The Seas are full of WONDER and waves! Our first Disney Cruise - 7-night Eastern Caribbean; Feb 2018

Part 33) Lunch and Innovation Session

After dropping Emma at the room so she could rest along with Judi (Emma I think was starting to drag a bit from the long week) I went up to the top deck to get some food - I ordered the special of the day which was a pulled pork sandwich along with a side shwarma. This was all tasty, if not overly amazing. Only issue was I had taken a large bite of my shwarma right as a server came by asking if I wanted a drink and I basically chocked on a big chunk of it - fortunately I got passed it but I probably looked like a freak trying to tell him what I wanted while I was choking :rotfl2:

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I also stopped at the Sully's Sips to get some Dole Whips with rum to bring back to the room. They were out of Vanilla Rum so I got one with Dark Rum and one with Spiced Rum I will say, while these were tasty, it is definitely NOT the same Dole Whip they have in the parks - definitely a different texture
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Judi decided to order room service for lunch and got a salmon dish for herself and grilled cheese for Emma and a key lime pie for dessert - she said she was quite satisfied with all of this
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Emma was napping at this point and Judi said she was fine just resting with her for a bit longer. I saw in the Navigator a session that sounded interesting so I headed off to that

On the way I walked through the atrium and there was a dance party going on ... gotta say, Donad's got some moves! I can't even do that with human sized feet!
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The session was held in the Crown and Fin (the British Pub style bar) and a funny thing happened when I arrived. Most of the tables up close (which were all high tables) had some people on them and at one, there was just one guy and he sort of looked familiar to me - so I asked if I could sit with him which he was fine with. I then mentioned that he looked familiar and if he was connected to the family that owns a local super market chain near me (that specializes in craft beer - the one I go to often has a bar with 28 taps located within the grocery store) and he said he was (he was one of the sons of the family that owns the chain) and also said that i looked familiar too. Turns out he is a huge Disney fan and I see him every now and then at the bar and we chat. He actually gave me a recommendation for a craft beer bar to visit near Walt Disney World - called Redlight Redlight (not sure if anyone has heard of it) that we might check out our next trip

Anyway, the session was about the top 10 innovations that Walt Disney and the Disney company developed and was largely a video or slide show with a CM host (who happened to Brian, who I find entertaining). It was definitely interesting (though clearly it is an older movie) and a fun thing to do for an hour over a beer, but I wouldn't call it a "must do"
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Coming up - it's already time to get ready for dinner .... funny how time flies when you are taking it easy!

TTFN!
 
Glad you could spend some time with Emma! Adorable character pics! She looks so much like Olivia in the pic with Tinkerbell!

Small world running into someone from home!
 
Hello Phil. So I “watched” this report ages ago and was really interested in reading it, since I have never been on a cruise. But then life got in the way and work got more in the way, so I never had the chance to read it. Well, I finally found my way back and read through it all. A Disney cruise seems wonderful. Hopefully I will be able to get on one someday. My wife is apprehensive about a cruise because she is prone to seasickness, but maybe she will change her mind someday.
Your Italy cruise looks great too. I just got caught up on Kristy’s report too. I was lucky to meet Pete, Teresa, Cathy (and Dustin) at the Nova Scotia Dismeet a few years ago, so I can imagine a whole trip with the podcast gang would be fun.
 
It looked like Emma had a blast meeting Tinker Bell and Princess Minnie. Also the Walt Disney innovations presentation looked awesome!
 


What a great sea day! I'm very much thinking Paxton is going to be running to the kids club every morning too. lol But hey it's the kids' vacation too! It's nice that it got you some one on one time with Emma as a trade off. Very cute meets! Donald dancing is absolutely adorable!!
 


Glad you could spend some time with Emma! Adorable character pics! She looks so much like Olivia in the pic with Tinkerbell!

Small world running into someone from home!

I was really glad to get some time with Emma and that she was humoring me with Character meets - you'll find that continued the next day at Castaway Cay as well so I was thankful for that time

I know! It was totally unexpected - but funny that we now know we have that in common and will chat about it. The bartenders at the bar in the grocery store (yeah, it's a unique setup) also now know we are both into Disney and update each of us on what the other has done or is thinking of, etc.


