Disney and a wonderful DREAM - Our Family Vacation 8/17 - 8/27

[pcrum]

Loving the review. I can certainly relate to having a teen who spends all their time at the Teen Club. My DD has done the club twice and loved it. She would eat meals with us and, of course, do the shore excursions, but the rest of her time was spent at the Teen Club. Her twin brother wanted no part of it, go figure! I know she will be sad when she is 18 and too old for the Club.

[Catrin]

Ok.... Friday night! Writing my last day now...

Wish me luck that CC doesn't freeze again!

Will post shortly!

Catrin

[Catrin]

Friday 8/26 – Day at Sea

We woke up this morning early, full of hope for a fun day, and with a bit of sadness, as we knew it was our last full day on the Dream. Our plan was to have fun by the pool just relaxing – spend the afternoon packing, and then enjoy our last night out. We love “At Sea” days.. .and two was just not enough! When booking our next cruise, that will be a priority.

First thing in the morning, we went to the Gym. I had gone on the first At Sea day, but forgot to mention it. I did about 30 minutes on the Elliptical and some weight machines. Overall, I was quite pleased with the Gym, and even at 7am it was full of people.

I went back to the room, and woke up the kids… and got ready for the day. We packed yet another load of laundry to give to our Cabin Steward, which I handed to him personally. We certainly LOVED the Daily Laundry Wash and Fold as part of our Platinum Benefits!

We decided to have a full breakfast on the Lido Deck – back to the yummy omelet station for my Egg White Omelets, Bacon, etc. We used to have this type of breakfast every morning on past cruises – eating outside at the Lido Deck Pool.. it was nice to do this again our last morning.

After breakfast, we went down to the Gift Shop and Photo Gallery for our last minute purchases. In the past, we have always purchased the 2 for $20 Tshirts. But… this time… the selection was just terrible. First, they usually had new shirts available just for this sale; this was not the case this week. The same ole Tshirts they had for sale all week. Nothing that said Carnival on them, just “MEXICO” or “BELIZE”. Very disappointing. We then went to the Photo Gallery, where I picked up my pictures I had ordered on the new screens. Excellent way to order pics!

Now it was Pool time! Surprisingly, we were able to find chairs right at the Lido Pool under an umbrella, and we settled in there. I had my Kindle and enjoyed reading and watching the Morning Show with Butch and Amy on the Big Screen. DH and the kids hung out, went up and down the slide a million times, and swam in the pool. At one point, the Lido Deck duo played for an hour or two. I sure miss the full bands on the Lido Deck – while these guys did a nice job, it sure doesn’t have the energy of past bands. Then it was time for ….. wait for this…. The Chicken Olympics! HUH? Really? Very very strange pool games…. They only had two teams play – they asked and asked for someone on the Red Team to play, but no takers. The Olympics went on with not much attention – some cheers, sure… but nothing like the Hairy Chest Contest, or the Survivor Games of the past.

Lunch was your basic pool food…. Hamburgers, HotDogs, Pizza…. Whatever was closest and had the least lines! We ate right at our chairs. I never ate the Lunch Buffet all week. Between the Burrito Bar, Pasta Bar and Deli…. I was very happy with the selections!

In the afternoon, we decided we wanted to go back to the room to pack. What is worse than packing for a 10 day trip away from home? Packing to GO HOME! We knew it would be a project, and we wanted to be smart about it…. So we spent some time while the kids were off doing that.

At 4, it was time for “Groove for St. Jude” – The fundraiser Dance Party for St. Jude Children’s Hospital. For a $10.00 donation, you get a Tshirt and Bracelet and attend a dance party. It sounded like fun and it was for a great cause, so I happily donated…. Put on my shirt and went down to the Promeade Deck. Butch, Amy and the entertainment staff showed up… but where are all the people? There were only about 20 people there. They advertised it all week, and talked it up at all the events, so I was very surprised at the turn out. 4000 people on the ship and this is IT?? We did the Electric Slide, Cha Cha Slide and Cupid Shuffle… and talked to the staff afterwards... and that was it. I am glad I participated, but I guess I was hoping for a lot more people!

