Will I need a vacation AFTER the cruise???

[banderson]

Maybe I like having the time to enjoy the simple pleasures or maybe I go on vacation to get off the fast track not hop on a different one, but I cannot help but panic when I hear some of the hectic days described in some cruisers' trip reports. I haven't even gotten on the boat yet and I'm already wondering if I shouldn't have gone back to the nearly deserted beaches of Maui this year.

Don't get me wrong...we do have some interesting things lined up for our February 26 Western, including a private charter plane to visit the Chichen Itza ruins in Mexico, but really does a cruise have to mean morn-til-night back-to-back "events". After all, isn't the point of vacationing getting away from the jam-packed agenda we deal with at work? Will the only quiet place to enjoy a good book with my kids be my own cabin?

I was excited about the Magic cruise because it seemed like a good way to get a taste of Disney without having to do WDW (no offence...just not my piece of cake), but now I'm not so sure. Has anyone found a Disney cruise to be just too much of an otherwise good thing, particularly for kids? Will I need a vacation AFTER the cruise?

 

[ericamanda01]

We've never felt that way. As a matter of fact we felt great and it was only a four days cruise each time. Just read the navigator and see what you would like to do, and remember you don't have to do everything avaliable. Just sit next to the pool, have a drink, and relax!

 

[mommasita]

Hi there fellow Montrealer....

WE have now done 3 magic cruises, as well as lots of other family vacations, all inclusives...etc..., and we feel that this is definitely the most relaxing family vacation we have, and probably will take. Our children dd5, ds8 love it to the point that they constantly are asking when we are going back...

In between cruises we reflect constantly on our past trips, and hope to get back soon enough. Wdw is also not on my favorite list, although I do enjoy it....

We do not line up a lot, we more or less play it by ear. Sometimes we split up with the kids, if that is what it takes. They also spend time in the clubs (sometimes too much... ) We find ourselves so relaxed on the cruise, with the no hassle life. Dining options, are not set in stone, you do not have to go to the dining rooms, you can go to the buffet, order room service. There is a lot of flexibility with everything.

 

[mommasita]

Sorry to post this her... I received your pm banderson, and i do not know if i replied to it properly or not...

Hopefully I didd....

 

[*Fantasia*]

Will I need a vacation AFTER the cruise?

Well...at least for me! There was too many things to do/see..and not enough time...and we were always on the go. After our cruise, we stayed at WL and just rested there. We didn't even got the chance to hit the parks. All we did was relax, took long naps and swam and ate and shop. My body was still rocking from the cruise and that's why we ended up skipping the parks. This was a good way to wine down from all the excitement from the cruise. I would do it again on our next sail..whenever that may be.

 

[slabeaume]

We found several places to just hang out, play cards, look at the ocean. Most of the "bars" are open to kids, too, until 9 or 10 pm and are usually quiet places during the day. THere's usually space on the decks to also sit around on a lounge chair and read---if your book doesn't blow away! The good thing about a cruise is you can do as much, or as little, as you want.

 

[jdm]

Yes, I needed a vacation after our 4 day Wonder cruise 3 years ago. I was absolutely exhausted and it was my own fault. We had a stop each day, Nassau, Freeport and Castaway Cay. We did Atlantis in Nassau, got off and shopped and did hairbraiding in Freeport and then CC. We were on the go- go- go. I never sat in a deck chair or opened a book. It was rush to shows, dinner, deck parties. It was great fun, but when we got off we checked into our condo and I felt like I could sleep for a week.

This time we are doing the Eastern. 7 days & 3 of those at sea. I learned my lesson and have no formal excursions plans. We do have some rough ideas of what beaches we want to go to etc.. But, aside from the one hour horseback ride on the beach in St.Martin-- everything else is subject to change or be cancelled! Just going to go with the flow this time. I hope to rest, read and maybe go to a movie.

I truly think it's what you make it!!

Jenn

 

[CM_Mom]

Key thing is to accept that you WON'T be able to do everything offered on the ship - too much is offered so it just can't happen. Choose the activities that interest you and your family and relax and go with the flow as others have said. The cruise can be as hectic or as relaxing as you choose.

We cruised in May and I think DH managed to get a nap every afternoon - trying to emulate the guy on the DCL commercial. We were with our 80 something mom and aunt so we missed some of the activities to spend time with them but we had a great time.

We're looking forward to cruising again when we'll do different things. That's the fun of DCL. You can do multiple cruises and have different activities on each one.

 

[banderson]

Based on the responses, you really need to stick to what's important to you and not let the frenzy of other passengers and the Navigators' list of activities put you in a place where you don't want to be.

I'm glad now that we picked only two relatively short DCL excursions and that a third, arranged by us, is somewhere we have to fly to get to...at least I won't feel like we're constantly on a group tour.

I think I'll try to keep the whole kids' club thing very limited too. If kids are there morning, noon and even sometimes at night, they must be like a spin-top after a few days. IMHO, a few hours a day is more than enough.

And as for Palo, spa, and everything else, I'm going to pass most of the time. I want to eat dinner with my kids every day (sure glad I had to take the late seating). And I'll do any spa stuff before I leave Montreal for considerably less money.

Thanks for your comments...

