Sept. 23, 2012 Pacific Coast - Wonder Cruise

[erbie]

How do they work out what the upcharge would be? Do they go on what Cat you are in and what Cat you want and take it from there? What's the rough difference compared to rack rate? I'm worried if we get a noisy room and need to shift out to another one at a different rate.

They calculate it based on the stateroom you paid for. So for me, it would be the difference between an 11B and whatever I opt to get. For VGT, it would be the difference between the lowest cat of verandah (7A) and the level you opt to get. They have a grid with the room types on each axis, and they go along the side to find the cat you paid for, and along the top for the cat you want, and then they see what the amount is at the intersection. This happens after you've waited in line and checked in, then you can go to the supervisor desk and see what they have available. It's best to get there as early as possible to check for port upgrades. It generally would be about 1/3-1/2 the price you'd have had to pay to switch before check-in. So if they difference between the rooms was $1000, it would be around $300-500 at the port.

I love my kids birthdays but I have to do a huge cake with two seperate components. One cake took over 8 hours to put together and had a Thomas and a James and a half a roundhouse. It weighed nearly six kilos in the end. Last year was a treasure box as they had a pirate party. This year they wanted a scale model of the Disney Wonder . No way. I'm going to do a Lego theme as I have a cake in my mind I'm sketching out on bits of paper. I have Rich's birthday in October first and I've got a special cake all planned for that as he'll be 45.

I do this too. I've made a rainbow with rainbow cake inside, a castle, a foot with a festering toe (my kid is weird, this is what she wanted), Elmo, a caterpillar, their initials, a Dia de los Muertos sugar skull. This year for my 11 year old, I just drew out the shape of her favorite stuffed animal. I wanted to carve it in the shape, but the cake wouldn't have been big enough and there were a lot of kids at the party. I also made a peach pie, and they all wanted that instead of the cake I spent all day making. It's a double layered lemon cake with lemon curd and lemon cream cheese frosting, all from scratch. The pie I threw together in 15 minutes was the hit of the party. I think the best one was the castle. I used ice cream cones to make the turrets. A sugar cone upside down on a wafer cone, dipped in tinted white chocolate.

 

[jetskigrl]

Just saw on the 9/16 meets board that VGT/IGT/OGT assignments are in! Hope we have only one more week to wait for room assignments!

Sounds like we are right on track for 9/10. Ohhhhh, I can't wait to find out our assignments.

 

[jetskigrl]

How exciting! I am so excited to find out what room we will be in. Anyone hoping to snag one of the 1 bedroom suites when they get to the ship? I've never seen so many concierge rooms still available on any sailing I have done in the past.

I don't think we will try for a suite since it is just the two of us this time (well, unless the price was too good to pass up, LOL). But if we aren't happy with our room assignment, we may try to upgrade to something else.

I hope we get something we like though. I would like to arrive at the port a little later for this cruise and skip the waiting in the terminal part.

 

[ADandBsmommy]

[QUOTE
We do fruit kebabs with the sharp ends cut off the sticks for wee kids for healthy. You know, grapes, pineapples, strawberries. They always seem to get scarfed down at a rate. We have a couple of kids with allergies and one poor kid is allergic to egg including baking at Kindergarten at the moment, so that knocks cakes out completely. That's a huge class to cater for tho', what's the age spread like?

You could also do the fruit kebabs for Aidan's class. Really easy to knock up once you get a process line going and some music on. Just prepare them an hour or so before you go and you're done.

I love my kids birthdays but I have to do a huge cake with two seperate components. One cake took over 8 hours to put together and had a Thomas and a James and a half a roundhouse. It weighed nearly six kilos in the end. Last year was a treasure box as they had a pirate party. This year they wanted a scale model of the Disney Wonder . No way. I'm going to do a Lego theme as I have a cake in my mind I'm sketching out on bits of paper. I have Rich's birthday in October first and I've got a special cake all planned for that as he'll be 45.
[/QUOTE]

We are doing a lego themed as well - but are doing mini cupcakes with edible legos on top of each one. Aidan does not like cakes or cupcakes but for some reason he will eat mini cupcakes - who knows

We did fruit skewers last year but I also added in marshmallows which was fun for the kiddos. Luckily our only allergy is a peanut allergy in one class and since dh is allergic to nuts we don't go near them anyways.

