Family Review - Disney World, Disney Wonder and Sea World

[crusinmama06]

I am really surprised that kids older than 12 are not allowed to slide. Most of our cruises have been on ships w/out slides (except NCL Pearl which was a no kid trip).

 

OOOPS CORRECTION!!!! I must have had sun stroke the day I looked at the rules...lol.

It is AGES 4-14

Min. Height 38" - Max Height 64"

 

Sorry for freaking you out :(

 

 

I was told that you couldn't get the free dining with DCL.

Also, you were in WL in a Courtyard view. Was that their standard room or did you ask for an upgrade ? Did you pay extra ?

 

I booked it separatly. We did 5 nights/6 days at Wilderness Lodge. I knew the free dining plan would come back in September (I booked way back in January) so I had the TA add the dining plan onto the reservation in June, when it became free. I always book everything on my own, but tranfer it to a TA to keep an eye on the deals like the free dining plan. I booked DCL on my own after watching the prices drop...then after I booked, they started to rise again so I got in just in time.

 

I booked a Woods View because we *usually* book a courtyard view and wanted to mix it up a little. When we arrived, our room wasn't ready. After calling every half hour for 2 hours (like they told me too) the woman put me on hold and said "Your room is ready"....we got up to the room, opened the door and low and behold, we were facing the courtyard again...lol. So I think she upgraded me. ;)

 

Do you have your own website or blog? You should - your experience is invaluable! I am a DISer too (same SN) - type A, OCD vacation planner - so REALLY thrilled to find this! :D

 

Awww thanks :D

 

Yep, I do have a blog. You can always find the link in my signature. It's pretty much a recap of the things we discuss here.

http://www.cruisingwithchildren.blogspot.com

[mommy2jays]

Great report! You make me want to cruise DCL.

 

Just curious, have you done a TR on the dis? I would love to read about what you all did when you were at WDW, my most favorite place.

[Dr_DNA]

Great review- I especially love all of the photos that you've put in. I wish others would do the same. They add more perspective to the well written narrative. Based on your review so far, I would consider a Disney cruise now.

[sunandseagirl617]

Michele,

 

Thank you for posting an excellent review! Your girls are georgeous and we loved the video, especially the 'surprise part.' Thank goodness for the non stingray side of Blackbeard's Beach! LOL.....

 

Just out of curiosity, did your girls (especially the oldest) make any comments or comparison to RCCL? Some friends were thinking about switching from Independence to Disney because they are going to Disney for 4 days prior to Independence~

 

Thanks-

 

Theresa

[jenseib]

It was really fun. What you can't see from the above picture is that it is a totally private and SMALL island. The only people there are employees and guests from the ships. When we arrived, about 10 people from Carnival Imagination were there. They left by noon. Then as we were leaving, Carnival Sensation passengers were coming in. There were probably only about 15 people in OUR group. So one island....15-25 people at any given time. It ws NICE.

 

It was very relaxing.

 

What time did you return back to the ship then? (or the main island at least)

[crusinmama06]

Just curious, have you done a TR on the dis? I would love to read about what you all did when you were at WDW, my most favorite place.

 

No, I haven't done a report about WDW. The video (original post) shows pretty much everything we did...lol. We had the free meal plan, which we ran out of the next to the last day. We just used too many counter services. If the kids wanted breakfast AND lunch, then the counter services went quickly. They only give one counter and one table service per person/per day.

 

The MNSSHP was awesome. We could walk on any open ride with no waiting. And the Haunted Mansion was so cool that night. They were taking pics outside.

 

Everything else was the same as always. Tired legs. Exhausted minds. But wonderful memories. :D

 

Michele,

 

Thank you for posting an excellent review! Your girls are georgeous and we loved the video, especially the 'surprise part.' Thank goodness for the non stingray side of Blackbeard's Beach! LOL.....

