Virtual Online Disney Magic 5 Night Western Europe September 2020 Trip Report

[BadPinkTink]

So this weekend should have been my first Disney cruise. You can follow my pre planning from the time I booked the cruise in July 2019 to the time Disney cancelled this cruise in June 2020 here https://www.disboards.com/threads/c...-europe-from-dover-13-september-2020.3760176/

As I did so much pre planning I decided to do a virtual trip report, which will hopefully help with the 2021 European cruises.

1. 13 September - Dover - England - All Aboard 4pm
2. 14 September - Amsterdam - Netherlands - Ashore 8am, Aboard 7.00 pm
3. 15 September - Zeebrugge / Bruges - Belguim - Ashore 8am, Aboard 5.45pm
4. 16 September - Le Harve / Paris - France - Ashore 7.30am
5. 17 September - Le Harve / Paris - France - Aboard 11.59.pm
6. 18 September - Dover - England- Disembark 7.30am

Today Friday 11 September 2020 I had planned to take to trip to Dublin port to see The Magic. The ship was scheduled to be in Dublin today as the last port on the 2020 British Isles cruise.

This is a photo from the 2019 British Isles cruise, the last time The Magic was in Dublin

 

[BadPinkTink]

Travel Day Saturday September 12 2020

Today I had planned to travel from Dublin, Ireland to Dover, England.

This is a video I found on YouTube of the flight from Dublin to Heathrow London.

When I arrived at Heathrow my plan was to get the Tube from Heathrow To Kings Cross St Pancras

This is a video I found on YouTube of that journey

A short walk around St Pancras Station

Then I had planned to get the train from Kings Cross St Pancras to Dover Priory

Finally at about 5pm my plan was to check in to Premier Inn at Dover

My plan for the evening was just to walk around Dover, check out the shops and seafront. I did not plan to to the typical tourist stuff like The Castle or The Cliffs.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=76z_r6ArHCc
Once back at the hotel I had planned to eat in the hotel bar and have an early night

 

[BadPinkTink]

Embarkation Day Sunday 13 September

Whenever I travel I make my own itinerary and travel plan. This is what I had planned for this morning

Alarm at
Get Up At
Breakfast At
Check Out At
Taxi At
Port Arrival Time
Check in At Dover Port
Read Disney Cruise Line Paper Navigator While Waiting to Board
Fill Out Details onto My Personal Navigators

Disney Cruise Line cancelled my cruise at 90 days, before I did my online check in at 75 days, so I do not have a Port Arrival Time. My plan was once I got my Port Arrival Time, I would have been able to work out the other times.

I couldn't find a video of the breakfast at Premier Inn Dover, but I did find a video from a Premier Inn at a different location. As its a chain, the breakfast in Dover will be very similar to this

This is a video I found on YouTube of the Dover Port and boarding The Magic. Its the best video I could find which shows the faculties and shops in the boarding area

I had made My Own Personal Navigator plan for each day of the cruise.

 

[Deb T.]

Following because we were supposed to have done B2B2B cruises on the Magic last May that were cancelled: Bahamian~EBTA~Mediterranean. Although I'm extremely grateful my entire family is well and staying safe right now, I still have my moments of being sad about missing all that magical time onboard. We've cruised in and out of Dover 3 times (so far and will again Sept 2021) and can totally envision everything you're "doing." All the work and planning you did for this cruise is impressive and I'm really sorry you weren't able to sail. Do you have another cruise booked yet? We find having more cruises booked helps!

 

[BadPinkTink]

Following because we were supposed to have done B2B2B cruises on the Magic last May that were cancelled: Bahamian~EBTA~Mediterranean. Although I'm extremely grateful my entire family is well and staying safe right now, I still have my moments of being sad about missing all that magical time onboard. We've cruised in and out of Dover 3 times (so far and will again Sept 2021) and can totally envision everything you're "doing." All the work and planning you did for this cruise is impressive and I'm really sorry you weren't able to sail. Do you have another cruise booked yet? We find having more cruises booked helps!