I went back to the room, where DH was finishing packing. Looking back, we realized we TOTALLY FORGOT THE FAREWELL PARTY with the Free Drinks! WHY?? Because … we were engrossed with CNN. We actually had been for the last two days, but now DH was glued to the TV. Why? Because a Hurricane was heading right towards our home in RI. Was due to hit Sunday morning… right when we were due to fly out of Orlando.

[Catrin]

We finished packing… except for the Laundry that we sent out in the morning. That would be returned to us when we were at dinner. I was starting to get really nervous about the storm, and our flights, and the thought of being stuck in Florida. We live on the Coast of RI, so DH was also worried about our home and his work. So, he said.. let’s go have dinner, and then we will figure it out. The seas by this time.. were getting a bit rocky.. nothing drastic, but we could certainly tell that it was going to be a rough night.

We had our last dinner in the Dining room. We had a surprise waiting for us this night. Our DS2 had mentioned that his favorite was Lobster Bisque and he was sad it was no longer on the menu. Our server, Ayu, told the Chef, and for dinner this night, waiting for us was three bowls of the wonderful Lobster Bisque.. how wonderful! I had no idea what I had for dinner, but I had the Grand Mariner Souffle for dessert… mmmm….. we said our goodbyes to our servers and headed back to the room...stopping on the way to take a few last minute pictures....

Our goal was to get our clean laundry, which was our clothes for the next two days, and pack that in carry ons.. while the large suitcases had our Dirty Laundry, Dress Up clothes, etc. We got back to the room… and …. Waiting for us…. Was…. Ummmm.. NOTHING. Where is my laundry? I found our Room Steward who said… its not there? Oh let me go get it. Ok, no problem. While waiting, we focused on CNN…. Uggg…. Dread settling in. Then I looked out side, and saw lights…. Where were we? We realized we were hugging the coast of Florida…. And I said.. that’s it. Lets see if we can get phone reception…. We did. Call SOUTHWEST NOW. Lets see if they can change our flights from Sunday to Saturday so we can get home.

(sorry not that many pictures.... I cannot take pics when I am miserable!)

So, while waiting for our laundry, we called Southwest. While DH was on hold forever, I once again ventured off to find our room steward. By this time, it is close to 8:30 PM. At 9:20 PM, a Southwest rep finally comes to the line. She spent over a half hour with us trying to find us flights. We told her.. Providence, Boston, Hartford, NH.. whatever you have. “Ok.. I have ONE ticket on the 11:15 AM Flight out of Providence tomorrow”. ONE?? DH and I looked at each other and said.. OK. Sold. DH was going home early to take care of the house and his work. That left me with three kids in Florida FOREVER. Then she said.. “OK. I am showing three tickets on the 5:15 from Providence that isn’t cancelled YET”. Three? We need four. Can I leave my 16 year old in Florida forever? No? Are you sure? ;) I asked a few questions…. Can they fly alone? (yes). Can I go to the gate with them? (Yes.) Can I be put on Stanby (Yes, but only at the airport). Then I looked at DH and made a decision…. SOLD. The three kids would go home alone, and I would get another flight. OK>> what else is there? Providence…nothing else. Boston.. nothing. Hartford.. nothing. Manchester…Nothing. OMG I am going to live in Florida the rest of my life…. So, we made a decision. We would get DH to the airport first thing. I would hang at the airport with the kids and bring them to the gate, where I would be on standby, and hopefully fly out. OK.. although it was a crazy idea, it was a plan.