Dylan's class is a K-2nd spread. They have 3 connected classrooms that they use - one is their meeting room, one is language arts and history and one they use for math and science (this room has all their creatures in it like frogs, etc...) They also have a giant outdoor garden they plant a lot in and do tons of science in. They have 2 full time teachers and a full time aide plus a parent volunteer in the class for about 4 hours each day. They are youngers, middlers, and elders and each year move up to the next category (aka grade) and get new classroom responsibilities,etc.. I am in love with this program. It is very unique to our school in this area especially in a public school. His two teachers are both so different and work so well together that it is an excellent environment.

 

[erbie]

Dylan's class is a K-2nd spread. They have 3 connected classrooms that they use - one is their meeting room, one is language arts and history and one they use for math and science (this room has all their creatures in it like frogs, etc...) They also have a giant outdoor garden they plant a lot in and do tons of science in. They have 2 full time teachers and a full time aide plus a parent volunteer in the class for about 4 hours each day. They are youngers, middlers, and elders and each year move up to the next category (aka grade) and get new classroom responsibilities,etc.. I am in love with this program. It is very unique to our school in this area especially in a public school. His two teachers are both so different and work so well together that it is an excellent environment.

My youngest is also in a K-1-2 class. They have three full time teachers and an aide, and they rotate among the teachers every day, with grade level groups for reading, writing, and math, and mixed age groups for everything else. We love it. They each get a chance to be the smallest, middle, and oldest.

 

[erbie]

There's a 2-br suite available now. It hasn't been available all along. Someone must have gotten upgraded to the Royal that was there. There are still six 1-br suites, but everything else is getting pretty full. Looks like we'll have a pretty full ship afterall.

 

[kangamommy]

Hi all!

Just got off the phone with DCL agent, here's what she told me about sending a box ahead:

It has to be at the port by 3:00pm THURSDAY Sept 20th.

On the box you put your name, sail date, ship name, stateroom #, then on the box also include a detailed packing list as to what's inside.

Address:

Metro Shore Services
Berth 93A
World Cruise Center
San Pedro, CA 90731


I think I'm going to send the FE's ahead - just hoping and praying nothing gets lost -- I would be soooo upset... however they're rather largish in size and we have no room to pack them!

19 days!
Julie

 

[ADandBsmommy]

Thank you Julie for all the info! I am bummed though that I read you cannot put food in it at all and some of my FE's have some.

OK so I keep reading on various boards how horrible the food is. Is it really THAT bad? I am worried for my dad - he has been known to be a complete you know what at restaurants when he has disliked the food quality. OK maybe I am more concerned for us poor people who have to sit with him and listen to him throw a fit

Any insight? We have never cruised so this is totally new to us!

 

[kangamommy]

I don't think the food is going to be bad -- remember, when people are happy, they rarely take time to post a positive review. When people are UPSET, the first thing they do is go online and complain. It's a disproportionate number. Unless he is a MAJOR MAJOR food snob, I bet he'll be fine. If not, send him to Palo every night -- then you don't have to hear the complaining haha.

I'm back on with DCL to see if there are size limits to the boxes, btw...

 

[kangamommy]

Well I called back to ask about size limits and she said there weren't any as far as she could tell...

Just can't do food, water, liquid, booze.

NEW PART OF ADDRESS:

this second lady said it wasn't just addressed to "Metro Shore Services" -- it's to "Metro Shore Services, Terminal Manager's Office"

Why don't they have the same info from agent to agent? Who knows?

 

[5crazyfordisney]

Hi all!

Just got off the phone with DCL agent, here's what she told me about sending a box ahead:

It has to be at the port by 3:00pm THURSDAY Sept 20th.

On the box you put your name, sail date, ship name, stateroom #, then on the box also include a detailed packing list as to what's inside.

Address:

Metro Shore Services
Berth 93A
World Cruise Center
San Pedro, CA 90731

I think I'm going to send the FE's ahead - just hoping and praying nothing gets lost -- I would be soooo upset... however they're rather largish in size and we have no room to pack them!

