S'moreParty

Do you know what year the Very Merry Cruise started aboard Disney?

Thanks!

Alley

Looking for 'Family Inside Rooms'. They have a lot on Enchantment at least. I think these cabins have the normal bed that breaks into two fulls and the 'bunk' beds that fold into the sides of the ships. There's also Junior Suites which have the normal bed and a sofa bed that you pull out for the boys.

Thank you, but the Enchantment is the Vision class. Does the Quantum class work the same way?

Alley

We have twin 12 year old boys who will be 13 when we cruise. We assumed we could get a cabin for all four of us, but it doesn't look like it.

Without paying for the super costly suites -- do we need to get two cabins?

Thanks!

Alley

I can't tell you how much I appreciated your post. (Although I'll admit to being a verandah-aholic. Love sitting outside without peeps around.)

I like you so much. We're twins.

Anyway, would you recommend the fish extender activity for 12 year old boys? Both are NOT "too cool for school" and enjoy a similar trade activity that they do in LEGOLAND.

But, still, if the fish extender activity is mostly for kids that are 8 and under: I'd love to know now.

Also, any advice on where to buy magnets for door? I'd love to decorate our door, but don't want to break the bank.

Thanks for your review! (We're doing Fantasy's Christmas cruise in Dec.)

Alley

We'll be on the Disney Christmas cruise out of Port Canaveral on the Fantasy going to E. Caribbean.

Can you share the excursions your kids loved the most? My boys are 12. Years ago, we did the sting ray "meet" on Castaway Cay which was great. I'm thinking we'll do it again.

Any other suggestions?

Thanks!

Alley

The shows in WDT are run twice nightly, so early diners see the late show whilst late diners eat, late diners see the show whilst the early diners eat.

You won't miss a show unless you choose to.

 

Your daily regular eating time may be stretched with a late seating, but late dining was the advantage of not being so rushed to get back from shore excursions and get ready for dinner to make the early dining time, and you can always get a quick snack from the quick service outlets or room service to hold you over.

 

ex techie

You make really good points. But let me ask: if you eat at 8 p.m. aren't you somewhat rushed to make the pirate/fireworks show they do towards the end?

Also, we have 12 year old boys -- aren't a lot of the kid activities crammed into the afternoon? We thought eating at 5:45 would give us the evening to do a show and plenty of time in the afternoon to do movies, kid-activities etc.

The only real excursion we're into is the Castaway Cay day. That day is big for us.

On that note too, can you recommend excursions on Castaway Cay for 12 year old boys? I think one wants to do the stingray "meet".

Oops, didn't mean to hijack my thread. :o

Thanks for all your help,

Alley

When DCL switched to the "new" website, the option for dinner seating selection disappeared. The default for anyone making a reservation (online) is "late". If you want to get main seating, you have to then call DCL and have it changed. Or be put on the wait list.

Can you explain how eating later would work? I was making an assumption that we'd miss shows if we eat at 8 p.m. I'm very show-oriented and don't want to miss anything.

Plus in daily life, my family tends to eat at 6 anyway for dinner.

Thanks for all the help,

Alley

Hello!

We're doing the Fantasy in Dec. and I keep seeing different answers to these questions. I thought I'd come to the experts! :)

1) Are we allowed to "decorate" the outside of our stateroom door with Mickey stuff etc.

2) Are we allowed to bring only wine on board? Or are we allowed to bring hard liquor (by hard I mean margaritas in a bottle).

3) Is it true that you can bring white pillow cases, give them to Guest Services and all the Disney celebs will sign for free!

Any other tips welcome!

Alley

Darn. What should we do now? We didn't realize that we needed to sign up so early. My husband just got on the site and said they put us into the second seating -- is that 8 p.m.? -- and that there was no option.

Again, we'll be on the Fantasy in early Dec.

Any suggestions for fixing this situation?

Thanks!

Alley

Can you recommend a nice hotel near Port Canaveral, FL?

A three or four star would be great!

