Worried by 'Just Didn't Like the Cruise' Post

[mikeymars]

>>It's not a new SHIP! and the ports are well versed in receiving tourists as well. <<

I think we all know the issue isn't the ship, but rather the itinerary and the fact that (a) the crew hasn't dealt with it or these ports before, and (b) that -- irrespective of how "experienced" they are are in receiving tourists -- said port staff and bureaucrats haven't dealt with DCL or this specific ship before.

Read about the subject of similar inaugural cruises on the Cruise Critic web page (a deep source of professional discussion on cruises, one much more objective and neutral than what one sees here), and it immediately becomes clear that what some might call "snafus" are not necessarily fun: delay after delay after delay, ship staff that can't answer basic questions (since they are unfamiliar with every little detail of the itinerary, something that only comes with time), etc. etc.

Does this mean the inaugural cruise won't be "fun?" No, especially to the "Disney can do no wrong" or 'I have to be the first, irrespective of anything else" crowd.

However, an honest view will show that those who sail on the Western itinerary once it is established (ergo, a month or two after May) will in all likelihood have a more enjoyable experience due to fewer so-called "snafus." Trust me, the reviews one will see here by late summer will prove that, ergo, fewer discussions of the Western Maguic cruise with comments such as "the CM didn't know yet" or "they said that hadn't been worked out yet."

When you read those comments, remember you heard it here first!!!)

 

[swede63]

We just got back from our 2nd year in row Magic cruise and i am envious of you going on the Western one. Ddon't worry about the cruise it is great!! The kids will love it and you will too. Yes the pools are very small, ie. bath tubs, and yes they do get very crowded. Two tips: pack your suits in your carryon and go to the pools when you get on board, have one member go make ressies and the other stay with the kids in a uncrowed pool. Other tip is to go after dark not many then. You will have four ports of call plenty of swim time anyway, Castaway Cay is so nice the water is like being in salt water lake. So there is plenty time to swim. AS for the clubs, my DS11 has choose not to attend for the past two years, but some kids love them. We have been on the past two April school vacation cruises, last year was Easter, both very crowded, but on board it never seems so excpet by the pools during the day. There is plenty to do and places to go, you find oppurtunities for character encounters, we had two private dance parties aboard this cruise one with Goofey, Chip and Dale. The other with all the characters even though there were others all around us, you just have to know where to look and be. Relax and have fun it is great!!!

 

[dznymom1]

We are currently on a very full Disney Wonder and we are truly having a "WONDER"ful time. The pools are definitely crowded, but I took my son down on Nassau day at about 7:30 am and he had the pool all to himslef. There are lots of kids here, but they are all behaving themselves very well (mine included). Although I haven't seen the 15 year old since we rousted him out of bed at 10 this morning so our cabin steward could do his thing

We have late seating, and I am sure it is a bit more hectic at the earlier seating but it is working out perfectly for us. We have a table for 4 (we did not request this but are very happy with the arrangement) and our dinners have been relaxing and fun.

There are lines for character photos and formal photos, we haven't encountered any delays doing anything we wanted. Everything has been great and I don't want it to ever end!

Chris in the Beautiful Bahamas

 

[Mjasp]

Disney has gone to these Ports of call before on the Western Itinerary, when they rerouted the Eastern due to weather. Dubbed "The magical mystery tour" as they never knew their next port of call.

 

[mikeymars]

Originally posted by Mjasp
Disney has gone to these Ports of call before on the Western Itinerary, when they rerouted the Eastern due to weather. Dubbed "The magical mystery tour" as they never knew their next port of call.

A one-time port stop as part of a temporary, emergency itinerary change is a lot different than a formal, ongoing one.

 

[KeenHo]

The Western Inaugural cruise will be just fine. DCL is sure to have CM's in the Western ports of call (now) making arrangements with excursion providers, dock and fuel companies, etc. The notion that DCL (or any other cruise line) would provide a cruise to these destinations and not have the "kinks" worked out before hand is just preposterous.

