big al
May 23rd, 2006, 09:47 AM
When my wife started asking me if we could some day try the Disney Cruise Line,first thing I said was,"but they have no casino!And they'll be thousands of LITTLE children running around screaming,crying,whining-it'll be torcher!" My wife & I are 53 & 51,NO KIDS,live 2 1/2 hrs. from Orlando and have visited Disney parks about 25 times the last 11 years.But she's always loved Disney characters & movies plus she was my brother's nanny for his daughter till I married her when Amber was 6.Then she still spent lots of time with her watching Disney movies....
So,I agreed to book a 3 night cruise on the Wonder.Balcony cabin on deck 7, # 7070.Yes,Disney is 15-20 % more expensive than all other mainstream cruises,but I keep my promises.So here goes.......
WOW!!!!Best 3 days we ever spent!!! This cruise & ship was A and A+ in many catagories...First,let me say we are veteran cruisers,this being our 15th,first on Disney,of course..as you can see from my list at the bottom,we've tried everybody except Costa....so-embarkation gets A...terminal very nice,we got there at 11:15 AM,on board by 11:45.Went right to the Parrott Cay buffet.Buffet was very good.Lots of choices:salads,pasta,cold cuts,subs,hot food,breads,pizza,macaroni & cheese (what a surprise),and lots of desserts.After we ate,my wife & I toured the ship.First impressions was very clean,very friendly.EVERYBODY had a smile and said hello.Don't always see that on every cruise line & ship...there is an adults only area for lounges called Route 66,named after the old famous TV show.In there is the Cadillac Lounge,a piano bar that's very 50'5/60's ish..it was nice..also the adult's disco Waves was around the corner.There they had 70's & 80's disco night and Karaoke-adults only of course.I sang "The Wanderer" by Dion and by all accounts from others,knocked 'em dead...the next day at Castaway Cay,the Disney private island,at least 7 people came up to me and said I was "awesome" and "terrific"..what a crowd!!
They also have an adult's only pool,and an adult's only restaurant,Palo's,which I'll get to later....After seeing most of the ship,by 1:30PM we could finally go to our cabin # 7070.First impression was that it seemed a little smaller than the advertised 268 sq. ft.It seemed more like 190-200.Positives:Very clean,lots of drawer space,ample closet space,balcony at first I thought was a bit cramped,but after a few times out there,I realized we had been in mini-suites,jr. suites the last 2-3 cruises where balconies were 65-100 sq.ft.This was probably 40-45 sq.ft.There 2 chairs (no lounge types,just sit in chairs) and a small table.A couch,empty fridge,and desk were also in there.Uncertain:The bathroom was odd-it was divided into 2 parts:one part had a toilet & sink,then a wall seperated another part that had another sink and the shower and bathtub.It was a bit cramped,but as my wife pointed out,this was done for families...one section for bathing,the other for the obvious....I felt a bit cramped in there I must say...Negatives:TV was only a 13 inch,smallest I've ver had.Good news-they had about 25 channels with many Disney movies,ABC,CNN,HDL,ESPN,and of course,several Disney channels.Also the shower pressure was weak,and we had luke warm water on Saturday when we came back from Casatway Cay,and again early Sunday morning when debarkation started.A/C was OK,but I like when you can control not only the temperature,but also the force of the air (low,medium,high)..it was always one speed,and when you opened the balcony door,the A/C automatically went off (don't like that either)...cabin was a "B"...
Food:Here is where I was very impressed!We ate our 1st night in Palo's,the ship's adult only restaurant.It was only $10 PP.I had rack of lamb,my wife filet-mignon.We had appetizers-fried calamari for her,shrimp dip with crackers for me,both terrific...service was A+,as was the food.The venue is on the 10th deck,aft,with a nice view of the sea.We had a window table..very romantic.Don't miss this experience!!
As most of you know,Disney rotates you the other nights in their 3 restaurants and the waiters follow you also with your same tablemates....Our 2nd night was in Parrott's Cay and that was very good.I had Prime-rib,an end cut which was cooked perfect.Third night was Triton's,which was suppose to be formal night,but 50% were casual/tropical attire.Since I wore a jacket the 1st night at Palo's,I was NOT going formal 2 nights later-so I wore my Tommy Bahama shirt with nice off-white dockers.I had Medallions of beef,while my wife had mahi-mahi..both thumbs up.Service was A+ on every night..
Our cabin steward was Kitty,an sweet gal from Thailand and she kept our cabin spotless..very friendly and saw her 2-3 times a day.
The pools were divided into 3 pools:kid's only,family (kids,adults) and adult's only.Very good idea.My only wish was at the adult's pool the music was jazz,and I thought it should've been 60/70's or adult contemporary...hot tubs worked fine (unlike HAL)...
