Sy's BIG 30 Trip Report :)

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emmaanne's picture
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I miss reading all about your trip....... I'm not pressuring you or anything... oh wait, yes I am wink

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March 2-10, 2012 | Pop | Trip Report - http://www.wdwforgrownups.com/forum/ems-long-awaited-trip-report

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Im so sorry! Stupid Photobucket is playing up for me, i've hopefully managed to upload pictures, but its taken hours to get the links Sad going to give it a try now and if the pictures dotn work I'll have to think about another host, its a pain in the bum!!

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Our Very Merry 24 nighter Nov/Dec 15
Watson's go West May 15
The one with all the birthdays Oct 14 4 Big Birthdays and a Vow Renewal thrown in
The OMG trip June 14 30th Birthday present from the hubs
Girly trip March 14 A last min cheapy week
September 13 our first all DVC stay
TR May 2013 the last min bargain trip offsite
Oct 2012 TR with a cruise!big family trip featuring the beach club, AKL, the dream and a villa offsite
TR on a budget May - June 2011offsite condo
TR Sept - Oct 2010 big family trip in an offsite villa

RobynPrincess's picture
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Day 6

Animal Kingdom

We were up at about 9am this morning. We got dressed and made our way downstairs to get something to eat, settled on a croissant and cherry danish Smile yum! We sat outside to eat them.

Troy (from yesterday) and I had been sending a couple of emails and arranged to meet tomorrow in the UK pavilion for a drink, it was easier to get wifi downstairs as our room was so far away it kept dropping out. Sy went back to the room to drop off the resort mugs, this was when he asked the housekeeping lady if she would make us a towel animal and wrote a little note on the thank you envelope asking. Sadly when we got back later there were none Sad

An old friend of mine is working for Disney and Universal Studios (currently a server in Grand Floridian (cafe and 1900, and sometimes in Rose and Crown). We had been messaging before flying out and were trying to find a day to meet up as he had asked me to pick up a few bits for him from the UK, Chocolate and a christmas pudding Smile we had finally settled on this morning, he was going to pick us up at the hotel and drop us at AK, he needed to get the chocolate home before it melts! So that's what we did. It wouldn't be as simple as that now though would it? No, James texts to say he's at reception, we go there, no James. I text him to ask where, he said he's outside in the car, we go out, he's not there... he'd only gone to the Yacht Club! Oops! A few texts later and he was there Smile this was about 10:30am by now. We hopped in and said hello - its been years since we've seen each other but kept in touch via facebook. It seemed like only minutes later and we were getting out of the car again at AK Sad We said goodbye and arranged to meet up another day to catch up properly.

We went straight to the Safari to see the Animals Laughing out loud I think I could sit on there and go round and round all day and not get bored Smile

We then decided we were a little peckish so got some chicken bites to share - basically chicken nuggets in sauce. We got the garlic and ginger ones, I wasn't keen Sad Sy liked them though (you can see the trend here cant you?! Me not liking food and giving it to Sy).

By now the time was ticking on and it was almost time for Finding Nemo. We got in the Disabled queue (I need to be near an exit in case I need to run out to the bathroom - sorry if that's TMI for anyone reading). For anyone who doesn't know, the disabled seats are right at the back, so not using them for any other reason than I need to Smile
When they did let us in there was a group in front of us with 2 wheelchairs and lots of other guests so we waited to be told where to sit. We were told to sit on the end of a row so did. A few moments later a woman with the 2 wheelchairs shouted at us to move Sad shouted probably is exaggerating though, told us loudly and crossly would describe it better I think. We were both really shocked. So we got up and stood at the back again. As it turns out, the CM was moving their family as she didn't realize they were all together and where they had started to put them there weren't enough seats, which is why she told us to go ahead and sit down - we would be out of the way then as she had to walk back past us. So we were stood at the back and saw the CM move them and explain why, she then told us to sit down again which we did. It was all very weird and although it sounds silly, I was really upset at the woman for the way she spoke to us, it kinda ruined Finding Nemo as I just wanted to get out then Sad

Afterwards it was time for our ADR at Yak and Yeti. I was really looking forward to this as I liked the counter service Yak and Yeti Smile I needn't have been excited though Sad it was very average Sad the service wasn't good at all. Our server was called Christian. He was ok, he disappeared as soon as our order was taken (mains AND dessert), he topped up everyone's drinks except ours Sad he brought us our bill before bringing us our dessert! It really felt like he couldn't be bothered with us. The decor was nice though.

The food was ok, in all honesty was nicer at the counter service! I had sweet and sour chicken with ginger - it was ok, it looked tiny in comparison to Sy's meal.

I had Mango Pie for dessert which was nice but extremely sweet, I couldn't finish it.

Sy had the Pineapple and cream cheese wonton kebabs, he loved them Smile

All in all I wouldn't go back here, I know AK is lacking in the TS places but this is one I would skip in future. The decor was lovely though, we were sat upstairs near the windows Smile When you compare it to other TS restaurants we went to, it would come seriously down the list in value. We had some lovely meals and this sadly was the least favourite.

After the somewhat disappointing lunch we went to watch the Lion King, why oh why did we only watch this once? I LOVE the Lion King show, it makes me cry! When they all sing at the end and the bird goes up, its just magical Laughing out loud it sums up Disney for me Smile it definitely made up for the not so great Finding Nemo show Smile We then went on Dinosaur and Its Tough To Be A Bug. Even though I know its coming, I always jump! (I wont say what in case anyone reading hasn't been on it before!).

We then made our way over to Kali River Rapids but it was closed down Sad So we went to get a drink nearby and waited for it to reopen. We waited, and waited and then waited some more. After an hour we gave up and went back to the hotel to get ready for Hoop De Doo. We did stop on the way to pose for some pictures though...

I got showered and changed really quickly, I was then waiting for Sy to start getting ready, Whoever said women take more time to get ready than men has never met my husband!! Eventually he was ready but by now it was too late to risk getting the bus there, we had to get a taxi - even then I was panicking we would be late! We got a taxi to Fort Wilderness and went to reception to find out which bus we needed to get to Pioneer Hall. The girl at reception was lovely Smile she told us where to go and wished us a happy show. We made our way over to the bus stop just as a bus pulled in, there was another group waiting. The driver asked us where we were going, they were going to Pioneer hall too, so he went straight there Smile He was lovely and even told us when we come out there would be buses ready and waiting to take us straight back to our hotel from pioneer hall so no getting 2 buses or bus and a taxi Laughing out loud

When we got to pioneer hall, we went to get checked in and were led to a queue for photos. The queue was mahoosive so I asked if we got the photo included in the price, sadly not, did we have to wait to have a picture taken? Nope! So we went to joint the big queue of people waiting to go inside. The guy who was in the queue in front of us thanked me for asking all the questions he wanted and followed us to the main queue hehe.





For anyone going to Hoop Dee Doo that hasn't been before, there is no need to queue up outside. We were stood there a good 20 mins and we could have been looking round the shops, but as we hadn't been before and we saw lots of other people waiting we thought we better had too. I also thought we might be sharing a table with another family so wanted to get there first to make sure we didn't get dud seats. Needn't have worried as when you get to the front they take you to your table, ours was a lovely table for 2 right at the front but off to once side. A little bit of a restricted view but it didn't matter. There was salad on the table already and a cornbread.



How have I never had cornbread before?!?!?!?!!! Its like having cake to start! I want to start all my meals like that in future Laughing out loud

Our server was great apart from 1 small thing, after we finished our salad she came to take the plates away and made me keep my knife!! OMG! I was not impressed, not impressed at all. I don't do reusing cutlery. I should have asked for a clean one but it was noisy as the show was going on. I even took a picture - sad that I am!

Offending knife!

For mains it was ribs, chicken, mash potato, sweetcorn and BBQ beans. I wasn't sure I would like the food as I'm a very picky eater (like you hadn't guessed already Wink ) but it was really good.

