Tell the Guards to Open Up the Gates.....We're Going to Norway! Updated 7/17

[Avery's mom]

Yes, this Frozen-obsessed family is headed to the land of Vikings, Trolls and waffles! (I swear, it seemed as if every DCL Port Adventure has a stop for waffles!) First of all – a brief introduction to our merry crew:

Me - the 42 year old planner of the family. I pretty much decide on every vacation and plan all of them as well. Some might even say I am the vacation dictator in our house -but pish, posh – no one else steps up to the task…so I must do what others dare not to do!

My DH – 39 years old and the uberkid in our house. The first answer out of his mouth is usually “NO”. So, when I proposed this trip and he said “OK” I went full steam ahead! He has Norwegian blood on both sides of his family and is eager to see Europe for the first time. Let’s call him Grumpy.

My DD – a 12 year old, completely, madly Frozen obsessed mama. She is the Disney nerd in our family – if there is a new Disney movie, a new Disney menu item, a new Disney anything – I know she will know about it before I will. She has been so excited about this trip since we told her about it a couple of months ago. As you can tell from my screen name – her name is Avery.

My DS – next week he will turn 18 months. Yep – he is our oops baby! Long hoped for, and definitely worth the wait! He has already been to Disneyland and WDW and is eager (we hope) to get his 1st Disney cruise under his belt. I have a feeling he will fit in quite well in Norway with his flaming red hair and plundering disposition. Heck, let’s call him by his own name as well – Beau.

We booked this trip (9 Night Norwegian Fjords) on opening day – and the time has gone by very, very slowly. Yet, suddenly, here we are – less than 3 weeks before I strap my kids into a metal tube bound for Europe – and we are (I hope) ready to rock and roll. We have a total of 16 days away from home split up like this:

We leave California on Sunday, June 14 – arrive in London on Monday, June 15

June 15 – 18 – Get over jetlag and explore London! Avery has insisted on visiting the BBB at Harrods, Grumpy wants to drink a pint in a pub, and I just want to see it all! Beau won’t know which end is up – but he does love Paddington Bear, so I hope we can get him one.

June 18 – 20 - Fly to Copenhagen. We must check out Tivoli Gardens, as it was the inspiration for Disneyland. Anyplace where Grumpy can get a beer, I can explore gardens, Avery can ride roller coasters and Beau can run around like a crazed beast is a winner in this family’s book. Anna has also requested a visit to the Little Mermaid statue, so we’ll take a canal cruise to check it out.

June 20 – 29 - Board the Disney Magic and explore the fjords of Norway!

June 29 - 30 - Fly back to California via overnight stay in London.

Since many people who booked this year (us included) had no idea what would be offered for Port Adventures, onboard activities, etc...as this was the first DCL Norwegian offerings, I thought that it might be nice for those booked on next year's adventures to have a better idea what to expect.

This will be our 4th Disney Cruise - but a first for us on the Magic. We've sailed the Wonder and the Dream (2x). We're also participating in our first FE - which has added to the pre-planning fun (and the frantic weighing of said gifts to make sure we don't go over the weight limit).

Please join us as we set sail for a Magical adventure to Norway.......

 

[kiapepito]

I have a redhead as well and she quite fit in when we visited Scotland and England. Enjoy your trip!! Can't wait to hear all about it!!

Small world... We too live in Monterey!

 

[Avery's mom]

Yippee - another Monterey DISboarder Thanks for joining in. I will try to keep you entertained!

 

[chunkymonkey]

So awesome!! We just got off the Magic 2 weeks ago. It was our first DCL cruise and we loved the Magic. We were the last Caribbean sailing before it sailed transatlantic from NY to Europe. I'm really jealous of your Norwegian Fjords adventure to come. On the Magic I kept seeing commercials for that cruise. It looks amazing! We're booked again for the Fantasy next year in Feb for the Star Wars day at sea. Can't wait to read more!

 

[Avery's mom]

Not sure if anyone cares about our pre-cruise plans….but I’ll lay it out for .0001% of you who might

London – we were originally scheduled to stay at the Premier Inn County Hall. However, as time passed and I realized that maybe we should have a little more space than 1 room for all of us to get over our jetlag. Thus, I changed our plans to stay at the Plaza on the River – still south of the river – which will still give up good access to the tube, buses and walking paths to the main sights. But, we’ll have a 1 bedroom suite with balcony overlooking Big Ben AND full kitchen, which will be handy with a little one. They’ve been exceptionally helpful with pre-cruise communication, and I trust that we’ll have a great stay.

