Prefer Magic over Dream?

[Rogillio]

Anyone else less than enthusiatic about sailing on the Dream? We've sailed on the Magic 5 or 6 times and it just feel like 'coming home' when we board the ship. I know she is getting old and the Dream will have everything and more....newer and better....but....but....she was our first cruise....

Can anyone relate?

~Mike

 

[xangav]

We're sailing on the Dream in March. Truthfully, it was the only way I could get my tween to agree to a Disney cruise. After sailing on the Freedom and the Epic she has become spoiled with the activities. And the Dream is much like the Magic and the Wonder.

But I too feel the nostalgia for the Magic especially since she is so much like the ships of old. The fact that you don't have to wait in a huge line just to get off the ship is also very appealing. (It took quite a while to get off the other two.)

 

[cwby22]

Your not alone. I feel this way also. Haven't been on Magic, but have been on the Wonder 2 times and feel sailing on the Dream or Fantasy just won't be the same. The Wonder is "our ship" and nothing will be as good. Like you said, its like coming home. We are booked for the Fantasy in 2012 and honestly, I'm not looking forward to twice as many people at Castaway Cay.

 

[cindy18]

I hear you. We're going on the Dream in February but that's because we promised our DD a special short cruise with her closest friends for her special birthday. We're really about the destinations, and it's the Magic and Wonder who will be going to the new, cool locations. We love DCL and aren't excited about other cruise lines, but I'm not that interested in crusing to the Bahamas or the Carribbean again. The Magic was definitely home for 12 nights during the Baltics, and I'd take a cruise on her anytime.

 

[jweiss]

We have been on the Magic five times and I have no desire at all to go on the new ships. We are going on the Wonder in '11, and even that feels odd, but it's due to location. We have always been so happy on the Magic, that I don't feel that we need "more" or fancier.

 

[rotary2808]

I prefer the Magic over the Dream because it does longer cruises, that's why we waited and booked the Fantasy. The other thing I don't like is now all the crew members we've gotten to know over the years on the Magic are spread out across the fleet and we've got to start all over again. The last time we boarded the Magic the "family" was there, our server, cruise staff, Cove Cafe team, etc. Our next two cruises will be on the Wonder and we might see a few familiar faces, but nothing like we've experienced in the past.

 

[stsomewhere]

We love the smaller ships. We have no desire to sail on larger ships. My son is sailing with friends on Allure of the Seas over Christmas. I will be interested in how he will compare. He did tell me he was looking forward to DCL to Alaska since he can just hang out and not be active.

 

[MouseGrandma]

We love the Wonder and have sailed five times. We will miss her because we live in the Northeast and really don't want to fly across the country for a cruise. The Wonder is like coming home. We booked for next August on the Dream when we were on the Wonder this past August, but I am concerned that the number of guests will make the venues more crowded and Castaway Cay more crowded and just overall not the comfortable small ship experience we are used to on the Wonder. We booked onboard to get the discount, but decided to wait to pay in full until we hear all about everyones' experiences on the Dream from the DIS. They we'll know if we want to cancel and visit WDW instead or fly to Nassau and spend a few days at Atlantis resort instead. I will miss the small ships in Port Canaveral sailing the usual Caribbean routes.

 

[MickeyManiacMom]

You're not alone. I think the size of the Wonder/Magic are perfect for me and my family. We love every experience we've had and found each of them to be absolutely perfect.

I worry with double the passengers I would get half the service and four times the annoyance at the number of people. Not to mention who wants to have double the amount of kids in the kids clubs? Harder time getting Palo reservations, spa reservations, excursions? More people at Castaway Cay, shorter cruises - higher price tag?

No thanks, I'll stick with the Magic.

 

[DMMarla07860]

I'm in the middle of all of it, I'm excited about going on the Dream and seeing something new, but also think I will kind of miss the Wonder/Magic, but trying something new is always great, and I'm sure I'll love it just as much. Only thing I feel will be different is that family/friends feeling you get when you get to know all the cruise staff.

 

[skiingfast]

I don't think the ship size matters too much. They expanded cape canaveral. They expanded CC. The Dream is bigger to accomodate more people in every way.

The worst thing about the Dream is that the rooms got smaller. The ports of calls didn't widen the streets for the extra people.


In the end it doesn't matter, you can choose from DCL cruises based on where you want to go or what boat you want to go on.

