Hmmm interesting - anyone done the 7 day med cruise?

[Skywatcher]

August this year the Dream will do a cruise of the med stopping in France Italy and Mallorca.

Not cheap but certainly better than I thought

For anyone thats been - what are the cabins like - whats the boat like - do you get much time ashore and is it insanely busy on the decks and in the eateries?

Tempted even though I swore I'd never get on a boat


:mental:

[catrancher]

August this year the Dream will do a cruise of the med stopping in France Italy and Mallorca.

You sure about that Chris? :unsure:

The only things I see in August for a 7 day Med cruise is on the Magic.


For anyone thats been - what are the cabins like - whats the boat like - do you get much time ashore and is it insanely busy on the decks and in the eateries?

I'm sure Terry will be along shortly to tell you all about it since I know he and his DW have done the Med cruise.

However, I have only one thing to say to you about this:


Why haven't you booked it yet!

You'll find the accommodations on the Magic outstanding. Keep in mind that staterooms on the Disney Magic and Disney Wonder are about 25% larger than equivalent staterooms on other cruise lines. Try to get an Deluxe Oceanview Stateroom with Verandah or Deluxe Family Oceanview Stateroom with Verandah. The first sleeps 3 or 4 and the second sleeps up to 5. The bath in the staterooms is split into a tub/shower and sink in one bath and a wc and sink in the other. This way, two people can actually get ready for dinner at the same time. Typically, in each port, you'll have a relatively complete "day". For instance, in Villefranche, France (Monte Carlo, Cannes, Nice), you dock at 9:00 AM and are back on the ship at 7:00 PM. Disney will of course, have shore excursions available that will take you on various guided sightseeing adventures in each port.

Meals are on a rotation basis through the 3 main dining rooms. You'll have an assigned table, probably with another family so that there'll be between 6 and 8 people in your dining party. You'll rotate through all 3 restaurants, a different one each night. You servers will also rotate with you. This is so that they can learn your preferences, likes and dislikes and accommodate your desires. They're very good at their jobs and by the second night of the cruise, will be able to provide your favorite beverages and such without even asking. Of course, there's also more informal dining (Topsiders buffet, Plutos Dog House, Pinnochio's Pizza, etc. These dining areas don't have a fixed schedule and are on a first come, first served basis.

The boys will have an absolute ball! Between the Oceaneer Lab and the Oceaneer Club, you'll have a hard time getting them back to the stateroom to go bed. The way it works is that you take the kids to their clubs. Disney then takes over, hands you a pager, takes the kids away from you and says, "bye, we'll page you if we need you". We have seriously seen families whose children cried when their parents came back to pick them up.

I'm dead serious when I tell you that I think a Disney Cruise will be second only to your African vacation in a "fun quotient" kind of way. My DW and I actually prefer the cruises now to going to WDW. Strange as that may sound. Like I said before, book it! Now!

I'm sure Slowhand will back me up on this! :sail:

Tom (:macwave:... self appointed Assistant Cruise Director)

[Slowhand]

I`ve not got a lot to add to Tom`s excellent summary of the DCL experience, apart from the fact that there is also an adults only restaurant on board [Palo] which is well worth paying an extra few $$`s for that "special meal" for just the two of you.
If you book Palo for part way through your cruise, by then you will have hopefully made good friends with your newly found dining partners who will take care of your children over dinner I`m sure.
This is exactly what happened to us on the Med cruise when we first met our friends from LA and we were more than happy to "baby sit" their daughter on the night when her parents tried Palo.

We did the Med cruise a few years ago although it was longer than 7 days then.
I`d go as far as to say that it was the best cruise that we had done with DCL up until then, although our recent Baltic cruise has now exceeded that.

You can of course explore the ports of call on your own, although DCL arrange excellent guided shore excursions to make sure that you get a real taste of the places you visit.

One word of warning though. Your first cruise will definately not be your last!

[catrancher]

Your first cruise will definately not be your last!

:yeahthat:

I'm seriously serious! :yes:

Tom (:macwave:... come on June!)

[Skywatcher]

thanks chaps and d'oh I meant Magic :rolleyes:

[catrancher]

Chris,

You may want to check out some of the videos on the DCL site. They'll give you "boatloads" of information. Dining, kids activities, adult activities, shore excursions, etc. Great source of information.


DCL Videos (http://disneycruise.disney.go.com/planning-center/planning-library/podcast/)

Tom (:macwave:... really hope you can do this!)

