Final plans are complete for my cruise...a few questions.. About This Page:

[Susu]

Hey Everyone,

I am so excited! Today I purchased our airfare, booked pre and post cruise hotel rooms, arranged for a car service from airport to hotel and from port back to hotel, and set up boarding for my dog. Whew. Now I am nearly ready. (We sail on Nov 14).
We are staying at the in Radisson, Cocoa Beach pre cruise, and the Hyatt Airport post cruise. At last I am ready to go online at the Disney site and complete registration!

Ok...questions:

1. How do you all carry that sheaf of papers? There will be flight itineraries, hotel confirmations, passports, cruise documents, and notes. Is there some sort of nifty folder or wallet that will hold all that and keep it in reach without being too bulky? Is there a safe in the stateroom for passports?

2. I called the Radisson to book the shuttle. I got the first available at 10:00 a.m. Is that a good time to leave for the port? Is this a reservation for that shuttle, or will we still need to queue up early to make sure we get a seat on the first bus. We'd like to board as early as possible to begin using the ship! I also hope to snag a Palo reservation (they have been unavailable so far).

3. Do most first time cruisers take some sort of anti seasick meds for the first day or two? What do you suggest?

4. What sort of shoes would you pack for 11 and 9 year olds. I was thinking some Keene sandals (closed toe but open on the sides) and maybe something dressy. Will they need tennis shoes too? I don't want to fill our suit cases with shoes!)

5. Speaking of suitcases, is there room for all four of us to have two suitcases and a carry one each in the stateroom? Or it is better to try to consolidate more? I have thought about filling one with bottled water and then using the empty suitcase for the stuff you inevitably end up buying!

That's all I can think of now! TIA!

Susu

[Colexis Mom]

1. I kept all the papers inside my Deluxe PassPorter book (in the pockets) and the passports in my PassPorter pouch. There is a safe in the stateroom for the passports!

2. 10:00 is a good time to go.....you should end up with an early boarding group.

3. I didn't take anything, but I had Bonine with me just incase!

4. DD (10) just brough flip flops or crocs. No sneakers. And a nice pair of flip flops for formal night.

5. We had 2 hard large suitcases, which barely fit into the closet (they wouldn't fit under the bed). We also had a couple carry on bags (and back packs) which we had no problem storing!

[jhoshowski]

For seasickness, I highly recommend Bonine. They also make a Bonine Jr for kids - I am not sure how old they have to be to take the regular stuff. It has the same active ingredient as what they will offer you on the ship, and doesn't have the annoying side effects of many other medicines (Dramamine comes to mind).

As for packing, I would try to condense. For our week-long trips to WDW, we take 3 suitcases for a family of four. Yes, you will need dressier clothes for the cruise, but I tend to overpack. I pack 3 pairs of shoes per person, and I insist on everyone having a pair of jeans for WDW, in August - "just in case". I would think that even allowing for water/souvenirs, you should be able to get by with fewer suitcases than you think. Also, remember that water is HEAVY. If you pack too much, be prepared!!

[Lumieregirl]

1. When DCL sent my cruise documents, they sent a neat little velco-closing pouch that I kept all of my documents in. It was a nice size, not too big to be cumbersome, but held all my stuff nicely. There is a safe in your stateroom for your valuables.

3. Check out this thread for some good advice regarding motion sickness. I cannot stress enough how important it is to do a trial run at home first of whatever method you intend to use. Can't recall if I put this in my response to that post, but I got so excited about my cruise that I forgot to take my motion sickness med (I know, even I cannot believe I did that ...) and ended up having almost no problem. So, that may be your case as well.
http://www.passporterboards.com/foru...ss-advice.html

5. Usually your suitcases can be stored under your bed, or in your closet. I think you can ask your stateroom attendant to hold one for you, but I'm not sure on this. In either case, I am a huge over-packer, and haven't had any trouble storing luggage.

[marnieknight]

I just took my DCL bag that I got on the last cruise and kept all our documentation in that. It is a tote bag that zips.

We stayed at the Radisson and were on the the 10am shuttle. That is a good time. We were still in Group 6 to board so there were alot of people that got to the port and checked in before we did. You will get a card with a number on it when you go to get in the checkin line and that is your boarding number. Starts at 1.

I would get a prescription for Scopalomine patches from your doctor for the adults to take. Kids normally do fine. I took them on our first cruise but didn't have to use them.

