Value Resorts and Inside Staterooms? Bah Humbug! 30 days of Disney fun! 02/10 Day 30

[dizneeat]

Halfway done with this trip report ........ and only 29 more days until we start the next vacation!

​

 

[jenseib]

I'm loving all the updates! I need to get in gear too. I still have 2 1/2 days to write about....I don't know if I can do it in 30 days though.

 

[dizneeat]

I'm loving all the updates! I need to get in gear too. I still have 2 1/2 days to write about....I don't know if I can do it in 30 days though.

Only 4 more weeks for us! And I still have so much to do, but I am determined to finish these reports before we fly to the US!

 

[dizneeat]

Day 16, August 29

Adventures Away, Take 2 - Part 1

Since we didn’t actually disembark we slept in a little. We took a shower and got ready for our Farewell breakfast.
When we got down to Parrot Cay, the nice couple from New York was already there and we had a nice and fun conversation with them until Mr. Know It All arrived and joined the conversation. He thought that there were not enough activities and the food was not to his liking, but he was happy as they were going to spend the rest of the day at Disneyland. After he had been corrected that the place he was going to was not Disneyland, but Walt Disney World, he went on to let us know that he was so looking forward to go on his favourite ride, It’s A Small World. I couldn’t help but let him know that it was closed for refurbishment, but he was sure that was not true. Not even mentioning that we had just spent more than 10 days at Walt Disney World wouldn’t change his mind. Thankfully by then our breakfast arrived. Tom had coffee and I had some juice, as the tea I had actually ordered, never arrived. I chose to go with

Route 66, Scrambled eggs, bacon, grilled sausage, grilled ham, and hash browns for my breakfast. Tom had the

Chef's Farewell, a large open faced omelette topped with barbecued chicken, green peppers, onions and melted Swiss cheese. They also brought out

several plates of fruit for all to share.
Once we had finished breakfast it was time to say our final farewells and were sad to see the New York couple leave, but quite happy not to see Mr. Know It All again. Since we didn’t really know how this worked, we had our paperwork for our next cruise and our passports in my handbag, then joined the line to disembark.
We left through the luggage pick-up room and soon enough were in front of the terminal building. Our car was still sitting in the parking lot and we needed to pay our parking fees for the second cruise, so we walked up to the pay-station. It was still “un-manned” so we stuck around, asked a port worker and he thought that it would be best to stick around as they were supposed to open up in about 15 minutes. About 10 minutes later one of the guys in the pay-stations showed up and after we had explained what we were here for, he got everything ready and we could finally pay for our car to stay there. We took the little piece of paper back to the car and exchanged one for the other before we walked back to the ship.
There was no one trying to embark at that moment, so we went through in no time. We went through the security check and up to the actual check-in.

All the counters were still closed and we were the only people in there for quite some time. Lots of time to take lots of photos.

We were finally joined by a few people and had a fun conversation with a Cast Member who was in charge of all the wigs on board. She had a few fun stories to share and time just flew by. We were there for about 3 quarters of an hour when another Cast Member arrived with a few guests in tow.

 

[Teri1]

Karin I am so excited that you are finally at our cruise in your trip report!! I can't believe you only have 4 weeks till you will back in Florida!

 

[jenseib]

I love the empty terminal!

 

[dizneeat]

Karin I am so excited that you are finally at our cruise in your trip report!! I can't believe you only have 4 weeks till you will back in Florida!

Yes, we finally got to the cruise with the NICEST tablemates!

In exactly 4 weeks from today we will be on our way to Florida! Can't wait!

I love the empty terminal!

It was amazing having it to ourselves. And even when the first people arrived it felt completely empty.
And we were back on board before the first NEW cruisers were even allowed in!

 

[dizneeat]

Day 16, August 29

Adventures Away, Take 2 - Part 2

We were there for about 3 quarters of an hour when another Cast Member arrived with a few guests in tow. Turns out that our reservation hadn’t been noted back to back, so we never received a letter explaining where to meet on the ship and get off and on together. But he told us that as soon as the check-in desks were open we should all check-in again and we would be allowed back on the ship soon after.
Since the ship was made ready for the next guests we had to wait at the Cove Café until it was time for us to have lunch. We went back to our chairs and waited for a while until we spied a family we knew from the DISboards. Monica and her family were back to back cruisers as well and we had both signed up for the Fish Extender exchange. We hadn’t met in person, but I was determined to get to know her. So when I had finally spotted them I walked over to them and just asked if she was Monica. Yip, she was. We hit it off right away. They were cruising with their adult son, who was reading every time I saw him and their teenage daughter, who practically lived in the teens club on board. After a short time we noticed that the Cast Members were getting ready to check people in and Monica decided to get in line. We were both Silver Castaway Cay Members, but since we are not US citizens we did not know if we could check in there too. No problem. We were checked in in no time and proceeded towards the entrance.

