Trip Report DCL: Collect the whole set! A Pro9het Turf’less Surf story.

So the Cliff’s Notes version of trip details can be had here:

As is usual we are celebrating our anniversary at sea with DCL. What is not usual is we are doing it from a port that is not Port Canaveral. Our departure port would be New York City. This meant a first time trip to NYC for the both of us. This also meant there would be no WDW turf side to this story as is typical for us. Another first for us was our journey taking place on the Disney Magic. We’ve been on every other DCL ship to this point and we were excited to complete the set with our first Magic voyage. If that wasn’t enough “new” for us we added a new port of call, 2 days at Bermuda. So there ya have it, a series of firsts now lets get this party started.

Tuesday, day before we fly to NYC:
Word on the weather street was that a nor'easter was heading straight for NYC. Worse yet is was supposed to hit NYC while we were flying in that evening. We scrambled tonight to see if we could fly out earlier. Thankfully we found a flight leaving several hours earlier and better yet the seats were together. This would ease some of my bride’s fears of flying but only temporarily. It’s strange how life’s highs and lows can come at you. While we were scrambling to avoid a nor'easter we received a notification of a DVC resale contact that just hit the market. We’d been looking for a small VGC contract for a while and sure enough one popped up. We tossed our hat in the ring with an offer and the caveat that we were about to set sail and couldn’t sign anything until we returned. Fingers crossed!

Wednesday, travel day:
I was scheduled to work today but since we shifted our flight I took an additional vaca day. We left the house a little before 9am and since it was raining out this meant Georgia drivers just took a dump on Ga400. Seriously, this state may have the worst drivers. What should have been an easy, “post rush hour”, trip to the Marta station turned into a gridlock nightmare. It was so bad the usual Marta station we use was at capacity and we had to drive to the next station to catch a train. Thankfully that only incurred another 10 minutes on the road. We navigated the station, and soon were arriving at the airport. Hooray for TSA PreCheck! We passed through security in no time and settled into the terminal, only slightly frazzled.
IMG_7437.JPG


Speaking of highs and lows, while we sat at the gate we received a notice from the DVC resale agent:
IMG_7438.jpg


Our offer was accepted! This high was temporary, though, as it was time to board and my Bride’s nerves would be tested. As we boarded we did find things to distract us. For me it was:
IMG_7439.JPG


For my bride it was:
IMG_7442.JPG


Up next: Flying & Storms don't mix!
 
Last edited:

lostpro9het

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
Monday, at sea, con't:

So we relaxed for a bit to let our breakfast settle and catch up on some emails before heading for the hot tub. The skies looked ominous but started to break.
IMG_7880.JPG

IMG_7881.JPG

IMG_7883.JPG

IMG_7882.JPG


I will say this, the seas must have been active today because the pool was a rockin! I'll be honest, if I wasn't looking at the pool I would not have realized things were that rough.


A few hours later they ended up closing the pool but left the hot tubs open. We hung out in the tubs for a while before breaking for a caffeine fix in Cove Cafe.
IMG_7884.JPG

IMG_7885.JPG
 

lostpro9het

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
Monday, at sea, con't:

It was time for lunch so we explored the top deck fro some options. My bride went with a hodgepodge.
IMG_7886.JPG

IMG_7887.JPG

IMG_7889.JPG

IMG_7890.JPG

IMG_7891.JPG

IMG_7892.JPG


I, of course, wasn't going to pass on the gyro station.
IMG_7888.JPG


We took some togo plates back to are room and enjoyed lunch on our veranda. I dipped into my exchange stash while there too.
IMG_7893.JPG

IMG_7894.JPG

IMG_7895.JPG
 

lostpro9het

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
Monday, at sea, con't:

After lunch we made for O'Gills for some general trivia. We did respectable but there were some large teams there that cleaned house.
IMG_7896.JPG

IMG_7897.JPG



After trivia there was a guided tour of the ship about to begin outside of Palo. We made our way up to the Palo lobby and followed the our.
IMG_7898.JPG

IMG_7899.JPG

IMG_7900.JPG

IMG_7901.JPG

IMG_7902.JPG

IMG_7904.JPG

IMG_7903.JPG
 

lostpro9het

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
Monday, at sea, con't:

After or tour we were in the mood from some beverage action. We realized we'd been on this ship 5 days and had yet to step foot inside Keys so we figured what better time to give it a go before 90's trivia. My bride was sooo excited.
IMG_7915.JPG
IMG_7916.JPG
IMG_7917.JPG
IMG_7918.JPG
IMG_7919.JPG
IMG_7920.JPG
IMG_7921.JPG
IMG_7922.JPG



