First Time Cruiser Questions

[Fairywings]

Hi everyone!

So I'm planning a 4 day/3 night Port Canaveral cruise for January 2018. It will stop at Nassau and Castaway Cay. I am going with one of my best friends, just the two of us. We'll be sharing the same room. Now, I have been to the Parks several times, but I have never been on a cruise, and my friend has only been to WDW once, and has been on many cruises but never a Disney cruise. This is also my first time being the primary planner for a Disney trip, so I have a few questions.

- When should I book for my cruise? I understand that it can get more expensive the closer to the trip that you book, but I couldn't really get a good gauge for when is too early or just in time to book.

- Because we are going in January, I'm a little concerned that it might be too cold to swim at Castaway Cay (that might sound stupid, but I've never been on a cruise, so). What other activities do they have in case the water is too cold?

- Is Palo worth it? My friend and I will be splitting the price of the trip in half, and we are not typically fancy restaurant kind of eaters. So I approached this thinking of us as people and as it is a short cruise, it might not be worth paying extra for it. But is it an experience I'm going to regret not having?

- My friend's birthday may fall on our trip, depending on which date we choose. It's kind of a birthday cruise for the both of us, since my own birthday is in December. Is there something that I can do for her birthday on the ship?

Thanks for any answers given, and if any of you experienced cruisers want to give some additional tips, those would be greatly appreciated.

 

[KSHowards]

Earliest is best when it comes to Cruises. As soon as their year Itinerary is released..is normally the best in my opinion.

We went in April of last year...and we felt the water was very cold. If your in long enough you'll get used to it...but it was cold to us. Here is a website link to all the other activities to do on Castaway Cay....https://disneycruise.disney.go.com/ports/castaway-cay/

As for Palo....I can't help you there. We took our 4 and 6 year old sons and it seemed way too much to spend on the 4 of us. The food does look amazing, so if your into spending a bunch for a ritzy dinner have at it. I have read that you need to dress very nice (They have dress codes).

I'm sure Disney could do something special for you at one of they dinners. Not sure what you had in mind, but the servers brought our son a little something because he was turning 4 on the ship.

Hope this helps!

Have fun planning!

 

[HeatherLassell]

Hi everyone!

So I'm planning a 4 day/3 night Port Canaveral cruise for January 2018. It will stop at Nassau and Castaway Cay. I am going with one of my best friends, just the two of us. We'll be sharing the same room. Now, I have been to the Parks several times, but I have never been on a cruise, and my friend has only been to WDW once, and has been on many cruises but never a Disney cruise. This is also my first time being the primary planner for a Disney trip, so I have a few questions.

- When should I book for my cruise? I understand that it can get more expensive the closer to the trip that you book, but I couldn't really get a good gauge for when is too early or just in time to book.

- Because we are going in January, I'm a little concerned that it might be too cold to swim at Castaway Cay (that might sound stupid, but I've never been on a cruise, so). What other activities do they have in case the water is too cold?

- Is Palo worth it? My friend and I will be splitting the price of the trip in half, and we are not typically fancy restaurant kind of eaters. So I approached this thinking of us as people and as it is a short cruise, it might not be worth paying extra for it. But is it an experience I'm going to regret not having?

- My friend's birthday may fall on our trip, depending on which date we choose. It's kind of a birthday cruise for the both of us, since my own birthday is in December. Is there something that I can do for her birthday on the ship?

Thanks for any answers given, and if any of you experienced cruisers want to give some additional tips, those would be greatly appreciated.

1. Best time to book is the DAY the itineraries are released. That is the cheapest!
2. Well that depends where you're coming from. I'm from Canada and felt that the weather was really nice. I didn't get in the water this January cause I was sick. But there was around 20 people in the water. There are loungers to just relax and enjoy the sun, there is food, shopping, and outdoor bars to get a drink. I think the majority of the excursions involve the water (except maybe parasailing)
3. Palo is WORTH IT! Yumm!!! And the desert is amazing. It's a nice chance to dress up a little and have a nice meal.
4. You can pre-order a birthday decoration package that will be in the room when you board the ship. You can note that it's your birthdays as well as wear a birthday button. My bff and I did PALO as our bday celebration.

 

[HeatherLassell]

As for Palo....I can't help you there. We took our 4 and 6 year old sons and it seemed way too much to spend on the 4 of us.

Well the fact that Palo is 18+ would have been a bigger factor than the cost I'd imagine.

 

[Fairywings]

Thank you both!

 

[TiggerBouncy]

I would do Palo if you can - especially since it's a birthday trip. I wouldn't regret it if you miss it; but it's generally "american" food (unlike Remy).

For a nice birthday treat, I would consider something at Senses (the spa).

 

[KSHowards]

Well the fact that Palo is 18+ would have been a bigger factor than the cost I'd imagine.

Well not really, if we were to have gone, we would of put our kids on the Oceaneer's Club and went...but we tried to stick to a tight budget (which we ended up exploding anyways) so we didn't make reservations. We're just not into the fancy dinner settings.

 

[HeatherLassell]

Well not really, if we were to have gone, we would of put our kids on the Oceaneer's Club and went...but we tried to stick to a tight budget (which we ended up exploding anyways) so we didn't make reservations. We're just not into the fancy dinner settings.

