PreTrippie (aka King Charming Takes Hypermommy (and family) on another cruise)

[Hypermommy]

Y'all ain't gonna belieeee dis!!!!!! King Charming has actually agreed to take his family on another cruise!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Like one we pay for ourselves!!!!!!!!!!!!! And not just any cruise, but the November 2009 Double Dip!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Wait a minute... November 2009? That's like 15 months away. I know we need time to pay off the cruise before we go and that makes great financial sense but honey... we were able to create new life in less time than that!!!

Oh well.... we're going and that's the important part!!

Okay.. so why on earth am I starting a trip report 15 months before the cruise even starts? Becuase I'm so darned excited!!!!!!! It's even better this time becuase I have first hand knowledge of just how marvelous it's gonna be!

First I even heard about it was when King Charming was saying he sent an exploratory email off to the travel agent. Based on that, I sent off an exploratory one to the TA that helped me book the "Give Mom The World" trip last December. I got the answer and didn't think much more of it than that. But then the other night King Charming said he wanted to talk to me and we talked about cruising and he sounded serious. I checked my Yahoo IM and sure enough, my TA was online. So we started talking. Within an hour we'd explored several dates and went with the one KC actually wanted anyway -- the 14-21 November 2009 Double Dip!!!!!!! Made the deposit yesterday and now it's really, really real!!!!

So over the course of the next 15 months I'm sure there will be a few things we want to talk about. Yes, I'm going to try to get KC to join me on this one too. He's got such a wit and I love sharing him with you. Heck, there's times you can straight out have him! But not now. He racked up some SERIOUS hubby points when he said do the deposit (of course, sending this hyper one into a fit of faxing info to the TA). Even if he did call me an hour later asking "you haven't done that deposit yet, have you"?

 

[alwayslisad]

wooohooo - AWESOME!!!

 

[disneykibbes5]

That is exciting.


Can't wait to read all about your planning and your trip.

 

[Hypermommy]

Okay so the deposit got made on Friday and can ya believe it was Saturday before I remembered there was a special Castaway Cay section of the Disney website?

So off I go!

What? Castaway Club number? I don't remember seeing a Castaway Club number in the stuff that they sent me. And besides, that stuff's at the office anyway. You mean I have to wait until Tuesday to check it? Oh no! This just won't do. So I fire off an email to my TA asking her if she can help me find my CC number. But it's early in the morning and she's not online yet.

Oh look, there's a phone number on the Disney site. Call it and yep, they were able to find it for me right away!

So off I go!

Oh, what fun! Desktop backgrounds, ecards, all kinds of fun stuff to download. I'm quite the happy camper now!

 

[King Charming]

Back by popular demand (ie Hypermommy), I'll again be posting PTR installments. Hopefully you will read about similar preparations, anticipations, and snafu's you have also experienced.

We won a first ever cruise at Christmas 07 and selected the 7 night western in mid April 08. I freaked over the expenses we ran up prior, during, and after the cruise and swore we'd never do it again. Hopefully some may remember my PTR posted March/April 08, and the follow up TR in May. After spending over $4K for a 'free' cruise, I decided that spending anywhere from $8K to $10K (expenses and room) for a one week vacation was insane and way beyond our means.

But I definitely got bit by the cruise bug, and it had some serious lingering side effects. By June we had paid off most of the first cruise costs and in July I started checking websites for discounted trips. Most of the ships that sail out of PC go to the Bahamas, a place that has never interested me. I refused to 'settle' for a short cheap trip because I couldn't forget the fabulous Mickey experience we had. I had hoped that reading TR's could fix my Jones, but it only encouraged me.

So I started checking the Magic's itinerary. Hey, if I'm gonna dream, dream BIG! I figured two 7 nighters in one year was not only decadent, but fiscally disastrous. So anytime after May 09 is cool. An end of May Bday cruise for me? Naw, wrong ports. June thru Sept? Hurricane season!! If you have ever dealt with one of these large storms you will never again take this threat lightly. Dodging rain, waves, and changing ports of call is way too stressful for a relaxing vacation. How about Christmas/New Years? So I asked. Sorry I did. GTY 12 w/ taxes & tips was over $7K! (Do we have to take the boys?) OK, how about the special western in Nov? Bingo, w/ taxes & tips only $4K for a cat 11. I almost booked it immediately, then considered the family. Did they really have that good a time or was it just lip service? Silly man, of course they loved it. So we put down the deposit and started to plan for our Double Dip Delight 09.

