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I thought I would try doing a TR for our wonderful, wonderful cruise...

I had been wanting to do a Disney Cruise since I first found out they existed. We had looked at doing one in the Caribbean, and later a Transatlantic one, but each time the price of the flights held us back. So when DCL announced they were going to do the Norwegian fjords, we simply had to book it!! Later my parents got a bit jealous, and decided to join us as well. The more the merrier!!

The wait was a very long one... In the meantime I tried to find as much as I could about the Disney cruises, about our ship the Disney Magic, and of course about Norway and the fjords. And the more I read about everything, the more impatient I was becoming!!

The cruise left from Copenhagen on Saturday 6th on June. We got flights to get there on the Friday morning, so that we would have some time to discover Copenhagen (none of us had ever been there); and after the cruise we would have another couple of days to explore the city before flying back home.

The flight left Luxembourg very early, but at least it meant we had a full day ahead of us. We dropped the bags in our hotel (which was very close to the airport), before getting the Metro into the city centre. We hadn't really much of a plan, and we ended up just wondering around discovering the city like that. We visited Rosenborg Castle (beautiful inside and out) and the crown jewels, Nyhavn and the port area, the Little Mermaid (of course) and finally Tivoli Gardens, where we had dinner.

It was a very long and tiring day (we walked almost everywhere!), and a perfect start to our holiday.

If anyone's interested in the pictures, I have an album in Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10153383793385692.1073741862.665125691&type=1&l=56221abc33): 

Next day it was embarkation day!!

You can check online before your cruise, and choose at what time you want to arrive to the port. I wanted to spend as much time as possible on-board, so we were due to arrive for check-in  between 12:00 and 12:30. We had breakfast in our hotel, then called in a couple of taxis to take us to the port. I'm sure it wasn't very long but for me it felt like the longest drive ever.... I just wanted to arrive and get my first look of our ship!!

Finally, there it was. Docked ahead of us, the gorgeous Disney Magic

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-WKA_qGcuYUE/VY1Hde_gBTI/AAAAAAAAhkY/P0FqXnNA_kg/s640/IMG_9746.JPG)

Beyond excited now ;)

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We left our bags (Disney give you tags to attach to the bags, so they follow you to your cabin) then proceeded to the check-in counters.

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There was a line for the first times, and a separate line for the Castaway Club members (i.e those that have cruised before). And as we were soon to find out, most of our fellow passengers had been on quite a few cruises... But for now it meant a shorter queue!! Once in the counter we showed all our documents, and received our Keys to the World. These keys are used as your ID when you enter and leave the ship, they're used to pay for everything you want onboard (from drinks in the bars to the soap in the laundry room!) and of course they open the cabin. Everyone gets one (including children). One of the first things I bought was a lanyard (a Norwegian Fjords themed lanyard of course) to carry mine ;)

This being Disney of course you don't need to wait long before meeting your first character :) Before even boarding the ship, we got to meet Mr Mickey Mouse! My daughter was by now in full Disney mode ;)

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-gXEsB4HToBs/VY1Hnleq3zI/AAAAAAAAhl4/bK68A9NdxOs/s512/IMG_9762.JPG)

And here we go!!

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We had to go in via deck 1. As soon as we got in, we were in Disney's very capable hands. All the cast members around were welcoming us onboard, there were some managing the crowds around the elevators, and ready to direct you to wherever you want to go. My first stop was Guest Services in deck 3, to get tickets for some characters meet 'n' greets (they had ticketed events for a Princesses gathering, for a Frozen meet 'n' greet and for a Marvel one; we skipped Marvel because our daughter is not into super heroes yet, but I have to say that after seeing Thor walking around the ship I think next time we'll have to try meeting them....)

Then it was time for lunch, and we went to Carioca's, one of the restaurants in the evening rotations, where they were serving a buffet lunch (there was another buffet in the Cabanas restaurant, in deck 9, and some fast food places).

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-IGWXyd11tgI/VY08CS3K8MI/AAAAAAAAfwY/upCglEiVSeU/s512/IMG_0004.JPG)

Our first opinion about the food onboard?? Delicious. Everything we tried in the buffet was very good. It was busy in the restaurant but didn't feel crowded, the dishes in the buffet were always kept full, and everything was kept clean. I'm sure I'll repeat it many many times in this report, but the service here was like nothing I had ever seen. The cast members were simply amazing, everywhere (and the top reason the overall cruise experience was unbeatable)

After lunch, it was time to explore our ship! Of course I had seen all the youtube videos I could find, and searched forums and blogs and pinterest, but of course it's so much better in real life...

First stop, deck 5 and the kids clubs, Oceanners Lab and Oceaneers Club, where they had an open house (meaning we could all go and visit, and take pictures). When the clubs are working, adults are only allowed in to pick up their child, and of course you cannot take any photos. So this was our chance to go and explore, and feel very very jealous...

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Children who register for the kids clubs get a wristband (a magic band, actually) that they use to check in and out of the clubs (and allows the CM to know where they are within the club). We got our daughter hers, and went in. First, the Oceaneers Lab...

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And then the Oceaneers Club!

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Andy's room, my personal favourite...

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Pixie Hollow

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Avengers

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And of course, Mickey Mouse:

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The two clubs are connected with each other through a corridor, and children are free to navigate between them (unless one of the two has an Open House, then parents must stay with them, or take them to the other club). Needless to say, my daughter loved them, and would have quite happily spent the whole week in there. And these were the clubs for the children aged 3-11 (I think). For the little ones there's the Small World Nursery, and for the older kids there are separate clubs.

We stayed and played with her a bit, before managing to convince her that we had a full week ahead of us, and that we should go and see more things!!

Continues soon!

And we continue!

The lobby atrium, from deck 5.

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The rooms were ready now so we went down to see them. By chance my parents were just 2 doors down from us, which was very handy! Our bags were already there, so we took a bit of time to unpack, before going to the mandatory safety drill. By then our daughter had fallen asleep, so my husband took her to sleep in our room, and my parents and I continued our exploration of the ship.

Next stop, deck 10. I just loved it up here. It was all so beautiful!!

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The pools are all in deck 9. Here's the adults only area, with Cove Cafe, and the adults pool:

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The Aquadunk

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The family pool (Goofy's pool) and the Funnel Vision screen. During the day they showed quite a few Disney films here!

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And the kids pool

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The pools were all heated, and they were all used throughout the cruise - though as you can imagine it was not getting in but out that was the difficult, chilly part... We didn't go in at all (except our daughter on the very last day, when it was quite warm), but they did look fun... On our next cruise ;)

Before sailing there was a party on deck 9, the Adventure Away party :) The Goofy pool is completely covered and the whole area becomes the perfect setting for a deck party.

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The entertainment team are the first to come out and get everyone in a party mood.

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Brent, our Cruise Director. He was really good, and seemed to be the most excited person on board about our cruise and itinerary (it was the inaugural cruise to the fjords, and everyone was really excited about it?).

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Time for some more familiar faces....

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Here's a quick video, to give you an idea....

(https://youtu.be/nEZwM1yGrmE%3Cbr%20/%3E%3Cbr%20/%3EI%20was%20quite%20upset%20my%20daughter%20missed%20all%20this,%20she%20would%20have%20loved%20it!!%20There%20was%20a%20really%20good%20atmosphere%20all%20around,%20and%20when%20they%20did%20the%20countdown,%20and%20the%20Disney%20Magic%20sounded%20its%20horn%20for%20the%20first%20time...%20Well,%20that's%20just%20what%20it%20was,%20Disney%20magic%20:)%20We%20met%20a%20few%20fellow%20guests,%20all%20very%20excited%20about%20the%20cruise.%20We%20soon%20realised%20that%20one%20of%20the%20first%20questions%20they%20all%20ask%20is%20'is%20this%20your%20first%20cruise'.%20I%20think%20throughout%20the%20cruise%20I%20only%20met%201%20other%20person%20who%20was%20doing%20her%20first%20cruise.%20For%20everyone%20else%20this%20was%20the%203rd,%206th,%2010th...%20Quite%20a%20few%20were%20on%20their%203rd%20consecutive%20one,%20having%20done%20the%20transatlantic%20crossing%20from%20the%20US,%20then%20the%20Baltic%20sea%20cruise%20the%20week%20before%20ours.%20And%20as%20I%20said,%20most%20of%20them%20were%20American.%20And%20lovely.%20Very%20friendly,%20very%20polite.%20You%20know%20how%20we%20often%20complain%20about%20how%20guests%20are%20rude%20in%20DLP?%20Well%20there%20was%20none%20of%20that%20here.%20%3Cbr%20/%3E%3Cbr%20/%3EMy%20parents%20and%20I:%3Cbr%20/%3E%3Cbr%20/%3E%5Bimg%5Dhttps://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-qAM--LrbfSQ/VY09VWz_NGI/AAAAAAAAh-Q/B8598dEDJRo/s640/IMG_0134.JPG)

The bridge between Copenhagen and Sweden behind us:

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Back to the room to change and prepare for the evening. First on the agenda, the evening show. It was a nice show, with plenty of Disney characters of course. The theatre itself (the Walt Disney Theatre) was much bigger than I expected. After the show we had about an hour before dinner (we had the second seating, so dinner was at 20:30). This was usually a great time to meet characters, with a few scheduled meet and greets. For these we usually showed up a few minutes before the characters were due to arrive, and waited in all maybe 5 minutes? I have to say, meeting characters in the cruise has ruined meet and greets in DLP forever.... 

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Dinner time!

In the evening there are 3 restaurants in the rotation, meaning you are assigned to a particular restaurant each evening. Our was ACLACLA, meaning Animator's Palate, follwed, by Carioca's, then Lumiere's, then back to Animator's. The whole table has the same rotation, and your waiters follow each evening to the different restaurants. We shared table 56 with my parents and a family from Florida, a couple and their 3 daughters (on their 10th cruise, if I remember right). And our waitors were Vildon, from India, and Joao, from Portugal. They were absolutely amazing.

Animator's turned out to be my favourite restaurant, and I was very happy to have it 3 times in our rotation. The food is excellent in all of them, but the theming in Animator's is Disney at its best.

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In our table they had coloring crayons all ready for our daughter (and a glass of water waiting for her)

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In the menu you have several appetizers to chose from, then starters, then a main course. But if you want something that's not on the menu, you can ask. Or if you want 3 appetizers and 2 mains, you can ask. And it's all delicious... I had a salmon starter, then a tuna steak for mains. This was the best tuna steak I've ever eaten. It was all rosy inside, juicy, tasty, simply perfect.

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Our daughter had a breaded chicken steak. Which our waiter Joao cut for her!!! And then he made a Mickey head with the ketchup for her.

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Throughout the diner, the TV screens around us were first showing simple pencil drawn sketches, which slowly become animated, then colour...  At the end there's a little show where the whole restarant becomes fully animated and in full colour.

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I have a video still to upload, I'll post the link here, but it was a really special moment. At the end of which Sorcerer Mickey came around.

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Before going down to bed, we went for a look outside deck 4. This was probably my favourite outside deck. And it was a beautiful evening...

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Continues soon!!

Doing good so far! :-)
The ship looks beautiful!

That looks absolutely wonderful. ;D

I wonder how going on a cruise solo would be received.
I've checked prices, but I have no idea what the experience as a single adult (male) would be like on a ship like that.

This looks very nice indeed, especially combined with a pair of recent EasyWDW articles about cruises. :D

Very curious about the rest of your report.

Love the pics, it looks like it was amazing :)

Thanks all :)

My mom was just telling me yesterday that she's forgotten it all and must go back immediately... ;) We've been back over 2 weeks and are still suffering from serious withdrawal symptoms!! It was really an amazing experience.

Quote from: DisneyRon on June 29, 2015, 05:58:05 PM
That looks absolutely wonderful. ;D

I wonder how going on a cruise solo would be received.
I've checked prices, but I have no idea what the experience as a single adult (male) would be like on a ship like that.

