DancinBear63
Earning My Ears
- Joined
- Nov 8, 2013
Hi All! DH and I took our now 4 year old DS on the cruise for his birthday. We just returned from a 4 night cruise to Nassau on the Magic (1/27/14-1/31/14), and had an awesome time! I just wanted to share a brief bit of our experience.
Some highlights:
-Embarkation was super easy! It took about 25 minutes to get through security, check in, get our son's wristband, AND take our pictures with Mickey. The only unexpected thing that happened is that I didn't realize that I would need to have my "tip money" ready as soon as I got off the shuttle, for the young man that was moving our luggage into the port.
-My mom joined us for the celebration, and we had adjoining rooms (7504 and 7506). By leaving the doors open during the day, we had a ton of room to move around, and loved having access to 2 showers. I would definitely do that again, if I can convince my mom to join us on our next cruise. (We re-booked for a 5 day cruise while on the ship.)
-The meals were excellent, and the service was beyond compare! My mom has severe food allergies, and everyone reviewed every ingredient before serving her meals. After each dinner, she was given the next night's menu so she could place her order in advance.
-Our son LOVED the Oceaneer's Club/Lab, and spent most of each day there. He has a few meltdowns when we tried to pick him up. He only stayed at dinner (first seating) long enough to take a few bites, and then asked to go back to the "Kid's Club." Poor kid took a long nap on the last day, and didn't get to participate in the Friendship Rocks program. Maybe next year. We gave the CMs a bag of assorted candy as a gift of thanks, and it was greatly appreciated.
-As a result of DS not eating dinner, we did order room service a few times. Very quick, and pretty good. I wouldn't want to make a habit of it, but it did come in handy.
-DH and I got off the ship in Nassau long enough to take a picture of the ship, and get a souvenir. We had a lovely lunch onboard at Lumiere's, and wish that we could have had more lunches there. (Definitely will do this next time.)
-We spent the morning on Castaway Cay, and loved it! The water was too cold for me, but DH and DS enjoyed themselves. Of course, he wanted to go to the "Kids Camp" (thank you, DCL!!), so we registered him at Scuttle's Cove. DH and I left my mom sleeping on a beach chair, and we went for a LONG walk to Serenity Bay beach. (Next time, we will take the tram there.) We realized that if we had only stopped at the first beach, we would have missed so many cool things to see and do. We really enjoyed the bar at Serenity Bay. By the time we got back to pick up DS, he had already had lunch with his friends (again, thank you, DCL!!). We spent the afternoon lounging on the ship, and he rode Twist and Spout a dozen times (no lines, no wait).
-We wanted to see the movies, but couldn't coordinate our schedules. We did see 3 of the 4 stage performances, and thought they were pretty good. My favorite was "Dreams," which was on the last night.
-I am a practical packer, and planned 2 outfits per day. (My son uses me as his personal towel.) I was in my swimsuit/cover-up for much of the time, and finished the cruise with half my clothing unworn.
-Next time, I will get to the Sail Away party earlier, and the Pirates party later. DS couldn't see everything on the Sail Away party, and didn't have the patience to wait for things to get started on Pirate night.
-Glad we brought our bottled water in Florida for $5. I would not want to spend $39 onboard.
-If I had to do again, I would not have ordered the large birthday cake. Although it was delicious, it was too big, and took up too much room between the 2 mini-fridges. Next time, we'll just ask for a sundae.
-Glad that we asked to have a pillowcase autographed. It was signed by nearly everyone he saw. (I confess, Jake's handwriting looks a lot like my own...don't tell).
-Next time, I'll pack something for seasickness. The weather was perfect for the first 3 full days, but it rained on our day at sea. Choppy waves made me ill.
-I purchased a pass to the Rainforest Spa, and didn't love it. There were some temperature regulation problems. The hot was too hot, and the warm sauna was cold. Also, I felt a little uncomfortable when a man came in to the steam room. If my mom or DH had been with me, I think it would have been more enjoyable.
-My mom likes to pay cash, and didn't realize that she was supposed to put the tickets in the envelopes for gratuities, then settle up with Guest Services on the last morning. She gave straight cash, and then freaked out when she received a statement that said she owed all of the money for gratuities. Fortunately, it was an easy fix, and everyone got what they were supposed to.