Table


Chicken


Mash and corn


Beans and ribs

For dessert it was strawberry shortcake which was also really good but very sweet. We didn't manage much of it.

A little picture of our drinks in the jam jars " so cute!



There was a lot of food and drink all night, our server kept asking us if we would like more of anything, more salad, more cornbread, more chicken, more ribs, more beer etc. We could have eaten until we burst at the seams!

The show itself was brilliant. I wasn't really sure what to expect, I had seen a couple of youtube clips but not much as I didn't want to spoil it. I was very pleasantly surprised as I wondered if it might be a bit too slapstick for my liking. I would go back in a heartbeat Laughing out loud If you haven't been but thinking about going, do it! Smile Our check at the end of the evening said $130 - it's a lot of money had we been paying OOP but as we were on the DDP it didn't matter. I would still consider going back even paying for it ourselves.



When the evening came to an end Sad we went outside to get on the bus to the Beach Club. I don't know what was going on with it but it was SO cold! Other people got on and actually got off again just to stand outside as they couldn't bare being on the bus in the cold. It was so cold that before we even left my nose was running. Our bus went to a few different resorts and we were the last Sad there were loads of people staying at Pop so we went there first, I'm so glad we did as they were all rather merry and rather loud Wink the people who were sat opposite us were laughing and making us laugh at just how loud they were! It was a bit of a relief when they got off, though they weren't making us feel uncomfortable, they were just over excited Smile It took an hour from set off to us getting to our bus stop at the Beach Club, I don't think I would do that again, it was a long journey... I think if I didn't have a car I would get a bus back to reception and then get a taxi, much more comfortable and not so cold.

We were in bed by 12:30am completely shattered.

Tomorrow, our last day onsite at Disney Sad Downtown Disney and EPCOT for Boyz II Men Laughing out loud

__________________

Our Very Merry 24 nighter Nov/Dec 15
Watson's go West May 15
The one with all the birthdays Oct 14 4 Big Birthdays and a Vow Renewal thrown in
The OMG trip June 14 30th Birthday present from the hubs
Girly trip March 14 A last min cheapy week
September 13 our first all DVC stay
TR May 2013 the last min bargain trip offsite
Oct 2012 TR with a cruise!big family trip featuring the beach club, AKL, the dream and a villa offsite
TR on a budget May - June 2011offsite condo
TR Sept - Oct 2010 big family trip in an offsite villa

finngirl's picture
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Yippee! More of your trip report. Those of us without trips planned have to get our Mickey fix somewhere. awesome

I'm sorry you didn't like Yak and Yeti - we tried the table service for the first time in October, and loved it. I think a lot of the experience comes down to what service you had - it doesn't sound like yours measured up. Did you try the fried wontons? Those were my favourite dessert of the entire trip.

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Diana

Time marches on. Eventually you realize it's doing it across your face.

mteam94's picture
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Yeah! Hoop de doo!! We have been 3 times and love it. I can almost taste the cornbread. Yum! We want to go back as we didn't get to do it on our last trip and it had been tradition the three trips before that we go on our first night. So great!
Was thinking of trying Yak and Yeti next trip, it sounds like it is hit or miss though.

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That is what I love about the DDP. You get these huge checks and you just hand them your card. We go wide eyed when we get the check and then we just smile. It is quite the shock when you get home and you actually have to look at prices and wish for that steak and lobster again. Wish for steak and lobster but eat hamburger because we are saving for our next Disney trip.

We were not all that impressed with Yak and Yeti either.

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magicalkingdoms.com Ticker Free Disney Tickers

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WOO! I love your TR!!! And FOOOOD PIIIICCCCSS!!! YAY!!!!

I love your MNSSHP costumes clapping clapping

Of course, I cannot let this go without an exclamation point:

RobynPrincess wrote:
I told Sy to stay behind the gorilla and make the same face as him, you can make up your own mind what he looks like he's doing...

!!!

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I'm so sorry to hear you didn't like Yak & Yeti! We absolutely loved it but we had wonderful service. Sorry your experience was a let down Sad looks like we sat at the same table for Hoop Dee Doo!

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Allie - I'm sure we didnt get great service cause we're brits, as a nation we are bad tippers, to be fair when i first went to the USA and before the internet I didnt know you should tip in the same way as i do now, we would tip about 10% and feel generous. So I do see why the servers get hacked off with us, maybe i should start wearing a sign that says 'yes we're British but we do know how to tip' LOL

Finngirl - yes i think thats what Sy had for dessert.

Jeffc - yes I didnt know how bad that picture was till we got home and I uploaded them to the laptop, it looks decidedly dodgy lol.

Angels444 - i know what you mean, dreaming of going out for dinner but then putting the money in the 'disney fund' and eating out of the freezer just isnt the same, but so worth it lol

mteam94 - i hope we can make it a tradition! I really enjoyed the show and would love to go back Laughing out loud

__________________

Our Very Merry 24 nighter Nov/Dec 15
Watson's go West May 15
The one with all the birthdays Oct 14 4 Big Birthdays and a Vow Renewal thrown in
The OMG trip June 14 30th Birthday present from the hubs
Girly trip March 14 A last min cheapy week
September 13 our first all DVC stay
TR May 2013 the last min bargain trip offsite
Oct 2012 TR with a cruise!big family trip featuring the beach club, AKL, the dream and a villa offsite
TR on a budget May - June 2011offsite condo
TR Sept - Oct 2010 big family trip in an offsite villa

RobynPrincess's picture
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Trip Report Day 7

Last day staying the Beach Club Sad

The planner said Blizzard Beach today but as my knee was still sore we decided to give it a miss Sad

We decided that we would get the bus to DTD and do a bit of shopping instead. We got dressed and went down for breakfast. Sy had a toasted bagel and I had a croissant, the cereal was Sy's - I made the mistake before of having Forsties. What is with them?! I don't want wholegrain frosties, I want ones that are what they are, breakfast that's covered in sugar!!

We then went to wait for the bus to Downtown Disney. We waited about 20 minutes which felt like hours! Really not liking the buses, I didn't spend thousands on our holiday to sit waiting around Wink I would definitely hire a car in future.

First stop, Guest Services to upgrade our tickets to Annual Passes Laughing out loud We bought our accommodation with Complete Orlando, Disney hotel, Tickets and DDP. We went in and a lovely girl served us. She told us how much it was to upgrade and it seemed quite a lot so she went through it with us, to upgrade our *14 day tickets* it would cost... but wait a moment! We had 21 day tickets! A bit of a faff about with checking with our hotel and it was confirmed that we did in fact have 14 day tickets. Uh-oh! The kind lady let me use a computer to get the phone number for Complete Orlando to call and try to sort it out. Managed to get the number and was told to use the phone there, but we couldn't get it to work - turns out they don't support international numbers. Its ok I though, I have skype, I will just use the internet, only today of all days I couldn't get onto any wifi in the area. After ages of trying and wandering round DTD to find wifi hotspots, I gave up and just called them. Spoke to a woman at CO and they said that they would contact Disney as it stated on their end that the tickets should be 21 day and Disney must have made a mistake. We were told to wait a few mins before going back to guest services so we posed for a few pictures.

When we went back we spoke to the same lady but she was busy so asked another girl to help us, she had a guy who was earning his ears with her watching what she was doing. They went on the system and still it said 14 day tickets. So they called the Beach Club to see if anyone had been in contact with them. CO had called but there was nothing Disney could do to change our tickets as WDW don't have 21 day tickets, they are made specifically for the UK market. So we had to call CO again! Grrr! Off we go to call them, spoke to the same woman who agreed that they would refund the difference in price and some extra for the cost of the phone calls from my mobile (PS7, I checked when we got home). She said she hadn't called back as she didn't have a number for me, though they do have my mobile on file, but she had left a message for me at the Beach Club. I was told that I should have checked my tickets before using them though Shock I was a little taken aback at this, when you get tickets as a part of a hotel deal it doesn't state on them how many days the tickets are for, and anyway - when you pay for something you expect to get it, you don't think you need to check up on someone that they have done it right! Note to self, never use CO again.

