Just booked Disney Wonder for Oct. 11th!!!

[parrisk]

I really need some help with this one. This will be our first cruise and I don't want to make any stupid mistakes. It is only a three night cruise. Please explain to me about restaurant rotations. I understand the concept, do you receive info. prior to your departure about these things.?

I heard about Palo's and reservations there, but I don't want to make them for the wrong night and miss out on any of the other restuarants.

Also, any advice on what to do in Nassau and while at Castaway Cay.

How many night shows are there and how often do they perform them each evening?

We booked the late meal seatings. Is that a good thing or a bad thing?

I love to shop. The Straw Market in Nassau, what is it like?

What extras can I expect to pay for?

See, I need a lot of help. Thanks to all of you that are patient enough to reply.:sosad:

[Stimpy]

I love the Disney Cruise! You may find your self addicted and feeling that 3 days was too short :)

You get your dining rotation when you board. Usually they try to keep the families with young kids on one rotation, families w/ older kids in another and then people travelling without kids on the third. It doesn't always work out that way, but they do try.

The night you dine in Triton's is generally the more Formal night. I don't think the 3 night cruise has 1 formal night for everyone, but I'm not sure. I also don't think the 3 day has the Pirates in the Caribbean party...which is alot of fun. (but there is always the next cruise for that ;) )

This is a great site for planning, they have menus, Navigators (daily activity newsletters) etc. http://www.castawayclub.com/

Spa reservations, Palo & excursions are available to book on-line 75 days prior to your sail date for 1st timers (90 for Castaway Club members (repeat cruisers) & 105 for conceirge/suites). If you really want a specific time for Palo, I hear you need to be on-line at 3am on that 75th day :crazy: We've never done Palo, so I can't say if this is true or not. Personally, I've never saw the appeal in it for us, but I know alot of people feel it is a must-do! If you don't get ressies on-line prior to arriving, they have a limited number of openings that they keep aside so people can book on the ship. It tends to make for a hectic 1st day though.

For shows, there are usually 2 showings. These also go by your dining seating time. There is an early show for the people in late dining & and late show for the people that had early dining. You don't have to go to your assigned show time. But they are scheduled during the dining times so you would miss dinner in the dining room. (Although there are other options for dining too, like Palo)

Extras to pay for are alcohol, spa treatments, shopping, specialty coffee/teas at Cove Cafe, soda anywhere besides the drink station by Mickey Pool & the dining rooms, tips, excursions, Palo has a surcharge and a few other things I am probably forgetting.

Hope this all helps :goodvibes

[parrisk]

Thanks for the help. We had to go with a 3 day because we already had 7 days booked at OKW prior to the cruising dates and this was a spur of the moment decision. I know we will love it and are planning the 7 day for next year!

[RweTHEREyet]

Stimpy gave you a lot of really good info. I did the 3-day with my Mom a few years back, and the only thing I can add is that with such a short cruise and the fact that it is your first on a Disney ship, I would skip going into Nassau day and enjoy the ship. while everyone else goes ashore, you basically have the ship to yourself and can enjoy many things without the crowds. The straw market is a great tourist trap but to me the ship is the destination itself.

[CptJacksPrincess]

Hi,

Love Disney Cruise Line! Hoping to go on the 7 day someday! Mom & I have lots of fun enjoying the ship. Especially on the Wonder (2 4 day cruises)! Palo is great but I'd wait for a 4 day or longer to go. So that you can enjoy the three restruants, then decide for yourself what restruant you'd skip & substuite for Palo. Definately do something @ the spa. Have fun!

[Muushka]

I agree, skip Nassau and enjoy the ship.

Also, if you have a choice, I would pick Parrot Cay to miss for dinner the night you do Palo. We have eaten there (Palo) 3 times. Believe me, it is worth missing a night at the regular dining to be able to have dinner at Palo. The problem is that you don't know your dining rotation until you board. But if you make your reservations at the 75 day mark and it is a restaurant you don't want to miss, you may be able to change them once you board. Enjoy!

[parrisk]

Thanks for all the great advice. We will be at OKW for six days before we go on the cruise. The cruise was a "spur of the moment" crazy idea my husband suggested yesterday. He had found what he thought were really good rates through an online agency. I went on Disney's site and found the same rates plus an onboard credit. The four day cruise would have been right in the middle of my DisneyWorld trip and would have caused a major headache in changing my DVC reservations. The 3-day seemed perfect. I could drop a few nights off at the end of our reservation and the price wouldn't completely break my budget. I have never thought I would like cruising. I'm not much of a "joiner", I don't really like partying, and this way I can test the waters.

