Any Disney Cruisers Here?

[DEFYANT]

We have a booked Disney Cruise and will be departing soon. I was wondering is anyone here has already taken a cruise on disneys cruise lines. And real world tips and / or tricks? We will have a 7, 8 and 10 yr old with us.

I like to hear your experiances.

[rayjay]

You're braver than me.

[CRUZTAKER]

We joined a Disney cruise line forum much like this one.

There are people out there devoted to that line with lots of tips.

All I can offer is get a room with a balcony.
We originally did not, and once I saw our room I trotted back off the ship and upgraded while still in port.

I'll have to think during the day tomorrow...
But I know of some tricks to catching the characters in various spots on the ship.

Donald is the hardest character to catch alone roaming.
The characters pop up unannounced here and there, but only for about 15 minutes at a time. The other occations are planned, and on your daily newsletter in your mailbox. Get in line early!

BTW: Sleeping beauty is HOT!!! :D:P

[pantheroc]

BTW: Sleeping beauty is HOT!!! :D:P


Don't believe you, where's the pics?

[CRUZTAKER]

Pics are coming this evening...it was too late to post last night.

edit***

We were still shooting Nikon 6006 film back then.
I have great shots, but scanning them won't do justice to the quality.

You'll just have to trust me. :)

[sailsmen]

We went when they first launched their own vessels. Great experience.

Try to book your meal time asap.

Bring a day bag, it can take 4-6 hours for your bags to make it to your room. My kids swam in their clothes waiting for the bags.

If you are subject ot seasick test the med a week before and take it the nite before you go onboard. Once you are seasick the only cure is land.

The Disney Is is great try to spend the whole day there. Don't hesitate to sign the kids up for the classes, they are great.

Read the Navigator, daily activity sheet.

Per ^^^ Balcony is a big plus.

The longest you have to carry the kids is 1,200'.

[Vortech347]

I've been on 3. They are awesome. Be as Lazy as possible.

Blue Lizard Sunblock FTW if you use sunscreen.

[Paco]

Just returned from my first one - a four night on the Wonder. It was awesome.:)

Yes - get a balcony! Excursions are great - so is the food. Book the dining and spa early. Didn't feel much movement. Didn't take the kids along so I can't speak to that. Read the daily "navigator" newspaper to see whats happening each day and spend a few moments gathering a daily plan of events.

PM me if you need anymore details.

[justbob]

Balcony +++ Also mid ship for smoothest ride

[pantheroc]

Is the Disney cruise okay, great or better on another other cruise line, for us if we do not have childeren?

[BigCars4Ever]

Don't be afraid to let your kids stay in the programs. We couldn't get our kids to leave. Also bring your own snorkle gear. I don't really care for using someone elses' snorkle plus the rental fee is more than a snorkel set at walmart even with the fins. They have a great snorkle circuit on the island.
Don't bother going to the straw market...everything there is made in China anyways. The Atlantis aquarium tour was great. It's a personal tour of the aquarium by a guide and we really enjoyed it.
They also had some good fishing/diving/snorkle excursions that some friends went on.
Any outside room 3rd deck and up have a huge port window. No balcony but still a great view.
The family radios work great on the ship and are a great way to stay in touch just bring the charger.
If I think of more I'll post again.

[DEFYANT]

Great info guys, thanks! Keep it coming!

[Aren Jay]

Don't drink the water.

If you get sea sick drink champaign.

a beeper / gps collar for each kid is a good idea. Or ankle braclet like the prisoner ones...

Tell the kids horror stories aobut cruise ships and they won't go running off having fun, instead they will stay close and you can have fun.

Show the kids Titanic and speed 2 or 3 which ever one had the boat in it, before you go.

Oh, you like your kids... Oh, ok don't them.

[CRUZTAKER]

Is the Disney cruise okay, great or better on another other cruise line, for us if we do not have childeren?

Jerry,
If you and Diane are big Disney enthusiests, you will enjoy the cruise.
However, their cruise itinerary is very short. When we went, over 7 days it only covered three stops. St. Maarten, St. Thomas, and a private cay in the southern Bahamas.
These cruises also cost quite a bit more than say a 7 day eastern/western cruise on Princess or Celebrity that stop at 4 islands.

The quality of the Disney line in comparison is nearly the same, if not better. We tend to rate our experience based on the age of the ship as well. Newer ships do shorter itineraries. The older ships do the longer ones. Disney's ships are still in really great shape, and as all cruise lines, someone is cleaning every nook and cranny 24/7 on the ship to keep it shiny and spotless. I did notice however, that with the Disney ship only making 3 stops, that the balconies/glass exteriors were not cleaned but only once. The salt spray really makes a mess. On the longer trips, the balconies are sprayed every other day, or daily while in port.

Sailing out of San Juan is going to be pretty much the only option for deep carribean 7 day tours. They stop at atleast 6 islands, and provide the most 'tour' for the dollar, and can cost nearly the same as the eastern/western tours out of US ports.

