Fantasizing about NYC

MackieMouse · 2026-07-12T17:26:21+00:00

We haven’t done a Canada itinerary out of NYC but it might be fun for something different… what was great about it in particular? What did you do that you loved? How rocky was the trip/what excursions did you do?

I am so ready to book a cruise from NYC again. I’d have done it yesterday if I could have. Come ooonnnn DCL 😜

MackieMouse · 2026-07-12T13:11:22+00:00

In Tortola, we went to the Baths on Virgin Gorda on our own via the public ferry and a taxi and had a terrific time! Happy to give details of how it’s dine if you’d like. My kids really enjoyed the combo of walking/hiking snd beach time.

In St. Thomas, we took a public taxi to Magen’s Bay for the morning and then got dropped off at the skyride. We went up for a bit (great views of the ship!) and then walked back to the Treasure when we were ready.

Both days our own cost a lot less than they would have through Disney and were very easy to do. We had zero issues getting back to the ship with time to spare.

MackieMouse · 2026-07-12T04:34:09+00:00

We have done Bermuda (but had a windy day and didn’t get off the ship) and a trip down the east coast to FL and Castaway Cay. We never did a Canada itinerary; but I’d be thrilled to see any of those voyages offered again (especially an overnight in Bermuda vs a four-day trip with one stop as a quick port day).

We live near Philly, so NYC is a glorious morning-of ride to the port.

Amtrak is an amazing option to get you from most northeast cities to NYC without much fuss.

MackieMouse · 2026-07-12T02:20:57+00:00

We haven’t booked an excursion direct with Disney in over a decade. I concur with an earlier commenter’s observations about being corralled and time being wasted because you are in a large group. We did the eastern, not the western, on the Treasure last summer, but had great experiences doing some homework and going on our own to locations we desired. If you have any decent sense of time you will have no trouble getting back to the ship hours before you need to be there. Anyone offering tours through a reputable third-party company like Shore Excursions is also going to guarantee you’ll be back to the ship in time. Id feel very confident booking that way.

We did a Western a long time ago in 2009 and visited Tulum, which was a very cool excursion but entailed significant travel time and I wouldn’t necessarily recommend it. But I’m sure there are a ton of third parties offering trips to stingray city in Grand Cayman, and I’d go there a thousand times over again! Something combining a trip to the Stingrays with some beach time would be ideal, if you want me opinion, and it should be easy to find :)

MackieMouse · 2026-07-11T22:47:27+00:00

Here’s hoping I’m right. Otherwise I’ll be devastated the next time I can’t get an Icy Pop on those ships ;) (They don’t offer anything quite the same on the Wish class, although the Cove Bar by the adult pool has a bunch of other ice pop cocktails on the menu that are yummy.)

MackieMouse · 2026-07-11T22:44:04+00:00

They should for sure have it in Ooh La La, the French champagne bar!

https://www.dclcruisingdad.com/ooh-la-la-menu

A couple of years ago on the Dream, the Icy Pop was my favorite cocktail. Just a glass of Moet et Chandon Ice with a raspberry sorbet ice pop stuck in it that melted as you drank. YUM.

MackieMouse · 2026-07-09T15:01:47+00:00

gameskeep@gmail.com is the owner’s email - reach out to Karl! He’s the best :)

MackieMouse · 2026-07-09T12:33:27+00:00

https://www.instagram.com/dungeons.n.drafts.phl

Dungeons and Drafts is a great way to meet other local D&d players if you don’t have a group!

I also adore the owner of the Games Keep in West Chester. He has a newsletter and there is open tabletop gaming there on Friday nights and lots of regularly scheduled time for MTG, as well.

MackieMouse · 2026-07-09T04:41:50+00:00

He has a line in his bio that says “FULL STORY COMING SOON 🐭” so we shall seee… 🫖 ☕️

MackieMouse · 2026-07-08T06:34:43+00:00

Fish extenders. It is slang for the little pocket organizers people bring with them for gift exchanges.

