Fantasy 7-Night Western Caribbean Cruise 8/2/14 - 8/9/14

[joycsk]

Microfiber towel, Playing cards, Mini Flashlight, Tire Pressure Gauge, Magnet,
Candy, Ink Pen, Scrap Paper Pad, Key Chain, Disney Music CD, Bottle Opener...

 

[joycsk]

Just found this thread. This will be our 2nd Disney cruise. We have 2 daughters, who will be 14 and 11 at the time of the cruise. We are from Spring City, PA, which is near Phoenixville and Royersford. We are looking forward to getting to know some of you before the cruise.

Amy

There are quite a few of us from SEPA! Looking forward to meeting you. Don't know if you'd be interested, but a few of us have kids of similar ages who are e-pal-ing. I have a DD 13 and a DS 10. 11 and 14 are popular ages in the group!

 

[AliceIn]

Just found this thread. This will be our 2nd Disney cruise. We have 2 daughters, who will be 14 and 11 at the time of the cruise. We are from Spring City, PA, which is near Phoenixville and Royersford. We are looking forward to getting to know some of you before the cruise.

Amy

Welcome to the group!

 

[carolbeech]

There are quite a few of us from SEPA! Looking forward to meeting you. Don't know if you'd be interested, but a few of us have kids of similar ages who are e-pal-ing. I have a DD 13 and a DS 10. 11 and 14 are popular ages in the group!

Yes, I was thinking the same thing! We seem to have lots of kids in this range. But kids of all ages (I'm looking at you Teri )
are going to have fun.

Thanks for the ideas Joe!

 

[Poohbear 64]

Yes, I was thinking the same thing! We seem to have lots of kids in this range. But kids of all ages (I'm looking at you Teri )
are going to have fun.

Thanks for the ideas Joe!

LOL, I am going to be the biggest kid on the boat!! I have an assortment of Mickey Ears that I will wear everyday!!

 

[AliceIn]

We have 156 days to go!

Thanks to getting a good bonus at work, over the weekend I did the following:

PIF for the cruise.
Prepaid my gratuities
Booked/paid for my DCL transfers

I currently have about $265 on my Disney Reward account that I plan to use as OBC. The next step is to start saving up for excursions and souvenirs, and photo package.

For those who have cruised before and done Disney excursions, about how much should I budget? In doing some quick math, it seemed that for 5 people, excursions were ranging from about $300-800 each. We booked a beach day in Cozumel at Nachi Cocom that is relatively cheap. I'm thinking about excursions in Grand Cayman and Falmouth. What would you suggest is a good amount to keep in reserve for those ports? On CC I plan to do bikes and snorkeling for the family, and I'm considering the stingray cove activity.

Does $2000 sound like enough? Is it too much?

 

[My4PhillyGirls]

We have 156 days to go!

Thanks to getting a good bonus at work, over the weekend I did the following:

PIF for the cruise.
Prepaid my gratuities
Booked/paid for my DCL transfers

I currently have about $265 on my Disney Reward account that I plan to use as OBC. The next step is to start saving up for excursions and souvenirs, and photo package.

For those who have cruised before and done Disney excursions, about how much should I budget? In doing some quick math, it seemed that for 5 people, excursions were ranging from about $300-800 each. We booked a beach day in Cozumel at Nachi Cocom that is relatively cheap. I'm thinking about excursions in Grand Cayman and Falmouth. What would you suggest is a good amount to keep in reserve for those ports? On CC I plan to do bikes and snorkeling for the family, and I'm considering the stingray cove activity.

Does $2000 sound like enough? Is it too much?

Wow, that's sounds like a great bonus

$2,000.00 sounds like enough, especially since you have pre-paid gratuities. I can't tell you how much we spent on our last 7 night cruise because we paid cash every couple of days to Guest Services and my DW hid the final bill when the cruise was over

My mother on the other hand didn't do any excursions and had to go shopping on the last night to make sure that she used up her OBC. So it can go either way

 

[AliceIn]

Wow, that's sounds like a great bonus

$2,000.00 sounds like enough, especially since you have pre-paid gratuities. I can't tell you how much we spent on our last 7 night cruise because we paid cash every couple of days to Guest Services and my DW hid the final bill when the cruise was over

My mother on the other hand didn't do any excursions and had to go shopping on the last night to make sure that she used up her OBC. So it can go either way

It was a great bonus for me It wasn't for the whole cruise amount, but I was able to pay off early and add the transportation and tips. I'd like to have all the money put aside ahead of time so my credit card doesn't take a big hit while onboard.

Question: if you don't spend all of your OBC, do you get a refund? I don't know if I'd want to feel pressed to buy things just to even out the account. Perhaps we'll do as you did and add money as we go. I was thinking about buying gift cards to take with us, or maybe travelers cheques.

