On 8/24/08, my daughter and I embarked on the Disney Wonder for our first cruise experience. Sandwiched between Fay and Gustav, our cruise seemed to be timed perfectly and our fears for trip interruption were alleviated. Our excitement and anticipation for the cruise were also not diminished as we boarded the ship after checking in and waiting about 20 minutes for our group to be called through the Mickey silhouette. From that moment until the moment we disembarked nearly four days later, we were truly in Wonderland.

After boarding the ship and exploring a bit to take in the beauty of our surroundings, we made our way to Deck 9 for the buffet lunch. The buffet contained a variety of salad items, fruit, fish, shrimp, roast beef, macaroni and cheese, asparagus and other veggies, pasta, breads and desserts. The only thing we were not happy with in the buffet was that the iced tea was not fresh. Except for that, the lunch was excellent.

Shortly after we finished lunch, at 1:30 as promised, our stateroom was ready, and we found our way to the room. We had booked a Category 7 room with a Navigator's Verandah and were not exactly sure what to expect. The room was clean and nicely furnished. The Navigator's verandah was a full sized veranda with a very large window. It was large enough that both my daughter and I could stand in the window with room for at least two more people to stand beside us, and look out over the ocean. We were very happy with our balcony room. Our housekeeping hostess, Ana, was in the hallway greeting guests as they came into their rooms. She called us by name and asked us whether we wanted the queen size bed separated to two single beds, made sure we had everything we needed and then went to greet other guests. Read more