We’ll probably walk down to the London Eye our first night in town. We don’t get in until 4pm, so we’ll only have 5 hours or so to keep the little guy up before we are synced to London time. A little walk (15 minutes or so) and we’ll take in the sights from the Eye. There are a lot of restaurants in that area so we’ll probably have no trouble getting something kid-friendly to eat. Then off to bed.

On Tuesday, we plan to take the HOHO around town – stopping at the Tower of London for sure. I’d love to see the changing of the guard at Buckingham Palace, but you have to line up early for that and Beau does not take too kindly to waiting for anything. Is there a Fastpass for the Palace? I wish! Not too much else on the agenda – just looking around, getting our bearings and taking it easy. We’ll probably have Beau take his nap in the stroller as we window shop – thank goodness he loves to nap in the stroller. One thing I love about big cities is their fantastic green spaces – and London has several parks in which to play. At the top of my list is the Princess Diana Memorial Playground for the kids in Kensington Gardens. Sounds like an ambitious day – so we’ll see how it goes.

Wednesday, we’ll have the lay of the land and so we’ll head to Harrods for the Bippity Boppity Boutique, naturally. We have an appointment at noon, which should give us plenty of time to get breakfast and get over there at a leisurely pace. I’m dying to see the famous Harrods Food Hall and hope we can get there to check it out ahead of her appointment. I can’t go when I’m hungry for lunch, or else we’ll have no money for Norway! We then have tea at Fortnum and Mason at 3pm – which should be a short walk from Harrods. After tea, we will play it by ear. We may just stroll the streets, taking it all in. I find that works best – not too much scheduled in pen.

Thursday – we’re up early and off to Copenhagen! Our flight’s at 10am, and we’ll be up for the car early. No worries, though, we travel with a human alarm clock! He is usually up between 6 and 7am, so with any luck, he’ll be somewhat on that schedule. Copenhagen is just an hour off from London, so no huge time changes to deal with after this flight. We’ll land, and get to the Tivoli Hotel where we’ve reserved two connecting rooms with the Tivoli All-Inclusive Package. We’ll check in, and then take off for the Nyhavn area – where we’ll catch a canal tour of the city. With any luck, Beau will have napped on the flight, or at the hotel, so we can keep going….if not – we can catch the canal cruise on the return as our flight isn’t until the afternoon on the 29th. Travel with toddlers involves a lot of Plan B and C days….

Friday, we’ll be sleeping in a little, we hope, as Tivoli Gardens doesn’t even open until 11am. No mad rush to the gates for EMH there! Breakfast at the hotel – maybe a swim – then catch the bus to the park. We plan to spend all day here – another stroller nap for Beau – so we can take it easy and enjoy the day. The park is open until midnight – but we’ll call it a day long before then. I’ve wanted to see Tivoli for a long time, so I’m super excited to visit! We’ve got several inclusions here, such as photos, dinner, aquarium passes…so we’ll try to see what we can see and do what we can do. It is a small park, but they have a lot packed into this small space. Once we’re done here, we’re back to the hotel to pack up to board the Magic!!

PS - Thanks to chunkymonkey for stopping by! So glad you enjoyed your first cruise on the Magic!

 

[Zarina]

Sounds like an awesome trip planned! Hope you have a good flight with your DS!

 

[Avery's mom]

So, in the 14 months or so that I’ve had to research this trip, most of it in secret, as it was a surprise for Avery, we knew there was one thing that we HAD TO DO. Once I saw a photo of Pulpit Rock, I knew I had to go there. I would just look at photos of it and get so excited that I. Was. Actually. Going. There. Now, this may end up being a very short trip report, if this hike doesn’t go well We stop in Stavanger, Norway as our first port of call. So, if we don’t make it – and this is the end of the trip report – you’ll know why! Unfortunately, I had a knee injury in January which required 2 different doctors’ visits, MRIs, physical therapy, lots, and lots of Advil and cursing. Lots and lots of (Disney approved) cursing. I took 2 months off from hiking, heck - even exercising at all besides my physical therapy. So, I was a little behind where I wanted to be in preparation for this hike. But, as the mailmen say, “No rain, no snow, no death of night can keep us from our duty” and so it shall be with me. “No knee injury, stomach ache, nor crying baby, can keep me from this darn hike!”

