[00:00:00] Speaker A: But something that we learned a lot through this cruise is you have to ask, especially in the disability space.
Disney offers things that they don't say online. They will do things that they don't write, don't put in writing, but you have to ask. And so if you need something, you gotta say something.
[00:00:30] Speaker B: Welcome back, everybody, to this week's episode of the DCL Duo podcast, brought to you by My Path Unwinding Travel. And Sam, we, as always, we start with the review.
[00:00:39] Speaker C: Review time. Review time.
[00:00:41] Speaker B: I thought we landed on a different song on the last episode.
[00:00:44] Speaker C: Oh, yeah, we did. What was it? It was.
I can't remember.
[00:00:47] Speaker B: It was a reprise of a top 40 hit, but I can't remember what it was.
[00:00:50] Speaker C: Now I. I have to. Oh, simply the best.
Better than all the rest.
[00:00:55] Speaker B: There you go. All right. This review comes from Wanda Tarrant. Tarrant T A R R A N T who podcast. Always love listening to your podcast. Thank you for keeping the Disney magic with a clean and family friendly podcast. And I almost hesitate to read this parenthetical because Sam's head is already too large to fit through the door sometimes.
Parenthetical. Five exclamation points for you, Sam, with a happy smiley face. So there you go. I get no exclamation points.
[00:01:23] Speaker C: No exclamation points for Brian. Just for me. I love it. There you go.
[00:01:27] Speaker B: All right, well, thank you, Wanda, for that lovely review, even though it did not mention me at all. And we appreciate it out there and so thank you. Leaving the review as always, one of the easiest ways to help support the show. Head over to Apple Podcast, hit those five stars. If you leave us a written review, we will read it on the air at the top of one of our main episodes. And we are four reviews away, Sam, from 500 reviews, which is pretty spectacular.
[00:01:53] Speaker C: So maybe by the time this episode comes out, we'll have 500 reviews. And I also want to put it out there, though we still need those likes and subscribes on YouTube as well. So let's get our numbers up and if you're not following us on Instagram, then it's a real problem because I am waiting to get my Instagram influencer status with Topo Chico and I need to.
[00:02:15] Speaker B: Long way to go, Sam.
[00:02:16] Speaker A: I need to have at least 10,000.
[00:02:19] Speaker C: Followers and we only have like a little over 5,000.
[00:02:22] Speaker B: Only 9,999 more to go.
[00:02:27] Speaker C: It's like 4,900 or something like that to go. Yeah.
[00:02:33] Speaker B: All right, well, we'll get right on that with that, Sam. You want to introduce our guest and our topic for this evening?
[00:02:38] Speaker A: Yes.
[00:02:38] Speaker C: I'm super excited to welcome Sarah to the show. Sarah has not been on our show before, so first time guest, but not first time cruiser. So welcome to the show, Sarah.
[00:02:49] Speaker A: Thank you. I am so excited to be here, and hopefully we'll be fast friends because I feel like y' all have been my car buddies for a very long time and have gotten me through many seasons when family planning has interrupted cruising. And so I would just cruise vicariously through you guys. So very excited to be here tonight.
[00:03:09] Speaker C: I love that. Well, we love being in your car, so thanks for having us.
So let's jump right in and talk about your cruising creds, your Disney creds. As I mentioned, we're going to talk about your transatlantic cruise with lots of littles. But before we get to talking about that, tell us where your Disney cruise line love comes from.
Did you start with Disney parks? Have you cruised on other lines? Give me all the deets.
[00:03:37] Speaker A: Okay. So have only cruised on Disney. This is cruise 17, I think we're getting up there, but not very nice.
[00:03:45] Speaker C: You're platinum, though.
[00:03:46] Speaker A: That's.
[00:03:46] Speaker C: That's pretty darn good. Yeah.
[00:03:48] Speaker A: Have been cruising since, oh, my goodness, since my husband and I got married. We did a honeymoon via Disney cruise line. So we cruise without kids, with kids. We've gone to Alaska, the Mediterranean, Eastern Western Caribbean. We've done the Panama Canal.
The transatlantic love, the longer sailings. If I can do that. That's my jam.
But started when, man, way back when. Did Disney once or twice as a kid and then have always wanted to be an imagineer. If I can make that happen at some point, if anyone's got any contacts, let me know. It's still a big dream of mine. I am a software engineer by trade, and so that kind of fueled my love for Disney because of the engineering and just kind of loving the way the magic works. And then went on a cruise, like right after college with my mom and my sister. Didn't think much of it, but then was in Spain and have some food allergies and had a real close run in and was like, maybe I need to do something different. And so when my husband and I got together, we started cruising because it was an easier way for us to travel and see the world without dealing with some deadly food allergies, which are pretty complicated. I'm allergic to parsley, cilantro, and cumin. So they're in everything and really, really tricky to navigate in foreign countries. So Cruising has been like our way of traveling. And then when our son with down syndrome was born, it was like, yep, this is it.
And has been such an incredible thing for him because it gives him so much autonomy and the ability to like kind of do all the things and have the accommodations that he needs. And we'll get into it more in this conversation, but like cruising is, has just been the best for our family.
[00:05:40] Speaker C: Oh, I love that. Now tell us how many kids you guys have and so who's really in your travel party? I guess my question.
[00:05:48] Speaker A: Okay, so we have. So it's my husband and myself. We're the OGs. And then we have four kids. We have a little boy that is seven who has down syndrome. And we say he's here for the lights and the music, the shows. He is all about the entertainment and the sensory experience. And now the elevators. And then we have that I love.
[00:06:10] Speaker C: Who doesn't love a cute elevator?
[00:06:12] Speaker A: No, he is a runner and he is running to one thing, those glass elevators.
[00:06:18] Speaker C: So I have to ask, has he been on the wish class before yet?
[00:06:22] Speaker A: Yes, he has been on the wish class.
I don't know if he has a preference, but he's constantly on his communication device. He's mostly non verbal and he's constantly saying Andy's room and splash pad. So at school they're like, what is Andy's room?
[00:06:40] Speaker C: It's in the kids club.
I love that.
But I gotta tell you, we love the elevators on the Treasure and the Wish because they are the best selfie places. Like you can take the best selfies on those elevators because they all have mirrors and they don't have the glass that you have on, you know, on the original ships, but you know, the.
[00:06:59] Speaker A: Center, the midship elevators, like he wants to be able to see everything happening and then you know where the pictures move. Well, I mean the picture, there's pictures on the walls but as the elevator goes up you can see all the different pictures. He just loves it.
So we have. So our 7 year old is a little boy with down syndrome. And then we have a just turned six year old little girl who is all about the thrills, the water slides, everything.
And then our four year old little girl who is all about the snacks, she will eat you out of the Mickey bars and the pretzels and all the, all the snacks. Not, not the real food, just the snacks.
[00:07:40] Speaker C: Yeah, Mickey shaped snacks specifically. I understand.
She's me, I love.
[00:07:47] Speaker A: And then we have a one year old who is just the life of the party. She is not going to nap, she's not going to miss anything. She wants to be there for everything.
So those are our four kids. And then most of the time we bring my mom because we need a.
[00:08:04] Speaker C: Little bit of support, an extra set of hands. My goodness.
[00:08:07] Speaker A: Yeah, we do. Because even though, like Disney's amazing and provides childcare, we just also, we need a little extra support.
[00:08:16] Speaker C: Well, and that means you are typically booking two rooms anyway. I mean, even if you were just the six of you, you'd have to book two rooms because there aren't any rooms outside of the like two bedroom concierge, basically that you can fit six people in.
[00:08:30] Speaker A: Yes. And it's a little complex because we have had to book accessible rooms. So my son with down syndrome needs a safety bed because like I mentioned, he has a love for those elevators. And so a lot of times he will try to leave the room to go to the elevators, which is a little bit problematic. So with a safety bed, we just got a new one that is smaller, that fits in a regular stateroom. So that's been a game changer for us. But we didn't know we were going to have that one for this cruise. So we had an accessible room and a typical room, but they were not connected. And that posed a little bit of drama for us because when your rooms aren't connected and you have four children, it's quite chaotic. But luckily we were able to convince my mom to have all the children in the room with her because we have a pack and play.
