Disney Magic – 8-Night from San Juan – 5-13 May 2023 - Complete

[auntlynne]

I didn’t keep a journal and now I am down to mainly memories (it’s only 13 days post-cruise!)

I think I managed to be in Cabanas each of morning as we were heading to the port. Very unusual for me. I saw a number of the pilot ships approaching and then leaving as they dropped off our interim captains.

If you want a comparison of stay-on ship, Disney excursion, or independent vendor activity, you’ve hit the Trifecta with this trio in St Kitts.

My cabin represents Independent Vendor excursion. In my ongoing quest to visit UNESCO World Heritage Sites, St Kitts offered me Brimstone Hill Fortress. I originally booked the DCL excursion, but decided that I should try to get my feet in the Caribbean in each port (failure - Curaçao). At the mention by another cruiser and great reviews on Viator, we went with Grey’s Tours’ “Grand Tour of St Kitts.”

Mr Grey shared with us his lifelong home country, while his nephew safely drove us around. We heard history, reminiscing of his life on the island and its history.

Topographically, flowers and trees, this is reminiscent of Hawaii, both being formed by volcanoes.



The landscaping at the site of the former Romney Manor (Thomas Jefferson’s ancestor), with the batik display and shop were lovely.

Brimstone Hill Fortress is impressive in its location - knowing they had to get the supplies up a very steep hill. I applaud myself for going up and down the angled pathway to the top. (Those hand rails/walls were hot - but necessary).



Following the standard tourist route, we passed by the Eastern Caribbean Bank and the lookout on Timothy Hill before our beach time at Frigate Bay. Very nice to have warm water that did not shock me when it got to the ribs. Lunch at Shipwreck Bar was delicious. I laughed when I saw an Auburn University flag on the bar’s ceiling - can I get a War Eagle! They really get around.

It was a full day’s excursion; I highly recommend it.



Dinner was soon after our return. Adult Trivia, Tangled - and probably bed. Tomorrow was going to be another full-day excursion.

If we port in St Kitts again, we think we will head over to Nevis - the other island of St Christopher & Nevis, birthplace of Alexander Hamilton.

 

[Calantha]

Day 5: St. Lucia – All Day

We got up bright and early (okay, we’ve been up bright and early every day) to get off the ship in St. Lucia. This meant no leisurely breakfast at Lumiere’s but rather a quick stop at Cabana’s. I’d say we all ate a fairly hearty breakfast, but I definitely didn’t drink too much – I was concerned about bathroom access (correctly as it turns out).

MIL stayed on the ship – she doesn’t do small boats or heat, in addition to walking/standing issues.

FIL, DH, and I set off at about 8:45. Turns out, we wrongly followed the Disney tour (we thought they were exiting the pier, they were not). But it worked out in our favor, because we realized that we forgot to grab towels when de-barking. DH ran back to get them, then we found the correct exit.


St. Lucia

Our tour only included another couple from the ship, as the third group didn’t show up, which was great! So, it wasn’t necessarily supposed to be a private tour, but it might as well have been. We booked through Spencer Ambrose Tours and did the “Spencer’s Land, Sea & Beach Adventure.”

This was a full day tour starting off with a speed-boat ride from Castries, down the coast (no bathroom on-board). The speed-boat would have held 10 guests max, so with just 6, we had extra room. There was a Captain, an assistant, and then our guide. We did brief stops at Marigot Bay, a “bat cave,” and the Pitons. Our group then got off in Soufriere, while the older couple stayed on to go straight to Sugar Beach for snorkling.


The Pitons

From Soufriere we went with just the guide, taking a cab to our next two stops. I didn’t realize St. Lucia was that British – right-hand drive on the left side of the road. The roads were very narrow and windy (that was what had driven my decision to take a boat down here in the first place, I had read reviews that people got car sick on the ride from Castries to Soufriere).

First stop was the Sulfur Springs/Mineral Baths. No white clothes, white bags, etc! The mud stains everything. Although, I washed things on the ship the next morning – it would have ruined the new Castaway bag for sure. You walk up to 4 different hot pools (hottest at the top). Put some light gray mud on, use the black mud for ‘decoration’ – then go soak in the pool. Was not my son’s idea of a good time, so we probably only stayed 15 minutes or so.


Mineral Bath

Next stop was the Toraille Waterfall. DH and FIL weren’t impressed – they lived in Hawaii for 5 years. DS thought it was awesome though, and I enjoyed how cold it was after how hot the mineral baths were. Too bad they weren’t closer together! I got some decent photographs here. I love trying to take pictures of waterfalls. (Total failure when we were in Alaska).


Toraille Waterfall

We headed back to Soufriere, and here was the one ‘miss’ of the trip. We ended up standing/waiting about 15 minutes for the guide to pick up lunch from a local restaurant. I would have been fine if we had been left on the boat but it was very awkward standing at the gate to the pier, so not sure what happened there.

