Our MAGICal Disney Cruise, Dec 4 - Dec 11

[Donald_Quackers]

Well, this has been a while coming and I didn't want to post half finished, so here's my report of my first Eastern Caribbean cruise, treating my Mom to a great time.

Our MAGICal Disney cruise

Cast:

Me – 37 year old Disney fan turned cruise lover
Mom – Disney fan and new to cruising

7 night Eastern Caribbean cruise: 12/4 – 12/11
Early Dining -- 5:45pm
Late showtime

December 3rd, 2010 – Travel and DTD

Well, time to get outta this cold place and get to somewhere, well, more warm. After double-checking everything, we get our cases into the car and my aunt drives us to the airport for our flight. We leave on time and actually get in early due to some good tailwinds.

After picking up the rental car, we head to DTD and have a good meal at the Rainforest Café, then do some shopping for stuff at World of Disney before taking the uneventful drive to the Radisson at the Port, where we’re staying for the night before the cruise. The anticipation is building for the start of our cruise!

 

[Donald_Quackers]

December 4th, 2010 – Embarkation!

I get up early and fill the rental as well as getting breakfast at McDonald’s. We then make sure we have what we need in our carryons and watch a couple people playing tennis in the court (our room was facing it) while my Mom had a smoke before we returned the car and took the rental car shuttle to the port. We dropped people off at the terminal for the Carnival Dream before we went for the Magic. Passed through the first security check where they look at your ID, then through the scanner, and finally check in!

I get my silver lanyard and KTTW, and I had another lanyard already that I had my Mom use for her KTTW. We get some seats and people watch, along with meeting some of the others in the group (Chip ‘n Dale’s Cruisin’ Nuts). Before we know it, it’s time to board the ship, as we got boarding card 4.

I took a video of the new gangway before we board, and before we know it, we’re having lunch at Parrot Cay. Good salmon, seafood, and other stuff (no, I don’t do food pics).

After eating, I give my Mom a little tour and rest up sitting outside Pinocchio’s watching Beauty and the Beast on the Ariel View screen. When the movie was done, it was time to head to the stateroom and get settled. Fortunately, our luggage was coming up when we arrived, so we were able to get unpacked right away.

I leave my Mom to have her first smoke on the verandah and take a little walkabout, returning before the muster drill starting so we can get down to our station in Animator’s before the elevators are closed.

After the muster drill, we head up for the Sail Away party, where we were able to get a seat on Deck 10 and have a bit of fun. Loved hearing the horn again (for me) and my Mom was excited hearing it in person for the first time. After watching us depart from 10 forward and hearing the horn again, it was time to head down to get ready for dinner in Parrot Cay (sorry, no food pron here). This is where we first met up with our serving team, Conrad, our server from Jamaica, Joel, our assistant server from Honduras (don’t remember our head server, but he did make an appearance each night, making sure everything was ok). This was the first of our excellent meals onboard, and I could see some evidence of new crew learning the ropes due to the Dream coming online and getting more crew ready for the Fantasy in 2012, but it didn’t detract from the experience from what we could tell. Maybe we’re not as critical as some others, I don’t know, but I can say that by the end of the cruise, my Mom was asking if Conrad would hide in our luggage .

Our appetites sated, we head to the shops to pick up a DCL Dooney and Bourke (D&B) purse and wristlet for my sister. After making our biggest purchases of the cruise, we head into the theater for the “Welcome Aboard…” show. It was cool, but not as cool as the other Broadway style shows here.

My Mom turns in, and I head to Rockin’ Bar D to take in “The Right Stuff”, and they were good! Afterwards was MagicQuest, so I stayed for that, and then strolled along Deck 10, taking in a bit of Wall-E on the Ariel View before turning in myself. Next up, our first day at sea!

 

[Donald_Quackers]

December 5th, First day at sea

Woke up to a beautiful sea outside. We got dressed and had breakfast at Topsider’s, after which, we enjoyed some videos on the Ariel View before my Mom’s massage appointment. I took the opportunity to check out the Rainforest room. Man, those hot tile loungers are amazing! There were 1 or 2 others in the room, but after I laid down, I took a nap for about an hour. Woke up in time to catch my Mom coming out of her massage.