And so she had all the kids with her and my husband and I had her own room. So.
[00:09:30] Speaker C: Wow, that's. So she had the accessible room though. So she had the larger storage space to have the. Your son's bed.
[00:09:37] Speaker A: It's pretty complicated. The bed, our new bed came in three days before we left.
[00:09:42] Speaker C: Oh, right before the cruise?
[00:09:43] Speaker A: Right before the cruise. And so when we got on board, we like tried, we tried at. I tried everything, but they didn't have any more rooms left even though the ship was like half full. So we just had two rooms that were pretty far apart for the sailing.
[00:10:00] Speaker C: Yeah, you were hoping to switch to two adjoining rooms so that, you know, you can have just more easier access to. I mean, with four kids and they're all young, you need.
Yeah, that's a lot.
[00:10:12] Speaker A: We have one of us.
Yes, Grandma is amazing. And they go to bed early and this was like the first time my husband and I could like go enjoy the adult activities that we had missed for years and years and years. So this was like our first time back at, like, Match youh Maid and like, getting to experience all of the adult entertainment. Because when you have little kids, you don't. You don't get to do that.
[00:10:36] Speaker C: Yes, absolutely. Even. We don't know even. Well, until recently, we didn't get to do that. And our son's 11 and we only have one, so it should be easier.
[00:10:45] Speaker A: Yeah, it doesn't matter how many you.
[00:10:47] Speaker C: It doesn't matter. Yeah, it doesn't matter, right? You could have one, you could have 12. It doesn't matter. They're young. You're not going to those events unless you've got grandma with you or grandpa or, you know, nanny, whatever with you. Well, so let's. Let's dive into some of the planning process.
Now. When you are dealing with stuff in the planning process for your food allergy in particular and for your son's needs, are you talking to Special Services in advance of the cruise? And if so, what kinds of things are you talking to them about? You know, we. We haven't worked with Special Services before. We are aware that they exist and that they are there to deal with all kinds of special needs, medical needs, food allergies, but we just haven't ourselves needed to use them. So I'm curious about that.
[00:11:32] Speaker A: Yeah. So Special Services, it's interesting because they are onshore and they are not on the ship. And so just because you talk to Special Services before you get on the boat doesn't mean anyone on the ship has any idea that you've talked to them.
[00:11:48] Speaker C: I've heard that.
[00:11:48] Speaker A: I've heard that before from my personal experience. So we typically, like. I typically have a food allergy situation on every cruise we go on. Like, I don't know how I hear from other people that Disney Cruise Line is amazing with food allergies. And they are like, my food allergies are very complicated and we have a hard time, like, eating out at home. Like, this is not a Disney cruise line is bad or whatever. But typically we have an issue.
On our last cruise, we had a few issues. And so I contacted Special Services, and they even had me kind of like, create like, a provisioning form where I could upload pictures of, like, ingredients that I wanted on the ship. But when we got on the ship, no one had any idea about it. So I have no idea. So I guess I'm the wrong person to ask. I know they do a better job for like, more special dietary, like maybe religious types of dietary needs. But I think because my allergies are so strange.
It was just a.
I don't know, it was a very strange thing. But yeah, no one on the ship had any idea about it. But we didn't have any issues on this sailing. But I had contacted Special Services in multiple respects. So one was like, hey, like, let me provision some food. But then the other one was like, hey, this is, we've got to fix something. Because across the board I had like three different allergy issues on a five night sailing. And it was just like, this is, this is a life situation. This isn't like a upset stomach. Like you guys gotta figure it out. And so I don't know if that triggered them to like flag my name, but when we came on board, like everybody was ready and we had no issues. And it was like night and day from the month prior when we were on the fantasy. So who knows?
With our son, we let them know that he's coming. But again, like on the ship they kind of are just like ready.
You don't really need to let them know. I mean, best practice, you should let them know. But it doesn't really make a difference.
We did like, lesson learned. If you have medical equipment, do not check it, do not leave it with anyone. Bring it with you through, through like your boarding process, like bring it on the ship.
Because like they did confiscate like the pump for his bed. And so that was like a whole thing.
So like if you are traveling with any kind of like medical devices or anything like that, always carry it with you. But otherwise, like everybody's just ready on the ship and they know what they're doing.
But I don't get the sense that everyone talks very well.
[00:14:35] Speaker C: So yeah, yeah, that's the sense we've gotten that the left hand and the right hand don't do well in communicating with one another. So it is still recommended. And I'm telling people this, still talk to Special Services, but don't feel like just because you spoke to Special Services that you don't need to also speak to guest services or you know, dining or whoever on board. Right. Food allergies. Yeah, food allergies especially. It's been our experience that every time we sit down at a restaurant though on Disney Cruise Line, that the first thing you're asked is whether or not anyone has any allergies, frankly. Thankfully, that's become a thing. Even in restaurants, like locally, we'll go to a restaurant and people will ask us, oh, are there any food allergies that we should know about? And I think that's a great thing that that's become more common. But again, it's going, you know, especially that first night. The first time you sit down at dinner, it is likely, you know, be pack your patient's pants. It is likely to be a delay in getting your food that first night and hopefully it won't be a delay the next night. The next night, the next night.
[00:15:37] Speaker A: That's. And not only.
[00:15:39] Speaker B: I'm just picturing a pallet of food that, that you were sitting somewhere on a Disney ship and somebody going, why do we have this stuff in the refrigerator?
[00:15:47] Speaker C: Yeah, it's probably on a different ship than you were on.
[00:15:50] Speaker A: Like, what is this?
[00:15:52] Speaker C: Oh yeah, pizza sauce. Pizza sauce always has parsley in it.
[00:15:55] Speaker A: Right.
[00:15:55] Speaker C: Like there's. I can't imagine a pizza sauce that isn't made with parsley in it. Right.
[00:16:01] Speaker A: Well, the thing is on the deck, so all the food on the deck, like I hope I'm not going to like spoil anything for anyone, but a lot of it just is. It's all like comes from off the ship. It's not like freshly made in house. And most things it just says spice.
And so you don't know what the spice is. So you know, good luck. The chicken tenders, spice.
Everything is spice. I do believe on the wish the sauce is.
Or the last time we were on the wish it was not spice. So that one I could have. But not on the fantasy or. Yeah, so. And the provisions change. So each time you go on the ship, if you have food allergies, if there was something you couldn't eat the last time, always check. But also if you could eat, it doesn't mean you should be eating, you know, like you can eat it again because things change and on the first day, I don't mean to jump ahead, but on the first day, if you do have a disability, if you have food allergies, something like that, I highly recommend getting on board as soon as you can so that you can do those things. Like you can talk to guest services, go to the kids club if your child has a disability, talk with dining. I always go straight to dining and we have the conversation just to make sure you do know that I have these allergies. And then we also do sit down lunch and during sit down lunch we pre ordered dinner.
[00:17:25] Speaker C: So smart.
That's brilliant, Sarah. Yeah, no, that is, that is brilliant. Pro tip. I love the, I love the going to sit down lunch so you can have dinner ready because you can talk to. You might not be able to talk to your dining team, but you will be able to talk to one of the dining managers, and they will make sure that that information is passed along. That's the key that you're talking about. And I think that. I don't know that I've ever heard somebody give that tip, and I love that tip. I think that's key.
[00:17:51] Speaker A: And the other, like, big thing that you need to know if you have an allergy is you need to make sure that they are using the allergy paper. It's usually a pink slip. And so this is where, like, it's gone wrong on another cruise is they weren't using that pink slip. And so that's how there were, you know, allergies in my food.
