A Disney WONDER-ful Spring Break Cruise...Our First Cruise Trip Report!

[MeLaNie9]

Hi, we're back again after another long delay! Hopefully we can finish up so that anyone about to go on the Wonder can get some info (Thanks Hrters2WDW!!) This brings us to Day 3 - CC Day! As we reported earlier - we had big plans for the morning - our 1st ever CC 5K. Because of Nathan recovering from his broken foot (BTW he broke the same bone in his other foot in Aug just before our aforementioned WDW trip - yep we had to push him around in a wheelchair and he needed crutches to transfer, all in the Aug heat and humidity) he was not planning to run. He was planning to have a leisurely breakfast while we worked up a sweat! We met up with the other 5K-ers at 8am in Azure. We had our timing all planned out because Brett had to get his ordered breakfast in Cabanas before it closed! We headed onto the island. I have to say it really is cool to be the first ones out. Pretty soon we were at the starting line and the run began. Now, if you recall, Brett, who was on the track team, thought that he was going to school his parents in this 5K. Also, another reminder -we are NOT runners. In fact, I hate running! Well, we started off strong but it was hot even though it was early. Pretty soon we were walking. I ended up doing the whole distance in a run-walk combo. They have markers along the way and I would run from one to another then walk from one to the next, and so on. Brett...he ended up complaining a lot and walking the whole thing. With Randy. About half way through we realized that we needed to pick it up to make it back for breakfast. As we entered the home stretch - Randy and Brett decided to sprint to the end so that they could say they beat me. Nice, huh? We were very proud to get our medals and we picked up some CC 5K t-shirts before we headed back to the ship.

While they were working up a sweat, I was enjoying a nice leisurely breakfast. I headed up to Cabanas around 8:15, Mom had woken me up before they left. It was packed! I got my food and opted to sit outside to avoid the crowds. I found a table with no issue, but there were a bunch a birds that kept flying around trying to steal everyone's food. At one point one actually landed on a table where a family was eating. After that happened, I moved inside so the same would not happen to me. After I finished up, I headed back to the room and sat out on the veranda.

We headed right up to Cabanas to grab breakfast - we just made it. Afterwards, we met Nathan in the room, cleaned up a bit and changed into bathing suits to head back to the island. Nathan and I went up to the pool deck first so he could grab some lunch - he had a panini from Daisy's De Lites. Then we all headed back out to CC. Now, don't flame us, but we are not huge CC fans. On our very 1st cruise, we had done the Stingray Adventure that totally freaked Nathan out so he refuses to do that again. We have rented bikes a few times and that has been fun, although finding a good bike that is easy to pedal and set up so that its easy to use is a bit difficult. One time Brett and I did the Whale Dig which was super fun but VERY HOT because you are totally out in the open with no shade. But, now he says he's too old for that. We have definitely done the snorkeling and seen the stuff out there but sometimes the water has been frigid and there's not much to see other than the objects DCL has planted out there - not many fish. Randy doesn't swim so its just me helping both boys out there which is exhausting. Also, we are not big fans of the food on the island. They do bring allergy meals out but then they sit there until you get them so sometimes they are not hot. The regular food is just ok. So, this time we didn't spend very long on CC. Just long enough to play in the water a bit and ride some bikes. Then we headed back to the ship. Tonight was Pirate Night!

 

[MeLaNie9]

So sorry, we are having photo issues again. We will keep posting and hope to add photos in later.

So we were back on the ship and just hung out on the pool deck for a while - we had not ordered food for Brett for the island but said we would pick it up on the ship which we did. Randy and I just had some snacks on the pool deck. BTW - for the past 2 cruises Randy has had the DCL beer mug. Its a huge glass mug that you pay for up front then you get refills for a lower price than a normal beer that size would be. You can choose to take the glass mug home or just a token to bring back when you sail again. So, he actually has 2 - one glass mug that sits at home and a token that he takes onto the ships. He likes the coin, but really wanted a mug also, then ultimately didn't want to lug it back and forth on vacation! That's how we ended up with 2 (I think it was also under the guise of getting one for me, but I could never drink a beer that large fast enough for it not to be totally warm!) We relaxed a bit then got ready for dinner while Nathan took in the "Hector is Magic" show.