The food is good on all carriers I mentioned, and Disney is no different.
However, with Disney, you will have a wider dining experience as you are scheduled in a different dining atmospere nightly. The 'painter's pallet'...I think that is the right name, the dining room where the character pictures on the wallls draw themselves from pencil to color while you eat is really cool. Bring a video camera. The ceiling is a virtual painter's pallet, with the columns as brushes, and it changes colors.

The Disney cruise offers a TON of things for the kids from every age day care through the teen only (NO ADULTS!) centers, pools, clubs, and game rooms.
On this cruise line, this is the biggest difference from all other carriers...tons of kids/teens/tweens acting like kids, meeting friends, and having run of the ship.
There is only one adult only night club, and one adult only sports bar.

We will definately do it again when Elliot gets around 3-4 years of age.
In the meanwhile, we are good members with Princess (10+) cruises, and gold with Celebrity. These are my personal top two recomendations for classy cruises. I have never sailed Royal Caribbean, but plan to do so some day. We don't sail Carnival as these line are typically geared for the younger crowd without kids and basically party boats.

As far as the water...I can't believe it was suggested NOT to drink it. Obviously some one with little travels aboard ships. :rolleyes:
The water aboard the ships is fine. They actually will CHARGE you for bottled water to take on excursions. Water dispensed at dinner is ALL from bottles, and free. I have never gotten sick from the ships tap water. It may taste odd due to the desalunation process abord the ship. BTW: Most pools aboard cruise ships are sea water.
The water on most of the islands is fine as well, and is usually dispensed from containers.

One big trick I highly suggest....
Bring your own booze, specialty mixes, and bottled water.
We ALWAYS take a cab from port over to the local publix and stock up on certain items that come at a price aboard ship.
We will take one or two of our carry on bags and empty them after getting off the bus in port. The ship won't care if you bring aboard pop, water, and snacks. They will harrass you in regards to booze. Be sneaky. ;)
I once refused to hand over my case of beer, and was sent to a window, where the lady made me sign some sort of waiver, and off I went, with my beer on board.
Now...you can get duty free dirt cheap liquor at your first port stop, however, sometimes that first port doesn't come for a day or more. St. Maarten had 1 litre bottles of Absolut for $5.50 US!
We will typically stash one or two bottles in our check-in luggage that will be there when our luggage hits our room.
(Don't overpack clothing! Leave empty space to bring things home (and take things there). You will find yourself living in swim cloths most of the time, and only need full clothing for dinners.)
Definately pack some snacks, water, and specialty soda that might not be available on board. Only the food aboard is free. Limited drinks such as juice, milk, and tap water are free. All booze, soda, and even ICE CREAM is at a cost and will go on your room tab. You must warn the kids that everytime they hand that room card to an employee...that charge is going on the room tab! Therefore, bring your own booze!!!

Hell, if we get to port early enough, we will empty two carry on bags and grab a cab to the local publix and grab a case of beer, a case of diet coke, and some specialty mixes for the booze we brought. My brother-in-law and his wife have been known to run up a $800 bar tab on a 7-day cruise!:eek:

If my room tab is over $400 for the week, and that includes buying portraits and gifts while aboard...I am surprised. BTW...EVERYTHING is cheaper off the ship. Particularly jewelry and booze. St. Thomas is very reliable for diamonds and jewelry. NOTE!!!! Make your final purchases on the islands an hour before the ship is to leave. Find something early, make your face known, wheel and deal on the price, and then say you are going elsewhere. Come back to the same place several times...but do not buy until the last minute in port. I have walked out of a jewelry store after debating over a 5 carat tanzanite mounted on platinum with a firm price of $650 and have had the owner chase me down the sidewalk walking back to the ship begging me: "How much do you offer....how about $600....$550....?" We walked off with that ring for under $500.
Wheel and deal man...on everything. You will see a ton of electronics. Watch for grey market crap, and remember that the warranties likely are no good since the seller is not verified. But no fear...some deals are hard to pass up! I have paid 1/2 retail on Nikon lenses, iPods, and all sorts of cool tax free stuff.

Whatever you buy, hide it and do NOT claim it on your customs declarations. It will only hold you up with disembarkation at the end of your cruise. If you buy booze in port...just wait till you see the prices OMG!, carry a personal bag to bring it back on board. You will go through a metal detector and the bag will be screened, but 99% of the time they let you slide. Just smile a lot and say pleeesssee.:P Pack it all in your take home check in luggage. Customs only walks the dogs through for drugs, they don'y xray for contents otherwise. Take your labels off your cuban cigars and pack them separately. Put the sleeves back on when you get home.
They prefer to take your liquor purchases and hold them until the end of the cruise. They want to sell you theirs at inflated prices. :nono:

[pantheroc]

Damn CRUZ....Your a wealth of information! Thankz!

[bob6364]

Guess I finally understand your forum Nick name now....