**@@** October 6th, 2007 Magic**@@**

[nycemschic]

On my cruise before this one, we had to turn around and go back to port-There was a gravely ill child on board. (Oddly enough, it occured around the same time of night that CMmom's SIL's problem erupted!)

(Actaully, that was my trip from hell... a man who had a seizure in front of me in WalMart, and on the flight to MCO a passenger went unconcsious!)

Interestingly, I was at Guest Services Sat. night for some other stuff and then asked what happened- why did we stop. The CM said in 7 years this was the first medical emergency he's witnessed on board. (am I the black cloud? LOL)

In Cozumel, we saw a fire and an ambulance responding to the docks... only to find out it was for our ship! Then the scuttlebutt about the seizure/choking during dinner, the family that disembarked in Grand Cayman because of a DIF (not on board, but back at home)... I'm grateful we escaped unscathed!

I hope everyone affected is doing better... and next time I think I'll get the insurance!

 

[nycemschic]

We wanted to do something different for the next cruise. The 15 day Panama Canal was it! But, apparently it was sold out in 6 hours...

So, the next best thing... Mexican Riviera! July 27th is the cruise, and depending on the availability- we're going to Disneyland before/after...

P.S. We joined the DVC... Any positive/negative feedback on this move? They SAY availability isn't an issue... I guess we'll see!

 

[stenogoddess]

WELCOME HOME

We're DVC and LOVE IT! I would say this about availability, it isn't an issue if where you stay isn't a make or break problem for you. If you want Beach Club at Christmas and that's not your home resort, you're out of luck. When booking last minute, I've never had a problem wedging in somewhere. When I know far out and I am specific about a certain resort, I have had to waitlist a couple of times but it's always come through in the end. I can't say enough about DVC and how much we love it!

P.S. We joined the DVC... Any positive/negative feedback on this move? They SAY availability isn't an issue... I guess we'll see!

Hey Laura! Did you get your little red treat I left you on your fish?? (I hope someone didn't take it!)

 

[lowery1226]

Hi there!! It was our little boy (20 month old) who broke his Femur bone at the Dolphin Adventure in Cozumel... argggg! He is home now and doing much better! It was one of those freaky things that happens with little ones as he slipped on a wet area and fell awkwardly on his left leg. LUCKILY we did have travel insurance which covered a Med Jet flight back to our hometown for both him and my wife. He is now in a full body cast to support the healing process (5-8 weeks). Tough part is that at his age he just doesnt understand what is going on. The disney people were all excellent and gave us all the support!! I stayed onboard with my 9 yr old and continued the trip AND booked the 5 day double dip next september! Both wife and son will sure deserve it by that point! Hope everyone had an enjoyable and memorable trip!

 

[Selket]

Hi there!! It was our little boy (20 month old) who broke his Femur bone at the Dolphin Adventure in Cozumel He is now in a full body cast to support the healing process (5-8 weeks).

I'm so sorry for your little son! I am sure this is a difficult experience for him but I'm happy to hear that he was able to get prompt medical attention and the outcome will eventually be 100%. I didn't know this happened at all in Cozumel (we were gone all day to the Tulum ruins). I'm glad you got to stay on board with your other child and also rebook.

Amazing that two of the Dis'ers were folks who had the medical issues. Glad we didn't have the possibly drunk fellow (I hope!).

I have to give a plug to the website through which we bought our trip insurance which is http://www.tripinsurancestore.com/ My younger son has medical issues as I've said (type 1 diabetes, severe food allergies, asthma, etc) and I thought I would go INSANE trying to figure out whether we could find trip insurance that would cover him under certain conditions (his diabetes could have caused a medical evac under some circumstances, etc). This place was just awesome - real people to speak to and they sell the same insurance as other places (like travelguard, travelex, etc.). What is great is to talk to someone directly and they seemed like they really know their stuff. They will also help you if you had to use the insurance - help you file the claim, etc. I've no affiliation - just a happy customer.

 

[threeCsmom]

Hi there!! It was our little boy (20 month old) who broke his Femur bone at the Dolphin Adventure in Cozumel... argggg! He is home now and doing much better! It was one of those freaky things that happens with little ones as he slipped on a wet area and fell awkwardly on his left leg. LUCKILY we did have travel insurance which covered a Med Jet flight back to our hometown for both him and my wife. He is now in a full body cast to support the healing process (5-8 weeks). Tough part is that at his age he just doesnt understand what is going on. The disney people were all excellent and gave us all the support!! I stayed onboard with my 9 yr old and continued the trip AND booked the 5 day double dip next september! Both wife and son will sure deserve it by that point! Hope everyone had an enjoyable and memorable trip!