Pirate Night has never been our favorite dinner menu, however I think they have really improved it over time. We used to do Palo on Pirate Night but not on our past couple of cruises because of the changes to the menu.

Nathan had the "Boucanier" smoked saucisson, baked brie, brioche and honey appetizer which was like a savory bread pudding with sausage and cheese, this was one of the best things I had all cruise, then the chilled mango soup, wasn't bad, and the strip loin with Yorkshire pudding,nothing special but a solid choice.

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For dessert, he had the Bananas in Paradise, this was really good too. It tasted like a Reese's cup with banana bread.

I had the samosas (I love samosas) and the shrimp cocktail, then Cortes's cilantro marinated Caribbean grouper filet with a crab-filled arepa.

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This was also really good. For dessert, I had a Mickey bar - I couldn't find anything on the Pirate dessert menu that I wanted.

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Brett had salad and a special order of the Shanghaied noodle stir fry - this is normally vegetarian but they put chicken on it for him.

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For dessert, he had the spice cake he requested that he has had on a number of cruises in the past.

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It WAS his favorite dessert on DCL until the mousse from the previous night happened!

Randy had the shrimp cocktail and the wedge salad. For dinner he had the lamb shank and then the rum soaked chocolate cake.

Brett and Dad with our assistant server, Christina.​

I don't know that I've actually ever been to the Pirate deck party or seen the fireworks from the upper decks - I always watch them from the room/balcony. Most of the time Brett is with me because he gets so tired by that time on cruises. And, he often is asleep in his bunk by the time the fireworks actually start! This was what Brett and I did this time around too. Nathan went to the deck party with the Edge group and then the Pirate buffet after the fireworks. We actually did not even know this existed until recently. I guess it has turkey legs and desserts and some other stuff! I had some desserts, but I didn't really enjoy them as much I think I would've as I was still pretty full from dinner. I think that from now on, if I plan to go to the buffet, I will skip at least one course at dinner, if not more.

 

[MeLaNie9]

Note to self and any other non-runners thinking of doing the CC 5K "cold" (without any preparation): Don't do it!! I was so sore when I woke up the next day. I mean, walking gingerly and looking like a fool! Of course, I remained this way for a couple of days afterwards!

The last full day of the cruise was a day at sea. On our last Spring Break cruise, we had tried Palo brunch and really loved it. My absolute favorite is the almond croissants! I had been dreaming about them for a year! We had scheduled Palo brunch for this day but before that,we took the boys up to breakfast at Cabanas.

Randy and I then headed to Palo while Brett and Nathan went to Edge then to see Moana. At Palo, we enjoyed mimosas and the buffet which has the pastries, cheese (including a huge Parm wheel), seafood, salads, and other appetizers. We ordered chicken parmesan to share, pennette pasta with smoked salmon and spinach for me and lasagna for Randy. The chicken parm was good as always, the smoked salmon pasta was a new choice for me and was ok - I'm not usually a big fan of white/cream pasta sauces. Randy really liked the lasagna. In 2 Palo brunches we have not ever gotten any breakfast foods (pancakes/waffles). I am not a breakfast-food-eater and Randy prefers to not "waste" his stomach space with breakfast food when at Palo! Desserts are on the buffet as well. Really, the almond croissant was part of my appetizer and my dessert! So good!!

 

[BlvInMagic]

Following along .... as a soon to be first time cruiser, I'm really enjoying your TR

 

[Harters2WDW]

Best tips for the Wonder?

 

[MeLaNie9]

We all met up again and decided again to split up - this time Nathan and I decided to go to lunch in Triton's while Brett and Randy got Brett's food at Cabanas.
Because I had the huge brunch, I only ordered the salmon tartare.

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Nathan had the lamb leg, pretty good, and the warm apple fritters for dessert, this was really good and I would like to see it come to a dinner menu.


When we were done, I was supposed to stop at the future cruise desk. It wasn't open but we were just in time for the Jack-Jack's Incredible Diaper Dash. This is always so cute and fun to watch!