But make sure that, like, they're not just taking your order on the regular paper, that they're taking everybody else's order. It will be separate. It will have a different, like, colored slip. It'll probably be covered. They. It will come out separately, like it's a whole thing.
And if you have severe food allergies, like, that's fine. Like it's a whole thing. Because you want to live and it's.
[00:18:32] Speaker C: You want to be safe. Exactly. You don't want to have anaphylaxis, you.
[00:18:35] Speaker A: Know, on the middle of the ocean. You don't need to use an EpiPen. Yeah. In the middle of the ocean. Especially if you're on a transatlantic.
Yeah.
[00:18:41] Speaker C: Right. You're not near land in the middle of the cruise. Absolutely. I also love your advice about bringing on the medical equipment with you, because, as you mentioned, the pump got confiscated, and it takes some time to get that back. Right. And it's because engineering is looking at things like fans and pumps and things like that. If you have it in your checked luggage, they're going to take it out and they're going to confiscate it, at least to examine it. They may give it back to you, they may not give it back to you, but if you bring it on with you and it goes through security, they know. Are you able to explain to the person immediately that you are, that this is medical equipment and they will let you on with that equipment?
[00:19:21] Speaker A: Yeah. And we got a slip in our luggage that said they confiscated it. And it was the generic slip that said, like, you can pick it back up in Port Canaveral? And it was a moment of total panic because we were like, wait a minute. Did they leave this in Port Canaveral? And we're going to Barcelona.
Like, what is going to happen? Like, this is Going to be really, really scary if we have to, like, whatever. But they had it on the ship. I don't know if they typically have everything on the ship, but it's just like really important for people to know if you've got medical equipment, carry it on to make sure that it gets on.
[00:19:58] Speaker C: Yeah, yeah, absolutely.
[00:20:00] Speaker B: I have a feeling almost everything makes its way onto the ship itself just because then when they offload, they just offload that stuff and they know it's for that sailing. If they try to keep it at Port Canaveral, I have a feeling they get everything mixed up all so. I know.
[00:20:12] Speaker C: Yeah, I have. I agree with you there. Especially now that they have more than one ship going out of, you know, Port Canaveral on a regular basis. Well, let, let's jump to, to getting onto the ship. You guys are. You guys are traveling from Virginia. Virginia. Okay. So not super far, but far enough.
[00:20:33] Speaker A: Where you either drive or fly. But you're not going to do it the same day, Right. Pro tip, we're not doing that. And luckily we got in at like 7pm the night before.
Again, we got adjoining rooms. We put the kids to bed and mom and dad went to Disney Springs because we never go out. And that was just a fun little adventure. And got back and then the next morning we took the DCL transfer over to the port just to ensure that we were on the ship early. Because those extra two hours, when you have an individual with a disability, when you have food allergies, those two hours make a huge difference. And like when we're not traveling with kids, totally. Like, doesn't matter what time you get to the port. Like, we're not rope drop type people, but for our family situation, you've got like, things take time.
[00:21:30] Speaker C: Yeah. And the lines aren't long at guest services when you get on early and the wait for sit down lunch is not long and things like that. So yeah, you get to expedite a lot of things if you get on.
[00:21:40] Speaker A: It's a lot of stuff to do because you have to check into the nursery or at least for our family, you've got to check into the nursery. We've got to do the kids club thing. We've got to talk. A lot of times we're talking with a manager at the kids club because we have a child with a disability. We've got to talk with the dining team. We might be checking in with Paulo to make sure that they're cool too with, you know, the allergy situation. Like we just gotta cross all The T's dot all the I's and just make sure everybody is like set so that it's an easier sailing.
But another pro tip about getting to the port, if you do have a child with a disability, ours has a hard time waiting in lines. He gets a little excited and maybe might throw some things.
So they are incredibly accommodating and can help expedite that process if that applies to your family. And I know a lot of people don't, like, if you don't know, you don't know. But something that we learned a lot through this cruise is you have to ask, especially in the disability space.
Disney offers things that they don't say online. They will do things that they don't write, don't put in writing, but you have to ask. And so if you need something, you gotta say something. And so there's your public service announcement, like if you have a need, offer that information, disclose the disability or disclose the accommodation that you're looking for. And usually Disney's gonna help you out.
[00:23:11] Speaker C: Yeah, absolutely. I do think that there's a bit of advocating for yourself, for your child, for your family member that you do have to do with Disney because they are not quite as transparent about what is available and what is not available as they maybe should be.
But luckily there are a lot of people who are willing to advocate for themselves and ask those questions or ask for those accommodations. So. All right, well, you get to the port, you have boarded the ship. Tell us where. I know you got to go to the kids club. You got to go to the nursery because you got a little one.
Tell us all of the. Beyond those two places and dining, what are the other things that you typically are dealing with when you first get on board?
[00:23:58] Speaker A: I mean, we're doing it all.
[00:23:59] Speaker C: It's a lot.
[00:24:02] Speaker A: You know, before we had kids, it was like, let's just go chill and like go to the pool. No, no, no, no. There's no time for the pool. Because by the time you do all of that, we ended up having like a meet and greet with other three and four year olds on the ship because the three and four year olds, Disney pairs them together so they're not kind of like free roaming at the club like everybody else is. And so our 4 year old was a little bit annoyed not to be with her brother and sister, just, you know, free ranging the kids club. And so we set up a meet and greet with all the other three and four year olds to just meet so that they had little buddies, so that it Wasn't like you're being, you know, put in a little class and, you know, you don't get to play. Yeah. So that was the only, like, big thing we did.
We'll probably talk about it later. But the WhatsApp channels for this cruise were bananas.
[00:24:57] Speaker C: I want to ask about the demographics of speaking of that, like, what were. Because obviously it's a transatlantic cruise. We're going to focus more about your experience than the, than the ports on this show, obviously, because you have a unique experience with four littles and one who has a disability and of course your food allergy stuff. And so I do want to focus more on that stuff than on the ports. We've talked about the transatlantic cruise and the ports with other folks. So if you're listening, listening. I'm sorry that we're going to focus on this stuff or I'm not sorry we're going to focus on this stuff.
[00:25:26] Speaker B: But sorry, not sorry.
[00:25:28] Speaker C: Sorry, not sorry exactly. I know this isn't a full cruise. Like, transatlantics are typically not full. We're talking dream class. So the ship fits, you know, holds like 4,000 people. But like, how many people we talking on this cruise? And like, were there. I mean, obviously there were some other kids, but like, how many?
[00:25:46] Speaker A: Okay, so Disney Fantasy was not prepared for the number of children that were going to be on this cruise. But also the Fantasy has never done a transatlantic cruise before either. So I don't know why they were not prepared because they're used to children.
[00:26:00] Speaker C: And the dream has done. Dream has done the transatlantic.
[00:26:04] Speaker A: Yes.
There were a hundred, like in the nursery.
So just. And you have to be one. So 101 to 3 year olds. And then I believe there were like 500 in the kids club.
So that's a pretty hefty amount. So when we did the Panama Canal in 2022, there were five kids under five and three of them are mine, if that'll give you like.
[00:26:29] Speaker C: Yeah, yeah, yeah. These cruises do these longer cruises. One, because the minimum age is one and two, because it's. School's in session during this time.
And so if you have school age kids that you're not willing to pull out of school or they're not homeschooled. Right. Like it's, it's harder to do a transatlantic. That's the reason we've not done a transatlantic or Trans Pacific with Nathan. It's the same reason why we haven't done a Panama Canal with him either. Right. It's just, it's too much missing school for him. At this point.
[00:27:01] Speaker A: But, I mean, there were a lot of kids there. I think Disney was not prepared. And they were also not prepared for the amount of Disney adults.
And I mean that in the best way possible. But we're talking, like, the rope drop culture was insanity, where it impacted the kids experience.
Not just mine. Like, the full kids experience on the ship, where you had people waiting in line for characters, like, two hours in advance.
And some of the adult activities had lines. Again, they were waiting for anyone can cook for two hours. You're like, this is a cruise. Like, let's go have fun. Like, this is not.