Anyway, after that brief delay, we headed down to Sugar Beach (in the shadow of the Petit Piton). Lunch was provided to us and we reunited with the older couple from that morning. I thought it was all pretty tasty, DH/FIL agreed. DS only ate a little bit, so I might suggest an extra snack for a young child. It was chicken and then a variety of carbs/veggies.

They all went snorkeling at this point, while I walked down the beach to check out the Resort and shops. This is the only place that had a restroom all day, and the ladies room was out of service. Needless to say, I availed myself of the men’s room (single room thankfully).

The ride back was a blast as they were kind enough to let DS drive once we were open water. We made good time returning to port, blowing past a lot of the catamarans that were also returning. I stopped at the Port shops for a minute with FIL to get a few standard items (keychain for me, magnet for my mom who stayed at our house to watch the 4 cats for the week, and a Christmas tree ornament for DS). FIL grabbed a few items too.


Driving the Boat

Back on the ship, we ordered a cheese tray, showered and got ready for dinner. Dinner was at AP, and not really one of my favorite menus (except for the purseittes). I ordered 2 purseittes, the chicken & walnut salad, and then the cookies ‘n cream sundae.


Purseittes!!

No shows for us, just back to the room to read and then go to bed early.

 

[Clarkson U]

I went to the Fitness Center first thing once it opened at 6 am. Not many folks inside at that hour. Then went and had a morning cup of coffee before getting ready for the day. Breakfast was sit down since our port excursion didn't meet up until 9:30 am.

In St. Lucia, we did DCL excursion Tale of a Local Farmer (SL78). It was another AC bus ride through parts of Castries seeing local architecture, buildings and churches on our way out to the plantain (banana) farm. While on our way there our guide answered questions and told us facts about the island. It was a comfortable bus ride. Once at the farm, we got to use the bathroom (though a sign said $1 USD to use it but no one seemed to be paying anyone). We then went with Bradley - the farms owner to understand and watch him demo - how to cut down a bunch of bananas or plantains when ready to harvest and also how they replant banana trees so that new ones will grow.

From there he showed us the process of how they break down large bunches into smaller bunches, clean then and package them in a box. He showed us all of this and normally on his farm this happens in a different part of the farm with a staff of about 8 people. This particular farmer sends most of his crop to UK and mainland Europe.

While there we sampled fresh papaya, coconut and coconum water. We also sampled some fresh items made from plantains. Then we went down to a local village area where we could see the water but really it was a tourist trap spot to give you a chance to buy their hats, tshirts, etc. After that we were brought back to the pier. It was the advertised 3 to 3.5 hours.

We were back in time for lunch. We tried the adult pool in the afternoon but it was very hot water (hotter than the hot tub) and the water levels were low - it was then we determined that they had some sort of leak in the adult pool area.

We played some family games, had dinner, played post dinner trivia and went to the show (I can't recall if it was Taylor Mason tonight or not).

After the show, we went to Fathoms for adult entertainment and game show fun.

Coming up was a day at sea tomorrow so we were all looking forward to that.

 

[auntlynne]

I wrote this several days ago. The posts by my compadres have jogged some memories.

St Lucia - the Pitons are calling.

We had breakfast next to @Calantha and found each other when heading the wrong way on the pier toward the amassed Disney Port Adventure guests. I think I was meant to be with her all day - as our excursions covered essentially the same locations. But they managed to skip the long bus ride.



This was another port which started with plans for a Disney excursion and got switched to an independent vendor. This recommendation was from a YouTube video by cruise vloggers. We did the same excursion as them, just in a different sequence of stops. This one was supposed to let me get in the water without the challenge of trying to use a boat’s ladder to get back onboard.

Whereas the St Kitts excursion was 3 land-vacation guests and 3 pairs from our cruise, all adults, (lots of extra room on the tourist bus - the world standard Toyota Hiace), this one was a full load, with only two non-cruise tourists. And several children.

[We were the only cruise ship in each port we visited, as the cruise was winding down in the S. Caribbean).]

Our furthest destination was about 1.5 hours from the port, much of it windy, hilly roads.

We stopped at a roadside banana stand (their bananas go to the UK and several European countries) Haha, @Clarkson U - we got the same story. A stop for a photo with the Pitons (pointy mountains) in the background, then down to a fishing village to catch a boat over to a snorkeling beach.

That boat I did not get on, due to its low position in relation to the dock (I just realized at high tide, this might not have been a problem). As everyone rode away, I wandered around Soufriere on a quiet Sunday morning. The snorkelers were back in a little over an hour, then it was a buffet lunch and off to the next stop.


Which was a very cold waterfall. Move to the Sulphur Springs mud bath. This was very hot, but it is supposedly good for the skin. Into a hot pool of dark water, then apply the gray mud. Add some decorative black mud, again into the hit water and shower off. This would be next to the “drive-in volcano,” but I think it was just mentioned in passing, along with the story of calamity for someone who did not appreciate the danger of the area. The bus was a lot quieter by now, as a long day, water activities, and some included rum punch were working together to make the long ride back to port less obvious.