Cruise ships dock in the Western ports daily and have been for years. The arrival of the Magic at these destinations isn't going to shake everyone up on shore and cause problems or delays.

I am sure everyone will receive what they expect from the DCL CM's, their very best!

Enjoy the Inaugural Western Cruise, I am cruising not too long after you on June 22. I am looking forward to your trip reports and to hearing a resounding "Well Done" for the DCL CM's.

Howard

 

[prymsu]

when i think of inagural, i think brand new ship and brand new staff. Since the staff already have been working on the ship, and are familar with rules, services provided, and so on, my guess is that if there are any kinks, they will be tough to notice.

Just my thoughts.

 

[SQUIGGLE]

jmf32966 - we will be on the inaugural western cruise. It will be our 4th cruise and we can't wait. If you are worried about being seasick; try getting a presecription for the patch. Or how about the wristbands?
Don't worry it is going to be MAGICal!
: :
fran

 

[disneylover4ever]

We will be sailing on our 3rd Disney Cruise in 5 weeks. We have 3 children dd4, dd9, ds12. We LOVE DISNEY CRUISES!!! We do lots of things and we find with the age differences in our children and our need to have some down time this cruise offers us a great vacation. We, as I'm sure lots of parents feel, we spend lots and lots of quality time with our children during every week of every year and this is a vacation we all can enjoy. All of our children really enjoy activities aboard the ship. We do allow our 12 yr. old to "go about his business" He usually makes friends and plays ping pong, goes to the movies, arcade etc... (This is his vacation too) The girls LOVE the kids clubs, so they enjoy many hours of activities there. However, the kids don't care if they swim on board and I am glad. I too have found no chairs at the pools on "at sea" days and really don't care for the kids to swim in the pools. The pools are not great, but for shipboard pools I'm sure they are average. As far as the seasickness goes, just research and start taking whatever you choose before you board so you know the effects before you need to know. Our 1st cruise we got the patch and I will never get that again, the side effects from that were far worse than the seasickness would have been. Our last cruise we took bonine and had very rough seas (gale force winds and 12 ft. seas) Other than being dizzy the 1st night we were never sick, even started liking the movement during the night. I'm sure a cruise or this cruise isn't for everyone, but nothing can please everyone. Go with the right attitude and you will have a blast. We have #4 booked in 2003 already!!!!

 

[DeeB]

I went with my family in November during Thanksgiving and our ship was not sold out but very close to full capacity, and I never felt crowded or like I had to wait in line. Yes there were people everywhere but like it was said above your vacaion is what you make of it pretty much like your life. It can be good if you want or bad or as some say half full or half empty...

 

[tkd lisa]

Everyone is entitled to their own opinion. Even Barb and Tony who are veteran cruisers say that they CHOOSE not to do the inaugural of anything. They are waiting about a month (I think) before trying the Western.

But for those who CHOOSE to do the inaugural, I think it's a little bit of the adventurous spirit that is involved. If anyone has LOTS of time on their hands, just read through the 70+ pages on the inugural western thread. Yes, we've run into a few "I'm not sure about that", or "I know it doesn't make sense, but that's what it says right now" issues, particularly with regard to semi-formal/formal night. But those of us on the thread are pretty well taking it in stride. We know we're the guinea pigs, and hakuna matata, we'll have fun doing it! I fully expect a few minor whoopsies, but I know that it will work out.

Slightly more than 2 weeks from now, I'll be on a plane to sunny Florida!!! And like someone's signature says "a bad day cruising is better than a good day at work"!

 

[jennifersmith23]

Somebody had to volunteer to be guinea pigs right? I have heard rumors that we are going to get a limited edition lithograph for the inaugural and maybe a pin. Won't those people that waited be jeolous...ha.

C-ya on board JMF...

