Hi everyone,
I recently got off the 9 night Italy/Greece June 27 - July 6 voyage on the Disney Magic and am posting my thoughts here, especially from the perspective of someone who has never sailed DCL before. Prior to my voyage, I spent lots of time on the DIS and CruiseCritic boards reading about DCL and how it compares with other lines. I hope this helps anyone who's on the fence of whether Disney is worth trying, especially given their fares are easily 2-3x higher than other cruise lines.
About me and my traveling 
Childless couple in mid-30s/40s. Previously sailed on
Royal Caribbean (Allure of the Seas; 7 night Caribbean in 2017) and Princess (Regal Princess; 9 night N. Europe in 2018).
Ports of call:
Rome (Civitavecchia), Katakolon (Olympia), Heraklion, Athens, Santorini, Mykonos, Naples
Overall I had a great time, and I would happily sail with Disney again. Whether it's worth the premium is of course subjective. The atmosphere onboard DCL is nice— I loved the nautical, 1930s ocean liner feel. I liked the light Disney touches and theming throughout. There was none of the aggressive upselling that we experienced on Royal Caribbean. The food on DCL was slightly better (with the exception of Cabanas). Entertainment was, not surprisingly, excellent. That said, I’m not sure if it was due to Covid, but I was expecting more of a “Disney Difference” in the service, but instead it felt very similar to other cruise lines, with the exception of a couple really outstanding cast members. I also felt like there were more maintenance and attention to detail issues than I would have expected from Disney, but this might have been due to the newness of the crew onboard.
Embarkation in Rome
This was a disaster and a big black eye for Disney. It took 2.5 hours from start to finish. When we arrived at 1:30 there was a huge line that wrapped around the terminal. It was so backed up that Port Arrival Times weren’t being enforced.
The biggest problem was that the Rome port personnel and the Prenetics COVID testing people were poorly trained. The Prenetics people who ran the Covid testing were bored and clearly didn’t like their jobs and didn’t tell us anything about what to expect next (i.e., you had to go upstairs and wait until you get an email with your test results). I was expecting to get an email with my results in 20 mins, instead we had to wait in the terminal over an hour with total chaos, broken down WiFi, no power outlets, no water, no Disney personnel anywhere to tell us what was going on, and many confused passengers milling about. The WiFi in the terminal couldn’t handle 2,000 people checking their email simultaneously for their test results. I was lucky that occasionally I could get some 3G cell signal if I held up my phone, but it didn’t work most of the time and drained my battery. The port had set up an alternative WiFi network and had hastily scribbled the password on a piece of paper and taped it to the wall without any explanation that it was the WiFi password. Plus, this alternative WiFi network *ALSO* didn’t work. It took 70 minutes for us to get our test results; there were others in our cruise Facebook group who waited two hours only to find that Prenetics lost their test results. Because embarkation took so long, by the time we got onboard Cabanas was closed already.
I understand that the people who work at the port terminal are not Disney employees, even though they were wearing Disney neckties and scarves. However, I was surprised there were no DCL managers or anyone trying to take charge of the situation, or at the very least making announcements telling everyone that test results were delayed, or at the very least providing service recovery by providing water. Embarkation was not up to Disney standards and this was not a good first impression. Thankfully, things improved once we got onboard!
Ship impressions
Despite the disastrous embarkation, first impressions stepping onboard were great. I liked how they announce your family name when you step into the atrium. The Disney Magic is beautiful and I love the nostalgic ocean liner feel of the ship, as opposed to the neon / mall like glitziness of a RCCL ship. The Magic is showing its age in some spots if you look carefully enough (rust spots, flaking paint, etc.), but for the most part the ship feels well maintained. The A/C was broken in the forward elevator lobby on decks 6 and 7 and remained broken for the first half of the voyage until I reported it to Guest Services, after which it was promptly fixed. I’m surprised no other crew reported it as it was noticeably hot in the lobby.
Stateroom (Category 9A oceanview on Deck 6, starboard)
Overall the stateroom was in very good condition. It’s showing some wear and tear in some areas. The room is noticeably larger than the typical stateroom on Royal Caribbean or Princess. The split bathrooms are a godsend. The bed was extremely comfortable and the Frette linens were a nice touch. I liked the privacy curtain dividing the couch area from the bed, which is not something you’ll find on other cruise lines. The A/C worked ok, but I felt like the room was a bit on the warm side. Also, the A/C dripped water onto the carpet sometimes.
The room was quiet, with no noisy neighbors on either side of us (we had noisy neighbors from hell on our last Princess cruise). Note that you absolutely can hear the thrusters when docking each morning in port and it will wake you up. If you’re a deep sleeper it might not bother you, but in the future I would probably pick a verandah stateroom midship because we’re sensitive to noise.
