Size of Disney ships compared to other cruise lines

Liz

Make a miracle!
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Aug 18, 1999
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A friend of mine was asking me if the Disney ships are bigger, smaller or about the same as other cruise ships. Since I haven't ever seen the Wonder or Magic in person I couldn't really answer her question and its so hard to judge the size by just looking at a photo.

So my question is when you are on the Magic or Wonder and you see another cruise ship, how does DCL compare in size?

Thanks!
 
There's a website called destinationoceans.com that has a great breakdown of all of the ship sizes, capacities, etc. (Sorry I can't post a direct link to make it easier for you.)
 
http://destinationoceans.com/cruise_ships.asp

One of the most useful ways of looking at this information is to divide Tons by Guests. That provides what the industry considers the most consistent measurement of personal space available aboard each ship. The Queen Mary 2 is 57. The Disney ships are 47. Holland American ships average around 44. Royal Caribbeen ships average around 39. Carnival ships average around 36. NCL ships average around 35.
 
You really have to compare specific ships. For instance, RCCL has several different sizes of ships--some bigger, some smaller than DCL. The suggested comparison above is excellent.

ANother thing to consider is the size of the cabins. DCL cabins are 33-50% larger than most other cruise lines. Be aware that when you look at square footage it will include the verandah and bathrooms, not just the living space. In one other line, you have to move up to a "junior suite" to have the same living space as a standard DCL cabin.
 

Also keep in mind that prices vary widely. DCL is generally more expensive, but you are generally getting a better product, especially for families. So it'll depend on what's more important to you: quality or price.
 
The Magic sure looked tiny in port in St. Maarten and St. Thomas next to some of the Mega cruise ships, especially the Princess ship. But statistically it isn't that much smaller.
 
kcashner said:
You really have to compare specific ships. For instance, RCCL has several different sizes of ships--some bigger, some smaller than DCL. The suggested comparison above is excellent.

ANother thing to consider is the size of the cabins. DCL cabins are 33-50% larger than most other cruise lines. Be aware that when you look at square footage it will include the verandah and bathrooms, not just the living space. In one other line, you have to move up to a "junior suite" to have the same living space as a standard DCL cabin.

I have actually found that other lines like Royal Caribbean DO NOT include the veranda measurement in their square footage. They actually give a separate number for each. Disney is the only one that combines the numbers that I have found.
 
I've attached a photo of the Carnival Pride docked in Mazatlan next to the Disney Magic. It's not the size that matters! :earseek: Our horn sounds WAY better than their horn!!! :banana: Even the Carnival passengers were cheering as our horn blew on our way out of port! :teeth:

100_0673.jpg
 
On the Wonder 4-day cruise, the Wonder and the RCI Mariner of the Seas are in Port Canaveral together, very close to each other. Although the Wonder is larger than your average cruise ship, the Mariner is much larger than the Wonder, visually, statistically, and in all other respects.
 
Vanvmom said:
I've attached a photo of the Carnival Pride docked in Mazatlan next to the Disney Magic. It's not the size that matters! :earseek: Our horn sounds WAY better than their horn!!! :banana: Even the Carnival passengers were cheering as our horn blew on our way out of port! :teeth:

100_0673.jpg


Whoa, the size of the ships in that picture is amazing!
 
I may be a lot prejudiced but I think the Magic and the Wonder are a little like Goldilocks and the Three Bearsthe three bears story....some ships are too big, and some ships are too small but the Magic and Wonder are JUST RIGHT!!!

For an easy comparison, the ships are as long as THREE football fields end to end and they have enough room for 2500 people to be sailing without any of them ever feeling crowded. We knew the ship was full when we sailed but we kept wondering where all the people were.
 
What we like about the Disney Ships is that they still look like we feel a boat should not like a block of flats.

Sorry if I offend but think they are beautiful and just like a cruise ship should be.
 
We just got off the RCCL Navigator of the Seas which was docked in Nassau next to the Wonder. The Navigtor is much bigger and wider than the Wonder.

I hope DCL gets another ship. RCCL is coming out with another ship in 2006 that will have a mini water park. :flower:
 
We have been on DCL 6 times and RCI Mariner. Inside Mariner was beautiful, the ice rink was a hit with DD, never used the rock wall, loved the putt putt but missed DCL so much. Missed the rotating dinners, different dining rooms, my DD missed the kids programming, even though she doesn't use it much, RCI was just crazy! My DD spent $250 in the arcade (her own $$ and choice) due to this. DCL is elegant whereas the other ships look like oversize barges! I was surprised that I liked the Mariner on the inside as much as I did. We had a JS aft suite on RCI which is quite a bit larger than the category 4 on DCL but the other staterooms were smaller than the category 10. We had friends who had insides, outsides, and the ones that look like apts over the shopping areas.
I do wish that DCL would build another ship with more pools though.
DCL fits through the PC, which is why it couldn't be any wider.
 
bicker said:
One of the most useful ways of looking at this information is to divide Tons by Guests. That provides what the industry considers the most consistent measurement of personal space available aboard each ship. The Queen Mary 2 is 57. The Disney ships are 47. Holland American ships average around 44. Royal Caribbeen ships average around 39. Carnival ships average around 36. NCL ships average around 35.

This seems like a good way to get a sense of how much room you will feel like you have on board. Keep in mind, though, that QM2 was constructed as a trans-Atlantic liner, meaning that it has a much thicker hull and overall heavier construction to allow it to tolerate the harsh conditions of the North Atlantic.
 
