Click here to read about day 1 of our Very Merrytime Western Caribbean cruise on the Disney Magic.
Our first day at sea was Christmas Day, and needless to say, my son was very excited to see Santa bright and early that morning. But, first, I wanted to enjoy the sunrise over Cuba, which we were passing on our way to Cozumel. Here was the view from our stateroom’s verandah:
Santa was meeting the kiddos in the Lobby Atrium from 8:00am until 10:00am. Although my early-rising son had us up at 7:00am, by the time we ate breakfast and got ourselves together, it was well after 9:00am. Breakfast, by the way, took me a while to procure, as I not only ordered room service but also gathered goodies from Cabana’s and the Concierge Lounge. Maybe that’s why it took us so long to get ready…
The line to see Santa was 45-minutes long, and Christmas music was BLARING (this was not very good for the headache I had developed). They had a nice spread of hot cocoa, cookies, and various sweets. Also, we were able to snag this cute free drink tumbler while we waited:
While my son and I were visiting Santa, my husband went off to the gym to exercise. After we got back to the stateroom, I switched with my husband and made my way to the gym. As I was walking, I snapped this photo of the AquaLab and the Twist ‘n’ Spout water slide. You can see the mountains of Cuba in the distance:
Speaking of the mountains of Cuba, here is another photo taken from our stateroom verandah, which I shot after returning from the gym:
While I was showering, my husband and son went to Cabana’s for lunch. After I was ready, they had returned, and then I quickly went up to Cabana’s and brought some food back to our stateroom for our own lunch. My husband convinced my son to go to the Oceaneer Club for a few hours so that we could have a chance to re-charge on our own. My husband decided to read a book on the verandah for a little while, while I explored the on-board shops. I made mental note of the things I wanted to buy (Disney Visa card discount – woo hoo!). After I returned back to the stateroom again, I noticed that my husband had left, but our fantastic stateroom hostess cleaned up the cabin and left my son’s stuffed animals waiting for us:
This was only the beginning with Flora! The creativity got better and better each day.
Then, I glanced out to Cuba again and saw this fantastic sight:
We were racing the Disney Fantasy! The Fantasy won, maybe because they were headed a little farther, i.e., to Grand Cayman the next day.
I finally connected with my husband and son (thank goodness for those “wave phones” that you can use on-board). They went to the “Deck the Deck” Tropical Holiday Party near the pool. Then, later they went to wait in various lines for Disney character meet and greets. My son is pretty obsessed with getting photos and autographs with each character, so my husband (primarily) was in charge of taking him to every single one, every single day (except for the princesses – lucky for us, he doesn’t like princesses).
While they were out and about, my son got “pixie-dusted”! Look what some kind soul gave him – a cute little Mickey pin:
I don’t know who you are Cabin 7541, but thank you!!!!
After all our exploring of the ship and just plain old hanging out, it was already close to dinner time. Once the clock hit 5:00pm, I was off to the Concierge Lounge to procure my requisite pre-dinner glass of wine and snacks.
Dinner was in Carioca’s. We had never dined there before (the Dream does not have this restaurant). This ended up being our favorite restaurant – we absolutely loved the Latin-themed fare. (Note: Carioca’s subsequently was replaced with Rapunzel’s Royal Table. The Disney Magic went to dry dock in late February 2018, and this is one of the renovations that was made.)
Here is a photo of Carioca’s interior:
For Christmas dinner, all the restaurants were offering the same menu. My son had his usual chicken tenders, etc. My husband had the slow-roasted chicken, while I had the grilled grain-fed sirloin steak. Of course, the best part was dessert! I got the double chocolate yule log and the banana caramel bliss, which had dulce de leche ice cream and pecan brittle – YUM!
After dinner, we returned back to our stateroom and were greeted by a lobster, bearing chocolates:
Since my son was a huge fan of all the characters, we naturally had to attend the Character Dance Party in the Lobby Atrium at 7:30pm. My husband had enough of the characters for one day, so he remained and relaxed in the stateroom, while I took over with the parental duties.
I have to say, the dance party was REALLY fun. There was a very good live singer, who sang a lot of fun (and funky) songs. The characters, my son, and I got down and shook all our collective booties! And, that Goofy, boy, can he DANCE!
Here are some photos from that fun party, with all the characters decked out in their ugly Christmas sweaters:
After all the festivities, we called it a night, as, once again, we were way past my son’s bedtime. We had a big day ahead of us: the next day we would be calling on the port of Cozumel, Mexico!
Click here to read about day 3 of our Very Merrytime Western Caribbean cruise on the Disney Magic.
This post also may be viewed on the Disney Cruise Mom Blog.