 

[My4PhillyGirls]

It was a great bonus for me It wasn't for the whole cruise amount, but I was able to pay off early and add the transportation and tips. I'd like to have all the money put aside ahead of time so my credit card doesn't take a big hit while onboard.

Question: if you don't spend all of your OBC, do you get a refund? I don't know if I'd want to feel pressed to buy things just to even out the account. Perhaps we'll do as you did and add money as we go. I was thinking about buying gift cards to take with us, or maybe travelers cheques.

You typically get a refund in the manner that it was given. I have read that it may take up to 30 days. If you have OBC from an TA, you need to use all of it or lose it

Don't forget to tell your CC company that you are going on a cruise. I was declined once for suspicion of fraud

Thank God for another CC

 

[Stacey6274]

We have 156 days to go!

Thanks to getting a good bonus at work, over the weekend I did the following:

PIF for the cruise.
Prepaid my gratuities
Booked/paid for my DCL transfers

I currently have about $265 on my Disney Reward account that I plan to use as OBC. The next step is to start saving up for excursions and souvenirs, and photo package.

For those who have cruised before and done Disney excursions, about how much should I budget? In doing some quick math, it seemed that for 5 people, excursions were ranging from about $300-800 each. We booked a beach day in Cozumel at Nachi Cocom that is relatively cheap. I'm thinking about excursions in Grand Cayman and Falmouth. What would you suggest is a good amount to keep in reserve for those ports? On CC I plan to do bikes and snorkeling for the family, and I'm considering the stingray cove activity.

Does $2000 sound like enough? Is it too much?

That is awesome you were able to pay it off - I did mine when I booked it and it a huge relief

Anyway - $2K might be good - depends on the family. My husband loves to sit and relax at the pool and have a few drinks, and same with dinner or at a club...I'll have one here and there - then the pictures and shopping and excursions - we normally with tips are at @4-5K - my husband also gets a massage and we my daughter gets a pedi. So just base on what you know the family likes - drinks are pricey.

 

[AliceIn]

That is awesome you were able to pay it off - I did mine when I booked it and it a huge relief

Anyway - $2K might be good - depends on the family. My husband loves to sit and relax at the pool and have a few drinks, and same with dinner or at a club...I'll have one here and there - then the pictures and shopping and excursions - we normally with tips are at @4-5K - my husband also gets a massage and we my daughter gets a pedi. So just base on what you know the family likes - drinks are pricey.

I don't drink alcohol at all, and my husband might have one drink per day. He will enjoy a pint of Guiness or a hard cider, but rarely mixed drinks. He did think the mixology class sounded fun, though. I'm guessing most of our expense would be the two days of excursions, photos, and souvenirs. My rough "guesstimate" of the excursions we are interested in would be about $1400, and then if we did a photobook plus the digital copies of photos, I think that's another $300. That's $1700 right there. I know that we both want to do the Rainforest room at least one day, but I think I'll just prepay the passes for that. The unknowns will be the drinks and shopping. I may budget a bit more than the $2,000 just in case.

I was looking at the idea of doing Disney Gift cards and getting the 5% off, but then I realized that they only come in $50 increments. Do people really bring 50+ cards on board to have assigned to their accounts, or do they call and have them added bit by bit? That seems like it would be a big hassle - though $150 savings on $3,000 worth of cards is a nice perk. Anybody do this?

 

[Poohbear 64]

Hi friends,
So in 5 short months we will be leaving on a jet plane headed East. That means I only have 5 short months to do my FE gifts, OH MY, what will I do?? Funny you should ask, I want to do everything!! I have so many ideas in my head that I want to do it all. Did any of you get this way with your first FE?? As it is right now in my head, I think you should all pack an extra bag just for your gifts from me, LOL. Now ask about my door...well, I just printed out a lot of graphics to decorate, if we have a contest, I will win!! I will be having regular stuff, then on pirate day I will change them to fit the mood. Am I obsessed?? HA, I would say just a bit, LOL. OH, do we have a meet and greet on the ship so we can put faces to names??? Or should you just look for me on my scooter with my Mickey hats on????

 

[My4PhillyGirls]

Hi friends,
So in 5 short months we will be leaving on a jet plane headed East. That means I only have 5 short months to do my FE gifts, OH MY, what will I do?? Funny you should ask, I want to do everything!! I have so many ideas in my head that I want to do it all. Did any of you get this way with your first FE?? As it is right now in my head, I think you should all pack an extra bag just for your gifts from me, LOL. Now ask about my door...well, I just printed out a lot of graphics to decorate, if we have a contest, I will win!! I will be having regular stuff, then on pirate day I will change them to fit the mood. Am I obsessed?? HA, I would say just a bit, LOL. OH, do we have a meet and greet on the ship so we can put faces to names??? Or should you just look for me on my scooter with my Mickey hats on????

I don't think that we have organized a meet and greet yet

Has anyone been on the Fantasy and had a successful meet and greet? Where did you meet and what day?

Most groups meet on the first day while others wait until the next day so that people can tour the ship and get settled in.

