Sailing with Disney....the Aussie Xtreme thread

[australiankaren]

You asked..we delivered...

So all you Disney cruise experts [if you've cruised once, your an expert in my book]...how about you put your hints/ tips/ ideas/ suggestions for the newbies or fellow cruises...

Yes i know there are other threads re Disney cruising....but not with our Aussie flavour..hummmm, tastes a lot like chicken

Ok, I'll start....

Sailed both magic 2009 and wonder 2011, balcony cabin and concierge 1 bedroom cabin.

awesome tip....if you want to get a port upgrade, get to the port as early as possible..around 11.30 am ish...they have a set list of $$$ for the upgrade..
ie: we went from a cat 5 [balcony cabin] to cat T [concierge 1 bedroom]and it was $1640 [i think]...so prices are fixed and if you are sailing in peak times, then upgrades are harder or impossible to get.
you can upgrade from any category to any cat..ie cat 11 to cat 9...

ok...who's next????

 

[Mum from oz]

Ok, me next. Sailed the Dream in May and booked on the Fantasy in May 2012, looking at booking again for 2013.

One tip is to book onboard for great savings and less deposit. You have until 90 days prior to the cruise to pay in full and also cancel obligation free. Or you can change to a different cruise and keep the benefits.

Being on a Disney cruise is heaven. No complaints here.

 

[alicia1506]

karen, it was actually your 2011 disney cruise that inspired us to contemplate a cruise as part of our next trip, so we're doing the disney fantasy western carribean. i made carlo read your whole trip report to show him how awesome it could be ... oh, and on a totally unrelated side note... we love your GIR tshirt

it was also your comments re cat 5 to concierge suite that had me researching the differences in staterooms like a nerd -- i started out thinking the inside staterooms were kinda cute, then i was like.. but it's only an extra $200 for an actual porthole. and an extra $50 for a bigger porthole. and an extra $50 on top of that for a verandah. and an extra $200 for a larger verandah. and really... what's an extra $200 split between 2 people for 7 days... and only an extra $100 for a larger room with a large round shower & even more space... and that's less than $12 extra a day... that's the equivalent of a cocktail... and only an extra $400 for a concierge suite ... lol. it's amazing how awesomely i managed to justify the upgrade from cat 9 to concierge suite to Carlo when telling him how our $2800 cruise just became a $5000 cruise. but maybe i can just book the cat 4 room and then do a port upgrade?? and if not... well, it's still a decent room

any experience with on board spa services??... i've heard mixed reviews re the spas on the magic and wonder... wondering if anyone has positive reviews to share, as i can see a few massages/services etc in my 7 night cruise

 

[australiankaren]

Hey
Yep the logic about only a few bucks more can kinda take over...but whatever you pay, just make sure you are happy with the price and the room....

Gir came from just jeans....I also get my cookie monster etc shirts from there as well

I just lost my train of thought..will come back to it later....oh that's right, spa treatments...the dh does them and thoroughly enjoys them, slough they are pricey, I think day 4 or 5 has spa specials on, so check your navigator when on board...also I took 2 colored highlighters and we had a colour each to mark what we wanted to do each day on the navigator.....

We also with all our cruises go to customer relations about day 4 and check our account..just to make sure we are being charged correctly, as the help desk the last night is mobbed with people checking their accounts.

Don't take a cocktail from the staff at the sail away party unless you want to pay thru the nose ...just go to the bar and order the cocktail of the day....they are always great value and under 5$.

 

[alicia1506]

mmm. cocktails..

we are not big drinkers normally, but while on holiday have a tendency to have some sort of alcohol with most meals cocktail of the day sounds like an awesome solution, and at less than $5 ... bargain!!

yeah, i've heard guest relations gets mobbed on the last night

we saw the cocktail list in your post... thinking of bringing one home with us

 

[BobbyRach]

You asked..we delivered...

So all you Disney cruise experts [if you've cruised once, your an expert in my book]...how about you put your hints/ tips/ ideas/ suggestions for the newbies or fellow cruises...

