The Seas are full of WONDER and waves! Our first Disney Cruise - 7-night Eastern Caribbean; Feb 2018

[Nakkira]

Hello again! Long time no see (it's me who was away) Joining in in on your cruise report! Loving it so far! Never been on one my self but hoping to take my Mother sometime in the next few years.

 

[Nakkira]

We did a bit of shopping - including stopping at the Guavaberry stand for some free samples and to purchase some rum. Sad news though as the bottle I bought broke during the flight home - I thought it would have been ok as it they packed it in a travel box but I guess I didn't do enough to cushion around it. It was quite disappointing we we opened the suitcase (and had to do some cleaning of the clothes in there and the suitcase it self. We had also bought a gift back there for Judi's parents for watching our dogs and fortunately that survived!
​

Why's the Rum gone!. That is truly terrible! I know it doesn't help now but I just wanted to leave this link
https://www.amazon.com/Siger-Protec...&keywords=bottle+protector+for+airline+travel

"S" and I used these on our Scotland trip and all 6 bottles of Whiskey made it back safely!
Also, as a cheat we but wine and sparkling water in them on the way there both to take up (reserve) the weight and space (so that out suitcase wouldn't be over-weight on the way back) and to have the beverages and save money white we were there.
Of course we ended up abandoning a bottle of wine as most nights we's already had enough Whiskey that we weren't interested in it.

 

[TheMaxRebo]

I got mentioned!

Nice report of your time in St. Maarten! The tour seemed interesting, but probably not something I would do. I had been to St. Maarten once before, and I wasn't a big fan of it. My Dad and I went to a beach on the French side of the island I believe.

Regarding the wind going into port. There are some ports that I have experienced sailing in that have been nice. Some have been windy coming in. Then there have been some where I have had to go back to my stateroom to drop my hat off or it would have fell into the ocean. I just usually like to do that, because it's nice to get an overview of the island as you sail in. Plus, it is also nice to actually see "land" depending on how many sea days there have been.

Looking forward to the rest of your report!

Thanks! I found the tour interesting to hear more about the Island - but it wasn't the most exciting for the kids (other than the carousel part). Good to do something different though

Yeah, if I had a hat it definitely would have been blown away that morning. It was neat to see land and just cruise into port

This is a great idea and so creative!

This looks like a lot of fun! I don't drink beer that much but my husband drinks a bit. I think this a cool way to get together with other cruisers and try craft brews.

Ah I was wondering what the menu at Triton's was like and it's pretty much the same as Lumiere's on the Magic. I really enjoy the food there because I love escargot and the Grand Marnier souffle is soooo yummy!

My favorite!

Thank you - it was fun to put together the Fish Extender gifts but also a bit stressful with it being our first. Glad we did it though!

The beer swap was definitely a fun way to get together and didn't take too long or anything. Just a neat fun thing to do and got to try some different beers which is fun as well!

The souffle I think was Judi's favorite thing all cruise!

Oh that is cool, I forgot they had the Frozen show now! We saw Tangled on the Magic and it was awesome. We're seeing Frozen on Broadway this summer and I heard it's amazing. I really love the quality of the shows on the Disney ships.

Happy birthday! I turned 40 two years ago on the Fantasy. Pretty cool to celebrate while on a Disney cruise!

I did this myself in the Bahamas. I wasn't expecting much but it was a decent necklace!

This is really interesting!! So I guess a lot of people move back and forth around the island a lot?

This is neat! My nieces and nephew would love this, they love carousels!

I was definitely impressed with the Frozen show on the ship - really high production quality! I looked into tickets for the Broadway show but man, to get 5 tickets so our whole family could go would be a bit pricey - maybe someday though or maybe just go with one of the kids for their birthday or something

Thank you! Definitely fun to have a birthday while on the cruise - seemed like there must have been quite a few birthdays being celebrated as ever night at dinner there were at least a few people the servers would sing Happy Birthday to.

