Category: Cruising (Page 2 of 2)

Today we returned from a 7-night Western Caribbean cruise aboard the Disney Fantasy.

Our ports of call were (1) Cozumel, (2) Grand Cayman (tender), (3) Falmouth, Jamaica, and (4) Castaway Cay.

The night before our cruise, we stayed at the Hyatt Regency Orlando International Airport in room #7133, with a runway view. Since we were back at Port Canaveral, we were able to utilize the Disney buses between the airport and the port.

We stayed in stateroom # 10034 (Cat 5A – Deluxe Oceanview Stateroom With Verandah) located on Deck 10 Fwd on Port Side.

Our stateroom host was Syaeful “Say” Syaeful, and our dining team was Munir Alves Abou Arabi (head server), Herry Wahyudi (server), and Jacinto Vega Ramos (asst server). Our Captain was Thord Haugen and our Cruise Director was Darren.

On Sunday, we visited Palo for brunch with Pamela as our server.

While visiting Falmouth, Jamaica, we went on the “Chukka Jungle River Tubing Safari” excursion.

During Tuesday’s evening show “The Magic Dave Show”, Lizzy and Joe were chosen to go up during the last part of his show. The challenge was to answer questions – the prize was to be a Disney Princess.

We also got reservations for the following events: Princess Gathering, and the Anna & Elsa Meet & Greet. We also got reservations for a Character Breakfast, however we missed it due to oversleeping.

The end of our 13th cruise (Magic: 2, Wonder: 5, Dream: 3, Fantasy: 3) marked our 82nd night that we have spent on board the beautiful Disney Ships.

Tonight, we returned from a 7-night Alaskan Cruise on board the Disney Wonder. Our ports of call for this cruise were Tracy Arm, Skagway, Juneau, and Ketchikan.

Our travel agent was Dorothy Bond with Dreams Unlimited Travel.

We used WestJet as our airline for this vacation.

We flew from Las Vegas to Vancouver Internal Airport (YVR). We flew back from Vancouver with a transfer at Calgary International Airport (YYC). We had just enough time to get through the customs line at Calgary to be the last to board the plane, and we left the gate about 15 minutes early.

The night before our cruise, we stayed at the Pan Pacific Vancouver hotel which is actually attached to Canada Place’s Cruise Ship Terminal. We simply took taxis between the airport and the hotel. Lizzy’s Grammy accompanied us on the cruise, and the four of us had a great time.

Lizzy’s Papa got her the “Frozen Stateroom Experience”, which included a larger door magnet, a photo-frame, a pretty decorative pillow, and nice big blanket, and hanging “snowflakes”.

We stayed in stateroom #2126 (Cat 09C), which is located at the aft end of the port side of the ship, directly below the entrance to Parrot Cay.

Our Captain was Fabian Dib and our Cruise Director was Peter Hofer. Our cruise staff were: Stateroom Host – Putu Wiarsana, Head Server – Roy Goes, Server – Andre Wliiams (from Jamaica), Assistant Server – Marcel Fourie (from South Africa).

We dined in Palo for brunch and dinner, and our Server was Justin Folloso (from Australia), who is married to Rosario from Youth Activities. While having dinner, Chef Matteo made us his award winning White Tomato Soup.

In Juneau, we did the Mendenhall Glacier Explorer excursion, where we visited the Visitor Center, and were able to take pictures of the glacier. We also did the Historic Gold Mining and Panning Adventure, where we got to learn how to pan for gold.

At Ketchikan, we watched the “Exclusive Great Alaskan Lumberjack Show”.

We also got reservations for the following events: Princess Gathering, Olaf Meet & Greet, Anna & Elsa Meet & Greet

The end of our 12th cruise (Magic: 2, Wonder: 5, Dream: 3, Fantasy: 2) marked our 75th night that we have spent on board the Disney Ships.

Today we returned from our “back-to-back-to-back cruises” to the Bahamas on the Disney Dream! We visited the ports of Nassau and Disney’s Castaway Cay during each cruise, with the middle one having a sea day.

Our travel agent was Dorothy Bond with Dreams Unlimited Travel.

The night before our cruise, we again stayed at the Hyatt Regency Orlando International Airport. Lizzy’s Grammy flew to Orlando with us and stayed with us at the hotel. She didn’t continue to the cruise with us however, but went to visit Disney World for a few days.

