1st Time Cruisers

[Poohbear03]

Hi all,

We have never been on a cruise and we want to try a 3 or 4 night cruise and combine it with Universal in February. The 3 night cruise is on the Fantasy and goes to Castaway Cay and Nassau and the 4 night cruise is on the Wish and goes to Lookout Cay and Nassau. We are both 50 no children going, which would be best? I do have motion sickness problems that is why the shorter cruise options. I guess the real debate is Castaway or Lookout and which one is better. Thanks for any input.

 

[Skippyboo]

Castaway is the older of the 2 so there’s more development of the foliage and activities. It’s more Disney themed. Lookout is newer. There is a long pier from the ship to the land. More Bahamas themed. The water is more wavy than Castaway because it’s the Atlantic Ocean.
First 2 are Castaway, Rest Lighthouse

 

[jwalk03]

I like Lookout better personally but both are great.

I would typically take the 4-day over the 3-day. 3-day cruises are just so rushed, that extra Sea Day makes the experience much more enjoyable to me.

I have not been on the Fantasy or the Wish- but the general feedback here seems to be that the Fantasy is maybe the best ship in the fleet, many more experiences cruises do not prefer the design of the Wish class ships.

 

[sponica]

For a first time cruiser, I don't think the ship choice matters that much. You don't know what to compare it to, and the passenger count of both ships is about the same.

I will say even with the motion sickness, I would recommend the 4 night over the 3 night. Day 1 of a 3 night, you're boarding and getting settled, you have one full day on Day 2, and then on Day 3 you're repacking before disembarking the following morning. It's just tooo chaotic for me to fully enjoy.

 

[jalapeno_pretzel]

I also agree that 4 nights is better. Embarking and debarking is a lot ... crowds, lines, security, waiting, packing/unpacking, 3 nights is not enough.

For motion sickness, I take 24 hour less drowsy Dramamine. Start taking it an evening or two before your cruise, at bedtime, and then take it each night. Don't wait until you feel sick and start then, it will take longer to get over. My motion sickness on my first cruise didn't manifest as nausea, but more vertigo/dizziness and poor sleep quality with very vivid dreams. It was so unlike other motion sickness I'd had I didn't even connect it as being that until later. Second time around I used the Dramamine as described and had no issues.

I can't comment on Castaway vs. Lookout, since I've only been to Castaway. I'm not into hanging out on beaches for more than a couple of hours at a time, so the island wouldn't play much of a factor in my decision in any case.

 

[Jme W]

In my experience, 3-Night cruises feel like they are over just when they get started. However, if you are concerned about motion-sickness I think it's a fair way to "sample" cruising.
In terms of whats different on the ships:

Shows:
Fantasy - Frozen Musical, Aladdin Musical, Disney's Believe (original show featuring Genie and several princesses)
Wish - Little Mermaid Musical, Aladdin Musical, Seas The Adventure (original show featuring Minnie, Goofy, and a mix of other characters)

Dining:
Fantasy - Royal Court (Princess themed Classy French), Animators Palate (Disney Animation dinner show), Enchanted Garden (Gardens of Versaille themed restaurant)
Wish - 1923 (Classy Steakhouse vibes), Worlds of Marvel (Marvel-themed dinner show), Arrendelle (Frozen Dinner Show)

And difference between Castaway/Lookout:

Castaway:
More mature, well established. Walk off ship and you're on the island. Trams take you to 2 family beaches or adults only beach. Snorkeling lagoon has sunken features for fun scenery if you're into that (such as 20k Submarine Ride Vehicle, character statues, etc.)

Lookout:
Newer, so less mature foliage. About a half mile walk along a pier off the ship to get to tram stop. More Bahamian culture theming, less Disney theming. Snorkeling is more natural with coral reefs. This island is more about natural beauty'

It really boils down to what you want out of a vacation

 

[VGCgroupie]

We booked a 3 night for our 1st cruise next year, not due to motion sickness but what if I feel anxious and NEED to get off the ship asap. Hopefully we wont regret it, or maybe it's better if we do and that means I loved it. Ha!

 

[WinterSolider]

3 night cruises are way too short in my opinion and you're much likely to feel frantic/overwhelmed/what-the-heck-is-going-on than you would on a longer cruise.

Embarkation and debarkation days are both chaos, which gives you two port days, and port days are also chaos.

After a 3 night cruise with 2 port days you're going to have basically zero time whatsoever to explore the ship. I would recommend at least 5 nights for a first sailing.

