Cast: me, DW, DS (7)
Rather than give you a day to day account, Ill report by topics.
Room: We stayed in 5524 (secret porthole stateroom) which is an adjoining room with 5522 (where my sister-in-law and her daughter stayed). Our room was very nice and provided more than enough room for the 3 of us. The view out of the porthole was somewhat restricted by life raft canisters and structure framing, but still provided a decent view of the ocean and sky.
Food: The food ranged from very good to excellent. We discovered early on that our waiters (Adrian from Romania) suggestion was the hot tip. Hint: Dont be afraid to try something different! Service from Adrian and Giana (Assistant waiter) were excellent. We liked all three rotating restaurants, but were partial to Lumieres. We ate at Palos for brunch and dinner. If you have the opportunity to eat there, definitely dont miss it. The food and service there were outstanding to say the least.
Ship: The Disney Magic was absolutely beautiful. The crewmembers are constantly cleaning and polishing the ship.
Reservations: Everyone has their game plan on this subject. Heres what we did first Palos to schedule dinner and brunch, second my wife signed up at the spa while I filled out the shore excursion form and waited for the staff to put out the form box. Everything worked out as planned for us. Note: Opening times may change from cruise to cruise, but whatever time the Navigator says, you can bet itll open 10-15 minutes early; it did for us. And finally third, get the kids checked into the kids club and receive a pager.
Seasickness: Both by wife and myself took Bonine once a day. Felt fine the whole 7 days! Even had a few drinks too! Worst sea condition was 8-12ft swells with fresh gale force winds.
Spa: My DW went through the tour and signed up for a hairstyle and manicure. She was very pleased with the service as well as the staff.
Shutters (photo store): Get ready here! The ships photographers are everywhere. From the time you first come aboard to posing for pictures at the last night, they snap a lot of pictures (especially of the kids!). You cant help from buying a few pictures from here; the kids look great especially dressed up. Pictures come in only 2 sizes: 6x8 and 8x10. Prices are 9.95 and 19.95, respectively. They do offer a discount package (punch card) in a set of 5 or 10, which will knock off a buck per picture.
Shows: All were entertaining. Like others have said, dont miss the Disney Dreams show. Also, dont miss the cabaret shows, we had some very funny comedy acts.
Laundry Room: The closest laundry room to us was on deck 6, starboard side (r/h), mid-aft. It was always being used every time we walked by to check to see if a machine was open. I think it had 4 or 5 stackable washer/dryer units in there. The only laundry soap available in the dispenser was either Tide or Cheer (I think). I only know that the dye, perfume free type of soap was not available. Hint: If you need to use a free type soap, bring pre-measured scoops in baggies. Cost of using the machines are $1.00 each (washer and dryer). Quarters are available at Guest Services.
St. Maarten: This was the first Island stop (Tuesday). We took the Butterfly Farm tour through Disney. It was a fun and informative excursion. You only stay on the farm for about 45 minutes, then the tour bus takes you to the French side for a 1 hour stop at an open-air market to shop. Our driver stopped at a scenic overlook to take pictures. He then drove into the downtown shopping district and gave us the option of getting off or go back to the ship; which is about a 30 minute walk back or $3 per person for a taxi ride.
Overall, this was a nice Island to visit. The people we encountered were nice and friendly.
St. Thomas: This is the second Island stop (Wednesday). We signed up for the Atlantis Submarine tour through Disney. After a short walk from the ship, you board a boat that takes you out for about 15 minutes to where the submarine is. You then climb down several steps into the submarine. Each seat has a porthole window for viewing. The sub tour guide explains about the many type of fish that is visible through the window. Our sub submerged to a depth of 86 feet. The kids got a kick out of it. The actual time in the sub was about 45 minutes. At the conclusion of the excursion, you are ushered to a bus/tram to their gift shop (about a 3 minute ride) if you wish to receive a free submarine ride certificate. We did, but only got the certificates and headed back to the ship (made the walk back a little further, but not too bad). We took a taxi (again $3 per person, one way) back into downtown (about a 5 to 10 minute ride, depending on traffic, and yes, theres a lot of it!) for some shopping. Had several locals approach us for hair braiding, but just replied with a polite, No thank you.. Like St. Maarten, the people were friendly.