In the afternoon, we decided to all go together to see Beauty and the Beast. So twice in one cruise for Brett and me!! He must have secretly really liked the movie to be willing to do this . This was the showing in the Walt Disney Theatre as opposed to the usual spot for movies, the Buena Vista Theatre. Afterwards, we each did our own thing - me back to future cruise desk, Brett and Randy to the Sports Deck, Nathan to Edge. I ended up booking on board - always a good plan if you can find a cruise that does not have onboard booking black out (usually during holidays) because you get 10% off the future cruise. We had tried to make some plans for this...My parents 50th wedding anniversary was to be Dec 23, 2017. We actually found a cruise that left on Dec 20 and returned on Dec 24th that was not an onboard booking black out. A Disney cruise had been a suggestion by one of my brothers to celebrate their anniversary so we had researched it and posed it to my parents and my other brother. Unfortunately, my other brother said there was no way they could afford it. My dad really didn't want to go (he and my mom had done an Alaskan cruise on Holland and I don't think he really liked being cooped up on a boat, plus he's an old guy stuck in his ways and really not too interested in trying something new) and my mom didn't seem enthused either (She had come with me and Brett on a 3-day Dream cruise and really should have spent her time in the Adult pool area but didn't want to be by herself, but then complained a lot about how loud and hectic it was in the Family area). I had also figured out that we could only book 2 rooms with the discount. So everyone else backed out on the plan but I still booked that cruise for us only while on board. I guess it worked out ok, because my brother's wife then got pregnant and they wouldn't have gone anyways because they had a brand new baby at Christmastime!! And...we ended up moving this cruise anyways to Aug 2018. However, we still want to be on a Very Merrytime cruise someday!


Brett and Nathan decided to see the show together that night - Disney Dreams. Randy and I went to see Moana which was good. Then we met up again for dinner - tonight we were in the new Tiana's Place.

Tiana's Place is really a lot of fun. They have a jazz band that plays and sings and there is a Mardi Gras parade and the kids menus are shaped like instruments to "play" in the parade - Brett's was a saxophone which Brett "played" during the dinner fun. Saxophone also happens to be what he plays in the school band! Louie the alligator comes out for the parade. Tiana then comes around to the tables to greet everyone at her restaurant.

We really liked this restaurant!

The bread service was an herbed brioche with a roasted onion dip (Brett got his usual dairy free bread and butter)

I had the shrimp and grits appetizer (shrimp and grits may be my absolute favorite dish in the world!) and the ahi tuna tartare (it has pine nuts and mango on top)
For my entree, I had the warm water lobster salad with avocado, butternut squash, fennel, endive, grapefruit, jicama, hazelnuts and a citrus dressing. This is from the lighter note offerings. I have no idea what possessed me to order this. I did not like it. The butternut squash was huge and hard and just not good. Oh well....


Nathan had boudin sausage fritters, this was delicious and I would definitely order it again, the Mama Odie's creamy tomato soup, normal tomato soup, and the roasted creole half chicken, wasn't a huge fan. My favorite part was the corn bread pudding on the side.

Brett had specially made dairy free sausage fritters and loved them. He then had the bucatini pasta made special with just what he wanted in it.

Randy had the New Orleans Pepper Pot, the wedge salad, and the pork tenderloin with rice on andouille sausage stew.


For desserts:
Brett - they brought him BOTH his old favorite, the spice cake, and his new favorite, the mango mousse with blueberries. He was in heaven!

I had the pecan nut tart (very good)

Nathan had the white chocolate bread pudding, amazing!

Randy had the chocolate gateau.
And we (minus Brett) shared an order of the beignets!! (Yummy)

That night, the boys went back to Edge while Randy and I sadly packed up our room for disembarkation day

 

[MeLaNie9]

We forgot to mention something way back:
They changed up what they do with the navigators...Only the 1st day had the full multi-page navigator. Each day after that they gave out only the insert page that has the day's schedule of activities on one side and the hours of operation for everything on the other side.

 

[MeLaNie9]

Pictures to come for these last posts!

 

[Sunshine2U]

Great report! We're doing this cruise next February. We were on the Wonder on our very first DCL cruise WAY back when.