Now other factors were also figured in. Our TA explained that the Sept cruises were less expensive, but I'm sure that has something to do with Labor Day being the busiest time of the hurricane season and school starting. And actually knowing people also on the cruise made a big difference, so I quickly checked the cruise meet thread. This was an active group (similar to the April Showers of Happiness thread) and sounds like a happening bunch of folks to hang with. Finally, since sail-away day is 15 months out, we have plenty of time to save and make payments.

Up coming installments will include why another western, what we will do differently, what worked well and will be repeated, and other ramblings from a fellow determined to have an even better time while spending less money.

 

[MaryAz]

Yay! A Pre Trip report. My husband was joking I needed to get one going to beat you guys the other night. I laughed and said they are not going to start this soon. HA, I shoudda known. LOVE IT.

 

[Hypermommy]

Yay! A Pre Trip report. My husband was joking I needed to get one going to beat you guys the other night. I laughed and said they are not going to start this soon. HA, I shoudda known. LOVE IT.

"Hyper", Hypermommy says in exactly the same tone as Cap'n Jack Sparrow used with Will Turner when Will complained that he didn't fight by the rules.

 

[pixidustmom]

I am so happy for you all! I just knew you would be back for more fun.

 

[King Charming]

Yeah, I knew we'd be back also, I just didn't know how to pay for it all. I really had hoped the return trip blues would fade, but no such luck.
And I dreamed of another 7 nighter because I remembered thinking halfway thru the April cruise that 3 or 4 nights onboard just wasn't long enough to fully enjoy all the activities. So here we go again...

 

[Hypermommy]

So yesterday I pulled our our pre-trip planning list of expenses. Actually it was still on the fridge. Now, I didn't intentionally leave it up there forever... but I wouldn't be adverse to calling it some type of Freudian slip

Now, KC... before you start fretting over expenses look at all the things we DON'T have to pay for:

Tulum Ruins ($400)
Dress Clothes ($600)
Passports ($400)
Boat Photo Package ($150)
Luggage ($50)
Parasailing & Banana Boat ($285)
Internet Connection ($100)
Shoe Holders ($4)
Cab Fare ($75)
Hair Dresser ($55)
Spa Massage ($110) (well, maybe)

The way I figure it that's just over $2200. See... the cruise has more than half paid for itself.

Don't argue... it's Hypermommy Logic!

 

[DisneyDavO]

Denise and Jim, congrats on the second cruise! We are actually going to be in Disney world at the same time. We kicked around the idea of cruising again, but I really miss Disney World. Maybe after a couple more trips to the world I'll be ready for the cruise again. Well, have fun with this pre report, I know I'll have fun reading it!

Dave.

 

[Hypermommy]

Amen on the trip being too far away. I know I'll be wanting to read your TR becuase I'm jonesin' for the parks again. As much as I'm glad we're cruising, I'm really missing the onion soup in France.

 

[King Charming]

Only Hypermommy could come up with such fuzzy math; things we won't need to pay for - indeed! The only reason we spent as much as we did was because we never planned on doing a similar vacation, and therefore we went all out and treated it as THE vacation trip of a lifetime. Just about anything we EVER could have wanted out of this trip was fit in. So of course we had a blast DW got to dress up as a princess on her Bday with a tuxedo clad entourage, I got to see some Mayan ruins, and the boys got to do a couple of activities on Castaway Cay. Even though we could have bought yearly Fla. park passes and stayed on-property for 8 or 10 nights for much less, it was still money well spent.

But if I've got to pay for it all this time, ya had to know things would be different. I expect a budget this time of $6K. That was the reason for going on another western; if you have already been there and done that, ain't no reason for wasting cash doing it again. Without the need for a bus ride to Hell, or boating over to the mainland from Cozumel, skipping formal night and parasailing, these cruises can almost be done affordably. The other big factor was knowing what to expect as far as cash outlays are concerned. It scared the heck out of me last Feb/Mar as I watched in horror as the expenses kept climbing. Dog boarding, hotel the night before & parking, spa treatments, luggage, where would it end? So fully armed (Mickey had originally asked for an arm and a leg, but gave my arm back when I gave him $2K on the ship) with the required info, it was time to sit down and work it all out. Maybe he'll give me my leg back this time....