[Skywatcher]

excellent will check that out when not fending off the masses

Thcik question - is there plenty we can do together as a family - we don't really do the 'kids club' stuff , our kids are at that age where they still want to be with us and I really don't like the idea of putting them in a club all day - I work all year and this is my only chance to see them - I know it sounds soft

[Keith]

hmmm you've got me looking now too :/

[Skywatcher]

Not been to italy and 3 stops is mighty tempting.

Its bonkers but the ' having to share a table with another family' is one of the things putting me off

Curse my eternal shyness/pessimism :lol:

[Skywatcher]

hmmm you've got me looking now too :/

oooo could you be the other family at the table, we could slope off for a glass of something and talk cameras :D

[Skywatcher]

BTW I got to it through virgin holidays - I have a bazillion airmiles

[Skywatcher]

Is it bad form to reply so much to your own thread :unsure:

[catrancher]

Chris,

Plenty to do as a family! :yes:

On board, there's the family pool and lots of activities that can be done together. Movies in the Buena Vista Theater for instance. Of course, in the evening there's dinner and the shows. Oh yeah, the shows. Broadway on a ship! Prepare to come away with a tear in your eye if they do "Disney Dreams". But I digress. During the days, you'll usually be in port so will be doing "port" things (excursions, etc). These you'll of course do as a family. During the 7 night Med cruise, you only have one day that's an "at sea" day. There's buckets full of onboard activities that everyone can enjoy.

Now, having said that, let me share a story from our last cruise (oddly enough, the one where we met Terry and Sue). When you board the ship, they have a nice buffet style lunch laid out. Usually in either the "Parrot Cay" restaurant or "Topsiders" buffet. My DW and I opted for Parrot Cay. We went in and were seated with a young family who was traveling with their 4 year old daughter. This little girl was the epitome of shy. All she did during that lunch was sit in her daddy's lap and bury her face in his shoulder. She was an incredibly sweet child but terribly shy.
Time passes. The cruise moves on. About the fourth or fifth evening of the cruise, my DW and I were in "Rockin' Bar D" (one of the clubs) when we saw the little girls parents come in. We went and singled them out to ask how their daughter was liking the cruise (my DW is a retired school teacher and is particularly attuned to children). The look on their face and the response we got took us completely by surprise. They told us that they had never seen their daughter come out of her shell like she had on this cruise. They couldn't get her out of the children's clubs! She was having so much fun, making so many new friends and having such a ball, that just getting to come back to the stateroom and go to bed was now a chore. Their faces were beaming. These people were so happy that their child was having the time of her life that it almost brought tears to my DW's and my eyes.

I only tell you this to prepare you for the fact that the boys will, in al probability, have an unbelievably good time. You'll still be together as a family for as much as you like (swimming in the Goofy pool perhaps). But for the boys, it'll be an adventure they'll remember as long as they live. Just like Africa was.

So no, it doesn't sound soft at all. Just be prepared for wonderment and joy. You won't be disappointed! :thumbsup:

Tom (:macwave:... one thing none of you will be is bored!)

[Keith]

Not been to italy and 3 stops is mighty tempting.

Its bonkers but the ' having to share a table with another family' is one of the things putting me off

Curse my eternal shyness/pessimism :lol:

a huge *ME TOO* on that one :yes:

[catrancher]

oooo could you be the other family at the table, we could slope off for a glass of something and talk cameras :D

You could and should do that! Disney can link your reservations so that you'll be each others dining partners. Other Secrets members are doing that very thing for our upcoming Disney Dream cruise in June.

Aren't we Terry! :ROFL:

Tom (:macwave:... you REALLY should, Keith! :sail: )

[catrancher]

Curse my eternal shyness/pessimism :lol:


a huge *ME TOO* on that one :yes:

Keep in mind lads that I met one of my best friends at dinner on a Disney Cruise. And ended up here as a result! :eek:

Tom (:macwave:... wonder who I'm talking about? :unsure:)

[Keith]

oooo could you be the other family at the table, we could slope off for a glass of something and talk cameras :D

Now you're talking! :yes:

[Skywatcher]

:lol: I wouldn't inflict my offspring onto Keith

When I left them at lunch they were discovering the joys of facetime on their new iPods

[Skywatcher]

Keep in mind lads that I met one of my best friends at dinner on a Disney Cruise. And ended up here as a result! :eek:

Tom (:macwave:... wonder who I'm talking about? :unsure:)

Mickey Mouse?

[catrancher]

Mickey Mouse?

