1st Time Cruisers Trip Report - The Dream

[DisneyTravelers2008]

-*- The Crew: Me, DH, DS (16) and DD(10)
-*- The Itinerary: 4 Nights On The Dream – Sailing January 19, 2014
-*- The Route: Port Canaveral to Nassau, Bahamas & Castaway Cay With a Day At Sea
-*- Day 1 = Set Sail & Tour…..Day 2 = Nassau & Enjoy The Ship…..Day 3 – Castaway Cay…..Day 4 = At Sea – Palo & Rainforest Spa…..Day 5 - Disembarkation
-*- Transportation: Driving form NC {9 ½ hours}


This was our very first cruise so I will try to incorporate lots of info that will answer some of the questions of first time cruisers. I did a good bit of research to prepare for this trip …since it was a short cruise, I wanted to get the most out of it by knowing about things before I got there. For now, I just want to start this trip report with a few photos of the things Disney does best…
-*- Character Meets!



-*- Food!


-*- Service!


-*- Fireworks!


-*- Pirates


-*- Views

 

[wiigirl]

Following along!

 

[DisneyTravelers2008]

SOME BACKGROUND ON THE TRIP

About a year ago, I finally convinced DH to try a cruise. He was VERY SKEPTICAL, but he loves Disney and trusts their reputation for service...so he agreed. Plus, his brother in law told him how much he enjoyed it when they went the year before. They are a lot alike so DH started warming up to the idea. I basically had a year to plan. All summer long I bought clothes along the way so we'd have plenty for the trip. You can’t buy shorts and flip flops in NC in January!

I did a lot of research and heard things like this...I did all these things and STRONGLY SUGGEST you do this too! I may think of more…but this is a good start.

TIPS FOR YOUR CRUISE
---bring your own cups for the soda station. Tervis tumblers with lids are great!

---You don’t have to have a passport (as of Jan. 2014) to sail to the Bahamas but it is strongly recommended by DCL

---If you order sodas from room service or the bar, there is a fee. You can order them for free at dinner and use the “all you can drink” soda fountain on deck 11. The lemonade with a splash of fruit juice is a great mixer for vodka or rum (just sayin…)

---you can bring alcohol onboard as long as it fits in your carry on. If you carry on has rollers, you are good to go!

---If you buy the drink of the day in a fancy glass, you will pay extra for the glass. It makes a cool souvenir…but after buying it…just have them refill it so you don’t have to pay for it again. The drink of the day special is about $5.20 and the 18% is ALREDY included on the slip you sing. Just look and you will see it!

---Send your kids to the kids club (if that applies) and have brunch or dinner at Palo ($25 extra per person) or Remy ($75 extra per person). The tip WAS NOT already added here so be sure to add it,

---bring something like a photo matte to drop off at guest services for characters to sign (so you don’t have to tote it with you when you go stand in line to visit with them)

---put plenty of $1 in your pocket to trip luggage porters, bus drivers, etc

---bring cash if you plan to shop at the straw market at Nassau

---know that time evaporates on a cruise ship

---pack a day bag with swimsuits because when you first get on the ship, it is not very busy and its a great time to ride ( Also sunscreen and a little pack of meds you might need….Bonine or Dramamine…just in case)

---Call guest services ****in advance of the cruise**** and give them your credit card number or gift card numbers to save time so you don’t have to do that once onboard…do anything you can to maximize your FUN TIME on the ship. Remember, time evaporates on a cruise ship!

---have lunch on the ship (We ate about 11:15 at Cabanas)

---if you follow a GLUTEN FREE diet, let the chef know and they will help you when ordering. They walked DH through the line at Cabana’s and he had a wonderful meal. They also have gluten free waffles and donuts! Flo’s made gluten free pizza for him in under 8 minutes.

---as soon as you can, register your activities online and pick a boarding time as early as possible. We got onboard at 10:30 to get the most out of Day #1 since it was a short cruise.

---make sure your boarding documents are in a convenient place so you can get to them quickly and easily as you get on and off the boat…

---bring some shoe hangers or organizers for your makeup / toiletries/etc

---if you go to the spa, take your "get ready stuff" (makeup, hair products) and get ready in their NICE and BIG bathroom! (not in the tiny time one in your state room)

---Consider parking somewhere other than the Disney parking lot. We parked at "Park Port Canaveral;" which was connected to the Radisson for half the Disney price. They had a free shuttle. It was very nice and convenient and we saved about $40.

---Get a hotel room somewhere close by the night before the cruise so you don't have any travel delays. DH paid for the trip in full before I had a chance to buy trip insurance so I was nervous about this. Once you pay in full, you can’t add trip insurance

---make some magnets for your door to decorate it so you don’t look like a newbie

---consider joining a "Fish Exchange" group. It was fun and we had a FB group that we all posted on before the trip. It was very fun…We had a meet and greet...more on this later in the report...[/FONT]

 

[DisneyTravelers2008]

FISH EXTENDER (FE) GIFT EXCHANGE GROUP

I found the cruise meet link for my cruise date her on the DIS. They had created a Facebook group and we all talked and chatted there…it was fun and I left like I had some buddies before I even got onboard. We had 2 meet and greets to make it convenient for people and we just met up and chatted for about 15 minutes. As far as the FE gifts, everyone in the group hangs a bag or specially made hanger from the fish decoration outside their cabin door. Thus, the name “Fish Extender”. Then you deliver little gifts to everyone in your group. Some people made things and some people bought things. We got lots of Disney themed stuff like night lights, candy, tattoos for pirate night, little makeup bags, picture frames, gum (they don’t sell it onboard), etc…

I made my FE hanger from a $1 organizer from the bargain bin at Target. It has clear “windows in it” so I used scrapbook paper and an old Disney Calendar to fix it up. You can spend a lot of money having one custom made, but this worked for me.



Here are some of the gifts we received:



This is what we gave as the main gift. I have a variety of little things to the kids in our group…but this was the main gift…


It was fun, but there was a time commitment to make and sort everything before leaving and them once on the ship, I spent about 45 minutes delivering to the 13 people in our group. I did it very late one night when the ship was quiet. I would do it again. Our entire family loved checking the FE hanger to see what was delivered. Very fun!

 

[DisneyTravelers2008]

I signed up on the Disney cruise website after booking the cruise about 11 months in advance to get emails about the cruise. They sent me a reminder to let me know that Nov. 5, 2014 was the date that I could sign up for online check in, select a time to board the ship and schedule excursions. So…I did just that. We were able to get on board very early …at 10:30 am. I got the 2nd dinner seating that I wanted. I heard the 2nd one had less kids…and since our kids are older that worked for us. Don’t get me wrong, I love kids, but I like a quiet relaxing dinner now that my kids are of the age to allow that.

As for excursions, I scheduled the Wild Side Teen Adventure for my 16 yr old son ($50) and the Stingray Encounter for my daughter (Elizabeth, 10 yr old) , husband (Clay) and myself. It was about $45 each and also included snorkeling. These fees seemed to show up on our onboard account as soon as we got on the ship. I did not give a credit card in advance since we had gift cards.

More to come....