Gotcha. By the way you worded it you said it would be too expensive for the "4 of us" and then you mentioned 2 children. So it looked like you meant the 2 adults and your 2 children...who can't go to Palo.

 

[tink1970]

1) Book as soon as you can if the dates are available-costs usually go up although if it's at a less busy time in Jan (ie not over a 3 day weekend or
New Years) the prices aren't usually as bad.

2) It might be too cold (our first cruise was the first week in Jan and it had snowed in Port C) and while we did swim, it was pretty uncomfortable.
Weather depending, you can lay on the beach, go for a bicycle ride, parasailing, etc. The adult beach is lovely and much less busy than the family
and there is even a yoga class in the morning.

3) Palo is nice but not a must do. I'd recommend looking at a menu online and seeing if it sounds excellent to you-that
would help make your decision.

4) If you want to celebrate your friend's birthday, you could tell your waiter (in private) the first night (and/or when you book your cruise) and usually
there will be a small cake brought out with singing. This isn't guaranteed, but does happen a lot. If you want it done and it hasn't, by night 2 or3,
speak to the headwaiter--he starts schmoozing before the end of the cruise to ensure all is well and you're happy.

Have fun! Disney cruises are FUN!

 

[sharonabe]

One more possible birthday surprise. If you happen to be on The Dream, you can order a special sundae from Vanellopes (up on deck 11) and they will deliver it to your table during dinner. It does cost extra, but it is VERY good.

 

[lbus42]

3. Since you are on a short cruise, you might want to stick to the main dining rooms (MDR's). That way you'll get to experience all three of them. On the other hand, Palo is a nice restaurant, with very good food, and well work the $30 per person surcharge. Think of it as a Carrabba's or Macaroni Grill with an Olive Garden price.

 

[Cackyschmackers]

We've been to.Castaway Cay three times in January (first week of Jan, then towards the middle of the month, then towards the end of the month ) and all three times we've swam. Just wanted you to know to not discount it entirely.

 

[tylerzmommy]

- When should I book for my cruise? I understand that it can get more expensive the closer to the trip that you book, but I couldn't really get a good gauge for when is too early or just in time to book. -- Don't really know what to tell you on this one. My husband decided on a whim to book a cruise last November for this past January (exactly 60 days prior to departure) and told me after the fact. It was a very nice surprise, but one that took some scrambling on my part to get my work calendar cleared just so I could go!

- Because we are going in January, I'm a little concerned that it might be too cold to swim at Castaway Cay (that might sound stupid, but I've never been on a cruise, so). What other activities do they have in case the water is too cold? We just went this past January 16th - 20th and while my son and husband swam at CC, I thought it was FREEZING!!! I tried and tried to have fun while snorkeling but just couldn't get acclimated to the water temp. So, I went and laid on the beach and read. Didn't miss the water a bit with a book and a frosty beverage in my hand on the beach!

- Is Palo worth it? My friend and I will be splitting the price of the trip in half, and we are not typically fancy restaurant kind of eaters. So I approached this thinking of us as people and as it is a short cruise, it might not be worth paying extra for it. But is it an experience I'm going to regret not having? We weren't entirely sure about it ourselves when we made the decision to go but I'm SO glad we did it. That was, hands down, our favorite food of the whole trip. In my opinion, it was worth every penny (and in all fairness, it wasn't too many pennies since we are talking about Disney and that generally means a high price tag on EVERYTHING) and we so enjoyed the food, the ambiance, and the fact that there were no kids. I'd be hard pressed to say that we wouldn't try to eat there on every future cruise.

- My friend's birthday may fall on our trip, depending on which date we choose. It's kind of a birthday cruise for the both of us, since my own birthday is in December. Is there something that I can do for her birthday on the ship? My husband's birthday was while we were on the ship. There are plenty of things that you could pay extra for (a birthday cake to be delivered, a sundae from Vannelopes, a nice dinner at Palo, etc.) but aside from the general "Happy Birthday" greetings and a little bit of extra love from our room steward, it was pretty much a non-event. There are SO many celebrations on every sailing (weddings, birthdays, anniversaries, etc.) that I think it's just too much to do something special for every celebration.

 

[NZMUM]

1. Book as soon as you can. Prices will go up.
2. We've been to Castaway Cay several times in January. We'v had days that were hot & swimming was fine, days when it was really cold & no one swam. We also missed it once because it was too difficult to dock. It depends on the what the weather has been like.
3. We've done 9 cruises. Have not been to Palo once. Don't regret it. It's not a priority for us.
4. Have it noted on your reservation that it is your friends birthday. My DH has had his birthday onboard 3 times. He has gotten a Birthday Button delivered to our cabin from guest services. And has had the birthday dessert (nothing fancy) & Happy Birthday sung by our servers at dinner. I also booked him a massage on one of our cruises.

 

[crystalgenette]

Re: Castaway Cay, we haven't been that early in the year, but there is the 5k you could do as soon as you get off the boat. That could possibly raise your body temp enough that you may appreciate the cool swim afterwards.