So it was a very interesting dynamic of, like, everyone wanting to do everything.
And they ended up, like, we had a nice conversation with guest services at one point because we got turned away from a character meet and greet, showing up, like, two minutes after it started and with our, like, little children. And they were so upset. And so we talked with, like, guest services about, like, hey, this is.
This is pretty wild. Like, can we do anything? And they ended up having, like, they added more things to the itinerary and even, like, where they had certain shows. So we did the color spin, and originally that was in the, like, atrium. And then they ended up doing it a second time out on the deck.
And the ability for kids to, like, be a part of it and enjoy it. It's a huge difference when it's on the deck versus when it's inside. Because, like, if you have adults crowding the front inside, like, everybody's standing so the kids can't see versus on the deck, everybody's sitting down and everybody can see. So, like, there was just a lot of interesting things that were, like, growing pains, I think, with this cruise that people are taking these longer cruises with children. It is happening. It is just. It is less, but I don't think it's as less as what Disney is used to or what our family's used to. But again, like, that was right after the pandemic when we did the Panama Canal.
[00:29:09] Speaker C: Yeah. Now I want to hear about the WhatsApp group because you said it was bananas. What do you mean by that? Like, because so a lot of cruises, people start WhatsApp groups for.
They might start one for the whole thing, or they might start, like, specific subject matter groups, like, for people who want to play Lorcana, for people who want to, or people who have little kids or whatever. They. So there's lots of subgroups also. But what was this one like?
[00:29:32] Speaker A: It was incredible. I mean, there were, like, 58 plus subgroups there was over a thousand people on these, like, WhatsApp channels. It was a.
At the end of the cruise, it was like Facebook Marketplace, which was incredible. Like, every cruise should have a WhatsApp at for the end of the cruise where people are just like, you know, anyone needed bathing suit, swim diapers. Like, it was just like a wild giveaway.
I don't even know how to describe.
[00:30:03] Speaker C: Like a buy nothing group. Because they're selling.
[00:30:06] Speaker A: Yes, trading. I mean, it was almost like a black market kind of affair.
So, you know, someone had like chocolate from Dubai. Like, I mean, it was just. If you wanted something from the us, like, there were so many trades going on. It was fantastic in the best way. Like, what you would hope an international trip would be.
[00:30:25] Speaker B: Like, how did you connect into the WhatsApp group? Did you find it through Facebook? Or, like, how.
[00:30:30] Speaker A: So the Facebook admins. I don't know if someone, if it was an admin through the Facebook group, started it, but the WhatsApp groups were set up months in advance. And I think with these sailings, people are like, we're waiting to see if you know what the dates are going to be for the.
Whatever would happen in the fall of next year. But people are booking these, like, right when they happen. And, like, it is a thing, like the community's happening, like. And these WhatsApp channels are vibrant still today.
One of the big ones was like, whale and dolphin sightings. So anyone saw a whale, a dolphin, any kind of wildlife, there's, you know, your phone's going off. There was one for, I mean, just about everything you could think of, people that knit sports.
At one point, the Eurovision that became a WhatsApp channel. But then they were able to get the crews to like, host a Eurovision party or like a showing. And so it was just a way for the community to come together. But even, like, they had a 5Ks sea where someone, like made metals. Like, I mean, it was just everything you'd hope a community would be. But that, like, really manifested and you really got to meet people that you met online. Very strange, but also, like, very cool. So highly recommend if your cruise ends up having a WhatsApp group.
I don't know if I would do it for a short sailing. Unless it's a short sailing where you know you've got stuff that you end up getting or like pixie dusting. I think it's a great way for that kind of giveaway stuff or passing along extra snacks. Like, we had a lot of extra snacks. People are going to be In Europe for a long time, a lot of people were not. Their trip wasn't ending there. So it was just a really vibrant community and really neat way to connect with other people.
And you didn't have to use the Disney app to do so, and you didn't have to pay for Internet. So that's like our other thing. We don't pay for the Internet because my husband and I are both software engineers. And so Disney cruising has always been our way of, like, really disconnecting because our whole life is connected. And so WhatsApp is, I guess, another pro tip. So for those out there listening, if you have not put WhatsApp on your phone, if you're taking a cruise, WhatsApp is a great way for you to stay in touch with others back home, but also people on the ship without having to buy the Internet package.
[00:32:59] Speaker C: Yeah. And if you are an Android user, it's really your only option because, you know, with iMessage, you can at least communicate iMessage to iMessage. Right. Like iPhone to iPhone. You can communicate through, you know, on the ship with people at home. You just can't send pictures. You can send text and emojis, but WhatsApp is the same thing.
[00:33:20] Speaker A: You can do pictures and videos on WhatsApp.
[00:33:22] Speaker C: Oh, awesome. You know, I don't think I've ever even tried to do pictures of videos on WhatsApp, but I have used. I have joined.
Admittedly, I have not. Even though I've administered Facebook groups, I've let other people start the WhatsApp group and, like, manage it. Because Complex.
[00:33:36] Speaker B: Because you're old and technology challenged?
[00:33:38] Speaker C: No, but I'll join the WhatsApp group. I have been. I've joined, and so I. But I'm more of a lurker than in the WhatsApp group. I'm more.
[00:33:45] Speaker B: Sam's hip, she's with it.
She's also. She's also probably on a Discord server somewhere.
[00:33:50] Speaker C: I am not even. I don't even think I'm on a Discord server.
[00:33:53] Speaker D: Are you listening to our show because you want to make the most out of your next vacation? Great news. The fabulous team over at my path Unwinding Travel can help guide you so you don't miss a thing. Their team of professional travel advisors are caring, knowledgeable, and experienced. It's why we use them to book our own travel mypath. Unwinding Travel is an authorized Disney vacation planner, which means they are recognized by Disney for their expertise and service. They have sailed on all the Disney ships, including in concierge, visited the theme parks, adventured with Disney, Relaxed at Aulani, and so much more. Whether it's a Disney cruise, a theme park vacation, or adventures by Disney, or if you are looking to expand beyond the Mouse, MyPad Path Unwinding Travel will elevate your next vacation planning experience. Even if you have already booked, reach out for a complimentary consultation to make your vacation even more magical. Ready to talk to the experts? Head over to mypathunwinding.com DCLDUO or email DCLDUOYpathunwinding.com so they know we sent you their way. Thanks, My Path Unwinding for sponsoring today's show. Now back to the episode.
[00:34:52] Speaker C: Well, I want to. I want. I want to jump into some of the special activities on board a transatlantic sailing.
But I want to get your unique perspective on how those activities and things sort of fit with or don't fit with a family with little kids. Because I imagine there are some things that are adult only, or even if they're not adult only, they don't necessarily target the younger audience.
[00:35:20] Speaker A: That is exactly right. They don't target that audience. And where it gets complicated is just that, like, so there were a lot of things that were open to everyone, but then when you think about it, or you bring your children there, you're like, maybe not like, they had a guest speaker who had spent, you know, 40 years with Disney. Really interesting stuff. I wanted to go, but no, it was not. And he wasn't an imagineer. I'm blanking on his name. I apologize.
We didn't. We weren't able to go. We went to a few of the sessions, but when you bring kids in there, there are no other children in there. And my kids were like, not having it. But I don't think any kid would enjoy a lecture series. So, you know, cross that off the list. They also brought in professional ballroom dancers. So we took the kids there. Let me tell you, it was not that it was inappropriate. Like, it was not like inappropriate dancing. It was just not appropriate for children. Like, the kids don't.
I mean, like, learning salsa learning. It was just not a kid's dance class.
They were not learning like the cha Cha Mini.
[00:36:31] Speaker C: Right. It wasn't like Minnie Mouse doing the Macarena. It was like a salsa dance.
[00:36:35] Speaker A: Different.
[00:36:36] Speaker C: Yeah. A little different vibe. Yeah, yeah.
