Texas Twin Sis
Earning My Ears
- Joined
- Aug 6, 2018
We have recently returned from our first overseas trip with Disney on the Disney Magic out of Dover July 2019. I need to say that a trip like this requires a lot of planning. There were not many reports on this cruise so I wish to share a few thoughts about our trip Including pre-cruise time in Dover. So here goes.
Pre-planning: We booked the cruise late for Disney trips (in July 2018 on the Wonder Alaska cruise) and there were only a few cabins available. Our party was 3 adults. We were only able to secure a standard interior room on deck seven forward but I hoped for a future cancellation for an upgrade to a split bath. And that did happen. On payment deadline day a "hidden porthole" room forward became available and we snagged it. More on that later. We also arranged our air through Disney. 381 days out from cruise Disney can offer plane ticket reservations that when taking Disney cruise insurance are also covered under the same plan. Looking into plan ticket prices and travel insurance on my own I decided with the combination offer including travel insurance for both cruise and air I went with Disney. Upon booking Disney air gave me my confirmation number for each airline (United going and Delta return) We got the non stop flights we wanted from San Antonio, Texas to Washington DC then overnight to Dover. Coming back from Copenhagen we flew thru JFK. I immediately went to each airlines flights and chose our seats. Disney air is mid cabin economy, not basic economy in the far back with ability to upgrade and refund if needed. We chose seats in the first rows mid cabin and had adequate space. Those seats never changed for the nearly one year out from the cruise. Two in our party walk with a cane so we were also able to make wheelchair requests at the same time. With the overseas air we each got one checked suitcase for free and the regular carry ons--one personal item and one carry on. Be especially mindful of the size and weight requirement to each on each airline. They were very strict especially the return trip. As for excursions I did a lot of research on the ports of call during the next months. We did many through Disney and some on our own, more during each date report to follow.
First day pre-cruise: We had no problems with any of our two non stop flights. A slight delay in Washington DC on the tarmack due to weather but got a new flight route and arrived on time at 6:45am. Wheel chair assist was right there and aided us thru customs. We had made arrangements with a private driver (found through this disboard) to pick us up at 8:30am giving us plenty of time to get through the customs process and grab a bit to eat. We timed it well and only waited approx. 30 minutes. I originally had booked a Disney hotel and travel to stay in London. But upon review of the places we wanted to see, which were manly around Dover and the drive time to get there, we decided to overnight in Dover until embarkation on the ship. We booked an airport pick up service and all day tour through horizonprivatehire.co,uk with owner Gary Price and couldn't have been more pleased. I placed my deposit for an airport pick up and transfer to Dover on the 19th and an all day tour on the 20th right after securing the plane tickets. Yes, that is right, that far out. We couldn't have been more pleased with Gary in fact our time with him was excellent. Gary was right on time, with a big smile, professionally dressed and escorted us from our meeting place just outside security to his SUV. His transportation was extremely clean and new. He immediately offered us bottled water and for us to sit where we pleased. It takes approx an hour and half from the airport to reach Dover (another reason to stay near the port of Dover on pre-cruise to see the sights), due to morning traffic and it being the first day of summer holiday for school kids it took slightly longer. The road to Dover is along an expressway so not so much on seeing the sights, but great conversation as we got to know one another. Gary allowed us to "discover" sights and then with his big smile enthusiastically explained what we were seeing. He also prompted us as we came upon "the wonders of my home area" as he put it. During our time with him we laughed, shared and learned about his home. Coming into Dover was a sight. Seeing the entrance to the undersea tunnel that connects England and France then suddenly after a slight curve to see the city and port of Dover and the sea was a real experience. Dropping down into the small narrow streets of the city he took us to our hotel and waited. He offered to take us on up to Dover Castle if we couldn't get into our room since he had the time. Since we arrived at approx. 11am the desk of the Best Western & Spa at the Marina held our bags and Gary promptly took us to the Castle entrance gate and made sure we had the proper tickets to see the castle and sights we were doing the next day. We purchased the 9 day visitor ticket which got us into many historical sights, museums and castles. Even though we were only there for one and the next it still saved us a lot of money and time on entry fees the next day. After a brief exchange of plans for the next day and instructions on how to get a cab to return to the hotel (he had another pick up), we were left on our own. Even though jet lag was starting to catch up with us we decided that going to the Castle was the best option instead of waiting in the hotel lobby until the 3pm check in time. We walked up the short distance to the first wall gate of the Castle complex. It is uphill and the sidewalk is very close to the traffic driving in, be alert to this. Upon arriving at the first look out we saw the coast of France since it was a wonderful clear day. A tour of the underground tunnels was starting in a few minutes so we joined it and saw how during WWII it was used as a hospital and relay station for messages. Dover Castle was also the location of Patton's phantom army to fool the Germans as to where the invasion was to take place. After the tour we enjoyed lunch at a cafe inside a building of the castle grounds then caught the tram up to the main castle. We passed Roman ruins of a lighthouse and the gates of the inner castle wall, the ramparts and gun positions added in the 1700's as well as the earthworks up to the main castle entry. Then it was another uphill walk into the castle itself. Lots to see with lots of exhibits and lots of views. We hit the wall with jet lag late that after noon and returned to the hotel via taxi knowing with our purchased visitor pass we could return as many times as we wished. After a short 2 hour nap we were ready to walk the city before supper. Using the underground walkway we made our way into the City of Dover; quaint and working class buildings and squares. Also saw a beautiful church and graveyard. Decided to walk back to the marina area for supper and found Cullen's Yard restaurant and pub. There we had a bubble and squeak for supper and as it turned dark returned to the hotel to grab some shut eye before we met Gary the next day. Will continue in next post our next day and embarkation to Disney Magic
Pre-planning: We booked the cruise late for Disney trips (in July 2018 on the Wonder Alaska cruise) and there were only a few cabins available. Our party was 3 adults. We were only able to secure a standard interior room on deck seven forward but I hoped for a future cancellation for an upgrade to a split bath. And that did happen. On payment deadline day a "hidden porthole" room forward became available and we snagged it. More on that later. We also arranged our air through Disney. 381 days out from cruise Disney can offer plane ticket reservations that when taking Disney cruise insurance are also covered under the same plan. Looking into plan ticket prices and travel insurance on my own I decided with the combination offer including travel insurance for both cruise and air I went with Disney. Upon booking Disney air gave me my confirmation number for each airline (United going and Delta return) We got the non stop flights we wanted from San Antonio, Texas to Washington DC then overnight to Dover. Coming back from Copenhagen we flew thru JFK. I immediately went to each airlines flights and chose our seats. Disney air is mid cabin economy, not basic economy in the far back with ability to upgrade and refund if needed. We chose seats in the first rows mid cabin and had adequate space. Those seats never changed for the nearly one year out from the cruise. Two in our party walk with a cane so we were also able to make wheelchair requests at the same time. With the overseas air we each got one checked suitcase for free and the regular carry ons--one personal item and one carry on. Be especially mindful of the size and weight requirement to each on each airline. They were very strict especially the return trip. As for excursions I did a lot of research on the ports of call during the next months. We did many through Disney and some on our own, more during each date report to follow.