 

[loislane]

Hi all,

We have never been on a cruise and we want to try a 3 or 4 night cruise and combine it with Universal in February. The 3 night cruise is on the Fantasy and goes to Castaway Cay and Nassau and the 4 night cruise is on the Wish and goes to Lookout Cay and Nassau. We are both 50 no children going, which would be best? I do have motion sickness problems that is why the shorter cruise options. I guess the real debate is Castaway or Lookout and which one is better. Thanks for any input.

A 3-night cruise does not always have a pirate night which is one of the things that sets DCL apart. If you want to experience that, go for the 4 night. Outside of that, think about what you want to do during your cruise. If you just want to lounge in the sun on the pool deck and relax, it probably doesn't matter which ship. Same with the islands - if all you care about is lounging on the beach, either island works. You can also snorkel at both, but only Castaway Cay has the snorkel reef with "sunken treasures" to find. We went to Lookout last August and just got back from a cruise on the Treasure that stopped at Castaway. We love both, but I think I like Lookout better. We like to snorkel, but we also like to walk around and explore - and the view from Lighthouse Point is amazing. We also really liked the Junkanoo Rush - it was fun.
As far as the ships, we haven't sailed on the Fantasy yet (next year!), but we have been on the Wish. We've also been on the Dream (sister to the Fantasy) and the Treasure. We *LOVED* the Dream- especially the Satellite Falls pool. We also really enjoyed the Treasure. The Wish is probably my least favorite of the 4 ships we've been on so far. It's the same layout as the Treasure, but for us, the spaces didn't seem to flow into each other as well.

 

[Girl of the South]

The ships are really big and not claustrophobic, at least for me.

 

[Skippyboo]

A 3-night cruise does not always have a pirate night which is one of the things that sets DCL apart.

I did 3 night Wish Cruise - had pirate night but you got the regular menu for your rotational dining not the pirate menu. Still had the deck party, fireworks, free bandana. Not as many people dressed up in full pirate outfits that you see on longer cruises.

 

[jwalk03]

A 3-night cruise does not always have a pirate night which is one of the things that sets DCL apart. If you want to experience that, go for the 4 night. Outside of that, think about what you want to do during your cruise. If you just want to lounge in the sun on the pool deck and relax, it probably doesn't matter which ship. Same with the islands - if all you care about is lounging on the beach, either island works. You can also snorkel at both, but only Castaway Cay has the snorkel reef with "sunken treasures" to find. We went to Lookout last August and just got back from a cruise on the Treasure that stopped at Castaway. We love both, but I think I like Lookout better. We like to snorkel, but we also like to walk around and explore - and the view from Lighthouse Point is amazing. We also really liked the Junkanoo Rush - it was fun.
As far as the ships, we haven't sailed on the Fantasy yet (next year!), but we have been on the Wish. We've also been on the Dream (sister to the Fantasy) and the Treasure. We *LOVED* the Dream- especially the Satellite Falls pool. We also really enjoyed the Treasure. The Wish is probably my least favorite of the 4 ships we've been on so far. It's the same layout as the Treasure, but for us, the spaces didn't seem to flow into each other as well.

3-night Bahamas cruises have pirate night with the deck party- just not the pirate night menu in the MDR

 

[PrincessShmoo]

A 3-night cruise does not always have a pirate night

On the Caribbean cruises, at least, there is a pirate night. Even on 3 night cruises. What it doesn't have is the pirate menu in the dining rooms, but everything else (entertainment, fireworks) still happens.

 

[Peaseblossom36]

I would pick the 3 night. I love the adult area on the Fantasy. For sea sickness I would try to book midship on a lower deck, and talking with your doctor about sea sickness patches. I get very motion sick and these two things really help me.

 

[Poohbear03]

Thanks everyone! We are still trying to decide which would be best. I think it will be a 4 or 5 night cruise now, one goes to both private islands and the other goes to Nassau and Lookout. It's so hard to decide...lol..

 

[Disneyworldlocal]

Thanks everyone! We are still trying to decide which would be best. I think it will be a 4 or 5 night cruise now, one goes to both private islands and the other goes to Nassau and Lookout. It's so hard to decide...lol.

If you can swing the 4 or 5 night for sure go with that. Lots of great advice here. Definitely do the Dramamine a day or two in advance and stay low midship of you can !
Whatever ship you choose you won’t go wrong. They are all amazing