Williams Family Trying Land Then Sea for the First Time

With our 20thish Walt Disney World Vacation and 9th Disney Cruise approaching in a few weeks, we are trying something different this time--land first, sea second.

On other combo Walt Disney World/Disney Cruise Line vacations, we have done the sea portion first, for a variety of reasons:

• The sea part is more expensive--want to take care of that first.
• It takes a great portion of a day to get on the ship than get off--leaving more land time on the same day.
• Do not want soar feet while on the ship.
• Knowing we are headed to Walt Disney World makes leaving the ship easier.

Despite these logical reasons, we are flipping the land/sea for our upcoming trip, having a week at Walt Disney World before embarking on the Disney Dream.

There were some events that prompted the change.  One was that now that the boy is getting older, he has summer commitments and if we wanted to do both Walt Disney World and a Disney Cruise, we would have to put Walt Disney World before the cruise, OR move the cruise.  We decided to move Walt Disney World in order for him to return home in a timely manner.  The other was the change in port transfer procedures at the airport.  The last two times that we have used the Disney Cruise Line port transfers from the airport, there has been a bit of chaos and folks gather.  Giving our plans a bit more thought, the prospect of skipping this part of our trip was enticing! 

Based on these reasons, we changed our flights; now flying a week sooner, and booked our Walt Disney World stay for a week prior to our cruise.

We are still relying on Disney Cruise Line transfers to get us to the port, but instead of being taken from the airport, we will be picked up at our resort.  I understand that I will be assigned a pick-up time at our resort.  No jockeying for a place in line at the airport!

But what about the logical reasons stated above for sea THEN land?

Knowing we are headed to Walt Disney World makes leaving the ship easier.  Well, we are headed BACK to Walt Disney World for just a couple of days after disembarking the ship, so it will be easier to leave the ship knowing we still have more of our vacation to look forward to.

Do not want soar feet while on the ship.  I'm taking a risk with this one.  All I can say is that there is less walking while on the cruise and that the white sand of Castaway Cay will provide comfort/relief if indeed there is a toll taken on the feet.

It takes a great portion of a day to get on the ship than get off--leaving more land time on the same day.  This is still true.  Although, knowing what time we are being picked up at our resort gives us some time to plan for and use as we like.  A leisurely breakfast, a dip in the pool, are possibilities of how we can make the most of our morning.

The sea part is more expensive--want to take care of that first.  Again, still true.  What is different is the need for cash.  The ship is basically "cashless" except for tips for room service and shore excursions.  We have on board charges put on our Disney Visa which we pay in full when we get home.  While at Walt Disney World, we use cash for tips for meals using the Dining Plan, tips for luggage handling, and other purchases.  With this logical, the portion of our trip needing the most cash, Walt Disney World, will be first.

Whether or not I have convinced you is less relevant than I have convinced myself that what we are about to do will be a good thing and all will go smoothly!