Olivia was juts really happy and I was proud of her for sticking to it and going in and asking the person in the store herself, etc. So I was glad she got something decent for her efforts

I think people would move some times or have like some family on one side and some on the other and would claim housing at one or the other depending on the reason. I know the military service requirement was a big reason people would move around

The carousel was really fun - just wish there was a bit more for the kids. I do think the rain negatively impacted things as I think the other stop would have been a bit more fun without it

 

[TheMaxRebo]

I'm sorry it wasn't the best tour but glad you got to see the island!

It accomplished what I was looking for - just not super exciting for the kids (other than the carousel). I think the rain put a (no pun intended) damper on things as well. It was nice to see the island and see how it was doing and help the economy a bit.

The carousel gelato place sounds awesome! But I can definitely see why that wouldn't be enough compared to the long haul on the bus with young kids.

Exactly! That stop was good but the rest was a bit boring for them - the rain probably didn't help that much. One good thing is that we were back on the ship for lunch and they got to go to the kids club for the afternoon so overall they were fine

Happy late Birthday Phil! You captured some great photos of St Maarten. To bad it wasn't the best tour but you did get to see different parts of the island which was pretty cool.

Thank you so much! I was glad to see the Island (and both sides of it) so it accomplished what I was looking for in the tour - just not super exciting for the kids

You filled in all the blanks, thanks! Sounds like a really great idea for a meet up. Just a really good way to show off your hometown, and try and sample some beers it would be hard for you to normally come across. Not sure if I will ever have a chance to utilize this, but I hope I will someday.

Well Happy 40th!!!! For me 30 was harder than 40. I hope yours went well and hasn't messed with you. I have a Disney shirt that I love that has the quote "The best part of being a grown up, is not having to act like one 24/7 365." Wise words from the mouse!

Were trying to figure out what kind of shore excursions to do on our cruise coming up in July. Or if it is even worth bothering with it since we will have 3 year old. Seems like yours was okay, but not a do over kind of thing. Are there advantages to just staying on the ship? (other than not spending money)

Thank you! So far 40 has been fine. 30 definitely was more a time of change as I was 30 when my first child was born, etc. So we are pretty settled and just thankful for all the blessings I have and that I am happy at 40!

We were really torn as to what excursions to do - we didn't want to spend a ton of $ and also wanted to ensure we had enough time on the ship - but also wanted to see a bit of the islands while we were there. So I think the tours we chose accomplished that - they just weren't the most exciting. Being on the ship during a port day was fine as there is still stuff going on (though not quite as much) and it is less crowded, so good time for the pool and things like that

 

[TheMaxRebo]

Still very much enjoying your report, @TheMaxRebo, even though somehow my "follow and receive notifications" settings keep getting turned off for some reason, and I have to remember to check back for updates! People I used to live with owned a timeshare on St. Maarten/Martin , and loved it. I was stupid, and never took them up on the opportunity to go/stay with them. I think they preferred to shop on the Dutch side, but eat on the French side, if I have that right. Loved the carousel/gelatto shop, how cool is that? As somebody who used to work in Emergency Management, I shared your insurance industry grin/;humor at the boarded up window/spraypainted sign -brilliant pic! :

Thanks Heidi - yeah, the "notifications" seem spotty at times -sorry you haven't been getting them! St Maarten did seem nice and maybe more of a place to just go to and enjoy. Did seem to have quite a bit of shopping and we did pass a lot of restaurants so that makes sense.

Glad at least one other person enjoyed that sign!

Hi Phil! My name is Alison and I'm really enjoying your cruise TR so far!

I have never been on a Disney cruise, so I love reading TRs that talk about the different ships and experiences! I plan on going someday!

I loved hearing about the sit down meals and seeing all of the pictures of the ship as well as the characters! The tickets you got for the various events, did you do this on your arrival day on the ship? Also were the stage shows first come first serve, or did you have tickets for those as well?
That's great all three of your kids enjoyed the Kid's Club. I love the room that was themed to Andy's room!

Looking forward to reading more about your cruise!

