Questions about 4 day Wonder

[Jo-Anne]

We were on a 7 day Eastern cruise in Nov 03, and had a great time. Due to some of our scheduling needs, we can't seem to get the right dates for a 7 day cruise , so we're now thinking of a 4 day Wonder cruise in early Feb 06 with a few days stay at WDW in advance. Our Kids will be 9 & 6. Hoping some folks can answer a few questions to help....
1) What are the main differences (other than the ports of call) between a 7 & 4 day cruise?
2) Are the kids clubs basically the same on the Wonder as the Magic?
3) Will the ship pools be warm in Feb?
4) DOes a 4 day cruise seem too rushed or not relaxing?
5) We used DU travel agency last time to book the cruise, but all the past WDW vacations we've taken, I've booked all hotel, tickets, air separately to get good discounts....has anyone done the math recently to know if booking the 3 day land/4 day cruise package is a good deal versus doing things on my own separately?

Thanks, Jo

 

[WDWLVR]

I'll try and help

1) What are the main differences (other than the ports of call) between a 7 & 4 day cruise? Lumiere's on the Magic becomes Triton's on the Wonder. Topsiders on the Magic becomes Beach Blanket on the Wonder. Beat Street on the Magic becomes Route 66 on the Wonder. The Stack on the Magic becomes Aloft on the Wonder. The Magic has Mickey in the atrium, the Wonder has Arial. Other than these minor changes there isn't much difference in looks. The 4 days don't offer a lot of the backstage things like the galley tour and art of entertaining series.

2) Are the kids clubs basically the same on the Wonder as the Magic? Yes they are the same.

3) Will the ship pools be warm in Feb? yes the pools are heated. When we sailed in Feb. '03 we found the water too cool on Castaway Cay but went and enjoyed the pools.

4) DOes a 4 day cruise seem too rushed or not relaxing? We don't think so. We've done a 3 day, 2 four days (with another one in two weeks), 2 7-days, and a 10 day. They each offer their own charm.

5) We used DU travel agency last time to book the cruise, but all the past WDW vacations we've taken, I've booked all hotel, tickets, air separately to get good discounts....has anyone done the math recently to know if booking the 3 day land/4 day cruise package is a good deal versus doing things on my own separately? I think you will get your best value booking separately. Remember that Dreams can do all of it for you!