DAY 1
It was a great sudden trip. enjoyed to the core. Though the boarding is mentioned as 330 pm, we were there by 1 pm directly from the airport.Have the tags labelled and ready and you can drop your luggage outside before you even head inside. The security check is cool and they will not restrict for water, liquids or any such. You will head to the boarding pass area where you actually "checkin" and you will get a watch for the kids (which needs to be returned at the end of the trip or they charge $20 for it) if you have registered online before hand for the kids to enter the Oceaneer club that hold activities for kids aged 3-12. They have similar activity clubs for older kids too. There is a nursery that with a minimum charge that takes in toddlers and infants. It was not fancy or anything. We decided to have our toddler with us all the time. Back to the boarding area, this is the time to wear your disney tees if you have any as there is a great photo opportunity when you are about to board the ship. As were quite early, we were told to head upstairs to the dining area "Cabanas" that has become our staple option for breakfast and lunch with various buffet options. We had our disney tees inside our checkin luggage.Thankfully, that arrived before the welcome aboard party that happens on the top floor as soon as the ship departs from the port.
Higlights -
1)They announce your names as your embark the ship. Have video ready to record if you would like to.
2) Before embarking would be the best time to dress in your disney tees. It would be a grand welcome.
3) You can link your credit card to your room card/account and all that you need to carry would be your room card.
4) Some of the passengers got neck tags to which they strung the room card just you would do for an ID card so you can keep your hands and pockets free
5)Notify your host or call the front desk and let the host know if you would like to have the bunk bed hoisted for the kids and they will set it up instead of just setting up the sofa bed.
6) Arriving every night to a bed made up with towel wrapped in an animal shape to guess is so much fun! (check out the pic below in Day2 section )
======================================================
DAY 2
After a great dinner and good sleep, I woke up early morning and headed to the top floor. The sun rise view was amazing. There were none and I could see the whole endless ocean. The fog, the mist followed by slight drizzling, the light golden sky are just etched in my mind forever as a deep bliss sunk in me. We arrived at the Disney's castaway island around 9 am. Pack a carrybag with slippers, change of clothes, sunscreen, and hats. towels and insect repellant are arranged to be picked up and drop off at the ship embark/disembark station. We were expected to just carry the boarding cards. There is no need for passports or any other documents. Unlimited food, drinks, icecreams, are available for lunch and
snacking purposes. Tubes and scuba equipment can be rented. It was a very windy day and the sea was wild. Hence all boat rides and most of the trips were cancelled. We spend the day at the beach and headed over to the barbecue station that provides free food. Options to rent bicycles too. A tram takes from the disembark station down to the beach. Lifeguards are available at certain points. There are drop off tubs located next to the shower stations to drop off the towels after showering. Washers and driers inside the ship operate on coins or the boarding card.
The food is free for the whole trip and available round the clock. We preferred buffets for lunches.Vegeterian options are available in plenty. Tiny milk cartons are provided to carry back to your stateroom (if you have kids who needs to be fed milk during the nights or day times) on request from your dinner host. We kept those in our stateroom mini refrigerator and used it during our daytrips or night time feeding for our toddler. In addition, we let our dinner host in the evening know that some members of our family preferred Asian Indian dishes and they made something for us every night! There are 4 dinner themed halls and they rotate us each day. It is a good idea to call them, find out about the dinner themes, and pack clothes for the kids accordingly. I thoroughly enjoyed the Tangled theme where we get to meet Rapunzel and her team!
Highlights
1) We found minsicule to medium sized shells on the Castaway beach.
2) Carry extra grocery bags,water bottles and ziplocs. They come handy both in the beach and in the cruise too.
3) Dont forget hats,slippers and sunscreen.Those are available in the couple of stores on the island but you will have very limited options.
4) Backpacks are handy to pack and carry stuff especially if you have kids when you go around the ship or disembark for sightseeing.
5) Have empty water bottles so you can fill up at the stations.
=================
DAY 3
We woke up looking at the tall Atlantis towers as we were approaching the Nassau port of Bahamas. The biggest city was bustling with travellers. The queen staircase and the fort will take half an hour and a 5 minute walk from the harbor. The kids got into the stroller and with our backpacks on, we went to the sightseeing place. The entry ticket fee for the fort is $3. The queen's staircase is free. Carry lot of cash. They accept US dollars even in the stores. It was a pleasant stroll seeing the people, their nice old homes, churches and the local trees. We came back to the ship for lunch and then headed in a taxi to Atlantis. Atlantis is a huge casino. The little aquarium is nice but does not justify the costly ticket for the same. But, it is an excellent place to take the kids on a hot sunny day. The gaint chair, Shell themed Atlantis decor and huge structures are wonderful and worth visiting even if you dont intend to play at the casino.
