Our very DREAMy Spring Break Cruise!

[MeMom]

I think the shows would be my most favorite part of a cruise.

And the food.

The small bathrooms and not being able to walk out of my door into an open area would be my least favorite.

One of Trent's buddies was on the Dream a few days ago. He sent him a picture of the lobby and then focused in on the Donald statue for Jarvis, since Donald is his favorite character. They are in WDW now, staying a Kidani.

 

[stace208]

It looks like Ellie is enjoying having a little girl along. So much fun for her to share the trip with a pal. How did Ben make out? Did he meet any boys on the ship?

I will be honest and hope you don't think "less" of my girl...she was "tolerating" Alexandra. Honestly, Alexandra was better on this trip but in the past she has been over the top clingy to Ellie. She never went to preschool or anything and was with adults all the time so whenever we were together she would smother Ellie. Now that she has started Kindergarten it was much better and I think Ellie did enjoy having her around some. For the most part though, Ellie prefers either to be alone or adult company. She's definitely my old soul if you will.

Ben didn't make any friends on the ship. He only went to the Edge once, for a total of 15 minutes. Plus, he's very much like me--very shy in new situations. Now, once we know you we don't shut up but we're not good about putting ourselves out there. We were so busy though I don't think it bothered him at all.

How fun! So what was in the pirate box? YA im nosey like that LOL

In the pirate box were lanyards and some other stuff (postcards I think) that we got because we are DVC members.

We are onboard! We sail on the Dream next year. Great pics!

You will love the Dream!!

Yay for the found luggage! I'm so glad to hear that.

Looks like you guys were off to a great start! Love the porthole view in the room.

So how did you like the food? RP was our least favorite of the 3 restaurants, but it was still ok.

I didn't think the shows on the ship were as good as the ones at WDW. I really liked the GM and Believe, but hated the Villain show. I'm curious to see what you thought of all of them.

Our Sail Away party was insanely hot too!!! I thought I would pass out! Only for Disney entertainment would I endure such things!

Can't wait to see your great pictures from CC!!!

I would agree that Royal Palace was my least favorite restaurant. It was good, don't get me wrong, but I had the hardest time finding something I wanted. We ate there twice but the 2nd time was the sail away menu so that didn't matter. I loved the decor in there though-the slippers around the main light fixture were beautiful!!

On Villians Tonight though we disagree. I liked that one better than the Golden Mickeys. Different strokes for different folks-that's what's great about Disney! I am with you about liking the ones at WDW better though.

following along and looking forward to hearing more.

Thanks! More coming up!

I think the shows would be my most favorite part of a cruise.

And the food.

The small bathrooms and not being able to walk out of my door into an open area would be my least favorite.

One of Trent's buddies was on the Dream a few days ago. He sent him a picture of the lobby and then focused in on the Donald statue for Jarvis, since Donald is his favorite character. They are in WDW now, staying a Kidani.

The shows were great and I am glad that I went to see all of them. If we took another cruise and it had the same shows I wouldn't go see them though.

The food was all good. I am not an adventurous eater at all but was still always able to find something I wanted.

 

[stace208]

I need to get busy if I am going to finish this by the time we leave for Vero and WDW! These next few updates will be picture heavy for sure!

We woke the next day to a beautiful blue sky. We had docked at Castaway Cay while we slept. Did I mention how comfortable the bed was???

I was the most excited about this day. Could not wait to get my toes in the white sand. We dressed in our swim stuff and headed to Cabanas for breakfast. HUGE spread of food. Anything you could want and MORE!

The view

After breakfast we headed off the ship. I had read here on the DIS how the first beach fills up so I told John we were headed for the farthest back beach which is right before the Cabana area. Plus, this is where the water slide structure is in the water and I thought the kids would be all over it.

We walked the trail down to the beach but you can take a tram that has multiple stops.

Ahhh, I just loved this place!!! To be there now...
More in next post!

 

[stace208]

We finally made it to the beach area and easily got some seats. The kids and I went immediately to the water-I am a beach person and have passed that love of the ocean to the kids. John didn't go to the beach at all as a kid so he's much more cautious and certainly not as excited. He really liked it here though because there are no waves. You can see how empty it was at first because we got there so early.

