The JRBDAD Family Poly DREAMING on the Boardwalk

[jrbdad]

Yes, I know -- yet another long titled trip report. Give me time to explain, just not tonight.

The Backstory:

Last year may have been one of our best vacations ever -- first stay at BLT, first cruise, first trip to Discovery Cove, first stay at VWL, first stay at VL.

Our vacation of "firsts." One of which was our first cruise ever, aboard the Disney Wonder -- three nights that went by way too fast. As the cruise ended, we knew we wanted to go again, but we had one son getting ready to start high school, one son starting middle school, and a very active daughter with a crazy dance/piano/voice schedule -- so we had no idea how to plan that far in advance. BUT -- once everything got going and schedules were in place, coaches were consulted, dance instructors notified, recitals all finalized -- GAME ON!

We booked the Disney Dream, one of her inaugural voyages (well, that's what the shirts said anyway -- it actually was her 43rd ). Then, thinking about our last vacation and how much we enjoyed our first trip to Vero Beach -- we bookended the cruise with cash stays at VB before & after.

Fast Forward:

We never were much on advance planning -- DVC is a struggle for us in that regard. We tend to be a little more spontaneous -- even booking a DVC stay at SSR with about 2 weeks notice over Thanksgiving (we surprised the kids).

Well, you know what they say about the "best laid plans?" As time grew near, we learned about DS15 being one of only 4 freshmen baseball players to be asked to play on his high school summer team. That league ended on July 1st. Bye, Bye VB before the cruise -- dropped that reservation. Then
DS13 had changed baseball teams/leagues and made the all-star team. We told the league director and coaches that we'd be glad to play, but we have this cruise that is booked and paid for and it sets sail on the day of the first tournament. They assured us that would not be a problem -- go enjoy our family time and please be back by the state tournament. Not 100% sure that the team would even make it to the state tournament, but if they did -- there goes VB after the cruise. Couldn't chance it, since it was a cash reservation, it had to be cancelled at least six days in advance (something like that) and we'd be on the Dream -- so again, bye, bye VB.

Several weeks back -- our extended family (my in-laws) were talking about how nice it would be to go to WDW at Christmas -- they had never been. Leave it to me -- we use up most of our points for this year and next to book a 2BR-SV at Kidani from Christmas to New Years for us and then I find someone to rent them points for the same period in a similar unit. (MIL & FIL have since backed out -- but that's a whole other thread or two or three ).

I only tell you that so that you know we are point poor at this particular time. We are now a week out from the Dream leaving and we have a couple of days to kill -- we see posts about the ticket prices increasing -- I hop on the phone to buy my APs (was going to do it later anyway). Then I get to thinking, hmmmm -- maybe an AP rate at a resort pre-cruise.

I call and we end up at the Poly, concierge, theme park view for July 3rd and 4th. Cruise leaves on the 5th. Let the pixie dust begin flying!

We like staying concierge when we have to use the non-DVC resorts, generally only for a day or two, because of the food -- we get breakfast, and generally can also eat dinner in the concierge lounges. For a family of five, that is no small price. Then we eat one meal out -- usually lunch. Works for us anyway.

I usually do my TRs live -- so this may be a little difficult for me, plus it will most likely span a couple of days. Most pictures will be of the family or mainly the kids.

So with all that behind us -- let's get started. Well, at least a little tonight.

 

[jrbdad]

We left the house at 6 am on Saturday morning, DS15 had played in a baseball game about an hour away from the house the night before, so we were out pretty late. 6 am got there in a hurry!

Somehow, we managed to get the car packed, and everyone in it pulling out of the driveway as planned.

The "Griswald-mobile" was headed east and south. Our plan was to make the trip in one day. DW does not like to drive, but this time, DS15 had his learner's permit and he was able to help.

Overall, not a bad drive, took about 14 hours, normally 13 -- but we got stuck in Mobile, AL -- forgetting that it was the July 4th weekend -- traffic was barely moving through the tunnel under the bay.

Pulled into Downtown Disney around 9:30 p.m., traffic was pretty bad the closer we got to Disney. Oh, and we had no reservation for that night -- I figured, how hard can it be to find a hotel room in the Downtown Disney area?