Our two booked independent tours were completed for thus cruise as we again arrived at the ship without a need to pier run.

Bonus: the Piton Management Area is another UNESCO World Heritage Site. We drove right by the sign, with no mention of it.

 

[Calantha]

Day 6: An Actual Sea Day

For our first "official" day at sea, we had our rescheduled Palo brunch, and I couldn’t wait.

As soon as I woke up, I dashed over to the laundry room though to wash all of our bathing suits. I had hand-washed everything on the 9-night last year, and I swear they still smell sometimes. Also, with the adventures at the mud baths, a lot of things were gray tinged (e.g., my white cover-up).

I went to the Laundry Room on Deck 2 just before 5:30AM to discover all but one washer was in use…or rather full of wet laundry but not running. Thankfully there was an empty one or I would have reverted to my college days and dumped it on the counter. Snarky washer man finally showed up right before 6:30 when I came to move my stuff to the dryer (for a few minutes, I know it is bad to dry bathing suits). He said, “Well, the alert went off at 12:30 last night, but I didn’t feel like coming down to move anything. You must have gotten up early.” Since this is a family report, I won’t repeat what I was thinking, so I just gritted my teeth and said, “Yep.” Don't be snarky washer man!

After this, I needed caffeine, so I grabbed a chai latte and 2 small pastries at Cove around 6:30, figuring that would tide me over until 10:30. I think I ran into @Clarkson U and his family outside of Cove, but it might have been one of the other days. I stayed and chatted for about 30 minutes (which makes me think it was this day). I also think @auntlynne came by just as I was heading back to the room (if this happened another day, sorry - maybe on Aruba?).

We took DS to a delayed breakfast at Cabanas and told him to eat up, since he wouldn’t get lunch until late. He wanted to take pictures with Black Panther and Captain America, so we did that, and then DH dropped him off at the Club, with a request not to call us. He came through on that (yea!) – so while DH didn’t linger after dessert, nor did he miss dessert like he did in Alaska.


Captain America and Black Panther

As the In-Laws are platinum, and we had one in each room, the brunch was included (also a big yea). DH shared his bellini with me – which is always appreciated. We should have had the Platinum Prosecco sent here – lesson learned for next time!

We started out with one of each antipasti, with the following modifications:

• No mussels. They also just had crab claws and no legs, but I think that’s a supply chain issue. Ultimately, we got another plate of just ahi tuna.
• No meat, just cheeses and the other items. The parm with the balsamic was quite tasty.

Bread selection (the pieces on the left were the best) & cheese and olives

For our next course, I had tomato soup, while everyone else dined on the eggs (2 Florentine and one smoked salmon). I got the sense that the Florentine was better than the smoked salmon. Soup was fine.

Then we went off the menu and ordered the "renowned" grape and Gorgonzola flatbread. Unfortunately, it did not live up to the hype for our group. I think we might have been happier with one of the other vegetarian flatbread choices. But, I’m glad we did it.

For the main courses, I had the chicken parm, DH and FIL had the red snapper (DH got it with no saffron ‘candle’), and then I forget what MIL ultimately ordered (I think it was the artichoke ravioli). Whatever it was, she didn’t love it. The candle was a joke from Alaska, and the waiter agreed. It is a creepy little yellow candle shaped potato!


Chicken Parm

Dessert was a mix of items. I tried the panna cotta, since my choice from last year was no longer on the menu (the pistachio cake). It was amazing!


Panna Cotta

I will also note that MIL and I ordered tea early on, and were just given English Breakfast, which has not been my previous experience. Normally we got the tea cart. Anyway, I wanted a second pot and asked directly for the box. Thus, we were able to enjoy the Enchanted Forest Fruits (which I think might also be in Cove, but I didn’t get a chance to go back).

Note #2, about halfway through brunch, our waiter stopped coming over and was forgetting things etc. Turns out the manager had given him 6 tables, with 2 that were very demanding. Anyway, to make a long story short, they forgot MIL’s birthday and some other things. So, in-laws spoke to the manager, and we were invited back for dessert one evening.

DH went to get DS and we pretty much lounged around for the rest of the day in food comas. DS did some swimming, but I avoided the water. We looked for characters, played cards (I think), and relaxed in the room.

We did a quick run to do the “Magic” photos at Rapunzel’s to break up the afternoon.

By the time dinner arrived, I’d say none of us were still very hungry, but it was the first show night in Rapunzel’s. We had an amazing table right by the stage (thanks to an early request from MIL). This was the “Thug Show” – and it was a nice variety of songs and dance. For dinner, I had the Coronation Salad, tried the Turbot, and then the bread pudding. The Turbot was meh, but I fulfilled a promise to myself not to order pasta at every dinner. Bread pudding was good, and I’d eat that again for sure.


Front Row Seats

Tonight was the second show – Tangled, which was nice coming right after dining at the restaurant.

Oh, pause for important informational announcement: I went to Guest Services and O’Gills on different days – the “Thug Takeover” which I read about on the boards/blogs – has not yet returned since Covid.

