Disney Wonder 7/30/2009 Review w/ Pics

[sweetlittlething212003]

Hi Everyone,


Thanks to all of my fellow reviewers out there. Because of you and the countless hours I’ve spent reading information on this website, I’ve been inspired to write my first review. This was my 4th cruise and my first time cruising on Disney. In the past I have cruised on Regal, Royal Caribbean, and Norwegian. This time I cruised with my husband, mother and 3 year old daughter.

Overall, the experience was great. The ship is in excellent condition especially for its age and the entertainment was out of this world. My favorite part of the cruise was Castaway Cay and martini tasting with greatest bar tender ever in the Diversions Lounge (Deck 3). The highlights included Toy Story the musical and the beach day on Castaway Cay. We would definitely recommend Disney to others and may consider going on another cruise in the future just for the shear Disney experience although I think we might try a longer one since no one was ready to go home!

Embarkation:
Embarkation was very organized but we did have to wait a bit to board the ship. We arrived at the terminal at around 11:00 and were given group 5 for boarding. First, our first step was the initial check in process which includes presenting your documentation. We saved ourselves a lot of time by completing the online check-in prior to sailing and bringing our signatures for the cruise contract and on board credit account with us. This line took the longest because of obvious reasons, but after the staff checked us in and presented us with our “Key to the World” cards we were off to take our pictures. The picture line was a breeze as we didn’t stand there for more than 5 minutes for our group of 4. The next line was to register your children for kid’s camp. This line was even shorter and there were several counselors available. We received our daughter’s pager and we were off to wait for boarding time. It probably took us about 30 minutes to complete our check-in process from beginning at security down stairs until we registered DD in Kid’s camp but we waited about another 45 minutes sitting in the terminal before we began boarding the ship. While we were waiting, they did have a model of the Disney Magic (Disney Wonder is almost identical) that was available to look at and a few character greetings for the children to take pictures with. I did see a Disney Vacation Club section which was separated from the rest of the terminal and several televisions throughout the terminal with Disney movies playing. I thought that the seating was a bit limited and a large number of people were saving seats and placing their luggage on the seats which made it difficult to accommodate the large number of families in the terminal. After they called our group number 5, we stood in a short line to get on the ship. We took a group photo before boarding and we were onboard by 12:30pm. It was great to hear our name announced as we walked onto the ship and neat that Disney took the time out to highlight our family. This is really a special touch that you will not find any other cruise lines.


Day One:
Once on the ship, we listened to our fellow Cruise Critic members and headed straight to deck 9 which was pretty empty probably because the mob was downstairs on deck 3. Take the advice and head up the elevator! The food in Beach Blanket buffet was great and they had a great selection including a cook to order pasta bar and fried rice. They also have tray service was nice for us because those it is always hard to carry everything in your hands and find a seat. After lunch we headed up to the pool area which was a mad house in my opinion. But DD wanted to play in the pool and we had already anticipated this so we all dressed in our bathing suits. We made our way to Mickey’s Pool outside and let DD play for a bit until someone announced we could now go to our staterooms. We immediately went to our staterooms to drop off our mounds of carry-on luggage. This, in my opinion, was the most annoying thing about Disney since on past cruise lines I’ve been on allow passengers to immediately drop off their luggage in the room as soon as they have boarded. Although we only had to wait about 45 minutes after eating lunch to get into our room it would have been a huge convenience to be able to drop off our luggage right away.