We pull up to our stand-by, short-term stay, the Wyndam Resort (formerly known as the Regal Sun Resort). More pixie dust, they had a room and could honor a AAA rate. Get to the room and it has one bed -- ummm, not comfortable for five of us. Back to the front desk, more pixie dust, we are sorry for the inconvenience, we will put you in the main tower, but it will have to be a handicapped room, theme park view -- but we will honor the original price. Great! Two beds and we brought the air mattress -- all is good, no one can sleep.

Off to DTD. We shop, I get the TiW card renewed and was shocked that they let me do it with only the AP Vouchers. I didn't want to activate the APs because we were only there 2 days and was hoping for a longer stay next summer (pre-cruise) and wanted to wait and activate at Christmas. Got all that handled.

DD10 got a Rapunzel doll. We've learned with our Disney shopping that if we see something we REALLY like -- get it then because later it could be gone. That was the case with the Rapunzel doll -- so we were glad we got her when we did.

Back to the Wyndam for a snack and bed.

 

[jrbdad]

We roll out of bed around 7:30 a.m. Everyone gets moving and we walk over to DTD for breakfast at the Earl -- gotta love the Earl of Sandwich. Great AAA discount, breakfast is pretty cheap and wonderful.

Back to the Wyndam to pack up the car and off to the Poly.

We love checking in concierge -- they escort you to the concierge lounge to handle all the check-in items. Of course, first at the Poly, when you check-in, they present you with a lei, in our case -- even Rapunzel was presented with a lei:

Believe it or not -- the room was ready. The concierge lounge at the Poly is in the Hawaii building, on the second floor. Our room was four doors down from the lounge. Here are a couple of pics:

Well, looking back, I really don't have pictures of the room -- but I do of the view:

Took longer to check-in and get our bags than I would have liked. We were on a pretty tight schedule -- meeting Gblast (David) and his DGF (Betty) for lunch at the Grand Cafe over at the Grand Floridian. So we hoped on the monorail and were there in a snap.

Lunch was great and it was wonderful to get to meet David in person. The entire family enjoyed spending time with he and Betty. Great folks and I hope we get to do it again sometime. Unfortunately, I didn't think to take a picture .

Off to shop at the GF stores, got a great shirt from Skip at Commander's Palace (men's store) -- that was monogrammed on the sleeve "Dream Big Live Grand"

Then we went by the stores at the Contemporary, and ultimately back at the Poly. Here's a few shots of my own "Zach & Cody"

Next: 4th of July fireworks on the 3rd .

 

[jrbdad]

OK -- back in the room, we find that we have a new friend:

Kids decide that they want to try the volcano slide and DS15 says he will go with them, so we can have some "mom & dad time."

Mom & Dad decide on a visit to O'Hana's to try the Lapu Lapu. In the meantime, texts and phone calls are flying -- trying to coordinate meets with friends from a DVC board.

We have THREE different meets AND enjoy the fireworks.

Tomorrow, the 4th!

 

[jrbdad]

OK -- remember the plan -- no parks! Do not activate the APs!

So we are up, somewhat leisurely, breakfast in the concierge -- which was terrific. Not much "hot" stuff, but they did have oatmeal. Otherwise, a very well-filled continental breakfast.

Then we head to DTD for our first ever trip to DisneyQuest. DW decided to sit this one out and just shop. The kids and I made the trek (should have taken the bus) to DQ and got our passes (with DVC discount) and proceeded to spend about 4 hours going from floor to floor to floor playing video games, doing virtual rides, etc. It was pretty crowded -- guess we weren't the only ones avoiding the parks? Finally, hunger set in and we hooked up with DW for a really good lunch at the HOB. Terrific meal and again, another DVC discount.

From there -- back to the Poly. DS13 had been bugging me about trying the SeaRaycers. So the boys decided to give that a try, while the ladies hung out at the resort. We just did 30 minutes, but it was fun -- hey -- we got a DVC discount for that too!

The kids decided to swim after that.

I had earlier in the week, made contact with one of my closest friends from college. We'd lost touch and hadn't spoken in over 20 years. He's in Hospitality Management for Disney -- convention sales. Found him through "LinkedIn" -- just so happened that he and his wife were entertaining a client at the Poly for the 4th fireworks.

We met them by the pool bar and had a great time catching up. Couldn't believe it -- he brought out some pictures from when we were in college.

Had a great time, and made plans to meet up again during our Christmas - New Year's Trip.

Kids were getting hungry again after that -- so back to the lounge. OMG! They had a spread going up there! Full-on 4th of July BBQ. We couldn't believe the food. We all got red, white, & blue leis to commemorate the holiday and to help the concierge staff make sure we were supposed to be there.