Meanwhile.. NO LAUNDRY. At 10PM, I looked for my room steward, and he was no where to be found. Not only was I nervous, by this time, I was getting really anxious and upset. Where is my CLEAN laundry that I need, for when I am stranded in Florida? We then called Housekeeping who said… its after hours, you need to call Guest Services.. what??? We then called Guest Services.. who said… we will get it for you and bring it to your room within 15 minutes. Right then, we had the knock on our door.. last call for Luggage outside the room. It was then we did something very stupid. We gave them our luggage. (Yes, I did leave out clothes for the next day, no worries). Did I mention by this time the ship was rocking pretty heavily and I was feeling a bit queasy?

Well, wouldn’t you know…. 15 minutes, 20 minutes, 30 minutes… no laundry. DH went to Guest Services.. where then…. At almost 11PM they finally said…. We are sorry, we cannot find your laundry. When life is crazy, and you have anxiety.. the thought of losing my favorite skirt and top really got me a bit over the edge. Nevermind we wasted our last night of vacation on the phone and waiting for clean clothes that were never to arrive. I think I understood the potential to lose the laundry… it happens. But the fact that our room steward never said that to us, and disappeared was completely unacceptable to me. If I had known it was lost, I would have packed differently and would have made arrangements to leave more clothes out for me, since I was due to be stranded in Florida for five years.

Guest Services asked to give us until Midnight, they were looking. Not a problem. I couldn’t sleep anyway, now worrying about not having a flight home (we found out that all flights on Sunday had already been cancelled). At midnight, I went to guest services. They told me they would call our room at 6am with an answer yes or no. If they could not find it, I would need to go there to fill out a claim. DO you know what was in the bag? Yes.. my skirt, my favorite shirt.. but everything else? I can guess…. We know we shove a lot of laundry into those bags, its an art form!

So.. that was our last night on the cruise. Drama filled…. Crazy Waves…..Not a night we want to remember…. But one that we can have good stories about for years to come…..

Up next….. our last morning and the Airport adventure!

[Catrin]

I did not sleep all night. The boat was ROCKING…. I am glad I had seven days of Bonine and Ginger in my system. I take that cocktail daily .. no matter how smooth the seas are. I am so glad I did, because, although the waves were uncomfortable, I did not get sick. (Wouldn’t have that been the kicker!).

Guest Services called at 6:05 – no laundry. I went right away to find Jennie, who helped me the previous night and she was there. They had our itemized list that we put on the bag.. but no bag. From that list I “guesstimated” an value for each item and filled out a claim. I made her photocopy EVERYTHING and she gave me a letter, explaining that YES< they lost the laundry, and for me to call Guest Services when I got home with the Claim number, so they can process the claim. At that time, I expressed my disappointment with our Cabin Steward, and we got an apology.

Our Plan…. We had planned on renting a car to spend the day in Orlando, and staying at the Spring Hill Suites near the airport. But instead, our plan was to STILL rent the car, but drive directly to the airport. There, DH would check in for his 11:15 flight. I would then hang out with the kids until we could go to the gate, and we would all go to the gate together and hang there for their 5:15 flight. LONG Day ahead.

We had VIP debarkation, a Platinum Benefit and we got off as soon as they allowed. Before we were leaving, I decided to call Southwest again to see if any flights opened up…. I was on hold for over an hour.. while we walked off the ship. BUT>>>> the agents at the port told me I had to get off the phone.. RIGHT when the Southwest Agent came on. “You need to hang up the phone Ma’am”…. EXCUSE ME? PLEASE!! I have been on hold for an hour and if I can’t get a flight I will end up staying at your house for a year…..” Eventually, I just stayed upstairs while DH and the kids went down to the luggage area and I finished my call. No Flights anywhere…. And all flights were cancelled Sunday and fully booked through Wednesday. Yes, I was now moving to Florida…. ;) I met DH and the kids downstairs and we made our way out the terminal.

We walked to the shuttle stop for Budget Rental Agency and got the second shuttle. Once we got to the agency, once again, we waited in a very short line to get our car. I was completely impressed by Budget. Simple as can be… $45 to rent a full size car…. For…. Get this…. 45 minutes. As silly as this sounds, we drove directly to the airport and handed the car in. We went to Southwest, where we were able to check in DH with the two large pieces of luggage. We could not check in the kids until four hours before their flight time.. BUT>>> the nice representative was able to get my on standby on the kids flight, since I had arrived at the airport. Ok… life is promising.

