Anxiety-does size of ships matter?

[Geomom]

Sailing in the off season will definitely help. I prefer the adult areas on the Magic/Wonder. The adult only piano bar is very low key and relaxing.

 

[OKW Lover]

A very difficult question to answer. Obviously the parent knows their child best. I'd just point out that even the original Magic/Wonder ships are pretty big and could be overwhelming to a child. But I don't think the differences in size between the Dream/Fantasy series and the Wish are all that different. The Wish actually has more space per passenger than the Dream class ships.

 

[LeiaOfAlderaan]

I think your best bet for avoiding crowds is to sail during off seasons. I don’t think the size of the ship (between Magic and Dream) will make as much difference as how full the ship is.

I have anxiety in large crowds when I feel like I can’t easily get away. That has only happened to me on DCL when leaving the theater after a show. You’re in a sea of slow moving people and there is really no easy way to get out. So I would say wait a while after a show to leave the theater. All other places (like a dining room) you can just walk out of and find somewhere quiet to decompress.

 

[lanejudy]

Obviously the parent knows their child best. I'd just point out that even the original Magic/Wonder ships are pretty big and could be overwhelming to a child.

OP clarified the son is an adult - 30 yrs old.

Lots of good feedback from others with how to avoid crowds. The best option is to avoid the most common school vacation times. Ships sail "full" but not necessarily overstuffed with kids. And "full" in terms of staterooms booked can still be fewer passengers.

 

[Geomom]

A tip for the Dream/Fantasy --after day 1 we discovered it was better to watch shows from the balcony --less seats, less people, easier to leave the theater.... Magic/wonder don't have balcony seating.

 

[lynnfitz]

Thanks again everyone, appreciate it!!

 

[holula]

I have anxiety in crowds. For me the worst part is lining up for the MDR each night. I just wait off to the side and go in one the line has gone.

The atrium can get crowded for those ‘one time per cruise’ events but other than that the ships are relaxing for me.

Edit: oh, also the lifeboat drill, try and get a stateroom that has a muster station in the theater

 

[Cheburashka]

Hi, we were going to go on the Disney Wish this August (never cruised before). My son started getting some anxiety about the crowds and room in restaurants etc. We usually do DVC so we're use to room. I had 3 days to decide if we wanted to cancel-at that time I'd loose the money for the insurance, but was still eligible for a full refund. I didn't want to take a chance and not cancel, then closer to the date his anxiety kicked in and we would loose a lot of $. Our feeling was we can always rebook if we decide to go again, DCL wasn't going anywhere.
So my question is-do you think the smaller ships would be a better option? We could sail from Ft Lauderdale or Port Canaveral. I thought also instead of summer months we could try more off season to help maybe with crowds. I see the Magic is available, the Dream is also available, but from what I read it's another large ship.
Then I also had read that The Wish was set up a little different than their previous ships, so maybe a different ship altogether would be better?
Any thoughts or suggestions would be appreciated! Just wanted to look at other options, if he is still uncertain, we'll just hold off, but it's funny, he does want to go but the anxiety kicks in and then he gets nervous.
Thank you!!

I think avoiding both the Wish and school holidays is the best way to avoid crowding. If you can't avoid both, at least avoid the Wish. I personally don't see a big difference between the Magic class and Dream class ships in regards to crowding. Have sailed both types several times each. But the Wish hasn't been well-reviewed by DCL regulars in terms of its layout (which encourages crowding), and school holidays tend to feature sailings with more children, which will make things more crowded in the family areas of the ship and Castaway Cay.

 

[Girl of the South]

I don't have serious anxiety but prefer to stay away from crowds. You can go to the buffets early or late. And order room service if the MDRs are too much (choose late seating, not as crowded). If you want to see the action at the Atrium you can look from one of the higher balconies. I have not sailed on the Wish but have read a lot of reviews about it feeling cramped.

One of my favorite places is the Walking Deck - Deck 4 on the Fantasy/Dream. It's open to the sea, lots of deck chairs.

 

[Girl of the South]

And here are the lines to get your photo taken with people in costumes, but you can see there are two balconies above that have more breathing room. This is the Fantasy on December 7th, 2022. The "nightclubs" are pretty empty too. Skyline is a calm place to hang for a while.

 

[chuff88]

Ok thanks! He's an adult (30 years old). I think when we're at Disney, he said he know he can walk away if the crowds get to him. It's not a huge problem, but I didn't want to have us go and he'll feel uncomfortable. To be honest, even though we haven't ever cruised, I would think once he got on board he'd be ok-if I was going by my motherly gut reaction ,lol.
I know he still wants to try it, just thought if we "tweaked" the plans a bit, he might feel more comfortable going.

I'm in my mid-30's and get some anxiety in crowds, even though I love WDW I can sometimes start to get symptoms of anxiety when I'm in crowded indoor queues or preshow areas and I haven't had any issues on the Disney cruises I've been on. I've been on the Wonder (Alaska 2019, so pre-COVID), Fantasy (Western Caribbean in December 2021, post-COVID), and the Wonder again in April 2023 and didn't have issues on any of the ships. There are plenty of spaces that are less crowded that I could go to if I started feeling overwhelmed. Cabana's is the only place where I felt like the crowds get to to the point were I'd get anxious.

ETA: Because someone else mentioned I will say the outdoor muster drills do get a bit tight, and I've started to get anxious in those. Also, I do not have a diagnosed anxiety disorder, but I do have diagnosed ADHD with anxiety as one of the primary symptoms I personally experience.