So we went yet again back into Guest services where they upgraded our tickets Laughing out loud yay! We just went for annual passes and not premium passes, we have loads of waterpark days left over from 2010 non expiry so didn't think it was worth it for the extra 10% saving on purchases. The people who helped up were called Josh (earning his ears) and Jackie. I can not say enough about how wonderful they were! We stood for a while chatting to them both afterwards just about our trip and their past trips to other Disney's. Jackie was getting married the next month too so we chatted about that too.

The whole CO mess up took a long time to sort out, we were there about an hour and a half by the time it was fixed. Not what you want really. But those annual passes were burning a hole in our pockets, we hadn't done ANY shopping as we knew we would be getting annual passes so now it was time for some serious shopping! We got loads of bits in the big Disney store (is it world of Disney?), including some Disney crocs for me Laughing out loud I love my crocs, wear them all the time round the parks. The nice guy who served us put all of our shopping through as a premium pass OMG! So we got 20% off it all Laughing out loud nice server Smile

After all that serious shopping we were starving so decided to go look at Wolfgang Puck and Earl of Sandwich and decide which we wanted. We decided n Wolfgang Puck and I'm so pleased we did. It was amazing. LOVED the food and had a lovely server even though it was classed as a counter service. I had a BBQ chicken pizza

Sy had a meatloaf sandwich

I ended with Creme brulee and Sy had cheesecake.

I just cant believe this place is a CS credit on the DDP! It was proper plates and a whole world away from chicken breast nuggets Wink we even had our drinks topped up by our server.

By now though time was ticking on and I started to panic about being late to meet Troy for a drink in EPCOT. We got the bus back to the hotel and Sy went back to the room as he wanted to go to the bathroom and doesn't like public toilets lol so he took the shopping and I went ahead to meet Troy and his lovely wife Amy.

Managed to find Amy and Troy really easily, they had drinks already but Troy insisted on getting me one, so he went off to get my drink while Amy and I chatted, he was back with us before long and then Sy found us. It was such a lovely time spent chatting, it really felt like we were chatting with old friends. They had some pictures of their grandson that I loved looking at, he is SO gorgeous! We asked a nice person nearby to take a picture of us all together as we didn't get one last time, we just asked him to take it on Troy's camera - thought it might be pushing it to ask him to take one on ours too Wink

Sadly, way too soon it was time for their ADR in Coral Reef, which was weird as we had one a few hours after them in there. I said to Troy let us know if its any good as I had read mixed reviews and he messaged me saying I wouldn't be disappointed Smile

Sy and I went to try a few booths around the world.

We then went to ride Soarin' which was as amazing as always. I wasn't having a great day today, we had to sit down for a bit after riding so we got a drink and sat in the seasons cafe.

I was not starting to feel any better - like I usually would after a rest, but I didn't want to miss our ADR so we went to ask if we could be seated any earlier. The manager said it would probably still be 30 mins and we said this would be okay, we were only sat for 5 mins before they came to get us. We were led to a tank side seat! OMG! I was so happy as they are very hard to get Smile

Our server was lovely explaining a few things on the menu to us. We ordered a Diet Coke each that were brought in really pretty blue glasses, they made us feel like we were drinking something a bit more special.

Then came the bread basket, the bread was amazing! I could have eaten just bread and been happy - I am a bread girl Wink my mum used to own a bakery when I was growing up so I know good bread Wink

I ordered the Chicken which was delicious, its not something I would normally order - ie what it came with Wink not that it was chicken as you probably know by now, its all I eat lol but I would go as far as to sat it was one of the nicest things I ate all holiday.

Sy had some fishy pasta of which the name escapes me, but he loved it.

And for dessert I had creme brulee and Sy had the chocolate wave, his came with a candle in it too Smile

After dinner we started to walk back to the hotel but remembered that Boyz II Men were on and it was the last night, well I don't care how ill I felt, there was no way I was going to miss that! We went to get a seat and waited.

Managed to get a great seat near the front. They were on for 45 mins and were fabulous for every single second of it. At one point I got a bit scared as loads of girls ran to the front between songs, and we were sat right by where they ran to, as soon as the guys came back out it was obvious why they ran up, the guys were giving out roses - how cheesey lol, they girls were swooning over them though hehehe.

I tried to get a few pictures but none of them really came out, this is the best I could do.

At the end of their set, as it was the last show of the last set they invited their children up onto the stage with them to dance with them, it was SO cute! They thanked Disney for the great care that they take of them every year and for asking them back.

After they finished we waited for most people to leave, I'm not good in crowds when I'm not feeling great. We then went back to the hotel, we didn't want to go to bed yet so went for a swim, the pool was deserted which was lovely but I couldn't manage much before I had to get out Sad I did have a nice relax in the hot tub for a little bit mind Wink

We then went back up to the room and chilled out for a bit, did a bit of packing and then went to sleep.

Tomorrow, Check out of Beach Club and head to the Disney Dream Laughing out loud

__________________

Our Very Merry 24 nighter Nov/Dec 15
Watson's go West May 15
The one with all the birthdays Oct 14 4 Big Birthdays and a Vow Renewal thrown in
The OMG trip June 14 30th Birthday present from the hubs
Girly trip March 14 A last min cheapy week
September 13 our first all DVC stay
TR May 2013 the last min bargain trip offsite
Oct 2012 TR with a cruise!big family trip featuring the beach club, AKL, the dream and a villa offsite
TR on a budget May - June 2011offsite condo
TR Sept - Oct 2010 big family trip in an offsite villa

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Robyn, love, love, love your trip report.

Kristen K.'s picture
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Fantastic trip report Robyn! What a lovely vacation, even with the bumps in the road.

Allie's picture
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Great trip report! Sorry to hear about the confusion with your tickets but glad it got sorted out!

crazycatperson's picture
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I think you like creme brulee as much as I do!

More More More (trip report, I mean).

mteam94's picture
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So glad you got the ticket issue resolved. So glad that you loved Coral Reef, it is another one of our favorites as we all adore the Chocolate Wave dessert at the end! Cannot wait for more of your report!!!

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you asked.... here it is Laughing out loud

Day 8

Cruise Time!! WOOHOO!

We were up quite early, couldn't sleep - too excited! Plus we still had a few things left to pack... I woke up feeling a bit dodgy but I put it down to being a bit apprehensive about going on the cruise - I can be a bit funny about doing new things and going new places, with my tummy problems from childhood I get a bit panicky when I don't know where the nearest toilet is just in case LOL. Sy went downstairs to get breakfast while I did the last of the packing. We had 2 CS credits left so we got an egg platter each plus a pastry each. I didn't eat much of the breakfast as I was feeling a bit fragile, thought it was best not to.

We then called bellhop to help us with our many, many bags. By now we had 3 cases (2 cases out with 1 rolled up inside) plus a small pull along that was cabin size, a big beach bag, Sy's massive camera case and my handbag... When we checked into the beach club the bell hop mentioned that we could leave some of our bags with Disney and have them transferred over to AKL for once we got back from the cruise. So we packed 1 case to take with us and left 2 big cases behind.

We then made our way out front to meet our driver, he pulled up just as we walked outside - good timing! Again he was from Florida Magical Tours but wasn't the same guy as before. He said hello and was very welcoming but he never told us his name. He got our bags for us and loaded them into the car, we tried to help but he sat us in the car and put on Toy Story 3 Laughing out loud The car was an Escalade and was in MUCH better condition than the Limo Smile

We got to the Port in good time, I got more and more excited on the way there, I think I asked the driver how long we would be about 3 times lol. When we first saw the ship I was speechless.

We got our bags out of the car and the luggage guys took them for us, tipped them a few $$ and off we went to check in. Our check in time was 11:30 and we arrived at 11:40 so we were told we could board straight away. We had to wait to get on, I didn't realise why until we got to the front - they announce you aboard! That was rather embarrassing... The girl who walked us on told us a bit about the ship and we realised she was English - from Reigate no less, Sy's family are from Dorking (just down the road) and they even had friends in common! Her name was Jade, she was lovely. We spent a while chatting to her and we arranged to pop by the art gallery later on when she would be working to say hello.