Hi Alison - Glad you are enjoying the trip report

I definitely spent time reading other trip reports when we were thinking of doing our first cruise

As for the tickets, they were all for things you sign up ahead of time on the website when you registration time opens up. For first time cruisers, that is 75 days before the cruise. So then you can book excursions and book the princess and Frozen gatherings and character breakfast. Then the actual physical tickets were waiting in our stateroom. You can also check with guest services once on board to see if anything is available but sometimes things fill up

The shows were all first come first serve - and for some people got there quite a bit early (earlier than we expected to be honest)

Thank!

Hello again! Long time no see (it's me who was away) Joining in in on your cruise report! Loving it so far! Never been on one my self but hoping to take my Mother sometime in the next few years.

back! That would be really nice to take a cruise with you mother!

Why's the Rum gone!. That is truly terrible! I know it doesn't help now but I just wanted to leave this link
https://www.amazon.com/Siger-Protec...&keywords=bottle+protector+for+airline+travel

"S" and I used these on our Scotland trip and all 6 bottles of Whiskey made it back safely!
Also, as a cheat we but wine and sparkling water in them on the way there both to take up (reserve) the weight and space (so that out suitcase wouldn't be over-weight on the way back) and to have the beverages and save money white we were there.
Of course we ended up abandoning a bottle of wine as most nights we's already had enough Whiskey that we weren't interested in it.

Thanks for sharing! We should have brought something like that - or at least I should have checked how they packed it better and used some of the bubble wrap I used for bringing the beer down.

We had gotten wine at Publix before getting on the ship and didn't get through everything either. With all the mixed drinks and stuff on board we just didn't get to it - so we left it with a note for a stateroom attendant

 

[FantasiaMagic]

As for the tickets, they were all for things you sign up ahead of time on the website when you registration time opens up. For first time cruisers, that is 75 days before the cruise. So then you can book excursions and book the princess and Frozen gatherings and character breakfast. Then the actual physical tickets were waiting in our stateroom. You can also check with guest services once on board to see if anything is available but sometimes things fill up

The shows were all first come first serve - and for some people got there quite a bit early (earlier than we expected to be honest)

Great! Thanks for the info

 

[TheMaxRebo]

Part 22) Mixology Class!

*** First, sorry for the lack of updates recently - I've had a ton of travel for work, but that should be over (at least for now) and I will try to get some more regular updates posted! ***

When we left off we had finished our excursion on St. Maarten. When we got back to the ship we brought the kids to the Kids Club as my mom, Judi, and myself had signed up for the Mixology class organized by our Facebook group. I was really looking forward to this as it was one thing that I saw tons of positive reviews and stories from other people.

The class was to be held in the Cadillac Lounge - we were a tad early, so Judi and my mom spent some time looking at the Royal Caribbean ship docked next to us

When it was time to go in they had little stations set up at most of the seats ready to go for one of our first mixed drinks we would make. Overall I think we had about 24 or so people in our group

Our host/bartender (who I wish I had written down his name) started the class by talking about different bartending equipment and how to use what and what type to buy, etc. It was definitely interesting but I think most people wanted to get to the drinks!

The first drink they just brought to us (rather than us making) and was an invention of the our hosts and was a raspberry Prosecco, made with real raspberry preserve. It was rather tasty and I am sure easy to drink quite a few of! It was also rather pretty

Our host also talked about the different ways of flavoring liquors and pointed to a large infusor they had in the bar that looked pretty darn impressive!

We then got to make the drink with the equipment on our table -which was a take on a dark and stormy. We had to muddle the mint and then add the ginger beer (the liquor was already in our glass). My mom enjoyed it!

They also brought around a creamy drink (I wish I took better notes - probably would have been smart to not rely on my memory for a mixed drink event) which you can see the ingredients for and included the Godiva Liquor and Frangelico and a few others

They had extra of these and were passing them out and there were also extra of the ginger beer drink equipment around (more stations set up than people) and I know we did a second round of them (I think that is why in the above picture of them you see some empty glasses which were of the creamy drink ... like I said, probably not best to rely on ones memory at a mixed drink event - especially when having extras!!!)

