Just getting off the Wonder...

[mevelandry]

Hi!

We just got off the Wonder.

The good...

-Small cabin but super cute! (bathroom is getting old and moldy though). It was our first time in an inside room (always had verandah) and we really liked it.

- The food in the dining room was very good (better than the Disney Dream IMO).

-Palo brunch was delicious.

-Tiana's Place was wonderful. Although the menu wasn't my favorite, the ambiance was wonderful.

-Frozen is unbelievable. We loved it. Try to sit in the first rows (1 to 6) if you can. I wanted to bring Olaf and Sven home with us. They were so funny. It's the same thing as the movie but more condensed.

-We liked all the shows although some singers were better than others... The only show I would see again is Frozen, though.

-Excellent service overall.

-I recommend Cabana #25 at Serenity Bay.


The bad:

-Our DCL shuttle from the resort had mechanical problems and we have been waiting on the side of the road without AC for 35 minutes before another bus came to pick us up. Arrived only at 2 pm.

-The layout is confusing and the ship feels cramped. The ship definitely felt overcrowded except for the Quiet Cove. The elevators are sooo small.

-I was surprised to find that some of the exterior sections are NOT in a good shape. The Quiet Cove needs love. There was a lot of mold and rust everywhere (in worst shape than the Carnival Victory's main pool).

-We've had very strong sewer smell during parts of the cruise. Once after a show near the theater and in our cabin this morning. We were on deck 7.

- The saddest part is a man from another cruiseline fell over board and we had to help for the research... (We ended up having a sea day instead of Nassau.)

-The port holes and windows (from all around the ship) were dirty on arrival and stayed that way all cruise. I missed having a verandah because of that...

-Who was my cabin host? I can't tell. I haven't met him once.EDIT: I just remembered that on the first night at turndown service, for mysterious reasons, he did the sofa bed as well (like if DH and I had a kid, which is not the case).

-Now, I don't know if it's just me or if they changed it but the self-serve was not open all day but from 11 AM to 10 or 11 PM (I thought it was from 8 AM or 9 AM the last time) and they were back order on the strawberry/banana and blueberry/mango flavors at twice during our 3 nights cruise. I remember being a bit irritated by that. LOL (I know it's totally a first world problem but I love ice cream)... I don't remember that happening on past cruises.

If anybody have questions, feel free to ask.

 

[TestingH2O]

Thanks for the balanced review. We've got an inside for Alaska in July. That definitely worries me about the bathrooms. My parents have the verandah across the hall so hopefully that will help with the window problem.

 

[CamColt]

Thanks for the review!

 

[dani24]

Thanks for the review. We leave in about a month for our first Disney cruise, on the Wonder. I was hopeful that with the recent dry dock that the ship would be looking great despite its age. Sad to hear that the maintenance and polish may not be up to par.

 

[mevelandry]

Thanks for the review. We leave in about a month for our first Disney cruise, on the Wonder. I was hopeful that with the recent dry dock that the ship would be looking great despite its age. Sad to hear that the maintenance and polish may not be up to par.

You do not need to worry. Most rooms have been updated and look brand new. The dining rooms and Palo look brand new.

It's just the cabin bathrooms, the Quiet Cove, the floor and benches on the "outside corridor" of deck 4 and one or two little places on the outside that show their age.

I took pictures. When I get in front of a computer tomorrow, I'll try to post them. You'll get a real feel of what the Quiet Pool looks like.

When you know, you'll ignore the bad and just focus on the good.

 

[mevelandry]

Thanks for the review. We leave in about a month for our first Disney cruise, on the Wonder. I was hopeful that with the recent dry dock that the ship would be looking great despite its age. Sad to hear that the maintenance and polish may not be up to par.

Here are a few examples of what I was talking about. Those were taken in the Quiet Cove (adult pool). There was obviously no improvement made in that section during the dry dock.

I would expect this on an old Carnival ship but on DCL, I was not expecting that the age would show that much.

 

[Trera]

Here are a few examples of what I was talking about. Those were taken in the Quiet Cove (adult pool). There was obviously no improvement made in that section during the dry dock.

I would expect this on an old Carnival ship but on DCL, I was not expecting that the age would show that much.

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Great report. We too believe the Wonder looks worn in some of the public area and the adult pool area in particular.

We have experienced sewer smells inside and outside on both the Wonder and Magic from time to time. Many have reported having it in their cabin bathrooms.

Tiana's place is the most fun of any of the restaurants in my opinion and there are some great menu items like the shrimp and grits, sea bass and creole chicken.............I guess you can always order from one of the other dining room menus if you done like the choices. Our DD loved the beignets!!

 

[mevelandry]

Great report. We too believe the Wonder looks worn in some of the public area and the adult pool area in particular.

We have experienced sewer smells inside and outside on both the Wonder and Magic from time to time. Many have reported having it in their cabin bathrooms.