I never considered not doing Nassau. I LOVE shopping, are you guys sure I won't miss anything great in Nassau by not going ashore. Since yesterday I have read a lot of material about Disney Cruises, including the 88pg. book you can download from allears. I completely understand about the rotations and such.

I have received conflicting info. I understand that shorts & t-shirts are not permitted for dining. The night for dining at Triton's is what I am concerned about. I have read coat and tie and I have also read just slacks and a button down shirt. What do you guys think?

Do you have any other secrets or tips that will help us have an awesome time?:blueflowe

[RweTHEREyet]

I would not even think twice about mising Nassau, but then I have been there and know I don't care to go back. Maybe you need to experience it for yourself once, but if it were me on that ship, I wouldn't leave it for a day in Nassau. jmho

[ErinC]

Congrats on booking the cruise. Start saving your pennies because, my guess is... you'll be booking another one soon! We did the four day and did get off the ship in Nassau. If you haven't been there, you might want to get off and look around. Just be prepared, you will be swarmed by locals as soon as you step foot off the ship. Have a plan to do something, even if it's just to head downtown to shop. People kept asking me to take a tour, take a taxi, let them braid my hair, or my daughters hair. One lady started wrapping my daughter in clothing she wanted me to buy. I just wasn't prepared to be inundated with requests the moment I stepped off the ship in a place I had never been to. Of all the places we've gone with DCL, Nassau was the absolute worst about hounding you. We did shop a little around town, but it happened to be a holiday and several things were closed. We ended up taking cab ride (which was kinda scary) over to the Atlantis hotel. We just looked around at the public viewing areas, then we headed back to the ship. We enjoyed just swimming in the pool, before everyone got back to the ship. If we went to Nassau again, we would just stay on the ship. But I understand, if you have never been, that you might want to get off and look around. Just be prepared for the natives. Does DCL offer brunch at Palo's on the three day cruises, or is that only the 7 day? If I were doing the 3 day, I'd probably skip Palo's, because I wouldn't want to miss out on the other restaurants. If I had to choose one to miss, it would be Parrot Cay. But as mentioned before, you wouldn't know your rotation until you got on the ship. Palo's is wonderful, but I just don't know if I'd try to cram it in on the 3 day, unless they had the brunch.

[Stimpy]

Palo only offers the brunch & tea on "at sea" days so there is no brunch on the 3 day.

I know how you feel about getting off the ship. Personally, if it was our first time, I would get off. One of the reasons we like to cruise is to see other places. We took a tour through DCL to the Ardastra Gardens (sp?) & city tour. It was nice to get off the ship & see things, it was short...I think about 2 hours. So we did have a lot of time on the ship that day too.

When the 4 day still did Freeport, we stayed on the ship and it was empty! That was really nice.

You didn't mention any children going. Is this an adults only trip?

[DisneyLove1012]

if you have never been to nassua get off the ship and walk around, i would go to paradise island , personally. i really enjoyed my time over there, they have a great resort THE ATLANTIS and just a wonderful ground to walk around. great shark tanks and what not, very neat aquarium set ups. i would at least experience the island and walk around. i wouldnt plan on staying toooo long but at least say you have been there and did it sorta thing. dh and i did have a good time, but just be prepared everyone WORKS FOR TIPS!! everyone is EXPECTING TIPS!! i remembered it when i went with my parents , but dh wasnt expecting it and was different. i personally wouldnt have to go back FOR A LONG TIME. i would want to try out different islands. let us know what you finally do

[tprice]

I would not even think twice about mising Nassau, but then I have been there and know I don't care to go back. Maybe you need to experience it for yourself once, but if it were me on that ship, I wouldn't leave it for a day in Nassau. jmho


I agree. We just returned from our trip and Nassau was a big let down! The locals were rude and most of the "local art" was made in China. LOL We stayed ashore for one hr and returned to the ship to have some real fun!
Tammy

[parrisk]

You didn't mention any children going. Is this an adults only trip?

My husband, myself, and my 10 yr. old daughter are going.

My husband insists on going into Naussau simply because it is the Bahamas. I think we will try to do the 2hr. van historical tour, check out a small bit of shopping, then back on the ship to enjoy it.

I wish we had more than 3 days, but we will be at OKW for 6 days prior to our cruise. Had we chosen the 4 day cruise we would have had to do OKW for 2 days, then cruise, then back to OKW for 3 days. It was just too much juggling and moving. We booked OKW with our AKV developer points and they had to be used or lose them, so not going to Disney was not an option. The cruise was a spur of the moment decision my husband made on Saturday. I went online and booked it quickly before we could change our minds. I am just considering myself lucky to get to go on the cruise. I know I will like it and I am already planning on booking another if they make a good offer while we are onboard.

