Jennifer and Dave's
Disney Adventure Report
Dates: 10/18 - 10/27,
1999 (10 day trip)
Adventurers:
- Jennifer Watson (author): 31 year old, writer and co-author of
PassPorter Walt Disney World, on her umpteenth
trip to Disney (from Ann Arbor, MI)
- Dave Marx: 44
year old, writer and co-author of PassPorter Walt
Disney World, on his 10th (or is it 11th?) trip
to Disney (from Hackensack, NJ and Ann Arbor, MI)
- Kim Larner: 28 year old,
Jennifer's younger sister, pregnant (in her
fourth month). On her third trip to Walt Disney
World but brand new to the Disney Cruise (from
Okemos, Michigan). She is joined us for the
cruise aboard the Disney Wonder.
- Chad Larner, 28 year old,
Jennifer's brother-in-law. Also on his third trip
to Walt Disney World. (from Okemos, Michigan) He
is also joined us on the cruise.
Updated 11/21/03
Copyright 1999-2006
PassPorter Travel Press, an imprint
of MediaMarx, Inc.
Questions? Problems? E-Mail Us!
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Our Fourth Day:
Thursday, October 21, 1999 We learned that our baggage had to be ready for
bell services by 8:00 am today. As you may recall, this
is the first day of our cruise and our luggage is
transported from our hotel room directly to our cruise
room. Bell services arrived at 8:05 and Jennifer wasn't
quite ready for them as she'd just gotten out of the
shower. But she moved quickly and everything was taken
care of.
From 8-11, we worked on the computer,
answering e-mail, updating our Web site, and sending out
books and materials requested by the media. Soon it was
time to head downstairs to board the bus to Port
Canaveral. Everyone met in the Belle Vue Lounge then
headed out to the bus stop to get in one of those cool
Disney Cruise Line buses. The bus was comfy with lots of
leg room. Overhead monitors gave us information on the
cruise during the 1 hour and 15 minute trip to Port
Canaveral.
At the Disney Cruise Line terminal, we
quickly checked in and boarded the boat. Wow! It was
gorgeous, with natural wood, tile, and gleaming chrome
everywhere. We were met onboard by a crew member, who
announced our names and location ("Welcome aboard,
Jennifer and Dave from Michigan!") and took a
picture. Another crew member then escorted us to the
elevators, where we made our way to our staterooms on our
own.
We had stateroom 1044, which is an
deluxe outside stateroom. Our room had a split bath (sink
and toilet in one room, sink and tub/shower in the
other), a double bed, a convertible couch (single) and a
pull-down berth (single). We also had two small portholes
(no verandah). We took lots of pictures (which we're in
the process of developing). When we arrived, a copy of
the Personal Navigator, "tickets" for our
evening meals and shows, and a letter from American
Express were sitting on the coffee table.
The Personal Navigator is a list of daily
activities and times. Ours was an 11" x 17"
sheet of paper, folded in half. This is where you can
find out what's going on, what time it is, and where to
find it. Don't overlook it! Unfortunately, they only give
one copy per stateroom, but you can pick up extra copies
at Guest Servies on Deck 3 - Midship. Our copies of the
Personal Navigator (we received a new edition for each of
the three days of the cruise) included these items:
- Top of first page: Date and port
arrival and departure times.
- Main text on first page: Dining
options, locations, and times. This is where you
to look for locations and times for breakfast,
lunches, and snacks.
- Right side of first page:
Reminders and services of note, such as Shore
Excursions, Oceaneer Club & Lab, the
mandatory boat drill,
- Left, inside page: Activites and
entertainment for the morning and afternoon
- Right, inside page: Activities and
entertainment for the evening.
- Bottom, inside pages:
"Ads" for various activities and
services.
- Top of last page: Hours and
locations of bars and lounges (and the special
drink of the day)
- Bottom of last page:
"Ads" for the Vista Spa and for
shopping opportunities.