We were able to stay in stateroom #2048 (category 9B, deluxe ocean view stateroom, mid-ship port) for all trips, only having to disembark the ship for about 1.5 hours between cruises. Our stateroom host was I Made Adiana, and our dining team was Nondu Myeza (head server for 1st cruise), Kendell Joseph (head server for 2nd & 3rd), Vladimir Kundih (server), and Surya Negara (asst server). Our Captain was Thord Haugen and our Cruise Director was Christian Abbott.

For our first cruise, we were in boarding group #2. While docked at Nassau, we did the Graycliff Chocolate tour. The girls got their hair braided on board the ship.

During our second cruise, we treated ourselves to the Pamper Package and Muscle Relaxer in the Senses Spa. We enjoyed a wonderful brunch in Palo with our server Berny (Vladimir’s wife).

During our third cruise, we enjoyed another visit to Palo, but this time was for our first dinner in the restaurant, with Berny as our server.

This vacation which included the 9th, 10th & 11th Disney Cruises ended with the 68th night we have spent on board Disney’s ships. After these cruises, we are now Platinum Castaway Club members.

Yesterday we returned from a 2-week stay aboard the Disney Fantasy that included the Eastern and Western Caribbean that started on July 13.

Our first cruise was handled through DVC, and our second cruise was handled by Dorothy Bond with Dreams Unlimited Travel.

Our ports of call for the Eastern cruise were (1) St. Maarten, (2) St. Thomas, and (3) Castaway Cay. The ports of call for the Western cruise were (1) Grand Cayman (tender), (2) Costa Maya, (3) Cozumel, and (4) Castaway Cay.

The night before our cruise, we stayed at the Hyatt Regency Orlando International Airport. This is a great hotel especially when you consider how convenient it is to grab your baggage, walk to the elevators, and go to the floor where the hotel check-in desk is located. Lizzy and Mommy checked out the swimming pool area.

We were able to stay in stateroom #6570 (category 5D, deluxe ocean view stateroom with verandah, mid-ship starboard) for both trips, only having to disembark the ship for about an hour between cruises. We had close friends from North Las Vegas join us for the second cruise – they stayed in stateroom #7022.

Our Captain was Marco Nogara and our Cruise Director was Clayton Lyndsey. Our cruise staff for both trips were: Stateroom Host – Leroy Stephens Brant, Head Server – Witt Tuncharoen, Server – Lee Anna Francis, Assistant Server – Lucia Grullon Reyes. Our server in Palo (for both trips) was Olivera.

On our first embarkation day, after lunch, Lizzy and Mommy went on the AquaDuck, a “water coaster” located on both the Dream and Fantasy. Daddy had to wait to go on it since he somehow forgot to pack a swimsuit for himself.

On July 14th, Mommy and Lizzy both got their hair braided on the first sea day on the way to St. Maarten, while Daddy attended the Castaway Club Gold & Platinum Reception.

On St. Maarten, we took the “St. Maarten Island and Butterfly Farm Tour” excursion.

On St. Thomas, we took the “Butterfly Anytime at the Butterfly Garden” excursion.

During the eastern (1st) cruise, on the way to Castaway Cay, the ship had to make an emergency stop at Nassau, Bahamas, for a medical evacuation. When daddy figured out what was going on, he headed up to top deck to take more pictures. He found the Disney Dream pulling into port, watching passengers from each ship taking pictures of the twin ships. While the Dream was pulling into port, the Fantasy started to leave on her way to a shortened stay at Castaway Cay.

Mommy somehow developed an infection that caused her to get bumps and rashes, mainly on the lower parts of her legs. A nurse suggested we start with hydro cortisone and an antihistamine, but a few days later wound up having the doctor say it had turned into cellulitis and prescribed an antibiotic to see if it would help.

On July 23rd, Lizzy was able to attend the “Royal Tea at the Royal Court”, which was only attended by 7 girls and 1 boy, along with their parent escort.

On July 25th, Mommy and Daddy took the galley tour, to see how this ship handles the food.

While in port at Grand Cayman, Daddy got a new watch.

During our visit to Castaway Cay on the western (2nd) cruise, Lizzy and Daddy went on a bike ride and also went snorkeling. After they were finished, it was time to track down where mommy was, but since she had both wave phones, that was tricky. Daddy was able to borrow a wave phone from a worker, and found out mommy was actually already back on the ship, which was kind of tricky for her since daddy had all room keys. Security and Guest Services helped her out too.

This vacation which included the 7th & 8th Disney Cruises marked the 58th night we have spent on board Disney’s ships.