We cleaned-up, got packed, got all the cruise tags on our bags, everything organized, and another great fireworks show -- this time from our own room. We opened the balcony door (not much of a balcony) and could hear everything perfectly. There was a sea of people below us -- at least twice if not three times the number of people vs the 3rd.

We had been told that the fireworks shows on the 3rd and 4th would be the same -- ummmm --the one on the 4th was definitely longer and more elaborate. Both were wonderful.

Sorry, no pics from today -- not really sure why? Just didn't take any.

OK -- onto the cruise.

 

[jrbdad]

OK -- my wife makes fun of me all the time for being on the various boards researching our vacations. Usually, after a Wishes specialty cruise, or my DD going to the Perfectly Princess Tea Party, or our first cruise on the Wonder -- she gives me a hug and says, "thanks for all that research you do."

We were up fairly early, grabbed breakfast in the concierge lounge of the Poly. Had Bell Services and valet parking coordinated and hit the road. Made a stop along the way to get some sun screen (not nearly enough as it turns out), and some food.

We stopped at McDonalds for a small bite, because we knew we'd be in the terminal for awhile. DS15, who has no confidence issues, was wearing a shirt that had the golden arches, and the word "McAwesome" across the chest -- the ladies in McDonalds were LOVING it!

Off to the terminal. Our check-in, through my advanced planning, was scheduled for 10:30 a.m. -- we pulled into the Disney Terminal at 9:55 a.m. -- the guard directing traffic gave me a dirty look and said, "picking-up?" I said, "no -- dropping off, is that a problem?" He says, "you are too early." I said, "what do I do?" He glared and pointed to a very small space up ahead.

We pulled up and a porter was helping various families load their luggage from the cruise into their vehicles. I start pulling out luggage and stacking it up -- he says he will handle it all -- I tip him nicely and pull ahead.

The new parking garage at the terminal is VERY nice! Way better than last year. I was able to park very close to the walkway, on the first floor. We walked over and BOOM -- have to wait, we are too early. Guess what? Others were as well -- there was already a line and we weren't close to the front -- probably the 20th family by that time. We waited and baked and waited and baked -- until finally, they started the line moving. Checking everyone off a list as we passed through.

Waiting in line:

We had less than half the carry-ons that we had last year -- made our way through security, signed the form saying we weren't feverish or slinging snot everywhere and went to the CASTWAY CLUB line! Woo Hoo! Our 2nd cruise -- we are now professional. The nice older gentleman passing out boarding cards hands us ours -- it has the coveted #2!!!!!!! We are feeling the pixie dust. The only folks ahead of us our concierge cruisers and Platinum Castaway Club members.

We get our key cards and I make my way over to the supervisor and politely say, "I know that we are sailing on a full ship -- but, if there happen to be any upgrades available, could I please get on a waiting list." She says that I'm the first to ask and takes down all my pertinent information after confirming that the ship is indeed -- jam packed!

Off to register DD10 for the Oceaneer's Lab -- more waiting. In fact, over an hour. They had some computer glitch rolling from one cruise to the next, so we had to wait for them to get that straightened out. Haven't they heard of ctrl-alt-delete? Anyway, while waiting in line, I had the pleasure of listening to many screaming children and their parents screaming right back at them -- thinking, "oh joy, why am I doing this?"

The terminal was buzzing -- Tom Coughlin, the Head Coach for the NY Giants was on our cruise. Wait -- isn't that Shawn Bradley, the former NBA player -- yep -- him too, can't mistake someone that's 7'8" tall.

Finally get DD10 registered and we are back in a holding pattern.

Around 12:30 they call for the concierge guests and the Platinum Club guests to board -- this doesn't take long at all. #2 is next!!!

We go through the lines -- take our Boarding picture and are announced to the ship. Gotta love the pomp & circumstance.

Our plan -- hit the port excursion desk first. The boys would like to do the bottom-fishing excursion at Castaway Cay and it was booked on-line . We talk to the nice folks and get on a waitlist. What are the chances for three spots opening when they only take 8? Worth a shot.

Off to explore the ship. We look at the Oceaneer's Lab, the Edge for the tweens, and the Vibe for the teens.

