and forth and back again about the kind of stateroom to choose and now am just waiting on the TA to confirm our choice.

My neighbor says I need to ask about Fish Extenders in the group...are you doing that? Of course she then had to explain what that is!

I look forward to "meeting" you all online here and hopefully on the boat too! We'll probably be easy to spot...my DS5 has alopecia, which is an auto-immune disorder that causes hair loss so he is bald (but beautiful!). We'll be doing LOTS of sunscreen and baseball caps!

Jennifer

 

[calmpets]

Officially, welcome NCJenn & family! Just a small suggestion for you, since you'll be celebrating birthdays. When we took my dad for his 60th, I got one of the stateroom celebration gifts, so when he got to his room it had birthday decorations, complete with a very cute cake. Best $30 I spent! You can also mention your celebrations to the reservationist, and they'll make a note in your record of which days you want to celebrate what.

 

[beansf]

Welcome, Jennifer!

Your son won't be the only one on the boat with sunscreen and hats. I am very pale and watched my mother have a skin cancer removed from her face about a year and a half ago, so I will be well-covered most of the time. If you look at our pictures from Australia, you would think it was cold there because I always have long sleeves on, but in fact, it was pretty hot!

In fact, one of the best things I have ever bought is one of those long-sleeved Body Glove shirts, so we don't have to worry about getting burned while snorkeling. I would recommend one of those to anyone. I won't swim without it.

 

[kimberleeJohnston]

Yay! Im so glad youve joined us Jennifer!
My ds will be almost 8 at sailing time, and the other ds will be 5, I also have a dd who will be a month shy of 2.....sounds like our kids might be hanging out together in the AWESOME kids club!
We also are easy to spot, my dh is the big guy with all the tattoos.....but fear not, he is a big teddy bear and a wonderful father. (I always like to add that, as the tattoos can be judged VERY quickly, as we have found!)
Ive bought a couple of those BodyGlove shirts for my kids and they are soooooo great! You can find them at Old Navy no too....not BodyGlove brand but similar protection!
Is anyone doing DW before the cruise? We are flying in on the 14th and doing MNSSHP on the 15th!!

 

[yazee1]

Jenn, can you tell us what you booked - inside, outside or outside w/veranda?

 

[yazee1]

No DW for us. It would be nice. I wish we could.

Tomorrow is the day we make our five-month trip chain! I'll post pictures if we finish before I have to leave for work. Speaking of which, I no longer like my job. Disney cruise money or not, I'm on the verge of telling this company to shove it. It's not my bosses' faults or my coworkers. I feel really bad for my supervisors because they have to enforce new rules that they don't agree with with and put them in the category of the messenger we all want to kill. Why do companies have to let the bean counters dictate new policies that look good on paper but are ruinous in application?

 

[kerickson]

Make sure the kids dont see!

I Work at Build A Bear Workshop!

Steve
We were at Build a Bear DL on Thursday 5/7! We stayed at the GCH so we were able to have a semi private session before the store opened. There was only one other family, it was great! My DD made a kitty and my DS made a bear (which he named Build a Bear ) Were you working that day? I wonder if you helped us!

Excursions:
Those of you that book excursions direct, do you worry that the ship may not make it to that port due to weather or other circumstances? (Swine Flu and Mexican violence recently caused the Western to go to Nassau instead of Cozumel..) What would your plan be then?
My husband and I spoke the other night and have decided not to book any excursions. Are we crazy? We figure we'll just play it by ear and go to the beaches/turtle farms, etc on our own. Not looking to do big things like Dolphin swimming, etc. What are the cons to this plan?

BTW - less then 5 mo to go

 

[bourgie]

5 months!!!!!!

 

[NCjenn]

Just realized...5 months!!!!! Woohoo!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Jennifer

 

[NCjenn]

Jenn, can you tell us what you booked - inside, outside or outside w/veranda?

Well, I am anxiously waiting for the TA to get back to me tomorrow. I had originally had her quote a cat 8 on deck 6 but then DH wanted me to change it to a cat 6 verandah and take advantage of some good OBC's being offered by the TA. So...I think I will be getting a cat 6 verandah in gty status. Guess I will know for sure tomorrow a.m. Still not sure I am super excited about the price tag on it but it'll be ok. We just won't be doing much that's not free at the various ports. And doubt we'll make any spa appts. but that's ok!

Jennifer

 

[kimberleeJohnston]

Kerickson-When we cruised last year in Oct hurricane Omar detoured us and we didnt get a chance to go to St Thomas, dh and I had a jetboat excursion booked and they refunded us. The CM's were great about puuting together a whole new set of excursions for Nassau where we were rerouted too....I dont think you are crazy for not bookin excursions, we are beach people so we dont usually do a whole lot of excursions, plus our kids are small and some of the excursions are a little dull for little kidlets!

