Do you ever get apprehensive?

[Ravenne]

Honestly the thing I was most referring to was sinking. :/ I have been having lots of foreboding cruise dreams lately...

I had tons of weird dreams a few months before our cruise date. I'd dreamed I couldn't find my passport (I know exactly where they are) and a bunch of other weird stuff. Look on the bright side, it's better that it happens in your dreams than in real life.

Yes, ships can sink. Planes can crash. Cars can crash. You can stumble and hurt yourself. Heck, you can even wake up with a sore neck from just sleeping. Doesn't mean you stop doing everything.

 

[DynamicDisneyDuo]

I am afraid of water. Seriously afraid so going on a cruise was a big thing for me. What is on TV the night before the cruise? Titanic.

I made it though and had the time of my life.

 

[ZephyrHawk]

Honestly the thing I was most referring to was sinking. :/ I have been having lots of foreboding cruise dreams lately...

No, but I grew up on much smaller boats. Been in some dangerous situations. Always turned out fine. I find boats relaxing.

 

[TwinPrincessTWINKIE]

Leaving your home for 7 days, disconnected from the world, to cruise on a ship in the open sea...Do you ever get apprehensive? It's a long time to be so far away. Anything could happen.

I'm not trying to be a downer, but the thought is there in my mind as we just hit 99days til our cruise! Our last one was just a 3 day to Nassau, so not so intimidating!

Not sure if this will help... but in the Cruise Documentation booklet they'll send you, after PIF, there are little tear out/perforated contact cards to leave with people. It says 'how to contact me on my cruise' and then gives the specific phone number someone should dial, as well as your particular cabin's extension number.

I plan to leave it with the person who will be cat sitting my girlie girl. Really she's the only thing I'm concerned about while I'm away. Everything else is just stuff. If I was to receive a call (and hope I don't), I would get her in touch with her vet and I would make arrangements for paying for any emergency care. Otherwise there's no reason for anyone to need to reach me.

I'm definitely not giving one of those cards to my boss... will likely log on to my email once a night though. I can't enjoy my vacation if I don't know if things are ok on the team and customer front.

 

[TwinPrincessTWINKIE]

Honestly the thing I was most referring to was sinking. :/ I have been having lots of foreboding cruise dreams lately...

Oh whoops should have kept reading.

I trust Disney to keep our safety at their top priority. I believe we are all getting on boats with sufficient numbers of lifeboats, we all do the drill which makes me feel about as good and planned for as one can be, etc.

To me they feel like floating islands and maybe I have a false sense of security on these big boats, but I feel like we would have time to get off. I'm not worried about that.

I have to admit I go through a momentary thought process as the airplanes take off. While they are also offering as much safety as they can, and odds are very rare, the airplane scenario is just not as... solid as the cruise ship one.


I also find it funny that I go through that momentarily realization as the plane takes off. I don't do that as I drive off in my car.... (although when I used to commute on I-405 I would literally thank heaven I got home at night in one peace!)



One other related anxiety thing: I had my parents freak out on me on my last cruise because two of us grown women went snorkeling on the ocean side of an island. I was completely shocked. My parents never were the type to let fear of what might go wrong hold you back. But for some reason they were just absolutely convinced watching us from the beach that something was going to come up an eat us. >< I just remember being so angry... so there are things out there. Are you never going to go swimming??


Really though I do feel like cruise ships are quite sturdy! Much more technology advanced, and lots of emphasis on crew training and safety... say then there were in 1912.

 

[MakiraMarlena]

Honestly the thing I was most referring to was sinking. :/ I have been having lots of foreboding cruise dreams lately...

These ships don't sink a lot.

I prefer to trust that the Disney captains have enough sense to stick to their planned routes and avoid charted rock formations. If I didn't think they did, I'd never cruise again.

Or get on an airplane, or drive a car, or leave my house.

 

[Ron from Michigan]

My wife and I have gone to Italy and the UK plus several cruises and never worried about being disconnected from e-mail etc. We took the trains all over both Italy and the UK and never were so happy. Being disconnected is FANTASTIC.