:unimpressed:

Hey Terry, guess what Chris thinks about you! :ROFL:

Tom (:macwave:... sits back and watches... http://dl.dropbox.com/u/75186662/smilies/popcorn.gif)

[Slowhand]

Its bonkers but the ' having to share a table with another family' is one of the things putting me off


You`re not "bonkers at all Chris. That was my initial thought, however on all the cruises we have done we have enjoyed the company of some wonderful folks over dinner.

We became firm friends with our dining partners [Doug, Michelle & Dani from LA] on the Med cruise, and since then we have met up with them on several occasions both here in the UK [when we did the Baltic Cruise with them earlier this year], and on a couple of trips to Florida.

It is also how we became close friends with Tom [catrancher] and his DW [the rest is history :lol:],to the extent that they will be with us again on the Dream along with the LA folks in 2011.

[Slowhand]

a huge *ME TOO* on that one :yes:

Keith, I`ve lost count of the number of times that I`ve tried to persuade you to do a DCL cruise......maybe you wouldn`t fancy having us as your dining partners. :taunt:

[Keith]

Keith, I`ve lost count of the number of times that I`ve tried to persuade you to do a DCL cruise......maybe you wouldn`t fancy having us as your dining partners. :taunt:

see now I'll HAVE to come on one just so you don't think that ;-) What a great excuse :lol:

[Skywatcher]

You`re not "bonkers at all Chris. That was my initial thought, however on all the cruises we have done we have enjoyed the company of some wonderful folks over dinner.

We became firm friends with our dining partners [Doug, Michelle & Dani from LA] on the Med cruise, and since then we have met up with them on several occasions both here in the UK [when we did the Baltic Cruise with them earlier this year], and on a couple of trips to Florida.

It is also how we became close friends with Tom [catrancher] and his DW [the rest is history :lol:],to the extent that they will be with us again on the Dream along with the LA folks in 2011.

Hmm you see its more to do with the kids, neither of them are great eaters and we have problems with Thing 1, I know its a 'Disney' ship but still

[Slowhand]

Joking aside Chris, it may be that you would be assigned a table just for the 4 of you.
This has happened to us on a couple of occasions but it ain`t guaranteed.

Funny enough on the Baltic cruise there was a newly wed couple [middle aged] who had been assigned a table on their own right next to ours.
After a few days they actually told us that they wished that they had been seated on our table as we all seemed to be having a great time over dinner!
[Maybe their luvvy dovey period was on the decline! :lol:]

[Slowhand]

Hmm you see its more to do with the kids, neither of them are great eaters and we have problems with Thing 1, I know its a 'Disney' ship but still

Because you have the same servers every night, they soon get used to you and will bend over backwards to make sure that the kids are well fed even if certain items they like aren`t on the menu.

The opposite applies if you actually are a big eater like our friend Doug.
As he used to be a body builder and works out every day, he has a tremendous appetite and only eats "healthy" food. The servers soon latched onto this and actually gave him 2 entrees each evening, and I can`t recall him not polishing off the lot! :lol:

[Slowhand]

see now I'll HAVE to come on one just so you don't think that ;-) What a great excuse :lol:

I reckon there is still availability on "our" Dream cruise in June Keith. :whistle:

[catrancher]

Hmm you see its more to do with the kids, neither of them are great eaters and we have problems with Thing 1, I know its a 'Disney' ship but still

Chris,

On our first Disney cruise (when my DW retired), our dining partners that time were a US Air Force doctor and his wife and son. Oddly enough, this guy was the doctor in charge of the NASA Shuttle recover operations medical team. Anyway, their son, who was two at the time, was likewise a extremely picky eater. The servers made sure that he had his favorite hot dog each night for dinner. Sometimes he ate, sometimes he didn't. It really wasn't a problem.

I, on the other hand, enjoyed my steak or whatever. The servers will make you happy with your meal whatever it takes! Don't like your entree? No problem. Order a different one. Want something not on the menu? No problem. If it's on the ship, it's on the menu. Just for you. Or Thing 1 or Thing 2 for that matter.

Tom (:macwave:... they really do bend over backwards for you!)

[lisaw]

When we sailed on the Wonder we were on a table just the four of us as were lots of other famillies around us - we were close enough to other tables to chat about our day but far enough away to have a certain amount if privacy ( it was the one thing that put me off cruising as well tbh) so it does happen - we had early sitting. :)
Oh and I never thought I would do a cruise either and I have no desire to cruise with any other company it was Disney that was the draw (obviously! :lol:) and we had a great time. They are truly beautiful ships!

[Skywatcher]

Mmmmmmm tempted.......

[josh.p.]

DO IT DO IT DO IT!