DIS Board Members - we took our laptop on the cruise to write
the trip report. It was updated several times per day.
We hope it is informative. We apologize if it rambles in
parts (we were in cruise mode!!) Special thanks to Towncrier
and Lorax2000 who joined us on the cruise.
TECDavidt (Dave and Kathy)
Day 0 - we flew to Orlando Friday
night. We checked into the airport Hyatt at approximately
1:30 am. This is a very nice hotel.
Day 1 (Sat 8/12/2000) - [Navigator]
we got up in time to
meet Disney Cruise Line shuttle at 10:30 am. We ate
breakfast in the room. It was great food. Best of all,
it was delivered in only 15 minutes (we are a family of six) from
the time we called.
We took the Disney shuttle bus to Port Canavaral where we boarded the Disney
Magic [photos of
Disney Magic] at 1:00 pm. Disney put on quite a show for the people
waiting in line. Lots of confetti, music and dancing
celebrating the first 7 day cruise. Since we had been on
previous Disney cruises, we had an invitation to a Captain's
cocktail party Monday night waiting in our room. A nice
Disney Cruise line bag dated August 12, 2000 was also waiting in
our room. We don't know if this bag was commemorating the
first 7 day cruise or if Disney now does this for every
cruise. The crew also handed out large Mickey hands on a
stick to use to wave at people on land as we sailed out of Port
Canaveral.
Our teenage boys went straight to Common Grounds
[Teen Navigator]. After registering our 8 year old DD at Oceaneer's
Lab, we went to the buffet. A big storm blew through while
eating, but the crew handled it well. The winds were so
strong that they even had to pull the gangway and stop the
boarding at 2:00.
Sorry DISers. We were not interested in
the Surial Bath [Vista Spa
Information] or Palo's, so we can't offer comments on the
reservation process. We did talk to a couple later in the
week who said reservations were easy to get at Palo's. They
went twice.
Note: Oceaneer's Club and Lab have changed the
age groupings. I believe that the grouping used to be 3-5,
6-8, and 9-12. I am not sure of the other groupings, but our
daughter was put in a group of 8-9 year old kids [8-9
Navigator]. Some of
the changes the CM told us about include taking the kids to the
shows, allowing 8-9 year olds to sign themselves in and out, as
well as a much bigger farewell show including the kids and many of
the characters. Carol and Chuck (Lorax2000) sent us a copy
of the [10-12 Navigator]
and the [5-7 Navigator]. Thanks
We signed up for our excursions early. A
form was filled out and dropped in a box at the excursion counter
prior to the normal sign up time. This allowed us to beat
the lines (which were long). We signed up for the "Under 2 Flags Island
Tour" in St. Maarten. This will take us to both the
French and Dutch side of the island. It meets at 8:30 in the
morning. For the St. Thomas day, we picked the Atlantis
submarine in the morning and the St. Thomas Island tour in the
afternoon. Our kids wanted the Atlantis tour, which is in
the morning. This meant that we could not take the St.
John's tours, which also leaves in the morning.
Cards were issued to each room allowed the
purchase of "Maiden Voyage" merchandise. Disney
offered t-shirts, mugs and a few other items commemorating the
first 7 day cruise. One item per stateroom was allowed on
the first night.
Day 2 (Sun 8/13/2000) - [Navigator]
Day at
sea. We woke to a call from room service. We had left a on our door
requesting coffee at 8:30. This was delivered
promptly. We had read on the DIS board that ordering the carafe
the night before worked well because the coffee stayed hot.
With the prompt service and the ability to order the coffee with
the door tag, we saw no reason to order the coffee the night
before.
Lot's of activities throughout the ship.
Pool activities including a belly flop contest. Andrea
McArdle (of Annie fame) presented "Disney Behind the
Scenes". Many people simply lounged around the
pool. They also had a presentation on the making of the
Disney Magic. Many other activities, too numerous to
mention. Our excursion tickets were delivered to the room in
the afternoon.
We met Towncrier and Lorax2000 from the DIS
boards. Great to meet other DISers. DebG is also on
board but we have not met yet.
This night was the formal first night. Before
the dinner, Disney held a Captain's cocktail party in the atrium
with complementary hors doevres and drinks. After the
dinner, our servers (Louise and Ben from England) made sure we
were invited to the character breakfast the next morning at 8:00
am in Parrot Cay.
We went to the evening show. It was
"Hercules - the Muse-ical". Very funny show.
They changed is slightly from last year to keep up with current
events.
We ended the evening sharing a bottle of
champagne with Mr. & Mrs. Towncrier of DIS Cruise Line
discussion board fame.
[Editorial after day 2. Cruise is much
better than last year (4 day Magic - August 1999). Food is
better. Overall atmosphere is more like a cruise ship.
Last year, it seemed like Disney wanted a theme park on water and
lost out on many of the items that make a cruise fun. They
obviously have listened to comments from previous cruisers. ]
Day 3 (Mon 8/14/2000) - [Navigator]
Day at
sea. We received a note under our door this morning that we get to St.
Maarten via tenders. We don't know if this is going to
always occur or if Disney intends to eventually dock in
port. The cruise director did indicate that port
facilities may be finished in a couple of weeks.
Spent most of the day on deck. Very windy
but tolerable. Disney held a Castaway Club reception at
Rockin Bar D before the first seating dinner. This reception
featured the president of Disney Cruise Lines. Our third
night meal was at Parrot Cay.
Monday's show was Voyage of the Ghost
Ship. One cast member indicated that Disney intends to drop
this show in the near future. We did not like this show very
well. I guess it depends on your tastes. We later met
someone who loved this show and hated Hercules. Keep your
minds open.