This looks very nice indeed, especially combined with a pair of recent EasyWDW articles about cruises. :D

Very curious about the rest of your report.

To be honest, I think it would be OK to do solo. Everyone was very friendly, and there's a good mix of all types of people: groups of friends, young (and young at heart ;) )couples, families with young and/or older kids... If you're not shy I think it would be quite easy to make friends if you want to.

Here's a video of the show at the end of our dinner in Animator's.

Video is not very good, I warn you already... But it gives you an idea. Feel free to fast forward to the end to see Mickey :)

https://youtu.be/kG4LiDgjvBc

Day 2!

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Sunday was our first full day on-board, and our first sea day. Meaning we had all day to enjoy the ship! We also had tickets for the princesses gathering (at 9:30) and for the Frozen meet 'n' greet (at 10:00)

We didn't set an alarm but maybe we should have... Because we woke up a bit before 9! Which meant we had very little time to get ready, and go and get some breakfast before going to see the princesses.

On the way to breakfast, however (around 9:10) we went past the Atrium lobby (where the princesses were doing their meet 'n' greet), and there was only 1 family waiting. So I asked the CM there if it was OK if we went to see them now (explained that we had tickets to meet them a bit later), and she said yes straight away :) Which was a good thing because of course our daughter had seen Belle, Cinderella and Rapunzel and was not going anywhere without meeting them first.

A few moments later she was talking with Rapunzel...

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... then Cinderella (who loved Alicia's dress ;) )

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And finally Belle

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The princesses were the highlight of the trip for my daughter, I have to say... We met them plenty of times after this, and every time they were wonderful with her.

After our royal start to the day, it was time to finally get some breakfast. The choice in Cabanas was excellent, everything from fruits and cereals to eggs and bacon. And now thanks to a slight change of schedule we had plenty of time to enjoy breakfast, before going to the Frozen meet 'n' greet. The food was excellent. The coffee, not so much...

After breakfast, Alicia changed her dress and it was down to Animator's Palate for the Frozen meet 'n' greet. One of the longest queues we ever did on-board here... Maybe 5 minutes ;)  The restaurant was all set for Frozen with blue lights everywhere

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First we got to meet Anna and Elsa

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(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-w4KFJShePf4/VY0_OobM-wI/AAAAAAAAgR0/RTJS6qTH-9g/s640/IMG_0243%2525203.JPG)

And then Olaf

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-iSDJj21f1vE/VY0_XiIikcI/AAAAAAAAh-U/b9iYsy6aWdM/s640/IMG_0247%2525203.JPG)

All this, and it wasn't even 10:30 yet :)

We went back to the room to leave the princesses dresses, because next we were going to meet Princess Sofia and of course Alicia wanted to wear her Sofia dress....

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-StAfKCiIVk0/VY0_kvRxUTI/AAAAAAAAh8k/odyML65bVlc/s640/IMG_0249%2525203.JPG)

And a bit later, Doc McStuffins

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/--82cu7R6dyg/VY1ASw7tjQI/AAAAAAAAh-w/4T3oFtkL8P0/s512/IMG_0283.JPG)

I hope she comes to DLP some day!!

After meeting Doc we run into my parents, who had been relaxing all morning! Meeting so many characters had made us a bit hungry, so we went back to Cabanas for lunch. It was really lovely outside, and because the restaurant is at the back of the ship (the aft) the terrace outside was very well protected from the wind, so we all sat outside to enjoy our meal.

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-wiruGDq1xt8/VY1AXSH7v8I/AAAAAAAAh-I/GJPweclAmrs/s640/IMG_0288.JPG)

It was a very good thing we walked so much during this holiday, otherwise we would have come back home with quite a few extra kilos.... Food in the buffet was really good. I didn't try everything, there was too much choice, but everything was very good.

After lunch my husband took our daughter back to the room for her to have a little nap, and I went for a tour of the ship. It was about the design of the ship, and focused on some imagineering details. Very good, and I wish I had had time to do it a second time. Our guide was Tom, one of the entertainment CM, and he was lots of fun. British, and one of the few CM on-board who'd actually been to DLP ;) We learned about the story behind the theming of some areas, about the use of optical illusions and forced perspective... Very informative!

Our tour started in Palo, the adults-only restaurant. Since we were not going to have any meals there I was quite happy to get a look in there...

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-cltqUqQeLjE/VY1Aer-tNRI/AAAAAAAAgdA/ENWUozjTdCQ/s640/IMG_0299.JPG)

It's on deck 10, with windows everywhere. The view up there for dinner (or brunch) must be quite something....

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-WAlpMSfL8gw/VY1AfHJRvHI/AAAAAAAAgc4/Gz2McCe0zi8/s640/IMG_0302.JPG)

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-1KNM6xgWLJE/VY1AovY8h6I/AAAAAAAAgeg/L4W_ReAZCJQ/s512/IMG_0317.JPG)

After my tour I headed back to the room.

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-onUupVL_OKw/VY1AtPFNVpI/AAAAAAAAgfE/mn20cC8DJh4/s640/IMG_0327.JPG)

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-4ANYertlpYI/VY1AvG7X6TI/AAAAAAAAgfg/M3YOwHoqakg/s512/IMG_0330.JPG)

Tonight was Gala night, so we all got to dress up...

The show tonight was Twice Charmed, a re-imagining of the Cinderella story. Cinderella is one of my daughter's favourite princesses, so she loved it :) (we all did, to be honest.... it was really good!)

After the show it was time to meet Mickey (as my daughter pointed out, we hadn't seen him yet that day....). He was also all dressed up.

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-2v99ieyZ9lY/VY1Awn53KWI/AAAAAAAAh8w/jWH33Fw6IAY/s512/IMG_0333.JPG)

Back in the Atrium there was a cocktail with Commodore Tom and his officers. The Commodore was DCL's first ever captain, and he was the first captain to all 4 cruise ships. A few years ago he was name Commodore (and remains the first and only Commodore in DCL). Since he's himself from Norway, he had come back to the Disney Magic for the fjords inaugural sailing! He was really nice.

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-CxwjyxzmSMw/VY1AypoyglI/AAAAAAAAho8/1UDbmQYwmRU/s512/IMG_0336.JPG)

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-uaxppwjU7cA/VY1BCHwmWbI/AAAAAAAAgiM/DZ2A3DS0Pe8/s640/IMG_0354.JPG)

Dinner tonight was at Carioca's. I should have taken pictures of my meals every night because I remember only that it was really good... But I'm not sure what we ate... See, I need to go back ;) Tonight our waiters had a bit of fun with us and the napkins

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-SMAKOpOvf9U/VY1BHyVWKLI/AAAAAAAAgio/1pG1cGJVlIo/s512/IMG_0360.JPG)

She took hers off to look at it, so they made her a new one:

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-NeFIMkonoc0/VY1BNv7IupI/AAAAAAAAgjM/al1a__F1oDw/s512/IMG_0366.JPG)

My husband's turn

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-8SHAoyRBU6w/VY1BTTQDa3I/AAAAAAAAgj0/ZHe19Dz5RS8/s512/IMG_0372.JPG)

It was really good fun :)

After a delicious dinner it was time to head back to bed... Every night we had a towel animal, and some nice chocolates (my daughter loved those!)

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-DMhGZEA1S-4/VY1BjJPKGaI/AAAAAAAAh9M/mKOUeHto6Ic/s512/IMG_0390.JPG)

Day 3 coming soon!

Your trip report is fantastic and making me wish even more that it was next year already !! A quick question about the dining arrangements, can you request to dine as a family of four or are you automatically set at a larger table with other guests ?

Quote from: jessief on June 30, 2015, 11:11:57 AM
Your trip report is fantastic and making me wish even more that it was next year already !! A quick question about the dining arrangements, can you request to dine as a family of four or are you automatically set at a larger table with other guests ?

Thanks :) Just going through the pictures is making me wish I could do it again soon! Unfortunately dates are no good for us next year (hence we're doing the Mediterranean instead), maybe in 2017...

I saw smaller tables with even just 2 people, so I'm sure it's possible. The best you can do is send them a message (or call them) and ask. I sent a few requests via their contact form in the website and always got a reply, they really try to accommodate all of your requests :)

First port of call - Stavanger!

We had an excursion booked for today, but the meeting time was 11:00 - meaning we didn't need to wake up too early... However the nights in Norway are extremely short, so even with the curtains closed we ended up waking earlier than we'd liked... A bit after 8 we were ready for breakfast. We decided to try Lumiere's for breakfast (instead of Cabana's), where you have a table service breakfast.

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-kOdCLAlpFNg/VY1BkDvD0TI/AAAAAAAAh9M/-04yMujGHHE/s640/IMG_0391.JPG)

As soon as you sit they bring you a menu, some water, then ask you if you want any juice, coffee or tea, and a bit later they came with a tray full of pastries and muffins. Then they come and take your order... I went for the "French Toast and Pineaple Stack". Yummy!!!

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-sij77okglcE/VY1Bla0WhXI/AAAAAAAAgls/l0OtYqzoKLU/s912/IMG_0393.JPG)

My daughter was starting to feel the effects of going to bed late and waking up early, and was in a quite grumpy mood... And she spilled her chocolate milk everywhere. Though obviously she's not the first child to spill a drink in the restaurant, because they were very quick at reacting, drying everything and getting her a new drink....  Still, not the best start of the day!!

We had plenty of time before our excursion, so after a quick change of clothes for my daughter we met up with my parents and went out to explore Stanvanger by ourselves.

When you leave the ship all you need is to scan your key to the world, and off you go (when you come back you do need to show a photo ID to the port authorities).

The back of our ship (I hadn't seen Goofy yet!!)

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And into Stavanger we go!

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Stavanger is one of Norway's oldest cities. And Old Stavanger (Gamle Stavanger) was right next to the ship!!

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-_7-xCsd_Mpc/VY1D5OSclHI/AAAAAAAAg80/RWsNmrWZqnY/s912/IMG_7231.JPG)

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-BT3LKzL3Wbg/VY1DzNT5LAI/AAAAAAAAg7s/bNkiANlpASo/s912/IMG_7222.JPG)

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-WKYgLJt0Xyc/VY1D6lvEMdI/AAAAAAAAg9E/JSLCLFpUScs/s912/IMG_7232.JPG)

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(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-OloPdilt_kA/VY1D8sEUU_I/AAAAAAAAhoA/-heIpxgtOGU/s912/IMG_7235.JPG)

The port area

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There was another cruise ship, French judging by the number of French tourists around...  In fact they kept following us all around Norway! ;)

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-gHQDcfgwlCw/VY1EFSFCpuI/AAAAAAAAg_c/A90CqiDr_Oc/s912/IMG_7248.JPG)

Burger King anyone?

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-MUYzUw1AX_4/VY1EHqDD8qI/AAAAAAAAg_k/JLIySmj231w/s912/IMG_7250.JPG)

(There was also a Starbucks....)

The Stavanger Cathedral (Stavanger domkirke) is Norway's oldest cathedral, it was built around 1150. Unfortunately it was closed so we couldn't visit it inside.

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-DLM2VFtP4SU/VY1ENc4rqBI/AAAAAAAAhAY/1RhFAtViqPg/s576/IMG_7256.JPG)

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-J7azR6STpeU/VY1EOShqfYI/AAAAAAAAhAQ/-FlXlzua7Eo/s912/IMG_7257.JPG)

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-vBeyG4LCdQI/VY1EUQ6jjMI/AAAAAAAAhBk/ODMu6NQabRA/s912/IMG_7265.JPG)

Right next to the cathedral there was a little park area, with a lake and lots and lots of pigeons and seagulls...

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-1wVDqImf1uI/VY1EWAb_m_I/AAAAAAAAhBY/kS-c_WsxN74/s912/IMG_7267.JPG)

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We continued our walk and found ourselves in a shopping street. Shops were starting to open (it was now 10am) and the sun was starting to come out!!

