Concierge on Wonder (v. Dream & Wish)

[ngl]

We (family of 4) have taken 4 cruises on Dream and just recently completed our first Wish voyage, all in Concierge. We are considering doing a Wonder cruise in early 2024 out of CA (we live in FL so would love to see different ports on a cruise). We know Concierge is different on this class but would love some more details.

Hoping someone can help with initial thoughts and then address these questions:
1. Concierge cabins are not on a specific floor but are throughout the ship?
2. Concierge lounge is on a separate deck?
3. Does Concierge deck have a hot tub?
4. Wish started offering hot breakfast and lunch menus in Concierge. Assume other ships not equipped for this yet?
5. Are cocktails included in the lounge from 5-10pm like other ships?
6. Wish now allows Concierge into theater early as well. Other ships?

I know some seem to love the old set up v new set up but would really love to know more pros/cons of Wonder v. Dream v. Wish for those that have been on all especially if in Concierge. Thank you in advance!!

Much appreciated!!

 

[Lillebelle]

Can share more detailed thoughts later but quick answers (sorry for brevity, running to a meeting):

1) Pretty sure the concierge cabins are still together on the same floors but you could check deck plans to confirm
2) Lounge is on a separate deck from cabins
3) No hot tub
4) No galley so no hot food
5) Yes cocktails 5-10; they were also doing a drink cart that went around to the rooms, not sure if this is still happening
6) Yes early theater access

 

[Marc D]

1. Concierge staterooms are spread around deck 8, in between regular staterooms. From the hallway, you can only spot them by looking for doorbells.
2. On Magic and Wonder, the lounge was added long after the ships sailed. Therefore, there is no dedicated Concierge zone like on Wish/Fantasy/Dream. On Wonder, they took the second floor of the Cove Cafe to create the lounge on deck 10.
3. Nope, but there is both a top deck and a shaded area.
5. Yes, all the ships offer happy hour.

Can’t answer the other questions since we have not sailed since the restart.

 

[Lillebelle]

OK, continuing my thoughts -- we just finished sailing on the Wish, and obviously they invested a lot into the Wish lounge so it is superior to all the other ships. Having dedicated galley space allows them to offer the hot food options, which unfortunately none of the other ships have. The Wish lounge also has a dedicated bar space where you can sit down, vs the other ships the bartenders sort of awkwardly lurk at little podiums, and then you take your drink either elsewhere in the lounge or back to your room.

That said, I think the lounge space on the Wonder is better than that on the Fantasy (I assume Dream and Fantasy are the same, I've only sailed the Fantasy of the two). The Fantasy one was all indoors which made it feel very uninviting to me, unless you went to the upper deck, and even that I think was all enclosed so no sea views. The Wonder lounge has great views from the upper sundeck, and the inside lounge still has tons of windows in the seating area so a nice space to hang out. Across the 14 days I've spent on the Fantasy and the Wish I never made it up to use the concierge hot tub once so...for our family, that doesn't end up being a big loss, but I'm sure that varies based on your group and your tendencies (we have small children which makes going to just hang out in a hot tub more challenging).

The biggest point in favor of the Wonder is anecdotally, I feel like I've received more personalized service on the small ships. They have 5 hosts on the Wish now which is great because you need that many to handle so many more concierge cabins, but it means that the likelihood of you getting the same host often is low, and just in general it was a lot of people working the lounge to try to get to know and vice versa.

Our next cruise is actually the Wonder out of San Diego, and even though I'll miss some of the extra amenities from the Wish lounge, I'm looking forward to getting back to a smaller, more relaxed concierge experience.

Happy to answer any other questions if there's anything I didn't cover!

 

[ngl]

OK, continuing my thoughts -- we just finished sailing on the Wish, and obviously they invested a lot into the Wish lounge so it is superior to all the other ships. Having dedicated galley space allows them to offer the hot food options, which unfortunately none of the other ships have. The Wish lounge also has a dedicated bar space where you can sit down, vs the other ships the bartenders sort of awkwardly lurk at little podiums, and then you take your drink either elsewhere in the lounge or back to your room.

That said, I think the lounge space on the Wonder is better than that on the Fantasy (I assume Dream and Fantasy are the same, I've only sailed the Fantasy of the two). The Fantasy one was all indoors which made it feel very uninviting to me, unless you went to the upper deck, and even that I think was all enclosed so no sea views. The Wonder lounge has great views from the upper sundeck, and the inside lounge still has tons of windows in the seating area so a nice space to hang out. Across the 14 days I've spent on the Fantasy and the Wish I never made it up to use the concierge hot tub once so...for our family, that doesn't end up being a big loss, but I'm sure that varies based on your group and your tendencies (we have small children which makes going to just hang out in a hot tub more challenging).