Hello Phil. So I “watched” this report ages ago and was really interested in reading it, since I have never been on a cruise. But then life got in the way and work got more in the way, so I never had the chance to read it. Well, I finally found my way back and read through it all. A Disney cruise seems wonderful. Hopefully I will be able to get on one someday. My wife is apprehensive about a cruise because she is prone to seasickness, but maybe she will change her mind someday.
Your Italy cruise looks great too. I just got caught up on Kristy’s report too. I was lucky to meet Pete, Teresa, Cathy (and Dustin) at the Nova Scotia Dismeet a few years ago, so I can imagine a whole trip with the podcast gang would be fun.

Thanks for coming back and for reading it all - I very much appreciate it! If this cruise was any indication definitely be proactive with dramamine or whatever works best for your wife as even though the ship is big, we definitely felt the movement!

It was definitely a fun and unique experience on the Italy cruise - largely it was the evenings when we would all come together and hang out which was fun. Having multiple nights in a row I think helped to vs just one conversation. Definitely got to know Craig a lot better this time


It looked like Emma had a blast meeting Tinker Bell and Princess Minnie. Also the Walt Disney innovations presentation looked awesome!

Emma had a lot of fun - her big request was princess Minnie so glad that one worked out!

The WD Innovations was fund - though the video was very old so could use some updating. Just neat to be on a cruise and they offer things like that and that so many people would be interested in it!
 
How cool that you knew someone at the presentation! It really is a small world!

I was so surprising - but now I know he is a big Disney fan and we will chat about it every now and then if I see him at the bar in the grocery store


thanks for the Viking review!!! really enjoyed all the details!!

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Glad you enjoyed it - definitely a unique experience to travel with that group!


What a great sea day! I'm very much thinking Paxton is going to be running to the kids club every morning too. lol But hey it's the kids' vacation too! It's nice that it got you some one on one time with Emma as a trade off. Very cute meets! Donald dancing is absolutely adorable!!

I definitely had to adjust to them (especially Olivia and Peter) just wanting to be in the Kids Clubs. I knew they would enjoy it but thought it would be more of a balance ... but once I just accepted it I think it worked better and they had a great time! I am glad Emma let me have some time with her

Donald was great! They did a lot of dance parties like that - and some on Castaway Cay too that were really fun. Definitely recommend checking out at least one or two if you get the chance!
 
Hey Phil! I rarely visit the cruise boards, so I just found this yesterday. I can't skip a TheMaxRebo trip report and am now all caught up!

Happy belated 40th! Age is only a number (coming from the 57 year old who still feels like she's in her 30's and wondering how she has kids in their 30's).

The kids are getting so big! Time flies! It's been fun watching your kids grow up through your trip reports.

The kids wanting to hang out in the Kid's Club all day reminds me of the trip to Disney when our girls were 4, 6 and 8 years old. We had trouble getting them off the playground and out of the pool at the hotel to go to the parks. That Kid's Club had to be pretty awesome to hold their attention for that long of time.

Thank you doing the Viking Cruise review. It's great that you and Judi were able to take such a memorable trip. I'm really jealous of the time you were able to spend with the DIS Unplugged crew!

Overall, how did your mom enjoy the cruise? Would you do another 7 night excursion?
 
Hey Phil. As the previous poster said, sorry I've been away for a bit and haven't had time to check in, sometimes life gets in the way.

All caught up now. I really enjoy your trip reports for a few reasons. It used to be because you focused on the important things in life and Disney trips. Food and drink. (I kid, kinda) These days I have new priorities and I like seeing how you tackle vacations as a parent. This cruise report was especially helpful as we have our first cruise ever coming up now in less than two weeks! (Gorsch in my best Goofy voice)

I do fear the motion sickness. Are the Dramamine pills your suggestion? It seems the bands can be real hit or miss. Our ship will be even bigger (Royal Caribbean Oasis of the Seas) than the one you were on, so I'm hoping it's not even an issue. Wondering if I should just go nuts and buy every remedy just in case.

At this point are you feeling lonely because the kids are spending so much time at the kids club?