We run into Chip & Dale at the Vibe -- by ourselves -- had the best time:

 

[jrbdad]

OK -- after the Vibe, we check out the Spa area -- OMG! We ended up getting the Rainforest Spa package for the two of us for the length of the cruise. Money well spent! It was heavenly. Various scented, lighted showers -- three different types of saunas, lounge chairs made of heated tiles; private hot tubs with a view of the ocean. It was soooo wonderful. We also booked a couples massage for our day at sea.

Whew -- we had worked up an appetite by then. So a quick trip to Cabanas for lunch and it was delicious. A HUGE buffet, with just about every continent represented. If you left hungry, it was your own fault.

We'd accomplished ALOT in an hour -- it was now 1:30 and time for the staterooms to be ready! Off we went. Ummm, why is this red barrier blocking the hallway? Shouldn't the staterooms be ready? We waited about 10 minutes and folks just moved the barrier so off we went.

We were in a CAT 4A and it was superb! Again, no pics -- I'll explain why in a bit -- perfect room for us. Queen size bed for me and DW; sofa makes into a single; pull down from the wall for another single, and pull down from the ceiling for the third single. Great veranda -- all is well with the world. We quickly change into swim suits to try the Aquaduck. Well, all but DW. While changing, our stateroom phone rings -- they had three cancellations for bottom fishing at Castaway Cay on our first stop -- they are our spots if we'd like them -- YES! They advise to bring sunscreen and hats. Hmmm, no hats. Oh yeah, I remember, they always give hats at the DVC infomercial -- I'll just go to that.

Off we go to the aquaduck-- it was a blast! Loved it -- but have to head back to the room quick, took much longer than I expected and have to make the DVC meeting to get our hats. I just barely make it -- same presentation from previous cruise. Entertaining, and mission accomplished on the caps. They did mention that there were 800 DVC members on the cruise! I thought that was a pretty big number?

Forgot to mention all the swag in the stateroom! Great Castaway Club gifts -- a duffle bag, 2 water bottles, 2 pens, and 2 rice crispie treats. Plus stuff from DVC too -- a beautiful captains box, lanyards, a card for a pin. Nice stuff.

Goodness, this is getting long. Let's go to another post.

 

[jrbdad]

OK -- so after the DVC meeting, DW and the kids had enjoyed the Sail-away party.

We head back to the room and our luggage has arrived (thank goodness).

We unpack and call the place home -- I mean, we really unpack, putting suitcases away. Getting toiletries out. Hanging stuff up. We were comfortable.

Then we dress for dinner -- we think we are on the cruise and the kids should dress-up, just a little. Not too fancy, but enough.

First night is Animater's Palette. We meet our Head Server -- Kruno from Croatia and Assistant Server, Pla from Thailand. We were disappointed at first -- we had heard our Assistant Server from the Wonder was now on the Dream and we had requested him. Not to worry (as Kruno would say) -- all was well -- the service was stellar! Food was great. Overall a wonderful first night.

The restaurant is different than that on the Wonder -- this one is more interactive with Crush from Nemo being the "star" and interacting with some of the guests along the wall -- much like at Turtle Talk with Crush. We weren't on the wall -- but still enjoyed the show:

 

[jrbdad]

After a wonderful dinner, and a nice bottle of wine (we did the wine package) -- back to the stateroom to change clothes.

While changing, the stateroom phone rings again. Hmmmm.....I thought we were on vacation. This time the gentleman says he is the Concierge Manager and was told that we might be interested in an upgrade. I say, "why yes -- we would be interested." He says, "a family was unfortunately unable to make the trip and they were in a similar cabin to ours, but on the concierge level. If we are interested, we can change cabins for $375. Just go to the Concierge Level and knock on the door and Eddy will show us the cabin before we decide."

Huh? What? Are you kidding? Well -- OK?

I compose myself and politely thank the gentleman and we proceed to the Concierge Level.

Disney got it right! Eddy was fabulous and took us on a tour of our new "home." Including the concierge lounge. The cabin was bigger, the veranda nearly 3x as big, the lounge was wonderful, and we were very close to the spa!

As you can see -- it didn't take us long to pack and move and unpack. They even had someone come take out bags down for us. We were covered in pixie dust. The only drawback, was that the sofa pulled out into a double bed -- so two kids had to share, but they could make due.

We now had a continental breakfast two doors from our room, we had nightly cocktails and snacks throughout the day, with desserts and cordials at night -- all included. We also had 100 minutes of free internet (which didn't work very well), the services of the concierge staff, loan iPads or laptops, and a very luxurious/spacious lounge close to our cabin. It was wonderful.

