The day did not start off magically at all. The transfer that we had organised for 10am did not turn up. The ground contact staff was already driving a minivan full of passengers to the port. At 11am he finally turned up and hailed 2 taxis for us and paid on our behalf. By the time we arrived at the port, we were behind a few bus loads of people. I was not impressed. But I was very excited to see the ship! Having never been on Disney cruise lines, I wasn’t sure what to expect.
Initial impressions were not so good. The hall was stuffy and chaotic, the lines were long and check-in took a long time. The whole process compared to other cruise lines seemed disorganised. One of the pros of arriving late was that by the time check-in was completed, we could board straight away and have some lunch. We were herded to Parrot Cay for a buffet. The food wasn’t bad but it wasn’t good either. The theming though was lovely. Jonah enjoyed looking at the parrots on the ceiling lights and Lara was delighted to see Sebastien from The Little Mermaid on the wall light. Elliot was simply excited to be allowed to get his own food.
Things fortunately continued to improve throughout the day. We had just enough time to register all three children for their respective kids clubs. It was nice to see their faces light up at the sight of the facilities, and I must say, we were impressed. We had to drag them out of the doors to go our rooms which were ready by this stage. The staterooms were nice and spacious compared to other lines.
I trotted off the Promenade Lounge for our DISmeet. It was nice to be able to put faces to names which have become so familiar, especially over the recent volcano kerfuffle. I had to hurry back to the room as Malcolm was being fitted for a jacket. Once again, it was nice for things to just fall in place. He had visited Guest Services to organise a tux hire. We had only entered our rooms for seconds before we heard a knock on our door with someone helping measure Malcolm for his suit. Our luggage came soon after and we were able to unpack and settle in. Before long, it was time for the emergency drill when we had to drag the children away from the Disney movies playing on the TV. And this is when we had our moment of the day...Jonah was not impressed with his life romper.
Initial impressions were not so good. The hall was stuffy and chaotic, the lines were long and check-in took a long time. The whole process compared to other cruise lines seemed disorganised. One of the pros of arriving late was that by the time check-in was completed, we could board straight away and have some lunch. We were herded to Parrot Cay for a buffet. The food wasn’t bad but it wasn’t good either. The theming though was lovely. Jonah enjoyed looking at the parrots on the ceiling lights and Lara was delighted to see Sebastien from The Little Mermaid on the wall light. Elliot was simply excited to be allowed to get his own food.
Things fortunately continued to improve throughout the day. We had just enough time to register all three children for their respective kids clubs. It was nice to see their faces light up at the sight of the facilities, and I must say, we were impressed. We had to drag them out of the doors to go our rooms which were ready by this stage. The staterooms were nice and spacious compared to other lines.
I trotted off the Promenade Lounge for our DISmeet. It was nice to be able to put faces to names which have become so familiar, especially over the recent volcano kerfuffle. I had to hurry back to the room as Malcolm was being fitted for a jacket. Once again, it was nice for things to just fall in place. He had visited Guest Services to organise a tux hire. We had only entered our rooms for seconds before we heard a knock on our door with someone helping measure Malcolm for his suit. Our luggage came soon after and we were able to unpack and settle in. Before long, it was time for the emergency drill when we had to drag the children away from the Disney movies playing on the TV. And this is when we had our moment of the day...Jonah was not impressed with his life romper.
Aww mum! Do I really have to wear this?!?!?
After the drill, we hurried to the lobby for a photo op with Pluto and just had enough time to explore the ship before dinner started at Lumiere’s. And here’s when the Disney difference really showed through. Crayons and the kids menu were all ready at the table. The kids menu had activities on them which occupied the children while we waited for our meals. We didn’t have to wait very long at all before our meals turned up. The children were given their drinks in cute cups which were practical. Jonah unfortunately, fell asleep at the table. It was nice to be able to wheel a stroller in freely so he can sleep in the dining room while we finished our dinner. The staff were very perceptive and noticed that my hands were full and kindly offered to help Elliot cut up his food . All these things made for very happy parents! The waiters were friendly and the food delicious. A big step up from lunch.
Elliot spotted Donald Duck and desperately wanted a photo so we dashed out and managed to beat the lines. He then excitedly took his Oma and Opa up to Shutters where our embarkation photo was displayed. He returned to the room delighted to see a swan towelgami complete with chocolates. With barely enough time to go to the loo, he dashed off again to watch the show. He is also seemingly determined to stay up for the sail away party.
Meanwhile, I am here in the room with Lara and Jonah who are both dead to the world. I am exhausted from yet another busy day but content as I managed to sneak in a quick shopping expedition on the way back to the room! I couldn’t resist buying the Mediterranean DCL pin as well as the Mickey star wars pin. I have my eyes set on the Dooney & Burke bag but that will have to wait for another day. How could any say that they get bored on a cruise?!?! All we planned for today was to go for a swim and we never got there...
I'm enjoying your blog posts. I will be on the May 26th sailing and can hardly stand the wait. My girls call their grandparents Oma and Opa too so I loved reading that. I'm curious, how much was the taxi ride and can all 4 of you and your luggage get in one taxi in Barcelona. I've heard that the taxis are small and we may require two taxis. Doesn't sound like your day started off to great but sure sounds like it has ended magically!! I'm looking forward to reading more of your journey.
ReplyDeleteBon Voyage!!
Hi Heidi, apologies for the late and short reply. Internet access is really driving me bonkers. Taxis are small. As for price, because it was paid for I paid very little attention to the meter and the final price. Between the 7 of us, we had 6 big suitcases, 1 carseat, 1 stroller, and 9 handcarry. He managed to squeeze all that into 2 cabs. Hope that helps. You'll have a blast on the cruise! Not long to go now.
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