Booked a surprise trip on the Fantasy, NEED HELP

This is going to sound strange, I booked a 7/ Eastern Caribbean on the Fantasy in August. 2 days ago. The idea for this surprise came up 3 days ago, so I am basically a chicken running around with my head cut off at this point.

This trip is a total surprise! I am the only one in my family that knows about it. My husband and 2 kids (4, 8) will be going. The 4 y.o. will turn 5 on the ship.

I did book concierge level so I do expect to hear from them today regarding helping me book things. But I really need help from those that have done all the great research and been on the ships before.

What do I plan for ship days? Do I book time at the kid club now?

How do I figure out what dining rotation I am on so I can book adult only meals?

Shore excursions. I booked the dolphin excursion already. I have been on other cruise lines and have booked excursions privately. Any advice on this? I didn't get booked in time for a cabana. I had wanted to do the stingray excursion, but the age is "5", I am afraid they will tell me that my d.d. can't do it since they will count age as age at time of sailing. Since I got the dolphin excursion I am not overly upset, but still hopeful they will allow it. I have read that excursions on the private island aren't really needed since you can ride bikes, wander around, etc. But what you all recommend? Our children have been to tropical destinations multiple times and our 4 y.o. is comfortable snorkeling in open ocean and on boats.

I booked plane tickets to arrive the late afternoon the day before sailing. What to do that night? I am also not leaving until 4 pm, on Sunday. So we will have a day and a half to do something in orlando area. I am leaning towards doing kennedy space center, since we have never been there. I had planned on doing a princess dinner at WDW but it seems like there are more than enough character opportunities on the ship to not feel like my 4 y.o. missed out. We have taken the kids to WDW 2x before.

Any tips on research, I can't get a book right now, I am having enough trouble clearing computer history and worrying about my husband finding something and ruining the surprise. I also have to do most of my scheduling via email- as even when my husband isn't around I would worry my kids would hear me talking.

Thank you so much for all your help, and in advance for all the weird questions I will be asking! :)

You don't have to book kids' club time. They can stay all day if they want. Don't plan anything for sea days. You can wait and see how they like the clubs and book you a spa experience or just sit and relax.

This isn't a Disney parks trip where you you need to do a lot of planning - just go with the flow.

I've had 2 experiences where the kid turned to appropriate age on the ship. What happened was that it took a supervisor to "over-ride" the computer. We were then told that a space had been held for my daughter, but couldn't be officially booked until we were on board (and of course, each of the activities was on or after the birthday so she was the correct age).

My guess is that the concierge will hold a reservation for you but cannot technically book it till you are on board. Still, no problem because you'll know that you have it. The computer takes the age at embarkation as the age for the whole cruise, but the supervisor can over-ride this.

The odd thing was that they did "book" it on embarkation day, even though she still wasn't the right age either time. In the most recent case, the CM who did give us the reservation commented "Oh yes, you're the one we got the memo from shoreside about....."

As above, no need to reserve kid time--that's only needed for kids under 3. Honestly, no need to plan anything in advance OR you can plan as much as you want. We find that when we plan, things never go the way we expected. The concierge will get you whatever reservations you wish, either now or on embarkation day. Of course, the times may not be as flexible if you wait till you are on board do reserve things like the spa. But I'm with the above--see how the kids like the programming and then have the on board concierge get you whatever you want for the grown ups. If they don't like the programming, you'll be doing more family stuff.

I don't have a lot of input, but do have a piece of advice/heads up! My husband tried to surprise me a couple years ago with our first DCL cruise - he had it all planned out..... And then I checked the mail. DCL mails cruise documents to the house. (We were accustomed to Royal, who does things via email). So I saw the documents and the surprise was ruined. :(

Just wanted to give you the heads up. Since you're in concierge, I don't know if he'd be able to send the documents somewhere else? Or maybe you can send it somewhere else anyway - DH just had no clue they send things to the house, so so we don't know if you are able to get the info sent elsewhere.

This is going to sound strange, I booked a 7/ Eastern Caribbean on the Fantasy in August. 2 days ago. The idea for this surprise came up 3 days ago, so I am basically a chicken running around with my head cut off at this point.

 

This trip is a total surprise! I am the only one in my family that knows about it. My husband and 2 kids (4, 8) will be going. The 4 y.o. will turn 5 on the ship.

 

I did book concierge level so I do expect to hear from them today regarding helping me book things. But I really need help from those that have done all the great research and been on the ships before.

 

What do I plan for ship days? Do I book time at the kid club now?

 

How do I figure out what dining rotation I am on so I can book adult only meals?

 

Shore excursions. I booked the dolphin excursion already. I have been on other cruise lines and have booked excursions privately. Any advice on this? I didn't get booked in time for a cabana. I had wanted to do the stingray excursion, but the age is "5", I am afraid they will tell me that my d.d. can't do it since they will count age as age at time of sailing. Since I got the dolphin excursion I am not overly upset, but still hopeful they will allow it. I have read that excursions on the private island aren't really needed since you can ride bikes, wander around, etc. But what you all recommend? Our children have been to tropical destinations multiple times and our 4 y.o. is comfortable snorkeling in open ocean and on boats.

 

I booked plane tickets to arrive the late afternoon the day before sailing. What to do that night? I am also not leaving until 4 pm, on Sunday. So we will have a day and a half to do something in orlando area. I am leaning towards doing kennedy space center, since we have never been there. I had planned on doing a princess dinner at WDW but it seems like there are more than enough character opportunities on the ship to not feel like my 4 y.o. missed out. We have taken the kids to WDW 2x before.