After a bit of discovery on the ship and the sail-a-way party (which was fun and full of energy but crowded), it was time to head to the first night’s show which was the Golden Mickeys. At the entrance of the show they had cameras flashing and a red carpet and an announcer outside which was displaying in the theatre to simulate the Golden Globe awards. This was a really cute touch and my DD loved it. The show was full of fun surprises and my DD loved seeing some of her favorite Disney characters including some of the princesses.
After the show we headed up to the dining room on our first night of the rotation which was Animators’ Palate. The restaurant was overall good, but the least favorite of all three nights. The show in the restaurant was neat and my DD seems pretty entertained although it was not what I expected. Not the fault of the restaurant or the staff but I came to dinner extremely hungry because we didn’t have time to snack throughout the day (shocking right!). I’m normally use to eating at around 6pm, so I was a little impatient for dinner which seemed to take a little longer than it should. The selection on the menu was fine, however, I would have hoped for more premium beef selections. We didn’t go to Palo’s, but next time I might select to swap this restaurant to dine there. After dinner we headed back to the room to get DD and mom settled and then DH and I went to watch the Proposal which was excellent! Very funny and the timing was perfect. After we returned from the movie, DH and I decided we would order room service since most all of the restaurants were closed except for Pizza. We tried to order chicken wings (which were our favorite) however, we were informed they didn’t serve those. It might have been nice to let us know that there were some available on the boat, just not through room service because it wasn’t until we accidently stumbled upon them on day two. Although, we didn’t find them until the second night, (which were located in Diversions bar deck 3) I think we made a pretty good dent in them and by the last night DH was know by the staff as “Wing Guy.”
Day two:
We woke up at about 8:30am and made it to breakfast in the Beach Buffet. Buffet for breakfast again had a good variety of food and even though I’m not a breakfast person I found plenty to eat. They even had Mickey waffles! After breakfast we headed off the boat to Nassau. While in Nassau we only planned to go to Atlantis and find the casino. We decided to take the water taxi over to Paradise Island. Do not do this! It’s worth the extra dollar per person for the taxi. The water taxi is not air conditioned and doesn’t leave until its completely filled which could take up to an extra 20-25 minutes to sit in the hot heat. Also, once we arrived at the dock, it was another 15 minute walk to the casino and a lot of walkway crossing on busy streets. If you are not doing an excursion, save yourself some sweat and ride in the taxi. It takes you directly from the ship to Atlantis.

The casino okay but compared to Vegas I would say its small. After we left the casino we walked on Bay Street but we didn’t find anything of particular interest. We left the island after about 3 ½ hours and went back to the boat at around 2:35pm. The problem with this was that all of the buffets were closed and nothing was available to eat except for the grills on deck 9 which are limited. This was a little upsetting since most other cruise lines have only a 30 minute to 1 hour between regular dining times. I would have expected them to stay open until at least 3 or 3:30pm. Since no other food was available we decided to order from room service. The room service menu does have a lot of food items but they don’t allow for much customization at all. It might be better for those who are picky to go to deck nine and order from the restaurants there. This will allow for better customization of food items. After lunch, DH and I had tickets for the martini tasting. Although tickets are not required its best go to ahead and reserve space before hand to ensure you get a spot. DH and I reserved on the first day with no problem. This is a MUST for martini lovers or anyone who wants to learn more about the martini or just to have fun! DH and I thoroughly enjoyed the presentation as we learned the history, tasted 5 different martinis as well as made our own martinis. The bartender we excellent and we had a great time. (This is also where we discovered the chicken wings! Yippee!) After martini tasting it was time for the second show, Toy Story the musical. I did not expect much from this show as I’m not a fan of Toy story but I was pleasantly surprised. If you are thinking of skipping this show don’t, it is a must see.
After the show it was time to go to dinner which for our rotation was Parrot Cay. This was my favorite restaurant of the cruise and I enjoyed the menu and the entertainment during dinner. The service was much better and I was less hunger as I had several snacks throughout the day in Goofy’s Galley and Pinocchio’s Pizzeria. After dinner was served the restaurant broke out in a conga line as well as the limbo which cruisers were able to join in on.
After dinner, it was time for the pirate party. We stayed for the fireworks and the beginning dances and we did dress up in our pirate outfits which were pretty fun! DD was getting tired so we decided to go back to Diversions and get a few more chicken wings before we headed to bed.