First day pre-cruise: We had no problems with any of our two non stop flights. A slight delay in Washington DC on the tarmack due to weather but got a new flight route and arrived on time at 6:45am. Wheel chair assist was right there and aided us thru customs. We had made arrangements with a private driver (found through this disboard) to pick us up at 8:30am giving us plenty of time to get through the customs process and grab a bit to eat. We timed it well and only waited approx. 30 minutes. I originally had booked a Disney hotel and travel to stay in London. But upon review of the places we wanted to see, which were manly around Dover and the drive time to get there, we decided to overnight in Dover until embarkation on the ship. We booked an airport pick up service and all day tour through horizonprivatehire.co,uk with owner Gary Price and couldn't have been more pleased. I placed my deposit for an airport pick up and transfer to Dover on the 19th and an all day tour on the 20th right after securing the plane tickets. Yes, that is right, that far out. We couldn't have been more pleased with Gary in fact our time with him was excellent. Gary was right on time, with a big smile, professionally dressed and escorted us from our meeting place just outside security to his SUV. His transportation was extremely clean and new. He immediately offered us bottled water and for us to sit where we pleased. It takes approx an hour and half from the airport to reach Dover (another reason to stay near the port of Dover on pre-cruise to see the sights), due to morning traffic and it being the first day of summer holiday for school kids it took slightly longer. The road to Dover is along an expressway so not so much on seeing the sights, but great conversation as we got to know one another. Gary allowed us to "discover" sights and then with his big smile enthusiastically explained what we were seeing. He also prompted us as we came upon "the wonders of my home area" as he put it. During our time with him we laughed, shared and learned about his home. Coming into Dover was a sight. Seeing the entrance to the undersea tunnel that connects England and France then suddenly after a slight curve to see the city and port of Dover and the sea was a real experience. Dropping down into the small narrow streets of the city he took us to our hotel and waited. He offered to take us on up to Dover Castle if we couldn't get into our room since he had the time. Since we arrived at approx. 11am the desk of the Best Western & Spa at the Marina held our bags and Gary promptly took us to the Castle entrance gate and made sure we had the proper tickets to see the castle and sights we were doing the next day. We purchased the 9 day visitor ticket which got us into many historical sights, museums and castles. Even though we were only there for one and the next it still saved us a lot of money and time on entry fees the next day. After a brief exchange of plans for the next day and instructions on how to get a cab to return to the hotel (he had another pick up), we were left on our own. Even though jet lag was starting to catch up with us we decided that going to the Castle was the best option instead of waiting in the hotel lobby until the 3pm check in time. We walked up the short distance to the first wall gate of the Castle complex. It is uphill and the sidewalk is very close to the traffic driving in, be alert to this. Upon arriving at the first look out we saw the coast of France since it was a wonderful clear day. A tour of the underground tunnels was starting in a few minutes so we joined it and saw how during WWII it was used as a hospital and relay station for messages. Dover Castle was also the location of Patton's phantom army to fool the Germans as to where the invasion was to take place. After the tour we enjoyed lunch at a cafe inside a building of the castle grounds then caught the tram up to the main castle. We passed Roman ruins of a lighthouse and the gates of the inner castle wall, the ramparts and gun positions added in the 1700's as well as the earthworks up to the main castle entry. Then it was another uphill walk into the castle itself. Lots to see with lots of exhibits and lots of views. We hit the wall with jet lag late that after noon and returned to the hotel via taxi knowing with our purchased visitor pass we could return as many times as we wished. After a short 2 hour nap we were ready to walk the city before supper. Using the underground walkway we made our way into the City of Dover; quaint and working class buildings and squares. Also saw a beautiful church and graveyard. Decided to walk back to the marina area for supper and found Cullen's Yard restaurant and pub. There we had a bubble and squeak for supper and as it turned dark returned to the hotel to grab some shut eye before we met Gary the next day. Will continue in next post our next day and embarkation to Disney Magic
one day I would like to do this cruise!!! could you combine all of your posts into one thread? might be easier to follow?