Tiana's place is the most fun of any of the restaurants in my opinion and there are some great menu items like the shrimp and grits, sea bass and creole chicken.............I guess you can always order from one of the other dining room menus if you done like the choices. Our DD loved the beignets!!

Tiana's Place is very special. Disney should definitely focus on developing a similar concept with other dining rooms. The ambiance was amazing!

 

[Trera]

Tiana's Place is very special. Disney should definitely focus on developing a similar concept with other dining rooms. The ambiance was amazing!

At least one per ship like they did Animators Palate.

I dont mind the enchanted garden but compared to TP, it could use a little more Disney fun if you ask me.

 

[GoofyLovingFamily]

Tiana's is our favorite restaurant aboard any of the ships. I loved the menu and the fun atmosphere.

 

[mevelandry]

I appreciated the dining rooms and the food in the dining rooms on the Wonder much more than I did with the Dream. Same for the service.

 

[PAGA2003]

I appreciated the dining rooms and the food in the dining rooms on the Wonder much more than I did with the Dream. Same for the service.

We felt the exact same way! We thought the food on the Wonder was exponentially better than the Dream. Also, what you mentioned about your room steward above-we saw ours when we first got to our room and didn't see him again until we were leaving to head to breakfast our very last morning. We saw our steward on the Dream constantly!

 

[BartmanLA]

Really sad to see that they didn't completely refresh the on deck areas like Quiet Cove, they supposedly sandblasted the entire exterior of the ship and repainted it, and I was under the impression they resurfaced the decks on 4, 9 and 10. I had high hopes it would be a fresh new look when we board in 2 weeks for the WBPC trip. Been on the Wonder 2 times and the Magic once, never noticed any mold or foul smells on either ship, and this was on Deck 6 and 7. I'm anxious to actually see what I notice different from our last time on the Wonder and since the dry dock.

 

[surran12]

Hoping to be on the Wonder in January and greatly appreciate your review. Thanks for posting.

 

[cruiser21]

Off topic, but how far advance did you get your luggage tags? We are cruising in 20 days and haven't received them. This is our 15th DCL cruise, and we were on the Wonder 5 months ago, and I swear we've always gotten them around 30-40 days out. I know they changed the online check-in process. I'm wondering if that has anything to do with it.

 

[jiminy14]

We sailed on the Wonder in late March and were also surprised at the condition of some parts of the ship. We had a verandah stateroom on Deck 7 and noticed quite a bit of rust when we looked over the side. My one DD complained about the "mold" in the toilet and I had to explain to her that it was just signs of wear and age. The worst thing we encountered occurred on embarkation day. After main dining, the midship bathrooms stopped working because apparently someone flushed something that clogged the system. Maintenance shut down the midship bathrooms including the public restrooms from top to bottom. This was probably a big problem for some guests because we had a very rough first night and a lot of people were sick. At second dining about half the tables were empty.
On the positive side, we loved Tiana's Place and would say it's our favorite MDR. It is beautifully decorated with a lot of attention paid to the little details. The band was lively and played a lot of songs from the movie. Some have complained that they are too loud but we did not think so. Tiana comes around to each table and will stop for photos. Louis the Alligator makes a circuit around the MDR but does not stop for pictures. We spoke with the CM "handling" Louis and she said it was because of his tail and that it knocks things off the tables.

 

[elvispursley]

The "wear and tear" is too bad! I'd be horrified if we couldn't use our toilet, especially if there were rough seas. We had a flushing issue with our toilet on the Fantasy last Oct. and we reported it as we went to 2nd dining. It was fixed when we returned from dinner (thankfully)! The next day, guest services called 3x to ensure everything was ok (geese guys, once was more than enough) and then we were sent a "bouquet" of mickey rice crispy treats!! This may have also been because we called about our tv not working properly (which was an annoyance, but they got it working as well). I would've thought with just coming out of dry dock not too long ago some the cosmetic issues could've been better addressed

 

[mevelandry]

Off topic, but how far advance did you get your luggage tags? We are cruising in 20 days and haven't received them. This is our 15th DCL cruise, and we were on the Wonder 5 months ago, and I swear we've always gotten them around 30-40 days out. I know they changed the online check-in process. I'm wondering if that has anything to do with it.

Our TA received them about 20 days before the cruise. You should receive them soon.

 

[mevelandry]

I'm not gonna lie, With the exception of the designs (classic on Wonder, Vegas style on the Victory... It's a matter of taste some prefer the first, some prefer the latter), I did not think that the Wonder was in a much much better shape than the Carnival Victory.

We loved almost everything about our cruise but having tried another cruise line in October, DH and I don't feel like the premium on DCL is really justified.

(Also we need a little break from the Mouse)

 

[lorimay]

We are going to be in #25 on CC in a month, happy but bittersweet, it will be the last day of 13 glorious nights onboard The Magic.