This is a guest trip report written by Abby, who sailed on the October 24, 2018 5 night cruise to the Bermuda on the Disney Magic. You can start the trip report from the beginning by clicking here.
Day 4: Bermuda
(click here to see this day’s Daily Navigator)
Good morning, Bermuda! We woke up this morning to sunshine and a strong breeze outside once we ventured out and about. FINALLY, I had remembered to put our Room Service breakfast order on the door the night before, so we enjoyed coffee, tea, pastries and cereal in the comfort of our stateroom this morning.
We got ready for the day, knowing we wanted to get off the ship quickly and capitalize on Eleanor’s well-rested, happy disposition before nap time kicked in. Our plan was to visit the Bermuda Aquarium, Museum and Zoo today. I had researched getting around Bermuda, and had determined that taking the bus would be our most economical option. I knew that a taxi would be a good back up plan, and that the taxi rates were government-regulated.
After we got off the ship, we were met by a sea of taxis, buses, charters, etc. It was overwhelming, to say the least. There were lots of signs indicating where and how to buy a bus pass, but in all the commotion I let a taxi-hailer grab my attention. He asked where we were headed, and when I told him the Aquarium, he told me we better take a taxi since we had a stroller. Reflecting back, I’m sure I could have folded up the stroller like I do on Disney buses… but in that moment, what he said made sense, so off to the row of taxis we went. (Side note: if you’re snickering and thinking we got suckered, you are correct. Learn from my experience and stick with the plan whenever you’re exploring a new port!).
Our taxi ride to the Aquarium was much longer, and therefore much more expensive, than I anticipated. Again, there could have been more research on my part about the distance between King’s Wharf and our location, because then I would have at least felt more prepared to keep the girls entertained the whole time.
Once we arrived at the Bermuda Aquarium, Museum and Zoo we were thrilled with our choice. It cost just $20 USD for the four of us for the day. We spent the majority of our time experiencing the exhibits and letting Evelyn play on the playgrounds. The indoor-outdoor flow of the facility was wonderful. Best of all, the BAMZ sits right on the coast, so all our time outside came with a picturesque view overlooking turquoise waters.
Around lunchtime, we decided to grab a snack from the concession stand. Although lots of standard snack booth options were available, the real standout for us was the house-made chicken curry turnover. It ranked up there in the top 10 items we ate the entire cruise!! What a fun find.
After our snack, we headed back to the lobby and used their courtesy phone to call a taxi back to port. This cab driver wasn’t as friendly/kid-tolerant as our first driver. Evelyn ended up throwing a fit by the end of the ride, which was *quite* the spectacle as we tried to reboard the ship. Traveling with children is not always easy, even if they look really cute in the pictures.
Once we were back on board, it was up to Deck 9 for— you probably guessed it— lunch from Pete’s Boiler Plate. I think our family consumed more french fries on this cruise than we have throughout the whole rest of the year combined! As promised in an earlier installment of this report, here are three absolutely adorable pictures of Eleanor enjoying our daily soft-serve tradition. You can just *feel* her joy through these photos!
After lunch, it was nap time for Eleanor. We let Evelyn chill out on our bed with the iPad, and David and I took turns getting ready for the evening. We had a 6 pm reservation for Palo. We lounged in our room all afternoon, until it was time to get the girls ready and drop them off at their respective spaces.
We dropped off Eleanor in the nursery first (I had made the reservation the night prior when I picked her up). While I got her checked in, David and Evelyn said hi to Pirate Captain Mickey.
When we went to drop off Evelyn at the Oceaneer’s Club, we found them in open house mode, meaning we couldn’t leave her there. Instead, we were instructed to go to the Oceaneer’s Lab— a space that I did not realize was separate until that very moment! Evelyn was a little unsure of the Lab, and it was very crowded since all the kids were in this space. Eventually she got into a game on an iPad, and we were able to leave and head up to Palo.
Our dining experience at Palo was good, but a bit underwhelming compared to when we dined at Palo on the Disney Dream in January 2016. The restaurant was only half full, but it seemed like every server was stretched thin trying to provide great service to all their tables. I also found some shell in my lobster pasta dish, which the manager tried to joke was proof that I was eating real lobster. David and I both enjoyed a Chocolate Soufflé for dessert, so all was right with the world by the end of the night.
The movement of the ship was very apparent tonight, and they started making announcements of anticipated motion due to weather that afternoon. Because of the expected weather, they moved up the Pirate Night fireworks to 8 pm. (The entire Pirates in the Caribbean Party did not move; just the fireworks). This change of plans worked out perfectly for our family. We wrapped up our dinner at Palo around 7:45 pm, ran downstairs to grab Evelyn, then got to enjoy the fireworks with our big girl up on Deck 9.
I’m not sure Evelyn would have made it to the original late-night fireworks time slot… I was so grateful for this opportunity to see them with her tonight!
After the fireworks, we went and picked up Eleanor from the nursery, then headed to the Walt Disney Theatre to see ‘Tangled: the Musical.’ Right before the show was set to begin, I asked David what time it was. He pulled out his phone and showed me it was 8:30 pm on the dot. The show began, and both girls were captivated through most of it. There was only one scene toward the very end that spooked Evelyn… otherwise, we all loved it!
Knowing it was past everyone’s bedtime, we got up and exited the theatre quickly. As soon as we got out, David realized he didn’t have his cell phone. Remember how I mentioned he had showed me the time at 8:30 pm? We were certain he had his phone in the theatre at the start of the show. He went back in to look for it without success. Frustrated, knowing it HAD to be in the theatre, I went in next, searching the floor and the aisles as best as I could in the half-lit theatre. A Cast Member directed me to the Guest Services desk at Deck 4 for Lost and Found, assuring me that if anyone in the Cast had found it, it would already be turned in there.
We made our way to the Guest Services desk, now with two overly-tired kiddos in tow. After waiting in line for a few minutes, I got to the front and explained what happened to the Cast Member at the desk. Nothing had been turned in yet, so I was asked to fill out a carbon-copied form describing the item, where we lost it, etc. I was told to check back in the morning.
We went to bed that night discouraged, assuming someone had picked up the phone and may or may not turn it in to Lost and Found. We couldn’t be too sad though— we had one more full day on board the Disney Magic, and we wanted to get a good night’s sleep so we could make that most of it.
Up Next: Day 5 – At Sea
I experienced loosing a treasured vintage Chip and Dale jacket once on the Wonder. I felt terrible, it was more of a sentimental lost than a financial. Went to bed knowing it was gone, then the next time we checked the customer service desk THERE IT WAS! I thought the worst, but know the best can and does happen on a Disney cruise thanks to the wonderful staff. Hope you had the same experience