Our stateroom host was exceptional and had been with DCL for 10 years. His towel animals were incredible ! He was from Indonesia and was very personable and efficient. I noticed that the crew on DCL tend to a bit friendlier and more willing to chat than the crew on other lines.
I read that Princess has recently been cutting back by getting rid of nightly turndown service and chocolates on the pillow. I'm glad DCL is still keeping up the tradition.
Food
I read lots of threads and reviews comparing DCL with other cruise line food, and so I was eager to judge for myself. Overall I’d say in the main dining rooms, DCL food can be hit or miss but it’s generally a step up from RCCL and Princess. I remember on Royal, we had spongy watery prime rib, whereas the prime rib and steaks on Disney were higher quality. Royal Caribbean food tends to be on the simpler side whereas DCL is aiming to be a bit fancier; whereas on Princess, there was more variety of options than DCL, however, the food just wasn’t executed very well on Princess.
I had a few entrees on Disney that were surprisingly good and even rivaled food in a restaurant on land (for example, the Crispy Roasted Duck or Lamb Shank in Lumiere’s, and the sirloin steak on the Let the Magic Begin menu in Animator’s Palate was shockingly good). Desserts however tended to be disappointing. I was surprised because Disney has 50 years of experience creating desserts in their parks.
That said, the buffet food in Cabanas was just not that great. There just wasn’t much variety from day-to-day, and the meats were often overcooked. It isn’t fair though to compare it to the buffets on Allure of the Seas and Regal Princess, which are much larger and newer. I think Cabanas could use a reimagining in the near future, as it seems cramped and dated compared to the competition. Also, Cabanas closed way too early at 2PM. We’d often rush back from our excursions and would miss out on lunch. Buffets on other cruise lines are often open most of the day, sometimes until midnight. The crab claws in Cabanas were a nice touch though.
We didn’t try Palo; but we hope to next time.
Quick service options were excellent. I liked how clean and efficient Duck-In Diner was. You place your order and you get your food almost immediately. On Regal Princess, it was an agonizingly slow wait to get a burger, which ended up being such a hassle that I didn’t bother going there anymore. And on Allure of the Seas, their quick service place was a mess with fries and ketchup and food all over the floor and they were always running out of food.
Dining Rooms and Dining Service
Dining Rooms - There’s simply no comparison here to other other cruise lines. Disney really knows how to make your dinner special. Animator’s Palate (both shows) was my favorite. I got goosebumps from the “Drawn to the Magic” show in Animator’s with the stirring music and the walls changing color and Sorcerer Mickey's grand entrance. I could watch that show over and over again. Rapunzel’s was fun, though you should watch the movie to fully appreciate it. And Lumiere’s still looks good, if a bit dated.
Service— There was absolutely nothing wrong with our servers, but they didn’t feel particularly “Disney”. They felt similar to the the servers we had on Royal or Princess. Our server was brisk and efficient and had been with DCL for 5 years. Our assistant server was on his first contract with DCL and had previously been with Holland America. There were some moments where service was slow, but it might have been due to backups in the kitchen. Also, our serving team had 4 tables (14 heads), which might have slowed them down. That said, they got our food and drink orders 100% correct each time and there were no service mistakes or issues.
Entertainment
This is again where Disney shines, as expected. The variety acts (juggler and ventriloquist, and Hector is Magic) were generally a step up from variety acts on Royal / Princess. In terms of Broadway style shows, Tangled and Twice Charmed were excellent. Disney Dreams was a bit hokey, but who doesn’t love a good medley of Disney songs? I wasn’t a fan of Once Upon a Song.
Weirdly enough, there was no Welcome Aboard show the first night. Is this normal for DCL? The theater was also dark one of the other nights.
Here is a schedule of the shows I took on embarkation:
View attachment 683661
I was excited to find out Tisa was onboard our cruise, and she didn’t disappoint! We attended Match Your Mate and she had the entire room laughing in tears. Tisa is a gem.
Our cruise director was Peter, who struck the perfect balance between getting passengers excited for the daily activities without being obnoxious.
Pirate Night was fun though there were no fireworks, supposedly to the Greek restrictions. There was a Pirate Night buffet at Cabanas; however, there were no special fruit carvings like I’d seen online (did DCL lose those crew members due to COVID?) Also, there were no turkey legs, instead they were chicken drumsticks.
Ports of Call and Port Adventures
It was very, very crowded and hot in Italy/Greece, but we had an awesome time. We took two Port Adventures— Ancient Olympia in Katakolon (Adult Only Departure), and Knossos and the Archaeological Museum in Heraklion (Adult Only Departure), and I thought the Port Adventures were organized well. The quality of the local tour guides is always a bit hit or miss, but overall we enjoyed the convenience and comfort of the Port Adventures. We explored our own in the other ports.
