We’re BACK (to back) on a Dream Spring Break Trip - COMPLETE

[TestingH2O]

3/18
A Relaxing Evening

And now we enter into the part of our trip where I admit that we did very little. we hung out. We went to the pool. We rode the aquaduck. I read books. DD went to the clubs. We had a blast and made the most of our first cruise in 2 years.



We had late dining. I really prefer it because it means there’s a good chunk of time that you can hit the pool when everyone else is at dinner. DD made some friends in the clubs and said she kind of wished we were in early dinner because that dictated her friends’ schedules.

Our dining rotation was ERA, so we started off with Enchanted Garden. The scallops and sea bass were delicious. The character parade was super cute. I hope they keep some of those touches, but at the same time, I know that service feels more rushed whenever there’s a “show.”


The stage show tonight was Believe and we opted to skip it so we could enjoy the pool deck.


After a very fun day, I grabbed an espresso martini from the bar in the atrium, we ate our chocolate, and we called it a night.

 

[KSL]

My family and I are booked in these cabins on the other side (5520/5522) in December - thank you for posting pics - looks amazing! I'm enjoying reading your TR!

 

[TestingH2O]

3/19
Nassau

The first morning of a cruise is so wonderful. Nothing to do. Nowhere to go. Heaven. (Remember in 2020 when that was a problem? I kind of miss being bored.)

I woke up before DD and headed up to Cove Cafe for a latte and to sit in the adult area looking at the ocean.



After my coffee, I went back to the room. DD was up but just reading a book on her iPad.



Even though we were both already sort of up, we snuggled and rekindled our favorite morning tradition: the morning show!



It wasn’t nearly as fun as the ones Trent and Carly or Mike and Ashley made, but it was still fun to hear corny jokes and a quick rundown of the day.

We then got dressed and I took DD to cabanas for breakfast. I didn’t have anything to eat because it was time for Palo!



Victor was my server and he was fantastic. He made great recommendations for me to try so I could check out some dishes I’d never had before.

I did both appetizers because, of course I did.



For entree I had lasagna and veal. Both were great, but I still prefer the lasagna.



I mentioned missing the pastries and look what he found for me! Love the Lamont croissants.

For dessert I ordered coffee.



Love the sugar selections!

For dessert I asked for just a little gelato.



Even Victor thought this was a little over the top. I only ate one.

After finishing up and telling Victor I’d be sure to request him for my next brunch on the B2B, I texted DD. She was still having a blast in the clubs, so I went out to soak up more vacation vibes.



I also tried to book a placeholder.



DD texted and said she was ready to check out some other activities, so we met back at the room.

 

[bcwife76]

Oh my goodness, look how spacious that room is!!! Fantastic!!!

Oh brunch.....yummmmmmmmmmm haha "I'll just have a little gelato" ....make sure to give her more than a little lol

 

[TestingH2O]

3/19
Evening

We decided to head to the pool deck next. Moana was playing and it was getting close to time for early seating folks to head to dinner.



We rode the aquaduck a couple time with almost no wait. It was windy though and very cold before you got in the funnel.

After enjoying the movie and uncrowned recreation, we went back to the room to get ready for dinner.



The sunset was spectacular.

We also got the message about how the B2B procedure would work.



When we got to the atrium, Stitch was out!



We truly had a great trip, and DD is getting old enough that she’s not super in to characters any more. However, she does always enjoy Stitch meets and the way the current Navigator doesn’t show which characters will be meeting when is kind of annoying. I’m glad we got to see him though. He loved her Ron John sweatshirt and they enjoyed surfing on the steps and hanging ten.

Dinner tonight was in Royal Palace. This is my favorite standard rotational menu. We were right on the outer ring, so we had a great view of the princesses as they walked by. However, they do not go slow!

DD went back to the clubs for a while and I headed to the room to relax, watch some basketball, and read my book.



All in all, it was another lovely day.

 

[missjackiemcg]

I'm joining in!! I can't believe you got no indication from SW about your original flight--how frustrating and stressful to start the trip!!

I love your stateroom--I don't think I've seen one set up like that before, but it's seriously so perfect! We are a family of 3, so I've definitely taken note of that for future trips.

I was so sorry to read about why your parents weren't able to join you for this trip, but what an opportunity to make mother-daughter memories at the same time. I hope your mom is doing well with her treatment. Best wishes to all of you.

 

[TestingH2O]

March 20
Castaway Cay

I looked back in my photos, and I hadn’t been to CC since June of 2019!!!! I was looking forward to a relaxing day.



DD has really been leaning in to her tween life and again slept in, so I went to Cove Cafe for coffee.