Castaway Cay (pronounced, key): This was by far the most scenic and tranquil Island compared to the other two. Like many others have mentioned, its true that if you want an umbrella spot or hammock near the water, you must hurry down to the beach as soon as the ship lets you disembark. I found it quicker to walk to the beach (from the ship) compared to the tram. The tram wont depart until it fills up with people, and that can take a while. Itll take around 5 minutes to get to the family beach at a brisk pace. Its tough, but once you secure your spot, you can relax! We did the bike rental excursion. This turned out to be a very nice outing. There are many bikes available so dont worry about the scheduled time on your ticket.
They have kids bikes (16 inch with or without training wheels), bigger kids bikes (18 inch), and adult bikes, all Mongoose brand. The bike trail is relatively flat with no hills. About half the trail is paved and the other half on packed dirt. A water station is placed half way and again at the end of the bike trails (which ends at a scenic beach). They have 2 different types of floats available, a long blue laydown type and a clear donut type with handles. Tried and liked them both. A large bar and gift shop are nearby the family beach along with Cookies BBQ where youll have lunch at. I saw some folk on watercrafts (Yamaha Waverunner XL models: 3 seaters) and some others on a banana boat inflatable being pulled by the Waverunner. The main beach area was divided into 3 sections; boats (including paddle), snorkeling, and swimming. This Island was fantastic!
Tips: We brought our 2 way radios with us. They came in handy on Castaway Cay, but the reception was moderate to poor on the ship.
We brought a lot of 2 dollar bills to hand out for tips for the baggage handlers, cocktail hostesses, bartenders, room service deliverer, taxi drivers, tour driver operators, etc. Note: All bar tabs include a 15 percent gratuity, but we usually gave a 2 dollar bill for good service. As you can imagine, they go pretty quick. 2 dollar bills a bit of a novelty; the people receiving them will appreciate them. For us here, you can go to any bank and get as many 2 dollar bills as you want. We got $100 dollars worth.
Fill up your water bottle(s) at the 24hr beverage station (deck 9 aft) the night before you disembark to an island and put them in your in-room cooler, that way theyll be cold in the morning.
If you have kids, you can have their Key to the World card hole punched by Guest Services so they can be attached to a neck lanyard so they cant lose it.
Dont bring your room towels to the pools, they have these big wooden boxes placed next to each pool that have plenty of clean pool towels, also a bin to place used ones.
And most importantly, HAVE FUN!
Rather than give you a day to day account, Ill report by topics.
Room: We stayed in 5524 (secret porthole stateroom) which is an adjoining room with 5522 (where my sister-in-law and her daughter stayed). Our room was very nice and provided more than enough room for the 3 of us. The view out of the porthole was somewhat restricted by life raft canisters and structure framing, but still provided a decent view of the ocean and sky.
Food: The food ranged from very good to excellent. We discovered early on that our waiters (Adrian from Romania) suggestion was the hot tip. Hint: Dont be afraid to try something different! Service from Adrian and Giana (Assistant waiter) were excellent. We liked all three rotating restaurants, but were partial to Lumieres. We ate at Palos for brunch and dinner. If you have the opportunity to eat there, definitely dont miss it. The food and service there were outstanding to say the least.
Ship: The Disney Magic was absolutely beautiful. The crewmembers are constantly cleaning and polishing the ship.
Reservations: Everyone has their game plan on this subject. Heres what we did first Palos to schedule dinner and brunch, second my wife signed up at the spa while I filled out the shore excursion form and waited for the staff to put out the form box. Everything worked out as planned for us. Note: Opening times may change from cruise to cruise, but whatever time the Navigator says, you can bet itll open 10-15 minutes early; it did for us. And finally third, get the kids checked into the kids club and receive a pager.
Seasickness: Both by wife and myself took Bonine once a day. Felt fine the whole 7 days! Even had a few drinks too! Worst sea condition was 8-12ft swells with fresh gale force winds.
Spa: My DW went through the tour and signed up for a hairstyle and manicure. She was very pleased with the service as well as the staff.
Shutters (photo store): Get ready here! The ships photographers are everywhere. From the time you first come aboard to posing for pictures at the last night, they snap a lot of pictures (especially of the kids!). You cant help from buying a few pictures from here; the kids look great especially dressed up. Pictures come in only 2 sizes: 6x8 and 8x10. Prices are 9.95 and 19.95, respectively. They do offer a discount package (punch card) in a set of 5 or 10, which will knock off a buck per picture.
Shows: All were entertaining. Like others have said, dont miss the Disney Dreams show. Also, dont miss the cabaret shows, we had some very funny comedy acts.