Overall, it was an awesome experience. My advice, don't stress!! Everyone has a different way of relaxing, and it's not possible to do everything. It will be wonderful, no matter what. (My only goals for the next cruise are to go to Palo for dinner, and to see a darn movie...)
Some highlights:
-Embarkation was super easy! It took about 25 minutes to get through security, check in, get our son's wristband, AND take our pictures with Mickey. The only unexpected thing that happened is that I didn't realize that I would need to have my "tip money" ready as soon as I got off the shuttle, for the young man that was moving our luggage into the port.
-My mom joined us for the celebration, and we had adjoining rooms (7504 and 7506). By leaving the doors open during the day, we had a ton of room to move around, and loved having access to 2 showers. I would definitely do that again, if I can convince my mom to join us on our next cruise. (We re-booked for a 5 day cruise while on the ship.)
-The meals were excellent, and the service was beyond compare! My mom has severe food allergies, and everyone reviewed every ingredient before serving her meals. After each dinner, she was given the next night's menu so she could place her order in advance.
-Our son LOVED the Oceaneer's Club/Lab, and spent most of each day there. He has a few meltdowns when we tried to pick him up. He only stayed at dinner (first seating) long enough to take a few bites, and then asked to go back to the "Kid's Club." Poor kid took a long nap on the last day, and didn't get to participate in the Friendship Rocks program. Maybe next year. We gave the CMs a bag of assorted candy as a gift of thanks, and it was greatly appreciated.
-As a result of DS not eating dinner, we did order room service a few times. Very quick, and pretty good. I wouldn't want to make a habit of it, but it did come in handy.
-DH and I got off the ship in Nassau long enough to take a picture of the ship, and get a souvenir. We had a lovely lunch onboard at Lumiere's, and wish that we could have had more lunches there. (Definitely will do this next time.)
-We spent the morning on Castaway Cay, and loved it! The water was too cold for me, but DH and DS enjoyed themselves. Of course, he wanted to go to the "Kids Camp" (thank you, DCL!!), so we registered him at Scuttle's Cove. DH and I left my mom sleeping on a beach chair, and we went for a LONG walk to Serenity Bay beach. (Next time, we will take the tram there.) We realized that if we had only stopped at the first beach, we would have missed so many cool things to see and do. We really enjoyed the bar at Serenity Bay. By the time we got back to pick up DS, he had already had lunch with his friends (again, thank you, DCL!!). We spent the afternoon lounging on the ship, and he rode Twist and Spout a dozen times (no lines, no wait).
-We wanted to see the movies, but couldn't coordinate our schedules. We did see 3 of the 4 stage performances, and thought they were pretty good. My favorite was "Dreams," which was on the last night.
-I am a practical packer, and planned 2 outfits per day. (My son uses me as his personal towel.) I was in my swimsuit/cover-up for much of the time, and finished the cruise with half my clothing unworn.
-Next time, I will get to the Sail Away party earlier, and the Pirates party later. DS couldn't see everything on the Sail Away party, and didn't have the patience to wait for things to get started on Pirate night.
-Glad we brought our bottled water in Florida for $5. I would not want to spend $39 onboard.
-If I had to do again, I would not have ordered the large birthday cake. Although it was delicious, it was too big, and took up too much room between the 2 mini-fridges. Next time, we'll just ask for a sundae.
-Glad that we asked to have a pillowcase autographed. It was signed by nearly everyone he saw. (I confess, Jake's handwriting looks a lot like my own...don't tell).
-Next time, I'll pack something for seasickness. The weather was perfect for the first 3 full days, but it rained on our day at sea. Choppy waves made me ill.
-I purchased a pass to the Rainforest Spa, and didn't love it. There were some temperature regulation problems. The hot was too hot, and the warm sauna was cold. Also, I felt a little uncomfortable when a man came in to the steam room. If my mom or DH had been with me, I think it would have been more enjoyable.
-My mom likes to pay cash, and didn't realize that she was supposed to put the tickets in the envelopes for gratuities, then settle up with Guest Services on the last morning. She gave straight cash, and then freaked out when she received a statement that said she owed all of the money for gratuities. Fortunately, it was an easy fix, and everyone got what they were supposed to.
Overall, it was an awesome experience. My advice, don't stress!! Everyone has a different way of relaxing, and it's not possible to do everything. It will be wonderful, no matter what. (My only goals for the next cruise are to go to Palo for dinner, and to see a darn movie...)
