Lots of cruise ??'s - espc. children's activities

[ilovediznee]

I’ve been to Disney 34 times now, but never on a cruise. I have a few questions even after watching the Travel Channel last night and reviewing things on the web. I have a diabetic husband and a 3 ½ year old. If you can answer even some of these questions, I would greatly appreciate it.

First, I’ve read that you can register your child for the club first thing when you get onboard, but there are not activities the first night, yet I read somewhere else it says to get your child involved the first day. Do they mean the first full day of the trip or do they have stuff for them the day you leave?

Second, because of my husband’s diabetes, do they have refrigerators in the rooms or can we request one? Worst case scenario is that we just keep ice in the ice bucket all the time.

I’ve been on several cruises but it was a long time ago. Alcoholic drinks you always had to pay for, but what about Coke’s and such? Are they included and you can get them all the time or do I have to buy a mug like at the resorts?

What other adult activities are there besides the spa and evening nightlife. I am worried that my husband won’t have enough to do during the day. He is really not a beach/swim person. We will do it for awhile but not all day. On other cruises you can take tours of the ships, etc. Please advise.

Are there laundry facilities on board if we need to do some? We plan to go onto our DVC resort when we get off and we can do wash then, but what if I need something done while on ship?

If you have children of a young age like us, do they like the programming that Disney offers? It looks like a blast to me, but I do worry that we’ll make plans to do a whole bunch of stuff on our own (or I will) and then she won’t want to participate.

Also, can your child take a nap when they are attending the children’s programming? Our daughter will still want a nap and I didn’t know if they had a place or not.

Thanks - Diane

 

[elemusing]

I can't answer all your questions, but here's a couple:

I’ve been on several cruises but it was a long time ago. Alcoholic drinks you always had to pay for, but what about Coke’s and such? Are they included and you can get them all the time or do I have to buy a mug like at the resorts? Soft drinks are only included in the price of each meal. Soft drinks at other times are not free. They do have a mug program, but it is not required as you can buy a soft drink at any of the bars, etc.


Are there laundry facilities on board if we need to do some? We plan to go onto our DVC resort when we get off and we can do wash then, but what if I need something done while on ship? Yes, there are laundry facilities on board the ship. I used them when we cruised. The washing powders, etc are about the same price as they are at the resorts.

 

[BeanoC]

I'll try my best here!

When you check in at the port, you can get a Navigator (Newsletter), which will list the upcoming children's activities.
It's still a good idea to get your child signed up for the club as soon as you can.

All staterooms have small refrigerators. Should be no problem for your husband's medications.

Disney Cruises have a soda mug program similar to the one at the resorts. You pay $35.00 for the mug on the 7 day cruise, then have unlimited refills all week. Sodas are free during meals in the dining rooms. Alcoholic beverages are extra, but they do have a beer mug you can buy, which gets you a bit of a discount on that.

There is never a shortage of things to do during the day! Of course, some days you are in port, so you're busy going places. When you're onboard, there's games, movies, activities, swimming... all sorts of stuff! Again, consult the Navigator for a list of events to help you plan your days. I could be onboard for 3 weeks and never be bored.

There are 2 laundry facilities onboard; 1 on deck 7, I believe the other is on deck 6.

I can't elaborate too much about the kid's activities, since our kids are quite a bit older (11 and 13). All kids are different though. Some aren't crazy about the kid's club, others practically have to be dragged away! You should check her into the club as soon as you can to let her get comfortable there. I don't believe they have an area for naps though.


'Beano'

 

[woody64]

I believe the kids clubs are open the first evening at a certain time. Check out castawayclub.com and look at past Navigators for times.

They have a cool box in your room that kind of acts like a fridge. If it starts cool/cold it will stay cool/cold but will not cool down a warm item.

Pop(I'm from the Midwest)/soda is free during meals otherwise they do cost extra. DCL has a sticker program for your KTTW card for unlimited pop/soda. By the Mickey pool they have a beverage center with free lemonade, ice tea and water.

They do have laundry facilities on board.

My DS(8) loved his kids programming while my other DS(4.5) enjoyed hanging out at the Mickey pool instead of the club.

Hope this helps on some of your questions.

woody64

 

[elemusing]

That "fridge" in your stateroom will NOT be cold enough for your DH meds. it is more like a little cooler and will barely keep drinks cold. You might ask them if they have any "real" fridges before you go to the trouble of icing down the meds.

At WDW if you need a fridge for medical reasons, you do not even have to pay for the rental! Maybe if thye have them on the ship, it would be the same policy????