[00:36:38] Speaker A: So that was. And the pace was not like a child's pace either. So we took the kids. They were the only kids. And then we left.
They also had anyone can cook, but this. Anyone can cook was only for adults. Like it was an adults only experience. And what we learned is that there were not any children only experiences. And what we also learned is that they cannot age restrict any kind of character experiences.
So the way you get around this, what we learned after talking with our friends at guest services, is that you have to be tricky. Like when you're looking at the events in the Navigator, you're looking for events for like kids, but they're really hard to figure out what they are. And they're done by design because they don't want the adults showing up. And so like if there is a dance party, like a. It might say like a Disney Junior dance party. Well, if you read between the lines, a character will probably show up, but the only way, like the kids will have those like character interactions or anything like that are probably like in the kids club during kids club programming. And that's the only way, like you can guarantee that kind of, I don't know, magical moment.
Otherwise it's a little bit more tricky to tease out when the characters will or will not be there.
And everything is open to everyone outside of that. If there's characters involved, it's open to everyone.
We also learned there was a hide and seek. A cast member. Hide and seek. Super fun.
Not meant for children.
Totally. And I don't mean like the children were welcome there, but if you had like a three and four year old, which we did, like it was not.
It was not geared towards them and.
[00:38:39] Speaker C: There was no way too difficult for them to be able to navigate the ship and do it. Or like the clues are too difficult or something like that.
[00:38:46] Speaker A: Yeah, like it just. And it wasn't designed like, I would say most of these experiences weren't designed with families. Like they had a, like pirates night, like the pirates game show or whatever, where it's very much family focused. Where I would say everything that was added for the transatlantic crossing was designed for adults. And not to say like kids aren't welcome there. I would actually say like the kids soup of the pool was in a more enjoyable experience because there weren't as many kids there. The splash pads were not as full. Like everything was still wonderful. I would just say they didn't add extra family activities until we like said something. And we're like, hey guys, we got children here.
And we would like some more characters and some more shows. Because the other thing they did is they cut the matinee shows. So typically on the fantasy you've got a frozen matinee. And because there's Less people on the ship, they cut the matinee. And where that's problematic is if you have children that go to bed early, they're not going to the show because they cannot hang for the show.
[00:40:00] Speaker C: They can't stay up for the late show, which is if they're having early dinner, then they'd have to stay up for the late show. If they're having late dinner, then they have to go to the early show, but they can't stay up for either late show or late dinner. And so their only option is matinee. Now, not all the sailings have matinees, but some of. Yeah, often they have at least one month before. Yeah, well, and for frozen especially, that's the most popular one on that ship. I mean that to me, you know, they absolutely should have at least one matinee for frozen. And if not, if not for all the shows, especially in a longer, a longer sailing, you have so many days, they should be able to fit it in even if it's not the same day as the evening shows, frankly.
[00:40:43] Speaker A: Yeah. And I think it was just like they just geared everything towards adults for this sailing, which makes sense given previous sailings. But I, I don't think they were prepared for the number of adults that wanted to be a part of everything and that there were a lot of children that were sailing. I don't think they were ready for that. So we did like the way we ended up doing shows is two of our kids that our oldest and our youngest are bookends.
We put them to bed. We actually did dinner with them and we had my mom go to the. They did like pool deck food. So our middles did pool deck food and went to the early show and then we did dinner with our bookends and then went to bed. So we were able to like split them up. But we didn't take, you know, not everybody went to the shows because it was just versus.
[00:41:35] Speaker C: You had to do a lot of divide and conquer then too. So you can't all do everything together, even dinner all together. Yeah. Which is. Which is rough. I'm curious about. So one of the things I always tend to see on the schedule are there are some open house activities in the kids club that are open to adults, but they do tend. They are geared towards kids. And I want to point out to folks who are listening and I want to know if this happened on your cruise, Sarah, is. There are a lot of times where those activities, a character will appear for those. And so if you are savvy and and you want to make sure that your kid gets a character opportunity or an opportunity to see that character, and you want to be there to take a photo of it. Because if they're in secure programming at the kids Club, you are not there to take a photo. And I will tell you, the cast members will not take a photo of your child while in the kids club because it's not allowed. And your kids are not allowed to take photos of other people in the kids club, even if they have their own device.
But, yeah, I'm curious if you were able to do some of those events in order to get those sort of character photos, character experiences and that sort of thing.
[00:42:44] Speaker A: You hit the nail on the head.
It is like, you know, the photos, like. And that was kind of. We had a lot of magical interactions with one of our kiddos who is just, like, in her Princess Minnie Mouse era. And just like, I mean, she had this one interaction with Goofy at the dance party, and then she went. She wanted to go see him. I had to go to guest services. So this was the first time she waited in line by herself while I was, you know, just around the corner. But, like, I could see her.
And she hopped up to him and he remembered her. And it was just like this magical moment.
That's what I'm talking about, the magic when your kids are tiny and they're just all about it. And that was kind of the frustration was all these Disney adults taking away from lots of children. Not just like mine, tons of children, because the lines were just so long that they couldn't wait. And so, yes, in the.
You have to be savvy about it. And I will say, if you're an adult, please don't. Don't hijack these experiences. Don't show up to the Disney Junior dance party, or don't show up to these events in the kids club that are technically open to everyone, because anything that has a character in it has to be open. That is Disney's policy.
But because everything else was, I don't want to like, the Disney adults were so invested in everything that it was a little bit challenging for the kids to have their moments, too. And so, yeah, if you look at the Navigator, it is impossible to know which events. There are certain things that you can kind of, like, read between the lines about, or you can go to guest services and ask to talk with someone that can maybe help you figure out which items there are. But I will say, like, for this longer sailing, they did not add extra things for families or for the Kids. So they just took what a seven night, like Disney fantasy typical offering was and spread it out.
So what you would typically have on seven nights, they just, for the kids, they just spread it out over 14.
And so there were less of those, I don't know, like, opportunities until like, you know, we, we had that conversation because it was like Woody and Jesse was like a character meet and greet that only happened like once or twice. It was happening twice.
[00:45:14] Speaker C: And like, you know, that line is going to be incredibly long because they just don't, they don't really appear on the cruise line very often. And so, yeah, I mean, that's, that's.
[00:45:22] Speaker A: So they ended up having that like a third time, like, after we had a lot of these conversations of like. And I think, you know, the difference, Like, I, I will be very honest with everyone and say, like, because I have to advocate for myself with my food allergies and we have to advocate for our son who has down syndrome. Like, I don't have a problem. Like, we already, everybody knows us anyway. So I'll be the person that'll be like, hey, like, I noticed, like all these kids didn't get an opportunity. They had to leave because they got cut. Like, they were at the end of the line and the cast member said, sorry.
And they, you know, it was right when the line was starting. Like, this is so I don't have a problem being that person just, you know, to ask about it or to say something.
So I would encourage others. Again, like, you have to ask.
Not everything is black and white. And so there, there may be opportunities for wiggle room to happen. No promises, obviously, but you have to ask.
[00:46:20] Speaker C: Yeah. Now I want to, I want to move on to a different topic because you, you gave us a little bit of a preview before we started recording about something very odd that happened in the middle of one night on the ship.
And I want to give you a chance to tell that story because I think it's really odd and I think it's also a PSA for people out there to know what maybe not to do on Disney cruise.
[00:46:43] Speaker A: Yeah. So like we mentioned before, we have, have four kids and our oldest is an eloper is like the technical term. So he has tried to leave a Disney stateroom in the middle of the night. And that's how the whole safety bed thing started for us. So, like, we bring an actual medical, like, approved by insurance. We bring a bed onto the ship because this kid loves elevators and wants to go explore. And so we know what that's like. And so it's very important to us that everyone stays in the room at night. And so there was a situation on the ship when we were on where my husband and I at one in the morning get a call from guest services asking if our 2 year old is in the room.