They then showed us how to pour a layers shot using Fireball and Rumchatta - as you can see Judi really liked this one

My mom skipped the shot as she was felling the drinks a bit - she is not a big drinker so one or two in and she was definitely giggling a bit!


Overall we had a great time - it was fun to hang out with our Facebook group again (and meet some different people from it as well) and overall we enjoyed all the drinks we had and there was pretty good variety. Only thing is I wished we were active in making more of the drinks rather than just drinking different things and being told what was in them - but definitely no complaints

One additional item, the person from our Facebook group who arranged this was glucose free and I don't think they were super prepared for this (or somehow the message got lost) so they didn't have special drinks for her ready to go. The good news is they happily adapted on the fly and she got custom drinks made and was happy in the end - just something to keep in mind if you are glucose free or have some other dietary restriction

We then headed back to the rooms to rest a bit and change for dinner ... also captured this picture of my mom out on our veranda with St. Maarten in the background

Up next - Birthday dinner!!!​

 

[TheMaxRebo]

Part 23) Palo Dinner - part 1

The one thing I really wanted to do on this trip was to have a fancy dinner with Judi on my birthday so I was excited when I was able to get Palo for dinner on my actual birthday. I booked one of the first seatings as I heard it was good to try and get around sunset - this proved to be a great idea and also was before the restaurant go too crowded so it made it a bit more relaxed in my mind.

The one thing we weren't sure about was how to handle the kids (and my mom) for dinner that night. In the end Peter wanted to stay in the kids club but Olivia and Emma agreed to have dinner with my mom in the main dining room (which was in Animators Palate that night) which I think my mom really enjoyed. She then took Olivia to the kids club and my mom took Emma to the Frozen show which was playing again that night as Emma had fallen asleep during it the previous night. So all-in-all it worked out really well.

So Judi and I got dressed up a bit and headed up to the top deck - we were a little early so we enjoyed the night and the weather and just some quiet time.

Although one funny story - during this time we noticed them playing the song "Mambo No 5" by Lou Bega, but they changed the names in it to be Disney characters. So it was like "A little be of Minnie in my life, a little of Mickey by her side" - for some reason I found it very amusing as I had never heard that before and was just not expecting it.

other than that interlude it was a really lovely time - with some really beautiful scenery and with a really beautiful wife

... and they were right about the sunsets

We then headed to our dinner

We were seated at a great table right along the windows that provided a great view. We had a wonderful server named Hristo - he was really great, super knowledgable about the menu and the wine offerings and just down to Earth and not fussy (which we prefer, even if at a "fancy" restaurant) and he chatted about his family, etc. - just really lovely. After providing the menus and talking about wine he came by with the anitpasta cart

As we perused the wine list. After some conversations with Hristo and after trying a few of the wines we settled on a bottle of the Gavi white label which was a nice, crisp, clean wine that held up to a lot of the food we got

Then the food started and I was a really bad trip reporter as I did not take pictures of everything we tried! I also apparently didn't take a picture of the food menu, but here is one I found online that appears to be the same:

I stared with the Fritto di Calamari e Gamberi - which is fried calamari and shrimp. All I can say is it was the best fried calamari I have ever had and was a huge shrimp in with it!

This is the state of other appetizer plates once I remembered to take them - Judi had gotten the Caprese salad (which she really enjoyed) and we shared the Potato Gnocchi which were excellent!

For my pasta course I got the Papardella con Aragosta (papardella pasta in a lobster sauce with grilled lobster) and Judi got the Pennete Pasta (which was tossed in a san marzano basil sauce and topped with garlic shrimp) - both were excellent and could have been meals on their own!

For our entrees (yup, more food) I got the special they had that day which was the wild boar and Judi got the rack of lamb. Boar is not something I normally get but figured this was a good chance to get it and I am glad I did as it was really tasty! Judi was quite happy with her lamp and cleaned those chops!

