3 Night Bahama Cruise on Disney Dream

[bbarnett]

Im pretty sure by the end you will be saying that 3 days is too short!

That is what I'm hoping for. It will be well worth it if we do.

PS: I'm debating on taking my D7000 up there or a much cheaper but still very good camera up there for pictures of the island. I can blow up 24 x 36 posters with the D7000 and they still look like a post card but I can't with the smaller canon I have.

[DiZ NeE 08]

Hmmm.... I think I wold take both of them. I say take both because you never know if you might regret not taking the D7000 and then be sad about only bringing the small one! You never know you might not use but I hate when I decide between two things and ended up really wanting the one I left at home instead of the one I brought with me. Lol

[Mkeef]

I would take the better camera....so much of the island is undeveloped and you are going to have so many unique views that others won't get to see, and like Brad said I'm sure you would be kicking yourself if you didn't get a great shot of the scenery....I just can't say enough about the island...it truely is paradise...If they had a DVC there I would use all my points there haha....

Also, there are a lot of great character photo stops on the island....not sure if you guys are into that but if you are i'm sure you'd be bringing the good camera anyway....we even got a picture with Captain Jack Sparrow!!!!

Don't mean to take over the thread but here is the picture that we took of the island and is hanging in our home...I absolutely love it and reminds of the entire vacation every time I walk by it!

[DiZ NeE 08]

Wow MK, That is an awesome picture!

[newjerseynick]

I also would love to do that Alaska cruise that Nick done but I'm having a real hard time getting past that cold weather gear in June. It just doesn't seem like vacation to me if I have to bundle up to enjoy it but I will say it sure looked like they had fun.

LOL!
We are actually wishing we were back there considering the heat here the last few days!
That being said, Monday, we booked a 7 night Caribbean cruise on the Fantasy for next October, category 6B Veranda.
Can't wait to see your pics!

Nick

[TimK]

Congrats on booking the cruise!

I agree--the island has a lot of neat places to photograph. Probably want to bring the better camera if it's no great hardship.

You're probably not deep into planning mode yet but here are a few general tips to keep in mind:

- On a 3 night cruise you'll have a stage show scheduled every night. IMO, Golden Mickey's is the best of the 3 on the Dream right now. If you want to free-up one of your nights, consider skipping one of the other two.

- Of the 3 main restaurants, Enchanted Garden is open for many meals throughout your trip. If you want to skip one of your scheduled meals, make it that one. You may only get the one opportunity to dine at Animator's Palate and Royal Palace.

(Also you can request changes to your assigned dining rotation if you wish.)

- I wouldn't even bother getting off the ship in Nassau. You only have two full days on the ship--the Nassau day and Castaway Cay day. Use Nassau to explore the ship and do some fun stuff.

- If you happen to tire of Castaway Cay, you'll find the ship relatively deserted. It's actually a great time for basic shipboard activities, although many areas are not operating as Cast Members have shifted to the island.

- The food on the island isn't great. Just fair warning. But most of the ship restaurants are shut down so there are few options.

- Rent bicycles and ride down the paths. That will take you to great areas for photos that you won't otherwise find.

- If you're a runner, look for info on the Castaway Cay run.

Disney cruises are fun but also very overwhelming. We have done three 3-day cruises and you'll be surprised how little time you have to just roam about. On arrival day you find yourself shuttled from emergency drills to dinner to the show. Not much time to really stop and smell the proverbial roses.

Ultimately your choices come down to just going with the flow or skipping some of the scheduled activities. If you keep all of your dinner assignments, shows, visit Nassau, visit CC, you'll have almost no time for anything else. No matter what you do, you'll probably want to schedule another cruise soon to try the other approach.

[bbarnett]

I think you misunderstood me about the camera. My good camera is definitely going with me but I was just debating on whether to take a chance with it while parasailing or not (over water with no chance of recovery). After seeing MK's picture though I think the debate is over. I want a poster size of that view and the only way I can get it is with the good one (boy is that water beautiful).

Nick, no kidding about the heat and add to that there are still 100's of thousands without electric today. October? Okay I picked the the most hurricane prone month of the year (September) and you picked one almost as bad, can you say dumb and dumber. Keep your for me and I will you.

Tim, thanks for all of the tips. I can't pass up the opportunity to see Atlantis up close and personal though. After what you said though I'm glad I booked the short no frills tour which will probably still eat up about 4+ hrs. From the sounds of it seeing everything in 3 nights is about as likely as seeing everything at WDW in 3 nights. In other words impossible. If everything goes well with this trip I'm sure there will be more in our future plans.

[Presley]

My son and I did Atlantis. I had always wanted to go there. It is a fun place. If your excursion comes with the lunch, prepare for extra greasy food and a can of soda. ALso, Atlantis does not accept cash. Bring credit cards if you want to buy anything while there.

The time sure does fly on the 3 night. I'd do it again in a heartbeat, though.

Let me know how the higher floor works for the seasickness. We were told the opposite. We were told lowest floor and closest to the middle. We've been on deck 2 twice and didn't have had problems. You do feel the ship move. If your wife is subject to seasickness, she can take a Bonine right after you board. It doesn't cause drowsiness like the other brands.

[denlo]

Like Wil (wdrl) said in his post, I don't think it will really matter, because the new ships are so stable that anywhere midship you should be okay. We know lots of people that wear the wristbands http://www.walgreens.com/store/c/sea...662944-product, to prevent sea sickness. I think that what most people do, that makes sea sickness worse is that they stay in their cabin, resting. Whereas getting outside into the fresh air and looking at the horizon is one of the best things you can do. It permits your inner ear to adjust to the motion of the ship while your vision can see a stable horizon versus a moving sea. A balcony would be perfect for that.

BTW, we like to sleep with our balcony door open, as long as it is not too windy, so we can hear the sea. It is so relaxing. I always get a great night's sleep at sea.

[bbarnett]

Thanks for the tips about Atlantis Presley. I'll let you know how the higher floor works out for us. I'm really looking forward to the view from up there.

Thanks for the link Denise. We have a Walgreen within a couple miles of us here. My wife is going to get one of those patches for behind the ear (I think) from her doctor but I might go ahead and purchase one these wrist bands as a backup. I am hoping that we stay so busy that she doesn't have time to think about it. Sometimes I think that is 90% of her problem, she thinks about it too much.

I don't know about sleeping with the balcony door open. It may still be a little to hot for that in September (at least for this northerner). You Texans are used to that year round heat and we're not.