Tips about Disney Cruise Line and Mousecellaneous

My son (who is now 11) and I go to a Disney park every year. We have visited Disneyland six times so far, Disneyland Paris once and we are going to WDW for the third time in September. He was only 2 on our first Disney trip. Each trip I purchase several t-shirts for the both of us. I always try and get at least one with the year printed on it. (They do a new style each year.) I have saved all of them. In 5 or 6 years I plan to have them made into a quilt. I will give him the quilt when he leaves for college. His first t-shirt is so tiny compared to the newer ones and I know they will just keep getting bigger! I hope that when he looks at it he remembers all of the Magical Memories we have shared at Disney. - Shellie Bandy

Disneyshopping.com has t-shirts with Disney characters that you can personalize and they are very reasonable. There are several designs to chose from and they can say whatever you want. "The Smiths' Magical Adventure" or "The Smiths on Holiday," for example. It's fun. - ErinNGreg

Here is a fun twist on that (wearing identical t-shirts) idea. My family recently went to WDW for our 10th trip together. We had t-shirts made at our local sports shop before the trip (for about $15 each). "WDW Trip #10" was on the front of the shirts. On the back, each person got to customize. They all said "I'm here for" and the person got to pick what they were most excited about to fill in the rest of the sentence. Mine said "I'm here for the safari!" What an experience! Cast members and other guests commented on our shirts all day! We felt like VIPs. It was one of my favorite Disney experiences. - Dsnygrl8!

My sister, her family and I took a trip to WDW, and before we left my brother-in-law thought it would be neat if we bought T-shirts that everyone would all wear one day. We decided to purchase The Incredibles red logo T-shirt for everyone. It was a success. We wore them on our Magic Kingdom day and everyone kept saying, "Look! The Incredibles!" or "Hey, where did you all get the shirts?" I am sure they probably sold the shirts somewhere on property but we bought them at The Disney Store before we left home. It also helped keep track of everyone. We are now in the process of finding another style of shirt for everyone to wear one day on our upcoming October trip. - Amy

One thing I find myself doing... as I read along the fantastic tips shared in the ALL EARS® weekly newsletter, I copy and paste segments of the tips and email them to myself, so I do not forget them. Later, I scroll through my email and print out or save the important tip to a folder on my PC. I even go as far as making a brightly colored folder for my "Disney Information," which becomes my lifeline for all things related to any future trip. It is easily carried along on the trip when the time comes and has my notes, tips, dining reservations, hotel information, grocery store lists... you get the idea. - Bonnie from PA

I was reading through your site for something new and fun at Disney that we hadn't done and that is a little less "Disney" so my husband might quit complaining about another trip to WDW. Well, I found it -- parasailing. After reading the reviews I decided to schedule two double tandem flights for two adults with two children, ages 7 and 10. Wow, was that great! The kids loved it and so did my husband and I. (Note: maximum combined weight is 300 lbs. per flight). We went to the Contemporary Resort marina, and the boat driver and instructor were both excellent at their jobs. - Crystal

ALL PARKS - As a teacher I have found the park maps to be a wonderful way to teach map skills to my first graders. I always make sure to pick up a handful for my students. I also laminate them and put them in our reading basket. Even laminated, they get a lot of wear. Too bad...I guess I'll have to go back for replacements! - Rae Vautrin

Ever wonder how much walking you do at the different parks, or on different days? So did we. A couple of years ago I bought an inexpensive pedometer basically for this purpose. You may want to consider this, as it gives you a little more to talk about after your vacation. We keep a daily log of the miles we walk and share it with our friends back home. Also you will either confirm what you already think about how far you walk, or you may be quite surprised that you walked as far as you did. Just a note -- we always rack up the most miles on our days at Epcot. - Bob Rogers

I noticed in some of the online forums that many people will use their vacation as a reason or inspiration to get in shape. After all, you will need your "walkin' shoes" in the World! I, too, have begun walking in the mornings for exercise... inspired by our pending trip to that Magical Place! My tip is: there are many new sources for podcasts about Disney World. Listening to these podcasts really makes your walk go quickly! You don't need an iPod to listen; any MP3 player will do, or even burn them to disc for your old-fashioned CD Walkman! - Tom in Connecticut

EDITOR'S NOTE: We're aware of several Disney podcasts that have started up in recent months -- there's MouseTunes found at: http://mousetunes.com/ There are also the podcasts at WDWToday.com -- be sure to check out Episodes #19 and #22, which feature ALL EARS® editors Deb Wills and Deb Koma, discussing their book (PassPorter's Walt Disney World for Your Special Needs). We're sure there are other podcasts out there, too -- do a quick internet search if you're interested in finding more.