By that time, we were getting close to lunch. Picked up some pizza at Pinocchio’s on deck along with drinks, and my Mom went back to the room while I headed for Disney Trivia in the Promenade lounge. I won and got a little ‘winner’ medallion. I then just walked about, looked at the shops, and before I knew it, it was almost time to get ready for Formal night (man, time flew!). After another fantastic dinner (where our servers surprised us with some delicious Lemon Cheesecake with a piece of chocolate in the form of Cinderella – I couldn’t bring myself to eat this) in Lumiere’s, we headed to Rockin’ Bar D and saw a little of John Charles’ act. Funny music and he does some Taylor Swift (but only once—that’s what he said). By the time he was done, it was time to head to the Walt Disney Theater to see Twice Charmed. This was a fantastic show--I loved this take on Cinderella, especially the evil fairy godfather. It also didn’t surprise me that this show was originally supposed to head to Broadway.

My mom decided to turn in for the night, while I changed and went to see Alfred and Seymour in their adult cabaret. I had heard about this pair before on the Disboards, but I truly wasn’t prepared for how hilarious they were! I’ve gotta buy one of their DVDs! I then hit Rockin’ Bar D again for Disco Legends and ‘The Right Stuff’ and headed back to bed around midnight. Man what a full day!

 

[Donald_Quackers]

December 6th, Second day at sea

Another beautiful sunrise to wake up to from the verandah. Went up and grabbed coffee and pastries for some breakfast and brought back to the room. After that, well, I just plain forgot what we did until 1pm where we went to the Buena Vista theater for a behind the scenes presentation about the parks. We then grabbed lunch from Deck 9 before catching Toy Story 3 in the BVT. By the time the show was over, it was time to get ready for dinner at Animator’s and it was show night! My mom loved it, afterward taking our time getting to the theater for Villains Tonight, but that show didn’t really click with me. After the show, my mom turned in and I went to Rockin’ bar D to enjoy more of ‘The Right Stuff’. Next day, St. Maarten!

 

[Donald_Quackers]

December 7th, St. Maarten

I wake up to the sounds of thrusters and us starting to dock at St. Maarten. Stepping out on our verandah, I catch a few photos of the island (and the grey, wet day ahead of us) as well as several of the ships in port with us, the Norwegian Epic, Celebrity Mercury, another Celebrity ship I couldn’t see the name of, and one other.

Had breakfast before heading to Rockin’ Bar D for our Butterfly Farm and Island Tour excursion. At least it’s not raining too much. The guide is understandable, and we enjoyed our tour. We made one stop for photos and souvenirs before we hit the French city for a 45 minute shopping break. After looking in the shops, we get back on the bus to head to the farm. It’s starting to rain a little, and when we get in the farm and the tour, the guide indicates the butterflies tend to hide under leaves while raining, as the rain prevents them from flying. That didn’t prevent me from getting some great pictures of them on branches and such. After the tour, we reboard the bus and continue the tour back to the ship. My mom wants to rest, so I go back with her to the stateroom and get something to eat, and then I head out again to do some more shopping for friends at home. I find a couple of shirts, and a shot glass for my brother’s collection. I am excited for tonight, as it is Palo as well as Pirate night.

We get all dressed up for Palo and we were going to be joined by another of the Cruisn’ Nuts who was travelling alone. We had a great meal, and, of course, the Chocolate Soufflé was awesome! I’m amazed that I could head to the party afterward while my mom turned in from all the excitement during the day. After the fireworks, I stayed around for more of the fun and looked at the buffet – decided that it wasn’t for me and headed back to the room. I watched some TV before turning in for the night. St Thomas is next and my mom is excited to say the least!

 

[Donald_Quackers]

December 8th, St. Thomas

We get up early and have another good breakfast in Topsiders before heading to Rockin’ Bar D to meet up for our excursion. We were taking the St. Thomas Island Tour. After getting off the tender, it was a short walk to our tour bus and off we went. I can say this, St. Thomas has a lot of winding roads, and I wasn’t expecting to see driving on the left side like in Britain. Makes me glad I didn’t try to rent a car here – I would certainly have been totally confused. The guide we had was entertaining, yet pointed out things like a Home Depot (?). After the tour, we were dropped off in the middle of Charlotte Amalie, near the tender dock. We did some shopping for family in the Emancipation Garden I believe and then caught a tender back to the Magic. We grabbed some lunch on deck and enjoyed the ‘Deck the Deck’ party by the Goofy pool. By the time it was over, it was time to get back to the room and get ready for dinner at Lumiere’s. I honestly cannot remember what we had that night, but I can say that it was on par with what we’ve been experiencing so far.

After dinner, they had a ‘comedian’ named Heath Hyche, but he wasn’t too funny. I kinda wish we left along with most of the audience and get that time back, but it’s too late for that. We do a little shopping as long as we’re there and then head back to the room. My Mom turns in for the night after sitting on the verandah reading her kindle and having a smoke, while I head out to walk the ship, before stopping at Rockin’ Bar D and basically stayed there until it was time to (stumble) back to the room. The live band they had was back, along with a hypnotist by the name of Dale K, followed by One Hit Wonders and more of ‘The Right Stuff’. By this time it was about 1am and I had several beers in me (thanks to the beer mug) and I was just glad there were handrails on the way back to the room (and not because the ship was rocking). Another day at sea awaited us (and a stormy one at that).