 

[Hypermommy]

I don't see any problem at all with my logic. I'm sure everyone else agrees with me, right?

And you know how your discussions with Mickey are going to end up, dear.....

But just remember that while Mickey's negotiating with you the price of your leg, Tinkerbell is floating above us sprinkling pixie dust over all of us. And even after you and I are both gone from this world and the boys have only their memories of us they'll always remember things like this.

Or .... as a very wise man once said (although you'll never get me to admit it in public ) ... investing in family always brings high returns. You can only spend a dollar once; memories last a lifetime.

(Hypermommy flits away singing "makin' memories, makin' memories")

 

[disneykibbes5]

I couldn't agree more. Memories last a lifetime. My daughters were 5 and 2 the last cruise we went on. they will be 9 and 6 this next time. But they talk about the last cruise all the time and in fact my oldest is the one that got the planning going for this next cruise. And you know what their favorite thing was. Getting up really early and being out on the decks with hardly no one around and just us. they liked the family time. Well at least the oldest.

 

[nzdisneymom]

Only Hypermommy could come up with such fuzzy math; things we won't need to pay for - indeed! The only reason we spent as much as we did was because we never planned on doing a similar vacation, and therefore we went all out and treated it as THE vacation trip of a lifetime. Just about anything we EVER could have wanted out of this trip was fit in.

Now see, those of us experienced cruisers were all sitting back with our lips sealed tight because we KNEW there was no way you guys wouldn't go back. We knew you'd be hooked. It's just how it is.

Seriously, congratulations on another trip planning adventure!

 

[magic1bubbles]

hi guys! you 2 crack me up! i think kc & my dh were seperated at birth when it comes to $$ and budgets! my dh is always checking the budget we are taking our first dc in january on the same excursion your family just returned from. i stayed up last night & read all of your previous tr!!!!! it just confirmed to dh & i that it is a trip of a lifetime, and he has been counting the $$$ as i rack them up but i am already talking to him about a 2nd booking after reading the hysterical tr from you 2!! we are going alone so we wont have too much racked up at the arcade!But if we did, that would be reason enough for dh to book a 2nd trip! so maybe i will tell him the part from kcs last adventure i can't wait to hear all your preplanning

 

[Hypermommy]

but i am already talking to him about a 2nd booking after reading the hysterical tr from you 2!!

Glad you're having fun! It's a lot of fun writing this stuff but it's even more fun knowing people are enjoying it.

If you think there's any chance in Hades (hot or cold or frozen or whatever) that you might do another DCL cruise, I've heard it's very good to book it onboard. Now, I don't have any personal knowledge about this becuase we didn't do that (becuase I thought that not only would Hades have to be frozen over but I'd have to see little penguins gliding on the ice before another cruise was done). But from everything I've heard it does save you money and you can always transfer the ressie to your travel agent.

So now I'm beginning to think about what we're going to do to fill our day this time. Hmmm.... no excursions..... no spa (?).... hmmmmmm... time to get out the navigators and start looking through some of them here and start planning out what might be good to do. Better get started on this soon, Hypermommy (I tell myself).... not much time left to get it all planned out.

 

[Hypermommy]

Ooooooh.... I just thought of something that would be fun. Not necessary for me to have a fantastic time, mind you. And if it doesn't happen it certainly doesn't detract in any way, shape or form from the massive amount of hubby points King Charming has earned.

But......

Wouldn't it be neat (especially for the kids.. yeah, that's the ticket ) if there were some kind of star onboard when we were there? Personally, I'd love to see someone like Steven Tyler taking his grandkids (surely he has them by now ) on a cruise. But the boys would probably prefer someone from a Disney Channel show.

Check out these pictures over in the "Post a DCL Pic a Day" thread http://disboards.com/showpost.php?p=27329102&postcount=1495. Now that would be fun.

Hey, a girl can dream, can't she?

 

[disneykibbes5]

That would be really cool.