The ship was still really empty so we took a few pictures and went for a wander round.

We stumbled across a familiar face...

I just cannot explain just how beautiful the ship is. The detailing is exquisite. Its very 'Art Deco' which really appeals to me. Even the bathrooms are themed to where they are on the ship. The cruise would have been worth it to me just to see how beautiful it is.

I was still feeling quite dodgy so we went to find a seat. We found the adult deck really quick and easily so found a nice comfy seat overlooking the water.

After sitting down reading my Kindle for a little bit I started to feel really unwell Sad so off I went to find a bathroom... If ONLY I had gone a few feet past the adults only sign I would have found one, but I went the other way. I went back inside and was met with loads of girls outside the spa who wanted to show me around it. That was good as I wanted to buy a rainforest room pass for me and hubby as I couldn't do it before we left (something to do with having paid originally in GPB and not USD). I did say that I would like to have a look around but first needed to find a bathroom... No problem the girl said, you can use the one in here... oh dear. Now this is a warning, the following part of my TR is only going to be good for those with a strong stomach and sense of humour (yes I can laugh about it now!).

I was pretty desperate for the bathroom - fast food + IBS type tummy troubles + worrying & stress = well you can guess what it equals. I needed to get there and quick. The girl who was showing me round was from Sheffield and called Natalie. She went through a big long talk about using the spa before taking me to where the bathroom was, I started to get the cold sweats very aware I was wearing WHITE trousers!!!! She did eventually show me where they were, oh boy I was glad to see that porcelain throne, it was gleaming, I'm pretty sure no one had used it since it had been cleaned. It sure wasn't expecting its first visitor to leave such a dirty protest! After what felt like everything leaving me I came out to wash my hands, imagine my horror to realise that Natalie was stood waiting for me right outside the door, oh dear. I told her I had tummy problems and was feeling a bit unwell, it happens to us all unfortunately but I was still mortified. We walked out to go to the first room, the campest guy I have EVER seen (and I went to a drama school!) told me about getting white teeth for a small mortgage on my house. Then onto the next room the hair dressing salon and, oh no, a familiar rumble in my tummy... I had to interrupt the next sales girl to say I needed to use the bathroom again, Natalie went to get me a glass of water while I was in there. After a while I came out feeling seriously sorry for myself... Natalie then took me into the gym to show me round, I wasn't really listening by now, I was feeling so dodgy and all I wanted to do was get to our room and lay down (which sadly I couldn't as the rooms weren't ready yet). She was midway through telling me about something and I had that feeling again Sad so I had to interrupt again and go back to the bathroom *oh the shame*. She gave up and said 'oh dear, well come back later if you're feeling better and I will show you around again'. Thank god, I could poo in peace! I stayed in the bathroom for a little while sitting on the benches till I felt a bit better, I was worried about having the shame of leaving the bathroom and having to return again. I didn't want to stay too long though as last I left Sy I was off in search of a bathroom - at least 30 mins ago! When I did come out I went the wrong way and ended up in the rainforest room. The girl on the door accosted me to go in and show me round. I bought a day pass each with a personalised body scrub for $25 each, more expensive that just buying the day on it own ($16) but I felt so bad about the smell I left behind in the bathroom that I paid and legged it!

When I got back to Sy he was really worried! He said he needed this to help with the nerves... LOL

I told him about my shame and he laughed! I would be far more embarrassed if I didn't have my tummy problems, I've kinda got used to it over the years. We sat for a little while long, I lay down on the bed while Sy rubbed my back for me - it really helps when I have a sore tummy. He is a lovely hubby Smile We didn't get any lunch, we were told where to get some food from by the lovely Jade but Sy had a big breakfast and you can probably guess I didn't feel like eating any food Wink

Before long our rooms were ready! YAY! I wanted a shower and my own bathroom (in case I was ill again). I had a shower but had to sit in a towel for ages as the bags weren't there. Still it was lovely to relax in our own space for a bit. Our room attendant came by to introduce himself to us, his name was Igor and he was perfect. Honestly, its like he knew us! Throughout the cruise he kept the ice bucket filled up (I like ice in my drinks), BEAUTIFUL towel animals (well, bedspread animals lol), everything was done but we never saw him - that's just the sort of room attendant I like Laughing out loud

Once the bags came I got changed and we went to wait for the safety drill. I was feeling so ill by now, when I'm poorly I get the shakes, light headed - I often faint too. Standing out in the baking heat with loads of other people in front and behind me for 30 mins was torture. We got there a bit early as they said the lifts wouldn't be working and I was worried about having to walk down the stairs in that state. I didn't want to make a fuss or alert the staff that I was ill so I just got on with it (as I usually do when I'm not feeling well) but oh boy I wish I had just said something to someone, I'm sure they could have done something or got me a seat or something. After the drill was finished we went to sit down close by. I was ok after I had sat for 10 mins. We then went to find the sail away party. We watched from the deck above so that I could sit on the floor and still be able to see. It was really good - I don't know how those dancers do it! It was really hot and they were jumping as if their lives depended on it! Sadly we didn't remember the camera, we did think we would pop back and get it after the drill but the drill lasted longer than we thought and I needed to sit down Sad

We went back to the room after the party, having a bit of a wander round the ship on the way Smile We had our dining rotation now but it didn't suit what we wanted, as it was a 3 night cruise and we had a Palo reservation we knew which restaurant we wanted to skip out. I went to change it on my own while Sy relaxed. The guy who changed it for me was not pleased at all - he told me to change Palo! But as wanted Palo on the middle night as that was the day we were doing the rainforest spa. He did agree to change it eventually after I explained though.

I went back to the room to see Sy, he'd showered and was getting ready to go out, we were on the later dining rotation so we were going to see the Golden Mickey's. The show was wonderful, we sat in the front row in the balcony and I think that was the best view in the house!

We then went to get changed for dinner. Tonight we were eating in Enchanted Garden. The restaurant was easily the most beautiful. We were sat at a table on our own Laughing out loud yay Smile We did notice the table next to ours were dressed very casual, the guy had denim shorts, tank top and trainers on, I thought Disney were quite strict, Sy wasn't keen on wearing his trousers but I told him Disney says you must. I'm sure he thought I was telling fibs.

Our assistant server was brilliant, he was from Jamaica - I'm really sad that I don't remember his name Sad he was really chatty and friendly. Completely what I would expect from a Disney server. Our server was just okay. Nothing bad about him at all, just like any other server in a restaurant. We saw him being really chatty with other tables, maybe its cause there were only 2 of us? It was a little bit of a disappointment as I had read amazing things about servers online before we went. Maybe if I hadn't read it though I wouldn't have noticed? Who knows?

The food was AMAZING. I had read mixed reviews online, the food quality is going down hill, not as good as other cruise liners. Well I have never been on a cruise before and I thought it was amazing! Unfortunately I thought it was so amazing I didn't take enough pictures, I wolfed it before I remembered.

Sy had -
North Atlantic Lobster Ravioli
with roasted garlic and sweet basil in a light tomato broth

I had -
Thyme and Garlic Brioche
filled with chanterelle, hedgehog and black trumpet mushrooms and leek stew in a light buttermilk cream

They were seriously good " you can tell by how fast we ate them Sad

Then we had

Roasted Pork Tenderloin seasoned with Smoked Salt
Citrus flavored polenta cakes and oven roasted carrots, parsnips and caramelized Granny Smith apples

And Marjoram Scented Organic Chicken
Half a chicken served with baked sweet potatoes and sauteed baby spinach

You can guess which was mine Wink

Then came the desserts, Sy had this!

They knew it was his birthday from the booking so he got a badge too Smile

They did bring him another dessert that he ordered but he cant remember what it was (nor can I remember what I had)...

