Magic our way to WDW - Updated 4/26/2013

[Justacruiser]

Well, getting ready for Disney Cruise #12! When we heard about a cruise out of Galveston we took full advantage and took a Western Carribean Cruise in early November 2012. Driving from Oklahoma down to Galveston was a real time saver and nicer on the pocket book.

Anyway, then our idea of a great cruise came up, which is reflected in the title of this post, "Magic our way to WDW". The 8-day cruise out of Galveston visits Castaway Cay, Key West, and Cocoa Beach with transportation provided to WDW with a 1-day park hopper pass.

The cruise date is 2/15/2013, so it is coming up fast. We booked the cruise last minute so we are currently in Second Seating. I place my DW and myself on the wait list for Main Dining, hoping that pixie dust has us eating earlier. On our previous 11 cruises, we have been initially assigned Second Dining a half dozen times and ended up with Second Seating only once.

We eat dinner at home between 5-6 pm so we prefer the Main Dining. People complain of the noise level and small children being small children. My DW and I don't mind. There have been posts about people preferring Main dining or Second Dining, and I feel that is totally up to what cruisers want. My DW normally starts preparing for dinner at about 4:30. DW wears pants, blouse, and jacket every night except Pirate Night where she replaces pants with jeans. I wear slacks and oxford shirt every night for dinner. We end up pretty much in the middle of the dress code and both feel comfortable in what we wear.

Most excursions over the many cruises we have taken get us back to the ship in plenty of time to get dressed. There were 3 of us cruising, but my DD is older now and only cruises on a bout half of our cruises with us. I can see if there are many in the party/room that you might want a little longer to get ready for dinner, thus moving the dinner to Second Seating.

For the Main Dining, dinner starts at 5:30pm with the show starting at 8:30. We generally have time to eat and get to a variety show by 7:30. Other times we will just sit on deck and watch the sunset before the evening show. Oh, and by the way, the DW hits the gift shops every day.

Well anyway...
Packing: Although we don't leave for 3 more weeks, my DW and I have our routine already down. I have found that I need an outfit for each day, except Castaway Cay day. I also have an outfit for each night. For the 8-day, I will bring 7 daytime shirts and 4 pair of shorts. For the evening, I will bring 4 shirts and 3 sets of slacks. I will wear dark so that I can just bring my black dress shoes. I also have a pair of shoes that are water resistant for Castaway Cay. Not a sandles or flip-flop guy. Especially with all the sand. I also bring my dress belt and a hat for sunny days.

My DW on the otherhand....... she brings the whatif clothes. She did a little better in November but...... the daytime clothes she wears capri pants and switches out shirts ever day. But the everning, she bring a lot. Probably 4 extra outfits, but she never knows what she is doing.

Once on board, the DW wipes down everything with wipes she brought. Then I take my clothes and put them in the trunk or hang them up. I put my suitcase in the closet oposite the safe IF on the Magic or Wonder. I place the empty suitcase under the bed on the Dream and Fantasy because the beds are higher. My DW places we suitcase by the desk on the Magic and Wonder but resorts to placing it under the bed on the Dream and Fantasy due to lack of space on the desk. Bad thing about under the bed is that you have to reach under the bed every time you need something. When my DD goes with us, she generally places her suitcase on top of the trunk.

 

[Justacruiser]

After we get packed we will leave at around 11pm on 2/14 (Valentines Night). I will drive the 550 miles over night hitting Dallas around 4am and Houston around 8am. It will be a Friday morning so I want to leave a little room in case of major delays. In November, my DW and I left at about 7pm and stopped somewhere between Dallas and Houston and spent about $130 on a Holiday Inn Express room. We stopped at about 2:00am and I just don't want to spend the money and really didn't get a whole lot of sleep. So, in driving overnight my DW can sleep in the car and I will survive the drive. I am good with 4-6 hours a night of sleep anyway.

Construction in Dallas and Houston made me want to look at taking loops this time around the inner city. Looks like it will make the trip 10 minutes longer, but I will take a loop in Galveston for sure due to arriving at around 8-9am on a Friday.