 

[RedHead0186]

A tip for the Dream/Fantasy --after day 1 we discovered it was better to watch shows from the balcony --less seats, less people, easier to leave the theater.... Magic/wonder don't have balcony seating.

I was going to say the same thing. I've not experience the large crowd surge when leaving the balcony for shows on the Fantasy or Dream. Yes, there are people, but it's not a huge crowd that just kind of slowly moving along-I had room to breathe/navigate/etc.

 

[RedHead0186]

Edit: oh, also the lifeboat drill, try and get a stateroom that has a muster station in the theater

Or in one of the restaurants. Those can get a bit crowded too, but at least you can get a seat and you're not standing shoulder to shoulder and front to back. I did that at an outdoor muster station and would like to avoid that ever again.

Regardless of muster station, you can also get there early and let them CM know of your son's anxiety and they should be able to give you a place to stand/sit off to the side a bit.

 

[DizneyLizzy]

Ok thanks! He's an adult (30 years old). I think when we're at Disney, he said he know he can walk away if the crowds get to him. It's not a huge problem, but I didn't want to have us go and he'll feel uncomfortable. To be honest, even though we haven't ever cruised, I would think once he got on board he'd be ok-if I was going by my motherly gut reaction ,lol.
I know he still wants to try it, just thought if we "tweaked" the plans a bit, he might feel more comfortable going.

If he likes the feeling of being able to "walk away" in the parks, I would avoid the Wish. I can't speak to other ships, because the Wish was our first (and likely only) vacation on DCL, but I never felt like I could escape the crowds. Unlike the theme parks, EVERYTHING - especially the restaurants - were completely packed. I have mild crowd anxiety, and it was just too much for me. The WDW resorts and theme parks are fine because I never feel trapped like I did on the ship. If Tomorrowland gets crowded because the Space Mountain and People Mover queues are full, I just take myself to another area of the park. Can't do that on a ship.

 

[ILoveMyKellen]

My husband and I have 6 deployments between us before we retired from the military, neither of us likes crowds because he has PTSD and I have anxiety with panic attacks

I can’t talk about all of the ships but we have been on the Dream and the Fantasy many times and find them mostly relaxing and calm. There were plenty of places for us to get away to if we ever felt closed in or an attack coming on. We actually love being on the ship. DH loves to sit on the balcony or deck to read or just watch the ocean.

We do avoid places like the gift shops when crowded and go at earlier or later times. The worst place for us are the elevators so we take the stairs a lot. Waiting for the shows can get crowded too but you can find places to stand off to the side.

We have a cruise coming up at the end of next month and it will be our first since COVID and our first during the Summer, we usually go in October. We’ll see how it goes.

We go to WDW quite a bit but we rope drop and leave when the crowds start coming in.

 

[mlayton14]

Even though the magic class is smaller , I feel that is does not feel less crowded than dream class. The dream class is 55% more gross tonnage with approx 47% more passengers at full capacity . This plus the additional entertainment offerings is better in my book. I have sailed on both. Agree with everyone else that the bigger key is going off season and locating the less crowded areas (which aren’t that hard to identify) if crowds are a big factor. I will say that overall however is that the magic class has felt quieter with fewer people overall in the venues , so that may be a factor for you. Either class is a great experience

 

[auntlynne]

To start - pick a Port Arrival Time (PAT) that is not the first hour or so. (You select this ~30 days pre-cruise). As a first-time cruiser, it might not be an option. Let the rush of people get onboard. This should also alleviate a long wait in the Terminal lobby.

You are never more than 5 minutes from your room! And the Deck 4 Promenade is a quick scoot out a door. Cove Cafe on the pool deck would be an easy recovery area; you don’t have to make a purchase, just go in and have a seat (it‘s a coffee bar - so don’t even expect a server to come over).

Opt for a sit-down restaurant for breakfast and lunch instead of Cabanas Buffet.

Don‘t line up early for dinner - your table us reserved - come a few minutes after stated time and miss the crowded queue.

Avoid a 3-night weekend cruise. Ideally, one that focuses on Castaway Cay will get you some place new - and no vendors, unlike many Caribbean port stops.

Keys (piano lounge) and O’Gill’s Pub are typically quiet.

We try to cruise during off-season; late April/early May, early November or early December. January is also less crowded but is sometimes cooler than I like for the beach.

Any of the original 4 ships should be okay - everything said above could apply to them.

If he can handle WDW, I think this would be less stressful. The main challenge seems like dinner in the Main Dining rooms. They can seem like high school lunchrooms as far as noise and number of people. They attempted to section off the restaurants into smaller areas on the Dream and Fantasy, so they seem less like one giant box.

And nighttime movies on the Funnelvision (Jumbotron) in the pool deck are a great situation. Never a crowd - and you are outside, often nibbling in pizza, fries, ice cream. Chairs are not bolted down, so you could move away a little.

 

[DCLMP]

Navigating the Wish even if you don't have anxiety issues is stressful. I'd choose another ship.

 

[scrappinginontario]

We sailed on the Fantasy in Feb and I’m always surprised at how many places we can go and find space to ourselves.

There are times when it’s more crowded (around main dining times) in the central areas but a careful plan of arrival and departure path would help.

I would recommend late dining too. We like it much better but also tends to be less busy.

Hope you go and enjoy an amazing cruise!

 

[lynnfitz]

Thanks everyone!! all such great advice, really appreciate it. I think going forward we would definitely do off season, and not the Wish. Seems like those are the 2 big factors. Even though we haven't cruised, from doing research, I think we've learned the areas and times to avoid certain areas of the ship. Thanks again!!!