Disney Cruise Line Archives - Through Heather's Looking Glass

Disney Wonder Cruise 2018: Part 5

January 30, 2019 by Heather

Check out part 4 if you missed that one then come back here!

The next day we woke up in Nassau. We had no plans to get off the ship, and wanted to take advantage of having less people on board to hang out and relax.

Unfortunately it was gloomy and chilly, so we didn’t make it to the pool. I was starting to think the bad weather was just following us around everywhere we went at this point.

However, we were parked next to the Disney Dream which was kind of cool. We did lots of waving at other people on the Dream and I secretly told EK we would take her on that ship next.

We decided to take Emma Kate to her first ever “big girl movie” in the movie theater that day. The new Wreck it Ralph movie was out, and she was so excited to eat her popcorn and watch the movie. I love that the price of the movies is included in the cruise price! See as many as you want!

She loved it, and did really well! I was afraid she would talk and ask questions nonstop (like sh does at home, omg) but she sat so still and did awesome.

We had lunch then brought her to the kids club. Once again I don’t remember exactly what we did, but Bobby probably went to the gym and I probably read a book. We are SUCH exciting cruisers.

We got dressed for dinner which was in Animator’s Palate again. It was the night of the drawings and the show which is always fun!

I mean, how cute is this kid?

After dinner, we had a delicious surprise from the pastry chef in our room! Emma Kate went crazy over them!

We then took Emma Kate to the kids club and explored the ship again.

It’s so nice and quiet during second dinner when the early diners are at the show. We felt like we had the ship to ourselves! Then it was Elf, one more time (starting to dislike the movie at this point!) and then bed. We still had two sea days of fun and adventure left!

Filed Under: Disney, family, vacation Tagged: Disney, Disney Cruise, Disney Cruise Line, disney wonder, Nassau, vacation

Disney Wonder Cruise 2018: Part 3

January 16, 2019 by Heather

In case you missed part 1 and 2, catch up before reading this one!

The next morning we woke up and were almost to Key West. We also had an early princess meet and greet in the lobby, so we headed there before breakfast. This is a ticketed event, but also free (we snagged tickets when we got onboard on day 1). It’s a great way to meet a bunch of princesses at one time. Emma Kate loved it!

After the meet and greet we went to breakfast. I told EK she could have a donut if she ate all her food. Thankfully after she was sufficiently sugared up we took her to the pool to burn some energy. The weather forecast for the rest of the week was iffy, so we knew we needed to take advantage of the sunshine while we could (even if it was a tad chilly!)

A huge thanks to SwimZip for sending us these adorable swimsuits! We got so many compliments and the rash guard was perfect for Emma Kate since it was a little chilly. I love that these suits help protect against the suns harmful rays!

We let Emma Kate swim and go down the slide as we docked in the port. There was hardly anyone in the pool so we were able to get great seats and the little one went down the slide a bunch of times.

I took advantage of the warmth of the sun and got a dole whip with rum in it that I had heard so much about. I was warned in advance that the consistency was more slushie like that creamy ice cream, but I still wanted to try it…and the verdict…it was not my favorite. I LOVE Dole whip floats and I love rum, but this combo was not something I would get again. I am however glad I tried it!

We decided to just grab lunch at the pool because Emma Kate was having such a blast we didn’t want to pull her out to go change and go to the buffet. Bobby went and got his own food from Cabanas and ate at the pool chairs, and I got Emma Kate and I some chicken tenders and fries, so it worked out perfectly. After lunch, we all got changed and we brought Emma Kate to the kids club so Bobby and I could go watch the Saints game at the pub. I was surprised, we were the ONLY ONES IN THERE! Where did all the football fans go?!?

We were able to watch the game, but the sound was for a different game which made it kind of confusing, but we were just happy to get to watch anyway. We grabbed some snacks and relaxed on a sofa and cheered for our team as they beat the Tampa Bay Bucs. We had a nice view out the window, too.

As the game was coming to an end, we went and grabbed EK out of the kid’s club and decided to get off the ship for a few minutes and just walk around on dry land for a bit. Why not? It has been a minute since we have been to Key West, but I love how quaint it is, and we feel super safe there just walking around. Emma Kate LOVED chasing the animals.

After about 30 minutes we made our way back to the ship to get ready for dinner. We realized we walked right into the beginning of a little show where SANTA shows up on the ship for the first time! It was cute. There were lots of characters, and even snow!

Dinner that night was in Triton’s, but we took some family photos before we went in.

At dinner, EK decided to eat a lime, which was hysterical.

