Arbon Disney Cruise 2018 - Western Caribbean

We were so excited to be going on another Disney Cruise! This time it was visiting the Western Caribbean with ports at Antigua, St. Lucia, Bonaire, and Aruba. No Disney Island this time. However, this time Charlie came with us! He was now five years old and it felt like the right time to bring him on the special trip. (Click here to see the full compiled video of our trip.) We left Colson back home with Grandma and Grandpa Gruber, which was very fun and exciting for him. He also got to stay with Max and April’s family in Riverton during the tail end, Thursday to Sunday. I was 22 weeks pregnant, just barely making the 24-week cut-off of being prohibited to go on a cruise ship. I was also feeling better from the pain and misery of the kidney stone saga. I was, however, dealing with a nasty sore throat, but I was happy to take that over the butt contractions.

We left Saturday evening, January 27th. This was a red-eye flight and flew to Florida and then to a new port for us in San Juan, Puerto Rico. I was anxious about the added flying time for Charlie, but he did well and was able to sleep.

I was so excited, but so anxious about how Charlie would feel on the airplane and cruise ship. I prayed he didn't get sick. We got wristbands and Dramamine to help.

As parents, we were so excited to share this amazingly fun trip with Charlie. It made the joy that much better being able to experience it through his eyes. He was thrilled to arrive (as were we) and was so happy to see the Disney characters inside the port!

And then we finally boarded the Disney Wonder! This was a first time for us! The previous times have been on the Fantasy. The Wonder is smaller, but newly remodeled. It was lovely! And fun to experience something new. The first stop for us is always the lunch buffet.

And then off to exploring the ship...

We LOVED the water slide on this ship! We visited and revisited it often!

We were so excited to show Charlie the Kid's Club! We knew it would be an amazing and fun thing for him. While having your child there brings so much magic and joy, at the same time, it also made it all the more frustrating when they would do what kids do...complain and misbehave. Over the course of the week, we were so disappointed that Charlie did not like going to the Kid's Club. We had Charlie go there the first day while we went out to port at Antigua and to the beach. He enjoyed it for the few hours he was there. But as the week progressed and we asked if he wanted to go, he kept getting stronger and stronger in his refusal to go. Usually the only time we took him there was late in the evening so we could see an hour of the adult comedy show. There are so many amazing things to do at the Kid's Club, but the problem was Charlie had no Colson (or friend) to go with. Adults are not allowed in there except at certain Open House hours during the day. Often times we would drop him off there, he would stand behind some pillars watching kids play Mario Kart and we would return and he was standing in the same lonely place. It was kind of heart breaking and also frustrating because his shyness and insecurities were getting in the way of his available fun.

Fun at the Send Off Party:

Dinner:

But anyways, after the first evening onboard, Monday was our first port at Antigua. During this time of year, you run the risk of foul weather. This was going to be a rainy day, but we chanced it and took a taxi to a beach. We got so lucky! As we arrived to the beach, the sky was clear enough that we could enjoy some beach time. Literally, for the hour we were on the shore we had great weather. As we were heading in to go back to the ship, it started raining. We were so lucky! It was a very fun time there on the beach. There were even some fun waves.

when on the sand...must build a sandcastle...

Our only interest in Antiqua was the beach, so we headed back to the ship, which we were thrilled about. We picked up Charlie from the Kid's Club, so excited and anxious to hear about his time there, and then spent the rest of the afternoon relaxing onboard and exploring new things.

A beautiful sight:

That night was formal night. We had a great time getting all dressed up. We had dinner at Animator's Palate.

After dinner we changed out of our formal clothes and got a little more comfortable. We were so happy to see Pluto!

That night we sailed through a tropical depression. We hit waves and waters that the crew said was the worst they had seen all season. The ship was definitely swaying and people struggled walking straight. Jason and Charlie ended up getting seasick that night and threw up. Luckily, Charlie threw up before bed and was able to sleep through the night and feel better the next morning. Jason woke up around 2:00 am throwing up. He got some medicine from the infirmary. There was just a whole pile of medicine there at the door. Apparently a huge chunk of the passengers also got sick that night. We were very relieved that Jason also felt better in the morning. I did not get seasick, but was so anxious about Charlie and Jason being sick that I was nauseous and miserable as well. I was also still recovering from my sore throat. My voice was hoarse till about mid-trip. No one slept well that night, except for Charlie. He was OUT. I'm so grateful for that.