We had both been debating the Dover Sole as well (it was one of the items our server recommended) so we figured, why not, and got one to share in addition to our entrees. I am so glad we did as it might have been the best thing I ate all week! Just so flavorful and light to eat. It was prepared table side as our server removed the bones in front of us)

Up next - more Palo (I mean, clearly we were saving room for dessert, right?)​

 

[TheMaxRebo]

Part 24) Palo - part 2 ... Desserts!

So we had heard such good things about the desserts here, especially the souffles. But we showed restraint and only got four desserts between the two of us (I, again, forgot to take a picture of the menu

We each got a souffle - I got the chocolate and Judi got the amaretto. These were both excellent (though, I might prefer the Grand Marnier one at Triton's)

I also got the Vanilla Bean Panna Cotta which was phenomenal, particularly with the sorbet, and Judi got the Warm Orange Almond Cake which was also quite good (pretty strong almond flavor, so you would have to like that)

They then brought over a tray for my birthday along with some dessert shots (which were like alcoholic slushies)

During dinner a photopass photographer came by and we got, what I think, is a nice picture of us

Then it was time to roll out of there - what a phenomenal dinner! I know brunch gets all the raves here but this was exactly what I was hoping for! Fancy, but not too fancy, amazing food, relaxed feeling, great company - just a great night!


When we got back to the room our towel animal was a bat - I thought that was quite creative!

I then went to get the kids from the kids club (though Emma was already asleep in my mom's room after the show). I passed by the atrium where there was some live music and Mickey was meeting!

Once back, Olivia wanted to show off the necklace she had gotten as her free gift on St. Maarten

And thus ended Day 4, our day at St. Maarten. Gotta say, spending the day on a tropical island, having a mixology class, and a super meal with my wonderful wife is not a bad way to turn 40!


Up next - our day at San Juan and then it is Pirate Night ... sort of

TTFN!​

 

[FantasiaMagic]

A Mixology class sounds like a lot of fun! Those seem to be very popular on cruises now. Loved hearing about Palo - everything sounds/looks so good!
Sounds like you all had a great day!

 

[mmmears]

Great updates! I'm glad you were able to get a date night at Palo - how sweet of your mother to help out with the kids. : And I'm happy that you enjoyed your dinner there. Brunch is really nice, but in some ways I think dinner has a more elegant feel to it.

 

[rteetz]

What a great night! That dinner at Palo looks fantastic!

 

[missangelalexis]

The mixology class sounds fun!

You & Judi cleaned up nicely for dinner Every part of that meal looked fantastic! I'm glad you both enjoyed it and that your mom was able to have some fun with the girls as well!

Sounds like a great birthday for you!!

 

[BigRed98]

That mixology class looked like a lot of fun for adults. Palo looked amazing! The food looked really good and the pictures were making me hungry. I'm glad you had a great night and a fantastic meal!

 

[dnllmz]

Hi just found your trip report and am binge reading. We're doing our first cruise soon. Your girls sold me on booking BBB for my dd5. I'm really enjoying your detailed report.

They then showed us how to pour a layers shot using Fireball and Rumchatta - as you can see Judi really liked this one

I'm signed up for a mixology class too and I hope I'm feeling as good as Judi in this picture.

 

[chamberlain]

Your mixology class looks fun! My new drink is fireball and rumchata. I've been told that it's called cinnamon toast crunch. Judy does look very happy!

 

[TheMaxRebo]

A Mixology class sounds like a lot of fun! Those seem to be very popular on cruises now. Loved hearing about Palo - everything sounds/looks so good!
Sounds like you all had a great day!

Seems like a lot of the drink classes are popular on the Disney Cruises - we were going to do a Chocolate and Liquor tasting one as well but the timing it got set for just didn't work for us - but I am glad we got this one in. It was a lot of fun, even if I wish we got to do more of the actual drink making

We really enjoyed our Palo dinner - definitely a great day all around!

Great updates! I'm glad you were able to get a date night at Palo - how sweet of your mother to help out with the kids. : And I'm happy that you enjoyed your dinner there. Brunch is really nice, but in some ways I think dinner has a more elegant feel to it.