 

Just out of curiosity, did your girls (especially the oldest) make any comments or comparison to RCCL? Some friends were thinking about switching from Independence to Disney because they are going to Disney for 4 days prior to Independence~

 

Theresa

 

Yeah the non stingray side of the beach that had the actual wild stingray swim up to us. :eek: LOL. That was the first time that ever happened to us in the Bahamas. Maybe he was looking for his friends. ;)

 

Honestly, I would NEVER give up Indy for Magic or Wonder. No way, no how. Our neighbors on Wonder were talking to us over the balcony railing. They asked my 8 year old what her favorite ship was...her reply "Do I HAVE to say Disney?" :p They said "No, we aren't happy with this ship at all" and she said "Good, then my answer is Freedom" :D

 

The kids love the parks. But they refuse to wait in the character lines on the ships because we go to the meals at Walt Disney World and the characters come to us.

 

The Disney ships are honestly just too crowded. The pools are insane. We will probably do the new Disney ships in 2011 and 2012 just to try them. But we wouldn't replace the Freedom class with Magic or Wonder.

 

What time did you return back to the ship then? (or the main island at least)

 

We had to be on the excursion boat at 2pm. So we left the ship at 10am and were back on by 2:30pm. Of course when we got back on the ship and went up to the pools, the Mickey pool was closed for poop :eek: and the Goofy pool was bursting at the seams with kids....lol. We should have stayed on the private island...lol.

[sunandseagirl617]

Thank you for your honest reply. I was looking at your picture of the pool and honestly that is how small and crowded the pools were on the Valor last June. :eek:

 

I'll send my cruising buddy over here so he can look at this with his family! He has to pay in full tomorrow and hopefully he can make the right decision;)

[katerkat]

Looks like the "Wilderness Lodge" in Orlando is the same as the "Grand Californian Hotel" in California.

 

The Grand Californian has a bit more gold overtones, while the Wilderness Lodge is more green. But yes, very similar.

 

Cruisinmama - the video was so cute! My son was hanging over my shoulder making comments. He still remembers going to MNSSHP last year.

[crusinmama06]

Castaway Cay Maps - Sorry they are a little wrinkled. ;)

 

 

[crusinmama06]

Disney Wonder

 

Kids Dinner Menus

 

Here, they are...my kids loved the Mickey Pasta with Marinara. They wished it had been on the menu all 3 days. :)

 

[jenseib]

Thank you for your honest reply. I was looking at your picture of the pool and honestly that is how small and crowded the pools were on the Valor last June. :eek:

 

I'll send my cruising buddy over here so he can look at this with his family! He has to pay in full tomorrow and hopefully he can make the right decision;)

 

 

I didn't think that picture looked too bad either. I have sailed NCL twice and both times the main pool was at least that crowded or worse.

[nybumpkin]

Michelle - I love your review (and your girls are adorable). I'm so glad to read about Blackbeard's Cay. Carnival offers a similar excursion there, and I think your review made up my mind - we're booking it for our Glory cruise in February.:cool:

[crusinmama06]

I didn't think that picture looked too bad either. I have sailed NCL twice and both times the main pool was at least that crowded or worse.

 

LOL...hence the reason I won't sail NCL either. : - )

 

We live in snow country, so a pool is very important to my family. So I have to sail ships with good pools.

 

Believe me, that day was horrible. They are talking about it on the Disboards because there were others on my sailing who witnessed the same chaos. Even the Disney loyalist are in agreement, those pools need to be changed.

 

Moving on to our day in Castaway Cay and the Wave runner tour.

 

Saturday - September 13 - Waverunner Tour

One Hour - Castaway Cay

 

Let me preface this by saying that waverunners are an obsession for my hubby. That's what he does...he sells jet skis, ATVs and snowmobiles. So he LOVES waverunners. So as a gift to him for our anniversary, I decided to book the waverunner tour (just like we did on our honeymoon 11 years earlier, but that was in Coco Cay)

 

So we drop the kids off at the Castaway Cay kids club and meet at Boat Beach at 10am. We sign our lives away, saying we won't sue Disney or the tour operator if we are eaten by a shark...lol.

 

We are given a brief safety speach - no sharp turns, no going off on your own, no donuts, if you are pegnant you can't go on this tour. Then we are given the technical speach - on button - check. Off button - check. If you turn sharply and the waverunner flips you off, try to climb back on or wait for the tour operator to help you (at this point I am thinking I am SHARK BAIT). Have I mentioned that the Bahamas are the most SHARK FILLED waters in the world?

 

They suit us up with yellow life vests - I am thinking I am just going to look like a big floating Twinkie in the water. The shark will take a bite and think "Heyyyy where's the cream filling????"