There are a couple of things that make kids happy while hanging at an airport for 9 hours…. Electronics and Food. So, we settled near the food court, with a bench that had a plug. DH said goodbye at 10:15.. at least he was heading home. At this time, there was still a possibility that the kids flight would be cancelled…. But so far so good. Three long hours later, we were able to check the kids in, and hand in the other two suitcases. I checked my standby status and at that time, there were still quite a few people who had not picked up their boarding passes.

At 1:30ish, we were able to move to the gate. So here we were, at the gate, a whopping 3+ hours ahead of our flight. Settle in kids, get comfy… here let me buy some $9.00 Doritoes. Every hour, I checked at the gate… “How am I doing?” Yes, I was nervous. My three kids were going to have to fly alone.. and that was terrifying to me. At 3PM, I was told that three people had not checked in yet. At 4PM, I was told that ONE person had not checked in. At 4:30, I was waved over …. “I am sorry, the flight is now overbooked, you are not going to be able to get on”. OMG. Worst nightmare.

So, we had a family meeting and I played it out. DD, window seat. DS1 Middle. DS2 Aisle. Your job is to take care of your sister. Understand? When will I see you? In 2014. Dad will be there at the gate. Yes, the ride will be bumpy. You will be fine… you have flown plenty of times. I will be fine. Let me tell you, having your three kids go on an airplane alone without you is the worst feeling in the world. But at 5:15, I watched them go.

Then I went to the counter. Ok.. what can I do? Can I be put on Standby for another flight? Manchester leaving soon…. Oh sorry, its overbooked. You can be put on standby for Hartford that leaves in 30 minutes. Ok.. do that. What are the chances of me getting on? Slim. Great, better than none. I went to the ladies room and just waited. They were boarding. All of a sudden, they look at each other and say to me… OK, you are good. WHAT?? Im good?? Thank you thank you thank you! I call DH .. who had landed safely and had been to work, home, etc…. I am going to Hartford! How am I getting home? No idea… it is a two hour drive away…. I will figure it out!

Well… in a nutshell, another couple heard me say I live in RI and I told them how my three kids flew alone… and come to find out they lived near the RI line… and offered me a ride to their home town. That flight was the longest ever, I did not know if my kids had landed, and I couldn’t use the phone…. So once I landed I called DH right away… and he was at the airport just meeting the kids. Everything went great…. DD fell asleep and the boys played their games. Awesome.

The couple who offered me a ride had to get their car…. At a relatives… so here I am with strangers on a Saturday night, with a hurricane coming….. but the most important thing.. is I was going HOME. We eventually met DH and the kids at close to midnight, and we all finally made it home around 1am. (Only to lose Power at 11am the next morning due to the Hurricane!).

What a crazy adventure home. I still cannot believe we pulled it off. If we did not change those flights, as many of you know…. We would have been in Florida for several days.

[Catrin]

Final thoughts.....

We had a great time overall... despite that last night and next day! We loved the Dream. Yes, it got crowded at times. Yes, it could have used 20 more elevators. But overall, we thought it handled the crowds quite well.

The kids had a great time, and kudos for Camp Carnival - the 6-8 age group. Tons to do, lots of fun... she absolutly loved it.

Ports - Cozumel, always a blast. Love Paradise Beach. Belize - would recommend CaveTubing.BZ any day. Roatan - ClipnZip well worth it, Mahogany Bay a great alternative if you do not want to venture far from the ship. Costa Maya - maybe we will see the town next time.

Staff - We throught they did a nice job, but nothing outstanding. They just seemed overworked to us.. from our room steward (who ignored me the next morning), to our dining room staff.

Entertainment - Butch's staff was fun and full of energy. The Piano Bar was fun, but not the best we had heard. Some of the bands were very good.