After dinner I managed to get a picture at the front " you can see how much detail is in this restaurant.

We went for a wander round and stopped on our way to get a picture with Mickey Laughing out loud

We got a few pics outside too

I tried to get a picture of the lights in the water

When we got back to out room we were met with this little guy

We did have the idea we would get changed and go for a swim but I didn't feel up to it Sad so we went to bed instead and fell straight to sleep. We forgot to go and see Jade but explained why next time we saw her Smile

Tomorrow Nassau day, rainforest spa and Palo

__________________

Our Very Merry 24 nighter Nov/Dec 15
Watson's go West May 15
The one with all the birthdays Oct 14 4 Big Birthdays and a Vow Renewal thrown in
The OMG trip June 14 30th Birthday present from the hubs
Girly trip March 14 A last min cheapy week
September 13 our first all DVC stay
TR May 2013 the last min bargain trip offsite
Oct 2012 TR with a cruise!big family trip featuring the beach club, AKL, the dream and a villa offsite
TR on a budget May - June 2011offsite condo
TR Sept - Oct 2010 big family trip in an offsite villa

RobynPrincess's picture
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Posts: 2859

Nassau Day

We were both awake at 3am so we went out to sit on the balcony for a bit, just to watch the waves. It was really peaceful. I did notice that the underwater lights were now off. I wonder what time they turn them off. We stayed up for about half an hour before going back to bed.

When we woke up again we had this view from our balcony...

We watched the ship come into dock before getting dressed and making our way in search of some breakfast.

We decided to go back to Enchanted Garden as we knew how to get there teehee! It was a buffet breakfast and it was just okay. I'm not keen on buffets in general. It wasn't up to the standard of last night's food but it was perfectly okay. The food was usual buffet food. I didn't dare eat too much so just had a waffle and fruit, no fried stuff (not after yesterday). Our server was delightful though Smile

After breakfast we went back to the room to get changed for a swim. The pool was nice and fairly quiet. I should say that this was the adult only pool mind you Wink I dread to think was the family pool was like! After a swim and a quick relax by the pool we went to use the Rainforest room in the Senses Spa. We dashed in quickly to avoid Natalie seeing me... Once we got inside we checked out the showers. There are 4 different shower experiences inside the spa. They all have different water jets and aromatherapy oils. The first one I went in smelled really funky, bit like old water lol, it was obviously meant to smell like that but I wasn't keen. The next one I went in was a bit too chilly for me so Sy took over and I went into the 3rd one. Oh yes, this is what I'm talking about. It smelled amazing, the water was warm but cool enough to feel refreshing, mmmmmm... I stood in there feeling totally relaxed. A bit like goldie locks and the 3 bears, the first shower was too smelly, the second too cold but the third was just right. Or so I thought. If only I had looked up I would have seen it coming. There was a big jet at the side like a waterfall, out of it came the coldest water I had felt yet! I don't think I could have moved much faster to get out of that shower! Sy then spent the next 5 minutes almost wetting himself laughing at me.

(Pics of the spa to follow later as I forgot to take my camera first time)

We then went to check out the rest of the spa. We went into the steam room and the sauna before heading out to the hot tubs that are open to the elements. Afterwards we relaxed in the heated loungers and read our books. Bliss Smile

After some time spent relaxing we decided that we needed to think about getting some lunch. We were skipping Royal Palace tonight for Palo so we decided to go there for lunch instead.

Again it was beautifully decorated (but still not as pretty as Enchanted Garden) but the level of detail was amazing.

I had the Enchilada to start and Sy had the fish plate.

We then both had the same Turkey Sandwich. I wasn't all that keen to be honest. The started had more than filled me up so I ate half of my sandwich and left the rest.

We could have had desserts but we didn't feel like it after a big lunch, the waiter couldn't believe we weren't going to have any! He tried really hard to persuade us to have something though.

After lunch we went for a wander round the ship to take in some of its beauty. We walked all around the top decks which were really busy. The miniature golf was something to be seen, it was chaos - kids walking over each other's shots, balls hitting people, no order whatsoever. I tell ya, we were glad to be back in the adult's only area!

We decided to go back to the room for a bit to chill out and relax on our own. We lay down on the bed and before we knew it 2 hours had gone by! Whoops. It was now 5pm. We had to make a decision, were we going to go watch the Villians show or make the most of the Rainforest room... We decided to head back to the spa. So we got changed and made our way there (running past reception again). We went into the hot tub first and watched as we sailed away from Nassau. The sun was starting to set and it was beautiful. The hot tubs were empty so it was lovely to be there just the 2 of us.

We then went into the Steam room to use our body scrubs - this is what we were told to do by the girl who showed us around. There were 2 other ladies in there doing the same thing and we got chatting to them. They were from a very small village in Texas, one of those towns with ranches and where everyone knows everyone.

After the scrubbing session we went into the showers again before laying down on the heated loungers with our books. At 7pm we decided we better make tracks as we had a Palo reservation at 8:30 so we got our stuff and made our way back to the room.

We got showered and changed pretty quickly so we made our way up to the Meridian Bar (which is right outside Palo) to get a cocktail. I cant remember what we had, mine had champagne in but it was VERY strong so I gave half of it to Sy. Now I must point out that we took a lot of pictures tonight but I'm not going to be uploading the ones of me. I like my pictures taken from slightly above (if you didn't know why, its cause it makes you look slimmer!) and my dress was quite low cut, I didn't realise quite how low cut until I saw the pictures! Next time I will be wearing a top underneath. I did however take pics of our drinks and Sy.

Before log it was time for our reservation. I think we might have been the last to show up as they knew exactly who we were when we walked up. We were shown straight away to our table. Inside the restaurant was gorgeous, really stunning.

Our server was called Borys and he was from the Ukraine. He was amazing! When we sat down he told us that this was going to be the best meal of our trip, he wasn't wrong there. He first explained that he would bring the antipasti cart over to us to pick what we would like, he had already asked for our breads to be put on as we sat down.

Antipasti (that Sy ate pretty much all of)

Breads

Borys then came back to take our order, he had lots of recommendations for food, he said to try the white bean soup so Sy decided to have this while I had the mushroom on polenta.

Tuscan White Bean Soup
with Prosciutto and Parmesan Cheese, garnished with shredded cabbage and red radishes

Grilled Portobello Mushroom and Polenta
with a Roasted Shallot Sauce and a parmesan crisp

I wish I had listened to Borys! The soup Sy had was one of the best things I have ever tasted. My mushroom was gorgeous too though I didn't like the polenta (I had never had polenta before so it was a new thing for me).

Then for mains Borys recommended the Osso Buco which Sy had (after A LOT of deliberating as it all looked so good) and I had the chicken.

Osso Buco di Vitello
Slow-roasted center cut veal shank with gremolata and risotto Milanese

Fagotti di Petto di Pollo con Ricotta e Basilico
Baked chicken breast filled with ricotta, basil and red peppers served with pinot grigio reduction

Again Sy LOVED his food, I didn't try his this time (meat) but my chicken was out of this world good too.

It was then time to decide on what dessert to have. Borys recommended the chocolate souffle but as I'm not keen on chocolate (I know, go figure!) I decided to have the panne cotta with strawberry and basil sorbet.

Sy was instructed to make a hole in the middle and pour the sauces in.

The panne cotta was beautiful, it was the best I have ever eaten. The sorbet however was the rankest thing I have ever had in my mouth! Even Sy didn't like it - and he likes all things food lol. His souffle was gorgeous but I still thought mine was the better (obviously I had to give his a try Wink ).

Afterwards Borys brought out a special plate for Sy.