 

So we get on the waverunners...my hubby is in his glory...smiling from ear to ear

 

 

We pull out with the group....the objective is to stay in ONE line.

 

 

The leaders of the group (including the hubby) rev it up and race top speed past the Pirates of the Caribbean ghost ship The Flying Dutchman...

 

 

and continue to race (for what seems to me to be hours but was about 4 minutes.) Holding onto these wave runners, getting sprayed in the face full blast with salt walter while you hold onto the handles of the bucking bronco...thinking of the scene from Jaws when the great white comes up out of the water...yeah by this point it is safe to say I was freaking out...lol. Open throttle full speed out in open water.

 

I am still smiling...but secretly hating my hubby for wanting to do this...

 

 

Did you know waverunners have no brakes? lol Yes I knew this but it becomes a little more real when you are suppose to pull in closely with the others. (bump, bump...as I wonder if I have money to pay for damage)

 

The tour leader takes us out to a deserted island which he says is a "bird sanctuary". He tells us to jump off our waverunners into the water and walk onto shore. There he asks us to pick up a handful of sand, then proceeds to tell us that it is actually fish poop (ewwww) cause one fish poops up to a ton of sand/year (little known facts I didn't EVER need nor WANT to know)

 

At this point the salt water is making the bug bites I got in Florida itchy. So I scratch my leg...which starts bleeding. Oh great, now I am my own CHUM BUCKET. Pieces of shark knowledge start filling my head, sharks can smell a drop of blood miles away. It will send them into a feedy frenzy trying to find the dying fish. I can't shake the mages from the movie "Open Water".

 

Ohhh happy day we get BACK onto the waverunners. Back out into open water full speed, I am certain I will have bruises on my legs from jumping the waves. I couldn't stay IN the line and kept going off into the waverunners wake. I fought and fought to bring myself back in line. I became the last one in line, lagging behind everyone else....the boat waiting for ME.

 

By the time I arrive at the next stopping point, I am no longer smiling. Now I am contemplating divorce. Happy Anniversary, now sign these divorce papers.

 

 

We listen to a little more info about the area from the tour guide. Then I brace myself for the treck back to the beach. I am determined not to be the last in line. I don't care if it kills me. I am going to point my waverunner in the direction of the leaders watercraft. I am going to go full throttle, get sprayed in the face, hang on for dear life, forget the pain in my arms and legs and be in the head of the pack.

 

So I gun it and get in line...pushing any thoughts of bodily harm behind me, we race out in the open ocean, full speed past the cruise ship, wave at everyone onboard like we are in some waverunner parade. And we get back to the beach ahead of everyone else!!!!

 

I take a deep breath and kiss the sand, thankful I am not dead. I have muscles hurting in my body that I didn't know I had.

 

Hubby is happy...totally in his glory. I decide that maybe I can keep him around for another 11 years.

 

 

The tour operator walks over to us and says "How was your ride?". I say "Um, exhilarating"

 

And he says "Great, how many sharks did you see? Usually we see alot"

 

EEEK!

[Wilda]

At this point the salt water is making the bug bites I got in Florida itchy. So I scratch my leg...which starts bleeding. Oh great, now I am my own CHUM BUCKET. Pieces of shark knowledge start filling my head, sharks can smell a drop of blood miles away. It will send them into a feedy frenzy trying to find the dying fish. I can't shake the mages from the movie "Open Water".

 

I was laughing so hard I almost choked when I read that! Unless you are a professional story teller-you have missed your calling:D Thanks for a great review!

[William Ross]

Great review! THANKS

What about the door hanger? How do you get one?

[CanadianTwosome]

Wow, great stuff!! How on earth did you keep the cruise a surprize? There is no way I could have done it, even with WDW to talk about! ha ha ha

[crusinmama06]

Great review! THANKS

What about the door hanger? How do you get one?

 

The door hanger is actually called a "Fish Extender"...you hang it on the fish outside your Disney cabin door.

 

Someone on the DisBoard started this a while ago. I am new to the whole thing.

 

I got mine from a Disser named LuvTheEars. I found her on ebay but I don't know if she has any current listings. She does custom orders, it was $25 (included shipping).