 

[Silverfox97]

DH and I have been on the Wonder twice, and have 2 booked on the Magic for 2011. We agree totally. The Dream has no lure for us at all (albeit she is a beautiful ship - no denying that). Now, we are planning on the Fantasy for summer of 2012, but that is only because that is the only ship that will most likely have 7 night summer caribbean cruises, which we will need because of DD starting kindergarten fall 2012.

Funny, DH often asks why they don't have smaller, more quaint ships.......

We love the classics - Wonder & Magic I really hope they keep them in service for many, many years to come!!!

 

[ILoveDisney&Cruising]

I keep wondering how I'm going to feel about this, too.

We are about to go on our 3rd cruise on the Magic, and have one booked for the Dream next September.

But I keep wondering if we'll like the smaller ship better. We have sailed on Carnival twice -- once with 2,000 passengers and once on a bigger ship with 4,000 passengers. With the larger boat, it felt like we were ALWAYS waiting in line for something, cuz there were so many more people.

Still very excited about the Dream ... but we'll see for how long

 

[dursin]

Anyone else less than enthusiatic about sailing on the Dream? We've sailed on the Magic 5 or 6 times and it just feel like 'coming home' when we board the ship. I know she is getting old and the Dream will have everything and more....newer and better....but....but....she was our first cruise....

Can anyone relate?

~Mike

I don't think anyone can honestly relate or form an opinion as to which one they prefer until they actually sail on the Dream themselves...or at a minimum read a handful of trip reports from those who have.

 

[KKKKCS]

We have cruised both the Magic and Wonder and love both ships. We are booked on the Fantasy June 9, 2012 and are really looking forward to it, but I'm feeling a little nostalgia for the older ships wondering how the crowded the new ships are going to be.

 

[NancyIL]

I don't think anyone can honestly relate or form an opinion as to which one they prefer until they actually sail on the Dream themselves...or at a minimum read a handful of trip reports from those who have.

I have sailed on the Wonder twice, and both were 4-day cruises. I think it's a lovely ship and a very nice size, but I am still looking forward to my 4-night cruise on the Dream in February. Any future Disney cruises will almost certainly be on the Magic or Wonder, as I have no interest in any more Bahamas or Caribbean cruises for awhile.

 

[dylan'smom]

I'm in agreement that the Dream is not nearly as attractive as the Magic!! The Wonder will be coming to our neck of the woods in CA & we're happy about that, but will still hope to sail on the Magic in the future. The mega ships are just not fun for us, in general, like floating cities and less personal... Not to mention, we like the separate beds & that won't be happening on the Dream!

I don't think anyone can honestly relate or form an opinion as to which one they prefer until they actually sail on the Dream themselves...or at a minimum read a handful of trip reports from those who have.

Disagree here - we always opt for ships the size of the Magic & SMALLER for a lot of reasons!!

I realize that DCL wants to stay competitive in the mass market, but we will always prefer the smaller, more intimate ships.

 

[insureman]

We're doing a b2b in February. I'm looking forward to it although a bit apprehensive because of the number of passengers. I'll make my decision after those cruises.

 

[truck1]

In all honesty, I cant say either way. The main reason is that I have not been on the Dream yet, to make an honest comparison. We are going on her next year, though, and the Fantasy the year after.

In the begining, I was excited about the Dream,but since, I have noticed some things different about her, compared to the Magic.Things like the way the verandahs are set in to the ship on the Dream, where if you look down, it appears youll look down on top of the lifeboats, instead of the water, as you would on the Magic. However, the Dream has Goofys golf.

Even after the last cruise we had on the Magic, where we noted alot of things that were unDisney, thats not going to stop us from going back on the Magic, or the Wonder for that matter.

 

[dursin]

I'm in agreement that the Dream is not nearly as attractive as the Magic!! The Wonder will be coming to our neck of the woods in CA & we're happy about that, but will still hope to sail on the Magic in the future. The mega ships are just not fun for us, in general, like floating cities and less personal... Not to mention, we like the separate beds & that won't be happening on the Dream!




Disagree here - we always opt for ships the size of the Magic & SMALLER for a lot of reasons!!

I realize that DCL wants to stay competitive in the mass market, but we will always prefer the smaller, more intimate ships.

Which mega-ships have you taken cruises on? Just curious what you didn't like about them.