Sailing with Lou Mongello on the WDW Radio E-Ticket Adventure Cruise 2016

Co-written by Vanessa Prince and Andrew Prince, Disney on Wheels

Ahoy! Have you ever wondered what it would be like to go on a Disney cruise with Lou Mongello from WDW Radio and Beci Mahnken from MEI/Mouse Fan Travel? Well, we had the opportunity to do just that on November 5, 2016! Our adventure also included a WDW Radio E-Ticket kick-off event in New York City the night before we sailed for Puerto Rico.

The Fun Continues…

To view our full week’s schedule click here.

November 7: At Sea and Pirate Night

DCL Personal Navigator Nov 7, 2016 Magic.

The 12 Laps of Christmas

This was another day at sea for the Disney Cruise Line’s Magic and our group. There was no sleeping in for us! At 8:30 am a large group of us met on Deck 4 to participate in the WDW Radio “The 12 Laps of Christmas”! After a quick group photo, we headed out to Deck 4 which is the designated jogging/walking deck on the ship. Some people ran, others walked/ran, as for me, my Mom pushed me in my wheelchair eleven times around Deck 4. She ran the final lap by herself. There was a cheering group located on port side who gave encouragement every time we passed them. On the Magic, 3 laps is equal to 1 mile, so our 12 laps were a quick 4 miles of fun running. After the 12 laps, we all received a special WDW Radio/MEI travel finisher medal.

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Ice Cream Social

After lunch, there was an Ice Cream Social for WDW Radio near Eye Scream Treats on Deck 9. This was an informal get together with Lou and Beci. It was fun to grab our free ice cream and visit with other people in our group and to enjoy the warmer weather.

MARVEL Pajama Party

What could be more fun than an adult pajama party at sea? Those adults that wanted to, dressed in their MARVEL inspired pajamas and gathered at O’Gills Pub on Deck 3. It was fun to see so many new friends walking around the ship in their pj’s. Lou was excited to share his Spider Man pajamas with us.

Kids Club Takeover!

At midnight we assembled, in our MARVEL pajamas, at the MARVEL’s Avengers Academy inside the Disney’s Oceaneer Club for an adult only takeover. Normally the Oceaneer Club and Lab are restricted to Guests ages 3 – 12, but Beci made special arrangements for our group to meet privately and enjoy the club. We learned how to fight like Iron Man in the Become Iron Man simulator. Who knew we were such a talented group of Marvel Avengers!

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November 8: At Sea

DCL Personal Navigator Nov 8, 2016 Magic

WDW Radio Christmas Party

Since this was a Very Merrytime Christmas sailing on DCL we gathered in the morning at Keys, on Deck 3 for the WDW Radio Christmas Party. This was a fun event with a White Elephant Gift Exchange, Ugly Christmas Sweater Contest and group photo. The White Elephant was for those who brought a Disney inspired gift with them for the exchange and was really fun to watch as people stole gifts from each other. Some of the sweaters in the contest were really crazy and creative. The judges had a hard time selecting one winner.

Door Decorating Contest

This was also the day for the door decorating contest that we signed up for on embarkation day. The doors were so creative, and I’m sure Lou and Beci had a hard time deciding the winner, plus they got their exercise that day since the staterooms were all over the ship.

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Group Photo

Later in the afternoon the group gathered on the Atrium Staircase in front of Lumiere’s. Since the area was not wheelchair accessible, I was grateful for my strong friends who lifted me up and down the stairs for the photo.

Fish Extender Exchange

About a month before we sailed there was a sign-up within the group for the Fish Extender Exchange. A hook that looks like a fish is located outside your stateroom door and serves as a place for DCL to leave messages. For the WDW Radio Fish Extender Exchange we utilized a hanging “mailbox” provided by MEI Travel which is where participants left their gifts. It was fun to find little tokens from fellow cruisers in our mailbox each day. Plus, delivering them was a good way to explore the ship as we had to deliver to quite a few staterooms on several decks. To read more about Fish Extender Exchanges please visit this article by Christy Viszoki.

November 9: St. Maarten

DCL Personal Navigator Nov 9, 2016 Magic

There were no group plans for this day. We enjoyed our time ashore and dinner with fellow cruisers.

November 10: Tortola

DCL Personal Navigator Nov 10, 2016 Magic

Farewell Gathering

On the last day of the cruise there was a Farewell Gathering held in Keys on Deck 3. The meet-up was a nice way to mingle with everyone one more time before we went our separate ways. After socializing for a while, Lou and Beci thanked everyone for a fabulous cruise experience and held an informal poll to see where people wanted to cruise next. This is where we learned about the 2018 WDW Radio Cruise to Alaska, but we had to keep it a secret until everything was finalized and sail dates were announced by DCL. If you are interested in sailing to Alaska with Lou Mongello and WDW Radio click this link which will redirect you to a page at MouseFanTravel.com.

November 11 – 13

San Juan, Puerto Rico

After we disembarked the DCL Magic, a majority of fellow cruisers headed over to the Caribe Hilton resort for a few days of fun and exploring in San Juan, Puerto Rico. Vanessa and Deanna represented the WDW Radio Running Team when they woke up early one day to run the Divas 5K in Old San Juan. Please enjoy some of our pictures from San Juan below.

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