Thanks,

Alley

Alley' date=' we all have those "wish I'd done this 6 months ago" stories. Enjoy your cruise. A certified birth certificate is all that is required. IF you still have the expired passports from the boys, take them along. They have no legal value, but might help expedite things in an emergency. And if you have filed for a name change but it hasn't come thru yet, take that paperwork as well.

 

Chances are that no one will ever ask to see any of the stuff you'll bring, but never hurts to have it. And caution the boys that Customs officials are not to be "messed with." This is NOT the time for a smart ass remark if they are asked a question. We had our stuff searched once after the agent asked if we had any livestock, plant or animal products, etc. and someone I love replied "Just my pet bird." Fortunately, she came up with a straight answer when the guy asked her who I was.[/quote']

 

 

Thank you Moki'sMommy. I was too passive in this entire scenario. I just kept thinking my husband would get on the ball and then I'd make the necessary changes. He focuses at work and tends to lose track of administrative things like making his name change legal. :mad:

 

"Just the pet bird" is HILARIOUS!!! Thanks for sharing.

 

I have to add: on our Disney cruise my 4 year old fell out of the bunk while sleeping. (They're not secure which is mind blowing.)

 

Anyway, we took the ambulance excursion into Cozumel -- where we were at port for the day -- and saw the cleanest, shiniest hospital/medical set up EVER. Disney has one heck of an arrangement w/ a medical group. We were worried about a concussion, but he turned out to be fine.

 

Also, my brother in law is a Coast Guard helicopter pilot. If someone is sick at sea, I think the Coast Guard picks up the sick person. But where do they deposit them? No idea. I'll ask my brother in law.

 

Thanks everyone!

 

Alley

Alley, is your husband also the father of your sons? Reading between the lines here....but if not, AND if your passport no longer reads the same exact name as what it is listed on your boys's BCs, bring along a certified copy of the name change (such as the marriage license) so you have documented proof that you are their mother. It may not be necessary or asked for, but it could be and you just don't want to have that hassle upon boarding.

Thank you for asking. Boring -- and very annoying -- story:

Husband "disowned" his own dad (scary alcoholic) and dropped his last name and went only by his first and middle. But he never made time to make it official.

We gave our boys the middle name husband goes by. (But, again, all official documents have his dad's last name.)

I still have my maiden name -- because all of this was supposed to get fixed countless times.

We cruised w/ this problem w/ Disney in '07. We received passports for our boys, my husband, and myself. We had no problem securing passports. None.

When we cruised w/ Royal Caribbean last year, the passport office wouldn't issue our kids a passport -- because his official last name and mine are different from our biological kids. We tried and tried and finally used their birth certificates.

This time we're sailing w/ Disney and I'm hoping birth certs. will work. I'm getting my name officially changed since my husband has dragged his feet for sooooo long. (No emotional reason; his work stuff just kept getting in his way and he didn't make it a priority.)

I planned on changing my maiden to match his middle name once he'd made everything official. It finally dawned on stupid me that I should just go ahead and fix my own name to match my kids' name.

Is this absolutely ridiculous?! I've moved from frustrated and mad to I-need-to-get-my-name-fixed. But nothing can happen in time for the November cruise. :(

And, yes, I feel very stupid.

Alley

I'm curious then. . . what happens if you're out of the country and lose your passport or have it stolen.

If you need to get on a plane get back home, how would you do it?

Alley

If it makes you feel any better, the Disney Vacation Club website isn't much better. Maybe it would have something to do with the foreign IT workers they hired to replace the American workers?

You took the words right out of my mouth. I was so mad that they fired U.S. workers and hired foreign IT people -- without allowing them to become U.S. citizens. How convenient for Disney.

Really sad.

Alley

My husband and I have passports, but we only have birth certificates for my 12 year old sons.

We'd be doing Disney from Port Canaveral, FL to Western Caribbean.

Can we get away with just using our boys' birth certificates (long story why passports are a real hassle for us).

Thanks for the help!