Day 4 (Tue 8/15/2000) - [Navigator]
spent the day in port
at St. Maarten,
Virgin Islands. We dropped anchor at 6:45 a.m.
Tendered into town. A crew member (assistant
engineer) indicated that Disney will eventually dock in
Philipsburg (Dutch side), but since this was the first trip, we
had to ride the tender into town.
We selected the Under 2 Flags Island tour which
took us to both the French and Dutch side of St. Maarten [photos
of St. Maarten].
This was a 3 hour bus tour with 3 stops (1 5 minute stop for
pictures, 1 45 minutes stop for shopping on the French side, and
one 15 minutes stop for more pictures and shopping). The
island has been hit by 2 tropical storms in the past 5
years. Lots of damage and re-construction. In general,
the island seen on this tour is very dirty and run down. If
we do this cruise again, we will go to a beach or stick to the
town we tendered in (Philipsburg).
We went into town in the afternoon on our
own. We visited the shops on Front Street. This was
much more enjoyable than the tour in the morning. The shops
seem nicer and more affordable than those in Nassau.
Carribean night for dinner. Even though we
ate in Lumiere's, we were expected to wear island attire. I
will have to admit though, we were unsure about the attire.
Island style shirts were common, but since Lumiere's requests that
no short be worn, most wore Dockers with the shirts. Next
cruisers may want to clear this up before this dinner.
Our two 16 year old boys went on the teen cruise
which began at 6:30. A Carribean deck party was held in the
evening near the mid-ship pool. The party started at
9:30 pm.
Day 5 (Wed 8/16/2000) - [Navigator]
spent the day in port
at St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin
Islands. Disney had an optional excursion to St. John on this day.
We arrived in port on schedule at 6:30 am. Our family did
not go to St. Johns. One word about St. Thomas -
WOW. [pictures
of St. Thomas] This island is beautiful. Disney should opt
to stay here 2 days.
We began the day by taking the whole family on
the Atlantis submarine. We had to meet at 8:30 for this
excursion. Too early for our 3 teenage boys, but once we got
underwater, they enjoyed it. We were ferried to Buck Island
(17 minutes) where the sub was located. The sub took us 80
feet under the water. We were under water for 50
minutes. The sub holds up to 48 people. There were 47
on our trip. We did not feel crowded at all. For those
concerned (as I was) about safety, they have this completely under
control. An amazing view from that depth. A lot of
different types of sea life. We even saw a shark and a
lobster at this depth. The cost was $75 for an adult (10 and
over) and $50 per child. I am not sure the
"experience" was worth this price, but it is
understandable considering the investment ($4,500,000 for the
sub).
In the afternoon, we took the St. Thomas Island
Tour. Amazing scenery. This cost only $29 per adult
and lasts 2.5 hours. Several stops for shopping and picture
taking. Even free rum punch for those who like this.
In our opinion, this is an excursion not to be missed.
Champagne sail away party was held at 4:30 on
the pool deck. I believe that this was a special event for
the first 7 day cruise. We left St. Thomas at 5:00.
[Another editorial note - we left St. Maarten and 11:00 and St.
Thomas at 5:00 - this should have been reversed.]
Disney Dreams showed at the Walt Disney Theater
tonight (live presentation). NO ONE
WHO LIKES DISNEY SHOULD MISS THIS!!!!!
Day 6 (Thu 8/17/2000) - [Navigator]
Day at
sea. Another day of relaxing. Programming available similar to days
1 & 2. Programs such as the Disney Navigator Series,
Disney's Art of Entertaining and Disney Behind the Scenes.
Other activities such as Bingo were also available. Most
people just slept in and lounged around.
Second formal night at Dinner. The theme
was "The Master Chef Dinner", with a menu created by
the chef's from the Disney Cruise Line and Walt Disney
World. There was a Captain Mickey Party just before the
dinner featuring the characters. This is the time to get all
of the character photo's you will ever want. We took
pictures with Donald, Captain Mickey, Cinderella and Belle.
We also had a formal picture with a show of the ship as a
backdrop. We skipped pictures with Minnie and Pluto.
C'est Magique - new show for the cruise.
They offered the normal 2 shows (one for each dinner
seating). For this show, they also offered a 2:00 sneak
preview. We attended the late show. This show was
good, but probably will appeal to a select audience. You
will either love it or thinks it is only so-so. We are glad
we went, but won't go again. And now the details of what
happens in the show...... You didn't really think I would do
that did you?
Day 7 (Fri 8/18/2000) - [Navigator]
We docked at Castaway Cay [photos
from Castawy Cay] at 8:45 a.m. You can still see some construction work on the
dock. We did back in. Last year (before hurricane
Floyd) we went in bow first. Castaway beaches looked
great. We could not see any signs that Floyd had been
there. We noticed that they had lifeguards on duty. We
do not remember this from last year.
Dinner had a Small World Theme with selections
from all around the world. Waiters also did a dance for us
all. Everyone was in a festive mood because is was the last
night.
We returned to our room and was greeted by a
nice hard bound book titled One Day at Disney. This was a
gift to the first 7 day cruisers.
Farewell Show - variety show with a comedian,
magician, clown and a presentation featuring the kids from
Oceaneer's Club and Lab with the characters. Truly a
magical cruise. Time to call the travel agent and book next
years. Only 365 days to go.
Bags have to be in the hall between 10 and 12,
so it is time to sign off.
Bye and thanks
[Photos
taken by DCL and purchased at Shutters]
[Laundry Service
Ticket]
Day 8 (Sat 8/19/2000) - [Welcome
Home Letter] Ship arrived in port at
6:00 a.m. Ate breakfast at Lumiere's (same restaurant we ate
in the last night). We left the ship directly from the
restaurant. We arrived back in Des Moines at 6:31p.m
Disney
Vacation Web Site