 

[MeLaNie9]

Sadly, the next day was disembarkation day We had packed most of our luggage up and left it outside our door for us to get in the terminal. The rest you have to bring with you to breakfast because once you leave your room, you aren't supposed to go back.
One other huge benefit of the late dinner seating is that you have a later breakfast on disembarkation day and you don't have to get up at the crack of dawn. I have heard that you can also eat in Cabanas on disembarkation day, but we have never done this because of Brett's allergy and needing to be in the MDR to get his pre-ordered breakfast.
Choices for this breakfast are limited and since I'm not a breakfast person and I don't eat eggs (almost everything has eggs with it on the menu), I don't really enjoy this too much. But, got to eat something, especially since we were going right to the airport. So, I had the For a Sweet Journey with pancakes. Nathan and Randy had the Route 66 - scrambled eggs, sausage, eggs, bacon, ham, hashbrowns. Brett had some corned beef hash, bacon, and fruit.
Too soon, we were heading out of Tiana's Place to the atrium and off the ship....we had transportation via Anthony Hinds again to MCO. Our 2017 Spring Break had come to an end

 

[MeLaNie9]

Since then, we took our summer vacation in WDW. This was just after Nathan's baseball team's trip to Cooperstown where he broke his foot. We stayed at Poly which is our home resort and had a wheelchair delivered there from a wheelchair/scooter company and he used crutches to transfer. It was hot and sweaty, especially pushing around a 160-lb 13-year old! We REALLY loved the new Pandora and especially the Flight of Passage ride (awesome) and the food at Santu'li Canteen. We could have done without Na'vi River Journey but the whole place really is amazing.

Right now we are gearing up for our 2018 Spring Break cruise - we are doing the 7-night Western Caribbean with Star Wars Day at Sea on the Fantasy. We will be staying at AKL for 2 nights beforehand. We are SO excited about this as we are HUGE Star Wars fans... I am trying to decide between taking my Princess Leia costume (complete with buns wig) or my Last Jedi Rey costume! We are working on our FE gifts as I type this. We are also excited because one of Brett's classmates and his family are on the cruise with us! We will be doing the early dinner seating and sitting with them.

Great news is that in November, Brett decided he wanted to do a milk challenge again to see if he had outgrown his FPIES. His last challenge was when he was 5 and he failed soundly. He has to be admitted to the Pediatric ICU in case of reaction, have an IV in place, drink milk and then wait. His usual reaction happens at about 2 hrs after the ingestion. Randy and I weren't too optimistic, but I guess Brett knows more than we do! HE PASSED!!!!!!Now he can eat whatever he wants and has been enjoying chocolate, mac n cheese, and more! He's so excited to order right off the menu on the Fantasy.

I mentioned we booked a December cruise on board and then moved it to Aug 2018. We are just getting to working out the details of this trip - Nathan just got accepted to his high school of choice and so we had to wait for that and check out that school's 2018-19 calendar for timing. We will be going to Universal Orlando (Nathan's choice - he's an enormous Harry Potter fan) and then on the Dream for a 4 night Bahamian cruise.

Finally, as soon as the early 2019 itineraries came out, we booked a 2019 Spring Break cruise - the 7-night Mexican Riviera cruise from San Diego on the Wonder. However, once we saw Nathan's school calendar, we realized that we aren't going to be able to do this...the dates are not his Spring Break but they are Brett's. So... we're not quite sure what to do about this one. Right now we are waiting for the summer 2019 itineraries to possibly move it.