Once we were finished we were brought the bill - when you dine at Palo there is a $20 pp charge. We knew a tip was expected but had no idea what we should leave - 20% of $20 is nothing. So we called over the manager and asked him. Of course he wouldn't help us out at all Wink he said anything would be most appreciated. We left $20 and he said that was wonderful (though he may have said the same had we left $5, you never know). We got chatting to the manager and turns out he lives in Stockport (though originally from Turkey) and he owns restaurants there that Sy knows of. We chatted to him for about 15 minutes - there was only 1 other table left in the restaurant with people still at it. We said goodbye to the manager (who's name I didn't get) and Borys and made our way outside for the fireworks. We got a spot on the top deck and watched the pirate show. It was very breezy up there, lots of people with towels wrapped round them for warmth. Before long the fireworks were going up, they were great! We had intended to go to a few of the late night bars but again we felt too tired so ended up just going back to the room saying 'lets do it tomorrow night instead'.

When we got back to the room we found this amazing thing waiting for us!

I was so impressed that we managed to move him and keep him totally preserved Laughing out loud this was totally making up for lack of them in the Beach Club Laughing out loud

Sy managed to get a picture of me in my posh dress (that I made especially for Palo), this one is okay as its taken a bit further away Wink

It was still midnight by the time we were in bed.

Tomorrow, Castaway Cay!

__________________

Our Very Merry 24 nighter Nov/Dec 15
Watson's go West May 15
The one with all the birthdays Oct 14 4 Big Birthdays and a Vow Renewal thrown in
The OMG trip June 14 30th Birthday present from the hubs
Girly trip March 14 A last min cheapy week
September 13 our first all DVC stay
TR May 2013 the last min bargain trip offsite
Oct 2012 TR with a cruise!big family trip featuring the beach club, AKL, the dream and a villa offsite
TR on a budget May - June 2011offsite condo
TR Sept - Oct 2010 big family trip in an offsite villa

Allie's picture
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Joined: 06/26/2012
Posts: 5477

Sorry to hear you weren't feeling well your first cruise day, but it sounds like you still had a great time! Palo sounds fantastic!

Magic Mirror's picture
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Joined: 09/18/2012
Posts: 2994

I really want to book a Mickey Cruise now!
muchlove muchlove muchlove

Jess's picture
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Joined: 03/04/2011
Posts: 3280

Great report so far and I agree...makes me want to go on a cruise now Smile

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RobynPrincess's picture
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Posts: 2859

Day 10

Castaway cay

Woke up about 8am today which isn't bad considering we didn't go to bed till past midnight! We watched TV in bed for a while, cant beat a bit of Good Morning America before getting up and getting dressed for breakfast. I didn't fancy another buffet so we decided to go to Royal Palace. We ended up with the same waiter at breakfast as the day before - what are the odds of that? We started with a few pastries that were brought round on a big platter to choose from. I had a croissant and Sy had some sort of cherry Danish. I then chose eggs benedict and from the picture I think Sy had some sort of omelette on toast.

Sorry about my picture, I took a mouthful before I remembered to take a picture - still its better than forgetting completely Wink

Now this was the sort of breakfast I was expecting aboard the ship, not the buffet we had yesterday. The food was delish! After breakfast we went back to the room to pack a bag of things to take ashore on Castaway Cay and get changed into our swimwear. I had been dreaming about Castaway Cay, it was one of the reasons I decided on a Disney cruise. It didn't disappoint! Once we got off the ship we walked up to the tram stop. We got there just before the tram left but as it was very busy we decided to wait for the next one, didn't want to cram on in the heat. The next one wasn't far away, just a few minutes went by and it was there. The tram was really cute and the breeze when it went along was a welcome break. It was HOT today. It was a windy day though so it did help us cope with the heat a bit more. We passed signs that said a lot of the water activities had been cancelled due to the wind. We took a few pictures while we were waiting though.

We got off the tram and got straight back on another one that went to the adults only beach. I had read that you felt a bit out of the loop and far away from everything at the adults beach. I didn't feel like that at all. Other than that it felt more secluded and special. I really welcomed the tranquility and peace after a busy ship. We walked down to the other end of the beach to get a nice hammock and have a bit of privacy - though in hindsight I wish we hadn't as we were then miles away from the bathroom and more importantly the bar Wink

A few pics on the beach.

We stayed here for a while, having a swim (read paddle) and a bit of time relaxing in the hammock. But before long we had to get out of the sun. Off to the bar we headed...

We got a few drinks and chilled out in the bar area before making our way into the BBQ to get some lunch. Now this was the only meal of the trip that I wasn't looking forward to. I don't like BBQ food, I didn't fancy anything on the menu that I had read online, so I was prepared not to each much. I needn't have worried though as the food was lovely Smile I had some chicken and a roll. I made my own chicken and salad roll which was just what I fancied. Nothing too heavy or fried. I then had an ice cream. Sy had a bit of everything lol. We didn't get any pictures of the food sadly. We got chatting to a lovely couple at the table next to ours who were from Wembly (London). I knew they were British as I had tried on the same top the week before we came away. This was their first ever trip to Disney and first every cruise, they were already planning the next one.

We finished our lunch and just sat soaking in the atmosphere for a little bit. Before long a familiar face came to say hello, the restaurant manager from last night. He stood talking with us for a long time. He was such a lovely man. I did remember to get his name this time to write it down on the feedback form. It's Gursel Smile Once we said our goodbyes to him we decided to go and check out the family beach. So once again we hopped on the tram. To get to and from the adults beach you have to drive down a disused runway. If you didn't know, the island has a bit of a sordid past, drug trafficking and the likes. They used this island as a stop over when moving the drugs around. There far more info on it out there if you are interested in that sort of thing. I took a few pictures of it.

The family beach was a real eye opener after the adults beach, it was packed! We went for a quick look around and into the shops. We found Jade in there serving, I really felt for her as it was such a hot day and there was no air conditioning in there, she looked really hot and bothered but still had a big smile on her face for everyone. Smile We arranged to go and see her again later that night and left her to it - it was very busy inside. We got some pictures outside while we were wandering round.

We did think we might go back to the adults beach but after walking around we were feeling really hot and sticky from the salty sea water so we decided to get back on the ship and go for a swim in the nice chlorinated pool lol. Ahhhh it was bliss Smile it was so empty. We sat in the shallow part of the pool where you are mostly out of the water but still staying cool. We got chatting to a couple from PH and a lady from Cleveland Ohio, this lady looked maybe a couple of years older than me and Sy but she went on to say she had children our age! Shock she was in her 50's! There was just no way you would guess her age. She was away with her husband but he was lying down. The couple were away for their anniversary, leaving the kids at home Wink We sat chatting to them for hours about life in general. The sun was very hot so I moved into the shade but could still chat - I did keep telling Sy that he needed to get out of the sun, us gingers have to be careful Wink but did he listen? Did he heck! He was a nice shade of beetroot before long Sad We decided to get a bite to eat, tuna wrap for Sy and chicken nuggets for me - YAY! Laughing out loud We ate them while looking out to sea, heaven...

I lay down reading my book for a bit whilst Sy befriended yet another couple at the bar (yes, we really will chat to anyone and everyone!).

We then went to get dressed for this evenings show 'Believe'. We went again to get seats up the top and as we arrived we noticed the couple from PH were sat in the second row. They looked lovely and dressed up. We had a little chat before the show started and we took each other's pictures - its hard to get pictures of you both together when there are only 2 of your on holiday.

Believe was brilliant. I don't know whether I liked it more than Golden Mickey, Sy thought it was better though.

After the show finished we went to look in the shops - it seemed like every time we went past them they were closed and they were actually open so we wanted to make the most of it. Unfortunately everyone else had the same idea... We didn't buy anything, we probably would have if it hadn't have been quite so busy. Once we left the shops though we did find a lovely lady outside posing for pictures, and it would have been rude not to get a picture with her really wouldn't it?! Wink

There was still a while to wait before we needed to head to Animators palate so we went up to the art gallery to say hello to Jade and met her work friend Ann-Marie (who was also from the UK). We stood chatting to them for a bit before a little girl was crying, not big sobs just tears down her face. Ann-Marie noticed and asked if she was ok? Her dad said she was ok she just wanted a coke but he didn't know where to get one from and it was almost dinner time. Off Ann-Marie went to get her one. That's the Disney magic. Ann-Marie was soon back and the girl was so happy. Ann-Marie said that's the best part of her job, being able to make a child happy. That's why she loves working at Disney. Smile

It was then time to say goodbye and make our way down to the restaurant, the last thing the girls said to us was 'hope Crush makes a visit', we had no idea what they meant but they said all would become clear Wink

We sat down at our table only to find our assistant server wasn't well Sad so sad Sad

To start I had the potato soup, it was nice but a bit spicy.