I've never had much appreciation for character greets, especially the ones with actual faces. Somehow if they are in a complete suit I can find a way to suspend belief, but if I can see a face it just comes off as cheesy acting to me, maybe its the voice. I think though with a three year old this will be changing. I'm actually looking forward to him getting to meet some of the characters. Really I'm looking forward to getting the cute pics of the interactions like the one of Emma and Tink. I gotta say as far as characters go the ones that take on the role of Tinkerbell really seem to nail it.

A Disney cruise is definitely on the bucket list, but I don't know about the horizon. Do you think it is worth the expense? Is it a once in a lifetime trip, or would you think it's worth a repeat? I suppose those questions will be answered in your conclusion, so maybe pass for now. I too would really like to do a Viking river cruise some day.
 
Hi All - sorry for no updates for a while - life has definitely gotten in the way! Hoping to get back to this after the 4th of July (we always host a party so have been prepping for that)

Have some fun things coming back and big thing has been making time to create the gifs!



Hey Phil! I rarely visit the cruise boards, so I just found this yesterday. I can't skip a TheMaxRebo trip report and am now all caught up!

Happy belated 40th! Age is only a number (coming from the 57 year old who still feels like she's in her 30's and wondering how she has kids in their 30's).

The kids are getting so big! Time flies! It's been fun watching your kids grow up through your trip reports.

The kids wanting to hang out in the Kid's Club all day reminds me of the trip to Disney when our girls were 4, 6 and 8 years old. We had trouble getting them off the playground and out of the pool at the hotel to go to the parks. That Kid's Club had to be pretty awesome to hold their attention for that long of time.

Thank you doing the Viking Cruise review. It's great that you and Judi were able to take such a memorable trip. I'm really jealous of the time you were able to spend with the DIS Unplugged crew!

Overall, how did your mom enjoy the cruise? Would you do another 7 night excursion?

Thanks so much for following along Annie! Always love your comments!

It definitely is a bit add hitting those milestone birthdays as I don't really feel older but at the same time am now someone in their 40s which seems old in the abstract

haha, definitely there are times (be it on this cruise or at Disney) when I find myself saying, in effect "stop having fun, we need to go have different fun!" ... definitely learned on this cruise to roll with things more

Glad you enjoyed the Viking Cruise overview - we definitely feel very fortunate to have had the opportunity and was definitely more of a spur of the moment thing rather than over-analyzing all the "should we or shouldn't we" details ... but I am so glad we went for it!

I think my mom enjoyed the cruise but I think it was a bit much for her - she is in her mid-70s and just not used to that much activity/excitement/etc ... she enjoyed some of the quieter things and enjoyed Castaway Cay. I do wonder if she would have been better with a shorter cruise, though at the same time it did take us a few days to get used to things so hard to say. I think that goes for us as well in general - I think if we had a 4-5 day cruise that was like the 2nd half of this cruise it would have been great, but the 1st half was a bit rough with the rough waters and just not being used to cruising in general, so if we only had that experience we wouldn't have enjoyed it too much overall, so hard to say.

Thanks again!


Hey Phil. As the previous poster said, sorry I've been away for a bit and haven't had time to check in, sometimes life gets in the way.

All caught up now. I really enjoy your trip reports for a few reasons. It used to be because you focused on the important things in life and Disney trips. Food and drink. (I kid, kinda) These days I have new priorities and I like seeing how you tackle vacations as a parent. This cruise report was especially helpful as we have our first cruise ever coming up now in less than two weeks! (Gorsch in my best Goofy voice)

I do fear the motion sickness. Are the Dramamine pills your suggestion? It seems the bands can be real hit or miss. Our ship will be even bigger (Royal Caribbean Oasis of the Seas) than the one you were on, so I'm hoping it's not even an issue. Wondering if I should just go nuts and buy every remedy just in case.

At this point are you feeling lonely because the kids are spending so much time at the kids club?

I've never had much appreciation for character greets, especially the ones with actual faces. Somehow if they are in a complete suit I can find a way to suspend belief, but if I can see a face it just comes off as cheesy acting to me, maybe its the voice. I think though with a three year old this will be changing. I'm actually looking forward to him getting to meet some of the characters. Really I'm looking forward to getting the cute pics of the interactions like the one of Emma and Tink. I gotta say as far as characters go the ones that take on the role of Tinkerbell really seem to nail it.