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-wiGqDpWveCE/VY1EmP0-N9I/AAAAAAAAhEM/V2Zm-wh6Ax8/s912/IMG_7288.JPG)

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-jSNsyzh2Or4/VY1EqVgET7I/AAAAAAAAhE0/XGUAryO7zr4/s576/IMG_7294.JPG)

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-N0MfIjysW_c/VY1BsMNBd-I/AAAAAAAAho8/CErqg2EVdQ4/s800/IMG_0398.JPG)

Next we went towards the Valberg Tower, and old watch tower from 1850. At that time it was the highest point in the town, and was used to alert people in case of fires - seeing all the wood houses everywhere, I can see how that would have been a concern...

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-gYkItmpAb3g/VY1E4ZwUBZI/AAAAAAAAhHE/V8Gue9EpSVA/s912/IMG_7304.JPG)

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-Hq1Z4MUQz0o/VY1EvhWAnyI/AAAAAAAAhGA/0eUuDejplK8/s912/IMG_7302.JPG)

We didn't go in (too many stairs for my mom) but the view from the foot of the tower was beautiful.

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-t_h45mARlcQ/VY1E2wXJQ8I/AAAAAAAAhG0/7Bi5ljq44zg/s912/IMG_7311.JPG)

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-YcFKvaodS8g/VY1E-3VRfNI/AAAAAAAAhIM/3lS6DOjHGjE/s912/IMG_7323.JPG)

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-0DfYWuuJ7vo/VY1FBCJcr1I/AAAAAAAAhIs/Gz2icvM4Yx0/s912/IMG_7327.JPG)

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-ztnjju7XpoM/VY1FEN0IntI/AAAAAAAAhJU/dZx7-SdZj3c/s912/IMG_7333.JPG)

And back to the Disney Magic :)

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-CNrX5GwwevE/VY1B1j6oW7I/AAAAAAAAgnc/uoH1L_8nTk4/s800/IMG_0401.JPG)

Continues soon :)

Lovely day 2 and 3. :D

This is a fantastic read, I'm really enjoying it.

I am so intrigued about a Disney Cruise, I would love to do it. Olaf being on there makes it very interesting for me :D

Were the characters good on the cruise?

...and the report has pushed me the last bit of the way. Mediterranean cruise booked for next year!

Thanks all :) I'm really enjoying re-living bits of our holiday through this report, so thank you for sharing it with me :)

Quote from: DisneyDuckLover on June 30, 2015, 10:25:00 PM
Were the characters good on the cruise?

Yes. They were excellent. With a 4 year old girl calling the shots our focus was on the princesses, and they were really good. I wish however I'd gone to see the Marvel characters, hopefully next time :) But I saw pictures of Captain America, Thor and Spiderman. I saw Thor walking around the ship a couple of times, he looked REALLY good ;) Mickey and the gang were good as always. Mickey particularly liked my daughter's t-shirts (she had a few from DLP) and he always made a fuss about them. All the characters took their time with our daughter, the princesses always had lots of questions for her, and plenty of hugs. Anna and Elsa were also very good, Anna was very happy to see Alicia in her coronation dress and was asking her if she also liked chocolate... In the kids club one day our daughter said Olaf came to see them, and another day when they were doing stuff in the Avengers Academy part of the club she said 'Superman' was there to see them  ??? I'm still not sure if she meant Captain America or Spiderman  ;) We didn't have time to take but a couple of times I saw in the planner that Belle was going to read a story to the children... Next time!!  As far as characters go, this was the best experience we've ever had. By far :) You know when they show the adverts and you see the characters just mingling with the guests, and playing together? Well that's how it really is!!

Quote from: daddyof2 on June 30, 2015, 10:31:36 PM
...and the report has pushed me the last bit of the way. Mediterranean cruise booked for next year!

Oh, excellent  :D :D :D Sorry I'm such a terrible influence....  ;D

When are you doing it?

Quote from: never2old on July 01, 2015, 10:42:27 AM

Quote from: daddyof2 on June 30, 2015, 10:31:36 PM
...and the report has pushed me the last bit of the way. Mediterranean cruise booked for next year!

Oh, excellent  :D :D :D Sorry I'm such a terrible influence....  ;D

When are you doing it?

The August 13th sailing

Quote from: daddyof2 on July 01, 2015, 11:37:34 AM
The August 13th sailing

Oh, 2 weeks before me!!! Lucky you! :)

Apologies for the delay! I'm working on the next update, coming up very soon!!

Back in the ship, we went to grab a quick snack from the fast food places on deck 9 before our excursion, and ate enjoying the view...

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-0V8gFqtAAr0/VY1BucQkwOI/AAAAAAAAgmw/KHoNrAsxi70/s800/IMG_0402.JPG)

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-Lqj1jTYvSIM/VY1BxESx4PI/AAAAAAAAh-g/VwJPHxPVqVc/s800/IMG_0404.JPG)

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-araQ7ZmnckQ/VY1Byk_EdxI/AAAAAAAAgnI/f70iCJphvYA/s800/IMG_0406.JPG)

Cars anyone?

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-5s5A-_znkKA/VY1BxXCwwOI/AAAAAAAAh9g/iLvCe1UchAA/s800/IMG_0405.JPG)

Or a little splash?

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-0yBiACbTceE/VY1B0N_sYVI/AAAAAAAAgnY/6MxUj_ypgQk/s800/IMG_0408.JPG)

It was almost time to meet up for our planned excursion, so after a quick stop our cabin to get our tickets, we went to meet up our group in Fathoms, in the After Hours part of the ship

The view from our cabin:

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-TD6CX5VinMY/VY1CFAwcrQI/AAAAAAAAgps/jSDY7_Xxzn8/s800/IMG_0409.JPG)

Fathoms is one of the 3 bars in the evening entertainment part of the ship (After Hours), where from 9pm (I think it was) only adults are allowed. There's also a piano bar, Keys, and O'Gills, an Irish pub. We didn't get to try any of them, of course... I think our daughter would have been quite happy to stay a bit longer in the kids clubs in the evening, but the rest of us needed our beauty sleep ;)

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I like these lights ;)

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-5imBYRhWLl0/VY1B2o-zExI/AAAAAAAAho8/GA5eNguzm6I/s800/IMG_0411.JPG)

There was a desk by the entrance where you checked-in for your excursion, they check everyone's there, give you your group assignment (and a sticker so you don't forget), and once everyone's there you all leave together.

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-DOb3pCMOSKs/VY1FDatJbnI/AAAAAAAAhJI/BQffyQVMOe0/s912/IMG_7331.JPG)

Can't fault it. Really well organised!

We followed our group out of the ship...

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-bO8ZSuXsYG0/VY1FFGCia-I/AAAAAAAAh8w/8VuFmrfkwBk/s912/IMG_7334.JPG)

... and got to our boat, the Fjordfart....

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-Rbw4x5EES8o/VY1FNSAiuLI/AAAAAAAAhKY/F2dmbyYbLIY/s912/IMG_7335.JPG)

We were going for a little cruise to the Lysefjord. First we most sat inside, though quite quickly we went upstairs to the top deck to enjoy the beautiful views. Despite the cold wind (we were travelling quite fast most of the time) it was really worth it.

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-i3VopzzeAHM/VY1FOEuSZcI/AAAAAAAAkQc/kanYnGkXMKQ/s912/IMG_7345.JPG)

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We stopped for a coffee break (and some Norwegian waffles, with cream... yummy!!!) in the Lysenfjord Centre, before going back on our ship to continue our trip

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The pictures don't do it justice, it was really quite something!! To take this I had to look all the way up, it felt like the mountains were closing over us!

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-pq0e5vzVw7g/VY1GqlZ62sI/AAAAAAAAha4/JdpKoMQZm8Y/s912/IMG_7483.JPG)

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Some locals...

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(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-4JIgIc_5kVY/VY1CdPUQEqI/AAAAAAAAgt4/82W4p94yNmA/s640/IMG_0449.JPG)

Our final stop was Pulpit Rock. Though I have to say, from the bottom it's note as spectacular as I'm sure it is from the top....

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-te2Gz_zhQxU/VY1CXxCmqfI/AAAAAAAAgsw/8mIvipZ7O8A/s912/IMG_0453.JPG)

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-gMw7KvJ8zH4/VY1CWnyIp0I/AAAAAAAAgsg/EqJ-_PQfHPo/s912/IMG_0451.JPG)

On one of the excursions you could go on a hike up to Pulpit Rock. I heard from those who did it that it was really tough (a few guests didn't make it to the top), though the view from up there was worth it. Though you needed to be reasonably fit to make it there! I heard also that a couple of guests (former DCL cast members both of them) actually got engaged up there! Talk about a romantic spot for a proposal!!

On the way back to Stavanger I stayed inside the boat with my daughter; I didn't quite go to sleep (though quite a few people around me were) but I did feel my eyes closing a couple of times...)

Final part of the day coming up soon!!

After the boat trip my parents went for another walk around Stavanger, and we headed back to the ship. We went back to deck 9 for another bite, and watched a bit of Tarzan on Funnel Vision while we ate :) 

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-B-4sKip0vBI/VY1CiVzE8jI/AAAAAAAAgus/Re03_-eQfG8/s912/IMG_0469.JPG)

After that my husband took Alicia down to our room for her nap, while I stayed upstairs a bit longer to enjoy the views....

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-3d8wuQHzlgI/VY1HP3x05HI/AAAAAAAAhhc/YWDhqnuL9K0/s912/IMG_7537.JPG)

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The pools were all open, and all in use!!

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(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-74DBjod-PbU/VY1CrChf-vI/AAAAAAAAgwQ/0o3fNZeCIcE/s912/IMG_0483.JPG)

Gamle Stavanger:

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Beach volleyball anyone?

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Deck 10

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And down to deck 4

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And the Atrium, on the way back to our room

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We loved Stavanger. It's actually a big city (the 3rd largest in Norway), but all the points of interest are within easy walking distance of the port. We didn't have time to go to the Petroleum Museum, nor to visit the Maritime Museum (it was actually right next to our ship, but they were already closed when we came back from our excursion). And there were plenty of excursions organised by Disney that sounded really good. Basically, we could go back and still have plenty to discover...

The show tonight was a magician. My daughter was feeling a bit tired though and wanted to watch TV, so my parents and my husband went to see the show and I stayed with her to watch the Disney Channel (of course). A bit later, before dinner, the princesses had scheduled meet 'n' greets, so I went with Alicia to see Belle...

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We then met my husband in the Promenade Lounge, a lounge (duh) where they were playing live music. After a drink we went back to the Atrium to see Cinderella

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By now it was time for dinner, tonight it was Lumiere's.

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After her dinner they came to pick up Alicia along with the children to take them to the kids clubs, while we finished our meal. Later there was a comedian in one of the adults-only bars, so my husband went to check it out while I went to pick up Alicia from the Oceaneer's Club. On the way back to our room though we met the one princess we'd miss earlier, Rapunzel... She was by the lifts, talking with another couple, so we stopped to say hello :)

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You see why my daughter adored this cruise, right? ;)

And then we saw Mickey Mouse was in the Atrium, so of course we had to say hello...

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When we got to our room, we had a letter from Anna waiting for us. There was going to be a scavenger hunt!! We had to look for clues all around the ship, and at the end get a reward!

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After a long (and brilliant) day, we all slept very well!!

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Next: Alesund!

... I'm going to have to look into booking one of these now don't I....?
That is awesome never2old, wonderful photos and very cool experiences. :D

Next August can't come quickly enough, my children are going to love the meet 'n' greets

Tuesday: Alesund!

Our next stop was Alesund. It's known for its Art Nouveau - after a fire in 1904 destroyed most of the town (at that time built mostly in wood), leaving 10,000 people homeless (but miraculously only 1 person died), the town was rebuilt (in stone and brick, this time) in the Art Nouveau style, which was the fashion at the time...

Today it's not only a tourist destination, but it's also Norway's most important fishing harbour.