I've left the best for last:The entertainment and Castaway Cay.First,the shows...all I can say is -WWWOOOOOWWWW!!Best shows I've ever seen on a cruise ship! A++++.I thought they would be geared for 3-5 yr. olds,but not so...1st night was "Hercules" a kind of play & musical.I give it a B+ or A-...Second night was the "Golden Mickeys",a tribute to great Disney songs & films..Phenomenal-A+..the final show was called "Disney Dreams",the story of a little girl's power of imagination to get to her dreams.Peter Pan helps her along with many other famous Disney characters.Great singers and dancers.By the end of the show,my 51 yr.old wife was practically in tears and sang quietly every song she knew in the show.At the end,ALL the characters including Mickey & Minnie came out and the end was just amazing!!If you don't like these shows,check yourself into an MRI lab and ask for a scan..even if you HATE Disney,you will appreciate these performers!Before this cruise,I thought NCL & Carnival had the best shows.Not any more.......
Finally Castaway Cay was a paradise that will please ALL cruisers,young and old.We stayed at Serenity Beach,a beach for Adult's only the first half of the day(AM),then went to the family beach from 1-2PM for the 2nd half.Lunch was at the Adult's buffet area was great.Burgers were THEE best I've ever had on a cruise along with hot dogs,salads,pasta,steak sandwiches(yes,steak sandwiches!),ice cream and fruit & cookies.Water was a tad cool,but after 2 minutes in was OK...weather all 3 days was perfect and sunny...
So,thumbs up to Disney Cruise Lines for the best 3 days we've ever done for vacation..BTW,this was a TON better than any 2-3 days we've done at Disney World.And we didn't have any kids....I've always said the only problem with Disney World is they let kids in..I wish 1-2 days a month they would have an adult's only day...or how about an adult's only 3 night cruise? I must admit seeing the little boys and especially the little girls dressed up in their princess,sleeping beauty/pocahantas/cinderella/ outfits was very cute.The boys were pirates,Peter Pan,etc.So,I have one question for you all:
"Who's the leader of the band that's made for you and me?" M-I-C-K-E-Y M-O-U-S-E!!!!!!
Big Al
USS Constitution (’61)
USS Independence( ’63)
SS United States( ‘53 & ’67)
Queen Mary (??)
Raffaelo(’63)
Michelangelo (’62)
SS France (’66)
Carnival Fantasy (’90)
Carnival Sensation (’95)
RCL Majesty Of Seas (’96)
Carnival Paradise (’98)
Grand Princess (2000)
Celebrity Mercury (2001)
NCL Star (1 night.) (’01)
NCL Sun (’01)
Carnival Pride (’03)
Carnival Triumph ( ’04)
RCL AOS (’05)
HAL Westerdam (’05)
Disney Wonder (5/06)
RCL Mariner OS (8/06)
RCL Freedom Of The Seas (11/06)
NCL Jewel (3/07)
So,I agreed to book a 3 night cruise on the Wonder.Balcony cabin on deck 7, # 7070.Yes,Disney is 15-20 % more expensive than all other mainstream cruises,but I keep my promises.So here goes.......
WOW!!!!Best 3 days we ever spent!!! This cruise & ship was A and A+ in many catagories...First,let me say we are veteran cruisers,this being our 15th,first on Disney,of course..as you can see from my list at the bottom,we've tried everybody except Costa....so-embarkation gets A...terminal very nice,we got there at 11:15 AM,on board by 11:45.Went right to the Parrott Cay buffet.Buffet was very good.Lots of choices:salads,pasta,cold cuts,subs,hot food,breads,pizza,macaroni & cheese (what a surprise),and lots of desserts.After we ate,my wife & I toured the ship.First impressions was very clean,very friendly.EVERYBODY had a smile and said hello.Don't always see that on every cruise line & ship...there is an adults only area for lounges called Route 66,named after the old famous TV show.In there is the Cadillac Lounge,a piano bar that's very 50'5/60's ish..it was nice..also the adult's disco Waves was around the corner.There they had 70's & 80's disco night and Karaoke-adults only of course.I sang "The Wanderer" by Dion and by all accounts from others,knocked 'em dead...the next day at Castaway Cay,the Disney private island,at least 7 people came up to me and said I was "awesome" and "terrific"..what a crowd!!
They also have an adult's only pool,and an adult's only restaurant,Palo's,which I'll get to later....After seeing most of the ship,by 1:30PM we could finally go to our cabin # 7070.First impression was that it seemed a little smaller than the advertised 268 sq. ft.It seemed more like 190-200.Positives:Very clean,lots of drawer space,ample closet space,balcony at first I thought was a bit cramped,but after a few times out there,I realized we had been in mini-suites,jr. suites the last 2-3 cruises where balconies were 65-100 sq.ft.This was probably 40-45 sq.ft.There 2 chairs (no lounge types,just sit in chairs) and a small table.A couch,empty fridge,and desk were also in there.Uncertain:The bathroom was odd-it was divided into 2 parts:one part had a toilet & sink,then a wall seperated another part that had another sink and the shower and bathtub.It was a bit cramped,but as my wife pointed out,this was done for families...one section for bathing,the other for the obvious....I felt a bit cramped in there I must say...Negatives:TV was only a 13 inch,smallest I've ver had.Good news-they had about 25 channels with many Disney movies,ABC,CNN,HDL,ESPN,and of course,several Disney channels.Also the shower pressure was weak,and we had luke warm water on Saturday when we came back from Casatway Cay,and again early Sunday morning when debarkation started.A/C was OK,but I like when you can control not only the temperature,but also the force of the air (low,medium,high)..it was always one speed,and when you opened the balcony door,the A/C automatically went off (don't like that either)...cabin was a "B"...