Thank you! I am really glad it worked out that I got the Palo dinner in for my actual birthday - I was a little worried about it just with not having any status so only getting to book things later than many others, but seems like dinner isn't quite as popular as brunch so wasn't really an issue in the end

I think it is more of that elegant feel / fancy date nite vibe we were going for and that is why dinner appeal to me - but definitely would like to try brunch in the future!

What a great night! That dinner at Palo looks fantastic!

Thanks Ryan - really was a great night and just a good day over all. One of my favorite dinners eve r- really good food and "fancy" but not stuffy at all (kinda like myself )

The mixology class sounds fun!

You & Judi cleaned up nicely for dinner Every part of that meal looked fantastic! I'm glad you both enjoyed it and that your mom was able to have some fun with the girls as well!

Sounds like a great birthday for you!!

The mixology class definitely was fun and I think everyone enjoyed themselves. All the drinks were a bit different and tasted good!

Thank you - I can say I at least agree with you in regards to how Judi cleans up Definitely was a great meal and a great birthday overall!

 

[TheMaxRebo]

That mixology class looked like a lot of fun for adults. Palo looked amazing! The food looked really good and the pictures were making me hungry. I'm glad you had a great night and a fantastic meal!

Mixology was definitely a lot of fun and was fun that it was with the Facebook group so got to meet more people and reconnect with some we had met on the first day.

Dinner at Palo was wonderful - so glad we did it and it worked out.

Thank you - definitely a great night!

Hi just found your trip report and am binge reading. We're doing our first cruise soon. Your girls sold me on booking BBB for my dd5. I'm really enjoying your detailed report.

I'm signed up for a mixology class too and I hope I'm feeling as good as Judi in this picture.

thanks for joining! Hope you have a wonderful cruise and if you have any questions and I am happy to try to answer!

I definitely was a bit hesitant on the BBB - just feeling like "is it really worth the money?" and while I am not sure it is necessary or something we will do every trip from now on, for this trip it really worked out and the girls had a lot of fun! I think 5 is a great age for it as well as I think Emma was just old enough and Olivia (at 9) enjoyed it but maybe getting to the upper end (though, obviously every kid is different)

haha, yeah, Judi was doing good at that point and she loves rumchatta so was excited about that specific shot

Your mixology class looks fun! My new drink is fireball and rumchata. I've been told that it's called cinnamon toast crunch. Judy does look very happy!

The class was definitely fun and Judi loves rumchatta so she was excited about that shot - I don't recall them giving it a name but I can see that fitting!

 

[khertz]

I'm thinking DH and I might like to do a mixology class on our cruise, and there is some talk about it on our Facebook group. It looks like fun from your pictures and a nice way to hang out with some people from the FB group.

I wish I took better notes - probably would have been smart to not rely on my memory for a mixed drink event

Haha I will make sure to take good notes if we do it. Trying to remember details later is definitely NOT a good idea for a drinking event!!

Love this pic of y'all!! I'm glad you had a great birthday dinner and that your mom & the kids got along fine for the evening as well.

 

[TheMaxRebo]

I'm thinking DH and I might like to do a mixology class on our cruise, and there is some talk about it on our Facebook group. It looks like fun from your pictures and a nice way to hang out with some people from the FB group.

Haha I will make sure to take good notes if we do it. Trying to remember details later is definitely NOT a good idea for a drinking event!!

Love this pic of y'all!! I'm glad you had a great birthday dinner and that your mom & the kids got along fine for the evening as well.

We really enjoyed the mixology class - the group had also organized a Chocolate and Wine tasting class but then we couldn't do the time it got set for. That was one negative in that they schedule the private group classes sort of late, so after you register and pick your excursions and stuff and you just don't know when it will get scheduled for. But hopefully you can fit at least one of those classes in - be it with your Facebook group on just the public ones. They have other ones - including a mojito on they do on Castaway Cay that sounds really fun!

haha, yeah, I wanted to enjoy being there so didn't want to just be taking notes, but he went through the ingredients pretty quick so no way I was going to remember them all! Would have been nice to get a recipe guide e-mailed to us or something after

Thank you! Everything definitely worked out well that evening!