The water was chilly which I wasn't expecting. I floated some but then pulled my chair down to the water and sat reading my Kindle. I was in heaven! Ben, I think, went out to the slide once. He labeled it lame and then didn't go again. My sister and Alexandra finally made it down (not early risers like us) and the kids stayed in the water the whole time. There were some small fish all around in the water which we thought was really neat. By mid morning this area was really quite crowded. I think it was because of Pelican Plunge (slide structure). I went to the restroom at some point and started scoping out a spot for our next CC day.

We ate lunch at Cookies Too. It was a buffet with hamburgers, hot dogs, sides, and cookies. There were self serve fountain drink machines and soft serve ice cream machines.

After lunch and more relaxing, we decided to go get our snorkel gear and do some snorkeling. We actually gathered our stuff and moved back towards Snorkel Lagoon which is at the closest beach to the ship. Comments on this after pictures.

This snorkeling didn't go so well. The water was very deep and you could see hardly anything. John is not comfortable in the water at all and because of the depth Ellie was nervous. Ben went charging out so I ended up following him and John and Ellie got left behind. Melody was with Alexandra and she got a little freaked out because of something with her mask. Anyways, we didn't snorkel for long before we headed back to shore. Ben and I went the farthest and didn't see more than 10 fish. I asked around and found out that earlier is better so we made a plan to snorkel first on our next day.

We turned in our snorkel gear and packed up to head towards the ship. We stopped to do some shopping also. It had been an absolutely fantastic day and I could spend many, many days on that island!

 

[stace208]

Dinner this night was Animator's Palate. On the Navigator it said "optional dress up" so we thought this was the semi-formal night because there was conflicting reports on when the semi formal night was, or if there was even one at all. Anyways, I put us all in our fancy clothes. BTW, it turned out not to be semi-formal night.

This was my favorite meal by far. Funny story- when Crush came around he started talking and everyone was looking around for who he was talking to. I kept looking and looking and turns out he was talking to ME! I thought he only talked to kids. Anyways, after being embarrassed it was really fun. Alexandra was so cute wondering how in the world he could see me. It was adorable!

After dinner we went to the Magic show. I didn't want to go really but went anyways. Honestly, it was a great show and I am glad that I went. I have to admit that I don't remember what we did after the show. We went to several things in the D Lounge (family lounge). They had lots of family games and activities. I do know that we were exhausted after the whole day in the sun so I am sure we headed to bed before too long.

One last pic of my beautiful girl at CC!

 

[wigdoutdismom]

I understand that Ellie is an "old soul" and I still think she is an awesome little girl!
Baylor didn't spend much time in the "Edge" last cruise, but he had Michelle's boys to hang around with and they had such a good time.
I think this cruise will be different though, he doesn't have any built in playmates so he might venture there more often.

We made reservations for dinner at VB on the seafood night. That's Thursday at 6:00. I'm sure we will venture into VB to eat at Ocean's Grill on another night. We loved it there last year...
Do you have anything planned?

 

[RinkyTinkyTinky]

Looks like a fabulous day... but it had to be at CC! I am so jealous that you got pics with Captain Hook! We only saw Daisy and she was dancing (not doing a M & G).

I can't believe Ben didn't like the slide. You just never know what kids will think when they are that age.

I hate the snorkeling didn't go well. I had read that it's best to go first thing in the morning before the sand gets stirred up. That's when we went and it was really clear, but the problem was that it was too deep then. It is SOOO much better at low tide!! I will know the tides schedule before our next cruise. And I think it is very normal for kids to get freaked out with the snorkeling. Heck, it kind of freaked me out a little! I hope you have better luck with it next time though. I'm hoping our next attempt will be better too.

 

[DWGal210]

Hi! New reader What a fun CC day!! I love just getting a tube & lazing around the water. I snorkeled last year, and had the same experience as you. My aunt was teaching me in the more shallow water at the Adult beach & that was more my speed. Plus getting a leg cramp in the deeper water didn't help Luckily, my aunt the nurse made sure I had a few bananas & water, and I was good to go.

Can't wait to hear all about your cruise! Great start so far!!
Katie

 

[stace208]

I understand that Ellie is an "old soul" and I still think she is an awesome little girl!
Baylor didn't spend much time in the "Edge" last cruise, but he had Michelle's boys to hang around with and they had such a good time.
I think this cruise will be different though, he doesn't have any built in playmates so he might venture there more often.