The biggest point in favor of the Wonder is anecdotally, I feel like I've received more personalized service on the small ships. They have 5 hosts on the Wish now which is great because you need that many to handle so many more concierge cabins, but it means that the likelihood of you getting the same host often is low, and just in general it was a lot of people working the lounge to try to get to know and vice versa.

Our next cruise is actually the Wonder out of San Diego, and even though I'll miss some of the extra amenities from the Wish lounge, I'm looking forward to getting back to a smaller, more relaxed concierge experience.

Happy to answer any other questions if there's anything I didn't cover!

Thanks so much for this detail!! We only have done the Dream (4x) and just did the Wish. We go back and forth re the smaller ship and personalized service w the additional amenities in the lounge on the Wish! I totally understand what you mean re concierge lounge on Dream (like Fantasy) being interior. That was a miss they clearly corrected for Wish, imo. We have tweens and teens so they do like the hot tub but guess could do without. Would love to know about your Wonder experience out of San Diego. That is what we would do (Catalina & Ensenada). Any feedback is appreciated!

 

[nick262]

Just off the Wonder Concierge this past weekend so here goes....

1. Concierge cabins are not on a specific floor but are throughout the ship? They are all on deck 8 but not together. If you have not booked yet, get a sideways one bedroom if you can (midship). They are awesome
2. Concierge lounge is on a separate deck? Yes deck 10 under Vibe
3. Does Concierge deck have a hot tub? No
4. Wish started offering hot breakfast and lunch menus in Concierge. Assume other ships not equipped for this yet? No but the snackers were awesome!
5. Are cocktails included in the lounge from 5-10pm like other ships? Yes!!!
6. Wish now allows Concierge into theater early as well. Other ships? Yes.

The drink cart that someone mentioned is not going around at this time as it is being used for Mulled Wine in The French Quarter for the Merrytime cruises. Should go back to normal after they are done.

Let me know if you have any other questions.

 

[ngl]

Just off the Wonder Concierge this past weekend so here goes....

1. Concierge cabins are not on a specific floor but are throughout the ship? They are all on deck 8 but not together. If you have not booked yet, get a sideways one bedroom if you can (midship). They are awesome
2. Concierge lounge is on a separate deck? Yes deck 10 under Vibe
3. Does Concierge deck have a hot tub? No
4. Wish started offering hot breakfast and lunch menus in Concierge. Assume other ships not equipped for this yet? No but the snackers were awesome!
5. Are cocktails included in the lounge from 5-10pm like other ships? Yes!!!
6. Wish now allows Concierge into theater early as well. Other ships? Yes.

The drink cart that someone mentioned is not going around at this time as it is being used for Mulled Wine in The French Quarter for the Merrytime cruises. Should go back to normal after they are done.

Let me know if you have any other questions.

Thanks so much!! Are the "sideways" one bedrooms all the midship ones? Have not heard that before and am interested! What makes it better? Thank you!

 

[tink1970]

Thanks so much!! Are the "sideways" one bedrooms all the midship ones? Have not heard that before and am interested! What makes it better? Thank you!

The 4 sideways suites (8032/4 and 8532/4) have the Murphy bed in the living room v. bedroom, a longer verandah and just seem more spacious overall.

 

[Lillebelle]

Thanks so much for this detail!! We only have done the Dream (4x) and just did the Wish. We go back and forth re the smaller ship and personalized service w the additional amenities in the lounge on the Wish! I totally understand what you mean re concierge lounge on Dream (like Fantasy) being interior. That was a miss they clearly corrected for Wish, imo. We have tweens and teens so they do like the hot tub but guess could do without. Would love to know about your Wonder experience out of San Diego. That is what we would do (Catalina & Ensenada). Any feedback is appreciated!

We've actually already done the Wonder out of San Diego for a short cruise as well - ours didn't do Catalina (that's on my list of future cruise wishes!) but it did do Ensenada. We didn't get off the ship because we wanted to make the most of being on board (and honestly it didn't look all that enticing but maybe I'm missing something and Ensenada is great). We had a great time - I love the Wonder and think it's a great ship.

But, if you're used to the Dream, and you're flying all the way from Florida, I'm honestly a bit hesitant to recommend a short Wonder Baja cruise for your family unless you're combining it with something else to make the flight worth your while. I guess it just depends on what you're looking for. If your family is open-minded to the fact that the ship will be smaller and will have fewer bells and whistles (no mini golf/simulators, no extra purchase ice cream shop, no AquaDuck-type slide) you could still have a great vacation. But you'd definitely have to go in looking to enjoy it as a different experience. Are your teens/tweens the sort that will enjoy the more intimate environment the smaller ships afford, or will they focus on everything it lacks compared to the Dream?