 

[nunzia]

I cannot be disconnected from my kids and grandkids..Yes, I know, I can't do anything, but I have to know what is going on or the fretting will ruin my experience..it is part of my mental 'stuff'. I will not go on a cruise without finding a way to check in via text or facebook or email or whatever. Before I had a smart phone it was super easy to just put in a code and then just pay per text..very economical, plus I got a small internet package that covered email and such. I have yet to find a good answer about how to set smart phones up for this, so don't really know ho I'll hande the next cruise. And I'm not talking about minute to minute contact. If I just get a little note daily that all is well I'm fine. Last time we cruised a grandson took a fall off the bleachers and emergency room and stictches happened. I was glad to know about this and grandson was glad he could tell me all his drama.

 

[nunzia]

Honestly the thing I was most referring to was sinking. :/ I have been having lots of foreboding cruise dreams lately...

oh! LOL..I'm not worried about that (and being a worrier that is a pretty big deal for me). I'm a little off about maybe a long open ocean cruise like to Hawaii or Transatlantic, but since I really hate flying a ship is my best alternative. I'm not worried about sinking so much as hitting bad seas and getting sick.

 

[ludari]

Leaving your home for 7 days, disconnected from the world, to cruise on a ship in the open sea...Do you ever get apprehensive? It's a long time to be so far away. Anything could happen.

I'm not trying to be a downer, but the thought is there in my mind as we just hit 99days til our cruise! Our last one was just a 3 day to Nassau, so not so intimidating!

I don't think you are being a downer but I have never been apprehensive when I go on vacations or on the ship and I am a solo traveller/cruiser. I've been on a vacation for a month in 2010 which included a 14-night transatlantic cruise in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean and never concerned about my travels. For me traveling is all about "Anything Could Happen" and not in a negative way. I enjoyed my 2010 trip so much that I am doing again this year and the majority of the ports are different so I am excited. Remember you only go around once so enjoy it.

 

[VS85]

I cannot be disconnected from my kids and grandkids..Yes, I know, I can't do anything, but I have to know what is going on or the fretting will ruin my experience..it is part of my mental 'stuff'. I will not go on a cruise without finding a way to check in via text or facebook or email or whatever. Before I had a smart phone it was super easy to just put in a code and then just pay per text..very economical, plus I got a small internet package that covered email and such. I have yet to find a good answer about how to set smart phones up for this, so don't really know ho I'll hande the next cruise. And I'm not talking about minute to minute contact. If I just get a little note daily that all is well I'm fine. Last time we cruised a grandson took a fall off the bleachers and emergency room and stictches happened. I was glad to know about this and grandson was glad he could tell me all his drama.

Have you heard of apps called Viber and WhatsApp? They are free to download from the iTunes Store. Viber allows you to make free phone calls to any number and WhatsApp is great for texting. They both can be used on wi-fi or cellular connections. So if you have the ship's wi-fi package, you could probably use those (depending on how reliable the ship's internet is... Others can speak to that). So talking on the phone won't make you incur any roaming charges in terms of your minutes... You'll just be using data. My mom travels overseas for extended periods of time a couple of times a year. Between Viber, WhatsApp, and FaceTime on our iPhones, we are able to stay in touch constantly.

 

[Made Up Name]

Leaving your home for 7 days, disconnected from the world, to cruise on a ship in the open sea...Do you ever get apprehensive? It's a long time to be so far away. Anything could happen.

I'm not trying to be a downer, but the thought is there in my mind as we just hit 99days til our cruise! Our last one was just a 3 day to Nassau, so not so intimidating!

You don't necessarily have to be disconnected from the world for a week. The ship has wifi for a fee and many ports have free wifi availalbe if you want it.

Heck, last year at Paradise Beach in Cozumel, I had free wifi available on the beach. I was able to check local primary election results while lounging in the sand with a cocktail in my hand. Nice!

I do share your concern that if something happens to a loved one back home, it is more difficult to deal with it while on vacation. However, that will be the case whether you are on a ship on some other type of vacation. I think these type of concerns are very understandable.

 

[Made Up Name]

Honestly the thing I was most referring to was sinking. :/ I have been having lots of foreboding cruise dreams lately...