Food - We did not have a bad meal all week!!

Overall.. great value for our family, and another Carnival Cruise well done.

Thanks all for reading!

Catrin

[Catrin]

OHH!!!!

The laundry!

Well... we filled out our claim when we got home... and I received a form letter from Carnvial.... "we will contact you within 7-10 days".

They did.. with a letter "thank you for your inquiry, we ask your patience as we need two more weeks to investigate". Ok, sure.

Two weeks later, I called Guest Services... " we need until Monday after Noon Time" Why? Because we have to check lost and found. Three weeks later? Yes. If something is left on the ship, it is not until the following week, that they return it to the port. Then all lost and found goes to the Miami area. Then the boxes are sorted. This all takes two weeks.

I just want my money. ;) My favorite skirt is gone. Somebody has my sons favorite tshirt in their luggage. I know it.

Well.... guess what? My laundry was miraculously discovered. Where?? So... Three weeks and five days, from the day we arrived home...a Fed Ex box arrives on our doorstep with my laundry. I am still a bit amazed that they had it. I now own my favorite skirt again, but ... four weeks later.. summer is gone... fall is here, and I won't wear it again until May!

So if you lose something on the ship, don't fear.. it just may appear a month later!

[pcrum]

So glad you all were able to get home the same day!! Have you heard anything from Carnival regarding your laundry?? So sorry to hear you lost your favorite outfit! Thanks again for a wonderful review. We live in Orlando so it's nice to see Disney through someone else's eyes!!

[Catrin]

So glad you all were able to get home the same day!! Have you heard anything from Carnival regarding your laundry?? So sorry to hear you lost your favorite outfit! Thanks again for a wonderful review. We live in Orlando so it's nice to see Disney through someone else's eyes!!

 

Please read the post above yours!

 

:)

catrin

[pcrum]

Please read the post above yours!

 

:)

catrin

 

Sorry, we must have been posting at the same time! So glad you got your stuff back!! That is amazing! My son lost an ipod touch on a Carnival cruise and although we filled out all the forms and followed up when we got home, it was never found! Thanks again for a great report!

[frazzledrazzle16]

Thanks for the great review! This one particularly sparked my interest because in two weeks we are leaving for basically the same trip-- Disney for 5 days (coincidentally we are also staying at Port Orleans!) and then the Dream (same ports). :D

[Catrin]

Thanks for the great review! This one particularly sparked my interest because in two weeks we are leaving for basically the same trip-- Disney for 5 days (coincidentally we are also staying at Port Orleans!) and then the Dream (same ports). :D

 

Have fun! Port Orleans was a great place.. hopefully your room will be closer to the main building than mine was! We would stay there again, but next time, we would request a priority building, well worth the extra $10.00 a night.

 

Catrin

[brazilgirl]

I am glad things ended well....I am sure the whole ordeal was stressful ! Thanks for the great review , very helpful!

[sewut]

Wow, I've been following this review and enjoyed it very much. When the time came for you to send your kids alone on the plane, I was feeling for you. Then, the part about the strangers offering you a ride made me think of Home Alone. I don't know if it was 1 or 2, but I was picturing you in the back of a moving van with a bunch of polka players! lol

btw, I was born and raised in RI, East Providence, to be exact.

 

Sewut

[Catrin]

Wow, I've been following this review and enjoyed it very much. When the time came for you to send your kids alone on the plane, I was feeling for you. Then, the part about the strangers offering you a ride made me think of Home Alone. I don't know if it was 1 or 2, but I was picturing you in the back of a moving van with a bunch of polka players! lol

btw, I was born and raised in RI, East Providence, to be exact.

 

Sewut

 

Wow!! I grew up in East Providence as well - in fact, my parents still live there!

Small world!

 

Yes, the ride with strangers was interesting. While picking up their car, I was in a van with everyone speaking Spanish!!

 

I was just grateful that I was going home!!

