Disney Cruise Line--Puerto Vallarta

The third port of call on our Summer 2008 Disney Cruise was Puerto Vallarta. The Port Adventure planned for the day was to sail on a pirate ship to a deserted beach to play and then sail back. A we docked at the pier, we could see our vessel just around the corner. So after a short walk, we board our pirate ship, as shown in the photo below.

While sailing, the pirates, who were also our servers on the ships for drinks and such, put on a swashbuckling show for us, as shown in the photo below. The voyage was smooth and soon we were just off shore of our deserted beach. Small boats were used to take guests from the pirate ship to shore.

Then it was time for beach adventure! Now let me tell you that the waters off the coast of Mexico in July are warm. Warm waters mean that the jellyfish are active. And, yes, we were under a jellyfish warning, so there were no snorkeling activities on the beach and we were to use caution for all other activities. We got to know the jellyfish personally. The husband picked up an orange peel like creature from shallow waves only to discover it was a jellyfish. He tossed it far into the water. Both the boy and I got stung. The boy on his chest and I got it on my foot. Nothing serious, just a prickly sensation and a pattern of red marks on the skin. We were both fine and continued playing. I took a banana boat ride on the waves during our beach time. Fun!

The husband calls the photo above the "Lost" photo of the boy. Since I'm not a viewer of the show I don't "get it", but maybe you will. Anyway, the photo captures the level of fun and adventure we had at the beach.

After sailing back to the pier, we darned our pirate garb for dinner as it was Pirate Night on the ship. Yeah, a whole day of pirate activities! Couldn't have planned it better! After dinner, the special pirate menu, the boy went to the club for "Who wants to be a pirate?" activities. That's when he got his face painted to look like a pirate. We then picked him up from the club for the Pirates in the Caribbean deck party. OK, we weren't in the Caribbean, but this is one of Disney Cruise Line themes, so we went with it.

The deck party includes a dancing, games, characters in pirate garb, a show where Mickey saves the day, and fireworks at sea! Disney is the only cruise line that has permission to shoot fireworks at sea, as it is typically a sign of distress. A special pirate buffet on deck follows the show/party.

Tips and Hints:

• Bring your own pirate gear if you plan to dress up. Of course you can purchase items on board at premium prices. The pirate vest was a birthday gift and one of our greatest pirate finds was an inflatable sword that was in a McDonald's Happy Meal to promote a movie. That sword has been on many trips with us and always makes it through airport security.
• Bring your own beach/sand toys and life jacket if you need one. We are now past the life jacket stage for anything but boating, but we still need beach/sand toys. And, again, you can purchase them on board. I save butter containers or any other interestingly shaped plastic containers and purchase buckets/shovels at the local dollar store. After a day of play on the beach, the containers can be thrown away, making more room in the luggage.
• Play along! Where else can you dress up and act like a pirate other than Halloween?
• If your Port Adventure does not include a meal, consider taking along sandwiches from room service to take along. Just let them know you are taking it off the ship as they have special pre-packaged food that meet customs requirements.

If you want to read about our first port of call--Cabo San Lucas--click here.
If you want to read about our second port of call--Mazatlan--click here.