For drinks I went with a bourbon and my bride went with a Moji-Do which was Kraken Black Spice, Yuzu juice, sliced orange, corn shoots, and mint. As we ordered the piano player had sat down and started entertaining the room. We sipped and enjoyed the live entertainment for a good while.
IMG_7924.JPG
IMG_7925.JPG
 

lostpro9het

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
Monday, at sea, con't:

After Keys we checked back into our room before trivia. The dreary was back for the evening.
IMG_7914.JPG


We went forward again to O'Gills for 90's trivia, we missed being the top team by one question.
IMG_7928.JPG

IMG_7930.JPG



Trivia butted right up against dinner so we headed for Rapunzel's Royal Table.
IMG_7931.JPG

IMG_7932.JPG

IMG_7933.JPG

IMG_7934.JPG

IMG_7935.JPG


We had the fortune of two rotations at this restaurant this trip. Tonight's dinner was a little different in that there was no live entertainment. Our server offered to take a picture of us before dinner started.
IMG_7937.JPG
 

lostpro9het

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
Monday, at sea, con't:

Dinner was very good and it was nice catching up with TeamLongIsland and TeamVirginia. The conversation was good and was only briefly interrupted with our dessert menus.
IMG_7947.JPG

IMG_7948.JPG


I gave the crepes a go while my DW decided she could eat "no more".
IMG_7950.JPG

IMG_7949.JPG


The hour was getting up there and the nighttime entertainment was about to begin. We said our goodbyes to our table mates as we all had different disembarkation plans in the morning. The restaurant was clearing out and it was a good time for our selfie with our wait staff.
IMG_7951.JPG


We would see them again in the morning for breakfast but didn't want to forget the photo. We moved from dinner to entertainment in Fathoms lounge. About five days late but my obligatory #tonyfromspain selfie got done.
IMG_7952.JPG


He lead the way in a few adult games before we got entertained by John Cassidy, a very talented comedian/magician.
IMG_7953.JPG

IMG_7954.JPG


We exhausted what the night had to offer and made for our stateroom to see Victor had been busy again:
IMG_7955.JPG
 

MinnieM123

Premium Member
Monday, at sea, con't:

A few more from the tour. One thing we did learn from our CM, Gus, was that the carpet on each floor of the atrium was detailed to match different levels of the ocean starting with the waves, the seaweed and coral, down to the ocean floor:
View attachment 438231
View attachment 438232
View attachment 438233
View attachment 438230View attachment 438235
View attachment 438236
View attachment 438237
View attachment 438238
View attachment 438234

It's the attention to the exquisite design DETAILS, that are so amazing on this ship. :jawdrop:
 

imahistorygeek

Well-Known Member
It's the attention to the exquisite design DETAILS, that are so amazing on this ship. :jawdrop:

I think this is the first time we did this particular tour. Sean may have already mentioned it, but I can't remember, but one of the details that really stood out to me was the After Hours martini glass. If you look at it on the carpet, it's actually Mickey's sorcerer hat. I think I have a picture of it somewhere. If I can find it, I'll post it.
 

lostpro9het

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
Tuesday, disembark:

Before going to bed the night before the captain came on and told us "about when" we would pass the Statue of Liberty in the morning. We set our alarm for 15 minutes prior to the expected time in hopes of getting some nice night shots. Sadly the captain must have been making great time because when we woke we had already passed Lady Liberty. I think @imahistorygeek may have gotten a decent shot but this is all I got.
IMG_7959.JPG


We had plans to walk off early today to catch a shuttle to the airport. Thankfully we caught up with Victor before heading to breakfast and got a selfie with him. He was a great stateroom host.
IMG_7962.JPG


Our breakfast this morning would be served in Rapunzel's since that is where we had dinner the night before. We were there pretty early and were one of the first folks waiting to get in.
IMG_7963.JPG

IMG_7964.JPG

IMG_7965.JPG

IMG_7966.JPG


For disembarkation breakfast each restaurant serves the same "See You Real Soon" menu.
IMG_7967.JPG


We just asked for some eggs, English muffins, bacon and toast.
IMG_7969.JPG



As I said before, our table mates each had different plans this morning and we were actually taking part in an earlier breakfast and were sat alone but with our same service team. We ate pretty quickly and said our goodbyes to an excellent service team. Within 10 minutes after saying goodbye we were disembarked, through customs, and boarding our shuttle to the airport. We ended up catching an earlier shuttle that was about to leave which was nice.
IMG_7970.JPG

IMG_7971.JPG



We quickly made it through town and arrived at the airport. We ended up being there about 4 hours prior to our flight. We asked if there were any earlier flights and there was one leaving in about an hour which they let us change to. This was so nice because it meant we didn't have a long wait and we avoided Atlanta rush hour.