Oh I see. Yah, that's crossed my mind before too. I can't gurantee your ship won't sink, but it probably won't happen.

Enjoy your cruse!

 

[wajones2]

Leaving your home for 7 days, disconnected from the world, to cruise on a ship in the open sea...Do you ever get apprehensive? It's a long time to be so far away. Anything could happen. I'm not trying to be a downer, but the thought is there in my mind as we just hit 99days til our cruise! Our last one was just a 3 day to Nassau, so not so intimidating!

As long as I have my kids with me, I have no worries about anything else.

 

[MnMzMoMi4LiFe]

As long as I have my kids with me, I have no worries about anything else.

Couldn't have said it better myself!!

 

[jaberwock]

I get worried about my dog that's about it. He is a big giant baby.

 

[LisaTC]

Leaving your home for 7 days, disconnected from the world, to cruise on a ship in the open sea...Do you ever get apprehensive? It's a long time to be so far away. Anything could happen.

I'm not trying to be a downer, but the thought is there in my mind as we just hit 99days til our cruise! Our last one was just a 3 day to Nassau, so not so intimidating!

Glad to find this post because I'm having major anxiety at the thought of a DCL cruise even though we've been to the world, this seems so different. I went on an Hawiian cruise long ago, but every day we were at a different island and it was no biggie...also single at the time.

Yes! I NEED that occasional week of being "disconnected" - for the sake of my sanity! When cruising I only use my smartphone or (7") tablet to access DCL's Navigator app (shipboard network only) and listen to music or read a downloaded book during my downtime - on my verandah or lounging on Deck 4. I am MOST grateful to be disconnected from the Internet, email, texting and cell.

I go a step further. I don't even watch TV when sailing, so I don't keep up with "news of the world." There is nothing to do about any of it. Why would I want to spend ANY of my cruise vacation thinking about what's happening on land? And if something were to happen at home, the situation would probably not improve in the slightest if I cut my vacation short and flew home from some island. No. I want to be UNREACHABLE and out of touch for that week!

That said, it is different if you have a situation at home that you are deeply concerned about but you are cruising anyway. In that case, you can leave the ship's number with someone for a dire emergency. If you MUST remain "connected" and not totally on vacation, you can purchase Internet time or cell access.

This isn't my worry...I need to disconnect, too, and this seems like a great avenue to do that. I never worried much about our Disney vacations, but to do the cruise creates so much more anxiety for me. My DD and DH have never been on a cruise, so they have trepidation. I guess some of it is that is is so much more expensive to cancel. I worry that we'll get sick...NORO stay clear! lol I don't know. I feel it's more of a luxury compared to just a regular WDW trip and for me, luxury = guilt. I'm terrible!

 

[MillauFr]

Isn't being on the ship far safer than being at home and having to drive your car? Do you have dreams about getting into a serious car accident? I do and drive as little as possible as a result. Maybe once or twice per week to go to Costco or church.

 

[SillyInventor]

Honestly the thing I was most referring to was sinking. :/ I have been having lots of foreboding cruise dreams lately...

Honestly that is one thing that hadn't been in my mind yet (and believe me I have a large list of things that can go wrong). Disney maintains their ships well and I trust the very experienced Captain and crew to take care of not sinking the boat.

I know this is emotion and reason will not take that emotion away, but the most dangerous part of your entire cruise will be crossing the street in front of the terminal. The chances that you are hit by a car are many factors larger than that the Ship will sink, it's just that you have become used to that risk and don't think about it. Same thing with flying. Actually being on the plane is the safest part of your entire journey.
Don't worry, the Ship will be fine and a Disney Captain will not put his ship at risk to impress some friend, living on a rock....

 

[Evil Queen 2]

No getting away from most of it is what keeps me going the rest of the time. We leave the emergency contact phone number with our son. And when they aren't with us on the cruise I tell him he is in charge of his grandparents for the week. I tell him it's practice for dealing with us later on.

I will check my email sometime during the day in case a problem has come up with any of the senior parents since they are at an age that anything can come up out of the blue. So there is always that option if you need some "here's what's happening" updates.