After dinner it was back to the kids club (she was SO antsy at Dinner I took her before we even ordered dessert.) and Bobby and I walked around on the deck and went back to Cove Cafe again. In the room that night we had a sweet gift from Disney, Emma Kate was pumped.

We were taking her to see her first movie in the theater the next day, so she was so excited we had snacks! And she loved the doll because it matched the dress she had on the night before. <3

After calming her down which took awhile, it was time for bed, and watching Elf again, before finally falling asleep.

I would love to help you with Disney Cruise questions! Email me at heather@travelwiththemagic.com

Filed Under: Disney, vacation Tagged: cruise, Disney, Disney Cruise, Disney Cruise Line, emma kate, Key West, travel, vacation

Walt Disney World 2016 Vacations

June 12, 2015 by Heather

As I have mentioned many many times here on my blog, Disney vacations are my favorite. I have some amazing memories as a child and an adult with my family and friends thanks to the mouse. In 2010 I went on my first Disney Cruise Line cruise (not just for kids, I promise!) and am hooked.

In 2012 I ventured to the west coast for my first trip to where the magic all started, Disneyland.

These three vacation spots mean a lot to me, but Walt Disney World will always hold a special place simply because it was my first and most frequent Disney destination.

Why am I telling you all of this? Because prices and packages for 2016 are coming out JUNE 22 for Walt Disney World and I cannot wait to start booking clients!!!! I have been a Disney travel planner for over five years now, and this is always a crazy but rewarding time of year for me. If you are interested in vacationing to WDW in 2016, email me at heather@travelwiththemagic.com for a free no obligation quote (my services are FREE!) Pricing for Disney cruise line for 2016 has been out for awhile, so I would love to give you a quote for that as well.

I can book your hotel and tickets

Help you decide where to eat

and even help you with those special extra activities while you are there, like spa treatments

or a round of golf.

Don’t forget about the waterparks, too!

There is so much to do in WDW besides just ride rides, and I would love to tell you more about it!

Shoot me an email at heather@travelwiththemagic.com so we can start planning your family vacation.

QOTD: When is your next vacation? Where did you stay the last time you were in WDW?

Filed Under: Disney, family, vacation Tagged: Disney, Disney Cruise Line, Disneyland, travel, trip, vacation, walt disney world

Traveling Again

October 24, 2013 by Heather

Today I am hopping on a plane to Miami! I am so excited, I have never been to Miami before. I will be spending the night there before sailing out on the newly re-imagined Disney Magic on Friday morning for a two night cruise.

I have sailed on the Magic several times, and cannot wait to see all of the improvements to the ship. We first heard about these improvements at the Press Event I attended back in April. Since then, we have been teased with videos and photos of the ship being transformed, and I can’t wait to see it in person!

Some of the things I am RELLY excited about are the Aqua Dunk, the new water slide:

The revamping of the buffet to make it Cabanas:

The all new restaurant taking the place of Parrot Cay:

I will be posting live updates on Friday with photos of the ship (until we sail then the phone will be turned off!) So be sure you are following my social media accounts (check the right sidebar) to follow along with the fun!

I would love to help you plan your family’s magical Disney cruise! email heather@travelwiththemagic.com or request a quote and be sure to add in my name!

QOTD: Have you sailed on Disney Cruise line? Do you want to?

Filed Under: Disney, vacation Tagged: Disney, Disney Cruise Line, Disney magic, disney ship, vacation

Disney Fantasy Part 6: April 2013

June 27, 2013 by Heather

We left off with a great day in Cozumel on my last installment. The next day, was a sea day, and had big plans to do a lot of nothing. We slept in, ate breakfast, and headed to the pool where we parked all morning with our books. We ate lunch and then played goofy golf! Look who even made an appearance. I was VERY excited.

The wind had started to pick up making it very hard to play. After we ate a buffet lunch, the clouds started to roll in.

I want to say at some time during the day we say Oz the Great and Powerful in 3D, and I’m sure we took a nap at some point. Honestly it was just a lazy day and so wonderful! (I think we made it to the gym, too?)

By evening, the rain had started and the boat was doing a little rocking which made me nervous, but wasn’t too bad. They closed off some of the decks for a little while because it was so dangerous with the wind.

It was semi formal night, so we got all gussied up to go to dinner at the Royal Court.

This is Bobby’s favorite night of the cruise, because it’s lobster night! He had four or five…I can’t remember.

He was a happy boy.

After dinner we headed back to the adults area to watch a comedian before calling it a night.

Up next week: Our last day. Castaway Cay!

QOTD: What would be your ideal sea day?

Filed Under: Disney, family, vacation Tagged: Disney, Disney Cruise Line, Disney Fantasy, disney ship

Disney Fantasy: Palo Dinner

June 14, 2013 by Heather

I cut part 4 short because I wanted Palo dinner to have it’s own post.

