Countdown
Saturday, April 28, 2012
Sunday, April 1, 2012
Advice
There are not many clocks on board. If you're like me, you probably don't normally wear a watch anymore, because you use the clock on your cell phone instead, but that won't work onboard, because your cell phone won't be functioning unless you are paying through the nose for "cellular at sea" service. There are many scheduled activities offered throughout the day and you will frequently need to know the time. Bring a watch.
“Cay” is pronounced “key” – so unless you want to sound like a novice, remember this both for Castaway Cay (Disney's private island) and for Parrot Cay (one of the onboard restaurants on the Wonder and the Magic).
You'll present your stateroom key as you board, have a family photo taken, and then your family will be announced as you arrive in the atrium of the ship. After that, the ship is yours!
Most people will head straight to lunch, and if you're hungry, that's a great idea. If you've brought your swimsuits in your day bag, this is a perfect time to enjoy the pool (or AquaDuck on the Dream or Fantasy, if it's running), because the ship is still relatively empty and a lot of people will not have thought ahead. If you still need to make spa appointments, change your dinner rotation, sign up for shore excursions, or book Palo or Remy, now is the time to do that. If it's your first time on the ship, this is a good time to get a map and wander around familiarizing yourself with everything.
When your stateroom attendant provides turndown service while you’re at dinner, he or she will place a Navigator (a daily newsletter listing the next day's events) in your stateroom. Study the Navigator carefully to plan your next day. It will also list the hours of operation for everything from the excursion desk to the restaurants. You may want to bring a highlighter pen on your cruise so you can mark the activities that interest you.
Beverages
You can get milk, juice, tea, coffee, lemonade and soft drinks free with meals in the dining rooms. (Bottled water, smoothies and alcoholic beverages are extra.)
The self-service drink station up by the family pool offers milk, juice, tea, coffee, lemonade and soft drinks for free at all times.
Castaway Cay offers milk, juice, tea, coffee, lemonade and soft drinks for free; alcoholic beverages are extra.
Room service offers milk, juice, tea or coffee free, but charges for soft drinks, alcoholic beverages and bottled water.
There is a charge for all drinks ordered at the bars, including soft drinks.
Consider bringing your own bottled water if you think you'll drink a lot of it on shore excursions, Castaway Cay, etc. Bottled water on the ship is expensive. Consider packing a small suitcase with just bottled water. Then on the way home you'll have room for all those things you didn't plan to buy.
Dine and Play Program
The Dine and Play program is offered for families assigned to second dining, and is open to children ages 3-12. The Dine and Play program allows children to get their meals quicker and adults to check in a child for Youth Activities without leaving the dining room.
Here's how it works: You arrive in the dining room and inform the server that your child would like to participate in Dine and Play. The dining room team brings the child's meal first while serving the adults at a more leisurely pace.About 45 minutes after seating begins, Youth Activities Counselors arrive in the dining room and sign in the child to Disney's Oceaneer Club or Disney's Oceaneer Lab, eliminating the need for you to escort the child to Deck 5.
Adults are then able to enjoy the full dining experience with the knowledge that their children are having a great time in a safe, fun and comfortable environment.
You may want to bring a soft-sided, collapsible cooler. This is handy for shore excursion days or to keep snacks on hand in your cabin.
Skip the talks. The shopping talk is just a "rah-rah" for certain shops that are paying a marketing fee, and you might get a few coupons for free (junky) souvenirs. Both the shopping and disembarkation talks are replayed on the television repeatedly. Don't waste your vacation time attending these lectures in person.
For an inexpensive and yet priceless souvenir, purchase a new pillowcase and a pack of colored Sharpie pens before your trip. Drop it off at Guest Services on the first night with a request for the characters to sign it. Pick it up on the last night of your cruise.
Castaway Cay advice found
The main beach has one large platform in a relative shallow area for the kids to play in. Further down in the newer water tower, which has slides on it. Both were a lot of fun. Lifeguards are on duty to make sure everyone is safe. I noticed that a lot of the parents kinda kept an eye on things as well.
The food there is great. All the free drinks and ice cream you desire. The BBQ grill is simple line-food, but still good. My kid loves the ribs and I prefer the hot dogs. I eat light while on the beach and swimming.