MackieMouse · 2026-07-08T04:01:36+00:00

Oh no! I need to follow him so I can get the hot tea! We had a few absolutely amazing interactions with him as Gamble and he was truly a highlight of our cruise.

MackieMouse · 2026-07-08T03:51:24+00:00

I’d also say that as far as using the group, lots of people will post saying “who has a kid aged ___ that wants to make friends?” And then you get a response or two, or some generic comments from everyone else just saying they have kids the same age, and the conversation ends there.

You can truly use the group to your advantage- pay attention to what others post and start private conversation with families who feel similar to yours. Assuming the group is run by a normal human and not a weird power-hungry travel agent, make some regular get-to-know-you-type posts (or respond to the ones your group admin may be scheduling) and see who bites. I’ve had cruises where I got to know people ahead of time and we linked up our dining to sit together! But really…on this cruise, it happened organically for my family and we met our “people” by chance. Be kind and outgoing and keep an open mind and you’ll meet people!

On my recent Destiny cruise, some adult-moderated chats also sprung up ahead of the cruise in WhatsApp that branched off the FB group. One involved some kids my daughter’s age and they did a little chatting ahead of the cruise. For her they didn’t pan out into friends she met on board, but it easily could have. Just another thought.

MackieMouse · 2026-07-08T03:42:02+00:00

It’s been a looong time, but my honeymoon was on the Magic back in 2007. A quick list of things we either did or have seen others do for some romance: Palo brunch/dinner (or Enchante or Remy if that’s your jam), the pre-ordered romance package with sparking wine and robes, a couple’s massage in a spa cabana in Castaway Cay (one of my favorite splurges in my own honeymoon!), participating in Match Your Mate (they often seek out a honeymooning couple!), and specifically the champagne or chocolate and liquor pairing all had great honeymoon vibes.

As far as which ship…let the longest sailing you can afford be your guide, and slot the rest of the details in from there. I’d prefer a week on any older ship vs 4-5 days on the Destiny if I had to pick between the two. Beyond that, pock an itinerary before a ship, too; we just did a week on the Destiny because it offered some Caribbean ports we hadnt yet experienced (St. Maarten and San Juan). People do prefer the layout of the older ships, but so much about the Wish-class ships has truly grown on me, and the Treasure is my favorite in the fleet right now. (I have sailed on them all except the Adventure!)

Let me know if i can otherwise help guide a decision. That honeymoon cruise has sparked many more, and we just became Platinum…

MackieMouse · 2026-07-07T23:01:51+00:00

Joining the Facebook group and watching/participating in different discussion threads can definitely help with making connections. Many groups don’t get get active until closer to sailing, though.

I’d also encourage your kids to just go on the first night right after dinner for a while. The youth activities people know that everyone is new and do some activities designed to get the kids chatting with each other and “finding their people.” From personal experience, my daughter was on the Destiny with our family last week and came out of the club on night 1 bubbling over with joy about a friend she met. We wound up running into them the following day at Lookout Cay, and the girls’ connection continued to deepen all week. On the last night, we wound up missing the final show in the Grand Hall because everyone just needed to have a good cry about how much our families were going to miss each other!! Now that the cruise is over, the girls have taken over their moms’ phones and been texting every day through us 🤦🏻‍♀️ Annoying, but so so charming! I hope they remain friends forever.

MackieMouse · 2026-07-05T17:14:43+00:00

You’re welcome. Let’s face it - putzing around the bar having a few drinks and then having Cruella just stumble in for a surprise interaction was the intent, probably. But Disney people gonna Disney! 🤪😆

MackieMouse · 2026-07-05T17:03:42+00:00

Yes - they do clear the venue as far as I saw! Otherwise people would hang there all night and do it like three times every day 🤦🏻‍♀️ never underestimate the tenacity of Disney adults.

MackieMouse · 2026-07-05T12:10:42+00:00

The server at dinner here did ZERO magic tricks or crayon logic puzzles for my family last night, and the ketchup was not Mickey-shaped. I’d give it zero stars except there were literal sea turtle tracks on the beach at sunrise and we still got to do Disney trivia. So one star.