We totally ran out of cash and requested for a credit card accepting taxi back to the harbor and they arranged us one. The local stores within the harbor and right outside of the port gates have handmade interesting stuff. At the harbor, they would check for your ship boarding card, and passport/ID. We had a nice day trip at Nassau,Bahamas and thoroughly enjoyed!
Highlights -
1) Have cash handy of atleast $300. They accept US cash at Bahamas!
2) You can rent a stroller for free at the Front desk. It is first come first serve. So, head to the guest services and ask for a stroller and a bottle warmer (if needed) that you can rent for free till the end of your trip.
==============
DAY 4
A day at sea goes fast. If the outdoor activities like basketball court, the swimming pool, Jacuzzi (which is always occupied and we could not get in though we badly wanted to), table games does not suit your interest, you can always indulge in indoor activites like play Bingo (ticketed entry), quiz, or meet a character, watch a movie at the BuenaVista theater, and the various free shows.The disney musicals are a must. We watched a couple of those one on Rapunzel and the other one with a mix of all the disney characters and it was just mind blowing. See if you can get the front seats. Best part is those mind blowing shows are totally free. We spent the day hanging out at the pool chairs facing the ocean, watching the tides and the ship move. A great photo opportunity awaits.
Meet the characters lines get filled up so fast. Keep the schedules and locations ready and in mind and try to get in the line as soon as possible. Kids were excited to meet Mickey and Minnie. We had the opportunity to meet Jack of the Pirates of Carribean. We had a pirate theme the earlier night with all of us getting dressed up as pirates.
After a sumptous pirate themed dinner, there was this late night party. However, being it late night ,it will be difficult to attend especially with infants and toddlers with all the music going loud.
Highlights -
1) A day at the sea is a great time to get to know your ship/cruise
2) Don't miss any of the Disney Musicals.. those are splendid!
====
Day 5
I woke up to the view of Miami harbor at a distance. We had immigration inside the cruise and it was pretty smooth. Got dressed up and bade farewell to the Stateroom that was our home for 4 days. Lugging our baggage and memories, we headed for a final breakfast on that cruise before we disembark. A great memorable trip.
It was a great sudden trip. enjoyed to the core. Though the boarding is mentioned as 330 pm, we were there by 1 pm directly from the airport.Have the tags labelled and ready and you can drop your luggage outside before you even head inside. The security check is cool and they will not restrict for water, liquids or any such. You will head to the boarding pass area where you actually "checkin" and you will get a watch for the kids (which needs to be returned at the end of the trip or they charge $20 for it) if you have registered online before hand for the kids to enter the Oceaneer club that hold activities for kids aged 3-12. They have similar activity clubs for older kids too. There is a nursery that with a minimum charge that takes in toddlers and infants. It was not fancy or anything. We decided to have our toddler with us all the time. Back to the boarding area, this is the time to wear your disney tees if you have any as there is a great photo opportunity when you are about to board the ship. As were quite early, we were told to head upstairs to the dining area "Cabanas" that has become our staple option for breakfast and lunch with various buffet options. We had our disney tees inside our checkin luggage.Thankfully, that arrived before the welcome aboard party that happens on the top floor as soon as the ship departs from the port.Higlights -
1)They announce your names as your embark the ship. Have video ready to record if you would like to.
2) Before embarking would be the best time to dress in your disney tees. It would be a grand welcome.
3) You can link your credit card to your room card/account and all that you need to carry would be your room card.
4) Some of the passengers got neck tags to which they strung the room card just you would do for an ID card so you can keep your hands and pockets free
5)Notify your host or call the front desk and let the host know if you would like to have the bunk bed hoisted for the kids and they will set it up instead of just setting up the sofa bed.