We got into the harbour early in the morning, so by the time we woke up we were already there. The meeting time for our excursion this morning was 09:30, and after a delicious breakfast in Cabanas overlooking Alesund and surrounding areas, we went to meet our group in the Walt Disney Theatre. There were quite a few excursions meeting there, but they had us seating by groups (we were in group 3) and soon enough we were all walking down to deck 1 to disembark and get our bus.

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I should mention, it was also my birthday :) When we were leaving the ship and checked-out with my card, the lady at the desk immediately wished me a happy birthday! In fact throughout the day, whenever I had to use my key anywhere, they always wished me a happy birthday. When we came back to the ship after our excursion, all the cast members checking people coming in and their bags (like in an airport, you and your bags get scanned) started singing happy birthday to me!! Disney Cast Members are really the best :)

Anyway. Our excursion was the Alesund Highlights. First we took a bus drive to the Sunmore Museum, an outdoors museum with houses dating back to the Middle Ages.

Arriving at Sunmore

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We followed our guide through the old houses. It really felt like we'd suddenly stepped back in time a few hundred years... One of the most beautiful places I've ever visited

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Now if you've read anything about the cruise, you'll know that they had a special event with Elsa and Anna. It was held here, in the afternoon (in fact they reserved the whole area for it) We hadn't booked it because a) it was very expensive and b) by the time we could book the excursions (people who've cruised before get priority) it was fully booked anyway. I did hear from people in the ship that it was really good! They had a traditional wedding, and lots of locals doing different demonstrations and talking about the Norwegian traditions. And at the end, Elsa, Anna and Kristoff, of course.

We didn't get to see any of that, unfortunately, but at least we got to meet Sven's cousin, who was already there, getting ready for the afternoon's festivities... ;)

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All the houses in Sunmore had the traditional grass roofs - it was cheap, very good form on insulation in the cold, and waterproof (there was birch bark underneath the grass). And if the grass got too long, they could simply put a goat on the roof to sort it out!!

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Buildings like this is where they kept the food. They're built on pillars that the mice and rats cannot climb, and there is a gap between the stairs and the door (for the same reason). Funnily enough we had the exact same type of buildings in the north of Spain, where I used to spend all my summer holidays!

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We went inside one of the houses. Unfortunately it was where they were keeping some of the equipment for the party in the afternoon, which didn't leave much room for all of us!

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The views around us were simply stunning

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This was the school:

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The boat houses, by the water

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Fishing was the main source of income for the people living here!

Next to the water there were also some small houses, not for living, but for people who came from far away (usually by boat) to change from the travel clothes to their church clothes, before going to Mass! They also took turns taking the priest from one community to another, in their boats...

Other than the outdoor museum, there's a very good boats exhibit, with mostly fishing boats dating back to the time of the Vikings

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There were some more 'modern' boats as well... Like this 'Klegg'; originally a one-man motor fishing boat, it carried 6 men and a woman across from Norway to the Shetland Islands during WWII, so that they could take part in the fight against the Nazi occupation of Norway. Many fisher men helped to evacuate people from Norway into England with their fishing boats, it was known as the Shetland Bus

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After Sunmore, we went back on our bus and headed towards Mount Aksla. The  drive up there was very spectacular - and a bit scary, particularly when you have two buses going on opposite directions, on a rather narrow road...  Once on the top there was a German bunker from WWII, used during their occupation of Norway....

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... and a great view point, overlooking the area (and a restaurant and shop, but we didn't go in)

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You can see the white and red Alnes Lighthouse (on Godoy Island).

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After about 15 minutes admiring the view from top of Mount Aksla, it was time to head back to town. Before going back to the ship we did a little tour of Alesund, while our guide talked to us about the fire that destroyed the town, the reconstruction, and a bit about the economy. Before heading back to the Magic we stopped to visit the WWII memorial, a statue commemorating the Shetland Bus.

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After that we headed back to the ship, and went up to deck 9 for lunch in Cabanas.

Since it was my birthday I could treat myself ;)

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The view from our table by the window

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And from outside in deck 10. You can see Mount Aksla, and the viewpoint where we'd been earlier. If you don't want to take a bus up there, there's a path with 418 steps that will take you there...

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We went back to our cabin to get ready to go and explore more of Alesund - and on the way take a few more pictures of the Magic.... This is the carpet outside the cabins

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And some details from the room:

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The lamps by the bed:

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Toiletries

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I love the towels

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The bath tub in the split bathroom

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Shower curtain...

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Continues soon!

 :o To bad the Anna & Elsa event sold out so quickly, but it looks like you had a great time regardless. :D

I love the detailing, THAT'S what makes Disney so good

Back to Alesund!

We took Alicia's push chair so that she could have a little nap while we visited (we're lucky that she can still fall asleep in her chair!) and started our walk around Alesund. Once more the ship was docked right next to the city center, so it was really easy to navigate!

It's not really obvious when you walk around town but Alesund is built over multiple (small) islands; the city center is mostly on 2 different islands (you can easily cross from one to the other via small bridges). Other islands are further away, and  are connected through bridges or even underwater tunnels!

Alesund was very different to other Norwegian towns we'd seen (or would see). Because of the Art Nouveau architecture all around it really reminded me of Germany, for example (except that here we were surrounded by snow covered mountains and the sea, of course... ;) )

Despite the grey skies, it wasn't actually too cold (except when it got windy), and it stayed dry all the time.

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Mine from World War I. In 1920 the mine was first displayed to collect money for the benefit of the families of lost seamen.
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Salvation Army
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My parents :)
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We were never too far away...

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After a walk around the town we went to the Jugendstil Center. It's an old pharmacy (when you come in you can still see lots of details from the pharmacy). They have a museum with an exhibition on the Art Nouveau (which we didn't actually visit...  really need to go back!!) and a wonderful cafeteria with delicious coffee and cakes and cookies and muffins...

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We decided to head back to the ship, so that Alicia could go a bit to the kids clubs, and we could rest a bit before the evening show.

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Once Alicia was in the Oceaneer's Club, we went up to deck 10 to enjoy the views.

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I'm not usually one for selfies... But sometimes you have to ;)

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Since it was the first time the Magic was in Alesund, they'd sent a band to play for us before we left :)

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Time to go to the adults area of deck 10... There's Cove Cafe, where we got delicious coffee (for a supplement.... but totally worth it, only place onboard that had good coffee!!). They also have lots of cakes (for free...) to take with your drink...
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I went for a coffee with liqueur, and a little chocolate cake. Then we sat in a couple of the long chairs to enjoy our drink. So relaxing!!

Later we went to pick up Alicia from the club, and went around the ship looking for the clues for Anna's Scavenger Hunt. On our personal navigator (each day, the navigators list all the activities going on in the ship) there were clues leading to places in the ship, where we had to find an image and write it down on our form. So for example we had:

Sing and play - This family lounge is really funky - or dance the night away "like a chicken with the face of a monkey"

That took us to the D Lounge, and there, by the entrance, was a picture of a troll rock.  Or outside Animator's Palate, another of the clues, there was a carrot:

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-ez1rFymPxoE/VY6gxSeqpWI/AAAAAAAAiW0/Ssn0VT1RzF4/s800/IMG_0668.JPG)

With Alicia we went round the ship finding the 3 clues for the night, before heading to the theatre for the show. Tonight it was "Villains Tonight", a fun show starring Hades.

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After the show and before dinner we had time to meet lots of characters. Tonight some of them were wearing traditional Norwegian clothes!!

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Tonight we were starting our second rotation of the restaurants, and so we were back in my favourite, Animator's

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I love the butter knives!!

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Once we'd finish dinner and got our desserts, all the waiters came to our table singing Happy Birthday to me :) And my husband had ordered a chocolate cake!!!

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I also got a birthday badge :)

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Cake was delicious, really tasty chocolate sponge, with chocolate mousse, covered in chocolate....

One of my favourite birthdays I think ;)

Our towel animal for the evening:

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Next: Geiranger!!

Thanks for your report. I'm really enjoying - especially because I live in Norway. I thought the photos of the characters in traditional Norwegian dress were hysterical!

Lot's of nice pictures and great report.

Thanks all :)

Next - Geiranger!

This was probably the port of call everyone was most looking forward to.

Located at the end of the Geirangerfjord (a 15km-long fjord) Geiranger is a very little town; I read somewhere that it has only about 200 permanent residents. There are a couple of hotels and a camping site, and in the summer it's a very popular destination (with campers and cruise ships!) It's also the fjord that inspired Frozen's Arendelle.

The previous night Commodore Tom announced that we would start entering the Geirangerfjord at 5:45 AM, and recommended people be ready by 5:30 AM. It was also written in our personal navigator, and our waiters in the restaurant also reminded us. Probably my one regret of this trip though, we did not get up for it.... I spoke with people about it later and apparently it was not only beautiful, but also very special. There were a few people in the top deck (including lots of cast members taking lots of pictures), they had hot drinks and breakfast being served...

Instead we stayed in bed, and woke up once we were already in Geiranger. When we woke up and looked out of the window...  :o. My pictures don't do this place justice. Mountain tops covered in snow, waterfalls everywhere... Stunning.

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Geiranger is very small and doesn't have a proper dock for big cruise ships; since a couple of years they have the Sea Walk - basically a floating jetty. Only one ship can use it at the time - in our case the Disney Magic ;) Two other cruise ships that followed us to Geiranger had to tender their passengers to the pier...

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The fjord behind us
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We met my parents for breakfast in Cabanas

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and then got ready to explore a bit the town before our excursions, for which we had to meet our groups a couple of hours later.

The Sea Walk

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Today was not a particularly sunny day... It was on the cold side (especially on the Sea Walk, where it felt very windy), and it was raining on and off (mostly on) all day.  Well, raining... My parents went on a different excursion than us, and for them it was actually snowing!!

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We went through Geiranger towards a waterfall we'd seen from the ship, at the other side of the town.

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We went past the camping site towards the waterfall. We were surrounded by the mountains (and the fjord behind us). Gorgeous anywhere you looked!!

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I made a little video of it on Instagram: https://instagram.com/p/4lXgzYRvLe/

There was staircase going up next to the waterfall, but with a 4 year old who was being a bit moody this morning we didn't really feel up to it...

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I went up a bit, while my husband stayed with Alicia

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Oh look.... Never out of sight ;)

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We then started going back towards the ship

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Back in the ship we had a quick bite, grabbed some fruit in case we were hungry later and went to meet our group for the excursion.

Continues soon!

MAGICAL, FANTASTIC, BRILLIANT!  

How may we thank you, never2old, for the time taken and the wonderful places you lead us to! It's a completely new world, such beautiful places on earth still to be discovered!

Thank you! You tell it like a real fairytale and I like your sence of humor and the eye for detail.

Following you till the end of the journey. Maybe some question about the organization, but at the end.

Thank you again!  ;D

Gorgeous photos Never2Old, that landscape is breathtaking. :o
Looking forward to seeing more.

Also, I really need to look into doing one of these, it looks like an absolute blast (though I did see the unpleasant 200% charge for single travellers). It'll be expensive, but still... ;D

Oh, I'm so glad I can share this with you!! Really happy you're enjoying it. Your comments mean a lot  :D

It was a truly unique experience (that I cannot recommend enough).

Sorry it's taking a bit longer, but I have LOTS of photos to go through!!

And here we go!

In Geiranger it was the only place where my parents and us had different excursions - mostly because the one we wanted to to (going up to a summer farm) was quite full and there were not enough spaces for all of us. Therefore they went to another one (Views of Norway, I think it was called), in which they got up towards Mount Dalsnibba; they had lots of snow, and because of the weather the views were not as good as they could have been, but still they loved it.

We were supposed to go to a Herdalssetra summer farm; however because of the cold weather, the summer farms (higher up in the mountain) were still closed, and the goats were still kept in the winter farms - so that's where we went. We took the bus and went up the mountain up the Eagle Road, through a pass (where there was still quite a bit of snow) and down the other side towards Norddal, a (small) town on another fjord. The drive was really beautiful - though it was raining and through the window of the bus, pictures were not really good... After a few attempts I gave up and simply enjoyed the view.