And we say yes, but our 2 year old is in the room with my mom because my mom had all of the kids in the room with her because usually, like my husband and I, we don't get a lot of date nights. And so for this cruise it was very fun for us to go experience some of the adult activities. And so immediately we panic. We are running out of the door because our rooms were not connected because we had an accessible room and we had a regular room, they were not connected.
We are running down the hall banging on my mom's door because you know, she's deadbolted it because right, like she's asleep, the kids are asleep and the.
[00:48:12] Speaker C: 7 year old's in eloper. So she's gotta do everything she can to make sure he doesn't leave.
[00:48:17] Speaker A: He doesn't leave, right? And so we, you know, bust and we're like, where's the baby? And you know, the baby's in the pack and play. And immediately we're like, what is going on?
We go to guest services because now I'm like, why do you think my kid's not in my room?
[00:48:38] Speaker C: Right, because my kid is in the room.
[00:48:42] Speaker A: But also I didn't know that like when you called, so what, you know, what's going on? Did a child escape? That was our first thought was like, maybe there's an eloper on the ship. And in that case, like my heart just like sank because I know what that's like. And so I immediately like, was like, okay, if that's what's going on, like let me help. Like if this child has a disability, like I might be able to help fix whatever. Again, this one am like, this is wild. Turns out we find out that parents left a toddler in the room so that they could go see a movie.
And the toddler woke up at one point and realized mom and dad are not in the room and started crying.
And the door was slightly open, which these doors are heavy. So that's also a terrifying thought is like if your kiddo gets their hand smashed in the door, but the door is slightly ajar, so they leave to go find mom and dad and don't find mom and dad and some wonderful people, luckily, like wonderful people find this child and take them to guest services.
And they're trying to figure out, because it's a toddler, the toddler is. Can't really share, you know, who they are. And so I guess they.
[00:50:13] Speaker C: What their room number is.
[00:50:15] Speaker A: Right?
[00:50:16] Speaker C: I mean, you might be a 2 year old, you might be able to get their first name out of them.
You're lucky if you can even there.
[00:50:23] Speaker A: And the nursery at this point is closed.
And so instead of going to the nursery because they're closed, they just went through every kiddo that's about that age on the ship and kind of like tried to, you know, figure out who the kid was. So they were calling staterooms that may have matched that child's description from like heartbreak and empathy to rage. Like, that shift of, like, how could a poor child be left in a room? Like, in case, like, this is. This is not. Like, even if the movie is right down the hall from you, this is not your house.
This is, this is not. Like, it doesn't matter if it's the same floor. You're upstairs, downstairs.
This is not your house. Like, it's not okay to leave a baby, a toddler, in a room alone. Like, I just, like, I just, I don't understand. But I. In case there are parents out there, I don't like, want to shame anyone.
Maybe we can use this as an educational moment.
[00:51:36] Speaker C: Yeah, don't do this, don't do that. This is a psa. Do not do that. You don't do. You do not leave a toddler in your. You don't leave a child who is, I don't know, under the age of 10. Like, I mean, I probably wouldn't, I wouldn't leave Nathan at 1 o' clock in the morning either. Although I would leave him at one o' clock in the afternoon. But this is, but he's 11. This is a complete. Like, you do not leave a child, a young child, you know, unattended in your room, especially in the middle of the night. Like, I don't think you should do it in the middle of the day, but especially not in the middle of the night.
[00:52:08] Speaker A: And like, someone even posted in the WhatsApp channel weeks prior if we could bring baby monitors on the ship. And I casually responded back, yeah, we're bringing. Grandma Disney does not allow baby monitors.
[00:52:27] Speaker C: No, first of all, like, you should not do that in general. Second of all, they probably wouldn't work because the kinds of walls and doors are like heavy metal. And so, like, there is, I know there are people who talk about using walkie talkies if you have really high quality walkie talkies to communicate on the ship, like you can use them.
They don't always work because of the steel walls and doors, but that's like super high quality walkie talkies. Your baby monitor is not going to work. But two, just don't do it. It's not your house. This is not like, yeah, you are on a. You're like, would you, I don't know, would you like drive like, I don't know, would you leave your kid alone and drive two miles away to a store? No, you wouldn't do that. One o' clock in the morning. That's crazy. I mean, you shouldn't leave a 2 year old unattended period, you know, other than being downstairs and in there in their bedroom upstairs in your house. Right. So yeah, just don't do that. That's crazy.
[00:53:24] Speaker A: And childcare is available till midnight?
[00:53:27] Speaker C: Till midnight, yes.
[00:53:29] Speaker A: Put them in child care.
They have kids clubs. The kids clubs are free and childcare is nine right now. It's $9 an hour.
It's the cheapest rate you'll find anywhere. And they're all wonderful people. Like put them in the nursery. Don't do that.
We don't have time for this.
[00:53:49] Speaker C: That's crazy. I want to jump to talking about your son and I want to ask about how things go with him with the kids club. You mentioned, of course, that he's an eloper. You mentioned that, uh, he, you know, has a hard time waiting in lines. I, I'm curious how he does with the kids club and how he does on the ship when you do have some things that you have to wait in line for or do you just avoid those kinds of things?
[00:54:13] Speaker A: Yeah. So, okay, he. His new favorite thing on the ship is basketball and we did find on the fantasy that basketball is shut down when Palo is open or Enchantee is open, which is very frustrating on a transatlantic cruise because that's like every day.
[00:54:33] Speaker C: Because brunch is like every day. Yeah.
[00:54:35] Speaker A: So it like shut down at 10 and we had to wait till 2 and then it, you know, so that was a really, that was a little bit challenging for him.
But we did find like everything that you would hope from Disney is true.
But again, like there are certain things that are not stated. Like he loves a splash pad. Is he seven?
Yeah. Does anybody care?
No.
No one cares.
Is anyone ever going to say anything to him? I don't think so.
[00:55:08] Speaker C: Although I'm gonna, I'm gonna tell you that they just changed the age.
Yeah. So they just changed the age limits in all of the splash pads. Some of them, they were. There was a little bit of variety amongst the. Between the different ships. The, the two oldest ships had the lowest age limit already.
And then the other, I believe Fantasy and Dream had a slightly higher. And then I believe Wish and Treasure had even like higher age limit. They are, they have moved them all down to I think four now.
And they do.
There is varying degrees of enforcement. But I do want people to know out there like you, if you have a child with special needs who is using the splash pad and they're over four, you might get asked to leave, you might not, you might be okay. It just. But it just depends on which lifeguard is there.
[00:55:58] Speaker A: It depends on lifeguard. But I will say, like, have those conversations with guest services.
Have those conversations early, let them know, like, your child may not be able to be in the pool and what are, you know, what other accommodations can they provide?
Like, what is the alternative? Where is a place where they can be?
Because like we found this issue with Lookout Key and Castaway. They have very different water systems on the islands. And so the accessibility on the islands is a little bit different if you have young toddlers that are not potty trained. So like there are, we understand like the health codes on some of these places and situations, but Disney for the most part leans towards accommodation. You just have to have those conversations.
So that's kind of like again, like no promises on anything. But we have never had an issue in any like situation in regards to our son with down syndrome. Now as far as like the Kids club, it is the best thing. And in the kids Club there are specific rules.
And with those specific rules, you may not think that your child would be allowed there. Again, this is where you would need to have conversations early, talk with the staff, talk with management.