MIL and FIL did not come with us to Tangled and DS decided he was tired about ¼ of the way in, so he departed with DH, and I fell asleep. Again. I’m sure it was a lovely show.

 

[Clarkson U]

Well so first sea day - we had a lot of similarities with @Calantha. Yes we did meet up on Deck 9 near Cove Cafe both taking in the sunrise and pictures of the same. It was there that I learned from another cruiser, that their porthole had been painted over in dry dock but that they did fix that for this family on first port day so that was good. As we were headed out @auntlynne was walking through.

After morning coffee and sunrise, I went to the fitness center for a bit and then got a shower and had sit down breakfast this morning since it was sea day and this is one of the things we always do on a sea day is go for leisurely sit down breakfast over cabanas.

From there, we did the Art of the Theme Show boat tour. That took about an hour and then we got back, got dressed and headed up for our 11 am Palo Brunch time slot. For our family of 4 vegetarians at Palo, we tried a variety of different things. DS had the tomato soup which he liked while the rest of us had salads. We did have the antipasto but we had it without any meat - cheese only platter which was delicious.

We then ordered both vegetarian flat breads on the menu which were both tasty and delicious. Finally, we all ordered Eggplant Rollatini - without any ham - which they made fresh for us and then we shared two plates of the vegetarian ravioli which was delicious with their fresh made pasta.

We had Bellini's for breakfast and then coffee afterwards. For dessert the best desserts were the crème Brule and the panna cotta.

After being stuffed at Palo, we headed to our Choc and Liquor tasting with Victor. The liquors and chocolate are great but Victor wasn't the best bartender to do this tasting. As we had done this one before on other ships, we had a comparison and he did not do the best job of explaining the pairings and why and how they are applicable to your everyday parties, experience etc.

By now it was past 2:30 pm and I think we did a mid-afternoon trivia and then just relaxed and played cards at the big tables by GS until they kicked us out to set up for photos. It was a good day to go and look at some photos and then relax before dinner.

The dinner show was nice at Rapunzel's that evening but honestly I don't remember any dishes we ate except that we all skipped dessert as we were way to full from our day of overindulging between Palo and then Liquor tasting - so NOTE to self - do NOT schedule Palo and any liquor tasting on the same day - it is too much.

We also did laundry early this day on the 7th floor laundry room which had plenty of availability in the early morning as DW got up at 5:30 and did the laundry.

I know we did not go to Fathoms after the show tonight as we were all tired and wanted to get a good nights sleep before more ports of call over the next three days.

 

[auntlynne]

Sea Day. So few memories. I don’t even remember what my dining rotation for the week was. And it is no longer printed in the KTTW card, so it is just history.

(The following us a mishmash of thoughts that I cannot assign to a specific day, but applied to this cruise).

Since the above two say it was the night for Tangled in the WDT - I saw Tangled. It was the only production show I attended. I had planned on all three, but that didn’t happen. Per usual, the Cast Member who played Mother Gothel was such a great casting decision.

(The characters I met in hallways and at MDR table visits did a great job interacting / staying in character. Even if just overhearing them talking to their handlers.)

I remember running into @Calantha and @Clarkson U throughout the cruise. I have had other cruise friends with whom I have sailed intentionally. I really enjoy seeing how meeting people on a forum can lay a foundation for meeting friends. Still not getting that experience / feeling through FB. (And you never get a good trip report out of those.)

This day probably followed the pattern of so many cruise days. These are the things that happened sometime(s) during the cruise:

Breakfast at Cabanas (I never had breakfast or lunch in an MDR). Drank lots of POG / Jungle Juice from Cabanas. (Labeled Orchard’s Best - or Finest) in apple and orange juice machine. Seemed to be at Different stations daily - but never at all stations on any given day. It was there at lunch, too.

Discovered how good churro waffles are.

No Palo brunch. By choice.

Supplemented Cabanas lunch with soup from Daisy De-Lites.

Got a cheeseburger patty from Pool Deck Quick Service.

Never ordered Room Service.

(Adult) Trivia a few times a day in O’Gill’s. At some point early in the cruise, I actually won a round of General Knowledge Trivia (playing solo).

Wandered through the shops. Not seriously looking for anything.

Never went to the spa. Not even through the door at Senses.

Checked out the pastry box in cove cafe once or twice. Nothing necessary to eat. And not a coffee/ tea drinker.

Hot chocolate was in the dispenser on the Pool Deck. Just like In Alaska. On a hot weather cruise! (Not talking packets - just press the button. I usually added a little half and half to give it some body.). No lingering aftertaste of Sucralose.

Walked around the upper deck at night, usually before a movie. Checked out the sky for the opportunity to see lots of stars (like in movies), since we were far from civilization’s light pollution. Saw some extra by cupping my hands around my eyes. Not what I was hoping for.

Enjoyed movies under the stars on Funnelvision. Maleficient 2, which I had seen when it came out and not since, was a great one to see on the big screen. The tradition of pizza, soft-serve and a late night movie is near the top on my DCL cruise memories.