In November, we arrived at the port at around 12 noon. Because it were Platinum, we did not have to be assigned a check-in time. it really didn't matter because there was not a line to board. The parking was pretty easy. There are only 2 terminals and they don't look to be in the best area of town. The terminal is a straight shot of the highway.

We pulled up at the terminal and droppped our luggage. There are a lot of parking lots around the area, a lot of folks holding out signs as you arrive. We used the port parking. They instructed me at the port where to go and it was nice. They had a shuttle there waiting to bring us to the terminal. I could have left my DW at the terminal while I parked, but she stayed with me. The parking was not covered and the cost was $60 (you pay when you arrive). Note: same period at Port Canaveral is $120, but covered.

The shuttle dropped us at the entrance to ther terminal. A half-hour later we were on board for our 4th Magic Cruise. To take a step back, the inside of the terminal is like a warehouse with some customer service desks. There is no model of a Disney ship or grand entrance like at Port Canaveral. But it is to be expected due to Disney not owning the terminal. Just don't want to expect a DISNEY terminal. It's not. BUT it gets on you on the boat.

The only thing I will do different in February is allow, like I said a little more travel time and time getting into the port area. They have some crazy stop light placement so if you are turning left into the port, the movement is slow. I plan to go 1/4 mile past the terminal and come back so I can make a right if the traffic is back up.

To cover the debarkation process real quick. They now have a express check-out on board. If you do not leave your luggage outside your door the night before, you can carry everything off with you and get off the boat about 30 minutes earlier. On the November cruise, half the cruisers decided like us to carry their stuff off the ship. Elevators were a pain, and we ended up waited about 5 minutes for a shuttle that dropped us off at our car, after we cleared customs. We were one of the first folks off the ship. I can see a line if you are delayed getting off. Everyone that I saw parked in their parking lot took the shuttle. You have to carry your luggage on, so you can see where this could be time consuming.

 

[Justacruiser]

Today, I went on-line to book transportation to Animal Kingdom on 2/19. Because we didn't book till late, didn't get the time I wanted to depart the ship to bus over to Animal Kingdom. To inform all of you that might be taking the same 8-day cruise over to WDW, you MUST reserve your time to get off the ship onto a bus to carry you over to WDW parks. I was informed that Epcot is the park that is open early (8am) with the rest of the parks opening at 9am. I also found out that buses will depart every half-hour till about 30 minutes after a partk closes with the last bus leaving MK about 11:15pm. Information will be published in our navigator.

 

[Justacruiser]

To let those folks that are getting ready to sail on the Magic know, my DW and I really enjoy the ship. The staff are all great and there is a sence of pride from the Captain all the way to CM's cleaning and painting the deck. Several CM's recognized us from previous cruises. One of the head waiters saw us, looked at the dining room list of names and picked ours out. Great customer service the entire time. One of the main reasons that my DW and I are taking this cruise is because it is on the Magic.

Of course we do not know our dinner rotation yet. That information will be in our room when we can gain entry around 1:30 pm. I like the tickets they provide for your first few nights dinner. They look at the tickets to seat you, but they can also use your KTTW card, which has your table number and location. I have actually seen cruisers return to their room after arriving in the lobby just to get their dining tickets. They don't know the information is on the KTTW card. I usually try to save cruisers a trip.

I am looking forward to recieving our first Navigator at check in or I can grab one at guest services once we board. We grabbed one once on board in November just because we were able to board so quickly.

 

[fatfish]

Construction in Dallas and Houston made me want to look at taking loops this time around the inner city. Looks like it will make the trip 10 minutes longer, but I will take a loop in Galveston for sure due to arriving at around 8-9am on a Friday.

I don't know of any loop in Galveston. If you meant Houston, the 610 Loop will not be much better than I-45. If you do decide to try the 610 Loop, be sure to go East, not West. The West Loop is a parking lot that time of the morning. You would be better off delaying your drive about an hour, and getting to Houston about 9:30-10 am. The freeways have generally cleared out by then.

Just my $0.02.

 

[HFC1969]

Like the pre-trip..

