Fantasy 7-Night Western Caribbean Cruise 8/2/14 - 8/9/14

[AliceIn]

Hi All - we have signed up for the fish extender group; thank you so much to those who have organised it. This is our second cruise but the first was three night Dream and there was no fish extender-ing going on so it is our first time involved in this! We are so excited. We are coming all the way from Scotland so closing the group at about 20 cabins would suit us well as there is only so much we can carry in our luggage (we are cruising at the end of our 3.5 week vacation and I doubt we will be travelling light!). But we are willing to fit in with whatever suits everyone best, of course. We're already planning our gifts!
My DD, aged 11, says 'hi'. She is so excited about the cruise and sounds like she may catch up with some of the others at Edge.

Welcome! I have a 12 year old son who will be going to Edge. Sounds like we will have a nice group of folks from here!

 

[AliceIn]

Hey look! We have broken the 200 day mark.

 

[carolbeech]

Hey look! We have broken the 200 day mark.

Yay! And how do you get one of those cool countdown graphics?

 

[joycsk]

Hi All - we have signed up for the fish extender group; thank you so much to those who have organised it. This is our second cruise but the first was three night Dream and there was no fish extender-ing going on so it is our first time involved in this! We are so excited. We are coming all the way from Scotland so closing the group at about 20 cabins would suit us well as there is only so much we can carry in our luggage (we are cruising at the end of our 3.5 week vacation and I doubt we will be travelling light!). But we are willing to fit in with whatever suits everyone best, of course. We're already planning our gifts!
My DD, aged 11, says 'hi'. She is so excited about the cruise and sounds like she may catch up with some of the others at Edge.

Nice to meet you, Alice Rube in wonder! Most of my Mom's family came from Scotland! (Although, that was 100 years ago)
Anyway, at time of sailing, we'll be bringing a 10.5 yo boy and a nearly 14 yo girl. There is definitely a strong tween/young teen contingent on our Dis meet right now, so we're excited to have you along!

 

[AliceIn]

Yay! And how do you get one of those cool countdown graphics?

I got mine at http://www.mickeypath.com

 

[AliceIn]

Nice to meet you, Alice Rube in wonder! Most of my Mom's family came from Scotland! (Although, that was 100 years ago)
Anyway, at time of sailing, we'll be bringing a 10.5 yo boy and a nearly 14 yo girl. There is definitely a strong tween/young teen contingent on our Dis meet right now, so we're excited to have you along!

My middle son will be 10.5 when we are on the cruise. He will want to go to Edge with his brother, though I'm not sure the feeling is mutual from his brother's perspective. The older will be 13 on the cruise, the middle 10.5. My daughter turns 9 on our Cozumel day. I booked us for Natchi Cocum for that day. What excursions is everybody planning? With kids of similar ages, it might be fun to try to do one with a group.

 

[carolbeech]

We have no idea what excursions to book. Also, this is our first cruise, so we won't be able to book until May. Do you book through Disney, or go on your own?

 

[AliceIn]

We have no idea what excursions to book. Also, this is our first cruise, so we won't be able to book until May. Do you book through Disney, or go on your own?

It's our first cruise also. I think we can book regular ship excursions in May. Nachi Cocom you can book online yourself. It's a private beach club that allows a maximum of 100 people per day. Admission includes food and unlimited drinks.

http://www.cozumelnachicocom.com/

It's not a water park, but they do have a pool & hot tub plus other water activities. It sounded perfect for a relaxing day.

 

[My4PhillyGirls]

My DD's are older with the exception of the youngest who will be 14. We are all Gold Castaway club so we can book in late April. We have a family member that is Jamaican who has lived in the US most of his life and he is going to connect us with a driver who will take us on a private tour of the Island

We will probably go to Ocho Rios as one of our stops to climb the falls. We did this for our honeymoon and had fun.

We have still have to decide what we will do at the other ports. My DM is a little concerned about tendering at Grand Cayman so my parents may not get off the ship at that port.

We were saving our pennies for the excursions and my hotwater heater went and flooded our basement on last Friday so we will have to start saving all over again

 

[carolbeech]

Nachi Cocom you can book online yourself. It's a private beach club that allows a maximum of 100 people per day. Admission includes food and unlimited drinks.

http://www.cozumelnachicocom.com/

It's not a water park, but they do have a pool & hot tub plus other water activities. It sounded perfect for a relaxing day.

That does look great! My DH was making noise about seeing Mayan ruins, but I see they are pretty far away, beach time sounds better! They have snorkeling too, which my kids really want to do. I may just book that also.

 

[joycsk]

That does look great! My DH was making noise about seeing Mayan ruins, but I see they are pretty far away, beach time sounds better! They have snorkeling too, which my kids really want to do. I may just book that also.

Don't know who is interested, and I don't know that I'm doing this, but the reviews on the Fury catamaran sound fabulous. For an excursion, it isn't _very_ expensive. It is also only 1/2 a day. Generally, I prefer that. I've also read Fabulous things about the underground river.

_I_ want to go see ruins, but I don't think that works for my family as a whole. We're a tough group. . .

 

[joycsk]

My DD's are older with the exception of the youngest who will be 14. We are all Gold Castaway club so we can book in late April. We have a family member that is Jamaican who has lived in the US most of his life and he is going to connect us with a driver who will take us on a private tour of the Island

We will probably go to Ocho Rios as one of our stops to climb the falls. We did this for our honeymoon and had fun.