A Disney cruise is definitely on the bucket list, but I don't know about the horizon. Do you think it is worth the expense? Is it a once in a lifetime trip, or would you think it's worth a repeat? I suppose those questions will be answered in your conclusion, so maybe pass for now. I too would really like to do a Viking river cruise some day.

Definitely hear you about the whole "Life getting in the way thing!" - but thank you for reading through everything!

That's great you have that cruise coming up - I hope you enjoy it! One thing I did hear from other people on the ship that have had motion sickness in the past it that they started taking the Dramamine before the cruise to get it more in their system - if we had to do it over again I think we would err on the side of taking some / doing more prep just to be safe!

It wasn't so much feeling lonely just that I was hoping to have a bit more time with the kids/as a family - along with time without them of course! I did really appreciate in the current day and the next that Emma was into hanging out so I enjoyed that a lot!

Totally agree about the character meets. There are some I will do as an adult of the picture and stuff but it really is even better with the kids! I agree about Tinkerbell and found similar things with Anna and also Ariel - I think the ones that the character's personality allows them to be a bit silly helps a lot vs the more "regal" Can have some good ones with Peter Pan as well for similar reasons

So it is a bit of the "big conclusion" for this trip report - but as a spoiler I will say that we did put down an onboard credit deposit in case we did want to take another cruise (get 10% off your next cruise if you use it w/i 2 years, and get your $ back if you don't) and we were thinking about doing one that left out of NY (just to make travel easier) but none of the dates worked and we just decided that, at least for now, we will not do another Disney cruise. We really enjoyed it and the service it top notch - it's just expensive. We realized we can do at least 2 trips to WDW vs the cost of one cruise (and maybe more). Part of it is as a family of 5 we either need to be in one of the family verandas (which are limited and thus very expensive) or get two inside rooms. I think if we were only 4 there would be more options for doing it a bit cheaper and then we would consider it, but for our family, where we are at now, I think we are going to at least hold off for a while

(hope that makes sense)
 
Part of it is as a family of 5 we either need to be in one of the family verandas (which are limited and thus very expensive) or get two inside rooms. I think if we were only 4 there would be more options for doing it a bit cheaper and then we would consider it, but for our family, where we are at now,

You can also get a Family Oceanview stateroom- they fit 5- we were just in one on the Fantasy and loved it! On that note, our next cruise will just be hubby and I- it is so expensive!!!
 
I'm really enjoying reading about your trip! I can't wait to read more!

Thank you so much ... more coming up now!!!


You can also get a Family Oceanview stateroom- they fit 5- we were just in one on the Fantasy and loved it! On that note, our next cruise will just be hubby and I- it is so expensive!!!

Oh, ok, thank you - definitely not aware of all the categories specifically .. just know I was test pricing out a few cruises and anything that fit 5 seemed pretty, pretty pricey! I think we might wait a few years and try a different cruise line when the kids are a bit older. It's definitely not a quality or even that I don't think what you get on DCL isn't worth the extra $, it's just an absolute budget thing and hard for us to swing it.



:thumbsup2
 
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As I mentioned above, apologies for the lack of updates - just life got in the way with redoing our bathroom and then our annual 4th of July party and just it feeling busy with end of the school year and now the start of the kids being off school

We've also got more of our plan set for our Walt Disney World trip this coming August (last week of August, before the kids go back to school) as we now have our tickets and all loaded in My Disney Experience and I am testing out to see what FP options will be available for a party of 11 only 30 days out (staying off site) - fun stuff!

But this update will finish day 6 - and then hopefully sooner rather than later I will start day 7 which is our Castaway Cay day!