We aren't drivers... so we fly in early that AM..

Have you seen any Navigators published yet anywhere?

 

[Justacruiser]

I don't know of any loop in Galveston. If you meant Houston, the 610 Loop will not be much better than I-45. If you do decide to try the 610 Loop, be sure to go East, not West. The West Loop is a parking lot that time of the morning. You would be better off delaying your drive about an hour, and getting to Houston about 9:30-10 am. The freeways have generally cleared out by then.

Just my $0.02.

thanks, was just a little frustrated after the November drive. Looked at the map only. Might re-think. Dallas was worse so I might just loop there. thanks for the info.

 

[Justacruiser]

Like the pre-trip..

We aren't drivers... so we fly in early that AM..

Have you seen any Navigators published yet anywhere?

No Navigators yet. Hopefully we can see something posted after Saturday. I will try to post what I so far. 22 more days!

 

[lovetotraveltx]

Loved your trip report! We are taking your cruise on may 10! So, hope you'll do a report upon your return.

Two questions: will you choose port parking again or maybe one of the closer lots?

Also, do you ever do dinner in Palo. If so, which meal do you miss.

Have a great cruise.

Thanks

 

[HFC1969]

BTW. See you at the Castaway Club reception.

 

[Justacruiser]

I am sure it will be like November when we check it. Yea, the same old stuff, ID check, customs, and photo before hitting the big family name announcment at boarding. Generally there is an option of dining inside one of the three restaraunts or at Topsider on deck 9. We have only gone to Topsider or it's equivilant on the other ships. We just like the view from the top deck and our first chance at a buffet. I really prefer the Buffet on the Dream and Fantasy better. Many more options! I am excited to hear that they may be updated Topsider this year during the renovation.

 

[Justacruiser]

Loved your trip report! We are taking your cruise on may 10! So, hope you'll do a report upon your return.

Two questions: will you choose port parking again or maybe one of the closer lots?

Also, do you ever do dinner in Palo. If so, which meal do you miss.

Have a great cruise.

Thanks

I really liked the port parking lot that the port uses. It was seamless for me the first time both on and off the boat and the price was a lot cheaper than Port Canaveral.

We did Palo brunch in November because it is included in the price we pay (castaway club -Platinum) and I don't give up a MDR meal. We don't drink so some of the value in Palo or Remy exceed what we want to pay until now! I would give up a theme night besides Pirate Night and Captains Gala. The theme nights everyone on the boat is eating the same food and I prefer the menu in the specific dining room more than the theme nights. For example the 2/15 cruise has nights 1,3, 4 in the true rotational dining. Night 2 is formal night, night 5 is open seating due to WDW, night 7 is Semi Formal Night and night 8 is the farewell. If it were me I would schedule night 7! You can call the DCL and get what nights there are doing what.

Dining Rotation should be as follows:
1) LAAPOAPL
2) APPLOPLA
3) PLLAOLAP
*The O is WDW day and they will not have rotational dining that night.

Movies on board are:
TOY STORY 3 IN 3-D
TANGLED IN 3-D
CHIMPANZEE
PEOPLE LIKE US
ODD LIFE OF TIMOTHY GREEN
BRAVE
FRANKENWIENIE
WRACK IT RALPH
LINCOLN
MONSTER'S INC IN 3-D

Menus by restaurant: http://goo.gl/kBIR4

 

[lovetotraveltx]

Thanks you did help. Was thinking night 7, semi formal is the lobster. Never had that. Cruised Disney before but only 3 and 4 night!

Maybe we'll skip pirates?? Our family is torn on Palo. We will do the brunch for the first time though.

 

[Justacruiser]

By the way, after boarding I go to Customer Service first (not busy yet) and give them some advance cash. My DW and I pay the $96 each for tips and then give them about $400 for suvs, pics and excursions. We don't have much planned off ship this time. Then we go eat lunch.

