That was a jam packed day! That sucks that the gym had no ventilation. That sounds like my high school weight room.
The gingerbread house making looks like so much fun! You guys did pretty good too.
I've heard so many things about Palo on the ships. Glad you had a nice meal there.
That sucks that the mixology class wasn't very good. The baby racing looks like a lot of fun to watch!
Looks like you finished the night off with a decent meal. The strawberry shortcake sundae looks really good.
Yeah that dinner was better than I expected! Especially the strawberry shortcake.
Wow! You guys did a lot on your at sea day. Sounds like lots of fun, but the mixology class does sound a little disappointing. I would definitely have enjoyed getting to mix my own drinks more, but, hey, now you know.
That brunch buffet looks AMAZING!! Yummy.
I gotta say that duck confit does not look very appetizing. I do love lamb though, so I'm glad the Mr. A enjoyed his and your steak looks yummy.
Mixology is always a toss-up...I think of the 6 times I have done it, I've only ever gotten a full line-up of drinks I liked once (which is probably okay because that's a LOT of booze!).
I highly recommend skipping the duck confit and NOT skipping Palo brunch if/when you go on your first
Disney cruise!
I love ALL of your trip reports, your writing/storytelling is outstanding! But, it is a love/hate kind of thing, they just make me want to book another cruise or sign up for another challenge run.
Thank you! I'm sorry for your bank account.
Palo brunch is our favorite as well. We "just" got off the Halloween on the High Seas cruise on the Magic in October and thought it was weird to see the CMs load up the plates for the guests. The only time we had seen it before, even on the newer ships, was when the seas were a little bit rough so we declined when they offered to help. So I guess they have updated that procedure.
I can't wait to read the rest of your cruise report (and hopefully one on your upcoming Dopey)
Ah, I didn't know they did that at all on the classic ships - I thought it was split between the newer and older ships. The funny thing is that after a couple of cruises with the CMs loading the plates for us, I thought it was so weird that they didn't do it for us this time!
Thanks for reading!
I think your gingerbread house looks great! And what a busy day! If I ever got DH on a Disney cruise I doubt he would be up for doing so much stuff - he thinks he needs to relax on vacation! Silly man! Your cruise looks like so much fun! I have only been on one cruise, a long time ago, on Royal Caribbean, I think, and I was seasick the whole time. So I am torn! I want to do a Disney cruise but don't want to be sick the whole time! All your awesome pics make it so tempting though!
Don't worry, we made up for the busy day with a lazy one!
I will say, this cruise was one where I think we felt the motion the most out of the 6 I have done and the 4 he has done...I'm wondering if maybe because it's a smaller ship? The worst one was our Fantasy cruise last summer, but I think that was just rough waters...otherwise the cruises have been pretty good. We're always aware of the motion but it's not enough to get sick. What time of year was your cruise? We pretty much always go in the summer (this one was an exception) so maybe that's just the time of year for smoother waters?
What an awesome TR so far! I love how you make the most of every moment and give us all the juicy details (good and bad).
That stinks that the gym is no good on the Magic - I was pretty underwhelmed by the one on the Dream as well but that sounds worse! I found that multiple repetitive laps on the jogging deck was better than the TM in that hole of a gym!
Oh Palo - SO good! We had dinner in Palo on our cruise and it is still the best meal of our lives!
Thanks for taking us all along with you on your trip!
Thanks! See, I thought I'd love the jogging track, but I tried it on the Dream a couple of years ago and hated it! I thought it was boring, too, and I kept losing track of my laps!
We LOVE Palo - couldn't choose between brunch or dinner, so we always do both!
I love your gingerbread house! It may not be the fanciest thing ever, but I think it's super cute!
THEY HAVE A BABY RACE??? That alone might be worth the cost of cruising. That's adorable.
Dinner looks great! I'm sorry to hear that the duck confit was a disappointment, but oh well. At least you ended the meal with an awesome sundae ... that's probably the best way to end any meal.
Overall, it sounds like a fun (& busy!) sea day!
Thanks! Yes, the baby race was hilarious. Most of the time the babies just sat there, but there were a couple that actually crawled the entire way! And then they seemed surprised and confused by all of the cheering
The duck was just weird...that's the best way I can describe it!
Joining in for your trip report! It sounds like you had a great time and wow, you really squeezed in a lot on your at-sea day. I love the idea of the Merrytime cruises - as a huge Christmas person, this is right up my alley. Reading this is making me really want to do another Disney cruise. My Dad, sisters and I did our first this past summer (Alaska on the Wonder) and had an amazing time. We'd all love to experience another ship and another location (although I would totally do Alaska again - it was incredible).
Yeah, I love Christmas too...and the funny thing is that the ginderbread house making is the only special Christmas activity we actually did! They had the tree lighting, Santa, storytelling, etc. and we just never made it to any of those things.
Alaska is on our radar...I was actually just pricing out Alaskan cruises last night but we haven't booked anything. I'm not sure when, but I think we both want to go to Alaska next!
And I have to comment on you mentioning Jamesy - he was the "adult entertainment" host on our cruise on the Wonder and we adored him! We did a lot of trivia in the bars/lounges and he was in almost every one of them. We heard a lot of his jokes multiple times, but he cracked us up. He must have gotten relocated when the Wonder went through dry dock.
Yes! I realized afterward that it's Jamesy, not Jamey. This was the only time we saw him and he was hilarious!!
Great report so far! DH and I aren't cruisers (we tried, and we just can't, totally our issue not anyone else's) but you make this sound amazing! The onboard activities sound fun! I'm really excited you got to see Tangled, because that would be the reason why I'd even do a
DCL cruise, it's one of my favorites. Sorry to hear that The Snuggly Duckling wasn't up to par, though, it sounds like you made the most of the situation!
Thanks! I didn't think we would be cruises either, but we totally love it. It is so relaxing!!
Tangled was good...I think the shows are okay for the mostpart, but I would see that one again.
Girl...Key West is my JAM! I've been going there quite regularly for 20+ years (went to college in Miami, it was 3 hours away, do the math) and definitely get off Duval Street! It's great for wandering around and bar-hopping, but Key West is so much more. Turtle Kraals, Schooner Wharf, Louies' Backyard, Blue Heaven (to die for breakfast with the chickens!), so many others. Glad you had a good time, though. Key lime pie is the best! I'm actually a key lime pie/mojito connoisseur and I will tell you that Kelly's (owned by Kelly McGillis) on Caroline Street has some really good pie AND a martini with the same theme. It's really great. Also, just FYI for those who might be heading to WDW soon, Publix (grocery store) actually makes a really great key lime pie (and a mango version if you want a less tart pie), and there's a Publix really close to property on Osceola Parkway, east of Shingle Creek.
Also, when in Key West (and I realize you couldn't have done this due to cruise time) there is a really fantastic drag show at a club called Aqua. We had a great time there a few years ago, and Christian Slater was even there. What?! Anyway, fun times. Hemingway House is wonderful (they have a resident polydactyl cat population, really great story there), as is the lighthouse across the street, Truman's house, and Fort Zachary Taylor and beaches. We usually stay at the Westin (nee Hilton) on Mallory Square there, and our view of the water has been obstructed by the cruise ships in the past.
I'm seriously going to save this post in a Word document to refer to if we go back to Key West.
What even with an Irish mojito? What the what? No. Just no. Very interested to read more about your adventures in Nassau!
Gah, I don't know. When she was describing it I thought it had potential, but it was a big nope for me.
I hate to disappoint you...but we did not get off the ship in Nassau!
All caught up! Thanks for writing this, it's a fun way to spend part of my holiday break.
Yay! Thanks for reading.