We were just on the Magic form Galveston during the 1st week of October. The days spent at sea were GORGEOUS! We wore our swimsuits all day and our son enjoyed the mickey pool. We are going on the Magic again from Galveston in January and are wondering if the temps will be comparable. This time we will be doing the 8 night Bahamian. Will it be too cold to enjoy the decks? We are from Oklahoma and would love 80's temps the entire time! What about Disney World in January? Do I need to pack a coat for my 5 year old son? Thanks!!!
Well... we're kinda in the same boat (no pun intended). We're doing the Magic out of Galveston in January, but doing the 8-day western caribbean. I was also worried that the first and last sea days might be too cold to enjoy the deck, especially since the first one we'll be heading more east than south, to Key West. I will say, in 2009 we sailed out of New Orleans in Feb, had sea days the first and last days, and both days were very warm and the pools were definitely usable. But again, that was going south and not east like your itinerary. Cruising out of San Diego this past february, we definitely lost our first and last sea days to the cold weather.
We did a Western Caribbean over NYE several years ago and we LOVED the weather! We laid out on deck in our swimsuits during the day but wore a light jacket at night. It was a little chilly swimming at Castaway Cay first thing in the morning, but we were fine by noon. We are from Oklahoma also!
I might not wear my swimsuit all day, but you can still enjoy the outdoors in January around here. Yes, Houston can get cold, but nothing compared to OK. We usually only get down to the 50s or 40s, and as you go out in Gulf, I imagine it will be warmer-ish than that. My "winter" wardrobe for Houston is long sleeve, lightweight shirts and a sweater or jacket (or light coat) with jeans. Hope that helps! Check the weather forecast too!
We did a Western cruise out of Cape Canaveral on the Magic in late January 2011. My daughter swam a little that week in the pools but they were very cold. And we are from NJ where it was snowing when we left! My husband who is usually the first to jump in, was cold as well. I got my toes in at Castaway Cay and while the water was beautiful, it was too cold to fully enjoy. Of course there were people in the water there but not many. And on the boat, there wasn't a lot of people in the pools. I think it was abnormally coldl though as I have been to WDW several times in December and many times wore tanktops and shorts! I think it's hit or miss. But either way you'll enjoy the cruise!
You really could have any weather at that time. We cruised in January 2010 and it was gorgeous. In January 2011 we cruised when 48 states had snow. That front created a mess when it met the warm temps in the Caribbean. We went from a beautiful beginning of the cruise to the harbor being closed to small boats in Cozumel, 20+ foot swells and 50 knot head winds from the time we left Cozumel until Friday morning. The pools were closed and deck 10 was off limits to guests at night. CC was really chilly & breezy with temps in the low 60s.