They allow you in the rooms at 1:30 pm (supposed too). It is fun to sit and watch everyone on their decks standing in the corridor at 1:31 pm and them not have opened access to the rooms. It makes me laugh

Anyway, after we go to the room it is a waiting game for luggage. When does the luggage come? It just depends..... No rhyme or reason when you will get yours. We have waited till almost 5pm on occasion. Of couse we always hit the drill at 4pm prior to setting sail. It is crazy, they start announcing the drill at about 3:45 and folks just wait, and wait, and wait before going to their locaitons. If folks would get there by 4pm, we would get out there faster. Anyway, deck party for the sail away starting at about 4:45! Worth going if you have kids or are a kid at heart. The very top deck is the place to watch the sail away! Out of Galveston, watch for dolphins! There are alot along the coast until you get out to sea. Not much else to look at, but the dolphins are worth the price of admission themselves.

 

[kara486]

Dining Rotation should be as follows:
1) LAAPOAPL
2) APPLOPLA
3) PLLAOLAP
*The O is WDW day and they will not have rotational dining that night.


Thanks for your great info. We are going on March 29!

On the 'O' dining day will they just have all the restaurants open and you can go wherever, whenever you get back to the ship? Or will they all be closed but the buffet?

 

[Wshop]

Which dining rotation do you recommend...as you are all very experienced cruisers!! I am torn between 1 and 3.

 

[Justacruiser]

Dining Rotation should be as follows:
1) LAAPOAPL
2) APPLOPLA
3) PLLAOLAP
*The O is WDW day and they will not have rotational dining that night.


Thanks for your great info. We are going on March 29!

On the 'O' dining day will they just have all the restaurants open and you can go wherever, whenever you get back to the ship? Or will they all be closed but the buffet?

from the cruisers that came back today, it sounds like they had one restaraunt with open seating, another open with a buffet, and then topsider was open from about 9pm till 12:30am. Should be able to find something whatever time you get back. They will let us know the night before what will be open upon our return.

 

[Justacruiser]

Which dining rotation do you recommend...as you are all very experienced cruisers!! I am torn between 1 and 3.

Option 3 has you in Lumiere's on the Formal Night. If you fancy up, that would be a good night to be there.

 

[Justacruiser]

Day 1 evening, we usually have Main Seating so we eat dinner at 5:30. It takes between 1.5 and 2.0 hours. The first night is usually the longest due to the fact that the servers do not know you. Most servers will pick up what your drinks are and keep the refills coming as needed. One hint I can recommend is that if you like cheese, ask for a cheese tray. Be specific with the types or you can ask for a sample. Don't be surprised if they ask if you want that every night. We do, and it s great. They can also provide a fruit plate if you choose.

Servers are genuin when they ask if they can offer you something not on the menu. Last 7-day cruise, I actually did not order much from the Main course menu. It was my favorite cruise ever as far as the food goes and the service. After dinner we have about 30 minutes before the show, so we either go out on deck 4 and sit in the chair, walk a lap, or we stroll through the gift shops.

After the shows, we hop up stairs to grab and soft drink and either some Pinocchio's Pizza or some fries or a taco from Pluto's. By the way, the Magic IS the only ship that has Tacos at Pluto's Dog House. I actually get their fries, have them put the taco meat and shredded cheese. mmmmmmmmm

After our snack we will return to the room to find our towel animal and navigator. We also will watch a movie in the room. Before I forget, at least one night during the cruise we order chocolate chip cookies and milk thru room service. Allow them up to an hour to deliver. Tip a couple of bucks.

 

[JoeHiking]

Today, I went on-line to book transportation to Animal Kingdom on 2/19. Because we didn't book till late, didn't get the time I wanted to depart the ship to bus over to Animal Kingdom. To inform all of you that might be taking the same 8-day cruise over to WDW, you MUST reserve your time to get off the ship onto a bus to carry you over to WDW parks. I was informed that Epcot is the park that is open early (8am) with the rest of the parks opening at 9am. I also found out that buses will depart every half-hour till about 30 minutes after a partk closes with the last bus leaving MK about 11:15pm. Information will be published in our navigator.

Do you know if there is any transportation between parks available with the park-hopper? We are doing the same cruise March 1st, We would like to go to the Magic Kingdom and Hollywood Studios. Thanks for the info.