Fins2TheRight
Resident Parrothead and Cruiser
- Joined
- Jan 5, 2003
- Messages
- 52
Before you start reading this, you need to know that I am a male and that means one very important thing I tend to forget details unless they happened to me. My wife could probably tell you the wind direction and depth of the water at any point of this cruise, where I did well to remember that we were on the Wonder, NOT the Magic. So, if you would like any details that I have left out, just let me know and Ill be glad to ask the knower of all things.
Cast: Keith (Me, 38) Dear Wife Jennifer (31) Dear Daughter Jennifer (18) Dear Son Steven (13) Dear Son Brian (11).
Weather: Perfect! Couldnt have asked for better. (OK, so it was hot in Nassau, but hey its June in the Caribbean, so I aint complaining.)
We started our vacation in Orlando at the Marriott World Center. We went from there to Cape Canaveral the morning of the 12th.
We arrived at about 10:15 AM, and they showed me to the parking spot after checking our IDs and unloading our luggage. We went to the terminal and checked in... amazingly, the whole process was quite speedy. We were sitting down waiting for the "ears to open" by 11AM.
We boarded the ship at about 12:15 PM and were announced (that was cool). We were directed to one of the eateries for lunch, and we opted for the Beach Blanket Buffet. I asked someone about putting our bags away, but they said not until 1:15 PM. We heard that you could do it anyway, so I sneaked off to the 8th floor to find our room (8020) and found the outer doors were locked. Oh well ... I tried.
We had a good lunch. Brian said something about wanting pizza, and the waitress who was walking around said it was available at one of the places on the deck, but not in the buffet. He went ahead and got something else, but then about 10 minutes later, to our surprise, the waitress showed up with pizza for Brian! She saved the day (and got a tip). We ate, then put our bags away. After hearing from our in-laws about the small size of most cruise ship cabins, we were blown away to find the rooms were much larger than we expected.
The ship itself was a marvel. Everyone was in awe of its size and beauty. Of course, some were interested in things other than the ship itself
Boys: So all the food including ice cream is free, and we can eat ANYTIME we want?
Me: Yes to the first part, NO to the second part.
Brian: (five minutes after eating at Animators Palette) Can I get a pizza from room service?
Me: You just ate!
Brian: But its free!
Me: Brian, theyre gonna have to roll you off of this ship.
(Of course, the next night, the kids didnt want to GO to dinner they wanted room service.)
We saw the castoff party (or whatever they call it) where Mickey and friends dance at the pool. We all loved that.
Daughter Jennifer and Son Steven went to the opening evening show some kind of comedy act. I was getting over a cold and didnt feel like going out at the time. That night, we dined at the Animators Palette. I had the sirloin, which I thought was a bit fat and tough, but it was not too bad. Our two servers, Marcel from Hungary and Ganesh from India, were great. After dinner, we saw Hercules, which we all thought was great. I thought Hades stole the show.
By the next morning, I was feeling a lot better, just in time to head out to Nassau. We purchased the Atlantis tour. In hindsight, I thought the tour wasnt worth the $30 or whatever it cost each. I would have rather us taken a cab over and just walked around the place. Many parts of the tour were outside (which I wasnt surprised about). We stopped several times to learn about the many things you could do if you stayed in the hotel (not-so-subtle hints). The kids did not fare well in the heat. Next time, well just take a cab over and gawk on our own.
My daughter is 18, so she cannot legally gamble in the U.S. She was fascinated and wanted to try it, so I gave her $50 and let her give it a shot slots only. I took $50 of my own and lost it within about 30 minutes. She played with her $50 for about two hours, and she finally cashed out because it was getting late and we needed to get back to the ferry. She ended up with $48.75, so she only lost a buck and a quarter of MY money. In case youre wondering, no, I didnt even try to get it back.
My wife and two sons had long since headed back to the ship. The boys made a new home in the arcade, while my wife enjoyed quiet time on the deck people-watching. My daughter and I finally made it back about 4:00 PM. We all did different stuff until dinner.
That evening, we dined at Parrot Cay. I personally enjoyed this place more than the Animators Palette, but thats because Im an island guy (big Jimmy Buffett fan). I had the prime rib, which was excellent.