Big virtual hugs thank you for following. Wow that would have been an epic vacation. I know what you mean about having moments. Its hard, especially for cruises as we plan so much and book so far in advance. Thank you, I have a lot more to come so stay turned. Yes I rebooked for Norwegian Fjords in September 2021, so some of the planning wont go to waste. I have put planning for that on hold for now, cos you know.. stuff... hopefully I can restart my planning binder some time in May

 

[iannovich]

We sailed from Dover on the Magic's Norwegian Fjords sailing last September (I was stunned to realize it had been a year last week! Feels like it's only been 6 months). I just watched the Dover Boarding video and brought back great memories! We can't wait to sail from Dover again.

We flew from California to Paris because we still had valid Annual Passes to DLP and we wanted to use them one more time before they expired. We took the Eurostar to London St Pancras. We were taking the most economical route, so we went to St Pancras instead of taking the train straight over to the Dover area. Then we took a Bus from St Pancras to Dover instead of the train. It was half the price of taking the train to Dover (even including the bus fare) and was supposed to only be about an hour longer journey. It was much longer because the bus went all over London before really getting underway to Dover. If we had spent the money on Paris to Folkestone and then over to Dover, it would have saved hours and hours, but we had plenty of time since we were arriving two days early, so we didn't really mind, and we got to see parts of London that we wouldn't have normally.

We stayed at a surprisingly economical B&B at the foot of Dover Castle (it was really like an separate apartment unit) and we walked from there all the way to the terminal on embarkation day. It was an easy (if long) walk and I could see the last part of our route in the boarding video. So much fun. If you had asked me that day if we should have taken a taxi or Uber to the port, I might have said yes we should have(#luggage), but with the fog of memory it was an adventure and gave us a chance to look around us and enjoy being there just a bit more.

Loving your virtual trip report, it's giving me all the feels.

 

[BadPinkTink]

We sailed from Dover on the Magic's Norwegian Fjords sailing last September (I was stunned to realize it had been a year last week! Feels like it's only been 6 months). I just watched the Dover Boarding video and brought back great memories! We can't wait to sail from Dover again.

We flew from California to Paris because we still had valid Annual Passes to DLP and we wanted to use them one more time before they expired. We took the Eurostar to London St Pancras. We were taking the most economical route, so we went to St Pancras instead of taking the train straight over to the Dover area. Then we took a Bus from St Pancras to Dover instead of the train. It was half the price of taking the train to Dover (even including the bus fare) and was supposed to only be about an hour longer journey. It was much longer because the bus went all over London before really getting underway to Dover. If we had spent the money on Paris to Folkestone and then over to Dover, it would have saved hours and hours, but we had plenty of time since we were arriving two days early, so we didn't really mind, and we got to see parts of London that we wouldn't have normally.

We stayed at a surprisingly economical B&B at the foot of Dover Castle (it was really like an separate apartment unit) and we walked from there all the way to the terminal on embarkation day. It was an easy (if long) walk and I could see the last part of our route in the boarding video. So much fun. If you had asked me that day if we should have taken a taxi or Uber to the port, I might have said yes we should have(#luggage), but with the fog of memory it was an adventure and gave us a chance to look around us and enjoy being there just a bit more.

Loving your virtual trip report, it's giving me all the feels.

Thank you for following and I'm glad its bringing back some happy memories. Your adventure getting to Dover is a bit mad but it sounds fun, adding in some time at DLP. Ah yes the bus, lol, having lived in London, the train is always my first choice. The bus is a back up, and I would always allow double the time, as traffic in London is crazy.

 

[BadPinkTink]

Monday 14 September - Amsterdam Port, Ashore 8am, Aboard 7.00 pm

I did not plan any DCL excursion for Amsterdam.

Breakfast was supposed to be at Lumiere's restaurant. I had watched multiple YouTube videos of Cabanas breakfast and decided that I would not go there. I'm not really a morning person, so the hustle and bustle of the breakfast buffet was not something I wanted. In general I prefer table service restaurants to buffet service restaurants in the parks.
The menus can be found on Disneycruiseline Blog https://disneycruiselineblog.com/menus/main-dining-room-breakfast-menus/

This is a video from YouTube of breakfast at Lumieres and then Amsterdam port

After breakfast my plan was to take the Hop On Hop Off bus tour. The bus stop is just outside the port building. Whenever I visit a new city I do a Hop On Hop Off bus tour as I find its a great way to get an overview of the city and get my bearings and orientate myself. Also with the limited time on a cruise port day, its a great way to see the city in a short time. This particular company give you earphones to listen to the tour in various languages.

https://www.citysightseeingamsterdam.nl/
Lunch would be at Hard Rock Cafe. I used to work for the Hard Rock company and now whenever I visit a new city I make sure to find the Hard Rock for a meal and to buy merchandise.