After coffee, she woke up and we went to Cabanas for breakfast. We signed up for the queue, but by the time we ate and headed down, there was no wait.



Once we were ashore, we headed to the second family beach. These cities were out building sand castles.



We found great chairs very close to the water.
While DD did the slides, I got a cocktail for myself and just enjoyed the sun and the sounds. After a while, she came back and I had another Konk Kooler and she had a smoothie.

We decided we’d had enough beach time and headed for lunch. The selection was noticeably more limited than the last time, but what we ate was pretty good. The salmon was particularly tasty.

We rode back to the ship and I got to see a couple more of my favorite views.





After we got onboard, we headed to the room for showers and we both napped. It was such a chill day. DD wanted some glamor shots with the giant windows. (FYI, she’s 4’11”.)





We had dinner in Animators tonight and were seated right by the screen. It was fun to talk to Crush. A friend had recommended deck 12 for the fireworks and that was a great suggestion. While the show was much shorter than in previous years, I loved the new music.



We stayed for one dance and then headed back to the room. We’d have to be up early the next day in Port Canaveral.

 

[TestingH2O]

3/21
Turnover Day

No sleeping in today! While we were expecting to get back on board for the second leg of our B2B, we still had to go to breakfast and meet in the lounge by 9 to debark and go through customs and testing.


Coffee first. I loved this little print.


The terminal is just so pretty.

Whew! Look at the lines.


After breakfast, we met in the pub. Some people were late, but overall, things were smooth. For some reason we got handed off like 5 times between when we left the pub and eventually got to the testing tent. It really was smooth though. There were about 25 B2B cruises and we all waited together for our test results.



Luckily everyone was clear! We headed back to the terminal and got checked in again. Because we were first, I decided to head to the upgrade desk and see what there was to see. They had 1 Concierge room of each type (family verandah, 1-BR, and a Royal.) Well, I decided to go for it. It’s been a crummy year, and it seemed like a fun mother-daughter splurge.



Eeeee!

After we were allowed onboard, we quickly tossed our stuff in bags, left all the hanging things on hangers, and our host said he’d get everything moved. I tipped him the base tip rate for the longer cruise since I felt sure he wouldn’t be getting anyone else to fill that room.

After taking care of our stuff, we headed to lunch in Royal Table. It was lovely. One of the hosts, Danny, had been our host on our first cruise. Super fun!

The next post will be about the room, but a concierge sailing wouldn’t be complete without one of the chocolate covered Oreos in the lounge.



From our balcony we could see the Norwegian Escape. That was the one that ran aground and didn’t sail for a while.

 

[TestingH2O]

Room 11000

The room is a Concierge Family Verandah Stateroom. It is on deck 11 very far forward. It is also an accessible stateroom.







Because it is an accessible room, it is HUGE! Definitely another room with cartwheel space.


They are still giving the fruit. Lovely.

The bathroom only has a shower with the floor drain, but it was easy to use. No complaints



The verandah though was the star of the show. First off, because the room is on Deck 11, there is a glass wall, but the center section is open so you still get the breeze and can lean out and look at the water.


View from the room.


Right side of the balcony.


Left side.

So yes, it’s double wide! And it has part of the bump out so you get lounge chairs. Absolute heaven.

One of our favorite things though was that we could see the bridge from our room.



Here is the team working on… stuff… as we sailed away.



The upcharge at the port wasn’t too bad, and this room was better than I could have imagined.

 

[missjackiemcg]

Hooray for upgrading to concierge!! WOW, what a gorgeous spacious room!

 

[bcwife76]

Oh wow, what a great way to spend your second leg!! Awesome balcony!!

 

[ukintheus]

How fun to have the upgrade and enjoy concierge on the second leg. Looking forward to the rest.

 

[TestingH2O]

3/21
Afternoon and Evening

During the afternoon I had booked myself a champagne tasting. The last time I did one of these, it was only champagne tasting I’d done previously was a champagne cocktail tasting. This one was mostly champagnes with one cocktail. It was delightful and I loved the presentation.



After the tasting we headed to the lounge for our first happy hour. DD met Inez and had her first kid’s mocktail. Inez spoiled DD through the whole trip with amazing drinks each evening.



Since we had kept late dining, we headed to a game show. Who Wants to be a Mousketeer was super fun and DD won our family’s first medal!



Dinner tonight was in Royal Palace. Tiana walked right by our table. I like that the processes come to the restaurant, but they definitely make good time on their circuits.



Then it was time to head for bed. I loved the little mat our host put down each evening.



And, of course, our towel animal.



Turnover day was super easy even with testing and changing rooms. Based on this experience, I wouldn’t hesitate to book another B2B.