Yes i know there are other threads re Disney cruising....but not with our Aussie flavour..hummmm, tastes a lot like chicken

Ok, I'll start....

Sailed both magic 2009 and wonder 2011, balcony cabin and concierge 1 bedroom cabin.

awesome tip....if you want to get a port upgrade, get to the port as early as possible..around 11.30 am ish...they have a set list of $$$ for the upgrade..
ie: we went from a cat 5 [balcony cabin] to cat T [concierge 1 bedroom]and it was $1640 [i think]...so prices are fixed and if you are sailing in peak times, then upgrades are harder or impossible to get.
you can upgrade from any category to any cat..ie cat 11 to cat 9...

ok...who's next????

Hi,

Just wondering how you went about an upgrade. When you checked in at the port did you just enquire about it?? Do you think it is worth the extra money?

Thanks

 

[australiankaren]

Hi,

Just wondering how you went about an upgrade. When you checked in at the port did you just enquire about it?? Do you think it is worth the extra money?

Thanks

upgrade......when you get to the port, go to check in and as soon as you get to the desk, ask about the possibility of upgrades, dont dawdle....time is important, as only a few are on offer every cruise [or none at all]....I look at the Disney cruise site a few days before and try to dummy book the cat I want, therefore seeing if any are available....

its just the luck of the draw at the end...

# tip, dont get any suites/ cabins that are directly under the pool/top deck /deck 8 on the magic/ wonder...the noise is unbearable.
good luck

 

[shadowblue]

Firstly, having only 3 nights experience on a DCL ship, I in no way would consider myself to be an expert! (australiankaren's had more Disney experience and prefers RCI - I respect that). My previous cruising experience has been a lot out of Sydney, back to the old but enjoyable Fairstar in 1990, the nicest ship being 2 nights on P&O's Aurora to Brisbane and once out of Singapore on Costa's small but aging Allegra on a fantastic Asian itinery. To me there's no such thing as a bad cruise.

I'm splitting this into 3 posts because you have to have 10 before you can post images...

 

[shadowblue]

From an Australian perspective, I suspect many of us travelling the distance (I'm talking Florida here) would be combining the cruise with WDW. In spite of losing a couple of hours on board, I'd recommend (if staying on site) the very cool DCL coach transfers for a first timer. Having bags collected at 8am for delivery to your stateroom mid-arvo and having a leisurely morning, brecky, swim, etc, is nice after some hectic days in the parks. Quirky Disney videos on the 1 hour coach ride to Port Canaveral, crowds already cleared, check-in and straight on for lunch. We went to Cabana's.

Being announced on boarding "Disney Dream welcomes the **** family" (CMs cheer), brings a smile but should have thought to say "Partridge" or "Adams"...

Enjoyed the rotational MDRs with wait-staff moving with you (we didn't do Palo or Remy) and the other Disney "specials" - free soft drink stands, fireworks at sea and of course characters (but never in your face). In spite of 4000 pax on board, I found relaxing time and space for myself, including a time listening to a great duo in the District Lounge and on a deck-chair out on Deck 4 watching Castaway Cay shrink into the distance - both totally on mu own!

The Aquaduck is very cool. Did it 5 times including 3 times straight on, no wait after (early) dinner on the last night, having been to the matinee show. It runs til midnight.

Castaway Cay is amazingly set up, with tram, beach water features, scrummy BBQ. Best of all, the fact that the ship moores alongside, no tenders, (no wait). Just don't expect too much from the coral (excursion) if you've been to the Great Barrier Reef or South Pacific.

 

[shadowblue]

Disney Dream is something special, very pretty and goes to here...

And you get this...

Questions welcome!

 

[ame]

We (mum, dad and 4 kids) cruised on the Wonder in April 2011 to Mexico. It was our first cruise and we all loved it. While onboard we booked a Carribean Magic for Christmas 2012. When we got home we realised how difficult (& expensive) it would be to get there and there wasn't much around to *complete* our vacation, so we moved to the now defunct Mexico Christmas 2012 cruise. We're currently in limbo hoping for a cruise out of LA to a different destination around those dates.