I am glad I am writing this one after dinner, or I would be dying to eat all of the delicious food! If you have been on a Disney cruise and have not dined at Palo you are missing out on a great experience. I can’t believe we waited this long to do it!

We checked in and waited in the waiting area for only about 3-4 minutes, when Ivan, the server we had for Palo brunch appeared! I was so happy we had him again, it felt more comfortable since we had already seen him before and he knew what we liked.

We had a great table facing outward towards the ocean, it was nice and cozy. Just like at brunch, I loved how we didn’t feel rushed at all. We ordered our drinks and enjoyed the view while Ivan brought us some antipasti (I have no idea why I don’t have photos of this!) Ivan did a great job of explaining everything, and I tried some things I have never had before.

Ivan also did a great job of explaining everything on the menu to us. After appetizers we were also brought a lemon sorbet palate cleanser.

Bobby ordered some kind of shrimp

Veal

tuna

I had white bean soup (not pictured) and Beef tenderloin. I can only speak for what I ordered, but the soup and beef were both excellent! There were two sauces for the beef and I liked them both, so delicious!

Of course soufflé with vanilla gelato and chocolate and vanilla sauce. Holy yum. So rich but so delicious.

Ivan prepared mine for me. It was amazing. I am so glad I left room for this dessert. My hands down favorite of the whole week.

Again, we were never rushed, and loved how our waiter only had one maybe two other tables so we got taken care of very well. We will definitely be back!

Here are a few things to remember about Palo:

– Palo is an adults only restaurant. That’s why God made kid’s clubs. Smile

-Reservations for Palo can be made online for cruise guests: Concierge Guests: 120 days in advance
Platinum Castaways: 120 days in advance
Gold Castaways: 105 days in advance
Silver Castaways: 90 days in advance
First Time Cruiser: 75 days in advance

-It costs a little extra to eat at Palo, but SO worth it! Brunch and dinner are both $20* per person.

(*price has since gone up to $30 per person but still worth it!)

– There is a dress code to dine at Palo. We like to dress up anyway so it was no problem, but make sure you pack something appropriate if you plan to dine here!

-Palo holds back some reservations on the boat for when you embark, so if you couldn’t get a reservation online be sure to visit Palo asap to try to snag a reservation once you get on the ship.

QOTD: Are you more likely to try a food you have never liked before at home or at a restaurant, like me?

*I would love to get you a cruise quote! Email heather@travelwiththemagic.com for details

Filed Under: Disney, food, vacation Tagged: Disney, Disney Cruise, Disney Cruise Line, Disney Fantasy, palo dessert, palo dinner, palo review, palo souffle

Disney Fantasy April 2013: Part 4

June 7, 2013 by Heather

I last left off on part 3 with Bobby wearing my bra. Smile

Did I get your attention? Hehe. The next day, we docked in Costa Maya. We decided to not get off the ship and spend the day taking advantage of the ship with less people. When we sailed here in October, we did the jeep excursion with my parents and had a BLAST, but really there was nothing else on the island we “had” to do and didn’t want to pay for an excursion. We ate breakfast at the buffet then went to the adult pool area/Satellite falls and found some chairs to relax and read in.

We stayed here all morning, and even got to ride the Aqua Duck with about a 10 minute wait. We ate lunch at the buffet and headed back to our chairs for a nice nap. It was a glorious morning!

In the afternoon, we went on the top deck with my stalker camera lens to get some photos of Costa Maya

We then went to the gym for the second time of the trip. We grabbed a snack around 6:00, then relaxed in our room watching movies before getting ready for dinner at PALO! We have done brunch several times but never dinner so we were very excited.

I know this is a short post, but I want to stop here because Palo deserves it’s own post!

QOTD: Thoughts on staying on the ship when it’s in port?

* Don’t forget I can book your cruise for you at NO EXTRA COST! email heather@travelwiththemagic.com for a free quote!

Filed Under: Disney, family, vacation Tagged: costa maya cruise, Disney, Disney Cruise Line, Disney Fantasy, Disney vacation

Disney Fantasy April 2013: Part 3

May 31, 2013 by Heather

I left off my trip report with Palo brunch on our first full day onboard the Disney Fantasy. We were stuffed, and decided to head back to the room for a glorious nap. We ended up staying in the room for most of the afternoon reading, watching movies and just lounging around. It was the best way to relax on vacation! Around 6:00 we got hungry (go figure!) and sat up by the adult pool area and had a snack. We relaxed some more then got ready for Dinner. It was formal night!

Dinner was at the fanciest restaurant on the ship, the Royal Court.