I have another question. I have read about pirate night at Parrot Cay. My daughter wants to dress in a pirate costume. Is this ok?

I am so excited! I went to a fabric store that is going out of business today and they had some hawaiin print fabric ridiculously cheap and I couldn't resist. I even found a Disney print with Mickey, Donald, and Goofy surfing. I made my daughter two adorable dresses this afternoon. I bought enough fabric to make myself dresses to match hers. I read about families dressing alike on another board. Is this a common thing or will we look stupid?:hehehehe:

You guys are the best!:hug: Keep the comments coming.

[ErinC]

I have another question. I have read about pirate night at Parrot Cay. My daughter wants to dress in a pirate costume. Is this ok?

I am so excited! I went to a fabric store that is going out of business today and they had some hawaiin print fabric ridiculously cheap and I couldn't resist. I even found a Disney print with Mickey, Donald, and Goofy surfing. I made my daughter two adorable dresses this afternoon. I bought enough fabric to make myself dresses to match hers. I read about families dressing alike on another board. Is this a common thing or will we look stupid?:hehehehe:


No, you will not look stupid. You will see lots of families doing the same thing. As big as pirates is right now, I'm sure you will see plenty of them.And if your DD will still let you have "matching" clothes, go for it girl! One good thing about the cruise is the wonderful opportunities to get some family photos. Plan a little of your budget to spend in shutters. I love looking back on our cruise pictures. It was one of the best vacations we have ever had! The three day will be great. Your plan for Nassau sounds really good. That way you have something to do, you won't get hounded when you step off the ship, you'll see a little of the Bahamas, and probably still be back on the ship before a lot of folks. I'm green with envy. The best part of the whole cruise for me is Castaway Cay. I hope you have great weather when you go! If I get a chance, I'll scan a couple of our cruise pics and share them with you.

[skelster]

After many years in the Navy, I learned the best way to deal with pushy local vendors, shills, and cabbies. This works well not only in 3rd world countries but also locations like Hong Kong, Japan and New York. Stake the first 3 vendors to the ground using large knives, then buy more knives from the fourth vendor. Surprisingly they all leave you and your entire party alone after that (& the prices are remarkably low too). A warning though...whatever you do, don't shoot them; the police will ticket you for littering. (And YES, I am joking!)

If you go out on the town (and you really should on your first trip anywhere), here are a couple of serious tip for you:

Make sure you leave your wallet, credit cards and most of your money onboard. It sure beats having your money stolen. If you have a large purchase to make, go back and get them money from the ship. It is a minor hassle but by leaving you can probably barter them down more on your return. I'm sure the theft rate is fairly low as the tourism board licenses and places strict limits on the theft rings. Still, I never take more cash with me than I am willing to have stolen.

This may seem to dispute the previous tip, but don't take traveller's checks out to town. They are a hassle to cash and any vendor who takes them is going to be charging you more than one who won't take them. Carry the smallest denominations can can; almost the entire western hemisphere takes dollars but they don't have change.

Anyways, Congrats and have fun!

[lindylou]

Ooooh, I didn't think we looked stupid when myself, DH and DD (who was 18 months old at the time) were dressed alike on our last Disney cruise (maybe I can include DS in on that too as I was 6 months pregnant at the time!)

It was one of the nights we had dinner at Parrot Cay and we all had matching Mickey Hawaiian print outfits and got many compliments. You will be surprised at the number of families you see dressed alike.

[Stimpy]

I think dressing up is alot of fun! I already ordered and received pirate costumes for my 2 kids for our November cruise. They are really cute. And since I am not a sewwer at all....sigh....I already purchased a bunch of custom outfits for my DD from a seller on Ebay.

Just remember that on the 3 day I don't think they have an actual Pirates in the Caribbean party on deck. Parrot Cay is one of the dining rooms with a tropical feel (I love the bird noises in the background LOL) and you will see people dressed for the theme there :) Also, like others have mentioned, dressing up and getting pictures done are really fun.

If your DD is going to do the clubs, you can see if there are others in her age group travelling with you. Then they can email before the cruise so they have a friend already once they board. I hate to recommend the site but the DIS cruise board has meet threads. My son is emailing another boy his age already and the adults have a thread just for our cruise. The cruise board over there is much nicer than most of the other boards. (I usually only visit the DIS for that board only)

[parrisk]

I think dressing up is alot of fun! I already ordered and received pirate costumes for my 2 kids for our November cruise. They are really cute. And since I am not a sewwer at all....sigh....I already purchased a bunch of custom outfits for my DD from a seller on Ebay.