 

[ngl]

We've actually already done the Wonder out of San Diego for a short cruise as well - ours didn't do Catalina (that's on my list of future cruise wishes!) but it did do Ensenada. We didn't get off the ship because we wanted to make the most of being on board (and honestly it didn't look all that enticing but maybe I'm missing something and Ensenada is great). We had a great time - I love the Wonder and think it's a great ship.

But, if you're used to the Dream, and you're flying all the way from Florida, I'm honestly a bit hesitant to recommend a short Wonder Baja cruise for your family unless you're combining it with something else to make the flight worth your while. I guess it just depends on what you're looking for. If your family is open-minded to the fact that the ship will be smaller and will have fewer bells and whistles (no mini golf/simulators, no extra purchase ice cream shop, no AquaDuck-type slide) you could still have a great vacation. But you'd definitely have to go in looking to enjoy it as a different experience. Are your teens/tweens the sort that will enjoy the more intimate environment the smaller ships afford, or will they focus on everything it lacks compared to the Dream?

Thanks and this is exactly what we have been debating! Appreciate the information. They would be 15 and 13 at the time we go. When they were younger on the Dream the Aqua Duck was something they loved. This last cruise on the Wish they only did Aqua Mouse 2x. Were running around the ship for the Adventure thing (can't recall the name!) Do they have anything like that on the Wonder? Also, I know weather won't be as great in April in that area so also curious about the "to do" factor. We are not high on Mexico these days (for obvious reasons) but have always wanted to see Catalina Island. We would combine it with a DL trip (we live 1 hr from WDW but kids prefer DL of course!!) We also have not taken them to San Diego before so would spend a day or two there after.

Having said that, I will say while I really enjoyed the Dream I did like the enhancements to the Wish particularly in Concierge so I am debating the Wonder. It is so hard because everyone has different things that make their vacation better. But at the end of the day it's family time together because soon enough they won't want us around Thanks and please let me know if you have any other thoughts. Much appreciated!

 

[Lillebelle]

To be fair to your kids, I think the AquaDuck is much better than the AquaMouse, even if it's nice that you don't have to climb up a giant staircase to take it. Very strange choices were made for the AquaMouse's design....

The Wonder doesn't have anything like the Midship Detective Agency/Uncharted Adventures AFAIK, but we don't tend to do those types of activities.

It sounds like, as an entire package, you have a very nice trip envisioned. If you did a few days at Disneyland and some other activities in San Diego, maybe by the time you got to the Wonder everyone would be happy for a chill couple days. And I do think Catalina could be cool.

I guess my last question would be, would this trip mean that a future cruise on the Wish would be out of the question for the next couple years? Like, are you actually looking at one vs the other, or is it more of a matter of will knowing you like the Wish so much make the Wonder unenjoyable?

 

[ngl]

To be fair to your kids, I think the AquaDuck is much better than the AquaMouse, even if it's nice that you don't have to climb up a giant staircase to take it. Very strange choices were made for the AquaMouse's design....

The Wonder doesn't have anything like the Midship Detective Agency/Uncharted Adventures AFAIK, but we don't tend to do those types of activities.

It sounds like, as an entire package, you have a very nice trip envisioned. If you did a few days at Disneyland and some other activities in San Diego, maybe by the time you got to the Wonder everyone would be happy for a chill couple days. And I do think Catalina could be cool.

I guess my last question would be, would this trip mean that a future cruise on the Wish would be out of the question for the next couple years? Like, are you actually looking at one vs the other, or is it more of a matter of will knowing you like the Wish so much make the Wonder unenjoyable?

Agree re Aqua Duck v Mouse - was not as exciting actually! And thanks re names of Midship Detective and Unchartered Adventures. They do really like that so if that's not there either I'm starting to wonder more. (no pun intended!)

Our main focus of Wonder is the itinerary change. We have done the same itinerary 5 times now on Dream/Wish and while we enjoy CC we never get off on Nassau and would like something new. Other thought is wait until we see what the Treasure itinerary is (supposedly 2024 and thus the reason why the last release of dates wasn't a full one) with maybe a stop on the new private island. May be leaning towards this with your insight actually so I appreciate that!

 

[Lillebelle]

If the main thing you're looking for is an itinerary change, there are a lot of other things DCL offers that I'd consider over the Baja cruises. I take them because we're in CA and it's the closest option but from FL you have a lot more choices. Waiting for the Treasure is a fair option - just keep in mind that the concierge cabins tend to be more competitive to get, so if that's what you have your heart set on, you might be looking at a later Treasure offering. Good luck with whatever you decide!

