Tag: Disney Cruise Line

4 NIGHT BAHAMIAN CRUISE ABOARD THE DISNEY WISH

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In my previous blog, I wrote how we booked our Disney cruise tickets and some insights for first. time cruisers like us. Believe me, I wish I read more blogs and watched vlogs so we could prepare for what’s coming. lol

DAY 1

This was the day of our arrival. Upon coming inside, you will be greeted by the staff and they will ask for your last name and they will be announcing your presence. We actually weren’t ready for that!lol

We then looked for our room which was located in Deck 2. Upon arriving, you will be asked to log in to the wifi of the ship since during the trip, you won’t be having any signal on your phone. It is also important that you have the Disney Cruise Line app installed in your phone- all the Disney activities, restaurants, your port adventures are all in there. You can also chat with a member of your group using the app.

Our room had the big porthole window which gives us a scenic view of the ocean.

The toilet is separate from the bathroom

Our luggage didn’t arrive yet but we already met our head housekeeper. He is tasked for cleaning our room and preparing it for bedtime during our entire stay.

We were starving so we headed for our first meal on the cruise in Mickey and Friends Festival of Foods at Deck 11- it’s a buffet food court with stalls named after the Fab 5- Mickey, Minnie, Goofy, Donald and Daisy. They are open for lunch, snacks and dinner- good for grab and go hunger pangs.

This is also where the big TV screen and the pools are located.

Before setting sail, all guests were asked to report to their respective assembly stations for safety drill.

Then it’s time to set sail! The Fab Five gave us a sail away party.

The fun was just starting!

We came back to our room and found that our luggages have arrived and our room has been set ready for bedtime 🙂

Our first dinner on the ship was at Arendelle- as the name says, the feel of the restaurant is the movie Frozen, the feel was upbeat as Anna, Elsa, Olaf, Kristoff and the Oaken sings to Nordic renditions of the songs from Frozen. They would go table to table and greet everyone, there was a song where the kids were invited to dance with them around the tables.

Here we first met our head server, server and assistant server. They will be with us during our dinners aboard the ship. We also shared our table with a lovely family.

After dinner, we went to watch the movie Elemental in one of the ship’s theaters.

DAY 2 NASSAU, BAHAMAS

We woke up early to get breakfast at the Marceline Market and get ready for our day at Nassau.

Marceline Market reminds me of Chelsea Market in New York- it features food from all over the world.

After breakfast, we tried the Aquamouse- a thrilling yet fun water ride. No high drops at all which made us love it and go back for more!

We booked the Nassau sightseeing tour. Here, we rode a van and toured almost half of Nassau, the tour guide told us a short history of the island and pointed to to us famous resorts, houses of previous pirates, and lastly we went on a beach just near where our boat was docked. We were very enamored with their beach. It reminded us of our white powdery warm beaches at home.

We were assigned to dine at 1923- this is the year the Walt Disney Company was founded. It’s very nostalgic to know how far along Disney has touched and influenced the lives of people. That’s why you wouldn’t be surprised that aboard the ship, you can see lots of old couples enjoying their time in the ship. Disney is a timeless classic!

After dinner, we watched the show The Little Mermaid and it felt like I was watching a broadway show.

We had so much energy that after watching the show, we went up to Deck 11 and watched the fireworks. Yes Disney has fireworks- this makes it distinct from the other cruise lines.

DAY 3 DISNEY CASTAWAY CAY, NASSAU BAHAMAS

Our trip to Disney’s own private island was one of the highlights of the trip- we really enjoyed our time here, just the perfect vacation for us. We spent the day just basking under the sun. First, we had breakfast at 1923- yes they also do offer sit down breakfast and then got off the ship.

We booked the kayak port adventure in Castaway Cay.

It was fun paddling at first but then when we reached a part farther from the shore, I got scared since the water current was against us. lol

We had barbecue for lunch at the island. Even in the island, I applaud how organized Disney is. We didn’t wait for a long time to line up for lunch, drinks are always available And the seats including the beach chairs is always enough for everyone. Their customer service is just superb.

Showers are also available to wash off sea water.

As the day almost ended, we heavily dragged our feet to the ship as we still didn’t want to go.

We had our dinner at 1923. It was Pirate’s Night (which I am not aware of until we boarderd) and mostly everyone was in their pirate’s costume. There was only a few of us who didn’t come prepared. lol.

Even our stateroom blanket dressed up as a pirate!

We dropped our daughter to Disney’s Oceaneer Club while we went for some couple’s time inside the ship.

Later during the night, deck 11 was full of pirate people ready for the party and fireworks. We actually skipped it as we got tired from the beach.

DAY 4 AT THE SHIP

We spent the whole day exploring the ship, watching movies that we haven’t watched yet, doing the Aquamouse again, swimming and lounging at Deck 11 while watching at the large TV.