After lunch I would walk back to the ship. I had mapped out the route on Google Maps so I knew which general direction to take. I would just stop by shops or places of interest on my route. Even though I don't speak Dutch, I am very comfortable just exploring on my own in a country where English is not a first language.



Depending on time I had planned to visit Our Lord in the Attic Museum - A 17th-century canal house with a Catholic Church in the attic https://opsolder.nl/en/museum-our-lord-in-the-attic/

As I am from Ireland, and we use the same currency as The Netherlands, I would have brought some cash in my purse but mainly I would use my bank card in shops.

I have been to Amsterdam in 2006, I had visited all the typical tourist places such as Anne Franks House, The Red Light District and a Diamond Factory, as well as taking a canal boat tour. So on this trip I just wanted to enjoy the sights and sounds of the city.

I wanted to be back on the ship in time for my MDR at 5.45pm. I had specially requested the early seating for MDR as I knew most people would want the later seating to maximize their time in ports. As this itinerary is in the middle of September in term time for both European and American schools, I was expecting a small number of children on the ship. This would mean that the early seating MDR would be quieter than the late seating.

The all aboard time was scheduled for 7.00pm. I wanted to be on deck to see the ship leave Amsterdam Port.

This is a video I found on YouTube of The Disney Magic leaving Amsterdam.

 

[Deb T.]

Oh My Goodness! We were on the Magic on that day!!! It was an amazing! It was Day 13 of the 2017 15-night Eastbound Trans-Atlantic (that started from Port Canaveral and ended in Copenhagen). The weather was perfect. We spent most of the day walking around Amsterdam, came back to the ship for lunch, then walked around the city some more. During lunch, we sat on the outside of Cabana's and watched hundreds of small watercraft sail past the ship over and over and over. It seemed as if everyone in Amsterdam had packed a picnic and then spent the day sailing close to the Magic. (Some were very, very close!) The water salute on the way out was so nice. Going through the locks and also the countryside on our way back out to sea is our favorite memory of all our Disney cruises.

 

[BadPinkTink]

Oh My Goodness! We were on the Magic on that day!!! It was an amazing! It was Day 13 of the 2017 15-night Eastbound Trans-Atlantic (that started from Port Canaveral and ended in Copenhagen). The weather was perfect. We spent most of the day walking around Amsterdam, came back to the ship for lunch, then walked around the city some more. During lunch, we sat on the outside of Cabana's and watched hundreds of small watercraft sail past the ship over and over and over. It seemed as if everyone in Amsterdam had packed a picnic and then spent the day sailing close to the Magic. (Some were very, very close!) The water salute on the way out was so nice. Going through the locks and also the countryside on our way back out to sea is our favorite memory of all our Disney cruises.

Oh wow, thats so random that I just happened to post a video of the cruise you were on. That sounds like an amazing itinerary, they switched routes in the last few years, the Eastbound now goes to the Mediterranean.

 

[BadPinkTink]

Tuesday 15 September - Zeebrugge / Bruges - Ashore 8am, Aboard 5.45pm

Again this morning I had planned to have breakfast in Lumieres.

After breakfast I was going to spend the morning in Bruges and be back on the ship around lunchtime

Zeebrugge is a very commercial ferry port and you have to get transport to the town of Bruges.



I hadn't made a decision about which transport to take by the time the cruise was cancelled. My two transport options were

DCL Port Adventure On Your Own – Half Day in Bruges (ZEE07) €34
Board your transportation for the 30-minute scenic transfer to Bruges. Receive a city map and take the short walk to the city center. Along the way, a local guide will point out the main attractions and provide insider insights to help you plan your time here.

Enjoy 3 hours of free time to explore Bruges independently. Wander the cobblestone streets, marvel at medieval Flemish architecture or take a canal boat ride through the tranquil waterways. Or choose to indulge in souvenir shopping, pop into one of the many chocolate shops or relax with a locally brewed beer in one of the many street-side cafés.