******



Part 34) Dinner in the Bayou


After attending the session on Disney's top 10 Innovations I just rested for a bit and before too long it was time to pick up Olivia and Peter and head to dinner. Tonight was our 2nd night at Tiana's Place and I was really looking forward to it. When we arrived at the restaurant I made sure to take a few pictures of just the setting and how they made even just approaching the restaurant feel like you were in New Orleans / Mardi Gras

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Tonight the kids menu's were in the shape of Saxophones:
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and here is the menu for the adults:
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I opted to start with the Ahi Tuna Tartare (which was one of those things that was really good if you got just the right amount of each component in one bite, but otherwise would be too bland or too spice or two sweet) and then the New Orleans Seafood Pepper Pot (which was rather tasty, but not OMG amazing)
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What was "OMG amazing!" was my entree. This was the "Roasted Creole Half Chicken" and was honestly one of the best things I had all week. Our server did warn me that it was spicy and I am happy to report he was correct! But it wasn't overly spicy or anything, but definitely had some spice to it - but it was just delicious. If you like things like Jerk Chicken I highly recommend this. Apparently I liked it so much that I didn't take a photo of it, so I am borrowing this one from the web:

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Judi got the "Cajun Spiced Sea Bass" and also enjoyed this quite a bit - she was happy that most if not all of the jambalaya they served with dishes did not have pork in them as she doesn't eat beef or pork
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One thing they offered, in addition to the drink of the day for adults, was a smoothy of the day for the kids (for an extra charge). We had avoided this most of the time for the kids but they really wanted one tonight and so I figured it's vacation and once we can do the extra charged drink for them ... but I don't think they got the concept of "smoothie of the day" as instead of ordering that they just wanted vanilla which basically means they got an extra charged vanilla shake with dinner. Oh well.
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Up next - dessert and dancing!
 
Part 35) Dessert and Dancing

They had a Photopass Photographer coming around to the tables tonight, which was nice. On reason I really like things like the photo package is so often I am not in any of the photos as I am always the one taking them, so this sort of forces me to be in at least a few - if nothing else, as evidence that I actually was on the trip!
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They also had the band playing with Tiana sining - a number of songs but they did "Going Down the Bayou" a few times. Judi took the girls up for a closer look and to dance around a bit
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And then Tiana led everyone around the restaurant
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Peter didn't want to participate but our server came around with a tambourine and convinced Peter to play that for a bit .... usually not hard to convince Peter to hit things ;)
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After the parade, they finished with some Limbo!
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Then it was time for dessert - and I was excited to see that tonight they had the beignets on the menu!
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I ordered those beignets along with the New Orleans Bananas Foster Sundae. The beignets were quite good - but the sundae was the winner. Really found you couldn't go wrong with any of the sundaes!
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Judi got the begneits as well and we also got a slice of the Chocolate Doberge Gateau - which was chocolatey and yummy ... but rich, so a good one to share
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Up next - evening activities - which were a blast!
 
Part 36) Evening Activities are a Blast!

One negative thing that happened at dinner was that Emma started to not feel so good. I think it was largely just "too much" of everything for a three year old and she was starting to get worn out towards the end of the week. She'd be find for a while but then get tired and not feel great. So Judi took her back to the room a bit early and then I dropped the other kids at the kids club and headed back to the room to meet her there ... in addition I also met our towel animal for this evening:
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If you recall, they had to cancel the fireworks for Pirate Night due to the weather, but the good news is the weather improved and they were able to do them this night! They didn't redo the rest of the pirate show, they just did like a more standard DJ and dance party and stuff like that on the top deck and then shot off the fireworks. With Emma not feeling well I agreed to stay in the room with Emma while Judi went up to see the show. Emma fell asleep before to long and I quietly made my way to the veranda to enjoy some quite time and reading and a beer - this is another one I got in the beer swap and of course has a great name and label (though I recall the beer tasting fine, but nothing incredible)
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Fortunately, the fireworks were being shot off the side of the boat that our room was on, so while Judi saw this on deck:
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I saw this from our veranda:
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I have to say, seeing fireworks out in the middle of the ocean from your cruise ship is a pretty darn cool experience and something unique to Disney Cruise Line. A bit bummed I didn't get to see them with others from the family from the top deck, but I am very glad I was able to see it from our veranda.

Shortly after Judi picked up the kids from the kids club and they all returned and we got to bed.

Up next is already our last full day - and was one I was looking forward to as it was our stop at Castaway Cay ... and we had to get up early for an activity Judi and I were doing!

TTFN!!!
 
How awesome that you got to see the Fireworks from your verandah! Sorry that Emma wasn't feeling well. Dinner looked yummy and fun!
 

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