A little while later we were allowed back on board and headed up to the Cove Café. To our huge surprise there was a Cast Member greeting us and telling us that all coffees were free for back to back cruisers and that they had prepared a tray with pastries as well. Tom got himself a double espresso and I had a heavenly Cappuccino. We sat in those heavenly chairs, talked to Monica and her family, the Cast Member at the bar kept talking to us and after a while, Pierre, the food and beverage officer on board, who came from Britain stopped by for a short conversation.
One of the ladies who sat there waiting with us told us that she was the wife of one of the officers on board and that she was allowed to travel with her husband. Around 11.45 we saw the first guests on board the ship and decided to head down to Parrot Cay for some lunch. What a different experience from Beach Blanket Buffet. We were met at the entrance, led to a table, served some drinks

and then we went to get some food from the buffet. The offerings were the same, but it felt so much nicer there.

We both had a plate full of salads, salmon and breaded cutlet and

then we got up for a second plate of desserts.
It took a bit longer to finish lunch but by the time we had finished our meal we still couldn’t get to our stateroom. So we walked around the ship for a short while and then finally walked up to our deck and waited for the hallways to be opened. Walking along the hallway we could see our stateroom door standing out, since it was the only one decorated! We opened the door and found another “welcome back” present from the Disney Cruise Line,

another beach bag, water bottles, a key ring and rice crispy treats. We sat and talked for a while, enjoyed the view from the veranda and waited for the Lifeboat Drill to start.

 

[jenseib]

You are determined to get this done!
The food looks wonderful. It's neat that you get to experience things twice but in a different way each time.

 

[Disneyfreak616]

How fun to do a back-to-back cruise! That's great! The activities all look wonderful!

I guess Mr. Know-It-All had a rude awakening when he got to Fantasyland.

Parrot Cay looks absolutely delicious!

 

[dizneeat]

You are determined to get this done!
The food looks wonderful. It's neat that you get to experience things twice but in a different way each time.

Yes, I definitely want to finish this! I'll have another 30 day one on my hands once we return from this summer's trip!

We loved being able to have four more days on the ship. Much more time to explore and to meet some REAL wonderful people. (Can't give everything away! )

How fun to do a back-to-back cruise! That's great! The activities all look wonderful!

I guess Mr. Know-It-All had a rude awakening when he got to Fantasyland.

Parrot Cay looks absolutely delicious!

We loved doing a back to back so much that we are actually doing three cruises in a row this summer! There was so much to see and do we could not even fit it into 7 days.

Oh, I would have loved to see his face when he walked up to It's a Small World! We were sure glad he was gone!

It was such a different experience having lunch at Parrot Cay, compared to Beach Blanket Buffet. Even though they both had the exactly same offerings, the setting in a restaurant, where someone serves you drinks and no dirty trays on the tables was just wonderful. (Not that the dirty trays were left on the tables for more than a minute - they were pretty quick removing them)

 

[Stefy]

So awesome doing a back to back cruise. I love how empty the terminal was and that you got to leisurely take photos

Loving all the updates, DCL cruises really are amazing looking. Wonder what they compare to with the likes of Royal Caribbean

 

[Disneyfreak616]

We loved doing a back to back so much that we are actually doing three cruises in a row this summer! There was so much to see and do we could not even fit it into 7 days.

Oh, I would have loved to see his face when he walked up to It's a Small World! We were sure glad he was gone!

It was such a different experience having lunch at Parrot Cay, compared to Beach Blanket Buffet. Even though they both had the exactly same offerings, the setting in a restaurant, where someone serves you drinks and no dirty trays on the tables was just wonderful. (Not that the dirty trays were left on the tables for more than a minute - they were pretty quick removing them)

I saw that in your ticker, that's going to be great! A triple cruise!