Yaz- Thats tough about your job....its always stressful to be in that position, I hope it all works out for you, keep us posted!

Jennifer- Your cruise will be so wonderful amd memorable that price will not be something you think about once your return home....I know its easier said than done to not fret over price, but it is all worth it, trust me! The memories you will make with your family will be priceless!!

 

[TheDawnPatrol]

Hello All!

Hard too believe we are down to 5 months before the cruise and roughly two more months before we can book excursions. Regarding excursions we are on the fence as well with booking anything for Cancun. DW is very excited about visiting Grand Cayman and seeing the turtle farms, but come Cancun we may hang out on the ship or stay close to port.

BTW, welcome to all the new folks who recently joined the group.

Regards,
Pete

 

[TheDawnPatrol]

Whoops, got double posted!

Pete

 

[kimberleeJohnston]

Hello All!

Hard too believe we are down to 5 months before the cruise and roughly two more months before we can book excursions. Regarding excursions we are on the fence as well with booking anything for Cancun. DW is very excited about visiting Grand Cayman and seeing the turtle farms, but come Cancun we may hang out on the ship or stay close to port.

BTW, welcome to all the new folks who recently joined the group.

Regards,
Pete

Hi Pete!
Our family will probably do a bit of the market shops in Cozumel and maybe just beach it for the rest of the day. We have been to Cozumel serveral times, so we have done some excursions there....not through Disney though, but same type of thing.

 

[Bibbidi-Bobbidi-Bo]

We're planning for Oct. 17th, 2009!!!! Let me introduce myself; My Name is Christina, my boyfriend and I are planning to go on our 1st Cruise this year! We are both extremely excited! During the next few months I hope to get to know a few of you through these whole message boards and forums, and I look forward to seeing/meeting everyone on the Cruise! Can't wait!!!!

Who's going? We are!! I just booked!


The growing list of our Dismeet Friends and their children (age at cruise time)

aan1701 - Alan(34) and Dw(37)
ajzwahlin - with DH, DD (11) and DD(5)
beansf - with
bourgie - with DD(13) and DD(10)
Calmpets - with DH, father & Nascarchic, 2 friends
castmember2- with dh
Dawnpatrol - Pete with DW, Ds (9), DS (8ish) and DD(3)
dcannon101 - with DW
doberlady - Debbie and Marty, dc(4), dc(13), dc(10)
frndofpooh-2 adults,DS(12), DS(8) - DW's birthday
goofy4ever - with dbf, dc and dc
ImagineerM -Josh(27) and DW Melissa(25), DM and DF
kentgirl - with dh - dh's 50th birthday
kerickson - with dh, dd(5) and ds(3) -dh's 40th birthday, 9th anniversary
kimberleeJohnston - Kimberlee & Josh w/ Jakob (7), Braxton(5), and Londyn (almost 2)
KJF - with DH, DD(7), DS (5)
mavdav -with DS(5) and DS(3)
missusem - with
mommyto5 -with DH, and DS(13), DD(11), DS(11), DS(9), & DD(4)
NCJenn - DH (Rob), Lauren (8) and Josh (5).
northern mickey - with DM, DF, DGF & DGM
princess jackson- 2 adults and 1 child
princessduck - with dh - 10th anniversary
shancan -Shannon with DH(36), DS (8), DMIL and DFIL, DBIL and DSIL and their DS (6).
strega7 -Me, DH, DS9, Mom, Dad, and my sister.
wendym - Wendy(40) and DM Doreen
yazee1 - Monica & Warren, DS(14), DS(12), DD(8), BIL, FIL and MIL - 50th anniversary/20th anniversary

 

[yazee1]

We've never booked our excursion through DCL.We've either booked online directly with an excursion provider or waited until we were in port to make a deal with one of the vendors who are authorized to greet cruise guests. I understand about the security of booking with the cruiseline so that no matter what you don't miss the ship. So far, we haven't taken part in an excursion that put us at risk, timewise, for missing the boat.

 

[kimberleeJohnston]

We've never booked our excursion through DCL.We've either booked online directly with an excursion provider or waited until we were in port to make a deal with one of the vendors who are authorized to greet cruise guests. I understand about the security of booking with the cruiseline so that no matter what you don't miss the ship. So far, we haven't taken part in an excursion that put us at risk, timewise, for missing the boat.

Thats a great plan! I imagine you can save quite a bit of money not paying Disney prices too!