I had 8 bags to check and 2 carryons which proved to be entirely too much. All of our suitcases fit under the bed but we didn't wear half of what I took. We did fill on large duffle bag with a 12 pack of Cokes, 24 pack of waters, and 2 cases of Bud Light for my husband. That thing weighed a ton but everything made it to our stateroom in one piece. That bag we then used for souveniers as it was empty.

As far as shoes, my boys wore their crocs and tennis shoes during the day and dress shoes at night.

[JEB13]

Book the earliest Radisson shuttle. We booked a 1200 noon shuttle, but with the Carnival crowd, by 1240 I was seeking alternate transportation (paid). The terminal is fast once boarding has started. We ended up on-board 10 minutes before staterooms opened up at 1:30. Smooth sailing afterwards.

I used the Disney provided document pouch for check-in, but since I did the check-in paperwork on-line, minimal documentation check was required: passports before entering, documents check (did you do it) before entering line, id and credit card when checking in, then everyone get security photos for their Keys to the World cards.

Then it is pictures with Goofy AND Mickey before boarding. It was very fast and efficient.

Collapsable duffles were our key to luggage as they easily fit inside each other and flattened under the bed.

[Dave Marx]

A lot of first-timers ask about seasickness...

My personal feeling is that "preventative" seasickness meds like the Scopolomine patch only need be considered by those with a consistent history of motion sickness. Scop is pretty serious medication, with some potential for unpleasant side effects.

Far, far fewer folks ever get seasick than worry about it. This is especially true on the Bahamas, Caribbean, and Mediterranean itineraries, where the seas tend to be pretty mild most of the time. An Atlantic or Pacific crossing? Yes, even some folks with iron stomachs might get hit if there's bad weather.

There are several less severe remedies available - Bonine (effective over-the-counter medication, which is also distributed at no charge by the ships' medical facility), ginger pills (works for a reasonable number of people for mild seasickness), and "sea bands" (uses accupressure on the wrists - some swear by them, others see no benefit). Any of these can be used as either a preventative or as a remedy, while the Scop patch needs to be applied a few days in advance of the cruise to be effective.

Some folks continue to use seasickness remedies cruise after cruise, because they weren't sick the last time. Do they know for sure whether the remedy was the reason they dodged the bullet, or whether they would have been sick at all? Also, folks respond differently to different kinds of motion. Jennifer, for example, has no problem in cars or on ships, but she has a real problem with spinning rides.

On the 3- and 4-night Bahamas itineraries, the worst seas are usually encountered on the first evening, when the ship is moving south through the Atlantic, parallel to the shore. By the middle of the night the ship is into the sheltering arms of the Bahamas, where the islands block and break-up the big ocean swells. The ship isn't back in the open Atlantic until around bedtime on the last night - most folks sleep through whatever added motion there may be, and many have acquired their sea legs by then.

[JEB13]

They sell daramamine in the ship's store (Deck 4) - little two pill packages. Break them in quarters and give every 3ish hours apart. If you take one or more at a time, you will sleep...

[colleymouse]

I recommend suitcases like rolling duffles that will collapse and fit under the bed. I discovered the hard way that 1 of our suitcases fit under the bed and 2 didn't. I always assumed that they were the same size. We used the space under the bed to store anything we didn't need everyday. Our last stateroom had a plastic storage box that we used to keep all our small stuff and pirate costumes. Whoever put there, did us a big favor!

[Pris]

Definitely keep the 10 am shuttle and get to the boarding area at the hotel early. Find the person in charge and touch bases with him. You want to get to the port as early as possible. If you are sailing on a Sat. the hotel shuttles will be crazy, because at least 2 ships are sailing so their shuttles are split up.

[deanna23]

2. I would keep the 10am shuttle because I like to board as early as possible because I (the adult) cannot wait to get on board. We were the second family on board.
3. I also take something over the counter for motion sickness for just in case. I get sick on small boats, but I was fine on both cruises that we have done.
4. My boys age 11 and 13 wore tennis shoes most of the time. They wore theirs on the plane so no extra packing there. We took dress shoes and water shoes for both also.
5. For a family of four, we each had 1 large suitcase and a carryon. I pack a lot. The kids and my husband's clothes took up more space than mine did.
6. Have a wonderful time.
deanna