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I was also busy looking for rock trolls, but failed to find any... I guess they hide during the day ;)

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After about an hour drive we got to the winter farm, and met the couple who run it. The husband told us a bit about their goats, and his wife showed us how they made their cheese.

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Trying the brown cheese

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Afterwards we went inside where we could try (and buy) all the different goat cheeses they made (including a brown, sweet cheese that tasted a bit like caramel fudge). 

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This one was my favourite, it was creamy and delicious...
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Alicia wanted to spend more time with the goats, so I went out with her again. By then there were a few buses from the cruise in the farm so it got a bit crowded!!

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After the farm we headed back towards Norddal and stopped by the church.

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-N-VY6-qPVgM/VY6ocme8nzI/AAAAAAAAju0/ysEH--kDHwg/s800/IMG_8106.JPG)

The church was built in 1782
(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-kl0njFcnxe8/VY6ofXr6YiI/AAAAAAAAjvM/q8Yq9z1PgSU/s800/IMG_8109.JPG)

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-G8DNhK7HTqw/VY6ojMJi9YI/AAAAAAAAkB8/y9Tb-zaHCg4/s576/IMG_8114.JPG)

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-gYJJx7xm-MQ/VY6orgq8QWI/AAAAAAAAjxA/eQxuW5OXYmo/s800/IMG_8127.JPG)

And is facing the fjord.
(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-Mup-jrFveT8/VY6ogO0UvlI/AAAAAAAAlMM/dLfM5zarlmw/s800/IMG_8110.JPG)

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-NTHFqESIhuQ/VY6olYrns_I/AAAAAAAAjwE/pUG3Uga7Xok/s800/IMG_8117.JPG)

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-9Q0X0JP1EaY/VY6omIcDE9I/AAAAAAAAjwQ/gxFKTtHYARw/s800/IMG_8119.JPG)

Boat houses by the water

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-K1KZmf5JrEY/VY6ouWkFa6I/AAAAAAAAjx8/sD0MuecrYSc/s800/IMG_8120.JPG)

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-X-4joVUP8O4/VY6onVtQSDI/AAAAAAAAjwc/lEMYa4M2iqE/s800/IMG_8121.JPG)

We got back in the bus and continued our way back towards Geiranger, and on the way stopped by the Eidsvatnet lake to take some more pictures. It was a shame that it was (still) raining, because it was really beautiful!!

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-NmXJKJ7_jcA/VY6fl8C-27I/AAAAAAAAiF0/o9xGD1p6tU4/s576/IMG_0304%2525202.JPG)

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-0QOK7eb56v0/VY6oyIiBnBI/AAAAAAAAjx4/EIBsJQKHnZ4/s800/IMG_8134.JPG)

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-blbIl254Mm4/VY6oy_W2zlI/AAAAAAAAkB8/0V2RAd-B-H4/s576/IMG_8135.JPG)

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-K_xdLlFS5aE/VY6o02Eme0I/AAAAAAAAjyI/oZPcUbnde8Y/s800/IMG_8137.JPG)

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-vo6jSrlyDsQ/VY6o23DHu4I/AAAAAAAAjyw/GOhPS0riRYk/s800/IMG_8141.JPG)

Back on the bus, we went towards our final stop, the Eagle Bend view point, back on the Geirangerfjord. From there we had a great view of Geiranger below us!

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-3hKQRebL2lY/VY6fncxWgcI/AAAAAAAAlOQ/1-sGnPXU1q0/s800/IMG_0306%2525202.JPG)

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/--hZPHAKcPhs/VY6g-CMlrPI/AAAAAAAAiaI/v2ufD2RsR4g/s800/IMG_0696.JPG)

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(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-Bpr7L12I6BU/VY6hArNc9wI/AAAAAAAAia0/LkdhOBTClGw/s800/IMG_0702.JPG)

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-TT4YJqYRyss/VY6pMh-g74I/AAAAAAAAj1Q/167YG5HPkA0/s800/IMG_8164.JPG)

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-3DNbvu1MvCg/VY6hDKkqfLI/AAAAAAAAibg/LXMJI6bi_e0/s800/IMG_0707.JPG)

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-PPWBNEdxvi0/VY6hDyACHfI/AAAAAAAAibo/mQKRigsV3dY/s800/IMG_0709.JPG)

The viewpoint was very good, with a proper platoform, and even its own waterfall!!

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-kUF_m8Gs5Sk/VY6pZBAmq0I/AAAAAAAAj24/P2T3WByhKRw/s800/IMG_8180.JPG)

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-7QjaEoTA_qU/VY6pShlSurI/AAAAAAAAj2E/6GXkgwUntLo/s800/IMG_8171.JPG)

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-9tmHtdvRDbY/VY6pW0olbLI/AAAAAAAAj2k/HWQk4kCpCXY/s800/IMG_8177.JPG)

This waterfall feeds the one that falls out of the platform
(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-UXX9QpofjpA/VY6pcZNu2bI/AAAAAAAAkBY/-mNhk_Wsz1k/s576/IMG_8183.JPG)

Really beautiful views from up there!

After that it was time to head back to the Disney Magic. We had a bit of time before departure, but since we'd missed the ship going into the fjord, we wanted to make sure we saw it leaving. So we got back earlier to have plenty of time to get ready.

Continues soon!!

After changing clothes (and searching for the clues for the scavenger hunt) we dropped Alicia off in the kids club, and went to get a nice coffee from Cove Cafe. We met up with my parents (who were back from their excursion) and went to deck 10 to admire the fjord on our way out...

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-pch8DydDXW0/VY6pi92G_MI/AAAAAAAAj4g/dw-vl5E2Sno/s576/IMG_8192.JPG)

There's the Eagle Bend road:

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-JruXHfG363E/VY6qBiX2s0I/AAAAAAAAj8M/u4v5LWX2zrs/s800/IMG_8198.JPG)

All ready!!

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-CqLF96wv6FU/VY6p1CgtjHI/AAAAAAAAkBk/oW10TMb6XSk/s800/IMG_8212.JPG)

Yes, it was cold.... But so worth it!! There was a great atmosphere all around. There were also plenty of cast members enjoying the view as much as the guests were. I think everyone onboard fell in love with Geiranger!

To celebrate the Magic's first visit, the town of Geiranger offered us a salute outside of town as we sailed away... A TNT salute!! It was pretty cool :) There were also a couple of kayaks with people waving goodbye!

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-DIZOIWHiSDA/VY6p5F8_wOI/AAAAAAAAj7U/C4tTaW6i0XI/s800/IMG_8217.JPG)

Going past the Eagle Bend viewpoint

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-u9eNNTIJhh0/VY6hNon1vQI/AAAAAAAAidY/-Ev-FsL7_Is/s800/IMG_0729.JPG)

There were waterfalls everywhere!! (I apologise in advance, but I love waterfalls.... so prepare for lots and lots of pictures of waterfalls!!)

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-53EXcd9-AcI/VY6qDH78z3I/AAAAAAAAj9I/QTG4LyPSJdE/s576/IMG_8228.JPG)

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-UKN1AF8hf7E/VY6qE6OzkHI/AAAAAAAAj9g/TUjEQcalwuA/s800/IMG_8229.JPG)

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-uZcvWP3Ry0c/VY6hS6Jw9iI/AAAAAAAAiek/3g3AZcDFacg/s800/IMG_0738.JPG)

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-H0PVkQgoQGU/VY6hPFE5nJI/AAAAAAAAid8/kTKqRIa1cBE/s800/IMG_0732.JPG)

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-FCu2Y77Q__A/VY6hXBLGlPI/AAAAAAAAifc/jOoHip2Vnn0/s576/IMG_0747.JPG)

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-4Xsu9Xpdgas/VY6hZJwGuHI/AAAAAAAAifw/YlrSdP-LAAU/s720/IMG_0751.JPG)

Before reaching the Seven Sisters waterfall, they announced that they would be sounding the horn (they usually made an announcement beforehand so that people on the top decks could cover their ears, if needed...). It's always something special when the Magic sounded its horn, but this time...

https://youtu.be/wUc3bl2zl_o

It was quite something!! There's a bit of wind on the video, but you can actually hear the echo after the horn... Everyone enjoyed it so much that they sounded it again a few minutes later ;) I absolutely loved it. It was one of my favourite moments in the whole trip.

Close to the waterfall there was an old farmhouse. It makes you wonder how on earth they got up there!! We'd been told that when the children that lived in these farms by the fjords went to play outside, they were usually tied to a rope, in case they fell over...

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-2ChrLyceITM/VY6haJZH0wI/AAAAAAAAigQ/UqaX89zLW60/s720/IMG_0753.JPG)

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In fronf of the Seven Sisters in another waterfall, the Suitor. Apparently he was turned down by the sisters, you can still see the bottle in which he drowned his pains...

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-lzjbAvXbM3A/VY6hs8umzYI/AAAAAAAAijw/FTfnfAfeb70/s800/IMG_0787.JPG)

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Goofy was also up on deck 10 enjoying the views :)

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-fY_N6iH_mYQ/VY6qi5WooHI/AAAAAAAAkAk/9wya9MNnx_8/s800/IMG_8261.JPG)

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-0rIZNr_UX9g/VY6qm3yPP3I/AAAAAAAAkAc/0AYJtwtkriU/s800/IMG_8264.JPG)

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-IREyEfMlj3I/VY6qqZDB5rI/AAAAAAAAkBQ/H1IprJEWKsA/s800/IMG_8268.JPG)

Still some snow to be found by the water!!

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-q_qRNR7h34g/VY6h2etuHtI/AAAAAAAAimE/8ZBK39r15Ko/s800/IMG_0807.JPG)

Eventually the cold got too much and we went inside. I went to have a look in the shop, while my husband went with my parents to see the evening's show (it wasn't a Disney one, and I was a bit tired so I preferred to skip it). Instead I went for a bit of shopping; since most guests were either having dinner or enjoying the show I had the shops pretty much to myself ;) I got some pins and chatted with some of the cast members there. One was hoping to go to DLP over the summer (she had time off) so she was asking me about it.

Later I went to deck 4 (my favourite), the views were still quite something!!

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-GnnEGVy2TJg/VY6h4awQj5I/AAAAAAAAim0/J6fJDhGcBAk/s800/IMG_0811.JPG)

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-WxNIIGv3OTA/VY6h5f430aI/AAAAAAAAim8/Mlv9-CvTCMo/s800/IMG_0814.JPG)

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-MHw1IReGNwg/VY6h578ns-I/AAAAAAAAinY/ztH94rYJ2S4/s800/IMG_0816.JPG)

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-pYVQvMYjW54/VY6h81meuQI/AAAAAAAAinw/2hBZzhcsM3s/s800/IMG_0821.JPG)

It was quite cold so there were a few of us (mostly cast members) coming out to take a couple of pictures, then rushing back in to warm up!!

Donald was due to do a meet 'n' greet a bit later outside the Walt Disney Theatre; I went to pick up Alicia from the children's club. The queue was very short (I think we were 3rd).

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-So65cT_be30/VY6h9uhXLaI/AAAAAAAAin4/0QIidCPFgCE/s800/IMG_0823.JPG)

My husband came out from the show just in time to meet Donald with us :)

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-axKEI53d2XA/VY6h_8yQwaI/AAAAAAAAiok/cYXufm_YhAk/s576/IMG_0828.JPG)

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-1Ijlr_gdT1s/VY6iJ6UyoQI/AAAAAAAAiq4/qoWCitlooFE/s800/IMG_0831.JPG)

Alicia and I then went to meet Jiminy Cricket (I was very excited, I had never seen him before!!)

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-aUCAIOEEBmU/VY6iFO4sa7I/AAAAAAAAipU/F0GSfx5o0tU/s576/IMG_0836.JPG)

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-6-g8iKSPWGs/VY6iHQ7uqRI/AAAAAAAAip0/_dXs4kHUjfI/s576/IMG_0839.JPG)

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-zmrcWbeMveM/VY6iQPN9XPI/AAAAAAAAir4/D0JqH64oLJI/s800/IMG_0854.JPG)

Quick peek outside...