The next day was St. Lucia! We were excited to stop here as it had been a favorite port of my parents who recently came on a Royal Caribbean cruise with Fun For Less. The adults did a land and sea excursion while Jason took Charlie on a Spanish Galleon excursion. Both were fun and saw beautiful coastlines from the ocean. 

Land and Sea Group:

a look at our WONDERful ship

The highlight of the land and sea excursion was seeing the beautiful, famous Pitons. 

The mud baths:

being pregnant, I opted not to go into the mud baths

Another highlight was the catamaran ride:

excited to see our ship coming into view

Spanish Galleon Group:

The high light for them was the treasure chest filled with water guns. The whole ship had an epic water fight! They also got to walk the plank. Charlie was brave enough to do it. Jason went into this not knowing what to expect, not knowing if it would be cheesy or whatnot. There ended up being a huge crowd going to this thing and everyone, young and old, genuinely enjoyed themselves. He said he would choose it again in a heart beat. I'm glad they ended up having such a good time. Their excursion ended before ours so they had some alone time on the ship together as well.

Dinner at Tiana's Place:

we loved it here

After dinner exploring and dancing:

After two days of ports, we were happy the next day was a sea day. We love these days of pleasure and relaxation!

This night was semi-formal night. We had Charlie eat in the Kid's Club this night. He doesn't care for the long fancy dinners.

The next port was Bonaire! This port was special! It ended up being our favorite stop. The island and water were kept so clean and beautiful and the people were so nice. It is a Dutch colony, so it has a little bit of a different feel from the others. AND it was the first time ever that a Disney cruise ship has stopped there. The people were very excited to have us and had a very fun send off at the end of the day. Jason, Kim, Kyle, and Camry went on their own excursion scuba diving. They found a great shop and guide to take them and they said the water was just beautiful. The rest of us took a sailboat and did some snorkeling. Again, for us the water was so clear and blue. We saw a couple of sea turtles and some pretty fish. The water was a pretty good temperature as well. 

Sailing Group:

we definitely passed something burning as we sailed out

I got Charlie to come in and go snorkeling with me. He did great!

always a welcome sight

Scuba Diving Group:

In the depths of the ocean, Jason's GoPro button got stuck. Rather than being able to take video, it took tons of pictures without him knowing. He sadly was not able to get the footage he wanted of the scuba diving. But these were some of the shots he could get.

That night was Pirate Night. Jason and I were very excited for Charlie to experience his first Pirate Night.

Our servers:


The Pirate Party:

so beat!

Our final port was Aruba. Again, we were greeted by gorgeous coastline and great temperatures. Here we opted for a semi-submarine adventure and it ended up being such a disappointment! The waters here were not kept as clean and clear as in Bonaire. We barely see any fish through the foggy water. The tour guide/driver tried to liven things up with constant talk and jokes, but we weren't buying it. The highlight and redeeming grace of this island was our last minute decision as we were leaving the excursion to stay for a bit on the beach and have some ocean time. It was so much fun and really pretty. Everyone had a good time and we could call Aruba a success. 

at least the semi-submarine started and ended with a catamaran ride along the shore

That night was my parents special date at the restaurant Palo. All of us kids surprised them with a dinner reservation there as a Christmas present. Now they could finally cash in on that. 

While Mom and Dad were at Palo, the rest of us had our animation night at Animator's Palate. Charlie loved that!

Our very last day was a sea day. We were actually very excited about that. We thought it was a perfect way to end the cruise. With four ports, this was only our second sea day and sea days are often our favorite. It was nice to be able to take it easy, relax, and really explore and do anything that was left wanting before our time came to leave the next day. 

one of my favorite things...taking food out onto the deck while lounging

dinner was delicious!

the very first time Charlie fell asleep at the night show...finally, exhausted!

After an amazing week filled with so many new and exciting things, and lots of yummy food, it was time to head back to reality. 

Charlie did great again, despite my fears. He slept really well.


Painfully waiting for the flight home. Thankfully Grandma had some energy to play with Charlie. I was beginning a brutal decline with an intense head cold/flu. It hit hard during our layover and I had a gnarly headache for the second flight. The days that followed included body aches, fever, and head cold. 

this is the moment I really started feeling it

The one redeeming grace of arriving home, was getting to see Colson again!

Until next time, Disney!