Vanvmom said:
I've attached a photo of the Carnival Pride docked in Mazatlan next to the Disney Magic. It's not the size that matters! :earseek: Our horn sounds WAY better than their horn!!! :banana: Even the Carnival passengers were cheering as our horn blew on our way out of port! :teeth:

100_0673.jpg

I find the size of the Magic and Wonder on the "smaller" size compared to some of the newer ships in the mainstream cruise lines; however, you still hae to compare size of staterooms, onboard activities, etc.

Yes, I had to reply because of the horn - NO MATTER WHAT SHIP YOU ARE ON, you have to cheer when the Magic or Wonder leaves port and the horn blows. Cool story: We were on Princess and several ships were in port in St. Thomas (I believe) and they got into this "horn blowing contest" so to speak. Magic blew her "When You Wish Upon a Star" and guess what - contest over and everyone was cheering for her.
 
Keep in mind, though, that QM2 was constructed as a trans-Atlantic liner, meaning that it has a much thicker hull and overall heavier construction to allow it to tolerate the harsh conditions of the North Atlantic.<!-- / message --><!-- sig -->
That's a good point. Another thing to keep in mind is that cruise ship designers have gotten a lot better, over time, making use of the volume they have available. So the 2006 Freedom of the Seas will feel more roomy and comfortable than the 1998 Vision of the Seas, even though the proportion of gross tonnage to passengers may be lower. While re-habbing a cruise ship can improve some spaces, and even make better use of room in cabins, there's an upper limit to that improvement, as the superstructure of the cruise ship is obstensibly fixed. Even cutting a ship in half and slipping in a new section (as has recently been done for several ships) only helps a limited amount. The push for newer and newer ships is recognition of this.
 
Each ship does in fact have a unique personality.
I took my first cruise 25 years ago, and have been on 7. The experienced travel agents I worked with always tried to match you to both a ship and an iternary you will like.
"The Mermoz" was a very stuffy formal small ship. 95% of the passengers were from France. Tuxes were required for formal nights, suits for every other dinner. Entertainment consisted of the cruise staff performing, including singing by the captain.

"The Norway" was a classic ocean liner, tiny cabins, but fine service. It was the largest cruise ship in operation when we sailed her. We cruised her twice, and are very sad she is no longer sailing. At the times we sailed the Norway was known for featuring known entertainers on board, Norm Crosby, Jack Jones were the entertainers on our first cruise, The Fifth Dimension and Shields and Yarnell on our second. Some NFL player whose last name was Nixon was the sports celebrity on the first cruise, Moses Malone was the sports celebrity on the second.

"The Nordic Prince" was a younger, hipper ship, smallish, newer. It featured boardway quality shows, but no name entertainers.

"The Soveriegn Of the Seas" was 2 months old when we sailed her, she was the first Megaship, and at the time the biggest. Everything was state of the art, and it featured Broadway type shows.

"The Amsterdam" was a good sized ship, which was known for quality of service.........the line was know for it's "tipping is not expected" police because "top quaility service should be provided without expectation of a tip". Of course everyone tipped. Sadly, HAL has since gone to tipping for the first time in the lines 100+ year history. Again, broadway quality shows, but no name entertainers. But frankly, the best show was put on by the Indonesian cruise staff at 11:30 pm one night, featuring the music, dance and songs of Indonesia. It was a show from the heart, and they rocked the house.

"The Magic" is a class ship, just the right size, without some of the usually cruise features (Casino), but with lots more kids space. Of course it has the Disney touch, but it's not over kill.
 
Liz said:
A friend of mine was asking me if the Disney ships are bigger, smaller or about the same as other cruise ships. Since I haven't ever seen the Wonder or Magic in person I couldn't really answer her question and its so hard to judge the size by just looking at a photo.

So my question is when you are on the Magic or Wonder and you see another cruise ship, how does DCL compare in size?
When the Disney ships were first announced, they were larger than any cruise ship in operation at the time. But soon other cruise lines were ordering even larger ships.

Most cruise ships built in the past ten years fall in one of two categories:
  • Those that are at or near the maximum size to fit through the Panama Canal ("Panamax" sized). Such ships tend to have a volume of 70-90 thousand GRT.
  • Those that are too big to fit though the Panama Canal. Such ships tend to have a volume of 110-150 thousand GRT.

Panamax sized ships have essentially the same width and length as the Wonder and Magic. Some newer Panamax sized ships have more staterooms and interior volume than the Disney ships. For example, RCCL's Radiance of the Seas has a volume of 90,090 GRT compared to the Disney Magic's volume of 83,000 GRT. (GRT is a measure of volume, not weight.)

In another recent thread, I assembled a comparison of one of HAL's Vista Class ships to the Disney Wonder. (The same numbers would apply to other HAL Vista Class ships and to the Disney Magic.)

Ship ................................... ms Zuiderdam .......... Disney Wonder
Line ................................... Holland America Line .. Disney Cruise Line
Ship's Registry ........................ The Netherlands ....... The Bahamas
Year of delivery ....................... 2002 .................. 1999
Staterooms ............................. 924 ................... 875
Passenger capacity at double occupancy . 1,848 ................. 1,750
Maximum passenger capacity ............. not published ......... 2,400
Crew members ........................... 800 ................... 945
Gross tonnage .......................... 85,000 grt ............ 83,000 grt
Length ................................. 951 feet .............. 964 feet
Beam ................................... 105.8 feet ............ 106 feet
Maximum speed .......................... 24 knots .............. 24 knots
 
When the Disney ships were first announced, they were larger than any cruise ship in operation at the time.
Hmmm, maybe.
But soon other cruise lines were ordering even larger ships.
Uh, not really. Voyager of the Seas was announced in 1996 (as "Eagle 1"), with a Gross tonnage of 138,000, long before the Disney ships were announced.
 

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