We also booked for DS #3 who is turning 9 and myself to go on an Alaska cruise next year. We have a family tradition where I take a child overseas to their *dream* location when they turn ten. (Supposed to be either parent, but it's always been me )

I can't think of anything to add, just want to say hi and weigh in here

 

[arje]

We've done a Magic cruise in January 2010 and will be on Fantasy next April. If you have kids, make sure they get themselves to the teens club. My 2 were 16 and 13 at the time and they had a ball. We didn't see them most nights and they spent a lot of afternoons there.

We got to port early and boarded as early as we could, which means we couldn't use the Disney transport from WDW, but it was the best idea. The port is less crowded and you can spend time on ship to orient yourself and best of all, have lunch at the buffet before the crowd get's there.

As we have to travel the vast distance, we tend to have more baggage than most, so if you're staying at a hotel near port the night before or after (especially after) the cruise, leave some bags there, saves taking them on board and needing to store them. Or someone I know hired a car for the week, parked in the secure parking and left their extra bags in the car.

Make sure you tick the option of sitting with another family. The family we had were so fascinated with Australia and the father just loved Australian wines, so we just had to partake in a Wolf Blass or Rosemount each night . And I introduced him to New Zealand whites which we also loved. Because they try and sit you with a similar type family, our kids all got on and still communicate over FB.

We will be doing many more Disney cruises in the years to come, wouldn't go anywhere else now, even though RCL and Celebrity etc do look pretty good.

 

[Mum from oz]

Nice photos shadowblue. The Dream really is a gorgeous ship.

ame - I hope you get to book another cruise. I am patiently waiting for 2013 itineraries for October, I want west coast ones. We intend on booking onboard in May.

arje - As we only had a 3 night cruise we kept the rental car and kept all but 2 suitcaes in the car at the Country Inn & Suites. They were fine. This time we will have to take all the cases on as it is a 7 nighter and I can't justify paying for a rental car not to be used. (or just used as storage)

We prefer to eat alone as a family. Our request was accommodated easily. We just had our TA put it on our booking. I love that the kids can have anything off the menu, also the kids menu isn't just nuggets and chips. They have a nice variety and DS tried so many foods he normally wouldn't.

My kids aged 3 and 4 at the time loved the kids club. They wanted to go there all the time. It made for a very relaxing time for me and DP.

 

[alicia1506]

when we cruise, it will be our first time, and it will be just the 2 of us... do you think we should ask to be seated with others at dinners etc , so we can make some friends, or do you think we should stick to a table for 2?

i'm trying to weigh up pros & cons of eating with others vs eating alone..

also, it would be nice to meet some new people and hang out with others, but we are also looking for some 'alone' time as a couple to just chill & reconnect too...

decisions, decisions...

 

[australiankaren]

Being announced on boarding "Disney Dream welcomes the **** family" (CMs cheer), brings a smile but should have thought to say "Partridge" or "Adams"...

In spite of 4000 pax on board, I found relaxing time and space for myself, including a time listening to a great duo in the District Lounge and on a deck-chair out on Deck 4 watching Castaway Cay shrink into the distance - both totally on mu own!

made me LOL...I will try Disfunctional when they ask my family name

the music is very good on Disney....especially the duo;s

 

[australiankaren]

when we cruise, it will be our first time, and it will be just the 2 of us... do you think we should ask to be seated with others at dinners etc , so we can make some friends, or do you think we should stick to a table for 2?

i'm trying to weigh up pros & cons of eating with others vs eating alone..

also, it would be nice to meet some new people and hang out with others, but we are also looking for some 'alone' time as a couple to just chill & reconnect too...

decisions, decisions...

Even though we love our Dh,s..I would poke myself in the eye with a fish fork if I only had him to talk to for 7 nights....getting a huge table of 8 or 10 evens the odds of getting strange people..there will always be a couple or 2 you relate to.....although we did meet a couple who where on a table of 10, but no one showed up for the entire 7 nights..so they had the huge table to them selves......I would have had my DH sitting at one end and me at the other...