Around lunch time are the crab races. I highly recommend seeing these. It is really funny. The crabs are released and "race" to see which one crawls over the finish line the fastest. There is an MC calling out the race details. There is a way to get "own" a crab and have it race for you, but we never found out how. I imagine you have to get to the box early and try to sign up.
IMPORTANT: on the night before Castaway Cay, CLOSE YOUR CURTAINS. They are pressure washing the ship in the morning so they are going to be on a platform really close to your porthole or sliding glass door. Don't be alarmed on the morning of Castaway Cay because it's just them cleaning the ship (it doesn't sound like it but it is).
If you are an AAA member then you are entitled to free floats and tubes which you pickup and this place across from the splash area. If you bring your own snorkel gear or have anyone in your family that can't swim or is not good swimmer, there are free lifejackets available.
The "Spring-a-Leak" water playground may not look like much to an adult (a series of spouting water), but every kid between 3-10 loved it.
The food there is great. All the free drinks and ice cream you desire. The BBQ grill is simple line-food, but still good. My kid loves the ribs and I prefer the hot dogs. I eat light while on the beach and swimming.
Around lunch time are the crab races. I highly recommend seeing these. It is really funny. The crabs are released and "race" to see which one crawls over the finish line the fastest. There is an MC calling out the race details. There is a way to get "own" a crab and have it race for you, but we never found out how. I imagine you have to get to the box early and try to sign up.
IMPORTANT: on the night before Castaway Cay, CLOSE YOUR CURTAINS. They are pressure washing the ship in the morning so they are going to be on a platform really close to your porthole or sliding glass door. Don't be alarmed on the morning of Castaway Cay because it's just them cleaning the ship (it doesn't sound like it but it is).
If you are an AAA member then you are entitled to free floats and tubes which you pickup and this place across from the splash area. If you bring your own snorkel gear or have anyone in your family that can't swim or is not good swimmer, there are free lifejackets available.
The "Spring-a-Leak" water playground may not look like much to an adult (a series of spouting water), but every kid between 3-10 loved it.
Advice found on a blog
What to expect in your room – Packing Tips
-Nightlight (if kids would like to see well at night; even outside rooms are pretty dark)
-Bubble bath/shower gel for kids (the room has a bathtub/shower combo but only provides adult shampoo/conditioner/lotion for free)
-Dixie cups (if your kids use after brushing their teeth; only glass cups are provided in the room)
-Empty water bottles or your favorite coffee mug (easier to transport; can be easily brought ashore)
-Other FYIs – there are plenty of drawers in the room and plenty of hangers. The room was a good size (we were in an outside window).
Shorts/pants with pockets (you’ll need to carry a room key and the ship phones which are like small cordless phone walkie talkies – two per room – that you can text each other or call each other and also used to text you when your kids are ready to be picked up from the kids activities. I’d say bring a small purse, but these phones only vibrate (no noise ring) and you need them close to your body to feel them vibrate)
-Beach bag (its nice to have a separate beach bag for towels, sunglasses, snacks, etc)
-Collapsible small lunch bag (we put some ice in a Ziploc bag and brought some drinks with us; I heard you can also have room service bring you sandwiches and then pack those with you too).
Other misc items
-Bring a highlighter to mark up your daily activity guide
-Before you travel, search for past “Magic Personal Navigators” that other families have scanned and posted to various sites. It will give you a head’s up on available activities and helped relieve some stress in advance when asked by the kids, what are we going to do?
Beverages – There is a nice beverage station on deck 9, back of ship near the buffet. It has like 4 soda stations and 2 coffee/hot drink stations. Options included reg and diet coke, reg and diet Sprite, water, unsweetened ice tea, pink lemonade, and fruit punch. Hot drinks included coffee/Twinings tea/hot cocoa packets. All milk options are available as Borden’s brand – choc milk/whole/2%/1%/Skim. In the buffet/restaurants, juice was limited to orange and apple (and we asked for and received cranberry too). TIPS: 1-The hot cups have “sippy cup like lids”… the cold cups have plastic lids with space for straws. I happen to be slightly germ-a-phobic and the straws were unwrapped in a dispensing station (where you push the tab down and a new straw unwrapped plastic straw appears). Consider bringing your own straws from home or some prewrapped in paper ones. 2-In the buffet, the milk is in the back of the buffet area separate from the other drinks sitting on ice. Consider taking some of the milk cartons back to your room and placing in your beverage cooler for a snack.