It's the attention to the exquisite design DETAILS, that are so amazing on this ship. :jawdrop:
I really took it for granted in the earlier cruises bat have really started to appreciate the effort they put into the ships.
 

lostpro9het

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
Final thoughts:

First time on The Magic and I loved it. Its for sure in my top two for DCL ships. The size of the ship combined with the great offerings make it a true contender for #1 but when I go down my pros/cons its in a dead heat with The Fantasy. We did have a few spots of rough seas but nothing to ruin a trip. Bermuda is amazing and I wouldn't hesitate heading back there in a heartbeat. The island and the beaches were so beautiful and clean. Only request I would make is to have the Bermuda itinerary sail out of Port Canaveral. Seeing NYC was nice but I'm in no rush to sail out of that port again any time soon. The CMs on board were, as usual, excellent. Now having at least one other cruise company to compare it to I can say DCL does customer service right. The food across the board was very good to excellent the entire time as well, love me some gyro. This was our 9th sailing with DCL and was a typical experience. Typical as in we had another amazing time with no regrets AND in less than three days we will be boarding The Magic again! This time we will sail out of Miami and experience the Western Caribbean with a stop at Castaway Cay. We will be going for Platinum on this trip and have a dinner planned at Palo where we hope to see David again. Only unknown is who will be running entertainment. #tonyfromspain told us he would be on vacation this month but be back on board in April when we sail The Magic again. So it will be interesting to see a new entertainment CM run the show after having #tonyfromspain for three straight trips. Anyway, that's all she wrote folks! I'm packed and ready for The Magic this weekend!
Packed.jpg



Thanks for following along and have a great New Years!
 

cfry06

Well-Known Member
Final thoughts:

First time on The Magic and I loved it. Its for sure in my top two for DCL ships. The size of the ship combined with the great offerings make it a true contender for #1 but when I go down my pros/cons its in a dead heat with The Fantasy. We did have a few spots of rough seas but nothing to ruin a trip. Bermuda is amazing and I wouldn't hesitate heading back there in a heartbeat. The island and the beaches were so beautiful and clean. Only request I would make is to have the Bermuda itinerary sail out of Port Canaveral. Seeing NYC was nice but I'm in no rush to sail out of that port again any time soon. The CMs on board were, as usual, excellent. Now having at least one other cruise company to compare it to I can say DCL does customer service right. The food across the board was very good to excellent the entire time as well, love me some gyro. This was our 9th sailing with DCL and was a typical experience. Typical as in we had another amazing time with no regrets AND in less than three days we will be boarding The Magic again! This time we will sail out of Miami and experience the Western Caribbean with a stop at Castaway Cay. We will be going for Platinum on this trip and have a dinner planned at Palo where we hope to see David again. Only unknown is who will be running entertainment. #tonyfromspain told us he would be on vacation this month but be back on board in April when we sail The Magic again. So it will be interesting to see a new entertainment CM run the show after having #tonyfromspain for three straight trips. Anyway, that's all she wrote folks! I'm packed and ready for The Magic this weekend!
View attachment 438357


Thanks for following along and have a great New Years!

Thanks for a great report as always! Being in PA we def have an NYC/Bermuda sailing on our radar. Unfortunately the last two years haven’t worked out with work projects! We‘ve only been on the Magic one time and I’m itching for a return trip, esp. after reading this!!
We are boarding a ship soon too - but the Dream on Monday! Darn! Have a fabulous time!
 

lostpro9het

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
Thanks for a great report as always! Being in PA we def have an NYC/Bermuda sailing on our radar. Unfortunately the last two years haven’t worked out with work projects! We‘ve only been on the Magic one time and I’m itching for a return trip, esp. after reading this!!
We are boarding a ship soon too - but the Dream on Monday! Darn! Have a fabulous time!
So close! You’re Platinum now aren’t you? #freepalotime. Hope you and the crew have a great time.

Excellent reporting as always
Like the ability to compare with other cruises

Cost is cost- but it is true value that makes you come back again

Thanks for sharing

Max
Thank you sir! While it is a small sample size I can appreciate what we get with DCL even more.

Loved following along on your journey. Thanks so much for sharing and looking forward to reading about your next adventures!
Thanks so much! Might be another TR for this next trip in the works.
 

mcstensrud

Well-Known Member
Awesome TR as always. Not sure if you’re bride or anyone else answered the savvy reader comment in R/E to your Palo Dinner?
Going on our 14th DCL cruise in April on the Magic out of Miami. Hmmm
 

Register on WDWMAGIC. This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.

Back
Top Bottom