Passengers
There were 1,828 passengers aboard the Magic (according to the iPad I snuck a peek at on the gangway). The ship did not feel crowded, especially in contrast to our time on Allure of the Seas where you felt like you were just a number and it was a constant fight to get seats in the theater, reservations were required for any activities on Allure, and pools and hot tubs were jam packed. The Quiet Cove adult area on the Magic would get busy but never overflowing with people, and it wasn’t hard to find a time when the whirlpools and pools were empty. It also didn’t feel like there were a ton of kids onboard, and the kids onboard seemed well behaved, with none of packs of kids/teenagers running up and down the halls like we had on Royal Caribbean.
The atmosphere onboard DCL feels more relaxed, and the passengers are in a good mood and are more polite to each other. This was one of my favorite parts of DCL— there is a culture of everyone trying to have a magical time. On Allure of the Seas, I recall running into crew who were in a bad mood and also passengers yelling at each other for saving seats in the theater, etc. Also worth mentioning, there were definitely fewer smokers on DCL.
Crew, Service, and Upkeep
Everyone onboard was helpful and we didn’t have any issues with the service; however, the average crew member onboard the Magic didn’t feel exceptionally different from a crew member you’d find on Royal or Princess. Our assistant server did mention that half of the crew on the ship were on their first contract with Disney. I’m not sure if that’s an exaggeration, but it’s possible a lot of them are still “earning their ears” and learning the Disney way of doing things. He also mentioned that DCL had cut their vacations from 8 weeks down to 7, so it seems like there are some staffing issues with Covid still rampaging through the ships and with experienced crew being poached for the Wish.
There were some little “attention to detail” issues I noticed during the cruise that were no biggie. However, Disney holds itself to higher standards, so I’ll mention them. For example, the soda machines were sometimes broken and ran out of ice often. In the gym, the pitcher of cold water and the paper cups would run out with no one refilling it. For some reason, there was a long line in the hot sun to get on the tenders back to the ship in Santorini and no cold towels or water were offered, whereas the nearby Norwegian Jade had no line and was offering cold towels to their passengers.
That said, the ship was spotlessly clean. And it was impressive to watch the crew in port constantly touching up the Magic’s beautiful paint and cleaning the windows, whereas the ships from competitor lines looked like rust buckets by comparison.
Environment
I like how DCL is the highest ranked cruise line on the Friends of Earth report card, especially for voluntarily using low sulfur fuel to reduce air pollution even when they’re not required to by law. I noticed this in ports. In Santorini we were anchored next to the Norwegian Jade, which was belching out acrid clouds of dirty smoke from its smokestack all day, whereas the Magic’s smokestack was clean as a whistle.
Not a good look for the Jade:
View attachment 683669
Overall Thoughts on DCL vs. Royal Caribbean and Princess:
Overall I would give DCL a 4.25 out of 5, and I would absolutely prefer to sail with DCL over other cruise lines. Royal Caribbean has many more activities on their ships, but DCL offers a more relaxed and classy vibe that some families might prefer over the more frenetic atmosphere on Royal. Also, I like how there is basically no upselling on DCL. On Royal (and to a lesser extent on Princess), you’re constantly dodging poor crew members pitching drinks packages, specialty restaurant offers, and so forth. I’ll never forget that on Allure of the Seas, during the ice skating show they turned the rink into a Monopoly board and had their ice skaters land on “Giovanni’s Table” as a way of pitching their specialty restaurants
. Royal’s ships are big and innovative with lots of activities, and they do lots of things well, but I felt like I was living in a commercial onboard their ships. On DCL, there is blissfully none of that other than photographers offering to take your picture.
On the other hand, DCL is not perfect, especially given the prices they charge, and I’ve outlined a couple things here where I think they could do better. I’m not sure if the crew we had was newer than normal due to Covid or some of them being moved over to the Wish. Also, another thing to consider is that DCL ships are very quiet after 10PM (a plus for me), but it might not be the right fit for others looking for more activities onboard.
DCL strengths:
General atmosphere and ambiance; entertainment, stateroom quality, food was slightly better than RCCL/Princess (subjective opinion), Peter the cruise director and the activities hosts (Tisa!) were great. Basically no upselling onboard.
DCL weaknesses:
Most food options close after 6PM; buffet closes early and could use more variety; service was good but Disney markets itself as offering a “magical” voyage and I felt like it didn’t always meet that mark. WiFi seemed slower / more unreliable than other cruise lines. Embarkation could have used better communication and organization.
I hope to sail DCL again and perhaps try the Disney Dream when it takes over the European itineraries from the Magic starting next summer.
Thanks for reading! If you have any questions, please feel free to comment below and I’ll try to answer.