I did laundry twice on this 8-night cruise. I did not have the same mud stain issues from St Lucia as Calantha did, but the sulphur scent we encountered with the mud was in my bathing suit - and in my skin. I also will move laundry when it’s a busy time. The app tells you long long the cycle is - and then when your load is about to be finished. I even fold clothes when I remove them from the dryer.

I may not cruise for food, but these are standouts from decade to decade (I started 16 years ago) that still were standouts in the MDRs:

Mango papaya soup (cold)

Crème brûlée cheesecake

Grand Mariner cheesecake (2nd time a charm; first undercooked).

++++

The dining chairs throughout ship are in good condition, not wobbly.

Our sofa was firm, no lumps, dips (this must have been replaced in the 25 years).

Cabin 2022 (forward, port) was a great location. It was a GTY assignment. Just around the corner from the forward elevator lobby, one deck below O’Gill’s - easy access to Trivia. Two below WDT.

My tricks for moving around the ship worked great from this location. Walk up to Deck 3 then down the Promenade to the Aft elevator for Cabanas if you want to avoid weather. Otherwise, elevator to Deck 2 to 9 and walk the pool deck.

Deck 5 is another great front > < back corridor. Both paths offer wider hallways, unobstructed by cleaning carts and people.

…Already, anything annoying about the cruise has already faded. Much of what I remember - of the Disney cruise experience (not the unique excursions and ports) is just an ongoing contentment like being at a favorite summer camp (with real beds and air conditioning). Make some new friends, laugh, sing (music trivia).

Why don’t we have more sing-a-longs on the ship? More fun, more inclusive.

See you next in Bonaire. If we didn’t blow away there.

 

[Calantha]

Discovered how good churro waffles are.

My MIL was raving about them...and I guess we had them on the last day. I could go back right now and eat a dozen!

 

[Calantha]

Day 7: Bonaire's the Best

The best day of the cruise, if I’m completely honest. @auntlynne is right though - it was the first of 3 very windy days. DH, DS, and FIL also agreed that our excursion on Bonaire was fantastic, and I could see us returning to Bonaire in a few years when DS is old enough to scuba dive.

It started out as a normal port day where we went to Cabanas, since we needed to meet our tour guide, Kirsten from “Private Guided Tours – Bonaire,” at 9AM. MIL headed off to the adults only area and we changed into our bathing suits and packed our bags.

Our plan for the day was the private combination tour of the island + snorkeling. Kirsten waited for us just outside the cruise terminal and we hopped in her red SUV. Our first stop was to view the flamingos on the southeast side of the island by the mangroves. We also saw a small farm with some chickens and ducks. Along the roads, there were also donkeys and goats. My son loved it.


Flamingo Fight!


I'm ready for my close up!

We stopped at the Sorobon next for about 15 minutes to see the windsurfers. It was okay, but I got some good beach shots of the family. We continued driving south and paused at another site to admire the surf and the rocks. Interesting for the adults, not interesting for DS.

Kirsten started to explain the salt flats at this point and we learned about the old slave huts as we came around to the western side of the island. We made a quick stop there, and then headed up to Cargill’s Salt Pier. There we were able to pick some rock salt from a giant box to bring home (very addictive to lick) and we learned about the rest of the salt making processes.


The salt box

Finally, we arrived at a beach north of the salt pier. I can’t say which one it was, there’s basically a stop every .5 miles to snorkel or dive, but it wasn’t too far from the pier. DS and I just played in the water with goggles, while Kirsten took DH and FIL out on a 45 min snorkel adventure. The water was so calm!


At the beach

Kirsten took some fantastic underwater shots of the fish and the family. DH came back a little early and gave me the mask. I’m so glad he did. The fish and coral are right there and so amazing.

Here’s where Kirsten won the trip – turns out she purchased a child’s mask/snorkel just for DS (although that was lost in the earlier communications). When FIL and Kirsten came back and we figured that out, she got the mask and then went back out with FIL and DS for about another 30 minutes.


Underwater!

DS had the best time and talked about nothing else for the rest of the trip (i.e., “when are we snorkeling again?”).

Finally, we had to go back to town. Everyone got back on the boat and I did a quick turn at the shops. While I was there I heard chatter about a "man with a parrot on his shoulder" - I thought it was one of those guys who tries to sell you pictures with the bird. Nope, some poor guy from the ship had a random parrot land on his shoulder and wouldn't leave him alone! I sometimes wonder what happened to him is he still stuck there in the courtyard?

Tonight was Pirate Night, so we all dressed up to a certain extent. For dinner, I like the pasta…but it turns out that MIL/FIL had mentioned to the head waiter that we liked Indian food, so they brought us out a dish to share with rice, etc. So, we gorged on that as well, and I skipped dessert!