We have still have to decide what we will do at the other ports. My DM is a little concerned about tendering at Grand Cayman so my parents may not get off the ship at that port.

We were saving our pennies for the excursions and my hotwater heater went and flooded our basement on last Friday so we will have to start saving all over again

SO sorry to learn of your troubles!

 

[AliceIn]

My DD's are older with the exception of the youngest who will be 14. We are all Gold Castaway club so we can book in late April. We have a family member that is Jamaican who has lived in the US most of his life and he is going to connect us with a driver who will take us on a private tour of the Island

We will probably go to Ocho Rios as one of our stops to climb the falls. We did this for our honeymoon and had fun.

We have still have to decide what we will do at the other ports. My DM is a little concerned about tendering at Grand Cayman so my parents may not get off the ship at that port.

We were saving our pennies for the excursions and my hotwater heater went and flooded our basement on last Friday so we will have to start saving all over again

Sorry to hear about the water heater. We've had that happen and it's no fun at all.

I was really intrigued by the Jamaican excursions. There were a few that looked good. Is it easy to do the Falls? Can children manage?

 

[AliceIn]

Don't know who is interested, and I don't know that I'm doing this, but the reviews on the Fury catamaran sound fabulous. For an excursion, it isn't _very_ expensive. It is also only 1/2 a day. Generally, I prefer that. I've also read Fabulous things about the underground river.

_I_ want to go see ruins, but I don't think that works for my family as a whole. We're a tough group. . .

It IS hard finding something that everybody wants to do. Me, I like to go, go, go all the time, and so do two of my kids. My husband and other son would rather relax and take it easy. I miss the beach a lot. I grew up on the east coast and spent a lot of time at the beach. Only one of my kids has ever swum in the ocean. I also thought the ruins would be cool, but I know I'd be dragging the two "relaxers" by the teeth the whole time.

 

[joycsk]

It IS hard finding something that everybody wants to do. Me, I like to go, go, go all the time, and so do two of my kids. My husband and other son would rather relax and take it easy. I miss the beach a lot. I grew up on the east coast and spent a lot of time at the beach. Only one of my kids has ever swum in the ocean. I also thought the ruins would be cool, but I know I'd be dragging the two "relaxers" by the teeth the whole time.

Not only do I love your name, but I love to be on the go while traveling, and I also spent much of my summers growing up on the beach in Ocean City NJ!

My husband, despite living in MD and a father who LIVED to boat and fish, HATES the beach.

My daughter and son aren't much beach people, though they do want to try Pelican Plunge on CC.

My parents aren't real beach people either, so I'm totally stuck.

I want to do nearly every excursion in Cozumel. I _really_ want to go to Stingray City Sandbar in GC. Jamaica is where I'm at a loss. (A dolphin swim isn't out of the question, but the $$$! is frightening.)

I'd love to visit the top of the island and see the vistas, but I haven't been able to find another route than the chair lift. . .

 

[twalery]

Hi, I'm Tanya Walery from Oak Forest, IL and will be going on this cruise in August. My family of 4 is very excited to go on our first cruise. We are also members of the facebook page for this cruise and enjoy all of the updates and info.

 

[AliceIn]

Hi, I'm Tanya Walery from Oak Forest, IL and will be going on this cruise in August. My family of 4 is very excited to go on our first cruise. We are also members of the facebook page for this cruise and enjoy all of the updates and info.

Hi Tanya! There are a few of us from the Chicagoland area. Welcome to the group! How old are your kids?

 

[momtomattclare]

It's our first cruise also. I think we can book regular ship excursions in May. Nachi Cocom you can book online yourself. It's a private beach club that allows a maximum of 100 people per day. Admission includes food and unlimited drinks.

http://www.cozumelnachicocom.com/

It's not a water park, but they do have a pool & hot tub plus other water activities. It sounded perfect for a relaxing day.

Thanks for posting this, Alison! It looks great! My friend, Tanya, just booked this for her family and mine as well! I was originally looking into taking my DD swimming with dolphins on Cozumel, but after watching the movie Blackfish with me earlier this week she no longer wants to go. Poor thing was crying when they showed the baby whales being captured and separated from their pod. She's worried these dolphins may undergo something similar and I'm guessing she may be right. Happy to hang at the beach and save the $$ instead!

 

[AliceIn]

Thanks for posting this, Alison! It looks great! My friend, Tanya, just booked this for her family and mine as well! I was originally looking into taking my DD swimming with dolphins on Cozumel, but after watching the movie Blackfish with me earlier this week she no longer wants to go. Poor thing was crying when they showed the baby whales being captured and separated from their pod. She's worried these dolphins may undergo something similar and I'm guessing she may be right. Happy to hang at the beach and save the $$ instead!

Hi Renee!

We also thought about the dolphins, but opted against it for similar reasons. I'm really looking forward to some great beach time.

 

[carolbeech]

Hi, I'm Tanya Walery from Oak Forest, IL and will be going on this cruise in August. My family of 4 is very excited to go on our first cruise. We are also members of the facebook page for this cruise and enjoy all of the updates and info.

Hi Tanya, its our first cruise also! I love reading all trip reports and getting planning advice here.