Things you wish you would've known....

[dizzi]

We take our larger suitcase and put it standing upright in the closet zipping it all the way around except for the top, which we leave open and use it like a hamper. Just stuff in the dirty clothes and zip it shut. When that one is full exchange it for another. When we get home, those go straight to the laundry room.

AWESOME!!!!! LOVE THIS WILL DO THIS NEXT TIME!!!!!!!!

 

[dizzi]

I wish we had done a 3 or 4 day before doing our 7 day.......so i think you are smart in that aspect. I feel like i wasted about 3 days of our cruise getting acclumated to the ship and needed another 7 days to have a vacation. Or maybe you could o a 3 and a 7 back to back.......

But what i will do next time is PLAN my day BETTER!!!!! i wish we had done more activities that i wanted to do.........and it seemed when my activities were going on i was taking my DD to her activites(which wont be a problem for you) and therefore missed what i wanted to do.

SO READ THE NAVIGATOR!!!!! AND PLAN!!!!!!! each day the night before!

 

[misseulalie]

If you do stay on board while in port at Nassau, be prepared to spend that time relaxing. There are very few activities on board during port days. That is the only downfall so far with DCL. My parents don't like to get off the ship during port days (because of their age) and would rather spend the time on the ship. Only problem was that there was nothing for them to do. They loved relaxing by the pool, but after a few hours of that, they were bored.

 

[Heather98012]

How do you change the safe to use a different card with a magnetic strip (like your grocery store card, etc)? I'd love to have a more secure safe....I don't trust in room safes, even with a code, etc. But this sounds more secure. Please explain in more detail, if you get a chance!

 

[CM_Mom]

It's unlocked when you get to your room. It's not preprogrammed to a specific card. Whatever card you use to LOCK it is the same card you must use to UNLOCK it.

What some of the folks are talking about using a grocery card and leaving it in a drawer is so everyone in the room will have access without the holder of the card being physically present since most folks take their KTTW card with them when they leave the room.

 

[ruadisneyfan2]

Yeah, we thought about that but to be honest I am leary. I have never cruised and have had bouts of sea sickness on other boats. I know, I know, cruises are different but I don't want to be nervous about this big long cruise and end up sick, ruining an entire vacation. I really wanted to do the 3 night but DH talked me into one extra night.

Yes, but the ship isn't just a boat. It's so huge. I too get sick on boats (my dad has 3) but the only time I got seasick on a cruise ship was once when our cabin was in the extreme fwd part of the ship. Now I always stay aft and never had a problem.
I agree with the pp who said if $ is no object do the 7 day. You don't have to worry about kids missing school or having to go during school holidays which is extra expensive. It takes a couple days to learn your way around and anything less than 7 days, you'll be leaving just when it gets comfortable. Too bad they don't offer 5 days too. That would make for a nice quickie. I believe next Sept they are offering a one-time 5 day due to the repo schedule. Maybe try that?

 

[Donald & Daisy Duck]

I would book a midship category 3 (considering money is no object). The room is quite large and the service from concierge is a nice extra. With this category room, you can book your excursions and your Palo reservations early. Palo is a must for dinner and brunch. Brunch fills up quite early, so book as soon as you can (you can probably change later if you need to). You also will have concierge available for your questions/requests before your trip starts (stateside) if you need them. We frequently travel with a large group of friends, so dining issues etc. can become an ordeal and stateside concierge is very helpful.

What category room do you have booked?

 

[LisaBi]

What cards with magnetic stips do you suggest? The only ones I could think of are my charge cards. Does the black strip need to be visible? How about a casino slot machine card (no black strip though)

We used a WDW room card! (From our Friday night stay at WDW pre-cruise - since we hadn't booked land/sea it wasn't the same card as we had for our stateroom). That way it wasn't tied to either of our stateroom keys, had no value, and we could just leave it "hidden" in the room and then either of us could get into the safe anytime.

 

[mommyoftwinfants]

If money is no object I would upgrade to a 7 night cruise........but thats just me.

What he/she said....

 

[ThisLittleLightShine]

I am a super planner. And as much as you can try, doing something yourself is a better substitute than researching it. Anyway, I will be doing my first cruise, yes, DCL, in October 2009. What do you wish you would've known BEFORE that you discovered once you got on board that you probably didn't see on these boards or in a guide book. It will be me and DH....no kids (we don't have any!). It will be a 4 night and money is no object. Tell me please!

Don't overpack, pack and then cut it in half.

 

[JennandJaryd]

We take our larger suitcase and put it standing upright in the closet zipping it all the way around except for the top, which we leave open and use it like a hamper. Just stuff in the dirty clothes and zip it shut. When that one is full exchange it for another. When we get home, those go straight to the laundry room.

I love this idea as well. I used it to pack my pre-cruise purchases in my closet. Much neater than the open suitcase that was overflowing on my bedroom floor.

I've filled an entire suitcase and still have 8 months to go...

 

[LoveThatMouse!]

Order Mickey IceCream Bars from Room Services as well as Cookies and Milk before bedtime.

Take a noise maker or small fan to run at night in case you end up next to a cabin with excessive noise or even to block out noise from the hallway.

On the last night, when the Characters bid farewell in the Atrium, scoop up handfuls of confetti as a reminder of the magic!

Have a Wonderful time!

 

[mindy327]

1. Dont be too shocked when NOT everyone blows bubbles at sail away. The way I read, is that everyone blows bubbles which would be really cool! So our family just did it from the back of the ship.
2. Didnt know that you eat dinner with perfect strangers! This was okay, but when we boarded, we were hearded like cattle into Paradise cay and sat with an unfriendly family!
3. Bring a pop up hamper. They fold up and small, but hold tons of clothes!
4. Over the door holder. BEST idea yet.

 

[KimK2006]

Unless you're a big Nassau fan, stay on the ship and enjoy it on that day. It won't be at all crowded, and Nassau is yukky.

Ditto!

 

[ibouncetoo]

You can have a sit down breakfast the day of disembarkation. Your time is based on your dinner seating time. You have to vacate your cabin at that time, so take all carry on luggage to the dining room with you. The menu is slightly more limited than normal days.

There is a new menu (at least on the Wonder) that they started in early December. It is a bit more extensive and does offer made to order eggs. It did seem that breakfast took longer, possible because of the made to order option. We had 8AM and didn't leave the dining room till 9! No more feeling like you're being rushed off the ship!

 

[DenverVal]

Bring suitcases that nest together, unload them into the drawers, closet and over-the-door shoe organizer, nest them together and stash them under the bed. Our bed had a solid-looking base, but what I didn't realize the first time is you can lift the bed frame up if your suitcases are too thick to slip under it. This frees up the closet for clothes. Yes, this was a *duh* moment.

 

[dizzi]

"DUH" for us too!

BUT we did finally figure it out and wow what a great idea!
i cant imagine not being able to put all those suitcases somewhere.