MeganGC1983

It’s enough time to get in enough trouble with the kids. They don’t need wrap sheets at such tender ages. 😏

We can compare notes to see what’s worthy.

Parking… normally, we are Parking Spot people. But I think they’ve lost their minds. I’ve been watching their parking prices for months and the cheapest Parking Spot 2, uncovered, prepaid was $9.75 a day. They’ve been running promos, emailing me, texting me, app has been on fire with “codes”. Today is 30% off… and it’s $13.75 a day. Hard pass. We can park in the garage (roof) at Love Field for $10 a day. And in the garage for $12. That saves us shuttle time. I’m good. I’ll park at the actual airport.

Speaking of drink packages, I’m usually a liquid iv girl. After reading @sid_9169 and recently… well yesterday with @mamiamjo I decided to try something new to me this cruise. Like Mamiamjo, I’m thinking BYTOX is too expensive, so I ordered these. We shall see how they work. Hope they match my tan. 😆

The good news about that is you can always cancel and rebook at a cheaper price if it goes lower. When I first started looking… it was the buy one get one 50% off promo. That is not the cheapest. Pretty sure I bought it for 30% off, then repriced it for 35% off. It’s a pain and more than you wanna spend, but once you are onboard it’s crucial.

One thing I can say I’m not looking forward to is the food on this cruise. Obviously, food is subjective, but I think we can all collectively agree that cruise line food has gone downhill overall. Carnival, you can only get a decent meal in specialty dining. I suspect Royal, these days, will be the same. Last time I sailed RC, it was the days of midnight buffets and real elegant nights. I was super excited about eating on Celebrity and was let down. Maybe, if I don’t get my hopes up, I’ll be pleasantly surprised. Virgin Voyages is my current go to for food.

Just got off the phone with Cocoa Beach shuttle. After trying out a handful of shuttle services to/from MCO we’ve found Cocoa Beach Shuttles to be the best and the cheapest. As always, YMMV. After crunching the numbers, we will uberXL or LyftXL from MCO to the Best Western. It runs about $10 cheaper than a shuttle after tip. We will use Cocoa Beach shuttle on the return trip just because it’s a guarantee. We won’t be scrambling outside the port waiting on an Uber. Our ride is scheduled and paid for-$110. The only problem I have with Cocoa Beach shuttles is you make an online reservation, then you have to call in and pay. And there’s always a hold time. Anyhow, ten minutes later, I have a confirmation text & email.

Pre-cruise accommodations… somehow, the fact that there will be 5 of us in cabin hit me hard before I booked the night before hotel stay. I wanted to get as much space for all of us as possible. Enter the family suite at the Best Western Cocoa Beach. I’m normally a Bonvoy or at least Hampton Inn type of gal, but none of those in the area were offering much in the way of family suites. I wanted some beach access. Best Western checked that box. It had an “Excellent” score on reviews. A couple of others did not, so for $175, I went with it. Breakfast included. We will see how it goes.

Slowly ticking down…

Lunch of champions. Getting in the true cruising spirit. It’s been an interesting morning work wise. I really hope to have smooth sailing for our sailing. I also love how “my people” just leave their “baggage” lying around. As mine is tucked nicely in my bedroom.

He’s a hot mess like his sisters. 😆

Awesome! Can’t wait.

Wahoo! Here’s to hoping we all have a great time.

Thanks for following along!

Welcome aboard!

Fall brain… when I booked this in November to give the kids as a Christmas gift, there were a few factors I didn’t take into account… mostly, how busy spring is for my 3 kids. Between cheer, dance, soccer, softball, and end of year events, plus add in all the makeup games because Oklahoma spring is gonna Oklahoma spring… I’ve needed this cruise for the past 3 weeks. Although I only returned for the Valiant Lady in February, I surely felt I needed a cruise in April. But I stayed home… worked and mommed, and fortunately, survived the melee. Now, all that stands in the way of the cruise is 4 days of school, 4 recital rehearsals, 1 dance recital, 1 soccer game, 3 softball games, and a trip to the airport. Sigh!

The last kid cruise we took was on the Carnival Dream Oct. of 2022 in a deluxe ocean view. I’m going to miss that extra half bath. That sailing was also to the Bahamas, and the highlight for the kids, other than all the ice cream, was our day at Atlantis water park. This sailing we are in a Boardwalk balcony cabin. I really wanted to try that out since it isn’t an option on most other (non-royal) ships. Also, this time in Nassau, we are just gonna have a simple beach day at Junkanoo, explore the new port area, and I definitely need a pina colada from John Watling’s. On our last few sailings, we’ve been to San Juan a LOT. I love a good Barrachina pina colada, but my favorite is at John Watling’s. We will do the water park thing at CocoCay with Thrill Waterpark day passes. I watched them for a while and finally got them at $68.99 per person. Not sure it’s worth it every time, but at least the first time with kids, I guess. I like that the drink package will work on the private island. I bought that too for $70.99 per person per day in the app. Probably around the end of February. For fun… I give you the many faces of Colton, enjoy his cruise food.

This whole cruise idea started when the Icon of the Seas ad campaign really took off. My DS, Colton, decided from the commercials that he was over Carnival and proclaimed he was now a “Royal Caribbean kid”. My kids have only sailed Carnival. “Mr. Megan” hasn’t even sailed on Royal Caribbean, but for Christmas, we decided that we would get them a cruise. Thats when the fun began. I wanted to take advantage of the Kids Sail Free promo, but I also live by a “school is your job” motto. My kids aren’t missing school to cruise. With blackout dates looming, I scoured sailings with cabins for 5, starting after May 17th (last day of school) but before May 22nd (kids sail free blackout date)… Galveston is our usual home port with the kids, but Mariner departs the 18th (my oldest’s dance recital day) and Harmony didn’t have any 5 person berths. The more I thought about it, the more I really wanted to include “all things Royal” so I decided we needed a Perfect Day at CocoCay in there. That’s not happening from Galveston, so Allure of the Seas, May 20-24 to Nassau and Perfect Day became the go to option.

Hey! Hey! Hey! It’s almost time to set sail aboard the beautiful Allure of the Seas. I hope you’ll all join me as we sail on Royal for the first time in a long time with all the Bahamas fun, drink package shenanigans, and kid crap anyone could hope for. For those that are new, welcome! This is my 15th LIVE… wow! For the regulars, buckle up. You all know how this goes. Start your livers and pack your patience because this is a kid cruise. After 8 cruises without them, my 3 yahoos are coming along and we are sharing a singular cabin. It’s only 4 nights, how bad can it be?! We fly out early Sunday morning, so grab your virtual suitcase or two (it’s Southwest after all) and join us on this beginning of summer “sail”abration.

Here for as much as I can! Have a great cruise.

Excited to get it going with ya… then I’ll catch up after my LIVE! Enjoy every moment of it.

Whoop whoop! What a way to Wednesday! Reporting to the party!!

On carnival, I have to have patron. The mix makes it worse as it is.

I’ve never paid $150 for a golf cart in Bimini. We’ve done this 8 times. I’ve been quoted $80 and talked them down to $60 or $70 at the most.

I agree. Perhaps we will meet up officially on one of those sailings.