Day Three:
Last full day on the cruise, we pulled into port at Disney’s private island at Castaway Cay. First, we started by going to breakfast again, but today we went to Parrot Cay (Deck 3). Unlike the first day for lunch, this buffet was a lot less crowded as the regular breakfast buffet on deck 9 and seem to have the same type of food at the Beach Blanket except the no cook to order omelets. After breakfast we decided to see G-Force. We liked the movie and were excited to see it for free in the theatre and the best thing was no one else was there since everyone had flocked to the beach. After the movie we disembarked to Castaway Cay. We made a few stops on the way to the tram to collect clues for Pirate’s of Castaway Cay treasure hunt (go to guest services to pick up your scavenger hunt maps.) We decided to find a spot on the beach but by this time everyone had taken all of the umbrellas so we found a few loose chairs and parked ourselves in the water. We ended up going to one of the shops and buying some sand toys for our DD to play on the beach which my DH went to get something to eat at Cookie’s BBQ. Cookie’s B-B-Q was good however there is not as much of a selection as the regular buffet. On the buffet was B-B-Q ribs, rotisserie chicken, hot dogs and hamburgers. The ribs are great! DH and I really enjoyed them. They also had soft serve ice cream but no vanilla, just chocolate chip cookie dough and strawberry yogurt. We spent the rest of the day in the water with DD and DH took full advantage of the buy one get one free cocktails which I want to say lasted for about 2 hours. This is a great deal but the free cocktail has to be the same. After a day of fun in the sun we headed back to the boat.
Back in just enough time for the show, we showered and got ready to go. The last night’s show was Disney Dreams which was a favorite for my DD since it had most of the princesses in the show. After the show, we head to our last night of dinner in Tritons. The restaurant was very nicely decorated and DD loved it since Ariel is her favorite character. I ordered the escargot, salad, and sea bass. All of the food was good it but it wasn’t anything spectacular. After dinner we got ready for the last night of the characters. Most of the characters were lined up for those last minute pictures. This was great and don’t be worried about the lines. Yes, they looked very long but because we get to take our own pictures the lines moved very, very quickly and we were able to get in five characters in the 20 minutes they were there. This was very exciting for DD as she got a kiss from Mickey Mouse! After the character greeting, we went back to our room and put out our luggage. All directions for debarkation were explained several times and many flyers were given out with instructions to document the process so there were no surprises.
Debarkation:
The debarkation process was a breeze as we had last seating breakfast which was at 8:15am in the dining room we ate in the previous night. After we ate our leisurely breakfast, we disembarked the ship where we would check out and find our luggage. The luggage process was very simple as Disney color codes your luggage was well as puts bags in order of stateroom number. Also, there were many porters available help carry luggage. We were lucky and got a lady who knew exactly what to do and she saved us time in the customs line (where we spent all of 3 minutes), walked us out to the parking lot and helped us load our bags into the car. This was well worth the tip as we didn’t do anything!
Overall Positives:
Free soft drinks were really a plus!
Fireworks and pirate’s night
Private Island was great
Debarkation
Character greetings on the last night
Shows were fantastic!
Negatives:
Buffet hours for non-traditional breakfast and lunch eaters especially in ports
Dining room food could have had some “safe” choices like chicken or steak as optional
TV’s are old and needed to be upgraded (I heard they are doing this when the Wonder dry docks sometime this year)
Food was not available 24 hours in main/common areas as most things closed up around mid-night
Kid’s club was a little hectic on the first and last night
Luggage drop off in stateroom was not available on first night

Pics and Navigators coming tomorrow...Stay tuned...

[crewsin250]

Sweetlittlething I have a couple of Questions maybe you can answer for me.

1. I do not want to get my hopes up that I can get my photo with the characters, but I also dont want folks talking about me when I have to shove kids out the way for this to happen. (Just Kidding) But where there adults also getting photos with Mickey and the gang.

2. Do they offer express disembarkation where you carry your own luggage off.

Thanks Paul

[sweetlittlething212003]

Hi Paul,

Yes, there were a lot of adults getting photos with the characters and there really is no need to shove or push kids. Everyone was pretty civilized when we were standing in line but most characters do come with a chaperon in cause anyone does get out of hand you won't have to "take care" of the situation by yourself.

I do believe they offered carry off debarkation except the people who had this where always referred to as "you know who you are" people so I'm not sure how you get this? I would check with Guest Services to be sure you are on “the know”.