I am so, so sorry you had to deal with this. We were right there beside you when he fell. I felt so bad for your wife but she was a trooper and was my hero for the day. I would have been in tears!! We looked for you guys throughout the rest of the cruise but never saw you - so thank you so much for the update. Lots of hugs and prayers coming your way from your Chattanooga friends!

 

[rdy2bpampered]

Hi there!! It was our little boy (20 month old) who broke his Femur bone at the Dolphin Adventure in Cozumel... argggg! He is home now and doing much better! It was one of those freaky things that happens with little ones as he slipped on a wet area and fell awkwardly on his left leg. LUCKILY we did have travel insurance which covered a Med Jet flight back to our hometown for both him and my wife. He is now in a full body cast to support the healing process (5-8 weeks). Tough part is that at his age he just doesnt understand what is going on. The disney people were all excellent and gave us all the support!! I stayed onboard with my 9 yr old and continued the trip AND booked the 5 day double dip next september! Both wife and son will sure deserve it by that point! Hope everyone had an enjoyable and memorable trip!

NOT A GOOD THING! I was exiting to the port when they wheeled him off and I had no clue that was your family! That is so bad! Hope he does ok--at this age he probably won't remember it later but once he gets the cast off you will prolly be running after him..he will have to make up for lost time! I sure hope everything goes well. Our prayers are with you because young ones really don't understand. It can be frustrating to them and you.
Glad you had the support of the Disney medical team. Sure makes you glad you decided to get the insurance...some people really waffle..should they get it..should they waste money? Hey, I say get the dang insurance. What is a couple of hundred compared to what it could be. It also allows you to concentrate on the problem and not have to worry about paying for the emergency at that moment.


All our thoughts are with you! and others that had problems.

 

[stenogoddess]

So sorry to hear about your little man! I hope things are going as well as they can be, and I'm glad you were thoughtful enough to rebook a trip for your wife!

Here's a little Serenity Bay for all of us now that we're back home.

 

[aw24]

lowery1226, we were there when your son fell also, we have been very worried about him. Thanks for the update, please know that we are sending thoughts and prayers your way. We wish you and your family the very best.

Did anyone get picture mats or pillow cases signed thru guest services? We took 2 mats with a bag of candy and a bag of sharpies. They were left in our room Friday night, each of them has 29 autographs on them. This may be the best souvenir we have.

Ann

 

[Laurabearz]

Boatswain Park/Turtle Farm..

The Swimming pool...

The enterance

and the far end with the waterfall. I was told they plan on adding a slide feature here too There is an area under this waterfall where you can get up, then jump through the waterfall into the water. The kids really enjoyed doing that!

The snorkling Laggon... Very large. Lots of fish and turtles, but they were all at the far end near the Sharks

Near the Shark tank.. Under that bridge is a glass wall where you can se the sharks swimming on the other side... Very COOL!

The restraunt over looks the snorkle Lagoon..

Lovely steel drum band greets you..

And of course TURTLES...

This turtle flapped mighty fast, and kind of scared, but mostly intriqued my DD

And a rare site... a Bear holding a turtle...

Over all I rate this experience as TWO BIG THUMBS UP! Lunch could have been better, but no real complaints. All the Staff were SUPER NICE!!! There was a lot we didnt see and do like the Aviary and Nature Center... But we will do those the next time we head that way

The restrooms and changing rooms were VERY CLEAN... You can tell this is a new park, but the way the staff worked so hard, and their great attitudes, my feeling is, this place will only get better with time.

Also we did the park on our own, not through Disney... Easy to get to, and much cheaper than with Disney. We took the same bus back and the Disney people for the same price as a cab ($6.00 per person) It took about 20 mintues to get there, and the ride is all along 7 mile beach (which you can't see because of all the hotels, but still nice sites to see as your flying by)

 

[AndyR]

Here's a link to some 250+ of the better pics I took during the week. Just click on the image below



Andy

 

[Laurabearz]

Great pictures Andy!!! I can't beleive you took a picture of my Hat...