 

Catrin

[Cruisecrzy3]

Loved your review Catrin! Your family is gorgeous and looks like you had a great time (ummm...with a "minor" incident ;)). Glad you got your clothes back! While you were returning to port on your Dream cruise, DH & I were on the Sensation going to.....the Keys....lol (originally Nassau). Have lived in FL for 30 years and had never been to the Keys so it was fun. We were cruising past Hurricane Irene as it was passing Freeport and I can imagine my DH could tell you stories about the sickness...crew and passagers alike. He's going to try again tho', we're heading out on the Dream in Feb 2012, same itenary as yours.....can't wait.

 

Thanks again for sharing your adventures! I'll be looking for future reviews from you...yes....you were very entertaining and funny!

[Catrin]

Loved your review Catrin! Your family is gorgeous and looks like you had a great time (ummm...with a "minor" incident ;)). Glad you got your clothes back! While you were returning to port on your Dream cruise, DH & I were on the Sensation going to.....the Keys....lol (originally Nassau). Have lived in FL for 30 years and had never been to the Keys so it was fun. We were cruising past Hurricane Irene as it was passing Freeport and I can imagine my DH could tell you stories about the sickness...crew and passagers alike. He's going to try again tho', we're heading out on the Dream in Feb 2012, same itenary as yours.....can't wait.

 

Thanks again for sharing your adventures! I'll be looking for future reviews from you...yes....you were very entertaining and funny!

 

Thanks Anita!

We were so lucky regarding the seas. I get seasick all the time, but did not at all this cruise. If it had been a day later, we would have been in trouble there!

 

Its funny, when the clothes arrived... I said.. "I had a big stink over THIS??"

 

Catrin

[rocking-m-cruiser]

Is this your first Disney Cruise?

[Catrin]

Is this your first Disney Cruise?

 

It was not a Disney cruise. It was two days at Disney prior to our cruise on the Carnival Dream.

 

:)

 

Catrin

[bdink921]

Catrin, great review and pics!!! We took a very similar trip in 2009 -- WDW for 2 nights at the Poly, 1 night in Cape Canaveral and then our Carnival Glory cruise. Went to Paradise Beach and cavetubing in Belize too (we ziplined here too)!! Glad you all got home safe, your last night and day at the airport sounded pretty scary and I too would be terrified to send my kids alone without me. Fortunately there was no hurricane waiting for us at home when we returned.

[Catrin]

Catrin, great review and pics!!! We took a very similar trip in 2009 -- WDW for 2 nights at the Poly, 1 night in Cape Canaveral and then our Carnival Glory cruise. Went to Paradise Beach and cavetubing in Belize too (we ziplined here too)!! Glad you all got home safe, your last night and day at the airport sounded pretty scary and I too would be terrified to send my kids alone without me. Fortunately there was no hurricane waiting for us at home when we returned.

 

Thank you Bridget!

As crazy as it was, it certainly was the right decision. They were troopers and much better travelers than me!

 

Lucky you staying at the Poly.... I stayed there for my 40th Birthday and would love to go back there someday.

 

Catrin

[CamaCama]

I seriously have tears in my eyes reading the part where you had to send your kids on the plane without you. You are strong and what awesome kids you have... I would have broken down!! (then again, I only have a 2 year old) Glad you all got home safely and before the hurricane! Great review!!

[Cruisecat40]

Catrin, this has been an enjoyable read. Your writing style is awesome. Thank you for sharing your family vacation. I must admit you all handled the situation very well with the return trip home. Glad you all enjoyed your time here in Florida and the DREAM.

[twinbabies]

You said you take a combination of ginger and Bonine.....in what form is the ginger and where do you find it?

[Catrin]

You said you take a combination of ginger and Bonine.....in what form is the ginger and where do you find it?

 

I take Ginger root in a pill form. I get it at GNC ....their brand. Ever since I started taking both, I rarely get even a bit queasy!!

 

The key is taking it every day from the day I leave home to the day I return. You never know on a port day what the seas will be like as you leave!

 

Catrin