We basked in the pixie dust and the kids went off to their clubs.

DS13 ended up hating his -- he really was too old. The others thought theirs were OK, DS15 didn't want to admit it -- but he was missing his brother.

We couldn't have asked for a better first day.

Tomorrow our first stop at Castaway Cay!!!

 

[jrbdad]

What is it about the rocking of a ship and a good mattress that makes sleep so wonderful?

Woke up, showered, and got the boys up -- while I went to the Concierge Lounge and waited on them. The girls decided to sleep in a bit and then enjoy the beach.

The boys and I went to Cabanas for breakfast, then off to Marge's Barges for our excursion. We were a bit early and got to watch the parasailers get instructions and strapped up. Some of them began to turn green. :blech:

Walking off the ship:

Shows you how far overboard the Aquaduck slings you :

One of my favorite Disney signs:

It wasn't long and we were called forward to board our vessel for the next 2-3 hours. And we were off:

 

[jrbdad]

We sailed away from the Dream for around 20 minutes or so. The rods were all ready to go -- with the exception of the bait (squid). We got our instructions -- mainly, once you hook a fish -- reel FAST or the sharks will take your catch.

DS13 with the first catch of the day:

Didn't take DS15 long to follow suit:

Even the old man got into the act:

We lost several to the sharks -- they were amazing and came right up to the boat -- they appeared to be HUGE! But they were probably "only" six or seven feet in length.

We changed locations and were able to fish without the sharks for awhile.

The Captain decided to get into the act -- using much heavier gear and he brought one of the sharks in. Not a great picture, but it was tough:

The boys and I had a BLAST! It was so much fun, I'll bet we caught close to 20 each. Of course, it was catch & release. We probably saw 10 different types of fish. The crew was terrific -- made sure we had bait, if a shark took our rigging, they had us new gear almost immediately. I'd highly recommend this one. We only had a party of 8 -- one single man and a family of four.

After the fishing, the boys and I were starved, so we headed back to the island and lunch at Cookies BBQ -- perfect timing with the tram. We had a wonderful meal and then set out to try to find the girls. You can imagine what a challenge that might have been. They had their wave phones and we tried that way -- no luck. We just started walking and within 2 minutes, there they were:

We hung out and swam, laid out, the kids had ice cream, just a very relaxing afternoon. Then back to the ship -- DW & I had reservations at Remy's!

On the way back to the ship -- we ran into Max, Goofy's son:

 

[jrbdad]

Our rotation was for the Enchanted Garden, we had the early seating -- so we took the kids to dinner. Our server talked us into an appetizer and it was delicious.

We left the kids with our servers. Instructions were to take DD10 to the Kids' Club and they were going to play some basketball (couldn't talk them into the Vibe that night). The ended up texting us via the wave phone and after dinner (couple of check-ins) they went and rode the Aquaduck about 10 times.

I did a very poor job of pictures at the Enchanted Garden. Fortunately, one of the ship's photographers took pics of the kids that turned out great. I also didn't take many pics at Remy's -- DW thought it would be rude.

Here's what I got:

Back of the chairs:

There were crystal Remys on the entrance chandelier -- beautiful.

Our view:

DW liked the desserts so much, that she asked me to take pics of that:

Our server took this:

Let me just say -- Celia was our server and she was fantastic. We took her recommendations, along with the recommendation of the cheif sommolier (sp?). So glad we did -- one of us had the French inspired menu and the other the V&A inspired menu -- then we shared.

You remember the line in the movie Rattatoui (sp?) -- where he talks about the flavors exploding in your mouth? That's what it was like. I've never had a better meal. The service, the food, the atmosphere, the view -- simply perfect.

The wine was the most expensive part of the meal -- we had a very candid discussion with the chief sommolier and told him what we liked and that we were on a budget and what that budget was -- he recommended a cab that was one of best wines I've ever tasted. I can't imagine what the bottle that cost $3,400 tasted like?

A couple came in and ended up sitting near us -- she had a purse and they brought out a "seat" for it like they do at V&A (from what I've heard). They talked to us a bit and confided that they were intimidated by the wine list and the menu. We told them that we were the same and what we did -- when Celia came back they told her that they wanted what we ordered and asked the sommolier for the same wine even.

Here's the wine:

We ended up spending slightly less than a visit to V&A's would cost. Now I want to try V&A even more!