 

Any tips on research, I can't get a book right now, I am having enough trouble clearing computer history and worrying about my husband finding something and ruining the surprise. I also have to do most of my scheduling via email- as even when my husband isn't around I would worry my kids would hear me talking.

 

Thank you so much for all your help, and in advance for all the weird questions I will be asking! :)

Wow, your family is very lucky to have a great mom like you! Although I've never stayed concierge, I've traveled with friends who have and I know that their concierge was great at getting them reservations to see the Frozen princesses etc. I have heard shore side concierge is very helpful. Also, there are more prolific "disney cruise line boards" if you search and you may find a lot more info.

If you used a travel agent, the agent can have the documents sent to the agency. If local, you can pick them up. If on line or far from you, they can forward them to you in a plain manilla envelope. So if you bring in the mail, you are golden.

Concierge will get you whatever reservations or complimentary tickets you want--Anna and Elsa, princess gathering, Disney Jr., whatever on the first day. You will board, go to the concierge lounge, and meet with them about anything you want. Done. No lines. No fuss, no "will I be there on time." You get what you want. Period.

Oh, have you looked into participating in Fish Extenders?

I've had 2 experiences where the kid turned to appropriate age on the ship. What happened was that it took a supervisor to "over-ride" the computer. We were then told that a space had been held for my daughter' date=' but couldn't be officially booked until we were on board (and of course, each of the activities was on or after the birthday so she was the correct age).

 

My guess is that the concierge will hold a reservation for you but cannot technically book it till you are on board. Still, no problem because you'll know that you have it. The computer takes the age at embarkation as the age for the whole cruise, but the supervisor can over-ride this.

 

The odd thing was that they did "book" it on embarkation day, even though she still wasn't the right age either time. In the most recent case, the CM who did give us the reservation commented "Oh yes, you're the one we got the memo from shoreside about....."

 

As above, no need to reserve kid time--that's only needed for kids under 3. Honestly, no need to plan anything in advance OR you can plan as much as you want. We find that when we plan, things never go the way we expected. The concierge will get you whatever reservations you wish, either now or on embarkation day. Of course, the times may not be as flexible if you wait till you are on board do reserve things like the spa. But I'm with the above--see how the kids like the programming and then have the on board concierge get you whatever you want for the grown ups. If they don't like the programming, you'll be doing more family stuff.[/quote']

 

If her kid is 4 turning 5, the kid is already aged into the club...

If her kid is 4 turning 5, the kid is already aged into the club...

Her question is about an excursion that has a 5+ age limit. There will be no issue in the OC.

Concierge can also get you the dinner rotation that you want so you can plan your specialty restaurant nights the ones you want. They can basically take your wishes and probably make them happen.

First of all, relax. You did the big thing by booking the cruise. EVERYTHING else is a plus. The family will have a blast.

Our 4 yr old granddaughter loved the cruise but did have a few quirks. She refused to wear a bracelet on the ship. No bracelet, no kids club. Second cruise (age 6) we couldn't pry her out of the club and she hated us eating dessert because she wanted to play. She looked great in a wetsuit but freaked out when she was supposed to hold the dolphin and ran to shore. Loved the dolphins, just not too close up.

Ton of character contacts on the ship. In fact Peter Pan was sneaking up behind folks getting pictures to be in the background. He also stopped in the hall to talk to our granddaughter. Characters are like that. Note that the princess encounters tend to be kind of formal photo ops and you need to get there fairly early.

For the night before you might want to get a room in Cape Canaveral. Long drive between Orlando and the pier, and can have traffic problems. While you can take a bus to the pier, it is pretty expensive for a family. Rental car is cheaper.

Read up on the ports and in this forum. There is a ton of stuff to do on this ship!

 

 

For the night before you might want to get a room in Cape Canaveral. Long drive between Orlando and the pier, and can have traffic problems. While you can take a bus to the pier, it is pretty expensive for a family. Rental car is cheaper.

 

!

Drive from MCO to the cruise terminal is about 45 minutes. From WDW to the port is about an hour. The DCL bus has video on board to entertain the kids as do many private limos. The Disney film gives a little info and some ads for Disney (you know the veiled kind), then runs old cartoons. Yes, the DCL bus is $35 per person each way and a family of 4 can get a private limo for the same cost. BUT it has the easiest, most convenient luggage handling.

If you stay in Cocoa Beach or Cape Canaveral the night before, you will need either a rental car or private transportation to get there.

My personal take-someone booking concierge is more concerned with convenience than with cost. Compared to the cost of a concierge cabin, the cost of DCL transportation is minimal. The easiest thing to do is to stay either at the Hyatt MCO or WDW before the cruise...and that choice for us depends on our arrival time. Going to WDW is great if you arrive early in the day or a few days before. If you arrive in the evening, just stay in the MCO area.

Hi,

I agree with the others -- don't worry too much about planning things beforehand. The cruise is not like WDW and you can take it easy.

Here are a few tips:

Don't miss the SailAway show right after the muster drill -- head up with the kids, grab some streamers and enjoy the fun.

Don't forget to bring adult beverages onboard (if you are so inclined).

Order Mickey Bars from room service. Cookies and milk at night too!

When the kids are in the club, head up to Satellite Falls. It's heaven.

Pack some sand toys for the kids.

Not sure when you plan on springing the surprise on the rest of the family (or how) but there are lots of fun idea on how to pull this off.

Don't forget pirate gear for the pirate party! We usually take some glow sticks too.

Shoreside concierge should be able to tell you your dining rotation. We'd recommend Palo brunch and Remy for dinner.

Enjoy -- you and your family will have an amazing time!