Magic vs Dream

[binkblum]

Hello, DH had ok’d a DLC! What are your overall thoughts on the Magic vs Dream? We have 2 girls, 5 and 7 years old. Pros and cons please! Please let me know if this is too vague. Thank you!

 

[DIS_MIKE]

I can’t chime in too much because I’ve only sailed on the Dream which is larger and newer than the Magic. It also has the Aquaduck which everybody loves.

The Magic has the Tangled musical whereas the Disney Dream has the new Beauty and the Beast show.

 

[Disney1fan2002]

If you have never sailed the classic ships, you will love the Dream, because you won't have anything to compare it to. We frequently sailed on the Wonder because we liked the 4 night cruise that we combined with 3-4 nights at WDW. When the Dream came out in 2011, of course we had to sail her. We hated it!!! Ok, sorry, hate is a strong word for anything Disney, but even the kids wanted to go back on the Wonder. It's a bigger ship that holds more people. So it is more crowded. They made the family pool smaller, the kids had no room to swim with so many people.

We sailed her once, and we have decided to stay with the classic ships. We now sail 7 nights on the Magic out of NYC.

ETA: I will say the Mid-Ship detective Agency is something the kids went crazy for and you can only get that on the new ships.

 

[tlprice]

We've sailed all of the ships and love them all. I prefer the smaller, more intimate feeling of the Magic and Wonder. My daughter (11) prefers the bigger ships because she likes the Aquaduck and thinks their pizza is better. Her favorite ship is the Dream because they have the Infinity room in the Oceaneer area.

 

[PrincessShmoo]

Hello, DH had ok’d a DLC! What are your overall thoughts on the Magic vs Dream? We have 2 girls, 5 and 7 years old. Pros and cons please! Please let me know if this is too vague. Thank you!

Did the Magic first (several times), then the Wonder. Then did the Dream & Fantasy (in the same trip).

We prefer the classic ships more. Usual reasons - less people, more intimate. Better shows.

That said, I wouldn't hesitate to do the Fantasy again. Probably not the Dream since we prefer long cruises (minimum 7 nights).

 

[bigAWL]

Some pros on the Dream side for your girls could be the Midship Detective Agency game, slightly higher tech in the club areas, and the Aqua Duck water coaster may be more their speed compared to the Aqua Dunk drop tube on the Magic. There's a Beauty and the Beast stage show if they are big fans, as well as Believe (which in my opinion is not as good as most other DCL stage shows).

The Magic (in my opinion) has the better shows with Twice Charmed, Tangled, and Dreams (my all time favorite). It also has longer and more varied itinerary options. I imagine a trip to Castaway Cay would be better on the Magic with fewer people. But since I've sailed on the Dream and Fantasy, I have yet to go back there on the Magic.

I don't necessarily feel more crowded or more intimate on either ship. To me the larger ship does a good job of spreading out the higher number of guests. But it also doesn't feel like a giant ship (except when you're trekking down those long halls looking for your room).

 

[TestingH2O]

For those ages, you can't go wrong.

I prefer the pool deck on the Dream because you can see funnel vision from the whole family area. However, the Twist n Spout slide on the Magic is lots of fun and the whole family can ride. Aquaduck is fun too, but it's lines are longer.

If you book an inside stateroom, go with the dream for sure. The magic portholes are great.

I prefer the stage shows on the Magic, but I'd love to see the new beauty and the Beast on the dream.

I prefer the Animators pallette show on the Magic. Rapunzel's restaurant is also lots of fun, and the dream doesn't have anything like it.

If you do a date night, the Dream had Remy but the Magic does not. Both have Palo though.

Castaway will be less crowded on the Magic, but honestly I have never found it too crowded even on a sold out cruise on the larger ships.

 

[fredandkell]

You can’t go wrong with either. We started on the Dream and loved it, and we went out on the Magic for the first time a couple weeks ago and also loved it. My husband liked the Magic more than the Deam because it was smaller and easy to navigate, and I like them both equally. We didn’t really dislike either one. I think the Magic has better pools but the Dream is better soundproofed and had a better spa. I would really just go with the better price and favorite itinerary.

 

[bigAWL]

I prefer the Animators pallette show on the Magic.

I also like the AP show on the Magic with Sorcerer Mickey coming out for the finale (I guess that's not done on the Dream and Fantasy?). They did add the guest animation show for the Magic, as well. But the Dream has Crush interacting with the guests.