While preparing for our trip and reading all the tips I could find, I came across the tip about getting the dish wipes for washing out the refillable cups or anything else you might need to wash. I thought that it was an excellent tip and set out to try to find them. I looked in every store in my area trying to find them, but could not. Finally I decided to try to make my own. I got some thick baby wipes and laid them flat on the kitchen counter. I squeezed on some dish soap and left them to dry until the next day. When they were dry, I put them in a zipper top bag. It worked perfectly and I was able to use things I already had around the house! - Angela B.

I think it's really important to let your readers know that the Disney Cruise Line will let you build up your own onboard credit before you cruise. Just call the Disney Cruise Line with you confirmation number and credit card. This is a great way to save up for the special things you want to do on the cruise or even for necessities that you know you will encounter, like end-of-the-cruise tipping. If you booked your cruise a year in advance like I did, you'll have several months after your final payment to call in and add some cash onto your account. And if your family or friends want to give you a gift they can call the Disney Cruise Line with your account number and make a contribution to your onboard credit! My family always gives us cash for Christmas, so I plan to take that money and invest it in my cruise! There's no limit on the amount. As the Cruise Line representative I talked to said with a laugh, "You can give yourself as much money as you want!" - Buffy

My wife and I recently returned from our honeymoon aboard the Disney Wonder. We did a 4-Day Land/3-Day Sea travel package. Here are a couple of things that will work for either the Wonder or the Magic ships that may be useful to other travelers:

1. Use the luggage tags in your cruise booklets! We didn't, and getting our luggage was a bit of a problem. It took the Disney Magical Express baggage handlers longer to get our luggage, which in turn took the hotel longer to deliver our bags. We arrived to the hotel around 12:30 p.m. EST and our bags didn't get to our room until approximately 4:30 p.m.!

2. If you or your kids want to get pictures with the characters, read your Navigator (which you receive every day) to find out the times. Since the characters are only out for 20 minutes at a time, time is of the essence. Once you know what time they are arriving, head to the atrium on Deck 3 at least 10-15 minutes early. Once kids start to see the characters, lines get really long. Disney Cast Members will have a cut-off and you might not get in. - Sean Mc.

Save those receipts! Twice our receipts from food service locations at Walt Disney World included a 20 percent off total merchandise purchase (from store opening to 1 p.m.) coupon at the bottom, good at select locations, good through January 5. This happened at both Pizza Planet in Disney's Hollywood Studios and also at the Electric Umbrella at Epcot. - Cheyenna

EDITOR'S NOTE: This promotion usually runs several times a year. Be sure to check if your receipt is one that has the coupon.

Velcro makes a 3/4-inch x 10-foot roll with the hooks on one side and the loops on the other so it sticks to itself. I bought mine in Walmart but I've also seen it in Home Depot. I cut it off in one-foot lengths to attach a mug or folded windbreaker to my belt loop. It has a hundred uses, and rolls up to fit in a pocket or backpack. - Brian Phillips

We just got off the Disney Magic cruise ship this past Sunday. As usual, Disney showed other cruise lines how to do it! Just a tip for what you should not pack and/or try to bring on board, though. My wife decided to buy a steamer to take care of any wrinkles (I'm not talking about my face!) on clothes. It was refused. So was the heating pad for her back. We did get these items back on debarking, but I thought I'd pass this on so you leave those items and at home. It will give you room in your luggage, or possibly help you avoid paying luggage overweight charges. Happy cruising! - Dan Cheresna