And usually we have never, like where he's now 10 plus cruises in, he's never had an issue being there. He also brings his communication device in and this is the kids Club for him is the one place in the entire world where he has full autonomy and no one on one, but it is safe. Like it's the only place where he can have that autonomy without a one on one because they are locked in and they all have these little bracelets, I. E. The magic bands, the Disney band plus where they have locators on them so that children that are maybe runners or elopers or might be a little destructive, like there's nothing really for them to destroy in the kids Club like everything is mounted well, like he can't just like take off a TV and throw it like for funsies, like because it's a ship. Like they have to be secure, everything has to be secure. So he's not a risk in that regard of like if he wants to like, you know, play with anything. Like everything is so well designed, not, not intentionally for inclusivity, but as a byproduct. The kids club is incredibly inclusive for kids of all types of disabilities. It is accessible so like a wheelchair can get in. They have various different heights for hand washing. The sensory piece. There's so many different places for the children to go. Whether it's like he's really into the Star wars thing and the Marvel thing and so the sensory with the lights and, and getting to watch the video games, but there's movies playing, there's rooms for arts and crafts, he's not really into that. But like the magic floor is so fun and engaging and the staff there, they get to know them and because we were on a 14 night cruise, like they get to know them really well. And so for him, like we can't even go to a playground. Like, you know, when we go to a playground it's, it's a lot of work for us as parents because we've got to make sure he's not going to escape. We also got to make sure he's not going to eat himself off the playground. Right. Like there's a lot of safety components there. We're like, the kids club is like the safest place he can be. And like I don't have to, no one has to worry, like no one's worried at all. And it's like he gets to be him like and that is as a parent where like every part of your life or every, you know, every part of your child's life, wife has to have extra support to be somewhere where they can just like be and be with their peers.
I can't think of anywhere else.
There's nowhere else like that, anywhere in the whole world that he has that opportunity to be fully included. Which like, is a whole thing. Like if you are in the realm of disability or IEPs, like being fully included, being fully accepted, having full autonomy and not having like a one on one, like adult being with you at every moment of every, you know, interaction, whatever it is the most ideal situation for him, but also for us because it's also the one place where we get a little bit of respite because like at home, you know, you can't just hire a baby. We have four kids. Like, we have four typical kids. We could hire a babysitter, but, like, we can't have.
He needs extra support. Like, so we can't just have one person. We would need multiple people to support us. We're like, on this ship, we have, you know, we throw the baby in the nursery. The kids are in the kids club. We can go to dinner.
We can't do that at home. Like, and I don't know if people know, like, if you have a child with a disability that Disney steps up and they don't brand it. Like, they don't advertise, hey, like, we got you. We can handle this.
But we've done it with him at least 10 times on every ship but the Treasure. And they do. They step up and they.
Even when certain things, like, happen, it's no big deal. Like, they are not phased by anything. Like, even though, like, he may not be able to communicate or, like, he might struggle with certain things or something, he may not play the same way everybody else plays. Like, no big deal. No big deal. He's welcome there and invited back, and there's nowhere else like, it. And so, like, if you're in that boat, like, this may be the. The best option. So, like, we definitely pulled this kid out of school because not only, like, did we get to see some really cool places, but for him to, like, have that growth and development of, like, individualization is just so great.
[01:02:20] Speaker C: Yes, it's. It's as valuable, if not more valuable than whatever he's learning in school. Let's just put it.
[01:02:26] Speaker A: Absolutely. Absolutely.
[01:02:27] Speaker C: Yeah. Yeah. Well, and. And I know that, you know, while our son has different disabilities than your son, you know, it's. We have felt very similarly about the acceptance and inclusivity. Yeah.
[01:02:41] Speaker A: Well, and even, like, with food. So, like, like, he has some aversions. He also has a food allergy to peanuts. Like, but they accommodate. Like, I don't have to worry about, like, when we go to the parks, and I love Disney parks, but, like, when you go to the parks and your kid doesn't eat something, you're screwed. You gotta pay. Like, you. You paid for it already. Now you gotta pay for something else. You gotta find something else. If they don't have what your kid wants. Like, my kid's really into rice. And so, like, like, finding rice in a Disney park, like, is. Can be challenging depending on which location you're at. And so, like, but on the cruise, like, they don't eat it. Who cares? Let me Just order something else. It's already. We already paid for this months ago. You don't want to eat it? Fine. We'll try something different. And you know what? Like, they'll make it like, he wants rice for dinner. Is it on the kids menu? Maybe not every night. They'll make it, like. And I don't know if people know that they can ask for things. Like, you guys do a great job of sharing, like, that kind of information, but that makes the biggest difference, like, at dinner time when you don't have to worry about, like, okay, if you're a parent of young kids, you're not cooking, you're not cleaning, and someone else is, like, making sure that your kid is fed and you're not. Like, and you don't have to pay, like, keep paying, like, when they don't eat because they'll just keep bringing you stuff. Like, it is a game changer. Like, who knew?
[01:04:04] Speaker B: Well, Sarah, we really appreciate you coming on and sharing all of this great information with our audience out there, and I hope folks have found it helpful. And I always like to remind folks, like, you know, never assume anything about anyone on board.
You know, kids all have their moments. But also just never assume, you know, anything about the family behind the child or what the child's needs are. So, you know, be supportive of your fellow travelers out there. Say, go through this on airplanes, planes, trains, and automobiles.
[01:04:32] Speaker A: So.
[01:04:32] Speaker B: Yes, but, Sarah, I think we have reached that point in the show where Sam needs to subject you to some arbitrary questions, some arbitrary rules, and a dash of judgment of the round we know as rapid fire. So, Sam, take it away.
[01:04:45] Speaker C: All right, Sarah, you know, this is coming. I'm going to ask you some Disney favorites and some Disney cruise line favorites. So we are going to start with who is your favorite Disney character? And Disney means anything and everything that Disney owns at this point.
[01:04:58] Speaker A: Okay. This is so hard.
We'll have to go with the OG Belle.
[01:05:02] Speaker C: All right. I love it. Okay.
Favorite Disney movie right now.
[01:05:07] Speaker A: It's Encanto. We do a lot of Encanto in our house.
[01:05:11] Speaker C: Yeah, I love that. All right, Favorite Disney song and why is it surface pressure from Encanto?
[01:05:17] Speaker A: It is not.
It might be one from Hercules.
We listen to a lot of Disney music.
There's too many. I. I don't think I could name a favorite. We might have to come back to that one.
[01:05:30] Speaker C: Okay, fair. Okay. We're gonna jump on the ship. We're gonna talk favorite Disney cruise line stage show. Understanding that you haven't been on the Treasure. But you've been on all the others.
[01:05:43] Speaker A: Okay, but you. That just helped me remember the song is how far I'll go.
Moana and stage show is actually Tangled. I know that's a hot take, but. Because when I was pregnant with our kiddo with down syndrome, we went to the Mediterranean on the magic, and he just, like. My belly was just, like, bouncing. Yes. When he watched Tangled and the song Flower of Gold, and it was just, like, such a wonderful moment for me to know that he was okay, because at that point, I already knew that we had a diagnosis, and we weren't sure how the pregnancy was gonna go. And so it was just like this moment of, like, I don't know. I can't not ever say. It doesn't matter how amazing Moana is. It will always be Tangled, Flower of Gold. Like that music from Alan Menken.
[01:06:37] Speaker C: That show is fantastic. I have to say, the production on the Magic is wonderful.
I will also put in a little tidbit that when I was pregnant with Nathan, we went on a baby moon to Vegas, and we went to see the mj, the Michael Jackson Cirque du Soleil show. And I have never felt the baby move. Nathan was dancing to all of the Michael Jackson music. So for me, whenever I hear Michael Jackson music, that's what I. That's the memory that I go to. So I know exactly what you're talking about.
[01:07:10] Speaker A: You can't undo that.
[01:07:11] Speaker C: Like, it was the craziest experience. Like, I mean, he moved a lot in general, but that was like nothing else ever. Yeah. Crazy. Crazy.
So we had dancers on our hands, I guess. All right, well, let's jump to favorite onboard activity on a Disney cruise.
[01:07:28] Speaker A: Right now, it's basketball with our kiddo. But when you're sailing away from a destination and you're playing basketball, it is just, like one of those magical moments of, like, I can't believe I'm doing this, right?
[01:07:40] Speaker C: Oh, that's so fun. I love that. All right, favorite rotational dining restaurant. And it could be for any reason. It could be the food, it could be the show, the atmosphere, whatever. It's your favorite.