6) Arriving every night to a bed made up with towel wrapped in an animal shape to guess is so much fun! (check out the pic below in Day2 section )
======================================================
DAY 2
After a great dinner and good sleep, I woke up early morning and headed to the top floor. The sun rise view was amazing. There were none and I could see the whole endless ocean. The fog, the mist followed by slight drizzling, the light golden sky are just etched in my mind forever as a deep bliss sunk in me. We arrived at the Disney's castaway island around 9 am. Pack a carrybag with slippers, change of clothes, sunscreen, and hats. towels and insect repellant are arranged to be picked up and drop off at the ship embark/disembark station. We were expected to just carry the boarding cards. There is no need for passports or any other documents. Unlimited food, drinks, icecreams, are available for lunch and
snacking purposes. Tubes and scuba equipment can be rented. It was a very windy day and the sea was wild. Hence all boat rides and most of the trips were cancelled. We spend the day at the beach and headed over to the barbecue station that provides free food. Options to rent bicycles too. A tram takes from the disembark station down to the beach. Lifeguards are available at certain points. There are drop off tubs located next to the shower stations to drop off the towels after showering. Washers and driers inside the ship operate on coins or the boarding card. The food is free for the whole trip and available round the clock. We preferred buffets for lunches.Vegeterian options are available in plenty. Tiny milk cartons are provided to carry back to your stateroom (if you have kids who needs to be fed milk during the nights or day times) on request from your dinner host. We kept those in our stateroom mini refrigerator and used it during our daytrips or night time feeding for our toddler. In addition, we let our dinner host in the evening know that some members of our family preferred Asian Indian dishes and they made something for us every night! There are 4 dinner themed halls and they rotate us each day. It is a good idea to call them, find out about the dinner themes, and pack clothes for the kids accordingly. I thoroughly enjoyed the Tangled theme where we get to meet Rapunzel and her team!
Highlights
1) We found minsicule to medium sized shells on the Castaway beach.
2) Carry extra grocery bags,water bottles and ziplocs. They come handy both in the beach and in the cruise too.
3) Dont forget hats,slippers and sunscreen.Those are available in the couple of stores on the island but you will have very limited options.
4) Backpacks are handy to pack and carry stuff especially if you have kids when you go around the ship or disembark for sightseeing.
5) Have empty water bottles so you can fill up at the stations.
=================
DAY 3
 |
| Christmas on the cruise |
We totally ran out of cash and requested for a credit card accepting taxi back to the harbor and they arranged us one. The local stores within the harbor and right outside of the port gates have handmade interesting stuff. At the harbor, they would check for your ship boarding card, and passport/ID. We had a nice day trip at Nassau,Bahamas and thoroughly enjoyed!
Highlights -
1) Have cash handy of atleast $300. They accept US cash at Bahamas!
2) You can rent a stroller for free at the Front desk. It is first come first serve. So, head to the guest services and ask for a stroller and a bottle warmer (if needed) that you can rent for free till the end of your trip.
==============
DAY 4
A day at sea goes fast. If the outdoor activities like basketball court, the swimming pool, Jacuzzi (which is always occupied and we could not get in though we badly wanted to), table games does not suit your interest, you can always indulge in indoor activites like play Bingo (ticketed entry), quiz, or meet a character, watch a movie at the BuenaVista theater, and the various free shows.The disney musicals are a must. We watched a couple of those one on Rapunzel and the other one with a mix of all the disney characters and it was just mind blowing. See if you can get the front seats. Best part is those mind blowing shows are totally free. We spent the day hanging out at the pool chairs facing the ocean, watching the tides and the ship move. A great photo opportunity awaits.
Meet the characters lines get filled up so fast. Keep the schedules and locations ready and in mind and try to get in the line as soon as possible. Kids were excited to meet Mickey and Minnie. We had the opportunity to meet Jack of the Pirates of Carribean. We had a pirate theme the earlier night with all of us getting dressed up as pirates.
After a sumptous pirate themed dinner, there was this late night party. However, being it late night ,it will be difficult to attend especially with infants and toddlers with all the music going loud.
Highlights -
1) A day at the sea is a great time to get to know your ship/cruise
2) Don't miss any of the Disney Musicals.. those are splendid!
====
Day 5
I woke up to the view of Miami harbor at a distance. We had immigration inside the cruise and it was pretty smooth. Got dressed up and bade farewell to the Stateroom that was our home for 4 days. Lugging our baggage and memories, we headed for a final breakfast on that cruise before we disembark. A great memorable trip.
Amma dongalu. Naaku cheppakundane velli poyaru.
ReplyDeleteNice post.
1) Did you embark in Miami? You seem to have disembarked there.
2) What is the name of the ship?
3) Where are the pictures? Esp. of the one of you guys as pirates.
Also, any pics of the sights and colonial buildings of Bahamas?
4) A tram on a castaway island? You are supposed to be a castaway, for god's sake.
5) Did you drink rum at the sumptuous pirate dinner? You have to, if you are a bonafide pirate.
6) Did you see any ocean dwellers? Whales, sharks, octopii etc.
7) What shapes are you wrapping the towels in these days? I am sure the kids demand it.