After dinner, we saw Finding Nemo, which was an extremely enjoyable experience for all of us. We all loved it VERY much.
The next morning was Castaway Cay, so we left the ship about 11:00AM and headed over. My kids normally want to swim all the time when were at a hotel, but this time, we swam for about an hour and ate at Cookies BBQ and they were done for the day. Oh by the way, the ribs at Cookies were surprisingly good. I expected decent food like you get at most other Disney resorts/restaurants, but they were really good! I would gladly recommend them.
By the way, special thanks go to my wife, who remembered to not only bring the sunscreen, but to apply it religiously to all of us. Im sure none of us would have enjoyed being burned by the Caribbean sun.
We got back to the ship, and the kids headed back to the arcade. Big surprise.
While planning this cruise, my daughters main intention was to dine at Palo. If she had to, she would have flown in on a helicopter for dinner and flown out immediately afterwards, but by gosh, she was going to get me in a suit and tie and get me in that place. And, to her credit, she did so. To be honest, my wife and I were only so-so about going before, but my daughter talked us in to it. We were VERY glad she did. We had a great time. I had a Portobello mushroom appetizer that was super! We all had the Filet Mignon with bleu cheese sauce at the suggestion of our waiter Simone from Italy, and let me tell you it was nothing short of perfect. It was without a doubt the best Filet Mignon I had ever tasted. We all agreed. And we had some kind of chocolate dessert with chocolate sauce I know you Palo regulars will know what Im talking about. All I can say is MERCIFUL HEAVENS it was the best dessert I have EVER had in my life. If you go on a Disney Cruise, might I suggest you do at least three things one, go to Palo, two, get the Filet Mignon, and three, get that soufflé!
By the way ... waiting just behind us to be seated were a husband and wife. I cant remember what the wife was wearing, but the husband wearing a very loud Hawaiian shirt. I could hear him talking to his wife about not fitting in, but I think she wanted to dine there, so she convinced him to stay. A place for two opened before our table did, so they were seated before us. About three or four minutes later, the head server was escorting them from the restaurant! I cant remember his name, but I do remember that he looked a lot like Gary Busey. Anyway, as he was escorting them out, he said to them, There are several OTHER places on the ship you can go for dinner tonight. Wow! After reading these boards, I didnt expect that. I heard just about anything was accepted these days. My guess is that about half of the men had ties or jackets on. All were dressed at least appropriately, meaning there were no shorts or bathing suits or anything like that.
That night, we saw Disney Dreams and were all captivated by the performance. We all loved it. There was a little girl right behind us, about five or six, that was absolutely in awe. Whenever a certain character would come out, she would say Theres Belle! or Theres Sebastian!. It was great to hear a little kid so happy. My kids are way past the oooh and aaahhh stuff. Theyre typical teenagers my 13 year old said something like "I laughed, I cried, I was moved ... can we go to the arcade now?
Sunday morning, we were too depressed because the cruise was over to even eat breakfast. We made sure the room was cleared and went to give the tips to our servers in person. We paid by credit card, which was a good thing, because apparently Marcel quit sometime between our dinner at Parrot Cay and the breakfast at Tritons Sunday morning. Poor Ganesh was left to handle everything on his own. We asked what happened, but he said Sorry, I cant talk about it. I guess well never know. As a side note, Marcel did a little trick on our daughter during dinner. I dont want to give it away, so I wont describe it. Of course after the trick was over, we all had a good laugh about it. My wife said she heard him walking away from the table after that saying I love my f------ job in quite a sarcastic tone. Not sure if that is related in any way to his leaving, but whatever. He was nice to us, and maybe some people just arent cut out for this kind of thing. Eight months on and two months off any job would test the nerve of many people.
Anyway, we left the ship and breezed by customs, walked out to the van, and left for Disney World, where we stayed at the Animal Kingdom Lodge and the Wilderness Lodge for three days before leaving Florida.
Ill say this about Disney Cruises. I had never been on a cruise before, and had no idea what I was in for. Even though my wife is a travel agent and got us in at a greatly reduced rate, I still thought it may be a waste of money. But I am glad to say that my fears were unfounded. Those three days were the most enjoyable I can ever remember in my life. We were all very sad to leave and couldnt wait to figure out when we could go again. I may have to eat peanut butter on crackers for the next twelve months, but I want to shoot for next summer. I cant say enough great things about the time we had. If you are considering going, we all strongly recommend it!!!
