Booked for 1st cruise and PIF!!! Lots of questions! - PassPorter - A Community of Walt Disney World, Disneyland, Disney Cruise Line, and General Travel Forums
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Booked for 1st cruise and PIF!!! Lots of questions!
Pinch me! I can't believe that, after booking and cancelling 3 separate DCL cruises over the years, that we are FINALLY taking our first cruise!!
Our trip is only a little over three weeks away, and while I was waiting impatiently to see if I would get the money in time to add the cruise, I watched first one, then another cruise disappear from the DCL website, presumably for being full!! That left only one cruise during our timeframe available. Luckily it was the longest one, with the best itinerary! We've booked on the May 30th, 5 night Bahamian (double-dip) cruise! I was so excited when I booked it that I was bouncing around the lab, squealing like a little kid! My two coworkers seemed a little surprised.....they know my Disney obsession, but have never seen me freak out from happiness!!!!
I really wanted a verandoh. I preferred a full verandah vs a navigator's verandah, just because it looks more open for the three of us to stand at the railing. More light too. So....I booked a cat 6 room. Apparently they are all full, so I went with the GTY cat 6, hoping that we'd end up with a good location, not at one extreme end or the other. Well, I checked my ressie today, and we've been assigned to #7032! It seems like a pretty good location, not fully forward, and close to elevators. I'm pretty sure it's a cat 5, but not sure if there's much difference between 5 & 6 besides location. I'm happy, regardless!
Being my first cruise, I have a bunch of questions!!(I don't have a recent DCL PP yet, so I'm hoping you can share your vast knowledge with me!)
I'm not sure where to start so here goes:
I'm not sure if we'll go ashore in Nassau, but if we do, which excursions would you suggest for a Mom with a 15yr old DD and a 7yr old DD? Have you tried the Nassau Forts and Junkanoo Discovery, the Seaworld Explorer Semi-Submarine, or the See and Sea Island Tour? Of course alot of the most popular excursions are full, but we didn't have our hearts set on any of them anyway. We want to have a little fun, see some of the island, without using up the whole day.
Which day do you think will be the Pirate Party? I'm trying to book a little spa time (I've NEVER been to a spa!), but have no idea when to book it! The sea day is completely booked at this point.
We have the late dinner seating, so at what time do the early shows start?
How many dress-up dinners on a 5 night? One/two? And what night(s)?
I wasn't going to attempt Palo, since I'd eat alone, but I then I thought I'd better try the brunch! It is showing that it's booked, but do they open times up when you are on board?
I didn't book transfers, thinking that a towncar might add that touch of luxury. What company do you suggest?
We'll need a car after the cruise for our non-WDW portion of our trip. Would you suggest renting at the port (or wherever it is by the port) or have a towncar deliver us to an Orlando rental company?
Whew! Guess I'll stop here for now! Can't wait to see what you DCL pros can come up with for me.
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Congrats on the cruise! We will have to find eachother on the wonder.
Currently I have no clue, when Pirate night is. I did recieve some formal documents, but no list on party nights, ect.
You can ask when You board about Palo, you never know if it will be full, people change.
There is only 1 "dress up" night on the cruise, again I have seen a wide variety of what "dress up" is to some people
Spa ressies, are fairly easy, you can go up there and ask for more info and they will be glad to assist you.
With late seating, (we have this too) Shows are around 6pm but don't take this as fact, I maybe wrong.
We booked budget for our rental car company. They will pick you up at the port, and bring you to their lot. Fairly fast. We have a decent rate from www.wdwinfo.com We will return the car to Orlando airport the next day.
We never used a transfer co. Hopefully somene here can help you out.
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We'll need a car after the cruise for our non-WDW portion of our trip. Would you suggest renting at the port (or wherever it is by the port) or have a towncar deliver us to an Orlando rental company?
Congrats!
If you're renting a car afterwards, it'll be much cheaper to do a one-way rental with Budget, Avis, or Hertz by the port (returning the car to the airport) than to have a towncar pickup. You will save a bit by booking a round-trip towncar, but not enough to justify the added cost.
I don't want to go out too far on a limb for dining. I suspect Dress-up night could be second night or fourth night (I lean towards encountering it earlier in the cruise). Pirates Night most likely will be third night, on the theory that they'll generally follow the four-night dining plan, but add a specially-themed dinner on the fourth or fifth night.
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Spa reservations are also harder to get on sea days, regardless of cruise line. They are extremely easy to get on shore days and usually discounted. One tip is to book an excursion that gets back to the ship early and get your spa treatments then. This takes a little more planning, but is usually worth it.
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We have done the sub excursion on another island and were disappointed, as far as Nassau we have been twice and when we go next year I won't be getting off the ship. If you have ever been to the French quarter it is sorta of like that( hope that doesn't offend anyone). I was not impressed so don't stress yourself about trying to get an excursion booked. It is cool to do and say you were there but it's nothing special. What is unique is there is alot of pirate history there but it is sprawled all over the place, They talk about it in the PP. Have a GREAT time and relax.
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Hmmmm...so probably no on the submarine excursion? I don't really feel the need to even get off the ship at Nassau, after reading so many lukewarm to BAD reviews of this port, I just don't want to regret not checking it out. I'm a little nervous about walking around, just me and my girls, and that annoys me, as I'm not a nervous person in general. Guess I'll play it by ear. Nobody really had anything to say about Atlantis, so I'm guessing that it must not be worth the $$$.
While I can't speak to any of your other questions, I can say that I LOVED Atlantis. That is the excursion I will always take in Nassau. The rest are just "eh" for me. But Atlantis, wow!! I'll see if I can get Crissy to come in here, as she just spent time in Atlantis on a cruise.
While I can't speak to any of your other questions, I can say that I LOVED Atlantis. That is the excursion I will always take in Nassau. The rest are just "eh" for me. But Atlantis, wow!! I'll see if I can get Crissy to come in here, as she just spent time in Atlantis on a cruise.
Way to make my decision hard! What did you do at Atlantis? What was your favorite part?
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), but have no idea when to book it! The sea day is completely booked at this point.
It is showing that it's booked, but do they open times up when you are on board? 
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What did you do at Atlantis? What was your favorite part?
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