I love this area and I get the reason why, but when the sun is shining and the weather is glorious, I am always wishing that at least a smidge of this area was able to get some of that great Vitamin D.
We knew that for Star Wars Day that we would be exploring the ship for a majority of it, so instead we chose the day we ported in Jamaica as our pool day. Yes, I know there are 2 at sea days on the 7-day excursions, but in my defense the first day it was cold and rainy (yes, it gets cold in Florida...for us anyway) and the second Day at Sea for Star Wars lovers like us, it was more important to walk around and take the day in then to hang out by the pool. EV meeting Ahsoka Tano was alone worth it. I need a redo of Grand Cayman where Jiminy Cricket tells me what a boring day I am going to have and to just "follow his guide" and stay on the darn ship where the food and cocktails are. Seriously, an excursion that ends at 2pm with no food shouldn't even be offered #butthatisahangrymamatalking.
Hubs and I did our Honeymoon in Ochos Rios, Jamaica and a majority of the excursions that were being offered through the cruise were Dunn's River Falls activities. Been there and done that...its slippery and cold and I was okay not reliving it. Again, the weather was glorious, so being able to enjoy the amazing views and color of the ocean from the ship was #worthit.
If your kids are of that age where naps are harder and harder to come by, the Nemo's Reef is your salvation. Although it took some time for EV to get acclimated, she absolutely loved running around and playing with all the water. It is also a bonus that the water is heated (especially since as mentioned, it is covered). Even though we live in Florida, other than a bath, Baby D has not come in contact with a lot of water. He is now sitting up for extended amounts of time, so having him in front of the different fish spraying water was a lot of fun for us and him.
They have a waterfall area that kids can run in and out of and once EV got used to the rush of water being dumped on her head, she could not get enough! Although this seemed to be the favorite of most kids.
This was also a great introduction to the rain showerhead we had in our bathroom. Literally she was beyond pruniness which resulted in a lot of shrieks (not of delight) when we tried to pry her from it. She enjoyed it THAT much! Although to be fair, Mama and Hubs had a difficult time wanting to leave the shower. For a ship, they have some great water pressure.
But I digress...
There is a small slide that is supposed to replicate Mr. Ray and lots of sea anenomes that have rainfall tops and spray out small streams of water.
I like that there is an age limit for the area so you can let your kids have freedom without fear that if you turn your back they will be unintentionally trampled on (parents for the most part have a good hold on their children and are not above a "you better apologize" or "I'm sorry") and there are plenty of other water areas that older children are much more interested in such as the Aquaduck and different pool areas (especially the main pool with the gigantic movie screen that plays a new Disney movie everyday). There is a lifeguard that does circle the area, but honestly, if your kids are in the particular age group listed, I can't imagine you not being around (but again, who am I to judge).
I loved having the waterproof phone case for this day. Hubs fed Baby D before they met up with us, so it was just EV and I for about thirty minutes. Once she got her feet wet (literally #Iloveagoodpun), she just wanted to experience everything and all at once so the phone case came in handy for capturing all the first moments, but still running around with her and enjoying the experience while keeping my hands free to do so. While Hubs ran around with EV when they got back, I could sit with Baby D and let him experience everything first hand, take pictures and again be hands free with my phone around my neck....best. purchase. ever.
Between the warm water, running around, and posing for pictures, EV was too pooped to pop. We ended up going up one deck to another pool that is more wading than anything and plopped EV into that while Mama soaked up some sun and got herself an extra spicy Bloody Mary #DearBartenderILoveYouSincerelyMe. Baby D was passed out in the shade with his hat and sunglasses and that was that.
From there, we got EV out of the pool, put her into the shower of her dreams, ordered room service #grilledcheeseerrydayforthewin , and took family naps.
I say this every time, but I will say it again, I need to stop booking port excursions and I need to just enjoy the ship, its many pool areas...and ::cough cough:: cocktails. Hindsight is 20X20, but I think next time I will book one excursion day and forget about everything else...hands up for those that know I will forget all about this next year...
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