For our dinner, we were assigned to dine at Worlds of Marvel. The dinner was interactive with screen appearances of the latest marvel characters and lucky for us, Spiderman made a personal appearance!

After dinner, we went to watch the show Aladdin.

The next day was melancholic since it was time for us to disembark. We had breakfast at the Worlds of Marvel. The night before, we already prepared the luggages. The guests have the option either to carry the luggages to disembarkation or have the staff bring it down for you. Should you choose the latter, you have to place the luggages outside your stateroom with the tags given by Disney.

The disembarkation process went very smooth and organized. Going back to Orlando, we arranged for a transportation thru one of their Disney buses.

The cruise was our first but definitely not our last! Wonder where to book next? West Caribbean perhaps? xoxo

Planning Our First Cruise With Disney Cruise Line

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Last August, we took on our first cruise and yes it was wonderful!

March of this year, we decided to surprise our daughter with a Disney Cruise for her birthday. It was very hard to keep it from her as she is this kind of nosy and smart 8 year old who wants to know everything that’s happening in the family. She’s a planner too. Mind you, the day after she celebrates her birthday, she would again plan for her next birthday that’s coming in a year. So to hide it from her means lots of white lies from us. lol

Booking the cruise, as well as the activities that you will be doing at the ports of call was very smooth and easy. Everything is online which is very convenient. And at the time of booking, you don’t have to pay the full amount of the cruise. For a 4300 dollar- cruise, we paid 600 dollars upfront. The remainder can be paid in staggard and must be made in full 2 months before your cruise date. Which means that we since booked March, we had to pay it off by June or we can’t check in and book our port adventures.

Once you are fully paid, Disney will send you the physical cruise packet and luggage tags. You will bring all of these to the cruise. The luggage tags will be placed on the bags you wish to check- in before embarking on the ship.

Disney will send you an email, for us it was around July, that it’s time to check in online. During this process, you need to have your passports and documents (green cards/ visas) ready for upload. They will also ask for a recent photo of your party and have it uploaded too. I guess during this time you will also be able to book your port adventures- like sightseeing tours, etc. This is not included in the cruise price and will be charged after the cruise. Also, Disney will give you the option if you will be paying in cash for extras (like alcoholic drinks, merchandise, etc) or you want it charged to your credit card. If you pick the latter, you will be asked to put in you credit card details upon online check in. If you pay in cash, you’d have to settle your account to guest services before disembarking in the ship.

Our cruise was a 5 day, 4 night cruise to Bahamas from Florida thru Disney’s newest ship, the Disney Wish. To avoid mishaps, we booked our flight to Florida 2 days before the cruise. We decided to stay in Orlando and spend a day in Universal Studios to check out the Harry Potter World in Islands of Adventure. Our daughter is also a huge Potter fan like me 🙂 Will post a separate blog for this. Promise :). Our port of call is at Fort Canaveral, an hour away from Orlando.

We revealed the surprise on the day of the cruise and she couldn’t be more excited! She has been wanting to go on a Disney cruise ever since she knew there was one.

Booking an Uber to Port Canaveral is such a challenge. The first driver declined to take us there as it is too far. The second one was hesitant too but thankfully he obliged. This led me to realize that it’s better if we book the transportation provided by Disney to its cruisers. It’s 40 dollars per way per person and its point of pick up is the airport and any of the Disney World Resorts in Orlando. That’s what we actually did coming back to Orlando after the cruise. In addition, the price we paid for the Uber is more or less the same as the Disney shuttle.

By the time you check- in online, you will be given the option as to the time you want to embark on the ship. This makes the actual check -in smooth and very organized. We opted for 2 PM which I kinda regret, we could have chosen an earlier time as early as 11 am to maximize our time in the ship.

After the Uber dropped us off, we placed the luggage tags on our bags. There isn’t really a check in area, the staff will just collect your luggages as soon as you ask them you are ready to check them in. Just like traveling by plane, your hand carry item should have all your essentials- passports, wallets, visas, cameras, phones, etc and some change of clothes should you wish to swim while waiting for your luggages to be sent up.

Once they call your time, you will be lining up for customs and security where they will be checking passports and visas (should you need one). Hands down to Disney as the whole check in process was very organized and timely.

This is a miniature replica of Disney’s first cruise ship- Disney Magic.
Once done with customs and security, the Yellow Mickey on the far left serves as your guide to the entrance of the ship.

For the next 5 days, we shall be spending a day in Nassau, Bahamas, a day in Disney’s own private island- Disney’s Castaway Cay and one full day exploring the Disney Wish. I shall be telling you about it on my next blog :)))

Disney Wish docked at Port Canaveral.