Meet your guide at the bus depot at your designated time for the return drive to the port.

Public Transport Information on Zeebrugge Tourist Information Website
https://zeebrugge.net/en/cruise-terminal.php
I also found this video about getting to Bruges DIY

My plan for Bruges was to do a free walking tour with an English guide. There are many free walking tours and I had not decided which one I was going to take. I was in the process of researching them, I just Googled Free Walking Tour Bruges. With the free ones, you just book a place through the website and then at the end you give the guide money, whatever you feel the tour is worth, in cash. The tours are aprox 90 minutes which gave me some time to walk around on my own too.

This is a video I found on YouTube of walking around Bruges

I wanted to be back on the ship around lunchtime, hopefully in time to get lunch at Lumieres. Depending on time I might have checked out Cabanas at lunchtime. I wanted to have a relaxing afternoon on the ship, as the all aboard time was scheduled for 5.45pm. Again I knew many people would be off the ship, especially as the time in Bruges was short.

Another reason why I wanted to be on the ship in the afternoon is because this day was supposed to be our Frozen Theme Day.




I had checked out the Personal Navigators from the 2019 Northern European cruise on Disney Cruise Blog and saw that there were alot of Frozen themed activities during the day. I wanted to do as many of the special activities as I could. These are some of the Frozen activities that were on the 2019 Northern European cruises.

• Annas Chocolate Chase 9am to 11pm
• Frozen Phrases D Lounge 6.30pm
• Frozen Menu in MDR
• Freezing The Night Away 8pm Deck Party
• Freezing The Night Away - Funnel Vision
• Frozen Phrases D Lounge 8.45pm
• Animation Olaf D Lounge 9.45pm
• Frozen Phrases Fanthoms 10pm
• Frozen Fun Night D Lounge 10.15pm
• Frozen - Funnel Vision -10.30pm
• Club Frozen The After Party Fathoms 11pm

I had also planned a Frozen Disney Bounding outfit for the day. My MDR time was 5.45pm so I wanted to make sure I had time to get ready and change from my street clothes to my Disney Bounding outfit.

The Freezing The Night Away menus are on the Disney Cruise Line Blog https://disneycruiselineblog.com/me...-away-with-anna-elsa-and-friends-frozen-menu/

 

[Deb T.]

For reference for your future cruises: whenever the ship docks outside of a city center, DCL offers complimentary shuttle service to/from the city. Sometimes it's a little tourist train, sometimes a large van, and sometimes it's a comfy coach.

 

[iannovich]

I'm going to have to take some notes and better pics next time I can get aboard. I recognize the Frozen Menu, but just can't remember what I had. Even looking at the menu I am reliving the indecision about which to choose. I scrolled through my pictures and I can find a few menu pics, but apparently I didn't take any food pics

I know a few times I asked to have two deserts, but I haven't ever asked for two entrees or appetizers... I think I may just have to go for it in the future.

 

[BadPinkTink]

Wednesday 16 September - Le Harve Ashore- 7.30am

Today was supposed to be my sleep in day. Again I did not plan any DCL excursions as I wanted to do Le Harve DIY. Today should have been an overnight in Le Harve and I knew most of the passengers would take advantage of this and go to Disneyland Paris, Paris city or the Normandy beaches.

I planned to get room service for breakfast and then sometime mid morning I would head into the town of Le Harve. My plan in Le Harve was shopping I speak basic French and have been to France multiple times, so I am very comfortable just wandering about the shopping districts.



I wasn't sure how I would get to the main shopping areas, I might have walked or got the shuttle bus

https://www.whatsinport.com/Le-Havre.htm
Le Hrave port transport information

This is the information about shopping in Le Harve

http://www.orangesmile.com/travelguide/le-havre/shopping--1441598.htm
Most likely I would have had lunch somewhere in Le Harve.

I wanted to be back on the ship sometime in the afternoon as I had pre booked a Rainforest Room pass in the Spa on the Magic.

I figured the afternoon in Le Harve would be a great time to use the spa facilities and the pools as most passengers would be off the ship.

I had planned to use this time on an almost empty ship to take lots of photos and videos and just relax.

As it was an overnight port I expected most passengers to skip the MDR and the show that night.

The only downside of the overnight port would have been that the onboard shops would have been closed.