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-u9OdXPXHs2M/VY6iPASvT1I/AAAAAAAAirY/85VmI3AO3LM/s800/IMG_0851.JPG)

We were hanging around waiting for Pinocchio (he was scheduled after Jiminy) when I saw that Rapunzel was down the corridor, by Shutters (the photography shop). I went there with Alicia; since Rapunzel was busy talking with some guests, we went instead to say hello to Belle, who was also there (and all alone!!)

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-knxly3b9AFQ/VY6f7odzdRI/AAAAAAAAiKc/Arf5nGGb4YY/s576/IMG_0359%2525202.JPG)

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-aQKkDV8Tqv4/VY6iTqT_vPI/AAAAAAAAkDM/aZ51Mk5Gv7w/s576/IMG_0860.JPG)

She and Alicia had a little chat, after which we went to see Rapunzel (who gave Alicia a big hug!!)

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-PAu-IY-Z0UI/VY6iUbriyGI/AAAAAAAAis0/S47_FdraMj8/s576/IMG_0862.JPG)

We then got back to the area around the atrium, to wait for Pinocchio. Down in deck 3 there was an incredible violin player! I learned her name later (Greta Salome; she's from Iceland, and back home I realised where I knew her from, she was in Eurovision a few years ago). We had already seen her the previous night and loved her. She was absolutely brilliant!! She came out a few evenings (including once in the Walt Disney Theatre, before the show) and every time she got huge applause.

Even Belle was enjoying the music...

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-6NxYc1ZQUPc/VY6iWZxJKcI/AAAAAAAAitU/2zYoXYcYoUQ/s800/IMG_0865.JPG)

Before we joined the queue for Pinocchio though, we saw Cinderella was there. Alicia went straight to see her; it was a bit crowded around them though, so Cinderella took my daughter by the hand and went with her to a window, where it was quieter and they could have a little chat :)

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-msckF-Ey40k/VY6f-u3h0XI/AAAAAAAAiLI/dN1qzgIwYTU/s640/IMG_0364%2525202.JPG)

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-yZEP87ORv2s/VY6f_MlOalI/AAAAAAAAiK0/txRjWyVMv8k/s640/IMG_0365%2525202.JPG)

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-pSf90C0DDyM/VY6f_wksRJI/AAAAAAAAk0U/eAuNfeqBNZ4/s640/IMG_0366%2525202.JPG)

My parents found us then, and my mom came to meet Pinocchio with Alicia and me :)

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-8zOxM1QfjOA/VY6iec3iRcI/AAAAAAAAiu0/-Cj1dLYB580/s640/IMG_0881.JPG)

We still had a little bit of time before dinner (it's amazing all you can do in about 20 minutes in the Disney Magic!!) so we went to listen to the music. My daughter was loving it!!

https://youtu.be/-rC8xqBkwdk

Afterwards we went to meet Greta,

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-nKuy6j8g9pU/VY6f3JUaKwI/AAAAAAAAiJU/QnQ2LpyWuro/s640/IMG_0347%2525203.JPG)

Tonight was lobster night, and we had our rotation in Cariocas. It was delicious!! And for dessert I ordered a chocolate fondant... OH MY GOD. It was heaven. Absolutely amazing.

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-nkUKwis0laA/VY6ikZK3DqI/AAAAAAAAiwE/4jHegIVOVFc/s640/IMG_0891.JPG)

It took all the self control I had not to order a second one, particularly when our waiter Vildon (who by now knew I was all about chocolate) came and asked me if I wanted another one, and was I sure I didn't want another one... I still don't know how I managed to resist temptation.

Alicia had gone after her dinner to the kids club, so I went to pick her up once we'd finished. On the way down though she saw Cinderella again, and run to her. Cinderella was getting ready to leave for the evening (she told Alicia that Gus Gus was waiting for her), so she took Alicia by the hand and started walking towards Shutters (at the end of the corridor). Needless to say, my daughter didn't even turn around to see where I was, she took Cinderella's hand and was off!!

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-RdnWk4v_lGA/VY6iknlc9mI/AAAAAAAAkDM/QxKIzBwy0MI/s640/IMG_0892.JPG)

A few moments later they were joined by Belle. And off my daughter went (still not turning back to see if I was following), holding hands with both princesses...

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-f4L8VjdVd2Q/VY6io8vqe2I/AAAAAAAAixE/B-7v5KxL7J4/s640/IMG_0898.JPG)

I think there was no one happier on board than my daughter :)

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-PuQbtS_MqKk/VY6ipm1e2GI/AAAAAAAAixk/hd03txMU7IM/s640/IMG_0900.JPG)

Was it enough? No.... Once I managed to get my daughter back, we saw Minnie...

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-d7p_jY-1MVs/VY6gCPu9tBI/AAAAAAAAiLo/L0MzWqgK048/s640/IMG_0371%2525202.JPG)

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-zQv4LQuuceY/VY6itto9lbI/AAAAAAAAix0/u71BQlbC3tg/s800/IMG_0906.JPG)

What an incredible, amazing, magical day!!! Geiranger was stunning. Our excursion (despite the rain) was really good, we saw some really gorgeous places (and Alicia loved the goats). Then being on deck 10 when the ship left Geirangerfjord was really a highlight for all of us. And for my daughter, of course, meeting all the princesses like that was something she'll never forget. It still is the first thing she says when anybody asks about the holiday, it's that she was in a boat with the princesses.

Continues soon!

I can't believe how much you got to see the princesses, I really hope it's the same for us next year and my daughter still loves them - she was a bit upset not to see more at DLP last year

Quote from: daddyof2 on July 10, 2015, 09:39:47 AM
I can't believe how much you got to see the princesses, I really hope it's the same for us next year and my daughter still loves them - she was a bit upset not to see more at DLP last year

I think my daughter will be very disappointed next time we go to DLP and she only sees them waving in the parade... Meeting characters wasl her favourite thing when we were in the parks... I think we'll still do Disney Jr Live so she can dance with Sofia, and maybe try Meet Mickey Mouse. But everything else, we'll probably skip. It really cannot compare to the cruise ship.

From what I've seen from other forums, characters are always very good in the ships. I really hope it's the same next year, for you and for us!! ;)

Bergen!!

This was our last stop on the cruise.... And we'd decided we wouldn't do any excursions with Disney this time, but simply explore the town on our own.

We had breakfast in Cabanas with my parents. Alicia was really feeling the long days and short nights, and was quite grumpy this morning  ::) Plus she wanted a chocolate donut which she wasn't allowed to eat until she drank her milk. You know, serious, dramatic stuff... Until one of the waiters came and did a few magic tricks for her, and she forgot all about it! As I've said, best cast members anywhere  :D

And time to explore Bergen!

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-R8HYPKG1HXo/VZ6lrYefw5I/AAAAAAAAmu0/NTLyk5_FR94/s800-Ic42/IMG_8272.JPG)

Bergen is the second largest city in Norway (after Oslo), and was the capital of Norway until 1299. It's also famous for having lots and lots of rain. So we considered ourselves extremely lucky to find it was not only dry, but that there was a hint of blue skies behind some of the clouds!!

Our first stop was the Bergenhus Fortress. It consists of various buildings. some dating back to 1240. The king had his residence here, and later it served as a purely military fortress.

The Rosenkrantz Tower was originally a medieval tower, later modified and expanded (under the rule of the governor Erik Rosenkrantz, in the 1560s).

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-w7i2bOG5ijo/VZ6ltVygBKI/AAAAAAAAmMA/whZCCyovI3U/s640-Ic42/IMG_8277.JPG)

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-UKjakAA_1-g/VZ6lt0vJ_NI/AAAAAAAAmuw/3ZTdw7VWuIA/s800-Ic42/IMG_8278.JPG)

Today you can visit it and walk up to the top (for an apparently great view), but that meant going up a lot of stairs - not really an option for our daughter (who was quite tired today). So we'll have to come back ;)

Next to the Rosenkrantz Tower is Haakon's Hall, built in the 13th century by King Haakon.

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-hG9Br1V1rDw/VZ6lukKCOWI/AAAAAAAAmMU/_-1cpQGHgDU/s800-Ic42/IMG_8280.JPG)

It was severely damaged (meaning almost completely destroyed) during WWII, when a Dutch ship (serving the German army) and carrying over 120 tons of dynamite accidentally exploded  :o while it was docked in the port next to the fortress.

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-3iIrbp3KYdQ/VZ6lvguF-3I/AAAAAAAAmMk/zEq4AU9pT9o/s800-Ic42/IMG_8282.JPG)

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They had a really nice model showing the port and the hall (or what was left of it), but the lighting was not very photo-friendly...

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-etgQ6IQb-gQ/VZ6l-1R-e0I/AAAAAAAAmPU/Nj_HDiFY4O8/s800-Ic42/IMG_8309.JPG)

The cellars of the hall

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-rR3d2iKv6BI/VZ6lw-nTOII/AAAAAAAAmNA/XpJ_NHeP_l4/s640-Ic42/IMG_8285.JPG)

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-PN21cR4HYSU/VZ6l0tWybkI/AAAAAAAAmNc/mrGFZfjrTN0/s640-Ic42/IMG_8291.JPG)

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The great hall; it's now used for concerts, but also for banquets and official functions.

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We continued our walk towards the city center, and soon we found ourselves in the old wharf area, Bryggen (Bryggen is Norwegian for wharf).

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The Hanseatic League came to Bergen around 1360, and the buildings in the wharf were taken over by the Hanseatic merchants. Being made mostly of wood though they didn't do very well in fires (and they had quite  a few). Some buildings remain dating back to 1702, but most are more recent.

Today they consist mostly of shops, and restaurants. Oh, and for the Frozen fans among us, Bryggen was a big inspiration for the town of Arendelle... When I saw the film again with my daughter a couple of weeks ago, I could see lots of Bryggen in there!

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-D1BYhoCLR1w/VZ6mDJw_I7I/AAAAAAAAmQM/07ZiCsbFgAU/s640-Ic42/IMG_8317.JPG)

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-bIcRSzsn3l8/VZ6mEj1ZnhI/AAAAAAAAmQo/PNeEHy_rGqA/s800-Ic42/IMG_8320.JPG)

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-8zLkuII-L-0/VZ6mFsq7YgI/AAAAAAAAmQk/uWEXREOTVYo/s800-Ic42/IMG_8322.JPG)

Blue skies!!

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There are a few narrow roads between the buildings - and I mean REALLY narrow!!. I loved them, it was like suddenly stepping back in time a few hundred years!!

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You can see the gap between the roofs of the buildings  :o

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(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-Xr6HKIbG8_o/VZ6mKf82z2I/AAAAAAAAmSI/MXheu_vPbaQ/s800-Ic42/IMG_8336.JPG)

And down another of the narrow streets

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(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-FFBxfS0hX_c/VZ6mMeZPBVI/AAAAAAAAmzk/RrF12TmN6MY/s800-Ic42/IMG_8340.JPG)

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-zNtCndQoxrI/VZ6mMtWgdUI/AAAAAAAAmSg/6NbYqYFTL9o/s640-Ic42/IMG_8341.JPG)

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Does that look straight to you?  ;D

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By now Alicia was fast asleep....

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My mom and I went inside one of the shops (a Christmas shop... can never resist them!!). It was VERY strange walking around the shop (not to mention going up the stairs), it felt like we were on a ship, legs all wobbly  :-\

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Back on land...

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We continued our walk, heading towards the funicular, next on our list.

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On the way we found a Starbucks (with plenty of people from our ship inside!), so we stopped for a nice coffee (hmmm caramel frappuccino) before finding the funicular that was going to take us up to Mount Floyen.

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-xGMYrHxhVaI/VZ6mW-tcnGI/AAAAAAAAmVE/Q8fDvoury5E/s576-Ic42/IMG_8363.JPG).