-Food – Was ok in my opinion, meaning selection was more limited than I was expecting, but what I ate was good. My surprise was the lack of noodles and rice. Kids food choices were (by the pool) hot dogs, chicken fingers, burgers, sausage, pizza; (at the buffet) mac n cheese (most days), chicken nuggets and corn dogs (seemed to alternate); (at dinner off a kids menu you can color on) pizza, mac n cheese, and burgers (always) and each day there was the option for one of the following depending on the day: mozzarella sticks, spaghetti and meatballs, chicken. Before the cruise, I had told our sons they could eat anything they wanted on the ship, but that really wasn’t the case. Spaghetti for one meal only – no rice dishes or noodle dishes. And for fruit, while fresh fruit like melon and bananas were available at Goofys gally in plentiful supply, there weren’t say mandarin oranges, pears, peaches, or apple slices (just a whole apple you had to cut or ask to be cut and then you skin). Also for cereal selections, there were no Cheerios, just fruit loops, frosted flakes, granola, raisin bran.
-Characters – Available often. Consider packing something for them to sign (like a pillowcase for us) and leaving it at the front desk day 1 of the cruise. It will be returned to you the last night of the cruise signed by all characters. Many families appeared to have bought an autograph book from the gift shop to have the characters sign, but that does involve waiting in line multiple times although you have the option for a photo (professional or personal or both).
-What to wear – In the end, I wish I had packed less. I had bought 3 outfits for everyday (swim suit, t-shirt/shorts, dinner outfit). We only used the two nicer outfits for the formal and semi-formal nights. Otherwise, we just wore our t-shirt and shorts to dinner. Some families did change, but it was about half/half in the dining room. There is the option to take a formal photo any night in the lobby (obviously the line is longest on formal night, but an option for any other night too).
-Pirates IN the Carribean Party – Fun, but didn’t start till almost 10pm! Basically some dancing/music, folks descending rom above (but hard to see at night) and then a nice firework display at 10:30ish pm.
-Kids clubs (the one for 3-11 year olds were fun/nice – took our kids a few days before they really wanted to use them though). You’ll need to get a Mickey band to use (basically free, just pre-register online before you go and select a password you and your husband will use at pick-up). The Mickey band is rather thick and needs to stay on during the entire cruise, its a GPS locator while in the clubs, and can go on your wrist or ankle. Remember to apply sunblock under the band when in the sun. It only works as a GPS device inside their clubs; not on the rest of the ship/islands
-Gym has nice equipment with TVs, but bring your own headphones
-Spa – I had a Swedish massage. Nice, but they try to sell you other lotions/services at the end as part of their “evaluation”. Had I known in advance, I would have signed up for the deck side chair massages which is what I prefer at home too – 30 minutes for $46.
-On shore days – you must get pool towels from deck 9 before you leave the ship on deck 1. Towels aren’t available/provided as you get off the ship (unless you purchase a pack with water/towels).
For Castaway Cay:
Next time, we will be sure to bring a cooler of bottled waters because the Evian is pricey on the island and I will get up in time for yoga on the beach.
-Nightlight (if kids would like to see well at night; even outside rooms are pretty dark)
-Bubble bath/shower gel for kids (the room has a bathtub/shower combo but only provides adult shampoo/conditioner/lotion for free)
-Dixie cups (if your kids use after brushing their teeth; only glass cups are provided in the room)
-Empty water bottles or your favorite coffee mug (easier to transport; can be easily brought ashore)
-Other FYIs – there are plenty of drawers in the room and plenty of hangers. The room was a good size (we were in an outside window).
Shorts/pants with pockets (you’ll need to carry a room key and the ship phones which are like small cordless phone walkie talkies – two per room – that you can text each other or call each other and also used to text you when your kids are ready to be picked up from the kids activities. I’d say bring a small purse, but these phones only vibrate (no noise ring) and you need them close to your body to feel them vibrate)
-Beach bag (its nice to have a separate beach bag for towels, sunglasses, snacks, etc)
-Collapsible small lunch bag (we put some ice in a Ziploc bag and brought some drinks with us; I heard you can also have room service bring you sandwiches and then pack those with you too).
