Disney Cruise Findings

JMarsden92 February 21, 2011
[0] comments

We are set to cruise in @45 days.  A few weeks back we went to our local county offices and had our passport cards ordered.  This was just a drop in the bucket of @$200.  (That was a sarcastic comment by the way.)  Well, the other day I was chatting with a person in our cruise group that was telling me that she didn’t have a passport.  I told her to quickly call Disney and verify the real answer.  I then told her to give passport control a call to verify.  What I have come to find is this… If you are on a closed-loop cruise you do not have to have a passport.  A closed-loop cruise is any cruise that departs, and returns to the same port.  What they do tell you is that you must have a passport book in order to leave the foreign locations if there is some sort of travel emergency and you need to fly out.  Being that I will stay wherever I am if I am sick, or something I wasn’t getting the passport book.  I got the passport card thinking that it was required to have some sort of passport.  I also wouldn’t fly out simply because I wouldn’t have that kind of money laying around to pay for flights.  Unless I am dying… I am not flying.  (No… I am not afraid of flying.)

What I am actually finding from several people I talked to is that the cruise companies would rather you have a passport for many reasons, but having the passport also reduces their amounts of paperwork because of it being a major document.  Well, now I am stuck having a passport, and being @$200 lighter on money.  Isn’t life grand?

Posted in Disney Cruise | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

Pirate Ship Is Gone From Castaway Cay

JMarsden92 January 26, 2011
[1] comment

I was watching some videos from some of the recent media trips aboard the Disney Dream.  I was a little puzzled when I noticed that the Flying Dutchman was missing from the videos.  I then did a little photo search, and found the same to be true.  What I have come to find out is that the Dutchman was taken from Castaway Cay for filming of “On Stranger Tides.”

There is no definitive answer as to if the Dutchman will be returning to the island at this point in time.

Posted in Disney Cruise | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

Disney Dream Is More Than Expected

JMarsden92 January 18, 2011
[2] comments

When we heard that there would be a new Disney Cruise ship we expected there to be small enhancements to what has been proven to work.  What we are finding out is that this ship is far more advanced than either of the other 2 ships in the fleet.  Coming sometime in 2012 will be the Disney Fantasy.  From what we have been getting in lines of information the Fantasy will be similar in a lot of ways to the Dream.  The Disney Dream has been taking VIP guests, and media on @3 day cruises for the last @1 week.  We would have loved to go on a media cruise, but that would have just ruined our trip in April.  At least this way we are totally surprised with what we find.  We have seen enough photos, but reality is a different thing.  On the first cruise we will be Silver Castaway member, but on the second cruise we will move up to the next level, and get even better gifts.  Here we come Disney Dream.  @80 days to go.

Go to DisneyCruise.Com for the Christening ceremony on January 19, 2011 at 10:30am EST.

From what we have gathered there will be numerous childrens areas, 2 adult dining areas, and several adult clubs.  Here is the information that we have so far, and you can find out more at DisneyCruise.Com.  If you look at the lists below you will see that there is considerably more of each than there were on other Disney ships.

Here is a question… How many beds are on the Dream?  How many more than the Magic, or Wonder?

Answer… 5007 and over 1900.

I am not going to explain the details about each of these, but you can read all you want at the DisneyCruise site.

I will make some comments based on information that I have.  Have you ever been on a Disney Cruise?  What did you think of the ship?

Youth Clubs & Activities

  • It’s A Small World Nursery
  • Disney’s Oceaneer Club
  • Disney’s Oceaneer Lab
  • Edge – Excellent addition for kids 11 to 13.  Games, internet, music, and more.
  • Vibe – Excellent addition for kids 14 to 17.  Games, internet, music, and more.
  • D Lounge – The family club.
  • Arr-cade – I will never turn down a good arcade.

Nightclubs & Lounges

  • 687 – Activities during the day.
  • Bon Voyage
  • Cove Cafe – All I can say is “Thank goodness for coffee.”  I hope that they don’t charge for the coffee.  Sorry.
  • Currents
  • District Lounge
  • Evolution
  • Meridian
  • Pink – From pictures this comes across to me as a “Girly” lounge.  Supposed to look like a champagne bottle.
  • Skyline – I like the idea of seeing different scenes each night.  It is something different than looking at the seas.
  • Vista Cafe – All I can say is “Thank goodness for coffee.”  I hope that they don’t charge for the coffee.  Sorry.
  • Waves

Dining

  • Animators Palate – Very well modified restaurant in comparison to previous ships.  Appearances by Crush.
  • Cabanas – Serving Breakfast, lunch, and dinner.  (Casual)
  • Enchanted Garden – Looks like a very relaxing restaurant.
  • Palo – Adult dining – $10 fee applies
  • Remy – Adult dining – $10 fee applies
  • Royal Palace – A modified version of same named restaurants on other Disney ships.

Pools / Water

  • Donald’s Pool – Family pool
  • Mickey’s Pool – Childrens pool
  • Nemos Reef = This is a nice addition for the little kids.
  • Quiet Cove Pool – Adult only pool
  • Aquaduck – This looks “Ultra” kool.  I can’t wait to try this out for myself.
Posted in Disney Cruise | Tagged , , | 2 Comments

Past Castaway Cay Issues

JMarsden92 January 15, 2011
[1] comment

On one of our first 2 cruises with Disney the ship was denied access to Castaway Cay.  They tried numerous times to dock but due to weather they just couldn’t dock.  We wouldn’t have known we were at Castaway Cay trying to dock except the entire boat seemed to be vibrating.  I would have to assume that this was caused by the low  depths at the Cay.  I wonder with the new technology why it is so hard to dock.  They have propellers that turn to the sides, and lots more things that aid in docking.  I have always been curious how many times they have to change the thrust bearings, and other parts of this system.

We have been on the cruise since then, and gotten to get on Castaway Cay each time, but we were very disappointed the one time that we couldn’t dock.  Being that we are going on a “Back To Back” this April we are looking forward to seeing the Cay twice, but not necessarily looking forward to the Bahamas because the people there seem to follow you, and beg you to purchase their goods.

Posted in Disney Cruise | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

Disney Cruise Weddings

JMarsden92 January 15, 2011
[1] comment

I have always wondered what it would be like to get married, or even go to a marriage on a cruise.  Last time we went away on the Disney Cruise we ran into 2 couples that were getting married.  How did I know they were getting married?  Well, when you see bridal gowns you can usually figure out that there is going to be a wedding.  Maybe one of these trips I will be lucky enough to get to see one.  I know that I have been seeing a bit more information available on the web about Disney Cruise Weddings.  Maybe it is just the hip thing, but I am sure that the cost is pretty hefty.

Has anyone had a wedding on a Disney Cruise?  How bad of a price was it?

Posted in Disney Cruise | Tagged , , | 1 Comment