Happy Monday everyone! I hope where ever you are that you are dry and safe. As for this Texas family, we are both. I posted an update on Tink Moments and I want to thank everyone for there well wishes. But receding waters and out board motor powered boats are not what I had in mind for a happy Monday and a Forget Me not. I was thinking more about getting excited that we only have 20 Mondays until our vacation starts!!!
We are also are getting really close to the online check in and activity / excursion booking day. To get you prepped for your opening day, today's Forget Me Not is about planning your excursions.
A few weeks back, I gave you dates to remember (it looked something like this) -
Platinum/Concierge- 120 days out (Thursday - September 24)
Gold- 105 days out (Friday - October 9)
Silver- 90 days out (Saturday - October 24)
new cruisers-75 days out (Sunday -November 9)
When your slot rolls around, not only do you get to do your online check-in, you also get to reserve you on board activities, and your EXCURSIONS. With that 1st time slot coming up next month (and each one after that opening up at 15 day intervals), it's time for you to start planning out what it is that you want to do.
Knowing it's time to start planning is only half of what you need to know to check this off your list. It would help if you knew where you needed to go. Well, in order to know where to go, you need to decide what kind of excursion you want to take.
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Do you want to do something on your own? If yes, than you need to start researching Nassau,
Castaway Cay and possibly even Orlando and the Space coast if your trip includes pre or post time in Florida. There is plenty of information available for Florida, so I am not going to bore you with information you have probably already found. To find information out about Castaway Cay, you will need to focus you search on information that Disney makes available, and reviews, reports, and discussions on boards like this where you can ask specific questions to get exactly the information that your family needs. Doing something on your own at Castaway basically means you aren't signing up for an excursion. And there is quite a bit for you to do there with out taking an excursion, everything from renting a family cabana and being pampered all day to watching a crab race. You will have 8 hours at Castaway (from 8:30 AM - 4:45 PM), and believe me, there is more than 8 hours worth of fun on that island.
Exploring Nassau is a completely different experience. If you are going out on your own, you'll want to start with some research to discover what part of the island appeals most to you. When you know what your interested in, you can look for private tour providers for a tour, a boating excursion, snorkeling, or something like that. or you can plot your own course with in walking distance, taxi distance, or water taxi distance. Please keep your safety in mind. You are in a foreign country where the fact that you are a tourist does come with the possibility of you (and your family members) being a target for wrong doing. I am not telling you this to scare you.
***Where ever you travel, you should always check for travel advisories both for travel, and medical advisories. Even if you are planning to do excursions through Disney, it is wise to do your checking.
***Also, if you go off the boat in Nassau and you are not taking a tour / excursion through Disney, you are responsible for returning to the boat on time. If you do not get back to the boat by 5:15 PM (best to be safe by 5:00 PM) the boat may leave you behind, and you will be responsible for finding your own transportation back. If you don't believe me, google 'dock runners'. Please, Please, set your clock / watch to boat time, and set an alarm at least a half an hour to an hour early so you do not miss the boat.
Or
~Do you want to do something through Disney?
I am sure that you have received your email like this from Disney:
View attachment 265374
Further down the page you will find a link that looks like this:
View attachment 265366The planning center is where you will go to schedule you activities. You may not have access to this area yet because you may not have made your final payment, and/ or you have not reached your opening date (listed above).
To get started on your Disney excursion research, you are going to need to go to Disney Cruise Line Port Adventures (https://disneycruise.disney.go.com/port-adventures/overview/) and select either Bahama Port Adventures View attachment 265367 Click on the description
Or
Castaway Cay Port Adventures
View attachment 265371 Click on the description
Then, you will need to choose how you want to look at the excursions (either one port at a time or both at the same time) on the next page, you can select the ports from this drop down:
View attachment 265373
If you are going to book with Disney, I would recommend reserving your pick as soon as you can. Some of the more popular excursions fill up and will not be offered once on board.
I recommend the same for non-Disney excursion providers as well, because if they do not get enough people reserving an excursion, they may cancel it. And yes, if they cancel it, they will let you know. When you book, it would be a good idea to make sure you know their cancellation policies.
Happy planning! Only 20 Mondays to go! We are getting close, and I am getting so excited!!!
~Tink~