19 days!
Julie

Julie:
Thanks for the info - uh oh, the box needs to be there by Thursday?! I gotta get these FE gifts finished and in the mail soon! I agree, the last thing we want is our boxes stuck at the port as we sail away!

Thanks again,
Shea

 

[erbie]

OK so I keep reading on various boards how horrible the food is. Is it really THAT bad? I am worried for my dad - he has been known to be a complete you know what at restaurants when he has disliked the food quality. OK maybe I am more concerned for us poor people who have to sit with him and listen to him throw a fit

Any insight? We have never cruised so this is totally new to us!

I wouldn't say it's bad, no. It's actually pretty good. The MDRs have what you'd find at a decent restaurant. Remember it's mass produced. It's not bad considering that. It tends to be pretty rich though, so I end up not really wanting to eat in the MDRs after a few days because I don't eat like that at home. The buffet has lighter options, salads, fruit, veggies. The quick dining spots are just okay. I'm not a fan of the rollup sandwiches but the fries are great. The pizza is okay, the burgers are decent.

 

[gunka]

Thank you Julie for all the info! I am bummed though that I read you cannot put food in it at all and some of my FE's have some.

OK so I keep reading on various boards how horrible the food is. Is it really THAT bad? I am worried for my dad - he has been known to be a complete you know what at restaurants when he has disliked the food quality. OK maybe I am more concerned for us poor people who have to sit with him and listen to him throw a fit

Any insight? We have never cruised so this is totally new to us!

We enjoyed the food on our first cruise on the Wonder, a big part was the atmosphere. The company and the waiters were very good and we were having a great time. As I have read on other threads food is very subjective, so good luck.

 

[jetskigrl]

I wouldn't say it's bad, no. It's actually pretty good. The MDRs have what you'd find at a decent restaurant. Remember it's mass produced. It's not bad considering that. It tends to be pretty rich though, so I end up not really wanting to eat in the MDRs after a few days because I don't eat like that at home. The buffet has lighter options, salads, fruit, veggies. The quick dining spots are just okay. I'm not a fan of the rollup sandwiches but the fries are great. The pizza is okay, the burgers are decent.

This was how we felt about it too. We are not foodies so we found the food to be pretty good. We did like the chicken strips and fries at the quick dining place though We enjoyed the buffet food also.

DH did tell me that he didn't want to eat at Palo again this time (we tried it for the first time last April) because he felt like it was just too much food. After the 7-night cruise, he was tired of eating like that. I think he will be doing more salads this time

 

[BigDisneyOE]

Thank you Julie for all the info! I am bummed though that I read you cannot put food in it at all and some of my FE's have some.

OK so I keep reading on various boards how horrible the food is. Is it really THAT bad? I am worried for my dad - he has been known to be a complete you know what at restaurants when he has disliked the food quality. OK maybe I am more concerned for us poor people who have to sit with him and listen to him throw a fit

Any insight? We have never cruised so this is totally new to us!

Your Dad is on holiday, he'll roll with it and suprise you. If he doesn't get him to sound off at me, I'll listen and then tell him what I can't eat due to a string of allergies and how lucky he is to be able to taste stuff I can only dream of. Worked on my FIL, he realised how lucky he was so fast we never heard a peep out of him for the rest of his stay with us.

We'll we are three sleeps away now and I've just taken the kids back to the doctor. One is okay and just needs to finish his antibiotics, the other is moved up to a more powerful ab as his infection is still bad and we will have to travel with his refridgerator needing meds.

One kid also has suspected fractured ribs and we have to watch him for the next couple of days. We are hoping he has just bruised ribs but the doctor is not so sure. Basically he got his in the torso by a fast moving water propelled rocket. Yes rocket. At Kindergarten. Yes Kindergarten. The teacher and the kids were doing some sort of experiment with a water propelled rocket and it didn't fire, so the teacher lay the rocket down facing away from the kids as she knew it would go off eventually and proceeded to get the kid inside. Unfortunately the rocket spun around and shot across the kindy playground and hit Alex at speed in the torso. The teachers are beside themself. They got Alex calmed down and ice packed and told me a few hours later when I arrived. So now we have to wait and see if he starts complaining of sharp pains underneath the huge bruise he'll have. Of course he's telling everyone we know he got hit by a rocket at Kindergarten and we have a raft of paperwork to file with the Kindy Assn before I go on holiday.