 

[ngl]

If the main thing you're looking for is an itinerary change, there are a lot of other things DCL offers that I'd consider over the Baja cruises. I take them because we're in CA and it's the closest option but from FL you have a lot more choices. Waiting for the Treasure is a fair option - just keep in mind that the concierge cabins tend to be more competitive to get, so if that's what you have your heart set on, you might be looking at a later Treasure offering. Good luck with whatever you decide!

Thanks so much for the information! We have only cruised concierge on Disney on all of our sailings as we typically book as soon as dates are released (thus the reason asking about 2024 now since our date would be this Wed to book!) Having said that, for shorter cruises out of Port Canaveral the itinerary does not vary. Now that Dream is in Miami there are some that do 2 CC stops but generally the 4 night on Dream or Wish go to CC and Nassau with a day at sea and the 3 night just removes the day at sea. While there are other itineraries that are 7 night, we are not interested in those as we have been to many of the places were they stop too (and not interested in a 7 night). Coupled with the fact that the one off cruises are always during school and not during any breaks it seems these are the only ones we can make work. You have given me a lot of food for thought for the Wonder. Thank you!!

 

[jadedmoon47]

Thanks so much for the information! We have only cruised concierge on Disney on all of our sailings as we typically book as soon as dates are released (thus the reason asking about 2024 now since our date would be this Wed to book!) Having said that, for shorter cruises out of Port Canaveral the itinerary does not vary. Now that Dream is in Miami there are some that do 2 CC stops but generally the 4 night on Dream or Wish go to CC and Nassau with a day at sea and the 3 night just removes the day at sea. While there are other itineraries that are 7 night, we are not interested in those as we have been to many of the places were they stop too (and not interested in a 7 night). Coupled with the fact that the one off cruises are always during school and not during any breaks it seems these are the only ones we can make work. You have given me a lot of food for thought for the Wonder. Thank you!!

Not to hijack your thread, but we're booking our first disney cruise and I'm debating concierge on the dream v. the wish and it seems like you have experience! Which one did you prefer? Our only child would be five so we want to make sure to pick the ship he'd have the most fun while also making sure that our first trip is a success. Any tips appreciated!

 

[Lillebelle]

Not to hijack your thread, but we're booking our first disney cruise and I'm debating concierge on the dream v. the wish and it seems like you have experience! Which one did you prefer? Our only child would be five so we want to make sure to pick the ship he'd have the most fun while also making sure that our first trip is a success. Any tips appreciated!

FWIW our five year old LOVED the kids clubs on the Wish. Like, I'd try to pick him up, and he didn't want to leave. And the concierge lounge is a big improvement over the Dream class because it has hot food made to order and a lot of natural light.

 

[ngl]

Not to hijack your thread, but we're booking our first disney cruise and I'm debating concierge on the dream v. the wish and it seems like you have experience! Which one did you prefer? Our only child would be five so we want to make sure to pick the ship he'd have the most fun while also making sure that our first trip is a success. Any tips appreciated!

No worries! I love these boards to get as much information as I can so happy to share!

We have been on the Dream 4x and Wish only once. For each cruise we went Thanksgiving week (Wish just a few weeks ago) and the first one we went on my children were 5 and 3. We travel with family and friends and we were all debating this topic! Pros and cons for each. As far as the Concierge Lounge goes, my vote is for Wish. SO much bigger and brighter with windows and a huge sun deck. Never was crowded. 2 hot tubs and a wading pool. Dream has a nice sun deck but more in the shade and one hot tub (that was added after the fact). Dream lounge is in the middle of the ship so no views and small in comparison. Since the Wish lounge is much bigger they offer a hot breakfast and lunch menu, in addition to all the cold offerings definitely more to choose from. I (Many in our group preferred the intimate setting of Dream lounge. About half the concierge cabins on Dream so many were saying there was more personalized service. I can see that to an extent but it did not bother me much).

The concierge cabins were highly similar on both ships. Of course, Wish is newer so they did tweak some things -one main tv in cabin for family oceanview v. 2. but that made the dresser area smaller so felt like more space in the cabin. The small tv was nice for the kids to watch from their bunk/bed with the curtain pulled. Overall, I would say the cabins are equal.

My kids were too old for kids club on Wish so don't have a real comparison but they did love the club on the Dream. We did tour the Wish one and it looked bigger and pretty cool as well! As we were mentioning, I think the AquaDuck slide on Dream was better than AquaMouse on Wish. I think for younger kids, unless they are really into Frozen or Marvel, the Animator's Palate restaurant is more interesting. For the slide, I prefer Dream. I like the new restaurants on Wish but for younger kids Dream may be better.

Not sure if that answers your questions so please let me know if you have others. You can't go wrong with either in my opinion!