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Now, I'm no stranger to queues. But this was terrible!! Apparently (as I later learned) we got there at the worst time (around 11:00), and there were also a record 6 cruise ships in Bergen that day (and I guess they were all going to the funicular). There were two lines outside the station - only we realised after queuing for a while in one of them that there was one queue to buy tickets, and another one (our one) for people that already had tickets. So we joined the other line (there were no signs at all). Once we managed to get our tickets we got inside the station, where there was a tunnel with a massive queue. Not organised at all, so if you're good at pushing your way past people, you could move a lot faster than if you were trying to move with a child sleeping in a push chair...

We ended up waiting about 1 hour, until we found ourselves in the platform waiting for the next train (I spoke with people on the ship later who'd been there later that day and found the queues almost non-existent)

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And there it was!!

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Soon we were out of the tunnel, going up the mountain (with Alicia still fast asleep)

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On the top there was a little souvenir shop, a restaurant, a play area (which fortunately our daughter didn't see, otherwise we would have spend the whole day there) and an incredible view of the area around us. Totally worth the wait!!

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And there's the Magic!

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Bryggen and the Hanseatic Museum (we were going to visit it later)

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The Bergenhus fortress

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Eventually it was time to head back down to Bergen.

Continues soon!!

Your report is like those serie movies, where you really can't wait for the next episode!

I enjoy every single line! Thank you again! Your cruise was 7 days as a whole, right?

Thanks Mileto  :)

Yes, it was 7 days long (Saturday to Saturday). Seven extremely short days....  ;)

I've uploaded the next batch of pictures but need to go through them, I'll try to have the next bit up soon!!

great photos n2o. i would love to do this, if only my wife didn't get seasick  :'(

Quote from: Pete's Dragon on July 13, 2015, 05:24:18 PM
great photos n2o. i would love to do this, if only my wife didn't get seasick  :'(

So nice to see you again around here!! Welcome back  :D

You need to find a way, it's the best Disney holiday!!! Maybe in the Med? I'm sure it doesn't move too much there!!!

wonderful photos and stories once again Never2old, that cruise went really well didn't it? :D
Very cool indeed.

she got seasick on La Seine, so .......... aint gonna happen

Quote from: Pete's Dragon on July 14, 2015, 02:39:02 PM
she got seasick on La Seine, so .......... aint gonna happen

It's easier to get seasick on a ship encountering rapid small waves (rivers have these fairly often), a big cruise ship like the Magic here will hardly move with the sea unless the weather gets pretty bad. They're a much more stable platform.

Quote from: DisneyRon on July 14, 2015, 03:20:15 PM

Quote from: Pete's Dragon on July 14, 2015, 02:39:02 PM
she got seasick on La Seine, so .......... aint gonna happen

It's easier to get seasick on a ship encountering rapid small waves (rivers have these fairly often), a big cruise ship like the Magic here will hardly move with the sea unless the weather gets pretty bad. They're a much more stable platform.

Definitely!! You hardly feel the ship moving, only when it's a bit rougher outside!  :)

Quote from: DisneyRon on July 13, 2015, 07:28:05 PM
wonderful photos and stories once again Never2old, that cruise went really well didn't it? :D
Very cool indeed.

It went really well... I don't think it could have been any better!! A month later and I'm still seriously missing it... And my mom is still seriously planning their next Disney cruise!!

Next update coming up shortly :)

And back to Bergen! Thankfully the queue to go down in the funicular was much more reasonable, and soon we were on our way down. Alicia was awake by now and really liked the trip down!

We continued our exploration of the town

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Soon we were in Bergen's fish market!!

Now it's not really much of a fish market as much as it tourist attraction... They were a few stalls, all selling fish (fresh fish, crab, but also tins), but mostly cooking fresh fish. The smell was incredible!! I don't usually like the smell of cooked fish, but this was just mouth-watering!

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As the good tourists that we are, we stayed here for lunch. If we were not hungry before (and by now it was close to 1pm) we were starving after seeing all the delicious fish!!

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It was not cheap, of course. But it was really good!! And at the end this was the only meal we'd had outside the ship, so we didn't feel too guilty...

After lunch we had a little walk around the pier (we were in front of the Bryggen area)

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The funicular station up in Mount Floyen

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We decided to go back towards Bryggen, to visit the Hanseatic Museum

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It's one of the few buildings that remain that were built in 1702 (after most of the city had been destroyed by a fire), and it's the only one where the original interiors have been kept.

The building used to be the home of one of the merchants, who worked and lived there with his journeyman and apprentices (Hanseatic merchants were celibate).

In the bottom floor were the storage rooms . I should apologise for the pictures in advance, no flash photography was allowed...

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Upstairs on the first floor was a dining room, and the merchant's office. There was also a secret stairway inside a cupoard... I think it went up to the merchant's summer bedroom (we were not allowed up the stairs). There was a smaller room (the merchant's private dining room), as well as his winter bedroom. Houses in this area were not allowed to have any lights nor heating (because of the risk of fires). The beds had therefore doors that could be closed to keep the cold out (I was totally thinking of Harry Potter seeing these beds inside cupboards....).

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One floor up in the second floor were the apprentices bedrooms (more beds inside cupboards), as well as the master's summer bedroom

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As I said, no flash photography was allowed, and many of the rooms were quite dark, so I didn't take many pictures. But it's really an interesting museum, it gives you a real taste of what life was like.

Since no fires were allowed inside the houses, they had no kitchens either. So they had assembly halls, that belonged to one or more merchants, that could not only be heated but had kitchens (as well as food storage rooms). You can go and visit one of these assembly halls (we didn't, I was the only one who wanted to....)

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This is the Sailors Monument, showing the Norwegian's sailing history since the Vikings

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By now it was starting to drizzle, so we started heading back towards the ship.

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Back in Bryggen

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By now my husband was a bit tired, and Alicia wanted to go and play in the kids club. So the two of them went straight back, while I stayed with my parents around Bryggen for some shopping

On the way there we took a little detour to go and see St Mary's Church. It was completed around 1180, and although was damaged in the various fires that Bergen was victim to, it survived, making it the oldest remaining building in Bergen. Unfortunately for us it was being refurbished, and closed to the public. See? We really need to go back!!

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-32kPpplKxv8/VZ6oOL2FIcI/AAAAAAAAmtU/dNr89i65URw/s800-Ic42/IMG_8577.JPG)

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-D_7YDoyFmsE/VZ6oOkHgtNI/AAAAAAAAmtc/r0C6-3SMdwk/s640-Ic42/IMG_8578.JPG)

We loved Bergen. There is really a lot to see, we could go back and spend another full day there visiting things we didn't have time for!!

Well, that applies to all of Norway. In all ports we took a long time choosing which excursions to do, which things to go and see, because there were always at least 2 (if not 3) totally different things that we really wanted to do, and choosing was very difficult. We tried to balance it and have some nature, some culture, some history... But it's impossible to see it all. It's the main issue with a cruise, of course, that you only get a few hours in places where you could easily spend days.

So just to let you know, if I ever get the chance, I'll do this cruise again, no doubts about it!!

Coming up: Freezing the Night Away!!

Oh, such a story, such places! Thank you, never2old!

May I ask about the extra payments - do you pay for drinks in the ship? Do you pay extra for these excursions? As I understand - all the food (3 meals) are included in the price?

Quote from: Mileto on July 14, 2015, 05:35:34 PM
Oh, such a story, such places! Thank you, never2old!

May I ask about the extra payments - do you pay for drinks in the ship? Do you pay extra for these excursions? As I understand - all the food (3 meals) are included in the price?

Thanks Mileto :)

Extra payments... Yep, lot of those!! All meals (and it's not just breakfast, lunch and dinner, the fast food places in deck 9) are all included. There's also room service, and that's also included. Meals in the adult's only restaurant Palo (brunch on sea days, dinner every night) have a supplement (I think it's 25 USD per person, but didn't do it so I cannot be sure). Soft drinks in restaurants, or from the drinks station, are also included. You need to pay extra for alcoholic drinks, or coffees in Cove Cafe. Oh, and snacks outside the theatre (popcorn, and pre-packaged things like chocolate bars) also come for an extra charge.

You also need to pay for the excursions (the Port Adventures, as Disney calls them), and prices can vary a lot from one excursion to another. Prices in Norway went from 50 USD (for a walking tour around Stavanger) up to 350 USD I think it was (for the Elsa and Anna one in Alesund) - per person!! So you really need to budget these...

You book them in advance (and many sell out), so you can budget for them before you go.

Final update for our day in Bergen!

Back in the ship, it was Freezing the Night Away theme night. Frozen night!! Everything was ready for the evening

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While Alicia played in the club (she told us later than Olaf went to see them there), we went to Cove Cafe for a coffee (and some yummy cakes), and relaxed for a bit in the deck chairs around the adults only area. It was really lovely up there!! (though the blankets provided were welcome....). Our time in Norway was almost up, and we only had one day left in the ship. My mom and I were feeling a bit sad about it, and were thinking of possible dates for future cruises... My husband and I had already been to the desk where you can book another cruise to ask about prices (we hadn't booked it yet), but it was pretty clear to all of us that this was not going to be our only Disney cruise....

A bit later, it was time for the show, so after picking up Alicia we went to the theatre

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The show tonight was Walt Disney: The Dream Goes On. It's about Disney himself, and his work of course. There were some songs from his films; my favourite bit however was the one about Disneyland, they had songs about different areas (Main Street, Frontierland, Adventureland...) Including the Tikki Room song! They were showing photos of the Disney parks (and included a few of our little DLP). I really liked it!

After the show we went to the Atrium, for the Maypole Dance!

Not surprisingly, there was a high number of Elsa's and Anna's around today... And not only among the children!! I saw quite a few women dressed up as well, some looking particularly good!! I asked a couple of them who'd done the dresses themselves, I was seriously impressed. All I had was an Elsa t-shirt...  ::)

To explain the maypole celebrationl we had a couple of Oaken's cousins (who arrived calling out 'Yoo-hoo!'). They were quite fun. Yah? Apparently we were all family now so when we saw each other we had to say to each other 'Yoo-hoo!! Family'!! :D

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First we tried to find Arandelle on the map (we couldn't, but apparently it's not far from Norway)

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In Arendelle (like in Norway) they celebrate the arrival of spring with a maypole dance. First it was the children's turn

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(the lights around some of the children's necks were given out during dinner, they were snow flakes, we got ours later!)

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After the children, it was the turn of the adults. They did a more complex dance, with beautiful results!!

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Here's a quick video. Yah?

https://youtu.be/mSCCFwnUaS8

In the meantime, the ship was sailing back to Copenhagen, leaving Norway behind...

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Our diner rotation was in Lumiere's tonight. All the waiters were dressed following the Frozen theme (I should really have taken lots more pictures!!). The menu also had a Frozen theme

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Not sure you can read the print, but we had things like the Duke of Weselton's Favourites or Elsa's Coronation Scallops (Appetizers), Sven's Carrot Soup or Oaken's Red and Yellow Beetroot Salad (Soups & Salads), Anna's Honey Mustard Marinated Salmon or Kristoff's Rosemary Marinated Striploin (Main Courses).

They also had a special drink, the Ice Palace (non alcoholic), that came in a souvenir glass (which I had to get!!). It's a tall plastic glass, with Olaf, and it says Disney Magic. Of course I had to get it!!

We also got our snowflake necklaces (that lit up). I still have them, and they still work!!

Dinner was very good (as usual on this trip). And afterwards, it was time to head up to the top decks for the Freezing the Night Away deck party!!

We got there a bit before it started, and it was already 0quite busy (particularly on deck 9 - there were still plenty of good spots in deck 10). We were looking for a place when a cast member came and asked us and Alicia if she wanted to be in the show. Of course she did!! So she went to an area reserved for the children participating in the show (to a side of the scene), and we found places close to it (where we could keep an eye on her)

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Behind us (this was around 22:10... to give you an idea of the light!!)

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My souvenir glass!