 

[TestingH2O]

I also like the AP show on the Magic with Sorcerer Mickey coming out for the finale (I guess that's not done on the Dream and Fantasy?). They did add the guest animation show for the Magic, as well. But the Dream has Crush interacting with the guests.

On the short cruises though, you only get the color change or turtle talk. If another variable is that OP is considering a 7 day on the Magic, then pick the Magic, hands down!

 

[MaleficentRN]

Apples and oranges. I can bet you your children won't complain no matter what you book. The only big difference IMO is that Dream does 3 or 4 night cruises and only to the Bahamas while Magic has longer trips to various ports.

 

[hcox31]

Our first cruise was on the Dream. Our second was on the Magic.

We loved both for various reasons. Kids clubs, my kids enjoyed both. My older child enjoyed the aqua duck and was disappointed the magic didn't have it (he was too frightened to try the Aquadunk). He did enjoy the yellow slide on the magic though. Animators Palate on the Dream/Magic are different. Dream has the crush show, Magic has the animated drawings and sorcerer Mickey. There was a noticeable difference in size of the ship (not bad one way or the other). We found it easier to find our way around on the Magic, not sure if that's because it was our second cruise and we knew more of what we were doing or not, or the size. The difference on Castaway was noticeable. Like, way noticeable. Much nicer with less people around.

Either ship is fantastic. You can't go wrong with either one. We are doing the dream again in 2 weeks.

 

[lklgoodman]

Aquaduck on Dream and Fantasy are really fun, but not sure if your 5 yr old would be tall enough to go on it. I don't remember the height limit for it, my dd was much older when she did it on the Fantasy, so I didn't pay attention to it. If I had to choose between the two, I'd choose the Magic since it's has longer cruises. We've only gone on 7 night cruises, so haven't done the Dream(have been on all the other ships). The Dream and Fantasy are very similar, if you can do a 7 night, I'd suggest the Fantasy.

 

[darnheather]

We've only ever done the Magic and absolutely adore it. But because of the kids clubs, attention to detail, etc, you'll have a wonderful time either way.

 

[Napoleon Dynamite]

We have done the Dream 4 times, and the Wonder once, which is pretty much the same as the Magic from what I understand. What we found that we missed going from the Dream to the Wonder was the Mid Ship detective, Aquaduck, mini golf, the larger lobby, and the more open pool deck.

 

[DisneyinPA]

Is there a difference in kids clubs? We have a 11 and 14 yr old. Both boys. My head is spinning trying to figure out a cruise for my family and parents with my sister. It’s between RCCL and Disney but I’m not sure I want to pay for the premium Disney Price. Don’t get me wrong I love Disney but will my parents and kids get bored? Thinking about a 4 night.

 

[apple9117]

The Dream is much newer and bigger than the Magic, but the Magic was also renovated not too long ago.

 

[Disney1fan2002]

HA HA...I don't think these were the replies the OP was looking for. Basically, you can't go wrong with either Disney ship, so I guess you will just have to decided how long you want to be on the ship and where you want to sail from to determine what ship to book.

 

[Disney1fan2002]

Is there a difference in kids clubs? We have a 11 and 14 yr old. Both boys. My head is spinning trying to figure out a cruise for my family and parents with my sister. It’s between RCCL and Disney but I’m not sure I want to pay for the premium Disney Price. Don’t get me wrong I love Disney but will my parents and kids get bored? Thinking about a 4 night.

BORED??? On a Disney ship?? Sorry, impossible. Your kids, if they are not shy and like to socialize will LOVE the kids club and all the activities they offer. (be forewarned, they may not want to spend any time with you at all on the cruise). Your parents will love the fact that there are adult-only areas on the ship if they don't want to be around a bunch of kids. So much for all ages on a Disney cruise. Well worth the premium.

 

[crichardson11]

Our family prefers the Dream but we had an excellent time on the Magic as well. The Dream was our first cruise so I think we may be a little biased and hold it closer to our hearts.

I think the live shows and the animator's pallet show was better on the Magic but the biggest con for me was the underwhelming feeling of entering the atrium lobby after being on the Dream. But if the Magic would have been my first cruise I'm sure I wouldn't have felt that way. And the shows are still great on the Dream.

As someone mentioned above, I didn't feel that the larger ships were more crowded and I didn't feel that the smaller ships were more intimate, not even on Castaway Cay.

The deal breakers for my daughter though are the Aquaduck, Goofy Golf & Midship Detective Agency. These three things are offered on the Dream but not the Magic and they are her most favorite things to do on a Disney Cruise (besides the soft serve ice cream stand!) We have not returned to the Magic for these three reasons.