I'm not sure we have any Wonder-specific tips, but we do have things that we have learned over our trips on DCL:
1) We really love to have aft staterooms. On the Dream and Fantasy, we try to get on the very back of the ship. In fact, in a few weeks, we will be in the exact same stateroom on the Fantasy (8188) that we were in on our 2016 cruise. There may be a bit more movement here when the ship is really moving, however the huge balcony with real lounge chairs really makes up for any of that! In 2016, I spent an entire afternoon laying in the sun and reading on the balcony and it was heavenly! It's also fun to sit on the big balcony when backing into the ports. When you are aft, you are also just stairs away from Cabanas which is really convenient. On the Wonder and Magic, we like to be aft and starboard. With sleepy Brett, I have watched the Pirate fireworks from our starboard room many times!
2) Grab a drink cup and a spoon and use for the soft serve if you're not a cone person (like me).
3) See if your kids are able to go into Edge even if they are just below the age range (if they want to do this). Nathan was able to one year early and so was Brett this time. Once Nathan gets on board, we hardly see him. He LOVES Edge and the activities. I have a feeling that we won't see much of Brett and his friend this time around! I'm kind of looking forward to it though because Randy and I will try a few more adults only activities this time. (Watch out, I've been practicing my 80s music trivia!!!!)
4) You can carry alcohol on. We have done this only a few times. We are not wine drinkers but we have each carried on a 6-pack of beer before. If you are a big beer drinker, consider the beer mug/token.
5) Do late dinner if your family/travel partners can. It is way less hectic than the early seating and the shows that run during the early seating are significantly less crowded than the late shows. Also, during early dinner is a great time to use the pools and the Aqua Duck. We have ended up with late dinner usually because of late booking, but we have also chosen it before. Brett doesn't love it because of how tired he gets by that time, but the rest of us really prefer late dinner.
6) Try some new on board activities (or CC activities). I mentioned the Family Whale Dig on CC. Despite it being very hot, we thought it was great when we did it that 1st time. Then we did it on our next cruise because we had so much fun. Brett and I also did origami on our 2016 cruise and that was surprisingly awesome - I hope we will do that again. We have also gone to some of the trivia games.
7) You can stop and grab food and drinks from Cabanas or the pool deck and take it to the movies. You will have to pay for snacks and drinks if you buy them outside the theatre. We also buy the kids a bunch of candy boxes (like you buy at a movie theater) at Walmart before our trip and they take those to the movies.
8) Cabanas is so much better than the old Wonder buffet. In the old buffet you really did have to line up outside, get your tray, and then shuffle through the line behind the person in front of you. It was a pain to try to go get seconds of something. In Cabanas, you can just go up to any spot you want to - you don't have to start at the very end and follow through all of the choices.
9) THE RAINFOREST ROOM. You can buy yourself a pass before you go on the cruise (or once you are on the cruise). I did this and even sent it to myself in the stateroom with a message from myself saying "You deserve it!"

 

[tink1970]

Great news is that in November, Brett decided he wanted to do a milk challenge again to see if he had outgrown his FPIES. His last challenge was when he was 5 and he failed soundly. He has to be admitted to the Pediatric ICU in case of reaction, have an IV in place, drink milk and then wait. His usual reaction happens at about 2 hrs after the ingestion. Randy and I weren't too optimistic, but I guess Brett knows more than we do! HE PASSED!!!!!!Now he can eat whatever he wants and has been enjoying chocolate, mac n cheese, and more! He's so excited to order right off the menu on the Fantasy.

Congrats! Allergies can be such a drag...my brother had milk and egg allergies when he was young-so horrible when I'd accidentally grab his soy milk vice my regular . I, the loving older sister would request an angel food cake for my bday (which I don't even like that much) just so I didn't have to share. Oh...the love...happily he has outgrown both and eats everything although doesn't love the texture of eggs. So glad Brett can have a major food group (chocolate ) now!

Right now we are gearing up for our 2018 Spring Break cruise - we are doing the 7-night Western Caribbean with Star Wars Day at Sea on the Fantasy. We will be staying at AKL for 2 nights beforehand. We are SO excited about this as we are HUGE Star Wars fans... I am trying to decide between taking my Princess Leia costume (complete with buns wig) or my Last Jedi Rey costume! We are working on our FE gifts as I type this. We are also excited because one of Brett's classmates and his family are on the cruise with us! We will be doing the early dinner seating and sitting with them.

That sounds fun and I'm totally jealous of the buns wig...now I want to go hunting on amazon for that!

all of the choices.
9) THE RAINFOREST ROOM. You can buy yourself a pass before you go on the cruise (or once you are on the cruise). I did this and even sent it to myself in the stateroom with a message from myself saying "You deserve it!"

Love love love the rainforest! You do deserve it!

Have fun on spring break!!

 

[MeLaNie9]

Thanks tink1970 for hanging in for this drawn out report. Nathan still has to post pictures from the last day but he is busy with homework and such!!

 

[tink1970]

he is busy with homework and such!

Totally get it; my DD is a junior in high school and there would NEVER be any photos posted

Hope y'all can find a good time to sail in '19!