 

[Donald_Quackers]

December 9th, Third Day at Sea

We woke up to a cloudy morning, and by the time we hit up Topsiders for breakfast, it was raining. Tangled was going to start in the Walt Disney theater, and we hadn’t seen it yet, so we headed there. What a GREAT movie! I don’t remember much else that happened that day, other than seeing Tangled a second time at 3pm, and when it’s over, it’s time to get ready for dinner in Animator’s Palate for the Captain’s Gala menu. More delicious food, and our servers brought some special dessert with ice cream and other things – very very delicious! We then stopped to watch Dale K, the hypnotist, in Rockin’ Bar D before heading to see Disney Dreams. I love this show, and my mom loved it the most as well. After helping my Mom to the room, I went and enjoyed the Right Stuff in Rockin’ Bar D again before calling it a night. Next up is Castaway Cay and we are so excited!

 

[Donald_Quackers]

December 10th, Castaway Cay

Well, I’m back at Castaway Cay again, and it’s just as beautiful as ever, minus the Flying Dutchman. After another breakfast at Topsider’s (though as I’m writing this I wish I had thought of trying Lumiere’s or Parrot Cay), and we watched the ship dock. We went back to the room and got our stuff together as they announced that it was clear to get off the ship. Once off, we got our photo taken with the ship, one of the two we purchased from shutters, the other being from Palo. We took the tram to the first stop and were able to grab a couple of beach chairs easily. Mom relaxed reading her kindle, while I swam out to try Pelican’s Plunge. It kinda seemed boring at first sight, but after going down each slide a few times it was really fun! I did, however, get a mouth full of sea water one time when I was having too much fun coming down and didn’t pay attention – yuck! We were getting a bit hungry, so we headed for Cookies Too and grabbed some grub. Mmmm….BBQ!

I had to get some souvenirs before getting back onto the ship, so we dropped in on Buy the SeaShore and I picked up a shirt for myself, my niece and nephew. I also got a Castaway Cay beach blanket – something I wanted last time I was here but forgot to grab. It was almost 3 by now, so we decided to head back to the ship before the crowds and got a couple of pics in front of the Christmas tree before boarding. After getting our purchases in our room, we relaxed on the verandah and watching a movie on the TV. Our last restaurant being Parrot Cay, we had our tip envelopes ready with something extra for Conrad and Joel, our servers. After dinner, we decide to skip the Remember the Magic show and finish the packing we started before dinner. After tagging and putting our luggage out, I head to Rockin Bar D with my mug for a last night of revelry with the Right Stuff and for Pub Night (hilarious!). After Pub Night, they played ‘The British Invasion’ and had a great time! It’s sad, really. Going back to the room, looking out at the sea for our last night, makes me love these types of vacations more. I’m not going to go into our day getting off the ship, because it’s just the standard fare, and we easily got off anyway.


I'm including the link to the pics here so I don't make this report too hard for some people to read. I hope you enjoyed this report and the photos!

 

[2_Eagle_Mom]

Great report! I’ve got some questions for you if you don’t mind:

1. What time was your dinner seating and show?
2. How would you rate your excursions? Would you recommend them or did you hear about any others that wish you had done them instead?

J

 

[Donald_Quackers]

Great report! I’ve got some questions for you if you don’t mind:

1. What time was your dinner seating and show?
2. How would you rate your excursions? Would you recommend them or did you hear about any others that wish you had done them instead?

J

I updated the first post -- I had early seating (about 5:45pm and were going to the late shows (between 8pm and 8:30pm -- need to double-check navigators).

I read about them in the passporter that they had mostly positive reviews and the description provided on the DCL website. We enjoyed them, they stopped for photos at some great locations (that's how I got that photo of the Magic anchored at St. Thomas), and the guides were fun and personable. One on St. Thomas felt the need to point out that they had a new Home Depot store -- .

I did, however, wish that we had done the Skyway in St. Thomas, but we were ready to rest, and didn't have time to catch a tender back to do it. I'm looking to do that when on the Fantasy next year.

In St. Maarten, I'd like to visit the beach that is really near the airport (I forget the name). But that's the great thing about cruising (or vacations in general) -- to have a reason to go back.

 

[nswift]

Nice job, Donald Quakersl Enjoyed your trip report

 

[runskyhy]

Enjoyed your report and the photos - Thanks!