We made reservations for dinner at VB on the seafood night. That's Thursday at 6:00. I'm sure we will venture into VB to eat at Ocean's Grill on another night. We loved it there last year...
Do you have anything planned?

You know, we don't have anything planned. I said something to John about the seafood night but he was noncommittal. We have Cape May booked and are quite spoiled in getting fresh seafood around here quite often so I don't know if we'll do it or not. I was contemplating the character breakfast but haven't booked that either. I am actually looking forward to kind of winging it for those few days. I am so exhausted right now all I want to do it sit in a chair either on the beach or at the pool and veg out!

Looks like a fabulous day... but it had to be at CC! I am so jealous that you got pics with Captain Hook! We only saw Daisy and she was dancing (not doing a M & G).

I can't believe Ben didn't like the slide. You just never know what kids will think when they are that age.

I hate the snorkeling didn't go well. I had read that it's best to go first thing in the morning before the sand gets stirred up. That's when we went and it was really clear, but the problem was that it was too deep then. It is SOOO much better at low tide!! I will know the tides schedule before our next cruise. And I think it is very normal for kids to get freaked out with the snorkeling. Heck, it kind of freaked me out a little! I hope you have better luck with it next time though. I'm hoping our next attempt will be better too.

Hook was the only character that we saw either time at CC. I was shocked because I thought we'd see more and I was really hoping for Captain Jack. We did see him later on the ship but I wanted him at CC.

And, yes, Ben is at that age where you never know what he's going to like. I asked him the other day if he was going to get wishy washy about Disney and he told me "never". I sure hope that's true! He still sleeps with a bed full of stuffed animals and I will be sad the day those are packed up. His voice has "changed" in the past month and he's taller than me now. It's just crazy!!

Yes, I also declared I would know the tide schedule before we went again.The water was clear both times but just so deep that first time. I'll tell you now that we had a much better time on our 2nd day...well, most of us.

Hi! New reader What a fun CC day!! I love just getting a tube & lazing around the water. I snorkeled last year, and had the same experience as you. My aunt was teaching me in the more shallow water at the Adult beach & that was more my speed. Plus getting a leg cramp in the deeper water didn't help Luckily, my aunt the nurse made sure I had a few bananas & water, and I was good to go.

Can't wait to hear all about your cruise! Great start so far!!
Katie

Hi Katie! Thanks for joining in! Floating in the tube was a favorite of ours too. Though I actually enjoyed sitting right at the edge of the water in a chair the best. It was wonderful! I'm sorry you had the same experience as us with the snorkeling. I had hyped it up so much in my mind I was so disappointed that first day but was determined to make it better. Thank goodness we got a do over. I feel ya on the leg cramp-got one several times out there in the deep. It was awful!

 

[anewmac]

oh castaway how I miss thee...

Also how neat to talk to Crush!

 

[stace208]

oh castaway how I miss thee...

Also how neat to talk to Crush!

Yes, me too...I miss CC! I am looking forward to being at Vero in 6 days!!

It was fun to talk to Crush! He made me an honorary turtle because I told him I had been swimming and snorkeling all day!

 

[catyanna]

Hi there! Great report. I'm hooked. Can't wait to read more!

 

[stace208]

Hi there! Great report. I'm hooked. Can't wait to read more!

Hi! Thanks for joining in! I hope to finish this up over the weekend since we leave on Tuesday. We shall see...

 

[disneyholic family]

joining in!!

i'm enjoying your report!!!!

did you find animators very noisy?

also, did you like the dinner seating that you had?

 

[lovingdisneyworldSIM]

your room looks like my room

 

[stace208]

joining in!!

i'm enjoying your report!!!!

did you find animators very noisy?

also, did you like the dinner seating that you had?

Welcome! Thanks for joining in! Animator's is definitely the noisiest, most lively of the 3 restaurants. I didn't find it to be overly noisy though. Of course, I spend my days with 20 some 7 year olds so my noise tolerance is a little higher than some.

I liked having the early seating. I know that many people don't like it because you have to be back earlier to get ready for dinner but as tired as we were each day I couldn't imagine eating that late. I probably would've fallen asleep at the table!

your room looks like my room

Hi there! Yes, I think all the rooms look pretty much the same. I almost wish they would theme some of them.