The "tickets" you receive for your
meals and shows aren't really tickets. You do not need
these to eat dinner or watch shows. The only information
you need is your table number, which you can get off the
ticket. Your table number is also printed on your Key to
the World room/charge card. The only real significant
information the tickets can give you is what
restaurant/show you're seeing on which nights. If you're
planning to eat at Palo, you'll want to check your
restaurant assignments before you attempt to make
reservations. Our tickets were as follows:
- First Day: Triton's (late seating)
and Hercules the Muse-ical
- Second Day: Animator's Palette
(late seating) and Voyage of the Ghost Ship
- Third Day: Parrot Cay (late
seating) and Disney Dreams
We also received a letter from American
Express because we used it to pay for our cruise. The
letter informed us that we were being given the
opportunity to tour the bridge on a first-come,
first-serve basis. Instructions were given on how to sign
up (go to Guest Services). Additionally, the letter
promised that we could enjoy priority seating at Palo's
(but we still had to make reservations on our own) and
that we would get a 10% discount on rental of
non-motorized boats at Castaway Cay.
Once we'd received our luggage (which
arrived within an hour), we went our seperate ways.
Jennifer and Dave went to make reservations for Palo's at
StudioSea (we mistakenly went to Palo's first, only to be
informed the reservations were being taken at StudioSea.
Ugh!). We arrived at about 2:15 and got in line (which
was very short). Making a reservation was easy and we had
our choice of days and times. We elected to eat in Palo
on the night we would have normally dined at Parrot Cay
(our third day). We chose a 6:30 pm time rather than our
usual 8:30 pm late seating because we heard that was the
best time to see the sunset at this time of the year. We
were told that we'd have no problem seeing the later show
rather than the earlier show on this night, but we were
advised to arrive early for it.
Once the Palo reservations were set, we
joined Kim and Chad for the lunch buffet at Beach Blanket
Buffet (open 12:15-3:30 pm). The food service was simple:
you walk in, take a tray from the crew member (or pick
one up from the stack), take a plate, fill up your plate,
and find a place to eat. Beach Blanket Buffet has both
indoor and outdoor seating.
After lunch, Jennifer toured the Vista
Spa. The tour was well worth the time spent and even
included some upclose and personal peeks at actual spa
treatments (on crew members). To read more about the Spa
and Jennifer's experiences, check out our Vista
Spa Review page.
The mandatory 4:00 safety drill took place
(your life jackets are in your stateroom and directions
to your meeting point are on the back of your stateroom
door -- read them!). The drill took about 20 minutes and
was not difficult (unless you count having to wear the
uncomfortable life jackets).
Soon enough iit was time to change and
get ready for the show (Hercules The Muse-ical). The show
was good, with a surprise ending. We arrived late so we
couldn't get prime seats, but we were able to get decent
ones. The show was about 1 hour and 15 minutes.
Dinner at Triton's was enjoyable. The
four of us sat at a small table together rather than
having to share a larger table with others (which we
appreciated). The menu offered plenty of choices in
appetizers, entrees, and desserts. It was nice to be able
to choose whatever we wanted without having to worry
about cost. The service was ok, though not as attentive
or as prompt as we'd have liked. We have more thoughts on
the service and the crew members in general, which we'll
get to later.
After dinner, we all split up. Jennifer
walked every deck and peered in every bathroom (they have
very cool bathroomseach stall is in a seperate
little room). Dave went to see Mystery Alaska (the movie)
in the Buena Vista Theater. Kim went back to the room to
nap. Chad also went to the movie. We all turned in early
this evening, as it had been a very long day!
From our PassPorter: The
weather on our fourth day was rainy and windy.
The best thing about our fourth day was seeing
the Disney Wonder for the first time.
The worst thing about our fourth day was the
weather, which was even worse once we were on
deck where there were no walls or ceilings.
The most interesting thing about our fourth
day was exploring a new place created by Disney,
discovering the little details that Disney does
so well.
The most frustrating thing about our fourth
day was not knowing what we should do once we got
aboard (it was confusing).
One word that best describes our fourth day is
ABOARD.
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