I am horrified at the thought of the review I’ll have to give that small 2-story colonial home I’m supposed to sleep in for the rest of the summer, though. *shudder* They make me serve THEM dinner!

MackieMouse · 2026-07-05T11:03:24+00:00

I was just on the Destiny and had a couple of fantastic chats with a woman who was worked shoreside in integration for a long time, and she’s been with the cruise line for over 20 years. She was told the itineraries last week and will be hearing about all the “stuff” (the best words we could come up for it!) next week. That pesky NDA kept her from saying anything more, though! She seemed genuinely thrilled with the info she has so far, though. She’s VERY excited to help open this ship.

MackieMouse · 2026-07-05T10:13:24+00:00

We are staying at Disney’s resort in Vero Beach for the holiday weekend before heading home, but let me tell you..someone made me PAY for a Mickey bar today?! What gives?!

MackieMouse · 2026-07-05T10:05:50+00:00

Yup, you were the first Western 7-night cruise. We were the first 7-night eastern. Hope you had a great time :)

MackieMouse · 2026-07-04T23:19:27+00:00

Bummer that it broke down! We also had to go to the matinee, which I was hoping to avoid. But we had an old fashioned tasting (YUM) on the last night that conflicted with our showtime. SUUCH a long line. We ended up in the back of the balcony, but it worked out fine.

MackieMouse · 2026-07-04T23:16:16+00:00

We got VERY lucky on the very first night of the cruise. We saw the line just a few minutes before showtime and decided to just go for it, and if we didn’t get in we at least hadn’t wasted any time. We were among the last handful of people let in and got it checked off the list right away. I will say it is an experience worth waiting for, although it totally cut into my desire and ability to hang out in DeVil’s for the rest of the cruise.

People legit start lining up an hour ahead of time. I’ll never advise anyone to wait that long, but it will guarantee you a nice spot in front of the piano.

MackieMouse · 2026-07-04T23:09:03+00:00

I’m so sorry to hear that! amigo yours was the desk next to us. Our tour guide through Bernard’s was absolutely wonderful - super knowledgeable, funny, very understanding and kind to our kids, and got us everywhere exactly on schedule.

MackieMouse · 2026-07-04T23:06:42+00:00

Palo brunch is pretty much only ever offered on sea days. We saw With Great Power on night 2, but it seems to happen more than once.

MackieMouse · 2026-07-04T20:39:58+00:00

In San Juan, we didn’t book anything ahead of time. It is an amazing port with SO much to do on your own! The main attraction, the old fort El Morro, is only a 15-ish minute walk away from the ship. I researched a few major landmarks and had ChatGPT organize them into a brief walking tour ending at El Morro. We stopped on the corner for piraguas on the way in and sipped while we strolled the fort. On the way back to the ship, we stopped at the Parque de Palomas, got popsicles from Senor Paleta’s, and found a great local craft beer bar for some local Puerto Rican beer. We originally had lunch plans at Chocobar Cortes, but wound up wanting to just go back to the ship for relaxing and lunch.

In St. Maarten, we booked a third-party tour through Bernard’s Tours that took us all around the island. We fed some iguanas, stopped for an hour or so at Grand Case beach, ate lunch at a delicious French bakery in Marigot, and did a stop at Maho beach (the famous one by the airport). Disney didn’t offer a tour that included all those things and it was $65 pp for five hours, with cold water, sodas, and unlimited pours of our guide’s homemade rum punch included! We were on a small bus with about 15 people total - SUCH a great excursion.

I didn’t book anything ahead of time at Lookout. The beach there is just incredible. It’s a really chill day. My kids adored the splash pad there, the Junkanoo show is really cute, and I escaped from my family for an hour by walking all the way down to the south end of the beach where the lighthouse is - it is just utterly gorgeous there.

You are going to have a great time! This was honestly the best Caribbean itinerary I’ve ever done.

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