Beyond the hike to Pulpit Rock, I really didn’t know what else we wanted to do in Norway. Disney wouldn’t put out any information until February at the earliest, so I had 11 months to figure it all out for ourselves. Eventually, we decided on a combination of DCL excursions, DIY excursions, rental cars and small group private tours. Our planned adventures are:

Stavanger – Pulpit Rock, baby! We will have just enough time to catch the ferry to Tau, then the bus to the trailhead. We’ll hike 2 hours up, 2 hours back with a 30 minute lunch break at the top. Please, please, please - if anyone in charge is listening – I really would like a cool, crisp day with NO rain!

Alesund – We bit the bullet and signed up for the Signature Port Adventure - Sunnmore Village – A Celebration with Anna, Elsa and Kristoff. This is the most expensive Port Adventure we’ve ever signed up for and I wrestled with spending so much money on 1 excursion that didn’t involve caviar, 24karat gold or Ferraris. But the look on my daughter’s face when we booked it told me I may have done the right thing. Why go all the way to Norway and then tell her we can’t do the one excursion she wants to do? Why do moms feel all the guilt? Grumpy had no problem telling her, “heck no!” But I just couldn’t. So, off we'll go!

Geiranger – This is the photo op that sold me on this cruise. Seriously, can anyone look at the port of Geiranger with a Disney ship in the fjord and not hand over their credit card? We signed up for a small group tour with several others on our cruise. We’ll spend half the day exploring the town and the surrounding area –even taking a hike to the backside of water at the Storseterfossen waterfall!!

​

Molde – There were many options here – but our activities today were Grumpy’s choice. Once he saw photos of the Atlantic Ocean Road, he wanted to check it out. So, we’re renting a car and driving this architectural wonder on our own. It will be nice to just drive wherever we want for the day, stopping wherever we choose. This is a day where I hope we have wind and rain – the Atlantic Ocean Road seems built for just those conditions.

Olden – We’ve booked another small group tour with others on the Magic. We’ll visit Briksdal Glacier and the surrounding area. This is another area where Disney’s marketing magic worked on me. I saw a photo of those “troll cars” going up to the glacier, and I said, “I want to do THAT!” Fortunately, we have a great organizer who was able to arrange a fantastic day – troll cars included!


Bergen – our last day in Norway As this is our last stop in Norway, I imagine we’ll be making a mad dash for any souvenirs that we’ve missed along the way. We’ll also catch the funicular to the top of Mt. Floien for a panoramic view of the city. There is supposed to be great hiking and even a children’s playground on the mountain, so we’ll hike and play until the Magic pulls away this evening.

With 6 days in a row of relatively active port adventures, I don’t know how much we’ll be able to stick to the above plan. That’s the beauty of a plan – it can change should it need to. Also, with a toddler, we’ll need to be flexible and roll with his punches.

Thanks for those of you following along……..just 13 days to go now!

PS - Thanks for stopping by, Zarina! We hope he enjoys the flight too! Well, actually, we hope he sleeps!

 

[chunkymonkey]

I just died looking at those beautiful pictures...I might have to rethink my Western Caribbean cruise....LOL

 

[Avery's mom]

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[Avery's mom]

I just died looking at those beautiful pictures...I might have to rethink my Western Caribbean cruise....LOL

It's funny - all the time we've been planning this trip - not a negative word from Grumpy. But, now when it's time to pack, he says, "I can't believe we're going on a vacation where I can't snorkel! I will just feel weird going on vacation in cold weather." Uh, hello? You're just now realizing this? AND we booked Alaska for next year? So, perhaps Grumpy can go on your Western Caribbean trip since this trip obviously is not meeting his needs

 

[Cousin Orville]

Hey we're on the same cruise! That's great you're posting a trip report. I'm excited to follow along. If you're using the nursery, we'll be seeing you there. We're traveling with our DD-2, DS-5, and DS-10.
That's awesome you're hiking up to Pulpit Rock. I'm a bit to nervous about all the spectators hanging around the edge!