I think the dining atmosphere definitely makes or breaks the experience, and Disney knows that. So I'm glad you and Tom had an enjoyable lunch!

 

[englishrose47]

Hi Karin great Updates !!!I have 32 days to finish my one PTR and also need to get amove on with it !!When I met with Yuki she sooooo wished she would be seeing you next month!!!

 

[dizneeat]

So awesome doing a back to back cruise. I love how empty the terminal was and that you got to leisurely take photos

Loving all the updates, DCL cruises really are amazing looking. Wonder what they compare to with the likes of Royal Caribbean

Back to back's are the best cruises! I need to push on with my updates, I only have 26 days left to finish them all.
Never been on Royal Caribbean - guess we never will, - so sorry, can't help you compare.

I saw that in your ticker, that's going to be great! A triple cruise!

I think the dining atmosphere definitely makes or breaks the experience, and Disney knows that. So I'm glad you and Tom had an enjoyable lunch!

You are right about dining, but it got MUCH better on the second cruise!

Hi Karin great Updates !!!I have 32 days to finish my one PTR and also need to get amove on with it !!When I met with Yuki she sooooo wished she would be seeing you next month!!!

Lucky girl having 32 days left!
I really wish Yuki could have come as well, she is such a sweetheart. It is really wonderful for you to be able to meet with her more often! Give her a hug from me next time!

 

[dizneeat]

Day 16, August 29

Adventures Away, Take 2 - Part 3

We sat and talked for a while, enjoyed the view from the veranda and waited for the Lifeboat Drill to start.

We saw and heard the lifeboat drill at the Carneval Ship that was docked opposite our ship and then it was finally time and we had to make our way down to deck 4. The drill was short and over quickly and we were back on our way to our stateroom.
After taking off our life vests and putting them back into the cupboard we picked up our cameras and got ready to leave again. We wanted to stake out a good spot for the Adventures Away Party, so we went up on deck 10 and found a nice spot overlooking the party. They were just starting it and it was fun to watch the Cast Members interact with the guests and soon the party was in full swing. The characters were on deck and finally there was the countdown.

Three, two, one ………. Adventures away and we pulled out of Port Canaveral. Tom and I stayed on deck 10 and watched the ship pull away from the terminal where some Cast Members were waving.

We stayed on deck for a while watching the coastline getting further and further away before we went back to our stateroom and sorted out our Fish Extender gifts for the second cruise.

It wasn’t long until we had to leave again and walk down to see this evenings performance of the “Golden Mickeys”. The theatre filled up quickly and the show was fun as always.

When it was over, the stores had already opened and we browsed for a while. It was nearly time to go down to our assigned restaurant for dinner. Our restaurant for the night was Animator’s Palette.
We were there before the restaurant opened, got in line and were soon led to our table. We were the first ones there and sat down and looked at the menu. Soon after we were joined by another couple, which sat at the opposite end of the table and there was not more conversation than a short hello.
They both asked for something to drink to help with their being seasick, as the sea had gotten a little rougher than usual as we went through the remnants of a tropical storm and the Florida Straight.

Another couple joined us, and they sat down opposite us and we introduced ourselves and started some small talk.

 

[Stefy]

Aww bless sea sickness is not hot, esp when you just started the cruise. Hope they felt better during the rest of the trip.

 

[Teri1]

I hate that we missed the sail away, I think it would be nice to watch the land get further away. We missed the Golden Mickey's too! Of course we did have a wonderful time at the spa though. Now who did you start small talk with??

 

[englishrose47]

I hopr there was no Mr Know it All , on this cruise !!!

 

[dizneeat]

Aww bless sea sickness is not hot, esp when you just started the cruise. Hope they felt better during the rest of the trip.

I think they mentioned something to the server that it was their first cruise too! No fun starting it off that way, but they NEVER returned to the dining rotation!
We did see them going on excursions, so they must have been okay.

I hate that we missed the sail away, I think it would be nice to watch the land get further away. We missed the Golden Mickey's too! Of course we did have a wonderful time at the spa though. Now who did you start small talk with??

Well, Teri, goes to show that you will have to take another cruise! Ups ...... you are doing that in September!
And I SO glad you did NOT miss dinner that day!

I hopr there was no Mr Know it All , on this cruise !!!

On the contrary, Rosie! We got to meet the nicest tablemates and friends this time!