 

[LuvThatMouse]

We are planning our cruise for February and I, being the planner that I am, have tried to remind myself that we need time to just hang out and relax. Of course, there will be the day at Castaway Cay. That will be an entire day at the beach. We may go into Nassau for a little while but we plan to head back to the ship early to take advantage of the quiet. The full day at sea will probably be the busiest on the ship with lots of people participating in all the onboard activities. We'll see how it goes. Having a preschooler, we have a built in reason to take things at a slower pace so she doesn't get overwhelmed and cranky.

 

[TJGorman]

I too believe that vacation is the time to relax, unwind and re-charge. IMO, cruising allows me to do just that, relax, unwind and re-charge. Just like another post, you can do as much or as little as you would like. I found cruising to be excellent for a family who all have different tastes. DH spent time exploring, going to talks. DS and DD spent time in pool and in the lab. I spent time laying in the sun reading a few good books. We had dinner together every night and went to the shows together. DH went scuba diving and I went to the spa. We didn't go to Palo last cruise but this cruise I want to go to the brunch. What ever you and your family enjoy doing in your "free" time that's what you should do!

 

[samnick]

When we cruise the only time we feel exhausted is our travel day and getting on the ship. But once you're on board, receive your luggage, unpack, and get the lifeboat drill done everything seems to slow down and we just go at an easy pace the rest of the cruise

 

[my3princesses]

This is why we chose the land/sea package for our trip to WDW this time. WDW is really not a holiday in the fact that you are always on the go and walking. Mine you its an amazing place to be and if you are able to slow the pace down you can take your time and enjoy it, however you are always unavoidably exhausted each night.

Having the cruise will give us the parks with all of the walking along with a day at the beach where we can snorkel and just sit.

Even when we do our all inclusive trips to Mexico we cannot seem to sit still all week long at the resort and end up going somewhere.

The land and sea seems to give us the best of both worlds. Can't wait!

 

[zeldacruiser]

It's all in what you choose to do. Some people wouldn't have a fun vacation unless they were constantly enjoying activities, and some wouldn't have fun without a daily poolside snooze. Personally, we did plenty, but I still found it incredibly relaxing. We did land/sea twice, both times with the land part first. Since we tend to be maniacs rushing around in the parks, I loved having the cruise afterward to wind down.

 

[CarolAnnC]

I like to spend a few days after cruising at WDW. It is such a let down to leave the ship, then fly right back home! Extending vacation a bit gives me that transition from pampered cruise passenger, to WDW tourist, to back to the real world, lol.

 

[nzdisneymom]

We're sailing Dec. 17th and returning home on Christmas Eve. We'll have the hecticness of Christmas Eve / Day as soon as we get home, and then on the 26th are heading to the beach at St. George Island, FL, where we always spend the week between Christmas and New Years. We debated about passing on SGI this year after doing the cruise, but decided that we always relax and rejuvenate so much at the island, then that would be a perfect place to extend our cruise vacation (LOL). This way we'll get over the rocking sensation while still enjoying the beautiful beaches of the Gulf. Reading this thread has confirmed that it's the right thing to do!

 

[marv]

I hope were not going to need one. We are going 3 weeks in villa then supposed to be doing the cruise to relax an get pampered. That is are intentions any way i have no idea if it will work out like that.
When we got back to uk last florida trip we were so tired for about 2 months and we had another holiday just camping and doing nothing, was great!
We are doing 3 weeks on a taking iton a steady mode as last time we had 2 weeks where every day was manic ( a nice manic) but gosh, wern't we tired, just running on adrenaline.
So i have all intensions on taking the next holiday at a more relaxing pace as we have already seen it all once.

:thewave: Marv

 

[sailin~away]

Well, me and Dh have 3 children, 6-4 and 3 months, and although we like WDW we always say WDW is WORK and Disney Cruise is VACATION!! To us there is no planning, not worring about what to do for dinner or what to do that day. A stroll around the deck is something to do for me! But, let me add that I was raised in Florida and one beach is the same as the other for me so all the islands don't draw me. I go for the ship and all the simple things! The sound of the ocean, the friendliness of everyone, and just being able to dress up every night for dinner and a show w/o worring about finding a sitter and if the kids were going to be good for her and if not were we going to have to drive clear across town to come back. Now, if you are like my mother you might need a vacation after. She runs her self to death and thinks she paid for it so she has to do EVERYTHING! From sun up to sun down she is off finding something to get her $ worth. To me spending time with my family and not worring about cleaning the house or cooking dinner is all the compinsation I need!

 

[BuzzMan]

Cruising is what you make it. You can stay on the go all of the time or do nothing but lounge around or anything in between. For me, even though I enjoy the ports, the thing I enjoy most is just being at sea (the smell, sight, sounds). Throw in the Disney Magic (or Wonder) and it doesn't get any better.

 

[Steph Dolin]

When we cruise the only time we feel exhausted is our travel day and getting on the ship. But once you're on board, receive your luggage, unpack, and get the lifeboat drill done everything seems to slow down and we just go at an easy pace the rest of the cruise

I see you are going on the Magic in 3 days. We will be there on Feb 12, cruise, I hope you will get a chance to post on the trip report when you get back. Have a great time.