Just remember that on the 3 day I don't think they have an actual Pirates in the Caribbean party on deck. Parrot Cay is one of the dining rooms with a tropical feel (I love the bird noises in the background LOL) and you will see people dressed for the theme there :) Also, like others have mentioned, dressing up and getting pictures done are really fun.

If your DD is going to do the clubs, you can see if there are others in her age group travelling with you. Then they can email before the cruise so they have a friend already once they board. I hate to recommend the site but the DIS cruise board has meet threads. My son is emailing another boy his age already and the adults have a thread just for our cruise. The cruise board over there is much nicer than most of the other boards. (I usually only visit the DIS for that board only)

I won't tell anyone. I too have visited that board. They have a Disney camping board and we love Fort Wilderness. Thanks for all your help.

[parrisk]

No, you will not look stupid. You will see lots of families doing the same thing. As big as pirates is right now, I'm sure you will see plenty of them.And if your DD will still let you have "matching" clothes, go for it girl! One good thing about the cruise is the wonderful opportunities to get some family photos. Plan a little of your budget to spend in shutters. I love looking back on our cruise pictures. It was one of the best vacations we have ever had! The three day will be great. Your plan for Nassau sounds really good. That way you have something to do, you won't get hounded when you step off the ship, you'll see a little of the Bahamas, and probably still be back on the ship before a lot of folks. I'm green with envy. The best part of the whole cruise for me is Castaway Cay. I hope you have great weather when you go! If I get a chance, I'll scan a couple of our cruise pics and share them with you.


Thanks so much. I would love to see your photos.

Tell me about Castaway Cay. What to expect, what to do, what to bring. I heard something about a Bar b que on the island. Is lunch provided or do you buy it yourself? Where's the best spot to just chill out?

[parrisk]

After many years in the Navy, I learned the best way to deal with pushy local vendors, shills, and cabbies. This works well not only in 3rd world countries but also locations like Hong Kong, Japan and New York. Stake the first 3 vendors to the ground using large knives, then buy more knives from the fourth vendor. Surprisingly they all leave you and your entire party alone after that (& the prices are remarkably low too). A warning though...whatever you do, don't shoot them; the police will ticket you for littering. (And YES, I am joking!)

If you go out on the town (and you really should on your first trip anywhere), here are a couple of serious tip for you:

Make sure you leave your wallet, credit cards and most of your money onboard. It sure beats having your money stolen. If you have a large purchase to make, go back and get them money from the ship. It is a minor hassle but by leaving you can probably barter them down more on your return. I'm sure the theft rate is fairly low as the tourism board licenses and places strict limits on the theft rings. Still, I never take more cash with me than I am willing to have stolen

This may seem to dispute the previous tip, but don't take traveller's checks out to town. They are a hassle to cash and any vendor who takes them is going to be charging you more than one who won't take them. Carry the smallest denominations can can; almost the entire western hemisphere takes dollars but they don't have change.

Anyways, Congrats and have fun!

Thanks for the advice. I don't plan on making any major purchases, just a trinket or two. See, I am supposed to be saving for CRV.:fingerscr

[parrisk]

Ooooh, I didn't think we looked stupid when myself, DH and DD (who was 18 months old at the time) were dressed alike on our last Disney cruise (maybe I can include DS in on that too as I was 6 months pregnant at the time!)

It was one of the nights we had dinner at Parrot Cay and we all had matching Mickey Hawaiian print outfits and got many compliments. You will be surprised at the number of families you see dressed alike.


Thanks. I am still unclear about the "pirate party" . Do you know anything about that?

[lindylou]

Thanks. I am still unclear about the "pirate party" . Do you know anything about that?


Sorry, I'm not too familiar with it...it's been a while since the cruise (and my next cruise isn't until 2008 so I'm looking to learn about it too! )

[Stimpy]

http://disneycruise.disney.go.com/dcl/en_US/onboard/entertainment/detail?name=DeckPartiesDetailPage

Here's the link for the Pirates In the Caribbean party. It's a great party with a show & fireworks on deck, pirate themed dinner. The bad news is that it is only on 4 day or longer cruises.

[doombuggy]

As someone who cruised a bit in the 80's & 90's (step-mom worked for cunard), I do have a question:

Some of you suggested staying on the ship while it is in port at Nassau. Aren't the pools closed while the ship is in port? Or does the industry not do that anymore?

[Stimpy]

As someone who cruised a bit in the 80's & 90's (step-mom worked for cunard), I do have a question:

Some of you suggested staying on the ship while it is in port at Nassau. Aren't the pools closed while the ship is in port? Or does the industry not do that anymore?

Nope, the pools are opened when in port now! :) I remember that also from cruising in the 80's once. If I remember correctly, in the old days, they used regular salt sea water. Now the water is desalted (??).