The first of several nights of amazing Indian food

The dance party was late for some reason, so we missed that and the fireworks. Sorry, early to bed, early to rise!
Lots of good Disney pictures though:


Glad character hugs are back (and DH photo-bombing in the back)


Jack Sparrow was really funny


The line to see Stitch went all the way around to the elevators!

But 100%, would go back and dive with Kirsten in a few years when DS is older (and we’re all certified/re-certified).

 

[auntlynne]

Do you have a really good zoom on a camera or a phone? Or just get as close to the flamingos as the protection rules allow?

 

[auntlynne]

Bonaire. What a fun place.

This one was a tough one for decisions. It is known as a great dive destination. [We saw a bunch of shore divers - which I had never seen before. Usually, I think of diving from a boat. (We are not divers). ]

I went through the usual - book with Disney, then look at outside vendors or DIY.

We booked this cruise 5 weeks in advance. On an essentially full ship. I was surprised to find any availability for the activities I would want to consider. We also secured First Seating for dinner and Palo on our preferred night (Pirate Night, to avoid the menu).

We again booked an excursion based on the YouTube vloggers. This was for a snorkeling island just offshore. Klein Bonaire. Then I moved it to a direct booking with a water taxi (that was the excursion offering) to save a little money - but mainly to provide flexibility in scheduling and time on the island.

Ultimately, we decided that an island with no shade, no toilets, nothing but beach was not the best idea for us. Other factors, too.

YouTube knew I was checking out these islands, so I watched lots of “recommended for you” videos of the ABC islands.

We ended up with a golf cart rental and a day pass at a resort. I think I could have just done the golf cart and been satisfied, spending some more leisurely time at the sights on the Southern half of the island. (Based on @Calantha ‘s adventures, I am more sure than ever). It would have been so easy to just pull over whenever we wanted.

We checked in to the resort after getting the cart. Then returned after our island drive.

Comparatively, this was a decent price to other day passes I have read about (this was my first time using a resort for an excursion). We visited Chogogo Resort Bonaire, a new-build resort. We had use of their pool, lounge chairs and palapas, lazy river (w/floats), restrooms, beach access, and a $10 pp credit at the restaurants. Admission was $25pp. Free parking, WiFi, in & out privilege. Just a few miles from the port. We utilized the golf cart for our transportation, dropping it off on the way back to the ship.





For our dining credits, we were able to have an afternoon snack of a shared toastie (grilled cheese sandwich), excellent French fries, and a couple of canned cokes per person. We were finding the Caribbean cokes were typically made with sugar, not HFCS; it’s not just a “Mexican” Coke.

The golf carts looked new, no more than a year old (or just kept in great condition). They came fueled and did not require us to fill up before drop off. For a total of $104, we had the two-seater for the entire day. I prepaid ours when I made the reservation on-line. (Bonaire Cruisers). The locals were very patient with the golf carts (and their fellow islanders -or other tourists; they were never rude drivers).



Our highlights on our drive were donkeys and a lake filled with flamingos, a salt lake with kiteboarders (or kite surfers; we saw both during the day). Lots of flat, dry land with succulents and rocks. Crashing waves on one side of the island that changed to calmer seas as we rounded the tip with its lighthouse. And lots of pink salt ponds owned by the Cargill Co. for exports to the world. (It is white by the time it dries out).



From the road without a great zoom. But a lot of flamingos.

Aruba is known for its wind (it has its wind-bent trees as a symbol), but you really heard it in the golf cart while on Bonaire). At times, we could feel the vehicle pushing against it. Fortunately, only from the front.

This was our Palo dinner night. It is back to its usual, excellent experience with plenty of staff and guests (a year ago it seemed more like a restaurant which had lost both workers and diners). I switched up my entree and utilized my CC benefit to order a la carte. My osso buca was tender - and a giant plate of food. Soufflé - yum, as usual.

The Pirate Night fireworks were fun to watch. But again, morning activities called for an early turn-in.

This were the best workers at Guest Services this cruise:



My takeaway souvenir from this day was a sunburn on my left lower leg from my time driving the golf cart.

 

[Calantha]

Do you have a really good zoom on a camera or a phone? Or just get as close to the flamingos as the protection rules allow?

Sorry I missed this question the other day. I do have a real camera and I brought a zoom lens.

 

[Clarkson U]

Bonaire. I think our family would disagree with @Calantha on how good of an island Bonaire is. I will say that we are not scuba divers or snorkelers per se, all except for the youngest DS so that does influence our opinion.

We took another DCL excursion around Bonaire, Bonaire Highlights (BN21). This was one island excursion we wished we didn't do. The island tour is okay - it is mostly a dry, dessert type island. The water was very clear and blue appearing throughout the island.

We also saw the salt mines area - run by Cargill. Our tour guide was from Switzerland and had only been in Bonaire about 4 years or so. She came for the island life. She was headed back to Europe the next day. She said the mines only employed about 30 people on the island and the rest is done by robots.

We also saw brain coral on land by the salt mines as well.