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Our hosts tonight were more of Oaken's cousins (yoo-hoo!!!!)

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First onstage where the children

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(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-ktVeHGgJLms/VZ6j2tN_75I/AAAAAAAAnEs/lvAvaU51NQg/s640-Ic42/IMG_0997.JPG)

They were soon joined by Kristoff

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Once the children left (and went back to their reserved area, where they could stay for the rest of the show), Oaken's cousins and Kristoff continued with the show, dancing to various song (not all from Frozen)

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-vfYJYMuvHE8/VZ6j9KhQdXI/AAAAAAAAmu8/IVeFRBVodLM/s800-Ic42/IMG_1009.JPG)

before being joined by Anna (who was very excited after finding chocolate ice cream!)

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Sven was also there... On the screen at least

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Queen Elsa joined the party

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And of course we all sang Let it go!!

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Elsa, I have to say, had a beautiful voice!! And yes, she made it snow!! It was a really good moment.

I made a very short (and very bad) video with my phone, to be honest I was too busy singing like a 5 year old to think about filming the moment for posterity ;) My parents where up on deck 10 and apparently filmed more of it (I haven't seen it yet though....). But in case anyone's interested in seeing Elsa in action...

https://youtu.be/fFsu-MNuzOg

The sisters left, but soon we had one last guest... Olaf! Again on the screen only (a shame, particularly since the character was onboard!)

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We all sang along with Olaf to In Summer (the lyrics were appearing in the screen), it was really good fun.

And at the end of it all, it snowed once more... Not sure it comes out very well in the picture, but it was snowing on deck 9 of the Disney Magic :)

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(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-IObf4eG6fyg/VZ6i8GyAYRI/AAAAAAAAlk8/iylp7QcP2Ss/s640-Ic42/IMG_0407%2525202.JPG)

Truly a magical end to a brilliant day!!

Our towel for the night... My daughter loved it so much that she slept with it!! (and it survived the night, I'm happy to say)

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Next: our last day onboard :(

What a beautiful report and so stunning, amazing pictures.
Your daughter is just adorable, bet she will become a Disney-princess at DLP one day  ;)

Quote from: BlackPearl on July 20, 2015, 10:59:22 PM
What a beautiful report and so stunning, amazing pictures.
Your daughter is just adorable, bet she will become a Disney-princess at DLP one day  ;)

Thanks BlackPearl :) I'm sure she would love that!! She's already mastering the art of posing for pictures like a princess... ;)

Next (and final) update coming very very soon!!

Apologies for the delay, I've had a very busy few days!

Friday was our last full day on board, and a sea day. Sea days are brilliant. You have all day to enjoy the ship, and so many activities to choose from!! You have to forget about fitting everything in, it's impossible.

We took it easy that morning, and slept a bit later than usual. We then decided to go to Lumiere's for breakfast (so a-la-carte instead of a buffet). We were on our way passing the Atrium and saw that the Princess Gathering was taking place (that's a ticketed event, we'd already had ours at the start of the cruise), but there was no one waiting; Belle and Cinderella were still busy with a couple of families, but Rapunzel was all alone. I went to ask the CM checking the tickets if it was OK if Alicia said hello to Rapunzel, since no one was waiting, and she let hadn't finished saying yes that Rapunzel was already coming towards Alicia, and giving her a big hug :)

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-QH73b78F5_c/VZ6kWYaWqMI/AAAAAAAAl6Y/hX2YyeTbpvc/s640-Ic42/IMG_1054.JPG)

Have I mentioned how much I love DCL?? ;)

After our delicious breakfast we went back to the room, and found a present from Anna waiting on our bed; it was the reward for the scavenger hunt  ;D

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I have to confess, I don't usually like rice cakes, but these had lots of chocolate, and were delicious!!

Alicia wanted to go and play in the the kids club, and after dropping her off we had a quick look outside... It was an absolutely gorgeous day!

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Before going back to the room though, we decided to stop by the future bookings desk... There was no one waiting, and we finally got our next cruise booked: 7 nights in the Mediterranean, August 2017  :D :D :D Cruise companies usually offer you good deals if you book another cruise onboard. With Disney, you get a 10% discount on the current cruise prices, you only need to put down a 10% deposit (instead of 20%), and you get 200 USD onboard credit for your next cruise (for 7 nights or longer cruises). Which overall it's a pretty good deal. And as we saw later on the day, judging by the long queue of people waiting, a very popular one!

We also went to guest services to adjust some of the tips. For those interested, DCL calculate (per cabin) how much to tip your 2 waiters, the head waiter and the stateroom hostess. They give you envelops with the amounts that you can then give personally to each person. And you can also change the amounts. We had really had an amazing service from both our waiters, so we wanted to give them a bit more. You can give them cash, or you can go to Guest Services and they will adjust the amount (charged at the end to your room).

And we went to Shutters (the photography shop) to look at all our pictures they'd taken throughout the cruise - and there were loads of them!! You can see them on a computer screen, but they also have printed copies of most of them - you need to look for your folder (they keep one folder per room!) and there you have lots and lots of beautiful photos!! And I have to say, the pictures are incredibly expensive. I think it was about 20 USD per photo (printed), and no discounts for buying multiple photos. I think you can buy packages for a number of pictures (or even for all the pictures) in advance and it's cheaper, but in any case it really adds up. At the end we decided to do a photo book with a few of our pictures (160 USD plus postage), and got a couple of pictures to frame at home. Next time I'll try to purchase a package in advance....

Back in the room and after getting most of the packing done, I could start to relax a bit more. I don't know about you guys but I really hate packing!!  As I said there were lots of things to do onboard: games for whole family, films in the cinema, character meetings, drink tastings (for the adults only).  We had decided to keep it relaxed, and to go to the character dance party, something that Alicia would really enjoy. We went to pick her up from the club (she took some convincing to leave, she was having too much of a good time!) and went to the Atrium to wait for the party to start.

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As you can see, it wasn't particularly crowded...

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(my husband went up to deck 4 to take pictures)

After a short introduction and some dance moves, the stars of the show joined the party

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Mickey, Minnie, Pluto, Donald, Goofy, Chip and Dale, they were all there!! (no Daisy though)

They took turns dancing one by one (or two by two for Chip and Dale) dancing on the stage, while the rest joined the crowd to dance with the children.

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Alicia had a great time dancing with Minnie, Mickey (she even had Mickey all to herself for a bit), and finally Donald

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Finally everyone got back on the stage, for a final goodbye.

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It was a fun little party!! And great way of interacting with the characters :)

We had lunch in Cabana's, could even sit outside on the deck, it was really lovely. We finally met with my parents (they'd seen Cinderella in the cinema) and had lunch together.

After lunch it was time for a little nap (well, my husband and Alicia went for a nap, I went to do lots of shopping  ;))

Once everyone was awake, we decided to take Alicia to the children pool. It was a really lovely day, and all the pools were all quite busy!

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I left them there and went to O'Gills, for a presentation about Disney's innovations in theme park. The Irish pub was quite full, but I managed to find a place by the bar. The presentation was very interesting, they presented the top 10 innovations introduced (or improved) by Disney to the theme parks. Some I knew about (animatronics), some I had never thought of before (like having a single entrance to the park).

After it finished I met with my family in the room; we finished packing the bags, and got ready for the evening.

Tonight's show was Dreams: An Enchanted Classic. And it was the best show of all, by far (and all the others had been really good!!). The story was good, the sets and effects were excellent, lots of Disney songs... They'd changed it recently to include Frozen (of course). When Elsa comes on and sings Let it Go... She turns half the theatre into an ice palace! It was really an amazing show (it's won a few awards, apparently). My mom and I were seriously considering skipping dinner and going to see it a second time!! I can't wait to see it again next year  :D

After the show and before dinner we had some time to meet more characters...

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My dad and my husband

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And time for dinner! Our last dinner onboard was on Animator's Palate, and tonight we were all to become animators!

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My chocolate dessert...
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On our table we all had a place mat in which to draw a character; then they took all our works of art away... While we were eating our dessert, all our drawings came to life in the screens around us! First it was just our drawings, all walking and dancing. And later our drawings were added to Disney films, so our characters were dancing together with Pinocchio, Mickey.... It was pretty cool :)

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Guest Animators :)

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Our final activity for the evening was 'Til we meet again', back on the Atrium. Basically it's a last chance to meet plenty of characters, and to meet the cast of the shows.

For Alicia, it was a chance to show her new Simba to all her 'friends'....

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She also met Chip and Dale and Pluto (but not sure what's happened to those pictures, they must be in my husband's camera)

At the end all the characters and cast members got back to the stage (and staircase) to say goodbye to us all  :(... Until we meet again ;)

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A bit sad if I'm totally honest!!

It was almost 11pm so my husband went ahead with our daughter to the room, and I stayed to take some final pictures outside in deck 4. I really didn't want this day to end!!

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After a pretty relaxed but magical day we all slept quite well... The next morning we woke up in Copenhagen. They have a great system in DCL where they collect your bags (you have to leave them outside your cabins by 10pm on your last night), so all you need to worry about on your last few hours on board is a carry-on bag. As you can imagine they have a few hours to get everyone off the ship and prepare for the next set of guests, but they're really well organised and you don't really feel like you're being kicked out... We had to be out of the rooms by 8am, and we had breakfast at 8:15 back in Animator's Palate (the restaurant of our last dinner rotation). And this was a proper breakfast, with a menu to choose from, very relaxed, very enjoyable!

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Our waiters Vildon and Joao were there, and we had a delicious breakfast. And then it was time to say goodbye to the family that had shared the table with us every evening, and to our waiters. After a week we were really sad to have to say goodbye to them (I hope to see them again next year!), they had really made us feel at home.

Some final photos before leaving...

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And then it was time to leave the ship :(

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Back in the port we found our bags, and joined the quite long queue of people getting out and waiting for taxis. Because we wanted a big taxi for all of us (the hotel we were staying in was quite far from the port and so the journey wasn't cheap) we ended up waiting for quite some time (and the queue of people behind us was still quite long!!)

Driving through Copenhagen, we felt like it had been a lifetime ago since we'd been there last. We were all (particularly my mom, my daughter and me) quite sad about the cruise being over. We spent so long waiting for it, and then it was really over in a flash. But it was a really unique, wonderful holiday, and one that we all enjoyed very very much.

That day we went for a walk around the center of Copenhagen, it was again a beautiful sunny day. We did one of the boat tours, had lunch in a terrace, went to the Disney Store (where I saw quite a few people from our ship!!). On Sunday before flying back home we went to visit the Aquarium (Blue Planet), very enjoyable too (our daughter loved it). And then it was time to fly back home, and start planning our next cruise....

And a big thank you to you all for coming along :)

That's a strong contender for best trip report ever I think, thank you

Thank you SO much Never2Old! This is hands down the best trip report I've ever read, I feel like I was there with you all and experienced it myself! So many beautiful pictures of your lovely family looking like they're having the time of their lives. Absolutely loved it, didn't want it to end!  :D

Agreeing with the others here. This was a great trip report Never2old. ;D

Consider a Disney Cruise added to my own future Disney holidays... You were very convincing. ;)

Thank you all so much! :D

Got a final video for you, of the characters dance party. To give you an idea of what it was really like!

https://youtu.be/umMuXYEFDkw

I'm so glad you enjoyed my report, your comments mean a lot to me.

I promise to do another one next year ;)

thank you for sharing such a wonderful report, your holiday looked absolutely fantastic! Such wonderful photos, I really enjoyed your updates :)

Absolutely magical. My husband wants to go to Norway and I cannot fly far...so I am considering in the future booking the DCL to Norway. So amazing to read your experience!!!

Quote from: sophstar007 on June 07, 2016, 04:04:57 PM
Absolutely magical. My husband wants to go to Norway and I cannot fly far...so I am considering in the future booking the DCL to Norway. So amazing to read your experience!!!

Thanks :D It was a very magical experience. Hope you do get to cruise the fjords with Disney soon!!