Eastern Caribbean on the Fantasy during Easter Break?

[dancebum]

I booked the family veranda with extended balcony for Easter Break. We will be celebrating my 40th and I have two kids that will be 10 and 4 at the time of travel. I'm nervous it will be really crowded. It's my first time on the Fantasy, we've done the Wonder three times and once during Easter Break. It wasn't too bad, but I've heard that there are more people with the same amount of amenities on the bigger boats which makes it feel more crowded. I've read previous threads about Castaway Cay being stressful when crowded as well. How bad is it? I'm reconsidering my plans.

 

[dad of 3 addicted to DCL]

We're doing a Western this year during spring break (probably the week before or after yours). In our experience (see below for itemized receipt) the ships don't feel very crowded except for directly after a show, deck event (like fireworks), and the horrific muster. I'm sure there a few others, but on the whole, the ships don't truly feel very crowded. DW agrees, and she's agoraphobic.

 

[Stitch'sCousin]

We have sailed on the Fantasy four times during the summer when it is full of kids and never noticed it feeling overly crowded. The same thing goes for Castaway Cay. Provided you aren’t set on having a spot at the start of the beach, and are willing to go further down the beach, you won’t have a problem finding chairs/loungers and umbrellas. Enjoy your cruise!

 

[Ralph&Pam]

We did a spring break Eastern and two early-November (so well before Thanksgiving week) Westerns on the Fantasy. I didn’t see much difference in how crowded things were. Similar numbers all around.

 

[Keyser]

I booked the family veranda with extended balcony for Easter Break. We will be celebrating my 40th and I have two kids that will be 10 and 4 at the time of travel. I'm nervous it will be really crowded. It's my first time on the Fantasy, we've done the Wonder three times and once during Easter Break. It wasn't too bad, but I've heard that there are more people with the same amount of amenities on the bigger boats which makes it feel more crowded. I've read previous threads about Castaway Cay being stressful when crowded as well. How bad is it? I'm reconsidering my plans.

I really wouldn't reconsider if the concern is due to crowds. Yes, there are more people on the Dream/Fantasy, but they're also designed to handle more people. It's not the same amount of amenities on board, it's actually scaled up. And, there are some cool things those ships have (e.g. Aquaduck, Midship Detective Agency, the mini-golf, and Minnie's Sweet Shop/Vanellope's are some we enjoyed) that the smaller ones don't. Castaway Cay may be more crowded than when it's the Magic/Wonder, but there were still plenty of beach chairs, lots of room overall, etc., and I wouldn't say it's "too crowded" by any means. You will find that some things have a larger feel than they would otherwise - e.g. the kids clubs are bigger, and have more kids in them - but they are designed to be that way.

You might find you end up liking the smaller ships better, but I'd still recommend giving the larger ones a chance - you might find you actually prefer them. I don't think you'll be going around saying "this is too crowded" all the time!

 

[dancebum]

Thank you all so much!! It's very reassuring

 

[jrapps]

I've never found the Fantasy to feel over crowded. There are more people, but it is a bigger ship. You may feel crowded as you enter dining or leave a show but for the most part it will feel the same.

I did the exact same trip, 7 days on the Fantasy for my 40th. My kids were 4 and 9 at the time. We had an amazing time. I also got lucky and my 40th fell exactly on our day at Castaway...best birthday ever!

I say give it a shot, there are so many wonderful things on the Dream/Fantasy ship that the Magic/Wonder don't have.

 

[dancebum]

I've never found the Fantasy to feel over crowded. There are more people, but it is a bigger ship. You may feel crowded as you enter dining or leave a show but for the most part it will feel the same.

I did the exact same trip, 7 days on the Fantasy for my 40th. My kids were 4 and 9 at the time. We had an amazing time. I also got lucky and my 40th fell exactly on our day at Castaway...best birthday ever!

I say give it a shot, there are so many wonderful things on the Dream/Fantasy ship that the Magic/Wonder don't have.

That's so cool!!! What did you do at Castaway Cay for your special day?

 

[jrapps]

That's so cool!!! What did you do at Castaway Cay for your special day?

I think my wife conned me into starting the day off with the 5k! LOL. Overall it was just a relaxing day at the beach, swimming & snorkeling. The whole cruise was one big bday celebration. We did Palo brunch and Remy dinner on different days...I wanted Palo brunch on the actual bday but seeing as that was also Castaway day I didn't want to tie up the whole morning so we did it earlier in the cruise. My family decorated our door with a big magnetic 40th birthday sign and decked the room out with streamers. It was really nice. They also bought one of those 40th Birthday table decorations and brought it to the dining room the last night!

Be sure to tell them at Palo or Remy (or even the dining room), they will do some extra Birthday desserts for you too.

 

[trinitys4]

As others have stated, Fantasy, IMO has never felt crowded. The ship is adequately staffed to handle the capacity that is on board during the busier times. We have had the best time at Castaway Cay on our previous Fantasy sailings. The only issue I ran into on one particular visit was the wait for the tram when everyone was trying to ride back towards the end of the day....we ended up walking and I was able to feel like I worked off all the food and delicious 2-for-1 beverages I consumed.

 

[dancebum]

I think my wife conned me into starting the day off with the 5k! LOL. Overall it was just a relaxing day at the beach, swimming & snorkeling. The whole cruise was one big bday celebration. We did Palo brunch and Remy dinner on different days...I wanted Palo brunch on the actual bday but seeing as that was also Castaway day I didn't want to tie up the whole morning so we did it earlier in the cruise. My family decorated our door with a big magnetic 40th birthday sign and decked the room out with streamers. It was really nice. They also bought one of those 40th Birthday table decorations and brought it to the dining room the last night!

Be sure to tell them at Palo or Remy (or even the dining room), they will do some extra Birthday desserts for you too.

Brunch at Palo and dinner at Remy sound like great ways to elevate my birthday experience since we've never done them. Thanks!!

 

[mcd2745]

IMO, The two biggest differences regarding crowds between the classics and Dream/Fantasy are at Castaway - not that it is unmanageable on the bigger ships, just more pleasant on the classics - and the lines for character greets.

 

[cvjw]

I have been on a couple of sold out fantasy sailings in the fall. Never felt crowded! I also was on a sold out spring break cruise on the magic - that felt crowded.

 

[Sherrilatte]

I booked the family veranda with extended balcony for Easter Break. We will be celebrating my 40th and I have two kids that will be 10 and 4 at the time of travel. I'm nervous it will be really crowded. It's my first time on the Fantasy, we've done the Wonder three times and once during Easter Break. It wasn't too bad, but I've heard that there are more people with the same amount of amenities on the bigger boats which makes it feel more crowded. I've read previous threads about Castaway Cay being stressful when crowded as well. How bad is it? I'm reconsidering my plans.

Our family has stayed in this extended balcony room on the Fantasy and it was very roomy--the veranda will be perfect for your size family. It's 3 of us and it was plenty of room and more.