It would have been so nice just to watch the sunset out on deck in the port.

 

[BadPinkTink]

Thursday 17 September - Le Harve All Aboard - 12 noon

Today would have been our almost day at sea, as it was an overnight at Le Harve.

This morning I expected it to be very quiet on the ship, as people either took an early morning ashore or slept late after a very long day in France yesterday.

My plan for this morning would have been a last breakfast at Lumieres and then just enjoy the ship for the rest of the day.

I planned to be out on deck as the ship left Le Harve and then go to Lumieres again for lunch, as I expected Cabanas to be very busy as people had a late breakfast/ brunch.

The afternoon I wanted to go shopping in the onboard shops. This sailing would have been the last sailing before the dry dock and Westbound Transatlantic so I hoped there would be some good bargains in the onboard shops as DCL would want to clear all the European 2020 merchandise.

Tonight would have been my last time in MDR at 5.45pm. I expected it to be a lot busier than previous days as everyone would now be on the ship.

This evening after MDR I would have gone back to my room and packed my case to leave outside my door by 10pm.

As it would be the last night I planned to stay up as late as possible and just try to soak in the last night on the ship.

 

[iannovich]

Our Norwegian Fjords last September was the last sailing before the WBTA. I was glad that I stop into the shops regularly because in the last couple days of the sailing there was a ton of 'clearance' items as they tried to unload the last "Magic of Northern Europe" merch. There were even things that I had already purchased that I found on sale and they allowed me to 'exchange' those items for the lower price. I didn't even have to ask (I wouldn't have). The CM behind the counter heard me say "aw man, I just bought that at full price" and she said if I brought my receipt back in they would take care of me. I bought a ton of additional stuff and made sure to use that CM. I don't know if they get a commission, or any kind of 'points' for sales, but I appreciated her taking care of us.

 

[oufpat]

What a great idea, thank you! We were on the Magic when it was in Dublin in 2019, took the ship's shuttle to City Center, and had one of our best days walking around the city on our own, hitting some of the high points. We met some of the friendliest people in Dublin and are looking forward to September 2021 when we repeat this cruise, so many more places we want to see!

 

[BadPinkTink]

What a great idea, thank you! We were on the Magic when it was in Dublin in 2019, took the ship's shuttle to City Center, and had one of our best days walking around the city on our own, hitting some of the high points. We met some of the friendliest people in Dublin and are looking forward to September 2021 when we repeat this cruise, so many more places we want to see!

welcome and thanks for following if there is anything you want to know about Dublin, let me know

 

[BadPinkTink]

Friday 18 September -Dover All Ashore - 7.30am

Well here we are, last morning on the ship This morning I planned to stay on the ship as long as possible. As I had early MDR , my breakfast would have been the early breakfast. Instead of the MDR breakfast I planned to go to Cabanas.

After breakfast I would have just sat somewhere on the ship for as long as I could. I wanted to avoid the big crush of people in the port and the scramble for taxis.

Once things had clamed down I would have left the ship and got a taxi to the train station. I had planned to get a train to London about 9.30am.

I would have got the train to London Kings Cross St Pancras station and then walked from the station, up the street to Premier Inn Kings Cross

After leaving my luggage at the hotel I would have walked back to Kings Cross train station and got some food and checked out the Harry Potter Shop

Then I would have gone to the main shopping and tourist part of London using The Tube.

I usually go to the main tourist area called The West End. This is the main shopping and theatre district , like Times Square area in New York or The Strip in Vegas.

I usually got to Hard Rock Cafe or Nandos for my evening meal

I would have been back at my hotel about 8pm

 

[iannovich]

We had one night in London after we disembarked in Dover. We had a hotel in the West End and just walked around a bit and looked at touristy things: Buckingham Palace, #10, the London Eye. Big Ben was silent and even the tower was covered in scaffolding so that was a bit of disappointment, but we were happy just to be there.

While on the Magic one of the Entertainment Hosts, Mike, kept talking about Nando's and how excited he was to use his Nando's Loyalty card when in Port at Dover. He must have mentioned it a half dozen times at various onboard events. Since we don't have Nando's in California, we decided to seek one out for dinner that night in Mike's honor. We tried the roulette plate and a few other things and enjoyed trying all the sauces. We even got a Loyalty Card