 

[rdy2bpamperedmom]

andy, are you a professional photographer? those were really good pictures. i loved visiting all those places again. wasn't that fantastic? my first trip. my DM was so thrilled, couldn't tell me often enough how glad she was that we insisted that she come. said what fun would we have with her in a wheelchair? but we did, and she did. so if we lightened her life story for one week, we are sooo glad. she is still talking in glowing terms of the whole thing. it was my first experience with a digital camera, i didn't do so good with it, but i tried, i was oblivious to all the trouble you folks had, sooo sorry your vacation was such a bummer, hope your trouble doesn't last long, prayers and concern are yours, from my heart. i was afraid my DM may have trouble too, lucky she didn't, and very happy she had a good time. was wonderful to finally meet all you disboarders, was great to have all the new friends to meet and feel close to. was so much to do, i wish i could have done and seen more. maybe next time---- loved being there with you all.

 

[My3sonscruisn]

Boatswain Park/Turtle Farm..

The Swimming pool...

The enterance

and the far end with the waterfall. I was told they plan on adding a slide feature here too There is an area under this waterfall where you can get up, then jump through the waterfall into the water. The kids really enjoyed doing that!

The snorkling Laggon... Very large. Lots of fish and turtles, but they were all at the far end near the Sharks

Near the Shark tank.. Under that bridge is a glass wall where you can se the sharks swimming on the other side... Very COOL!

The restraunt over looks the snorkle Lagoon..

Lovely steel drum band greets you..

And of course TURTLES...

This turtle flapped mighty fast, and kind of scared, but mostly intriqued my DD

And a rare site... a Bear holding a turtle...

Over all I rate this experience as TWO BIG THUMBS UP! Lunch could have been better, but no real complaints. All the Staff were SUPER NICE!!! There was a lot we didnt see and do like the Aviary and Nature Center... But we will do those the next time we head that way

The restrooms and changing rooms were VERY CLEAN... You can tell this is a new park, but the way the staff worked so hard, and their great attitudes, my feeling is, this place will only get better with time.

Also we did the park on our own, not through Disney... Easy to get to, and much cheaper than with Disney. We took the same bus back and the Disney people for the same price as a cab ($6.00 per person) It took about 20 mintues to get there, and the ride is all along 7 mile beach (which you can't see because of all the hotels, but still nice sites to see as your flying by)

Hi there:

We leave this Saturday for same cruise. Was excited, then saw your pics now very excited. Quick questions:

What did you love, what would you skip?

Thanks for your input.

 

[Laurabearz]

Hi there:

We leave this Saturday for same cruise. Was excited, then saw your pics now very excited. Quick questions:

What did you love, what would you skip?

Thanks for your input.

What did we love about Boatswain park Or the Cruise in General??

I thought Boatswain was a great introduction to snorkling for my family. Your garrentted to see loads of fish (although most of them were are the far end of the lagoon) The fresh water lagoon was WONDERFUL. Everyone was really nice.

Lunch left a bit to be desired, but it wasn't bad enough for me to say dont eat there. lol

It was much cheaper just walking up to the park, as appose to booking it through Disney..... I was a bit intimadated about catching a cab there, but it really went smoothly. Just agree on a price before you go

 

[My3sonscruisn]

What did we love about Boatswain park Or the Cruise in General??

I thought Boatswain was a great introduction to snorkling for my family. Your garrentted to see loads of fish (although most of them were are the far end of the lagoon) The fresh water lagoon was WONDERFUL. Everyone was really nice.

Lunch left a bit to be desired, but it wasn't bad enough for me to say dont eat there. lol

It was much cheaper just walking up to the park, as appose to booking it through Disney..... I was a bit intimadated about catching a cab there, but it really went smoothly. Just agree on a price before you go

Thanks for the info, but was also wondering about the whole cruise in general.
If you have a moment.

Thanks-

 

[nanatink]

It was wonderful meeting all of you. We will all have memories to last a lifetime. Sorry to hear of a few mishaps. I hope everyone is doing much better.

This cruise the weather was cooler and rainy than last year same time. Last year Cozumel was truly like stepping into an oven. Also the temperture in the dining rooms, pubs, and theatre's were comfortable. The only place that I found was freezing was Shutters.

I was able to attend all of the nighttime shows and many of the pub activities.

 

[Laurabearz]

Thanks for the info, but was also wondering about the whole cruise in general.
If you have a moment.