The kids finally decided to try the clubs again -- they had taken their sister back to the Lab and we had made arrangements earlier in the day to move DS13 up to the Vibe -- no problem at all. They seemed to have a much better time.

Gave DW & I some time to relive our "date." It was a great day and an even better night. I often wonder what other cruiselines are like -- can they compare to the level of service that Disney provides.

 

[jrbdad]

Before moving on to Day 3 -- I should point out that DW and I did enjoy the Rainforest Spa on Day 2 -- in fact, we may have gone twice. We definitely got our money's worth on the spa package. We went at least once, every day.

OK -- Day 3 -- a Day at Sea!

I woke up early, like 5:30 am early, with my diabetes, it is important that I exercise and I hadn't in several day. Today was my day to try out the Fitness Center. Well - it doesn't open until 6 am. You'd be amazed at how much work they are doing cleaning the ship between 5:30 & 6:00 am. Not wanting to wake anyone in my stateroom, I hung out in the adult only area under an overhang -- because it was raining. Still a nice way to begin the day. Went back and the fitness center was open a little before 6 am. I've also been nursing a knee injury for about 8 months. I had so hoped to run in the Castaway Cay 5K -- but it didn't happen . I stuck to the weights, bikes, and elliptical today.

Multiple Fitness Center Pics:

Sorry the pics aren't any better -- took them with my iPhone. Anyway, the fitness center isn't huge, but it is big enough and very well equipped. There were folks in there all hours of the day. It is adjacent to the spa. They have two full-time trainers and classes and personal sessions are offered.

Had a great workout -- then went to the men's locker room for a shower -- found this "secret" yesterday and took all but my last shower in the locker room. The showers are huge and have everything you need. Plus it give the folks back in the stateroom more time to sleep or take showers themselves.

From there, back to the Concierge Lounge for a coffee and a few berries. Claudia, one of the lounge hostesses, had a fresh plate of berries waiting on me each morning, because I had told her about my diabetes and how much I enjoyed them. A wonderful plate of strawberries, blackberries, raspberries, and blueberries. Everyday!

You know -- every time you entered the lounge -- they greeted you by name.

Took a cup of coffee to DW and they were just barely stirring, so I went to breakfast solo -- went to the Royal Palace, since I'd been to Cabanas. Sat by myself at a table for five and had wonderful service. The waiter recommended the eggs benedict, so I went with that and was glad I did. He even came by and did a magic trick for me.

From there -- back to the lounge -- the Concierge had arranged for me to meet with the Cruise sales staff for booking a future cruise. In concierge -- the cruise sales staff comes to you -- laptop, etc. Autumn handled everything, answered several questions, gave me lots of ideas and in less than 45 minutes, we have next year's cruise booked on the Dream. This time in adjoining staterooms on deck 8 -- gotta have more room! With ideas percolating for another cruise after that. Prices had jumped about 15% in less than 3 weeks (last time I had checked) -- even with the onboard discount, the price was higher than what I'd looked at three weeks earlier without the discount. But I did get the additional onboard credit and booked through my travel agent to get their onboard credit as well.

A great deal!

It's not even 10 a.m. yet.

 

[jrbdad]

OK -- 2012 cruise booked. Had hoped to do the Fantasy on a 7 night Caribbean cruise, but the prices were outside our budget. Back to the Dream for 5 nights works for us with two stops at Castaway Cay and more room! With the discount, we were only a couple hundred dollars over the price of this cruise. Felt good about it -- but still thinking about the Fantasy. We only have a couple more vacations with DS15, they grow up so fast.

OK, things are a little fuzzy. I think DW & I enjoyed the spa. DD10 went to the Lab, and the boys went to the basketball court, with instructions to get their sister before lunch.

DS15 won the free throw contest:

Gotta love a Mickey "medal."

DW & I just strolled the decks after our spa time:

Adult pool -- we never even found time to try it:

 

[jrbdad]

We decided on Enchanted Garden for lunch, since we didn't get to eat there the prior night. Couldn't tell you what we ate, but I'm sure it was great .

After lunch, more spa time -- the kids decided to try the Aquaduck again. When we got back from the spa, they were in the stateroom watching TV -- not a good move on their part.

I went all "dad" on them -- how much did we spend for them to sit around watching TV?

I picked up the Navigator and learned that there was a scavenger hunt starting for the Vibe -- off the boys went. DW, DD10 and I went off exploring again -- went to Shutters to look at pics, etc. Actually ran into a group of teenagers laughing and carrying on -- oh wait -- our boys are part of that group! What's going on -- they were smiling and laughing? How could that be?