I'm trying to get some pics up later if I can figure out how to publish them in the review.

[crewsin250]

Sweet little thing I have been checking back regularly for more info and photos on your cruise. Looking forward to reading and seeing more from your cruise.
Thanks Paul

[mom x4,grandma x4]

I enjoyed reading your report.
I an anxious to see your pictures.

kathy

[sgtbjb603]

I really loved your report........

You have got to love the chicken wings from Diversions...... They did not have them every night when we went.......

One thing I noticed you wanted a safe meal offering....
If you look at the menu under Lighter Fare they have Sirloin steak, and Roasted Chicken Breast listed in every restaurant..... Just to help......

[conandrob240]

Thanks for the great review. Can't wait to see the updated navigator's. We leave in 2 1/2 weeks!

[sweetlittlething212003]

Ok, its not pretty but its here.

http://picasaweb.google.com/crazycru...COKRj_jM763dIQ#

http://cid-1d98827b6bf8abde.skydrive...Navigators.pdf
(You must click download to view them.)

If anyone can tell me a better way or give me instructions on how to post them on the review that would be excellent.

[iloverags2]

Thanks for posting the Navigators! We are going in October and I have been waiting to see updated ones.

[AUgirl]

Originally Posted by sweetlittlething212003

Ok, its not pretty but its here.

http://picasaweb.google.com/crazycru...COKRj_jM763dIQ#

http://cid-1d98827b6bf8abde.skydrive...Navigators.pdf
(You must click download to view them.)

If anyone can tell me a better way or give me instructions on how to post them on the review that would be excellent.

YOU ROCK and you're a "sweet little thing" for taking the time to scan all of those in for us to see!!! Thank you VERY much!!

[crewsin250]

It was well worth the wait to see some new Navigators and I really enjoyed your photos, again thank you.

Paul

[ama22]

What a great job. I wouldn't know how to even begin. You don't need any more instruction.

[jennjun]

Thank you for the Navigator that is exactly what I was looking for to help plan our time on the Wonder in Sept. Thank you!

[rtrtx2]

Originally Posted by crewsin250

Sweetlittlething I have a couple of Questions maybe you can answer for me.

1. I do not want to get my hopes up that I can get my photo with the characters, but I also dont want folks talking about me when I have to shove kids out the way for this to happen. (Just Kidding) But where there adults also getting photos with Mickey and the gang.

2. Do they offer express disembarkation where you carry your own luggage off.

Thanks Paul

Paul not sure about express disembarkation BUT on Disney there is really no need. You do not wait for your assigned color tag/number to be called as you do with most other lines. You are free to leave once they announce the ship is cleared to debark. Finding luggage in the terminal is easy as they arrange in by assigned character area and actually line up your luggage by room numbers, all of it together so need to hunt all over. Plus they have people there assisting you. Disney wins hands down for their disembarkation, other lines need to take lessons IMHO

[barron34608]

Many thanks for the review & photos. DH & I (no children) will be on the Wonder in Sept. for the first time. We are still kids @heart & know we will have an enjoyable time.

[crewsin250]

Thanks Rtrtx2 for the info on disembarkation I just need to get off as soon as possible I have about a 10 hour drive home and 4:30 AM will come early on Monday mourning. About what time do they let the first people off the ship.

Thanks Paul

[Marla07860]

great review of the cruise. And you are right about the tv's in your review the Wonder should get them at drydock. Magic has them already

[NoleShaun]

SLT, thanks for the review, pics, and Navigator! We are doing the same cruise in Oct and as perpetual planners these will help us out. Thanks again!

Shaun

[Mickey Moe]

Great TR and thanks for the Navigators. We are on the Oct 22 sailing.

[ducklite]

Originally Posted by crewsin250

Thanks Rtrtx2 for the info on disembarkation I just need to get off as soon as possible I have about a 10 hour drive home and 4:30 AM will come early on Monday mourning. About what time do they let the first people off the ship.

Thanks Paul

The ship is generally cleared by 8:00 or so--often even earlier.