 

[Poohbear 64]

I don't think that we have organized a meet and greet yet

Has anyone been on the Fantasy and had a successful meet and greet? Where did you meet and what day?

Most groups meet on the first day while others wait until the next day so that people can tour the ship and get settled in.

I would vote for the second day, the first day on cruises is usually to hectic with getting on board, finding your way around and the lifeboat drill.

 

[carolbeech]

Hi Teri,
I already have some of my FE gifts too! I still have to make my actual FE though.
I hope we do a meet up - is anyone in the Walt Disney suite? Ha!
We are getting another cold front and more snow this weekend.....thank goodness I have this to look forward to.

 

[mug318ca]

Hi Teri,
I already have some of my FE gifts too! I still have to make my actual FE though.
I hope we do a meet up - is anyone in the Walt Disney suite? Ha!
We are getting another cold front and more snow this weekend.....thank goodness I have this to look forward to.

Don't be to quick to say ha ha about anyone staying in the Walt Disney suite. On pretty much every cruise we've been on, there was someone in both suites and a good percentage of time at least one was a DISboarder. Lucky b%$#\&+s.

 

[AliceIn]

Hi friends,
So in 5 short months we will be leaving on a jet plane headed East. That means I only have 5 short months to do my FE gifts, OH MY, what will I do?? Funny you should ask, I want to do everything!! I have so many ideas in my head that I want to do it all. Did any of you get this way with your first FE?? As it is right now in my head, I think you should all pack an extra bag just for your gifts from me, LOL. Now ask about my door...well, I just printed out a lot of graphics to decorate, if we have a contest, I will win!! I will be having regular stuff, then on pirate day I will change them to fit the mood. Am I obsessed?? HA, I would say just a bit, LOL. OH, do we have a meet and greet on the ship so we can put faces to names??? Or should you just look for me on my scooter with my Mickey hats on????

I got our FE from Etsy and it's cute as can be. I have not started our FE gifts yet. I've been looking at ideas though.

As far as a meet and greet, it sounds like a great idea!

I'd like to get the kids introduced to other kids their age also. How many folks are planning on doing the club open houses the first day?

I post a lot on the BC/YC thread, and somebody made buttons to wear so we could recognize each other. Anybody know how easy/hard that would be to do?

 

[My4PhillyGirls]

Hi friends,
So in 5 short months we will be leaving on a jet plane headed East. That means I only have 5 short months to do my FE gifts, OH MY, what will I do?? Funny you should ask, I want to do everything!! I have so many ideas in my head that I want to do it all. Did any of you get this way with your first FE?? As it is right now in my head, I think you should all pack an extra bag just for your gifts from me, LOL. Now ask about my door...well, I just printed out a lot of graphics to decorate, if we have a contest, I will win!! I will be having regular stuff, then on pirate day I will change them to fit the mood. Am I obsessed?? HA, I would say just a bit, LOL. OH, do we have a meet and greet on the ship so we can put faces to names??? Or should you just look for me on my scooter with my Mickey hats on????

Terri,

If possible, make duplicates of your magnets that will be placed on your cabin door. On past cruises DIS'ers have had problems with people stealing some of their magnets

It doesn't happen often but I don't want you to be upset if you become the victim of rude people.

Joe

 

[My4PhillyGirls]

I got our FE from Etsy and it's cute as can be. I have not started our FE gifts yet. I've been looking at ideas though.

As far as a meet and greet, it sounds like a great idea!

I'd like to get the kids introduced to other kids their age also. How many folks are planning on doing the club open houses the first day?

I post a lot on the BC/YC thread, and somebody made buttons to wear so we could recognize each other. Anybody know how easy/hard that would be to do?

We will have to come up with a good place to meet and a time. If we meet on the second day of the cruise, we should meet in the early afternoon. I believe that some people may try a brunch or attend the Castaway Club meet in the morning.

Also, it is a good idea to go to the club open houses on the first day. The counselors will get to meet your children and answer any questions or concerns

 

[Poohbear 64]

I post a lot on the BC/YC thread, and somebody made buttons to wear so we could recognize each other. Anybody know how easy/hard that would be to do?

What is the BC/YC thread?? We can have a graphic made and we can make ourselves pins or just pin them on our shirt? You will recognize me because I will be the large lady on a scooter wearing a Mickey hat!! I think we will recognize Joe because he has 4 women with him!!!!

Terri,

If possible, make duplicates of your magnets that will be placed on your cabin door. On past cruises DIS'ers have had problems with people stealing some of their magnets

It doesn't happen often but I don't want you to be upset if you become the victim of rude people.

Joe

Thanks Joe, I have been reading a lot about the possibility of magnets "walking away", that is a reason I am not laminating them, just putting contact paper on them to save on cost since I am making so many to decorate 2 doors!! I was thinking of writing on the back "stolen from room 7672, please return when finished with it".