We went back to the Tube for some fun adult entertainment before calling it a night, and found this guy waiting for us in our cabin.

The next morning, we woke up in beautiful Grand Cayman.

We ate the buffet breakfast, and then got in line for a tender boat to get off of the ship. We made it to land, and went to find a taxi.

Funniest thing, I went to grab a driver and saw the SAME GUY that drove us back in October. Hilarious. He got a kick out of the fact that we remembered him (he prays with his passengers before they get off of the van) and he took us to the public beach.

We rented a beach chair and umbrella, and I spent my time reading while Bobby swam and snorkeled.

We stayed about five hours, and I was starving. We didn’t want to pay for the expensive food on the beach so we headed back to the ship where the food was included, of course!

We caught a tender boat and were back on the Fantasy in no time. The ship looks SO MASSIVE from the little tender boat.

We grabbed some food and headed back to the room. That’s when I realized we were BOTH sunburned! I forgot to reapply and Bobby must have washed his off in the water. Ug. Not a good day to burn, at the beginning of a seven night cruise. We aloed up and headed to dinner.

We were in Animator’s Palate which is super cute.

Crush came and talked to us. Dddduuuuddddeeee!

Dinner was delicious, and after we headed back to the tube for Magic quest. This is SO MUCH FUN. It’s an adult scavenger hunt, I always end up laughing until I cry, and I ended up having to give Bobby my bra…again.

We had a blast and enjoy this game show so much. Our team won, but sadly we didn’t get a prize like I have seen on past cruises.

We were exhausted after a day in the sun, so we turned in ready to dock in Costa Maya the next day.

QOTD: When was the time you got sunburned the worst? Do you remember?

Filed Under: Disney, vacation Tagged: artist palate, Disney Cruise, Disney Cruise Line, Disney Fantasy, disney ship, grand cayman, royal court

Disney Fantasy Part 1

May 17, 2013 by Heather

Back in April, Bobby and I boarded the Disney Fantasy for a much needed week of relaxing, just the two of us. We had an amazing time, and I wanted to share some of our trip with you! I won’t be doing a detailed report but will be sharing tidbits and photos! Remember, if you would like me to book your cruise at no extra coast to you I can help! heather@travelwiththemagic.com

We had a car from Southern Elegance Limousine bring us to the port. The car was beautiful, they were on time, and were so easy to work with. Highly recommended! We checked in and waited to get onboard the beautiful Disney Fantasy. We booked a category 4C, and once we got onboard and ate lunch, our room was ready.

We spent some time walking around and exploring the deck while we waited to sail away

Check out the beautiful couples villa at the spa!

We had a good time relaxing and hanging out but then it was time for dinner

Dinner was at Enchanted Garden and I absolutely love the theming!

We were lucky to get a table to ourselves, and we met our servers for the week, who we really enjoyed! After dinner, we went to the adult area for some fun game shows. I LOVE match you mate. Hilarious every time. If you cruise with Disney, don’t miss this! We turned in around 11:30, ready for Palo brunch reservations the next day!

QOTD: DO you like game shows? I like to watch and laugh at other peoples expense.

Filed Under: Disney, vacation Tagged: Castaway Cay, Disney, disney boat, Disney Cruise, Disney Cruise Line, Disney Fantasy, disney ship, mickey boat

Mickey Boat Time

April 13, 2013 by Heather

Fun news, Bobby and I are going on a CRUISE in two weeks! Yup, two weeks from today we will be setting sail on the Disney Fantasy for seven amazing nights in the Western Caribbean. We NEVER do anything last minute like this, but due to a few circumstances in our lives decided we needed to get away just the two of us. This week was the only one that worked for us, so yup, two weeks away, ah! I have been on the fantasy for a quick 3 night preview cruise, but Bobby has never been.

We will be staying in a Deluxe family oceanview stateroom with verandah.

We will be visiting Grand Cayman, Costa Maya, Cozumel, and Disney’s private island Castaway Cay.

Grand Cayman

Costa Maya

Cozumel

Castaway Cay

We have no big plans, no excursions, just a week of relaxing and hanging out, getting away from some crazy things going on.

Our awesome neighbors will be watching the house and the dogs, so all is taken care of. Don’t worry, I will have lots of great posts scheduled while I am gone so Through Heather’s Looking Glass will still be up and running!

Remember if you need help planning YOUR cruise on most cruise lines, contact me at heather@travelwiththemagic.com for information and a free quote!

QOTD: Do you plan out vacations well in advance or with short notice?

Filed Under: Disney Tagged: Castaway Cay, Disney Cruise, Disney Cruise Line, Disney Fantasy, disney ship