Alley

We are trying DCL for the first time after many cruises with Princess and RCCL. I have to say I hope the sailing experience is better than the website experience. This has to be the worst cruise line website period. Log on issues, down time and always an excuse that they are working on it when I call. We are sailing next week and I can't even log on to modify shore excursions.... Anyone else having issues??

The Disney site used to be fabulously easy to use: as early as September. And then something changed.

My browser doesn't even recognize it so I can't see anything anymore. My husband's laptop can see the site, but yeah, it seems to be a mess to deal with.

It's really too bad.

Alley

The DCL website works better for me on Firefox v. Safari. I had a reservation I needed to access that just plain didn't work on Safari; no problem on Firefox. Seems like they didn't properly test the new site.

Yes, I think you nailed it. I use a browser called Pale Moon and Disney's site doesn't work with it.

Time for a new browser.

Thank you,

Alley

My husband can "see" the new Disney site on his computer, but I can't get it on my browser at all.

Any suggestions?

Do you know why they changed it?

Alley

I never iron. Just take wrinkle release. Works like a charm.

When traveling. . . I never care. It seems like we're all in the same boat -- so to speak -- we're all going to be a little wrinkled.

I just hang everything on Day 1 and call it good.

Alley

I'm all ears -- no pun intended -- for more tips from the pros!

What do you all think of the cabins w/ balconys that have "obstructed views?"

I've only been on two cruises -- Disney and RCCL -- and both times fell in love w/ our own tiny, private balcony. LOVE sitting out there morning, noon and night watching the water and sky. (I get teary just thinking about it.)

But I also love to save a buck. I have 12 years olds and they're kind of expensive.

Do you think the "obstructed view" balcony is fine or so obstructed that it's a deal-killer?

Thanks for all the tips!

Alley

September after Labor Day' date=' January and February prior to President's Day tend to be lowest cost. Think any time traditional schools are in session. The older ships are generally a little less costly than the newer.

 

Since you are flexible, you might keep your eyes open for a *GT fare. These are typically offered about 75 days before sailing on cruises that are not fully booked. You choose your cabin type (inside, oceanview, or verandah) but not the cabin itself. In exchange for that and some other restrictions (must be paid at the time of booking, no changes after booking), you get a significant discount.

 

ALL agencies must sell DCL at the same price. However, various agencies give different perks as "thanks for booking with us" gifts. We are not allowed to name specific agencies here, but some big box stores give a gift card for a percentage of your cruise cost after you are back home. Honestly this is the biggest monetary value perk I've seen if you routinely use their store. However, the service you get from your agent there may not be the best available.

 

Currently the only *GT fare announced is the Panama canal crossing...but keep your eyes open. There are fall cruises that have significant availability at this point.[/quote']

 

Thank you so much for this great tip. Do you know what "GT" stands for (or does it stand for "great tip???")

 

Thanks again!

 

Alley

Hi Everyone,

My kids are getting older and it's getting to be "now or never" to do Disney before they're too old to love some of it.

Can you help with which month tends to be the most inexpensive? I'm assuming October or January.

We're also Costco members. Any tips for getting a better price are greatly appreciated.

We'd be going out of southern Florida to the Caribbean or Bahamas (or wherever is cheapest).

We homeschool and have a lot of schedule flexbility.

Thank you!

Alley

No. There is a Theme Ship Tour that's offered a couple of times onboard, but it only hits the public areas.

 

Rarely, some people are invited to the bridge (you must know someone who know someone). And there have been random Galley tours offered on select cruises.

 

We had a Backstage tour (in the theatre) on our TransAtlantic cruise.

Thanks! So is the Backstage tour offered on all the ships? I mean, is that something that is regularly done -- or rare?

Alley

Just wondering if the Disney ships do the All Access tour -- behind the scenes -- where you can see the engine control room, behind the stages etc.

Thanks!

Alley

Just wondering if I can go behind the scenes on all All Access type cruise like Royal Caribbean does?

Thanks!

Alley