Other misc items
-Bring a highlighter to mark up your daily activity guide
-Before you travel, search for past “Magic Personal Navigators” that other families have scanned and posted to various sites. It will give you a head’s up on available activities and helped relieve some stress in advance when asked by the kids, what are we going to do?
Beverages – There is a nice beverage station on deck 9, back of ship near the buffet. It has like 4 soda stations and 2 coffee/hot drink stations. Options included reg and diet coke, reg and diet Sprite, water, unsweetened ice tea, pink lemonade, and fruit punch. Hot drinks included coffee/Twinings tea/hot cocoa packets. All milk options are available as Borden’s brand – choc milk/whole/2%/1%/Skim. In the buffet/restaurants, juice was limited to orange and apple (and we asked for and received cranberry too). TIPS: 1-The hot cups have “sippy cup like lids”… the cold cups have plastic lids with space for straws. I happen to be slightly germ-a-phobic and the straws were unwrapped in a dispensing station (where you push the tab down and a new straw unwrapped plastic straw appears). Consider bringing your own straws from home or some prewrapped in paper ones. 2-In the buffet, the milk is in the back of the buffet area separate from the other drinks sitting on ice. Consider taking some of the milk cartons back to your room and placing in your beverage cooler for a snack.
-Food – Was ok in my opinion, meaning selection was more limited than I was expecting, but what I ate was good. My surprise was the lack of noodles and rice. Kids food choices were (by the pool) hot dogs, chicken fingers, burgers, sausage, pizza; (at the buffet) mac n cheese (most days), chicken nuggets and corn dogs (seemed to alternate); (at dinner off a kids menu you can color on) pizza, mac n cheese, and burgers (always) and each day there was the option for one of the following depending on the day: mozzarella sticks, spaghetti and meatballs, chicken. Before the cruise, I had told our sons they could eat anything they wanted on the ship, but that really wasn’t the case. Spaghetti for one meal only – no rice dishes or noodle dishes. And for fruit, while fresh fruit like melon and bananas were available at Goofys gally in plentiful supply, there weren’t say mandarin oranges, pears, peaches, or apple slices (just a whole apple you had to cut or ask to be cut and then you skin). Also for cereal selections, there were no Cheerios, just fruit loops, frosted flakes, granola, raisin bran.
-Characters – Available often. Consider packing something for them to sign (like a pillowcase for us) and leaving it at the front desk day 1 of the cruise. It will be returned to you the last night of the cruise signed by all characters. Many families appeared to have bought an autograph book from the gift shop to have the characters sign, but that does involve waiting in line multiple times although you have the option for a photo (professional or personal or both).
-What to wear – In the end, I wish I had packed less. I had bought 3 outfits for everyday (swim suit, t-shirt/shorts, dinner outfit). We only used the two nicer outfits for the formal and semi-formal nights. Otherwise, we just wore our t-shirt and shorts to dinner. Some families did change, but it was about half/half in the dining room. There is the option to take a formal photo any night in the lobby (obviously the line is longest on formal night, but an option for any other night too).
-Pirates IN the Carribean Party – Fun, but didn’t start till almost 10pm! Basically some dancing/music, folks descending rom above (but hard to see at night) and then a nice firework display at 10:30ish pm.
-Kids clubs (the one for 3-11 year olds were fun/nice – took our kids a few days before they really wanted to use them though). You’ll need to get a Mickey band to use (basically free, just pre-register online before you go and select a password you and your husband will use at pick-up). The Mickey band is rather thick and needs to stay on during the entire cruise, its a GPS locator while in the clubs, and can go on your wrist or ankle. Remember to apply sunblock under the band when in the sun. It only works as a GPS device inside their clubs; not on the rest of the ship/islands
-Gym has nice equipment with TVs, but bring your own headphones
-Spa – I had a Swedish massage. Nice, but they try to sell you other lotions/services at the end as part of their “evaluation”. Had I known in advance, I would have signed up for the deck side chair massages which is what I prefer at home too – 30 minutes for $46.
-On shore days – you must get pool towels from deck 9 before you leave the ship on deck 1. Towels aren’t available/provided as you get off the ship (unless you purchase a pack with water/towels).
For Castaway Cay:
Next time, we will be sure to bring a cooler of bottled waters because the Evian is pricey on the island and I will get up in time for yoga on the beach.
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