 

[bengals01]

you will have a great time, i have been on 6 disney cruises, 2 3-day, and 4 7-day, the only thing about the 3-day cruises are they go to fast you bareley unpack and you have to repack, the food is fine, better than anything i could fix, the omelets are great, had one every morning, chicken tenders great, my husband had chicken wings almost every day, he said they were great, the hamburgers and fries are good, i had either steaks, chicken or the beef for dinner, it was all great, and the deserts are to die for. the castmembers are so friendly, i always go back and visit my old servers, my favorite is andrew from south africa,if you have him say mrs martini said hi! I also have had zoran, danny, zoltan, ocke, sunny,jeanie,hemant, sapto. I celebrated my birthday in october, they gave me a t-shirt which they all signed with little sayings on it, all my old servers came and sang happy birthday to me. It was great. i hope you have a great time, I am going on the 3-day in september because we got the $99 deal from cruising in January,

 

[mikeymars]

>>The notion that DCL (or any other cruise line) would provide a cruise to these destinations and not have the "kinks" worked out before hand is just preposterous.<<

Preposterous? Anyone who has ever managed in a large organization would never say that. As they say, "the best laid plans...."

The issue here isn't whether Disney has "planned." Rather, it's that fact -- ergo, history -- shows again and again that "test flight cruises" always result in changes, once the cruise line realizes that (a) some tactical detail got missed in planning, and/or (b) some part of the plan just doesn't work.

Again, the point here isn't to state the inagural cruise won't be enjoyable, especially to the hard core DCL fans aboard. However, anyone claiming it will be 100% problem free is in denial of how the real world works.

 

[Mjasp]

Is any cruise 100% problem free? I'm sure there will always be someone with a complaint, right Mikey? Whether it be on DCL, RCCL, NCL or any others, someone will not be happy somewhere.

Guess thats what makes the world go round and round and round, head spinning yet? It takes all kinds, Amtrak would be out of business if everyone LOVED to fly.

Different strokes for different folks. Again there are people out there that won't vacation in resorts and only will cruise. Some do only beaches, while some do mountains, get my drift here?

 

[josierac]

Don't worry about seasickness. If you do feel a little of it. Go to the pursers desk and ask for the seasick pills that they have. They work wonders.

I have never been on a Disney cruise but have been on a few other cruise lines (5 cruises to be exact)

We always try to go when schools are in session even though we have kids as that cuts down the amount of kids on the cruise running around.

Any cruise line you go on during Easter week will have 800+ kids on board.

Carnival, Royal Caribbean and NCL all had 800+ kids on the ships during easter week the last 2 years. Celebrity had a little less but still over 500 kids, etc.

My suggestion, don't go no a cruise during easter week.

Otherwise, go and have a great time.

 

[Joe & Joanne]

Hi Folks
Since we will be going on the First Western Cruise I am sure there will be problems. The facts are not whether there will be KINKS but KOOKS who think the cruisers will notice any changes or disruptions that will spoil or hamper our vacation fun. As mentioned, any large corporation anticipates problems...but how that corporation handles those changes and shield the customer from those mistakes or kinks is how I shall judge the trip

Although not a diehard "Disney Fan", I will venture to say that since none of us know what to expect there won't be much to surprise us . We probably won't even notice when mistakes ARE made

 

[Mjasp]

WELL SAID JOE!!!

BRAVO

 

[Joe & Joanne]

Hi Folks
I remember reading a thread a while back about the DCL folks taking the Chicken Fingers off the Goofey menu or something. Now it seems to me the chicken fingers were an ESTABLISHED part of the cruise for some folks. ERGO, DCL brought em back. ERGO, large corporations make changes all the time and just not in response to initial offerings. Remember we choose this date, we always have a choice, ERGO, we will be there and you won't

 

[SQUIGGLE]

Couldn't have said it better myself Joe!
I know I plan on having a great time and I believe I know a group of 80 or so other folks who feel the same way!
See y'all (sorry psiklops) real soon...........

fran: : :