 

Because it is on another cruise board, I don't know how much in detail I can get about it (Mods please email me if you don't want me to discuss it). But basically, it's kind of like our Meet N Mingle here at Cruise Critic, but they have a Disney Cruise Meet section. You sign up for the exchange with others on your sailing. If you don't sign up, you can't just hang up the thing and expect people to drop things in your bag. ;)

 

About a week before your sailing, you get a list with the names of people on your sailing and the cabin they will be in.

 

I made a "Disney Songs to Cruise To" CD especially for the people in my group.

 

We only had 9 cabins in our Disser group but every night we came back to a full Fish Extender. I would hate to see what would happen if there were 25 or more cabins in the group. :eek:

 

We had to zip tie it down because the wonderful little darlings across the hall were plotting to steal it. :mad:

 

[url=http://www.disboards.com/forumdisplay.php?f=9][/url]

 

http://www.disboards.com/forumdisplay.php?f=9

[William Ross]

Thanks,

Do you get information about what to put into "Fish Extender"...

Does everyone is the group get this information or is this to new that most people don't know or understand?:confused:

Also, what is Disser?

[crusinmama06]

Thanks,

Do you get information about what to put into "Fish Extender"...

Does everyone is the group get this information or is this to new that most people don't know or understand?:confused:

Also, what is Disser?

 

A Disser is a member of www.disboards.com - an online Disney travel community. That's where you have to be a member to sign up for the gift exchange.

 

There is a thread there that discusses the Fish Exntender and what people have received in them. Because it is not a Cruise Critic exchange, I probably shouldn't talk much more about it here. :)

 

If you ask about it on the Disboards, they can help you there.

[jenseib]

OMG! I never even thought about sharks being there. UGH! That would make me not do the tour right off the bat! LOL! My ex boyfriend and I used to have waverunners and took them out to a local lake all the time. They were so fun, but mine was a bit slower (and older), it was also pretty stable, so it was hard to flip off, but his was much easier to flip off. It is a hard workout, but was so much fun. We took my now older kids all the time too and they just loved it. My DS always rode with me and I swear he loved to let go and fly off. I would be zooming right along and then realize it was ligheter and no arms around my waist. LOL! :rolleyes:

[gkrnjlr]

What a great review! You've got some gorgeous kids, too!

The video you made for the homework project is great. You definitely earned the "cool mom award" for the cruise. Was it a surprise that you were going on a cruise after WDW? Or did she know ahead of time but forgot?

 

Thanks for sharing!

[crusinmama06]

What a great review! You've got some gorgeous kids, too!

The video you made for the homework project is great. You definitely earned the "cool mom award" for the cruise. Was it a surprise that you were going on a cruise after WDW? Or did she know ahead of time but forgot?

 

Thanks for sharing!

 

They knew we were going to WDW but I told them we were leaving on Thursday to go home. I told them I couldn't let them miss that much school. ;)

 

On Thursday, the car picked us up for the "airport"...but took us to the port. And you saw her reaction. :D

 

So they knew nothing about the cruise. I told them the week before the trip that I would "never set foot back on a Disney cruise" lol So up until that moment, they thought they would never go on another Disney cruise. ;)

[gkrnjlr]

That's a great way to surprise them!!!! I will have to do that when my kids get older, too!

 

Disney's ships are really pretty! Do you have any pictures of the dining room? Or the deck plans?

[crusinmama06]

That's a great way to surprise them!!!! I will have to do that when my kids get older, too!

 

Disney's ships are really pretty! Do you have any pictures of the dining room? Or the deck plans?

 

Ironically enough I didn't take pictures of the dining rooms. I don't think...lol. There were pictures taken of us in the dining rooms. But the backgrounds aren't clear enough.

 

Animator's Palate - the dining room walls (and staff) start out in black/white. As the dinner progresses, color is added (by lighting) to the character portraits on the walls. And the staff come out at the end of the meal wearing colorful vests.

 

Triton's - the Head waiter told us that the theme is "Under the Sea"...and that the lights would continue to change throughout the dinner to make an appearance of being under the sea.

 

Parrot's Cay has a Caribbean theme - very bright.

 

The deck plans are here...

http://disneycruise.disney.go.com/dcl/en_US/tour/shipTour?name=ShipTourPage

[gkrnjlr]

Sounds nice! We may have to give Disney a try sometime!