Maybe because the group was about seven kids and only two were male -- mine! At least they were having fun. We set a time to meet for dinner and off they went with their team -- after I videoed them making a pyramid in the main lobby. I tried to get a picture -- but they were off like a FLASH!

DW & I enjoyed our couples massage -- may have been the best massage we both ever had. The room had a view.

Later that day we took DW to the spa for her mani/pedi -- it is supposed to be limited to teens, but they let her do it anyway.

 

[jrbdad]

Dinner that night was at the Royal Palace -- semi-formal night.

We decided to get in line a little early and get a family picture -- unfortunately, I don't have it in digital format.

But here are a few from that night:

Waiting in line:

I mentioned earlier that Shawn Bradley was on the cruise -- DS13 got to meet him while we were in line. Keep in mind that DS13 is about 5'10"

DW wanted a picture of the bread basket:

This was before dinner:

Dinner was wonderful -- food was incredible.

After dinner, we went to watch the movie Prom. While there, the boys were getting texts on their wave phones about the happenings at the Vibe. So after the movie, they went there with a curfew of midnight. Amazing what some cute young ladies can do to make things more appealing.

 

[jrbdad]

Up and at 'em early again to workout, get my berries, get some coffee -- roust the troops and off to Cabanas for breakfast.

The concierge staff, through conversation the day before, learned we were going to Harborside at Atlantis for the day -- the printed info from the internet for me and gave me some tips on getting off the ship early.

We were off with the DCL excursion groups -- found a cab and were off -- so we thought. The cab was a 15 passenger van and the group that was with us mentioned to the driver that they were going to Atlantis and trying to get day-passes. Through my research, I learned that many times the cab drivers will sell the prior day passes that someone scavenged from the trash.

I calmly stepped out of the van and told the driver, who was looking for passes, that if he didn't get in the van and drive NOW we were getting out.

After that -- we were on our way. Check-in at Harborside was a breeze, went to the pool hut, got our wrist bands, back to the lobby for the shuttle to Atlantis.

At Atlantis, we get DW situated in a nice spot to soak-up some sun and the kids and I make our way to the waterslides!

A few random shots from Atlantis:

Actually -- just leaving the ship:

This one was pretty scary -- DD10 made it -- screaming all the way, but loved it:

The kids LOVED the waterslides -- the not-so-lazy river and we had an absolute BLAST!!!! We did it pretty quick, knowing DW was waiting on us.

We met back up and had lunch at Shark Bites -- thinking it was slightly over-priced, but ultimately feeling like it was a good value -- food was good, service was good, food was plentiful.

After that, we headed to "the Dig" the aquarium:

 

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A few more shots of Harborside -- then the family with Harborside in the background:

We tried to check-in to our room at Harborside, but it was only about 3 pm and the room wasn't scheduled to be ready until 4 pm. So we checked out before we actually went to the room. They called a cab for us and we were back to the ship in a jiffy.

Guess what? DW & I had some spa time

 

[jrbdad]

We went back to the ship, but not until after we did a little shopping in the marketplace -- a few souvenirs for DD10 and her friends, and some pearls for DW.

Back on-board we cleaned-up (after some spa time). During our massages, they recommended DW for some accupuncture therapy. The concierge helped up rearrange our schedules slightly so that DW and I could go to Palo early and then DW could go get needles stuck in her shoulder (an old "frozen" shoulder issue).

Tonight was PIRATE NIGHT:

Yes -- that is Pirate Duffy with DD10:

 

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These are really out of order -- but you get the idea.

Kids did the Royal Palace, we did Palo -- it was amazing! Kids did their clubs, we met up for awhile. The boys left to do their thing at the Vibe. DD10 was stuck with us. I spend more time at the spa while DW got her accupuncture -- which she said helped.

We were wiped out -- again. But tomorrow is our last stop at Castaway Cay and did I mention -- we have a family cabana?

We had looked into it before the cruise -- finally deciding it was too expensive. Then, the first stop at CC, we were close to the cabanas and were like -- "wow! those look great" Sitting in the Concierge Lounge one night -- the staff mentions that they had one come available, would we be interested. Didn't take long to think about it -- a good use for all those Disney Visa Reward Dollars we'd been accumulating!

This was in our stateroom when we got back from dinner:

A paper model of the cabana! Too cute!