 

[tlens]

Hi. I too have a diabetic husband and a 3.5YO. My husband now uses the Humilin insulin that doesn't require refrigeration but before we used to wrap it in washcloths and put it on top of ice. From what I understand, the cooler in the room should be sufficient for keeping the insulin at an adequate temperature. I would ask your room steward to keep some ice in your cooler at all times and it should be ok.
I have read elsewhere though that if you need a fridge for medications, you can request it but it takes up a significant amount of room. You may want to make a notation about this on the medical form and if you find the cooler insufficient, ask for the fridge.

We are playing it by ear regarding our daughter and the programs. There are things that she won't want to miss, Dancing with Snow White etc. We will take her to those events and perhaps she'll want to stay by herself. If she wants us to stay, my husband and I will take turns. We are not planning on leaving her there all day every day. She will eat all her meals with us and we will do family activites too.

 

[DVC4US]

Okay, I'll throw in my 2 cents worth.

You will want to register your DD when you get on the ship. This way you can take care of all the paperwork and get your pager. The kids clubs generally do not open until around 7pm or so on the first night. You can check your navigator when you check-in to see the opening time for the first evening.

As previously posted cokes are only free at dinner in the dinning rooms. You can buy a sticker and mug which gets you unlimited soda for the whole cruise. Also, outside of Topsiders on deck 9 is the drink station which has free juice, water, lemonade, and coffee pretty much all the time.

There are plenty of activities on board to keep you occupied. We are not sun worshippers either and we had plenty to do all week. If you would like to see some of the scheduled activities go the Tony and Barb's site at www.castawayclub.com and check out the navigators from previous cruises.

All children are different, but both of my DD's have always loved the clubs and it is usually a battle to get them out. My youngest had just turned 4 the first time she went and she really liked it. On Barb and Tony's site there are also navigators for the kids clubs and you can see what kind of activities they usually have planned. I cannot say that my kids took a nap in the club but they do have mats and on the last cruise I was going into the club and a young boy was asleep on a mat in the corner.

LeiLani

 

[kpgclark]

There are drink stations on board where you can get free drinks any time. These drinks are: iced and hot tea, coffee, lemonade, and milk.

 

[Julma]

My husband is also a diabetic (type 1). We have been on many cruises and he has done fine. He is using an insulin pen now and it does not need to be kept cold during the week. I may be wrong, but I think in the short term insulin can be kept warm. It should just be stored in a cool place. However, I am not the expert. Drinks can be a problem. As I am sure you know a sugary drink is a no no. The ships usually has only have diet items that have caffeine. We pack some packets of powdered sugar free mixes. Also, if your husband is using needles you will need to request a waste container. My husband always carries sugar tablets, you can find great travel packs that keep them dry and very portable at most drug stores. There are medical forms your TA can provide that will let the ship know of your husbands condition.

 

[floridaminnie]

I would recomend checking your child into the club after the Palo and Spa rush (if you are going to those places) I have always done that and there has been no wait. The club opens around 7pm the first night. There is no supper served in the club that night, b/c supper is usually around 5:30.

Naps are on your own. I always looked at the navigator the first day to see when I wanted DD's nap. If she slept over, oh well, she can hit that activity on our next cruise.

There are serveral activities for adults to do during the day. Like someone recomended going to Barb's site www.castawayclub.com and there is also a link from Barb's site to Dave's which is also filled with a ton more info.

My daughter loved the club the first time we went (she had just turned 3). I literally had to pull her out of the club. THis time she was 3 1/2 and she has been in school since then. I always gave her the choice of wanting to stay or leave with me. It all depended on what they were doing. Sometimes she stayed and sometimes she wanted to go with me. She even suprised me this time by wanted to go to our late dinner after she already ate at the club at 5:30!

You just need to be flexible, but even if your little one doesn't want to stay in the club, there are lots of "family" activities going on around the ship. There's not enough time to do everything unfortunatly.

 

[jilljill]

My dad found the sugar free desserts to be very, very good. In fact, we tasted some of them and they delicious. Your server will have this in your notes from the medical form you will need to fill out and send to DCL before you sail.
The laundry facilities are on deck 2 and 7. There are only a few machines and they can be quite busy at night. We found the early morning to be the best time to use them.
There are different tours of the ship, talks, entertaining/cooking demonstrations and tastings (Yum!!), Bingo, wine tasting on the 7 day, movies and my favorite people watching anywhere there is a chair. You will definately not get bored. We always find there is not enough time to do all we want.