Thanks-

We loved everything... rofl!!! We rented an electic car in Key west and tooled around there... The Civil War Fort was fun, and the view fromthere of our ship was wonderful.... We ate at a great place on Elizabeth St Called Conch Something... it's on the water and the food was REALLY GOOD. The crab cakes were Devine, and I consider myself a crab cake expert.

The Dolhins in Cozumel were great too. I am sad the weather was so bad so we didn't stay and enjoy the rest of Chankaanb park, but it was LOVELY! OMG so much nicer than where we were there right before Wilma crushed Cozumel 2 years ago. Still a work in progress, but what is open was really REALLY nice. Gosh I LOVED the bathrooms there!

I think Chank park is worth the trip even if you dont do the Dolpins.. it's that nice.

My best advice... Listen to you kids. Dont schedule too much... and take time to enjoy the ship

 

[rdy2bpampered]

Thanks for the info, but was also wondering about the whole cruise in general.
If you have a moment.

Thanks-

Regrets: Didn't get to do everything. Won't do electric car again. Ddidn't see any museums or beaches in Key West.Never took kids swimming on the ship. When they wanted to it was too crowded...when it wasnt crowded- they didn't want to go.
Things to avoid: Picture lines...yuck. everyone stands in line at the same time to get formal or character pics. We only got one professional pic.
Things to NOT do: Stay out of the room! My kids didn't want to leave the stateroom. They were not into the clubs- hated that part..but I wanted them to get more involved.
Best part of the trip: Floating in the ocean at Castaway Cay. Absolute quiet, beautiful skies...man, I wish I was back there!
**Room tour**(saw all the categories-we arranged this thru other disboarders) and second only to Castaway Cay....meeting all the friends I had made here on the Disboards. We had loads of fun and they made the trip so much more friendly. Get to know your disboarders...WOW! like cruising with a bunch of friends!
Castaway Cay: Think twice about excursions...we did three total between the 5 of us and just wished we had done the beach and nothing else. Would have been better to relax on the last day rather than rushing to get to the excursion on time.
Cozumel: Be prepared for the hawkers! People stand at each store entrance and try to get you to come into their stores..very annoying and can kinda make you nervous. And go left off the pier..all the shops are that way. Nothing to the right. We also did the Sea Trek at Jeanies Rest...Grand, grand thing to do...I would recommend it alot. (Jeanies is right from the pier about 2-3 blocks down)
Grand Caymans: We didn't have any tours planned but a bus driver stopped at the pier and offered a tour of the islands for $20 a piece. Hold out and you may get a discount on that price. But it was a good tour in an air-conditioned bus. It was a quick running tour through all the high points and still left time for a beach visit or excursion. We did stingrays thru Capt Marvin. (Wonderful people. I messed up our appt and they did everything in their power to get us out to the stingray city so we could do or excursion. The manager spent like 20 minutes trying to find someone to take us out. Actually called an off-duty captain in to take us exclusively to the tour boat. He took us out (DD got to drive the boat!) and then left us with our original group.)
Key West: We rented an electric car- but because we didn't know where we were going we wasted alot of time just driving around. Might be better to do the train or trolley. We just couldn't because of the DGM (86) in a wheelchair and wasn't sure how she would do with the train or trolley. Got the key lime on a stick from Blond Giraffe--its OK..nothing I would travel to Key West just to get. Ate at a conch bar..open air at the pier->that was neat.

Sorry so long..but it is really hard to figure out specific points...let's just say if I had the chance to go again...just stop me!

 

[Selket]

We really enjoyed the Tulum ruins - we did the excursion through Disney and that is while you are in Cozumel. I went with my 9 yr old son (he is almost 10). If you are interested in archaeological stuff you'd like it. I would NOT go there with small children or anyone who cannot navigate stone pathways and steps. The tour operator was top notch I thought....they were very nice, organized, informative, etc.

We managed Shutters by buying a package then just keeping the pics we liked every day and trading our old ones for new ones we liked better when we hit our limit. I think if you're going to buy the pics you need to start buying them sooner than later - at least not all at the last minute cause it is a mad house on the last night! Why oh why don't they have PHOTOPASS!!!! argh!

The Atlantis semi-sub on Grand Cayman was also great - a short excursion but a great way to see the fish for those who don't want to snorkel (or are too young or otherwise unable). Myself and my 5 yr old loved it!