I have to confess I didn't get a picture of Sy's starter, and I have no idea what he had Sad sorry!

For mains though I had a chicken breast with a baked potato, I just wanted something fairly light and basic. It was cooked lovely.

Sy had White Shrimp Pennette Pasta Which he really enjoyed

For dessert Sy had the cheesecake

I didn't fancy a dessert so I told our waiter I wasn't going to have one, he tried really hard to convince me, he even offered me things that weren't on the menu... that's when he mentioned the words 'creme brulee' oh dear. Looks like I was going to have a dessert after all Wink

We left pretty sharpish after dinner as the 2 tables behind us were 1 group but tonight they had sat the adults on one table and the children at the other table, the children were of an age that when their food came the women had to get up and cut it up for them. WHO thought this was going to be a good idea? Parents who wanted a night off, that's who! They were screaming, shouting, running around with their food, playing games. If the family had spoken English I would have said something to them however they were Spanish I believe. I must have turned around and glared at the adults maybe 10, 15 times though and they did nothing. We did think about complaining to the waiter but then it just puts him in an awkward position when really the adults should be more considerate to the people around them. It wasn't just us they were upsetting, all of the tables around us were complaining to each other. We were talking to the table next to us (a family from Kentucky) and they said the reason their children didn't behave like that was because they knew they wouldn't be allowed. It really did ruin the night for us. Crush did come over once but the table of kids screamed so much that he didn't stay and he didn't come anywhere near us afterwards.

It was a sad state not to be able to enjoy our dinner just because of some people who didn't want to discipline their children. Ah well. Nothing we could do about it other than get out of there!

We went back up to chat to Jade and Ann-Marie who by now were just tidying up, it was very quiet up in the art gallery.

We stood chatting to them for about an hour before we started to get into rough waters. We were having a lovely time so I didn't want to cause a fuss but I was starting to feel VERY sick. I get seasick anyway but as I hadn't felt ill at all I didn't have any tablets with me. I left it too late, I was past the point of return and had to blurt out 'I'm sorry I have to go' really suddenly. The girls were used to dealing with seasick passengers and said no problem, they would be there in the morning to say goodbye. I had to stop on the way back to the room (which wasn't far at all anyway) I went in the bathroom and just sat for a minute. I forced myself to come out so that I could get back to the room.

When we did get back to the room we were met by this guy...

It was just a shame I was too ill to really appreciate him Sad I had to sit in the bathroom for a bit, I took seasickness tablets but they didn't seem to work. Sy had to get me changed for bed as every time I moved I was almost sick Sad It was a really rough end to what had been an amazing day. As I was sitting in the bathroom trying to swallow it down (TMI sorry!), all I could think was 'I spent all this money to feel like THIS?!' but had I taken the pills when I first started to feel ill then I wouldn't have felt so bad. Its my own fault really. It was a bit sad for Sy though as we didn't make it to the clubs and I had to go to bed while he sat and had a few beers out on the balcony on his own Sad poor Sy Sad

Tomorrow, we leave the ship Sad but we get to check into Animal Kingdom Lodge Kidani Village Laughing out loud :D

__________________

Our Very Merry 24 nighter Nov/Dec 15
Watson's go West May 15
The one with all the birthdays Oct 14 4 Big Birthdays and a Vow Renewal thrown in
The OMG trip June 14 30th Birthday present from the hubs
Girly trip March 14 A last min cheapy week
September 13 our first all DVC stay
TR May 2013 the last min bargain trip offsite
Oct 2012 TR with a cruise!big family trip featuring the beach club, AKL, the dream and a villa offsite
TR on a budget May - June 2011offsite condo
TR Sept - Oct 2010 big family trip in an offsite villa

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Joined: 08/01/2012
Posts: 2037

Oh Robyn I am so sorry your cruise had such a "bumpy" ending but your report is a real treasure.

Karlipants's picture
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Joined: 09/02/2012
Posts: 456

I love reading your trip report! It sounds like you guys really had a lovely time! Can't wait to hear about the rest of your trip. mickey

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Kristen K.'s picture
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Fantastic cruise report Robyn! I want to go back so badly!

Don't feel bad about not getting to the clubs, there's so much to do on the cruise! I didn't really get to them either. We also had late seating for dinner, and by the time we were done all I wanted to do was go to bed. Palo was my absolute favorite meal of the cruise too, I also had the chicken dish.

I'm so sorry that you felt so ill on board, but a cruise is a wonderful place to just take a lazy, easy break full of rest and naps. Do you think you'll cruise again?

I can't wait to keep reading!

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At the time Kristen, I didnt think I would want to do another cruise but after coming home I really think I would. I think it was partly because I was expecting to be completely blown away and want to rebook on board, it just couldnt live up to what i expected. We also stayed onsite for the first time ever this trip and i really was blown away by that, the cruise didnt really stand a chance Wink I wouldnt do another one from Florida though, the pull of the disney parks was so strong it was kinda ruining it for me. I really fancy the Alaska cruise Smile I'm not sure I'd do the Med cruise as most of the places it stops I've been to before.

__________________

Our Very Merry 24 nighter Nov/Dec 15
Watson's go West May 15
The one with all the birthdays Oct 14 4 Big Birthdays and a Vow Renewal thrown in
The OMG trip June 14 30th Birthday present from the hubs
Girly trip March 14 A last min cheapy week
September 13 our first all DVC stay
TR May 2013 the last min bargain trip offsite
Oct 2012 TR with a cruise!big family trip featuring the beach club, AKL, the dream and a villa offsite
TR on a budget May - June 2011offsite condo
TR Sept - Oct 2010 big family trip in an offsite villa

RobynPrincess's picture
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Day 11

AKL check in and Welcome to my parents!!

After a not very restful night sleep I was most unimpressed at the wake up call at 6:55! We intended to skip breakfast and stay a bit longer in bed. The announcement that we were okay to disembark went on over and over again, they wanted to make damn sure no one went back to sleep lol. So we packed the last of our belongings and made our way to breakfast, even though we weren't really that hungry. Thankfully the hideous table behind didn't come for breakfast until just as we were leaving Laughing out loud I had pancakes and Sy had the route 66 breakfast (I think that's what it was called). Both were good. I'm afraid I forgot the pictures again Sad I did get pictures of us though lol.

As we were about to leave our waiter (Ronald) came over with a big speech about an 'excellent' rating. I was prepared for this (but was expecting it the night before) and had already filled out the card and told him so, he still carried on with the speech though which kinda peeved me, I dunno why it did - maybe I was just narked at being woken up Wink I don't do mornings!

After breakfast we went to find the girls to say goodbye but they were busy so we could only say a quick goodbye before disembarking Sad

I was sad to say goodbye to the ship in some ways but the pull of Orlando was very strong and I was itching to get back to the parks. I was expecting to be blown away by the Disney cruising experience and want to rebook on board, I even had a bit of money put aside to do it, but I just didn't feel the urge to go again. It wasn't like when we get back from Orlando and I have serious blues until the next trip is booked. I'm sure we will try another Disney cruise in the future though.