[01:07:50] Speaker A: Okay, it's animator's palette. But the original, like, Wonder magic with the transforming colors where it starts in black and white, like, those are the best. Like, the classic animators palette.
[01:08:03] Speaker C: Love it. All right, favorite food item. We're going to talk a sweet item and a savory item. We will start with the sweets, because the savories are my favorite. So we save the best for last. So what is a Favorite sweet item on a cruise.
[01:08:17] Speaker A: Probably the.
It's not the chocolate souffle. It's the other souffle. Grand Marnier souffle.
[01:08:23] Speaker C: The Grand Marnier souffle in the dining room or the amaretto souffle in Palo.
[01:08:27] Speaker A: The Grand Marnier souffle in the dining room. I mean, the chocolate is good, but when they do the Grand Marnier. Right. It is just wonderful.
[01:08:37] Speaker C: All right, that's a hot take, I would say.
All right. Favorite savory food item.
[01:08:42] Speaker A: This one's not a hot take. This is obviously the chicken parmesan at Palo.
[01:08:47] Speaker C: Yes. Not a hot take at all.
Okay, now, you have been on multiple ships now, so you have. I'm gonna assume you've been on the Aqua Dunk, the Aqua Duck, and the Aqua Mouse. And so I have to ask you, which one? Well, give them a ranking, best to worst.
[01:09:05] Speaker A: So I think some of them. I have, like. I don't think I've been on the Aqua Dunk.
[01:09:11] Speaker C: That's. The Magic Drops. Oh, yeah. Yeah. Okay.
[01:09:15] Speaker A: Because I've been pregnant on many of our sailings.
They do have rules about things. Yeah. We have four kids. We're done. We're done.
I haven't done everything.
Like, if. If I had to rank, my favorite slide is the one at Castaway, but outside of that, the Aqua Duck, probably the Aqua Mouse is nice. It's just. It's a lot like. It's a.
I can't follow the. The storyline happened so fast. I would like a book in the line to read. Like, no. Like, what. What am I getting into? It happened so fast that I'm like, wait, what was the storyline? I know there is one, but I just can't.
I'm not capable of keeping up with that. So.
[01:09:58] Speaker C: That cracks me up. All right, now, second. Second to last question, but probably the most important question. Which one's your favorite ship? Because you've been on all but the Treasure.
[01:10:09] Speaker A: Okay. Hot take back when the Wonder. I don't know if you guys ever sailed the Wonder when it had, like, Route 66.
[01:10:16] Speaker C: We did not. We did not go before the. Before the re. Theme with Tiana's and all of that.
[01:10:21] Speaker A: Well, I was a big fan of that, but that doesn't exist anymore. We love the Wonder. I will say we also are big fans. Like, you asked about our favorite onboard activity. Our other favorite onboard activity is walking laps.
Just like kids getting their wiggles out. That's, like, on deck for Promenade. It was a very sad day with the Wish and not, like, they really Mess.
[01:10:46] Speaker C: The Treasure and the Destiny are going to be tough for you too, because they have that same. That same issue. They're great ships. Well, I assume that. I know the Destiny is going to be a great ship, but they. They suffer that same issue with the lack of walking track. All right, my last question is bucket list cruise, meaning if you could go anywhere in the world on a Disney cruise and it doesn't have to be someplace that Disney Cruise Line currently sail, where are you going? And I gotta pick someplace you haven't been because you've done Panama Canal and Transatlantic, which are bucket list cruises for most people. But, yeah, I'm curious.
[01:11:22] Speaker A: And we've done Alaska and Europe.
It's the World cruise, obviously, like, obviously not a hot take. Like, it's the world cruise. If I could, I would be working and living on a ship. Like, who doesn't love just getting to see the seas, like, when you wake up and, like, it's just beautiful all the time.
[01:11:38] Speaker C: Yes. And if Disney did a world cruise, even better, because then you have the kids club, and maybe they could even start, like, a kid's school on the ship. It would be perfect.
[01:11:46] Speaker A: It would be amazing. Yeah. Childcare. Yeah. All in house. What more could be asked for?
[01:11:52] Speaker C: I love it. Well, thank you for playing, Sarah. You, of course, you know, flying colors. A.
I would give you, including your story about Tangled, because I kind of. I love that it brought me back the nostalgia from my. From that Vegas trip that Brian and I took. So thank you for playing, thank you for being on the show.
We so appreciate it.
[01:12:14] Speaker A: Yeah. Well, thank you guys for having me.
[01:12:16] Speaker B: And, Sarah, I recall from your submission that you yourself are a travel agent. I believe if you want to let people know where they can find you, especially, I think it'd be great for people who have special needs, you know, issues. It seems like you are well versed in those. So let people know how they can find you.
[01:12:30] Speaker A: Yeah, so you can find me on Instagram at Adventures. Underscore with Sarah. So two Underscore Sarah. But also I have recently.
[01:12:39] Speaker C: And Sarah with no hi, no H. Yes.
[01:12:43] Speaker A: But my last name does begin with an H, so it is very confusing. And you can also Find me on YouTube. I have just started a channel to try and help families like mine get out there, because if you search things like down syndrome and travel, nothing comes up. So I'm really hoping to help other families that might have kids with disabilities, whether it's down syndrome, autism, like, the full gamut helps others figure out how to do this because Something like a disability shouldn't keep you from taking the trip. Living the dream, like doing what you want to do as a family. So you can find me on YouTube at down4travel.
And yeah, I don't remember if I mentioned the travel thing, but pirates and princesses travel, if you want to check that out. I'd be glad to help you guys out because like it is hard and I'll be real honest. Like it can be really hard traveling when you have little kids or if you have, you know, food allergies or disability. But it's absolutely worth it. So yeah, nice.
[01:13:46] Speaker B: Well, Sarah, once again, thank you so much for coming on and sharing your experience. We just, we super appreciate it.
[01:13:51] Speaker A: Well, thank you guys for having me.
[01:13:57] Speaker D: Well, thanks to everyone out there for listening this week. We really, really appreciate it. Be sure to subscribe to the podcast. You can keep getting great content from us every week. In fact, twice a week we publish shows. So be sure to hit the subscribe button to get all of those great episodes. And if you want to watch us alive, we have a live show now every week, Monday nights, 5:30pm Pacific, 8:30pm Eastern over on YouTube.com DCLDUO so be sure to head over and check that out. If you want help support the show, be sure to hit those five stars on Apple podcast. And if you leave us a written review, a five star written review, we will read it at the top of one of our main episodes. So please head over there and hit those five stars. Of course you can also help support the show by supporting our fabulous show sponsor, My Path Unwinding Travel. You want to book your next Disney vacation? Head over to mypathunwinding.com DCLDUO or email them at DCLDUOYpathunwinding.com so they know we sent you their way. If you've got questions or you'd like to connect with us, the best way to do that is to head over to DCLDuo.com it's got links to all of our things, full catalog of the podcast episodes including a searchable catalog for the podcast, links off to our vlog, a link to our Etsy store. We sell some fun fan inspired magnets Link to our Patreon. If you'd like to help directly support the show each and every month, just head over to the website or patreon.com DCLDUO also has a way for you to sign up for our substack newsletter that we're hoping to start really pumping out money monthly here at least. And a few blog articles that we've written, so DCLDuo.com is the best way to connect with us. You can also, of course, email
[email protected] or reach out to us on our voicemail line at 402-413-5590. That's 402-413-5590. The DCL duo Podcast is not affiliated with Disney Cruise Line, the Disney Company, or the Disney family of theme parks. The views expressed on the show are solely those of the individuals on the Podcast Podcast and in no way reflective. Use the Disney Company or Disney Cruise Line. If you have questions about a Disney Cruise or Disney vacation, please contact the great folks over at My Path Unwinding Travel or Disney directly or your own travel agent. Thanks again for listening, and we'll see you next time for another fabulous adventure with the DCL Duo.
[01:16:07] Speaker A: Sam.