 

[Laura1123]

Love the report! Can't wait to read more.

 

[cforsythe]

Thank you so much for doing this trip report! I have enjoyed it VERY much!

 

[TestingH2O]

3/22
Day at Sea

This was a strange 4 night itinerary because we actually ended with Castaway instead of the day at sea. I really prefer being at sea on the last day, so this was a bit of a disappointment for me.

I got up around 7:30, but DD slept in until after 9! I had already grabbed one coffee in the lounge, but we both went up so she could get some breakfast. Then she headed off to the clubs and I went for brunch. Yum.



This time I was right by the window and the view was lovely. Victor, who I requested again, recommended the tiramisu for dessert and it was spectacular.



We spend most of the day lazing around. DD decided that the concierge sundeck was perfect for napping after soaking in the hot tub.



Later, she and I won the How Well Do You Know Your Family game.



DD had missed tea time that day, but the lounge staff had saved macarons for her! She was thrilled.



We had dinner in Animator’s, but Crush was broken. Too bad.



After dinner, DD went to the clubs and I sat on the verandah and read.



It was a super relaxing day.

 

[TestingH2O]

3/23
Nassau

Nassau again, and we didn’t get off the ship. Again. Lol.



I wonder what excursions use this pirate ship.

I had one more brunch with Victor. He recommended the pana cotta and it was one of the best things I ate on the whole trip. Seriously, get it if you go to Palo.


There was more napping on the sundeck.



Lounge happy hour.



Pirate night.



And curry for dinner!



The pirate blanket decor still comes out.



We watched fireworks from the concierge area.



(I obviously didn’t get the fireworks themselves, but this vantage point was amazing.)

And then, using blankets from the lounge, we stayed up late and watched a movie on deck.

 

[TestingH2O]

3/24
Castaway Cay


Waking up early to see the Sun coming up as you dock at Castaway is never a bad thing.



The bridge worked hard to get us in safely.



So did the workers on the island.



I had my favorite breakfast in the lounge.

And DD slept through it all. Haha!

Once she woke up, I got more coffee and she got breakfast.

The plan was for her to see how many times she could ride the aqua duck in one day. Alas, it was super windy so we “only” rode 5 times. Parents, 5 times up and down with no wait is really no joke!

Then we headed for lunch. I love this elevator lobby so much.



Then we played DCL trivia and won! That’s a lot of medals for one trip.



Walking through the adult area, I saw this cool little nook.



Our final dinner was in Enchanted Garden and I had promised a sundae.



It was good but way too much.

After dinner, we finished packing and headed to the lounge for one last drink.

Then it was time for our final sleep in our beautiful stateroom.

 

[TestingH2O]

3/25
Debarking and Heading Home

Well, there was only one conversation in the lounge as people went in for coffee and breakfast: the fact that our brackets were in shambles.



Sigh. (Flash forward and I somehow won the office pool!)



Also, we had leveled up!

This was a day when I was so glad to be in concierge. The lines were SO long! They stretched from the doors, through the atrium, down the hall, around the lobby with the Walt photo, and then back towards the atrium. Sheesh.

We made it out with no trouble though and quickly found a porter and were on our way. We got to MCO without incident and dropped the car. We needed to drop a package at the MCO Hyatt for a friend to pick up later, so we had a quick bite at the hotel restaurant. It was surprisingly delicious!

Then it was time for the train of sadness.





Normally this carpet brings such joy.



The flight was on time and once we got home, we opened our lithograph. So cute.

 

[TestingH2O]

Final Thoughts and an Update

This was a very chill trip. We didn’t do a ton of stuff, but we relished being on the ship and having time with each other. Upgrading for the second leg was a lovely treat.

If you read the whole report, you know I posted all the final entries in quick succession. It’s been hard to write this report because it started with such hope. Mom finished chemo on turnover day and we were all so excited. I loved talking to her and telling her about the fun we had. Sadly, mom had an undiagnosed heart condition that was exacerbated by the chemo and, less than 2 weeks later, she passed away. It’s hard to imagine that she won’t ever come on a trip with us again.

Here are photos from her first and last trip.




I cannot say enough how glad I am that we were able to travel together and make so many amazing memories. At the service, all of her friends talked about how much she valued those trips.

If there’s one thing I encourage people reading this report to do, it’s spend time with the people you love. Disconnect. Get away. Value those special moments because the memories will mean so much when those people aren’t around any more.

We will do our first cruise as a family of 3 to Alaska in August. It will be hard to not have mom, but Alaska holds lots of special memories and I know she would want us all to keep making new memories together even now that she’s gone.