 

[AussieMumma]

OMG Marian, what a freak accident! And now of all times!!! I hope it is just bruised and not fractured, that wouldn't make for a comfortable flight or rides at Disneyland!!

I seriously considered keeping my kids home for the week before we leave, quarantined in the house! But since they are missing a week and a half of school already I decided and extra week was too much for especially Madi to miss, plus I'll have to go into kindy on the last Friday to finalise things before I leave anyway, they don't like it when the president has a life

On the subject of healthy kids snacks, I saw these cute green grape caterpillar kebabs on pinterest, just green grapes on a skewer with two brown frosting dots for eyes on the front grape, so cute!

 

[LiseG]

I wouldn't say it's bad, no. It's actually pretty good. The MDRs have what you'd find at a decent restaurant. Remember it's mass produced. It's not bad considering that. It tends to be pretty rich though, so I end up not really wanting to eat in the MDRs after a few days because I don't eat like that at home. The buffet has lighter options, salads, fruit, veggies. The quick dining spots are just okay. I'm not a fan of the rollup sandwiches but the fries are great. The pizza is okay, the burgers are decent.

We love the food in the MDRs... but we love pretty much everything on any menu. And it all tasted better with pixie dust.

You can also order items not on the menu. My BBF's DH is a little picky, so some night he just got a steak!

Lise
visiting from the Sept 30th Wonder

 

[erbie]

One kid also has suspected fractured ribs and we have to watch him for the next couple of days. We are hoping he has just bruised ribs but the doctor is not so sure. Basically he got his in the torso by a fast moving water propelled rocket. Yes rocket. At Kindergarten. Yes Kindergarten. The teacher and the kids were doing some sort of experiment with a water propelled rocket and it didn't fire, so the teacher lay the rocket down facing away from the kids as she knew it would go off eventually and proceeded to get the kid inside. Unfortunately the rocket spun around and shot across the kindy playground and hit Alex at speed in the torso. The teachers are beside themself. They got Alex calmed down and ice packed and told me a few hours later when I arrived. So now we have to wait and see if he starts complaining of sharp pains underneath the huge bruise he'll have. Of course he's telling everyone we know he got hit by a rocket at Kindergarten and we have a raft of paperwork to file with the Kindy Assn before I go on holiday.

OMG! They didn't tell you until you came to pick him up?! Here's hoping it's just a bruise. Poor little guy!

 

[LiseG]

One kid also has suspected fractured ribs and we have to watch him for the next couple of days. We are hoping he has just bruised ribs but the doctor is not so sure. Basically he got his in the torso by a fast moving water propelled rocket. Yes rocket. At Kindergarten. Yes Kindergarten. The teacher and the kids were doing some sort of experiment with a water propelled rocket and it didn't fire, so the teacher lay the rocket down facing away from the kids as she knew it would go off eventually and proceeded to get the kid inside. Unfortunately the rocket spun around and shot across the kindy playground and hit Alex at speed in the torso. The teachers are beside themself. They got Alex calmed down and ice packed and told me a few hours later when I arrived. So now we have to wait and see if he starts complaining of sharp pains underneath the huge bruise he'll have. Of course he's telling everyone we know he got hit by a rocket at Kindergarten and we have a raft of paperwork to file with the Kindy Assn before I go on holiday.

Not to make light of this, but I think there must be a great Buzz Lightyear's Rocket story in all of this that Alex can tell everyone on the cruise. Wish I could be there to hear it

 

[SinDee]

Hello – We just booked our first Disney cruise and just now found this thread. What a wonderful forum and wealth of information!

Can we still participate in the Fish Extenders? This is my first post so I can't PM yet. My husband and I just sent individual requests to join the FB page listed in this thread. We don't have our cabin assignment yet but would love for our 7 yr old son and 3 yr old daughter to join in the fun. Thanks!