Today we returned from a 15-night cruise on the Disney Wonder that departed the Port of Los Angeles on 4/29/12. This was the first-ever Disney Cruise Line voyage to our Hawaii.

Our travel agent was Dorothy Bond with Dreams Unlimited Travel.

Our ports of call were (1) Hilo HI; (2) Kahului, Maui, HI; (3) Honolulu, Oahu, HI; (4) Nawiliwili, Kauai, HI; (5) Ensenada, Baja California, Mexico.

The night before our cruise, we stayed at the Los Angeles Airport Marriott. The hotel stay was ok. However, the transfer from the hotel over to the port that we paid for through Disney left a lot to be desired. The people they had working at the hotel were rude, and then when we got to the port, we were in group #16 – would think that we should have been there sooner. The transportation back was fine, except that he tried to keep some of the luggage on the bus by not checking the rest of the bags.

Our stateroom was #5508 (Cat 09A), with our parents next door in #5510 (Cat 09A). Our room lacked the steamer truck, used to store clothing, included in our previous cruises.

Our Captain was Fabian Dib and our Cruise Director was Christiaan Abbott. Our cruise staff were: Stateroom Host – Rold “Herold” Santiago, Head Server – Kerry “Kerry Sean” Braithwaite, Server – Chat “Chatchai” Srisaeng, Assistant Server – Jude Fernandes.

Our neighbors in #5506 had two daughters, Josephine and Violet, which Lizzy got to be friends with.

Our table mates (at table 56) were from Canada, and they had three boys.

On the way to Hawaii, for the first 1.5 days, the health staff said that a little over half the ship were sea-sick, so the majority of them had matching souvenir bracelets (most people call them sea-bands that help with motion sickness). Of the 5 of us, 4 of us were included in that group.

At Hilo, HI, we got off the ship and were given kukui nut and flower leis.  We then visited Hilo Hattie and Wal-Mart.  While at Wal-Mart, we HAD to eat at the McDonald’s inside there. Of course Lizzy had to give a ratimg of the food – best she has had in days. 

At Kalului, Maui, HI, we got off and visited the Queen Ka’ahumanu Center (the mall there), where Lizzy rode a small train around and played in the play area for a little while.

At Honolulu, Oaho, HI, we took an excursion to tour Aulani, A Disney Resort & Spa, which allowed us to view the available rooms, and tour the resort’s pool area.

At Nawiliwili, Kauai, HI, we took an excursion to visit the Kilohana Plantation. We rode a train around the plantation, allowing us to view the different orchards they were growing, and it also stopped so that we could feed pigs, goats and sheep some bread. Then we went to the clayworks area, where each of us had a chance to paint a clay tile, which was then fired and delivered to the ship before it left port. We then went out into the orchard to watch someone prepare some fruits that we were able to then eat, and then went out to pick and eat some sugar cane, and lychee fruit.

On one of the sea days heading back home, Lizzy stayed overnight in the Oceaneer’s Lab during their Coast to Coast Character Camp Out!

We watched performances by magician Mike Super, ventriloquist Ronn Lucas, musician John Charles, juggler Charlie Peachock (from America’s Got Talent), and watched a lu’au by the Tihati performers.

We had a poker tournament among some of the disboard dad’s, which Joe wound up winning. They had to have a follow-up game (probably for something to do) on the following friday, which Andrea’s dad was the winner.

We had brunch in Palo on Saturday, May 12, and we were served by Nikola from Serbia.

The total distance traveled was 4,945 nautical miles (5,691 miles) with a maximum speed of 18.7 knots (21.5 mph). Guest count was 1,921 and Crew count was 992 for a total of 2,913 people.

The end of our 6th Disney Cruise marked the 44th night we have spent on board one of these ships. 🙂

Today we returned from a 7-night Mexican Riviera Cruise on the Disney Wonder. This was the first trip to the Mexican Riviera for DCL.

Our ports of call were (1) Cabo San Lucas, Baja California Sur, Mexico (twice, tender); (2) Puerto Vallarta, JAL, Mexico. The itinerary was supposed to include Mazatlan, but due to the changing environment, DCL canceled stops at that port.

Our Stateroom was #6086 (Cat 05B).

Our Captain was Thord Haugen. Our cruise staff were: Stateroom host – Anthony Luna, Server – Cesar Mendes, Assistant Server – Jakov Gacina, Head Server – Ronald Coutinho.

While visiting Cabo San Lucas on the 28th, we were able to pet and take pictures with a lion cub.

Well, just got back from our vacation on the Disney Wonder during the 4-Night DVC Member Cruise.