Thanks for reading!
Cast: Keith (Me, 38) Dear Wife Jennifer (31) Dear Daughter Jennifer (18) Dear Son Steven (13) Dear Son Brian (11).
Weather: Perfect! Couldnt have asked for better. (OK, so it was hot in Nassau, but hey its June in the Caribbean, so I aint complaining.)
We started our vacation in Orlando at the Marriott World Center. We went from there to Cape Canaveral the morning of the 12th.
We arrived at about 10:15 AM, and they showed me to the parking spot after checking our IDs and unloading our luggage. We went to the terminal and checked in... amazingly, the whole process was quite speedy. We were sitting down waiting for the "ears to open" by 11AM.
We boarded the ship at about 12:15 PM and were announced (that was cool). We were directed to one of the eateries for lunch, and we opted for the Beach Blanket Buffet. I asked someone about putting our bags away, but they said not until 1:15 PM. We heard that you could do it anyway, so I sneaked off to the 8th floor to find our room (8020) and found the outer doors were locked. Oh well ... I tried.
We had a good lunch. Brian said something about wanting pizza, and the waitress who was walking around said it was available at one of the places on the deck, but not in the buffet. He went ahead and got something else, but then about 10 minutes later, to our surprise, the waitress showed up with pizza for Brian! She saved the day (and got a tip). We ate, then put our bags away. After hearing from our in-laws about the small size of most cruise ship cabins, we were blown away to find the rooms were much larger than we expected.
The ship itself was a marvel. Everyone was in awe of its size and beauty. Of course, some were interested in things other than the ship itself
Boys: So all the food including ice cream is free, and we can eat ANYTIME we want?
Me: Yes to the first part, NO to the second part.
Brian: (five minutes after eating at Animators Palette) Can I get a pizza from room service?
Me: You just ate!
Brian: But its free!
Me: Brian, theyre gonna have to roll you off of this ship.
(Of course, the next night, the kids didnt want to GO to dinner they wanted room service.)
We saw the castoff party (or whatever they call it) where Mickey and friends dance at the pool. We all loved that.
Daughter Jennifer and Son Steven went to the opening evening show some kind of comedy act. I was getting over a cold and didnt feel like going out at the time. That night, we dined at the Animators Palette. I had the sirloin, which I thought was a bit fat and tough, but it was not too bad. Our two servers, Marcel from Hungary and Ganesh from India, were great. After dinner, we saw Hercules, which we all thought was great. I thought Hades stole the show.
By the next morning, I was feeling a lot better, just in time to head out to Nassau. We purchased the Atlantis tour. In hindsight, I thought the tour wasnt worth the $30 or whatever it cost each. I would have rather us taken a cab over and just walked around the place. Many parts of the tour were outside (which I wasnt surprised about). We stopped several times to learn about the many things you could do if you stayed in the hotel (not-so-subtle hints). The kids did not fare well in the heat. Next time, well just take a cab over and gawk on our own.
My daughter is 18, so she cannot legally gamble in the U.S. She was fascinated and wanted to try it, so I gave her $50 and let her give it a shot slots only. I took $50 of my own and lost it within about 30 minutes. She played with her $50 for about two hours, and she finally cashed out because it was getting late and we needed to get back to the ferry. She ended up with $48.75, so she only lost a buck and a quarter of MY money. In case youre wondering, no, I didnt even try to get it back.
My wife and two sons had long since headed back to the ship. The boys made a new home in the arcade, while my wife enjoyed quiet time on the deck people-watching. My daughter and I finally made it back about 4:00 PM. We all did different stuff until dinner.
That evening, we dined at Parrot Cay. I personally enjoyed this place more than the Animators Palette, but thats because Im an island guy (big Jimmy Buffett fan). I had the prime rib, which was excellent.
After dinner, we saw Finding Nemo, which was an extremely enjoyable experience for all of us. We all loved it VERY much.
