The drive from Fort Lauderdale to Miami was quick and easy (if we had been driving, I am sure it would have been long and frustrating). As soon as we got out of the shuttle, a porter took all of our luggage and we were told it would be delivered to our stateroom. I was happy to say goodbye to our many suitcases--I definitely overpacked!
It was pretty amazing to see our ship. It looked massive! I can't believe that it is the smaller of the Disney ships. Our official check-in time was noon. It was around 10:45, so we weren't sure what to do. We made our way inside the terminal and went through security. Then, we took the escalators upstairs and were told that we could check-in. The process was pretty similar to checking into a hotel, I am sure it helped that we had done most of the paperwork online. We were given a boarding group of 11. I am guessing that was based on our official noon check-in time, since we were among the first in line.
After that, we checked-in with the kid's clubs and the kids were given Magic Bands, which are used to check in and out of the kid's clubs. Jack's had a red tag, signifying his food allergies. That line took quite a bit longer. From there, we took a picture with Minnie and waited for boarding to begin.
Boarding started at 11:45 and they waited 2-3 minutes between groups. Shortly after noon, our boarding number was called. It was very exciting to go up (another escalator) and walk right along the ship. When we finally got onboard, around 12:30, they had crew members lined up in the lobby and each family was introduced. It was our first "magical" moment.
Since we were all hungry, we decided to get lunch. We went to one of the two open restaurants and there was a buffet. The food was good and very plentiful. They had kid-friendly options like macaroni and cheese and corndogs along with the more grown-up fare. From there, we decided to check out the kid's areas.
They have two kid's clubs for kids ages 3-12: The Oceaneer's Club and The Oceaneer's Lab. They are connected by a hallway that is only accessible from inside the clubs. The magic bands are pretty impressive, they correspond to each kid and when they scan in, the child's information, including a picture of their parents, flashes on the screen. The bands are also equipped with some kind of gps-like chip that tells you where in the club they are. We explored and were duly amazed by how awesome everything was. There were computers, dress-up clothes, art areas, book areas, super hero decor, tables for experiments, a huge screen for Disney movies surrounded by bean bag chairs, etc. Our kids were extremely anxious to get in there to play.
We lured them away with the promise of visiting the pools. We headed to our staterooms to change. We had booked interior staterooms. I would have liked an ocean view, but there were no connecting rooms available when we booked. We could have chosen a veranda, but I was nervous that the kids (or me) would somehow manage to fall overboard. So, inside we were. We quickly changed and made our way to the pools. They were small and very crowded. Thomas and Jack went down a large slide and then decided to try the Aquadunk, unfortunately, Jack was not tall enough. Thomas said they put you in a tube, close the door behind you and then you wait for the floor to drop, literally. He said it was very quick and very intense. I thought I had pictures, but apparently not. Sorry!
We stayed in the pools for about 90 minutes, then had to get ready for the safety drill. Everyone had to muster at their lifeboat station. It was very hot outside and we had to stand very close to people for about 30 minutes. Definitely not the funnest part of the day. Once that was over, we went to the sailing party to say farewell to Miami, running into Goofy and Pluto along the way.
Next on the agenda: dinner. The ship rotates you through 3 dining rooms, each with a different theme. Our first night was at Lumiere's, which had a french theme and was decorated with a Beauty and the Beast motif. We were at the first seating, which was 5:45. Dinner on the ship was a leisurely affair. The kids got extremely restless. They brought their food out first and they just didn't want to sit and wait. It had been a long couple of days. Anna didn't like her food and was very vocal about her displeasure. Unfortunately, she took her anger out on Thomas and I, which didn't go over so well. After ignoring a couple of warnings, Thomas was forced to take her to the room. I took Jack and Kara to the kid's club and checked them in, then went back to the dining room to eat my dinner. I think by the time I got my main course, it was around 7:15. Each dinner was 4-courses: appetizer, soup/salad, main entree, dessert. I got Thomas' entree and both of our desserts to go and headed to the room to join him.
I can't remember much about the food that night. I got some sort of salad as my main entree and it was just okay. Thomas had a chicken dish that he was not wowed by. The other courses were similarly unimpressive. The whole dinner experience was just not very positive. After Thomas ate, we took a contrite Anna to the club to join Jack and Kara. Thomas and I then explored the ship for a little while. We picked up the kids around 8:30 and decided it was time to call it a night. The kids loved their time in the club and were anxious to go back the next day.
One of our favorite things during the trip was each night, Calvin, our room steward would come in and make up the beds, leave us each a chocolate and put some kind of awesome towel animal on the bed to greet us. It was very fun to see what he created each night.
 |
| This dog was one of my favorite Calvin creations |
 |
| A view of the kids' room, complete with a towel dinosaur on the top bunk. |
Sounds like you guys had fun even though the food wasn't that great. I loved finding those cute animals on my bed on our cruise.
ReplyDelete