We also saw the slave huts and were back on the ship in time for lunch. We went for sit down lunch in Lumiere's. Our MDR server was there in the afternoon for lunch so it was nice to be served by him again. We had black bean burgers which included guacamole, red onions on a brioche bun. The bun was very bready and large. It came with sweet potato fries which I am not a big fan of but the rest of the family enjoyed. It was a good lunch and then we went to get changed and head to the adult pool for an afternoon swim.

today the adult pool was full in the afternoon (leaked fixed) and it was cold. Finally, a DCL pool that was cold like I used to remember them being. We were there for a while, then got dressed in our pirate t-shirts and headed down to play cards. We played just outside of Soul Cat Lounge and we had Jazz 75 for two. This is gin infused overnight and then mixed with champagne. It was delicious and easily our most favorite drink on the ship. One we are already talking about ordering when we sail again here in about 2 weeks time on the Magic.

It was pirate night for dinner. We had the Samosa's for appetizer, along with vegetarian items from the menu and the usual Indian Vegetarian dishes for the day. for anyone who is wondering, there is a unwritten Indian Vegetarian menu for the entire sailing. Our head server would be able to tell us the night before what is the next nights Indian Vegetarian dinner and we could decide based on that if we wanted to order any plates or not. Some items we don't prefer to eat on the ship so we would skip ordering those and others we love so we would definitely order 2 plates to share along with the standard dinner. The indian food is hit or miss on the ships - as we have had one sailing on the Wish where it was not that good due to the chef using to many cloves in the food and other sailings like the Fantasy in July 2022 where the Indian food we had was probably the best of all of our sailings. It is very chef dependent as typically no recipes are followed in Indian cooking by most cooks(including in my own home).

After dinner, we went to the show and then went to Fathom's before making it up to Deck 10 to catch the pirate party and fireworks show. It was windy so wasn't sure what would happen with the fireworks but they went off as planned and it was a good 3 minute show as usual. From there we were tired and we had another excursion day tomorrow in Aruba so we went to bed.

What this exercise has taught me is that I need to keep better notes, as my memory is fading about the sailing, so @auntlynne you aren't the only one who is struggling to keep up. The hallways by our stateroom door finally felt a little cooler and our stateroom remained cold today - first day it was actually old style DCL cold stateroom where I actually thought about turning up the thermostat a bit (but didn't). Still no sweatshirt needed throughout the ship as many pockets were still excessively warm and water was still dripping from random areas on the ship (apparently still due to AC issues).

 

[Calantha]

I think our family would disagree with @Calantha on how good of an island Bonaire is.

I do agree if you aren't a snorkeling or diving, there probably isn't much to do there.

Jazz 75 for two. This is gin infused overnight and then mixed with champagne. It was delicious and easily our most favorite drink on the ship.

This sounds amazing. Can you get it for 1 person? I will have to see if they have it on the Fantasy in October.

And speaking of the Fantasy, MIL/FIL told us on Thursday they booked a military rate on the Fantasy for August. DS was trying to sneak along, but it is the week he goes back to school.

What this exercise has taught me is that I need to keep better notes, as my memory is fading about the sailing, so @auntlynne you aren't the only one who is struggling to keep up.

I confess, I wrote everything down within a few days, or I would have already lost it otherwise, too!

 

[auntlynne]

I do agree if you aren't a snorkeling or diving, there probably isn't much to do there.

…

I confess, I wrote everything down within a few days, or I would have already lost it otherwise, too!

Golf cart! Better than my memory of driving the Tin Lizzie or speed car rides as a pre-licensed kid driver. Still speed capped.

I went ahead this week and wrote my essays in the notes app. Just threw in some extra thoughts when y’all’s stories bring back a memory.

…Wonder how we will all find Aruba?…

 

[Calantha]

Day 8: Aruba – All Night

This turned into another pseudo-sea day, as our excursion was "at night" (at 4:30PM) since we weren't leaving until 10PM or so. We had a leisurely breakfast at Lumiere’s, since there was nowhere to be until late. I ordered an omelet and hash browns, planning to liberate my son’s 2nd turkey sausage. We sat with our main server, so that was nice to see him at a different time of the day.

We were still pretty tired after Bonaire, so DH and DS planned to put on swimsuits and go up to the pool, while I decided to go into town and explore a little bit.

I went to town and lost my credit card. Let me explain. So, I wore my 'walking' sandals, which unfortunately, had a ton of sand in the heel - it rubbed it raw and it was bleeding. Anyhow, I could barely walk after about 10 minutes, but I was determined to find a shop. I did find a shop and purchased some t-shirts for everyone, and some other gifts (onesie for a friend of mine who was due at the end of May). I gave them my credit card and all was good. I limped back to the ship (all I could think about was how much my heels hurt), and was unpacking my purchases, when I couldn't find my credit card. FIL came in, and we looked through my wallet, purse, gift bag, etc. Nothing. So, I called the shop (the number was on the receipt) - they said they didn't have it. We decided I should call Citibank immediately to cancel it. After I hung up with them and moved away from the window, I looked down, and there was my card between the couch and the wall. I have no idea how it ended up there, it must have fallen out of one of the bags when we were looking through everything.