The next morning was Castaway Cay, so we left the ship about 11:00AM and headed over. My kids normally want to swim all the time when were at a hotel, but this time, we swam for about an hour and ate at Cookies BBQ and they were done for the day. Oh by the way, the ribs at Cookies were surprisingly good. I expected decent food like you get at most other Disney resorts/restaurants, but they were really good! I would gladly recommend them.
By the way, special thanks go to my wife, who remembered to not only bring the sunscreen, but to apply it religiously to all of us. Im sure none of us would have enjoyed being burned by the Caribbean sun.
We got back to the ship, and the kids headed back to the arcade. Big surprise.
While planning this cruise, my daughters main intention was to dine at Palo. If she had to, she would have flown in on a helicopter for dinner and flown out immediately afterwards, but by gosh, she was going to get me in a suit and tie and get me in that place. And, to her credit, she did so. To be honest, my wife and I were only so-so about going before, but my daughter talked us in to it. We were VERY glad she did. We had a great time. I had a Portobello mushroom appetizer that was super! We all had the Filet Mignon with bleu cheese sauce at the suggestion of our waiter Simone from Italy, and let me tell you it was nothing short of perfect. It was without a doubt the best Filet Mignon I had ever tasted. We all agreed. And we had some kind of chocolate dessert with chocolate sauce I know you Palo regulars will know what Im talking about. All I can say is MERCIFUL HEAVENS it was the best dessert I have EVER had in my life. If you go on a Disney Cruise, might I suggest you do at least three things one, go to Palo, two, get the Filet Mignon, and three, get that soufflé!
By the way ... waiting just behind us to be seated were a husband and wife. I cant remember what the wife was wearing, but the husband wearing a very loud Hawaiian shirt. I could hear him talking to his wife about not fitting in, but I think she wanted to dine there, so she convinced him to stay. A place for two opened before our table did, so they were seated before us. About three or four minutes later, the head server was escorting them from the restaurant! I cant remember his name, but I do remember that he looked a lot like Gary Busey. Anyway, as he was escorting them out, he said to them, There are several OTHER places on the ship you can go for dinner tonight. Wow! After reading these boards, I didnt expect that. I heard just about anything was accepted these days. My guess is that about half of the men had ties or jackets on. All were dressed at least appropriately, meaning there were no shorts or bathing suits or anything like that.
That night, we saw Disney Dreams and were all captivated by the performance. We all loved it. There was a little girl right behind us, about five or six, that was absolutely in awe. Whenever a certain character would come out, she would say Theres Belle! or Theres Sebastian!. It was great to hear a little kid so happy. My kids are way past the oooh and aaahhh stuff. Theyre typical teenagers my 13 year old said something like "I laughed, I cried, I was moved ... can we go to the arcade now?
Sunday morning, we were too depressed because the cruise was over to even eat breakfast. We made sure the room was cleared and went to give the tips to our servers in person. We paid by credit card, which was a good thing, because apparently Marcel quit sometime between our dinner at Parrot Cay and the breakfast at Tritons Sunday morning. Poor Ganesh was left to handle everything on his own. We asked what happened, but he said Sorry, I cant talk about it. I guess well never know. As a side note, Marcel did a little trick on our daughter during dinner. I dont want to give it away, so I wont describe it. Of course after the trick was over, we all had a good laugh about it. My wife said she heard him walking away from the table after that saying I love my f------ job in quite a sarcastic tone. Not sure if that is related in any way to his leaving, but whatever. He was nice to us, and maybe some people just arent cut out for this kind of thing. Eight months on and two months off any job would test the nerve of many people.
Anyway, we left the ship and breezed by customs, walked out to the van, and left for Disney World, where we stayed at the Animal Kingdom Lodge and the Wilderness Lodge for three days before leaving Florida.
Ill say this about Disney Cruises. I had never been on a cruise before, and had no idea what I was in for. Even though my wife is a travel agent and got us in at a greatly reduced rate, I still thought it may be a waste of money. But I am glad to say that my fears were unfounded. Those three days were the most enjoyable I can ever remember in my life. We were all very sad to leave and couldnt wait to figure out when we could go again. I may have to eat peanut butter on crackers for the next twelve months, but I want to shoot for next summer. I cant say enough great things about the time we had. If you are considering going, we all strongly recommend it!!!
Thanks for reading!