Our ports of call were only two visits to Castaway Cay.

Our stateroom was #2142 (Cat 09).

Our Cruise Director was Ray. Our cruise staff were: Stateroom Host – Antonio Arnade, Head Server – Anil Sharma, Server – Ray Goes, Assistant Server – Niti Nisaikla.

Our table mates Tom, Debby and Amanda live in Las Vegas. We found out they were going on the cruise and asked to have our rooms linked for dining.

On the way there, during our layover at Albuquerque, NM, Lizzy got to actually sit in the co-pilot’s chair in the cockpit while he showed her what the different instruments were for.

The night before the cruise, we stayed at Country Inn & Suites at Cape Canaveral.

During our first trip to Castaway Cay (we got to visit the island twice during this trip), we participated in the Stingray Adventure, where we got to pet and feed the stingrays. After this, we got to spend the rest of our time snorkeling with them in their area of the beach.

Well, we just got back from what started as a 1-week cruise and wound up being 2 back-to-back 1-week cruises on the Disney Magic.

Our Captain for both weeks was Tom Forberg.

First Week – ports of call were (1) Key West, FL; (2) Grand Cayman (tender); (3) Cozumel, Mexico; (4) Castaway Cay.  Our stateroom was #6540 (Cat 06).

Our cruise staff were: Stateroom Host – Novlett Melvin-Thompson, Head Server – Zan Gocev, Server – Densak Sae-Jung, Assistant Server – Sol Lozano Ramos.

Our table mates were Javier, Gretchen, Isabella and Sophie.

While in port at Cozumel, Mommy got a Caribbean Topaz Ring.

Second Week – ports of call were (1) St. Maarten; (2) St. Thomas; (3) Castaway Cay. Our staterooms were #2568 (Cat 09) and #6014 (Cat 08) – had to move rooms due to noise.

Our cruise staff were: Stateroom Host (after we moved) – Jojo De La Pena, Head Server – Zan Gocev, Server – Grace Walters, Assistant Server – Michael “Mikey” G Wabe.

The reason for the extended cruise was Lizzy had bad double ear infections and the doctor (Gideon J Beukes) strongly suggested that she not fly home or else her ear drums might burst. The Orlando area had a food and wine festival going on so rooms were of short supply, so we decided to make the best of it and just stay aboard the Magic.

During the ‘first’ cruise, while visiting Castaway Cay, Lizzy also got to visit the First Aid station on the island. While having lunch with Andrea, she sneezed, throwing her head forward into the table, biting her tongue, which caused it to bleed — a lot! While this was unfolding, Lizzy’s Grammy and dad were walking back from snorkeling. They were met by Zan carrying a not so happy Lizzy, with her mom close behind. While in the first aid station, she said this was ‘the worst cruise ever’.  Had to laugh – second cruise for this almost 5-year old and she is already rating cruises.

During our second visit to Castaway Cay, it started to storm pretty good, so we decided it would be a good time to head back to the ship. However, the lightening in the area decided we should do something different – cast members started telling everyone to “seek shelter” and that the trams were not currently running due to bad weather.

During our visit to St. Thomas, we paid a visit to The Butterfly Farm.

During our second cruise, Andreia (concierge services) kept good care of us checking in on us now and then.

Executive Chef (Stefan) had heard that Lizzy was not feeling well and stopped by our table, and wanted to be sure that Lizzy knew that she could have anything on the ship.

Today our 4-year old Lizzy got off the ship from her first cruise on the Disney Wonder during the 4-night Thanksgiving cruise.

The evening before the cruise, we stayed at the Hyatt Regency Orlando International Airport, which was actually part of the airport facility.

Our ports of call were (1) Nassau, New Providence, The Bahamas; (2) Castaway Cay (Disney’s own private island).

Our stateroom was #2085 (Cat 10).

Our Cruise Director was Clayton. Our Servers were Mihailo Pavlovic, from Serbia, and Milos.

She had a great time in her Disney Oceaneer Club, with “activities tied to kids’ favorite Disney Characters and stories”. She quickly got used to calling this “her club” when she wanted to go and play there. The guys down at the Club found out she wanted to fly, so they left us some pixie dust outside our cabin for her to use.

While cruising past Castaway Cay, we got to see the Wonder’s sister ship, the Disney Magic docked there. The two ships had fun sounding their horns at each other.

After we has disembarked from the ship, severe weather in Port Canaveral caused the main gangway for guests and crew members to collapse into the water. While several guests were still on board, no injuries were reported.