Some Help please :) About This Page:

[ChristineJ]

Last night I booked our very 1st DCL trip for 3 nights in Sept 2010 and we are EXCITED!!!

An tips?

How are the dinners?

Are there activities planned during the day?

Cellphones won't work correct? as we are sailing to the Bahamas.

Anything anyone has to add is appreciated. I am a bit overwhelmed as I am use to WDW, this planning seems a bit more to me or am I obsessing over nothing?

TIA~ Christine

Off to update my ticker!

[JEB13]

Just like trips to WDW, your Disney cruise will require planning.

Step 1: purchase the current 2009 Passporter's Disney Cruise Line and Its Ports of Call. It will answer the majority of your questions and arm you with great info and tips. (free plug Dave).

After reading, come back with your new list of specific questions and you have a plethora of help answering them!

[nurse_mom]

Dining, you will find wonderful choices. If your kids are hungry don't worry you never run out of food on a cruise ship!
Tip. Try not to do everything, its impossible,. Pick 5 must do's and plan a 2nd DCL cruise in the future
I do believe our cell phone worked in Nassau, had to pay a nice fee. But if you want to touch base you could.

Have fun planning!

[honeybee723]

Originally Posted by nurse_mom

I do believe our cell phone worked in Nassau, had to pay a nice fee. But if you want to touch base you could.

Yes, you're cell phone will work, but just like nurse mom said, it will cost you a pretty penny

There are a ton of activities planned throughout the day. Every night you will get your "Navigator", and it will list everything that will be going on the next day.

You have plenty of time to plan, so take your time and enjoy it

[MelissaL]

Originally Posted by ChristineJ

I am a bit overwhelmed as I am use to WDW, this planning seems a bit more to me or am I obsessing over nothing?

I've actually found planning for a cruise to be far less stressful than planning for a WDW vacation -- no decisions on which park(s) to visit which days, no need for advance dining reservations for every sit-down meal and then worrying about being in the right place at the right time, no "how do I best get from here to there" issues. There are day-to-day decisions about what to do, but you can't make those until the night before when you get your daily Navigator, and it's very easy to change your mind at the spur of the moment.

The only real choices you can make before the cruise, and which you can't book until 90 days in advance, are shore excursions, spa treatments, and dinner at Palo. (If you have a child under 3, you may also want to book time at Flounder's Reef Nursery.) On our 3-night cruises with young kids, we didn't do excursions because nothing in Nassau seemed worth the money and we could explore Castaway Cay on our own. In fact, we didn't even get off the boat in Nassau -- we enjoyed the shipboard activities and didn't feel we'd missed anything. On our cruise in January we are going on the Ardastra Gardens/Island tour in Nassau and doing the Stingray Adventure at Castaway Cay, now that the kids are a little older (11 and 6).

As JEB13 suggested, you should read up a bit on the cruise (and the Passporter really is the best resource out there), then post any more specific questions you have.

Happy planning!
Melissa

[Colexis Mom]

Congrats on the cruise!

[ChristineJ]

Thanx everyone for answering and being so kind! I just ordered the 2009 Passporter for cruises and am super excited to get it

[emilyandlogansmom]

Love the new countdown!

[chezp]

Congrats on booking! You'll love cruising with Disney - and for planning, a Disney Cruise Line PassPorter is a must.

[PearlySwan]

Congrats! Welcome to DCL! You'll love the experience of cruising with the Mouse. You don't have much to worry about regarding planning meals as the restaurant assignments will be given to you. Once you are presented with your Key to the World, you'll see the initials of each restaurant in sequence. On a three night Bahamian crise, it will look something like this: PTA (P=Parrot Cay; T=Triton's; A=Animator's Palate). If you want to dine without the kids one night, make sure to reserve at Palo's. It is by far the best restaurant on-board; however, it is for adults only. I would suggest booking Palo's on the night you're assigned Parrot Cay, as it is the least memorable of the main seating restaurants. Or else book a Palo brunch instead of a dinner. Triton's is quite elegant and Animator's Palate is quite a treat with the show. If you do decide to do Palo then the kiddos would have to go to Flounders Reef (3 mo.-3 yrs.); and/or Oceaneers Club/Oceaneers Lab.

At Castaway Cay you will have many choices of shore excursions. Make sure to do all your reservations on-line ahead of time as these tend to fill up quickly. If you want to do Atlantis in Nassau, there are alternatives to booking it through Disney. Many people book a night at the Comfort Suites and get access to the Atlantis pools that way. I understand it is also less costly. We've never done this but we're considering for our next cruise. You would have to cab it to the hotel from the ship, but many people share a cab from the port.

I guess the biggest suggestion would be to read as much as you can from this website and other Disney community boards.

Enjoy your first Mouse Cruise!

[colleymouse]

My advice is to study the Passporter's guide and use the boards to answer your other questions. It is definitely a learning curve but no matter what you will have a good time on the cruise!

[Papa Mouse]

While researching through links the other evening I came across a paragraph that mentioned that some ships are now installing equipment aboard ships that will allow passengers to use their cell phones to call while at sea from any location.

It was just a mention and it did not contain any information as to which cruise lines, circumstances, costs, etc.

Hopefully I can find it again.

[lauriep]

Welcome and congrats! I agree with all the other posts, but wanted to add that I felt overwhelmed before my first cruise, too, but once on board found it to be so much more relaxing and easy than a WDW vacation. There are activities that could keep all ages happily engaged all day, but you can pick and choose as you like. I brought a highlighter and went through the navigator each night for the next day. My first cruise was a 3-night and I stayed on the ship at Nassau because I wanted more time to explore the ship itself. Whether you approach the trip like energizer bunnies and try to fit in all the activities and excursions or just lay by the pool with an occasional short walk for something to eat or drink, you'll have a blast!

[Dave Marx]

Originally Posted by Papa Mouse

While researching through links the other evening I came across a paragraph that mentioned that some ships are now installing equipment aboard ships that will allow passengers to use their cell phones to call while at sea from any location.

It was just a mention and it did not contain any information as to which cruise lines, circumstances, costs, etc.

Hopefully I can find it again.

(I hope you didn't spend too much time looking.) DCL has cell service on both ships in the staterooms (it doesn't work in the public areas, or at least not at all well - the cruise line probably doesn't want passengers with phones annoying their fellow passengers). Your cell company will bill you for the call, but the company that handles the cellular at sea (which requires satellite hook-up) bills your cell company a pretty penny. We were charged $2.50 a minute total by AT&T. It's a good idea to turn off the phone except when you need to check voice mail and/or make a call.

[joyful1nh]

The company that provides the cell service is: WMS: Wireless Maritime Services - An AT&T Mobility and SeaMobile Joint Venture but in order to use it you need to contact your own cellular provider and get details on the cost and make sure your cell phone is enabled to use the service. Like Dave said, it is really expensive and may or may not be particularly reliable, depending on the ship, the weather, and other factors.

On my last cruise I turned off my cell phone while at sea, but I signed up with my carrier for service on the island for my BlackBerry. I was able to retrieve all my emails, text message friends back home to check on my sick cat, and make a couple of calls while on land for far less than the onboard internet access would have cost and then disconnect totally on sea days to enjoy an unwired vacation. When I got home I simply called and cancelled the service.