 

[stace208]

The next day, Thursday, was our Bahamas day. When planning the cruise, I couldn't decide what to do on this day. I read many great reports of Blue Lagoon Island and also of Atlantis. I hemmed and hawed, changed my mind. Upon further research, I found out how much Atlantis would cost for the 4 of us. That immediately went out the window. So, when our booking window opened I tried to book the dolphin encounter at Blue Lagoon but it was already sold out for any of the times that we could do. I was bummed but figured we'd make the best of it. My sister had no desire to go into the Bahamas as she'd been before and didn't like it. I wanted to go to the rum cake store and at least walk around. So that was our plan!
We got up and hit Cabanas again for breakfast. Then we headed off the ship.

We were only off the ship about 1.5 hours. There were 5, including the Dream, ships docked that day. It was super duper crowded. It was hot, humid, and people were everywhere trying to get us to take this cab, buggy, van...whatever. Ellie was really freaked out by them coming right up to us like that. Guess I should have prepared her better.

Once back on the ship we changed and John and the kids went to ride the Aquaduck. I don't think I have pictures from this day. The pool was also uber crowded and I could barely find a chair way away from the pool deck. I would say that many people on the ship didn't get off. The other ships looked deserted while ours was still full of people.

I tried to read but my kindle battery died almost as soon as I turned it on. So, I just sat back and relaxed and people watched. They were gone about 30 minutes. They didn't want to ride again (line was even longer now) or swim (too crowded) so we went back to the room. John and Ben went to a magic workshop given by the guy from the night before. Ellie and I delivered fish extender gifts (only got lost once) and went to an animation class. It was cute but nothing like the one at HS.

Pretty soon it was time to get ready for dinner. It was pirate night!

After dinner we went to meet this character.

Then we went up for the Pirate party. The girls enjoyed dancing but we couldn't see the show very good. After the show, the deck cleared out. The girls and I got a great spot and sat and watched Muppets Treasure Island. John and Ben went to see John Carter in the movie theater. My sister wandered around or something. Everyone got back in time for the fireworks. They were A-MAZ-ING! John headed with Ellie to the room after that-she was pooped. Ben and I went to the buffet which turned out to be a bust because they closed it all up right as we got there. We snatched a few cookies and some muffins and sat down to eat those. Mel and Alexandra were still dancing but were gone when we left the buffet.

Ben and I headed back to the room. Another day was done and we were sad that the days were going so fast!

 

[stace208]

Friday was our at sea day so we slept in a little bit. The kids dressed in swim attire and we headed to Cabanas for breakfast. Oh, before I forget, Thursday we went to Enchanted Garden for breakfast, not Cabanas. It was good but we all liked the selection at Cabanas better.

After breakfast we headed up to the pool deck. It was cloudy, a little breezy and chilly, and had apparently just poured down. This ended up being a good thing because John and I were able to snag front row chairs on the pool deck and the kids rode The Aquaduck over and over again with basically no line.

When they finished riding, Ellie sat on the edge of the pool a while and watched some of the movie. Ben sat with us in the chairs. I don't remember how long we stayed but then we went to the room so the kids could change. There was an animation class that Ellie wanted to attend and some sort of thing John and Ben were going to go to. This is why I should do better trip journaling!!

Once changed, Ellie and I made our way to Animator's Palate for the class. We had poked around and stopped to take pictures and such.

We got inside and got a seat. More and more people kept coming. I felt bad for the wait staff because they kept having to clear more and more tables (they were already set up for dinner and had tablecloths over the top of them).

John and Ben ended up in there as well. Again, this was fun but the people doing it are not real artists so it's very basic. I just enjoyed being able to wander the restaurant more than I could the night we had dinner here.

I know next we got some lunch and I am pretty sure we did some shopping because I have pictures of stores!

Dinner tonight was Enchanted Garden. I really liked the decor in this restaurant.

The show tonight was

We really liked it! Hades was very funny! It does have some obscure characters and such but the comedy was a great change.

I am really not sure what we did after dinner. I know, that's awful. I do know we walked through Cabanas and took pictures of the mosaic so that's what I will leave you with.

Ellie next to her favorite, Dory

 

[reelmom]

I am loving your TR. We are taking our first cruise on the Dream next May.

Where do you get the tides schedule?

 

[stace208]

I am loving your TR. We are taking our first cruise on the Dream next May.

Where do you get the tides schedule?

Thanks!
I am not sure where to get the tide schedule. I figured you could either google it or the folks on the ship/at CC would know!