 

[Avery's mom]

Hey we're on the same cruise! That's great you're posting a trip report. I'm excited to follow along. If you're using the nursery, we'll be seeing you there. We're traveling with our DD-2, DS-5, and DS-10.
That's awesome you're hiking up to Pulpit Rock. I'm a bit to nervous about all the spectators hanging around the edge!

Yippee! So glad to have a reader also on our cruise! AND you also have a little one - double yippee! Yes, we will definitely be using the nursery. We have time blocked every night at dinner and a bit more here and there. Our son is one of those kids who will run off with anyone at the mall - no fear at all. So, I am really hoping that he'll be ok when we leave him at the nursery. It would be wonderful if our kiddos were friends

As far as Pulpit Rock - we are a bit nervous as well. I am terrified of heights, but mostly we are worried about our little guy getting too close to the edge. I just don't know how people can dangle their feet over the side. I will NOT be doing that! I will consider myself lucky if we just get up there - and back!

Hope to see you on the ship - and here following along as we count down the days......

 

[Alohagirl73]

Following along also.

Next year on the British Isles cruise also with a one year old boy traveling from California looking forward to reading this report.

Enjoy your cruise!!!!

 

[Avery's mom]

Following along also.

Next year on the British Isles cruise also with a one year old boy traveling from California looking forward to reading this report.

Enjoy your cruise!!!!

Thank you for joining us! Your cruise sounds fantastic as well - such a great itinerary. We seriously considered it - but it's Grumpy's choice for our summer vacation next year, as we are celebrating his 40th. I imagine you'll be looking for info on how our toddler handles such a big trip since you'll have a little one doing a similar trip. I hope by the end of the trip (and report) we will have good news to report!

If you are still looking at airfare, give consideration to British Airways, as your little one can use a great bassinet/kidcot at the bulkhead. They're one of the few airlines that have a bassinet with a generous weight/age threshold. Other airlines we looked at cut off the bassinet at 9-12 months. I'll let you know how it worked out for us!

 

[LorraineBaines]

Looking forward to your trip report - it all looks so amazing! (Although that picture of Pulpit Rock gives me a bit of that "jello legs" feeling! )

 

[Avery's mom]

Looking forward to your trip report - it all looks so amazing! (Although that picture of Pulpit Rock gives me a bit of that "jello legs" feeling! )

Glad to have you join us! We have been trying to hike as high as we can get in our local area, and even at 400-500 feet up, I get that "jello legs" feeling as well. So, I have no idea what I am going to feel like at 2000 ft!

 

[Mrs Green]

I will be following along. Norway is a bucketlist item for me so I will anxiously await all photos and commentary! I hope you have the most magical time!

 

[Jennifer Mattson]

I will be looking forward to your report - we are on vacay the same time as you but doing the "Disney sandwich" as I like to call it, AKL 3 nights, Cruise on the Dream 4 nights, Poly 2 nights then back to Ohio. My husband keeps telling me to a trip report as well since I have done all the planning and research, so I might start one this week, we're leaving on Friday and getting very excited!

Enjoy your time and safe travels!

 

[Avery's mom]

I will be following along. Norway is a bucketlist item for me so I will anxiously await all photos and commentary! I hope you have the most magical time!

Hello, and thanks for joining us! To be honest, Norway, was never that high on my Bucket List, as I am more of a warm-weather, tropical vacationer, but I have come to the conclusion that there aren't many places that I don't want to see! As the world is such a large place, and we have a finite number of days.....we all need to get out there and explore! Or as I may have heard....."adventure is out there"!

I hope you enjoy your journey along with us in the next few weeks to come!

 

[Avery's mom]

I will be looking forward to your report - we are on vacay the same time as you but doing the "Disney sandwich" as I like to call it, AKL 3 nights, Cruise on the Dream 4 nights, Poly 2 nights then back to Ohio. My husband keeps telling me to a trip report as well since I have done all the planning and research, so I might start one this week, we're leaving on Friday and getting very excited!

Enjoy your time and safe travels!

Ah, yes.....the Disney Sandwich! I know it well Although we haven't done the Poly or the AKL! I have told Grumpy that I didn't want to stay at a Deluxe until we've stayed at all the Moderates, as once we've gone there....I know we won't ever go back! We go every 2 years roughly, so we I figure we'll get to a Deluxe by 2019.

I am finding that the trip report helps with the interminable wait during the last week or so and helps organize my thoughts, if nothing else! You should give it a shot!

Thanks for joining along!