We went through immigration and collected our bags and stood for 20 mins waiting for the bus to take us to our car rental desk. The bus did eventually arrive and we were soon on the way to get our car. We booked with Alamo so when we were told to get off the bus at Enterprise we were a little worried, but it turned out that they supplied the cars for Alamo as well. It was a bit of a shame that we didn't get to choose our car, as you would normally be able to do when booking with Alamo - this was actually one of the reasons we booked with them. But we did get upgraded to a full size SUV, Dodge Journey with 7 seats! That more than made up for it Laughing out loud There was also no hard sell whatsoever which was lovely, I hate the hard sell they put on you to try and get you to buy extras, car hire is expensive enough as it is, I have a satnav on my phone, I don't want to rent one, I don't want a sun toll pass, I wont be using toll roads enough... urgh! So it was such a welcome change to just sign the documents and pull away. We did pull away and got about 5 mins down the road before noticing that the fuel tank was only half full and I had pre paid for a full tank, so we had to go back and get them to fill it up. It was no problem and it was quickly sorted - frankly I would forgive them anything for not doing the hard sell on us lol.

We were back on our way again and made it to Orlando in no time. We didn't really know what to do with ourselves, we knew we wanted to drive down International Drive and just generally enjoying being in Orlando. We felt a little bit in the bubble at Disney which was lovely, but also we just lurve to be in Florida and Orlando. So we drove all along I Drive and ended up at the Premium Outlets and Taco Bell, I don't know HOW we ended up there... LOL but oh it was goooood Laughing out loud

I had a chicken quesadilla and potato soft taco, don't remember what Sy had.

We then decided to drop our bags at Animal Kingdom Lodge Kidani Village so we made our way home. It felt so good heading home Laughing out loud

We rented points for these 2 nights and it was our first time staying in a DVC. Once we got there a girl met us outside called Amanda (who was from New York) who greeted us and welcomed us to AKL. She then led us inside and stood chatting to us about AKL until there was someone free to check us in, she was so lovely! Our room obviously wasn't ready yet, as it was only about 12:30pm but we could get our room keys and set up room charging. We left our bags with bell hop and decided we would make our way to Animal Kingdom, we didn't get to ride Kali River rapids before we left did we? Wink Sy wanted to change before we left to headed for the bathroom while I waited outside. I got chatting to Amanda again, she was explaining the different animals and things about them, before Sy came out and we were ready to go.

It was then that I remembered to take pictures of our hire car.

We made our way to Animal Kingdom. We knew we wanted to ride Kali Rapids but not sure what else so we started by making our way there first. We did stop on the way to get a couple of photopass pictures though (yes we got our photopass CD today Laughing out loud )

We went on Kali Rapids twice and got soaked to the skin haha! It was so good Laughing out loud Afterwards we decided to get a drink and sit down in the sun for a bit - try and dry off if we could Wink Sy got a frozen lemonade and I got a diet coke and we sat just soaking in the atmosphere, this is why I couldn't love the cruise, it just wasn't the Disney parks. Heaven Smile

We decided not to bother with anymore rides, we were itching to get to our room! By now it was 3pm so we decided to chance it to see if it was ready. We made our way back to AKL, Amanda was now behind reception and it was her who checked to see if our room was ready, unfortunately it wasn't Sad she checked to see if there were any others available and turns out there was - a partial savanna room! OMG! She upgraded us to this room, I was almost jumping up and down! It was miles and miles away from reception though in the Pumbaa section. She told us to take the car and park underneath. We went straight there (forgetting about getting our bags from bell hop) our room was AMAZING. I cried and I'm not ashamed to admit it. The first thing I did was go to the balcony and look out, what did I see?

How wonderful is that?

We had a 2 bedroom as my parents were joining us that night and I took a lot of pictures Wink

Living area

Mum & Dad's room

Our room

After I cried, I went to find Amanda to thank her for upgrading us to this room, I was so over the moon! She was a bit taken aback that I had come to find her, when I first found her she looked worried, like maybe something was wrong, but was very pleased that I had come to find her just to say thank you. She could probably tell I had been crying as I'm sure I had red eyes lol.

I went to bell hop to ask for the cases to be brought to the room, I did mention that we had 2 sets of cases, one from today and one from the beach club a few days before. One set came but she girl who brought them (yes girl! They were HEAVY cases, I was very impressed she could lift them) said she didn't know a thing about the other set so she want to find them for us. Sure enough about 15 mins later she came back with even heavier cases.

We got out of our wet clothes and showered ready to head off and pick up my parents at the airport. By now we had a new view from the balcony...

We parked up at MCO and headed inside to wait for my parents. We saw my mum coming right away on her scooter piled high with cases and bags! Dad followed behind pulling their 2 main cases. They were buzzing to be here Laughing out loud I thought they would be really tired, especially my mum, but no they were full of beans and ready to go Smile

We got back home and unpacked all the things from the car and made our way upstairs, we didn't tell them about the upgrade. They loved the hotel and were blown away by the room. I showed them outside last and my mum was speechless that we had animals right outside our room. She said she didn't want to go to the villa in a few days, she just wanted to stay here (didn't we all!). We decided to go out for some food as they were hungry and not flagging just yet. We went to Outback along the 192. We got a table straight away which can be unheard of in that particular Outback. We had a lovely dinner but again, forgot to take pictures (sorry!) I had the chicken and swiss burger which was beautiful! I got it with a baked sweet potato, yum Smile Sy had a steak with coconut shrimp, he wont eat steak back home as the meat just doesn't live up to the standard of what we get over in the USA. My mum had the same as me and my dad had a burger. We all thoroughly enjoyed our dinner. After dinner we headed to publix to get a few bits, we wanted to get some drinks and some washing liquid - we had worn all of our clothes now and I needed some clean underwear Shock lol

Once we got back my parents pretty much went straight to bed while we stayed up for a bit, did some washing and watched some TV.

Tomorrow, Grand Floridian Cafe breakfast and then Magic Kingdom

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Our Very Merry 24 nighter Nov/Dec 15
Watson's go West May 15
The one with all the birthdays Oct 14 4 Big Birthdays and a Vow Renewal thrown in
The OMG trip June 14 30th Birthday present from the hubs
Girly trip March 14 A last min cheapy week
September 13 our first all DVC stay
TR May 2013 the last min bargain trip offsite
Oct 2012 TR with a cruise!big family trip featuring the beach club, AKL, the dream and a villa offsite
TR on a budget May - June 2011offsite condo
TR Sept - Oct 2010 big family trip in an offsite villa

Jess's picture
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Joined: 03/04/2011
Posts: 3280

Is it hard for you guys to drive over here since you are used to driving on the other side of the road?

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EmmaV's picture
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Joined: 07/15/2012
Posts: 26

Ahhh Robyn I have enjoyed reading this trip report soooo much! made my morning Smile
Cant wait to read the rest, I love how much variety there is in your trip with different hotels and experiences
Looking forward to the end when you can reveal where you want to stay the most again!
And I am quite annoyed on your behalf about no one helping you up when you fell!! I would absolutely have helped Smile
When I was in new York I fell at a kerb because it was covered in snow and at least 6 people all turned to help me up so I have some karma to repay haha!
xxx

Magic Mirror's picture
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Joined: 09/18/2012
Posts: 2994

mickey Loving your trip report!

RobynPrincess's picture
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Posts: 2859

Jess, it's actually much easier to drive over in the USA, less cars and bigger roads! Though I'm used to driving around London Wink I hate having to stop at crossroads though, someone needs to introduce roundabouts over there, you don't need to stop if you can see that it's clear!

EmmaV, I loved everywhere we stayed for different reasons, I will def sum it all up at the end though Smile so glad to read people helped you in new York, when in London it's often people won't step in to help Sad but now I live further outside people are far nicer Smile

Magic mirror I'm glad you're enjoying it Smile

__________________

Our Very Merry 24 nighter Nov/Dec 15
Watson's go West May 15
The one with all the birthdays Oct 14 4 Big Birthdays and a Vow Renewal thrown in
The OMG trip June 14 30th Birthday present from the hubs
Girly trip March 14 A last min cheapy week
September 13 our first all DVC stay
TR May 2013 the last min bargain trip offsite
Oct 2012 TR with a cruise!big family trip featuring the beach club, AKL, the dream and a villa offsite
TR on a budget May - June 2011offsite condo
TR Sept - Oct 2010 big family trip in an offsite villa