Food:Here is where I was very impressed!We ate our 1st night in Palo's,the ship's adult only restaurant.It was only $10 PP.I had rack of lamb,my wife filet-mignon.We had appetizers-fried calamari for her,shrimp dip with crackers for me,both terrific...service was A+,as was the food.The venue is on the 10th deck,aft,with a nice view of the sea.We had a window table..very romantic.Don't miss this experience!!
As most of you know,Disney rotates you the other nights in their 3 restaurants and the waiters follow you also with your same tablemates....Our 2nd night was in Parrott's Cay and that was very good.I had Prime-rib,an end cut which was cooked perfect.Third night was Triton's,which was suppose to be formal night,but 50% were casual/tropical attire.Since I wore a jacket the 1st night at Palo's,I was NOT going formal 2 nights later-so I wore my Tommy Bahama shirt with nice off-white dockers.I had Medallions of beef,while my wife had mahi-mahi..both thumbs up.Service was A+ on every night..
Our cabin steward was Kitty,an sweet gal from Thailand and she kept our cabin spotless..very friendly and saw her 2-3 times a day.
The pools were divided into 3 pools:kid's only,family (kids,adults) and adult's only.Very good idea.My only wish was at the adult's pool the music was jazz,and I thought it should've been 60/70's or adult contemporary...hot tubs worked fine (unlike HAL)...
I've left the best for last:The entertainment and Castaway Cay.First,the shows...all I can say is -WWWOOOOOWWWW!!Best shows I've ever seen on a cruise ship! A++++.I thought they would be geared for 3-5 yr. olds,but not so...1st night was "Hercules" a kind of play & musical.I give it a B+ or A-...Second night was the "Golden Mickeys",a tribute to great Disney songs & films..Phenomenal-A+..the final show was called "Disney Dreams",the story of a little girl's power of imagination to get to her dreams.Peter Pan helps her along with many other famous Disney characters.Great singers and dancers.By the end of the show,my 51 yr.old wife was practically in tears and sang quietly every song she knew in the show.At the end,ALL the characters including Mickey & Minnie came out and the end was just amazing!!If you don't like these shows,check yourself into an MRI lab and ask for a scan..even if you HATE Disney,you will appreciate these performers!Before this cruise,I thought NCL & Carnival had the best shows.Not any more.......
Finally Castaway Cay was a paradise that will please ALL cruisers,young and old.We stayed at Serenity Beach,a beach for Adult's only the first half of the day(AM),then went to the family beach from 1-2PM for the 2nd half.Lunch was at the Adult's buffet area was great.Burgers were THEE best I've ever had on a cruise along with hot dogs,salads,pasta,steak sandwiches(yes,steak sandwiches!),ice cream and fruit & cookies.Water was a tad cool,but after 2 minutes in was OK...weather all 3 days was perfect and sunny...
So,thumbs up to Disney Cruise Lines for the best 3 days we've ever done for vacation..BTW,this was a TON better than any 2-3 days we've done at Disney World.And we didn't have any kids....I've always said the only problem with Disney World is they let kids in..I wish 1-2 days a month they would have an adult's only day...or how about an adult's only 3 night cruise? I must admit seeing the little boys and especially the little girls dressed up in their princess,sleeping beauty/pocahantas/cinderella/ outfits was very cute.The boys were pirates,Peter Pan,etc.So,I have one question for you all:
"Who's the leader of the band that's made for you and me?" M-I-C-K-E-Y M-O-U-S-E!!!!!!
Big Al
USS Constitution (’61)
USS Independence( ’63)
SS United States( ‘53 & ’67)
Queen Mary (??)
Raffaelo(’63)
Michelangelo (’62)
SS France (’66)
Carnival Fantasy (’90)
Carnival Sensation (’95)
RCL Majesty Of Seas (’96)
Carnival Paradise (’98)
Grand Princess (2000)
Celebrity Mercury (2001)
NCL Star (1 night.) (’01)
NCL Sun (’01)
Carnival Pride (’03)
Carnival Triumph ( ’04)
RCL AOS (’05)
HAL Westerdam (’05)
Disney Wonder (5/06)
RCL Mariner OS (8/06)
RCL Freedom Of The Seas (11/06)
NCL Jewel (3/07)