Laundry Room: The closest laundry room to us was on deck 6, starboard side (r/h), mid-aft. It was always being used every time we walked by to check to see if a machine was open. I think it had 4 or 5 stackable washer/dryer units in there. The only laundry soap available in the dispenser was either Tide or Cheer (I think). I only know that the dye, perfume free type of soap was not available. Hint: If you need to use a free type soap, bring pre-measured scoops in baggies. Cost of using the machines are $1.00 each (washer and dryer). Quarters are available at Guest Services.
St. Maarten: This was the first Island stop (Tuesday). We took the Butterfly Farm tour through Disney. It was a fun and informative excursion. You only stay on the farm for about 45 minutes, then the tour bus takes you to the French side for a 1 hour stop at an open-air market to shop. Our driver stopped at a scenic overlook to take pictures. He then drove into the downtown shopping district and gave us the option of getting off or go back to the ship; which is about a 30 minute walk back or $3 per person for a taxi ride.
Overall, this was a nice Island to visit. The people we encountered were nice and friendly.
St. Thomas: This is the second Island stop (Wednesday). We signed up for the Atlantis Submarine tour through Disney. After a short walk from the ship, you board a boat that takes you out for about 15 minutes to where the submarine is. You then climb down several steps into the submarine. Each seat has a porthole window for viewing. The sub tour guide explains about the many type of fish that is visible through the window. Our sub submerged to a depth of 86 feet. The kids got a kick out of it. The actual time in the sub was about 45 minutes. At the conclusion of the excursion, you are ushered to a bus/tram to their gift shop (about a 3 minute ride) if you wish to receive a free submarine ride certificate. We did, but only got the certificates and headed back to the ship (made the walk back a little further, but not too bad). We took a taxi (again $3 per person, one way) back into downtown (about a 5 to 10 minute ride, depending on traffic, and yes, theres a lot of it!) for some shopping. Had several locals approach us for hair braiding, but just replied with a polite, No thank you.. Like St. Maarten, the people were friendly.
Castaway Cay (pronounced, key): This was by far the most scenic and tranquil Island compared to the other two. Like many others have mentioned, its true that if you want an umbrella spot or hammock near the water, you must hurry down to the beach as soon as the ship lets you disembark. I found it quicker to walk to the beach (from the ship) compared to the tram. The tram wont depart until it fills up with people, and that can take a while. Itll take around 5 minutes to get to the family beach at a brisk pace. Its tough, but once you secure your spot, you can relax! We did the bike rental excursion. This turned out to be a very nice outing. There are many bikes available so dont worry about the scheduled time on your ticket.
They have kids bikes (16 inch with or without training wheels), bigger kids bikes (18 inch), and adult bikes, all Mongoose brand. The bike trail is relatively flat with no hills. About half the trail is paved and the other half on packed dirt. A water station is placed half way and again at the end of the bike trails (which ends at a scenic beach). They have 2 different types of floats available, a long blue laydown type and a clear donut type with handles. Tried and liked them both. A large bar and gift shop are nearby the family beach along with Cookies BBQ where youll have lunch at. I saw some folk on watercrafts (Yamaha Waverunner XL models: 3 seaters) and some others on a banana boat inflatable being pulled by the Waverunner. The main beach area was divided into 3 sections; boats (including paddle), snorkeling, and swimming. This Island was fantastic!
Tips: We brought our 2 way radios with us. They came in handy on Castaway Cay, but the reception was moderate to poor on the ship.
We brought a lot of 2 dollar bills to hand out for tips for the baggage handlers, cocktail hostesses, bartenders, room service deliverer, taxi drivers, tour driver operators, etc. Note: All bar tabs include a 15 percent gratuity, but we usually gave a 2 dollar bill for good service. As you can imagine, they go pretty quick. 2 dollar bills a bit of a novelty; the people receiving them will appreciate them. For us here, you can go to any bank and get as many 2 dollar bills as you want. We got $100 dollars worth.
Fill up your water bottle(s) at the 24hr beverage station (deck 9 aft) the night before you disembark to an island and put them in your in-room cooler, that way theyll be cold in the morning.
If you have kids, you can have their Key to the World card hole punched by Guest Services so they can be attached to a neck lanyard so they cant lose it.
Dont bring your room towels to the pools, they have these big wooden boxes placed next to each pool that have plenty of clean pool towels, also a bin to place used ones.
And most importantly, HAVE FUN!
