For the next few blog posts, I’m going to try something new by sharing my recent travels as a travel diary. Since I love to travel and this blog is about the random musings in my head, I am bound to share some of my experiences. I’m not sure this is the best format, but as I’ve said before, we learn as we go.
Cruising on Disney
Speaking of travel experiences, as I have mentioned before, I enjoy cruising. Even though it has some downsides, I always have a good experience. I’ve traveled on several major cruise lines, and was excited when my best friend’s spring break aligned with a Disney cruise to Catalina and Baja California. I’ve always wanted to try a Disney Cruise; I am a Disney adult, after all.
While I was excited for a new experience, I was a bit nervous about taking a cruise during spring break on a ship designed for families. This was supposed to be a relaxing break for both my best friend, who is a teacher, and me. I found the crowd of children less than ideal, but I knew Disney offered plenty of adult-only areas and planned to visit them
Let’s Over Pack
Despite the excitement, the typical cruising stressors were still there. I always have a difficult time packing for a cruise because you need so many different types of clothing, from casual to formal, depending on where you are traveling. Cruise ships are also freezing, so even in tropical locations, you need a sweater or jacket. You also need sneakers for excursions, sandals for beach days, and the packing list often seems endless.
Another issue is that if you forget something, it isn’t easy to find at sea. There is usually a sundries shop on board, but they often run out of items or charge $5 for a travel-size toothpaste. The shops in port are usually over priced as well. Luckily, the only thing I forgot was mouthwash, and there was a grocery store at our first stop in Catalina, so crisis averted!
All Aboard
Since our ship departed from San Diego, we took the Amtrak train from Anaheim. If you’ve never been on the Pacific Surfliner, I highly recommend it for the coastal views alone. We even decided to upgrade our seats to Business Class.
Amtrak advertised this as a special experience with bigger seats, drinks, and snacks. They also said it would be less crowded. Apparently, everyone bought into the marketing because the train car was packed. We sat in rear-facing seats, and I had to close the curtains missing the view because I get motion sickness when sitting backwards.
The only real problem with the train was that we couldn’t check our luggage. This meant we had to carry our luggage onto the train, up a narrow staircase, and stow it in the luggage racks. Thank goodness for my best friend! It didn’t help that I over-packed because I was afraid of forgetting something (see above 😀). We stowed our bags, and sat back and started our vacation.
Piece by Piece
Unfortunately, the train schedule did not align with our boarding time on the Disney Wonder, but we found a great lunch spot around the corner from the train station. Getting from the restaurant to the cruise ship proved to be quite an ordeal.
The streets near the train depot are mostly brick, which made rolling our luggage very difficult. We knew one bag had a bum wheel; what we didn’t realize was how bad it was. We also didn’t realize that the other bag’s wheels were literally falling apart as we walked. One bag kept abruptly bringing us to a halt when the wheel jammed, and the other was just leaving pieces of itself all over the streets of San Diego.
It Was Only a Little Late
We reached the port, which was only a five-minute walk from the station, just as our boarding window opened. We hadn’t received our luggage tags in the mail yet, so we had to get new ones from the porters before checking in. Ironically, the luggage tags did arrive and were postmarked two days after our departure 🤷🏻♀️
I have to say, Disney had the boarding process down pat. I have never had such a smooth experience. After dropping off our bags, we were scanned in and went through security. We then confirmed our passports, got our room keys, took a quick photo, and were welcomed aboard.
A Grand Welcome
Disney really knows how to welcome guests in style. They asked for our names and the next thing we knew, they announced us over the lobby speakers while the crew cheered.The kids loved it, but we were a little embarrassed. It was great seeing the children’s faces light up when they heard their names. Disney definitely does it right!
Come back next week to see more about our first day on board the Disney Wonder!