After we dealt with that, we went for lunch (on deck for DS and at Cabanas for the rest of us). In the afternoon, we ordered some room service to snack on as we got ready for our sunset sail.

This was just me, DH, and DS. FIL stayed with MIL for the evening. Our travel agent arranged the trip, as he and multiple of his other clients were on the sailing. It was a catamaran from Octopus Aruba. There was an open bar and light appetizers. I had done a sunset sail in Hawaii a few years ago, and I imagined a more substantial dining service, so we were still hungry when we got back and since it was about 8PM, we just ordered room service.



It was too windy to truly relax out on the catamaran. I was terrified of losing my camera or my child. I still got some great sunset photographs though. Although one of them came after we were back on shore. Next sunset sail, I want a yacht or a different kind of boat.


Yes, he drove the boat again

Sunset:







We were feeling full of life for once and there were some great character meets that night. DS and DH saw Spiderman, while I waited in line for Thor. They joined me and then we went to see Black Panther again and Captain Marvel. Felt almost like an MDAS? I guess they were all there because of GotG Vol 3.

Marvel Adventures:







So @auntlynne and @Clarkson U, Aruba wasn't our favorite, but I did enjoy the sunset.

Extra extra: I promised someone earlier on I would describe the crew TV in more detail.

As I mentioned previously, there were three additional options: PG-13 and up movies (a selection, not just Disney, we weren't really interested so I don't know what they were), recordings of old shows (we watched Villians Tonight on the last night) - all of them were available though, and the HR videos.

HR videos were broken into a variety of different types - pure HR like "how to do your time card" and "interpersonal conflict," as well as ship only things like "how to survive if you go overboard" and "what to do in various emergencies." There were also a number of videos on "Disney culture" and welcome to the team type things. We started a few of them (some were like an hour long) but truly training videos and not that interesting. We told guest services before we left that the TV was incorrectly set so I assume they changed it back.

 

[dcassetta]

recordings of old shows (we watched Villians Tonight on the last night)

Would love to see this!

 

[Calantha]

Would love to see this!

I wish we had watched more of them considering I kept falling asleep at the other shows.

 

[Clarkson U]

I do agree if you aren't a snorkeling or diving, there probably isn't much to do there.



This sounds amazing. Can you get it for 1 person? I will have to see if they have it on the Fantasy in October.

And speaking of the Fantasy, MIL/FIL told us on Thursday they booked a military rate on the Fantasy for August. DS was trying to sneak along, but it is the week he goes back to school.



I confess, I wrote everything down within a few days, or I would have already lost it otherwise, too!

Yes you can get Jazz 75 for one or two. Of course, if you get it for 2, it is cheaper per drink than if you get it for one! Man too bad DS can't get on the Fantasy - he would love it.

 

[auntlynne]

Aruba. One Happy Island.



I had been here before.

Visited for 3 days on a fly-in timeshare trip. It doesn’t take much adjustment for someone from Alabama to feel comfortable In Aruba. (Well, mostly. Different story).

This would be our longest day in port. As with the other ports, our scheduled disembarkation time was 8:45, with docking during my breakfast.

But our departure (or All Aboard?) was 10 pm. Sunset while on the island. An opportunity for some to do sunset cruises. (I love that @Calantha tells you that she did what I was just thinking about.)



There are so many beaches on this island. I had been to several of them already. And yet I ended up going to none. I follow the rule of “don’t swim alone.” (You will need to visit Aruba, yourself, to get those photos.).

My sister went on a catamaran snorkel excursion. I opted for a semi-submersible vessel with tour of the rougher-landscape, less-developed side of the island.

We both ended up seeing the same ship wreckage dive site. She experienced choppy water while snorkeling. My semi-sub was smooth and dry. And included a ferry ride to the boarding area.




I saw some beaches (Arashi and Boca Catalina) near the California Lighthouse that beckon me to another vacation here. Turns out this area was my sister’s favorite area so far in her snorkeling adventures.

My tour’s second half was chill; arid landscape, rocks, crashing waves.




Back on board just before Cabanas closed, with sister not far behind.

(Imagine being on ship here. No clear memory of activities. Could have been a nap. Can’t blame it on alcohol.)

A quick small bite to eat in Lumiere’s for early dinner seating and we were back off the ship.

I wanted to try a Dutch pancake, but shared poffertjes (small, silver dollar-like pancakes); way less food. The restaurant was in the Renaissance Mall, not far from the port. Most of the guests in the various restaurants looked like local young professionals. Lots of excellent live singers in these outside venues (and I am not usually a fan of these settings - too loud for me).

This was an easy walk from the ship. The area felt safe, even without an obvious police presence. (They are reported to have a low crime rate.)

I’ve slowly been running out of energy over the course of this cruise. Very glad I did an excursion requiring very little energy (and done in a luxury motor coach with air conditioning.

One more day in a port, coming up…