Tried the Magic, just got off the Fantasy - a comparison

[MagicMe]

The Magic still has my heart. I began sailing with DCL on the Wonder and I do love the second floor of the Cove Cafe but in terms of time spent on the ship, I have spent more than half my time on the Magic and she is even more beautiful after her reimagination.

Previously if I ranked the ships the Dream was at the bottom mostly because it lacked some of the improvements from the Fantasy but that has been rectified since it's last dry dock so I'm sure I will enjoy the Dream as much as the Fantasy. I will say that I love Pink on the Dream and am not that fond of Oh La La. The spa area on the newer ships are definitely nicer. I also feel that the restaurants on the newer ships are more crowded and definitely more difficult for the servers to maneuver.

Yes the classic ships do not have all the bells and whistles as the newer ships but they have a more personal feel. It helps that I can navigate around the classics with my eyes closed! I do think that DCL could upgrade a few things on the classics - how about the on-demand movies on the TV's and viewing of on board accounts?

I think most people that sailed on the classics several times prior to the newer ships will always have a special place in their hearts for them.

 

[mlayton14]

I think alot of the love of classic ships is about nostalgia, first love etc. . Personally I don't get the whole "easier to navigate" point unless you have some mobility issue, if you can't navigate a cruise ship, no matter the size not sure how you would navigate anywhere in real life

 

[TiggerBouncy]

A couple of your areas indicate that the Fantasy was roomier / spacious compared to the Magic. Just wanted to note we are talking about the difference in an 84,000 GT ship and a 130,000 GT ship. it's reasonable to expect the atrium / dining rooms / etc to be larger as well as the larger ship to have more amenities. I would be scared if it didn't.

 

[MagicMe]

I think alot of the love of classic ships is about nostalgia, first love etc. . Personally I don't get the whole "easier to navigate" point unless you have some mobility issue, if you can't navigate a cruise ship, no matter the size not sure how you would navigate anywhere in real life

No one said they could not navigate around it just that the classics are easier. One quick point coming to mind the adult restaurants. You can access the outside walking deck on the classics where you have to go down one level and then work your way outside to walk the decks. Also, the adults area is not always easy as you have to access the Piazza and walk through there and then through the labryinth of bathrooms to get to Evolution/The Tube, etc. Again, it's all doable. It's just that the classics are a bit easier.

 

[hubbard53]

we've done Fantasy three time and the Wonder once. For the most part, I think the service is similar. The restaurants have a better ambiance on the Fantasy but I think the adult bars on Wonder are more comfortable than Fantasy (Except for Meridian - I love Meridian on Fantasy).

 

[Club Disney Chandler]

No one said they could not navigate around it just that the classics are easier. One quick point coming to mind the adult restaurants. You can access the outside walking deck on the classics where you have to go down one level and then work your way outside to walk the decks. Also, the adults area is not always easy as you have to access the Piazza and walk through there and then through the labryinth of bathrooms to get to Evolution/The Tube, etc. Again, it's all doable. It's just that the classics are a bit easier.

But the same could be said about the quick service food places on the pool deck. I find those and the drink stations way easier on the Dream class ships.

 

[bethy]

We just took our ever first cruise on the Magic. I already had my next cruise picked out before we sailed and with timing and itinerary it turned out to be a Magic cruise again. I was a bit disappointed about not getting to try a different ship. BUT once actually on the Magic, on the last night, and after we had secured our OBB I found I was grateful to know I would be coming back to her again. It made it a little easier to leave

However I am certain that I would ADORE all four Disney ships - no question

 

[MagicMe]

But the same could be said about the quick service food places on the pool deck. I find those and the drink stations way easier on the Dream class ships.

I do agree that the quick service food places are easier to access on the Dream class ships but I don't particularly like how far away the drink stations are from the quick service areas especially on the Dream (they did put the drink station on the Fantasy a bit closer on the quick service side). The quick service area on the Dream ships is nice since it is altogether where on the classics they are mostly around the funnel but the drink stations are just the other side of the kiddie pools.

Each ship has it's pluses and minuses and I'd cruise on any of them. The one thing I miss the most from the classics (and which is no longer offered) is the option of being able to split the bed into singles. This made it so very convenient for two single adults to travel and split the cost of the cabin. Yes the new bed is nice but now if I travel with another adult (be it my mother, a friend, etc) you either have to share the bed (not going to happen) or one gets the bed and one gets the pull down couch (which is okay but not the best).

 

[cwdefouw]

We have also done both the classics and newer ships. Our preference is for the classics, although we do like the newer ships, just during the off season when they are not jammed to capacity. We have found that comparing category to category the cabins are a little smaller on the newer ships. Our preference for the classics also stems from the fact that we have done Bahamas, Eastern and Western Caribbean more than a few times on Disney and on other lines. The classics often go other places, that we have not been to before, so the sense of adventure, and to us at least, the overall cruise experience is better on the classics.

 

[yankeesgirl63]

We just got off the Dream a little over a week ago (it was our first Disney cruise) and booked our next cruise on the Magic for Feb 2017. It will interesting to see and feel the differences going from a large ship to the classic ship. My kids are excited, although they lived on the Aquaduck so I know they will miss that. For those with kids who utilized the Oceaneers Club, are the scheduled activities similar? My boys really liked the Super Sloppy Science series.

 

[ivanp91]

In the last two years I've done the two new ships (Dream - Nov '13; Fantasy - Nov '15) and the Magic (Dec '14), and prefer the Magic for most things.

- I prefer the larger adult pool on the Magic over the smaller pool/Satellite Falls on the Dream class.
- The adults area is so much better IMO. For example, Fathoms seems so much roomier than The Tube, but I think it comes down to the way they've been fitted out as well (I found The Tube to be too cluttered). Not to mention there are three larger venues as opposed to five smaller ones (O'Gills on the Magic was way nicer than on the Fantasy IMO, if only because there was more room to move)
- I liked the main entertainment venues, eg the Walt Disney Theatre, the adults areas, being in the same general area with the Buena Vista Theatre more towards the rear. The placement of the adults venues and the tunnels that join them gives me a strange vibe on the larger ships, as if they ran out of room and had to compromise where to put them.
- Other little layout things on the Magic such as the D-Lounge opening straight into the balcony over the atrium, and Shutters being more out of the way (bit of a pain trying to get through on busy days, dodging around the photo shelves and people watching over the balcony on the bigger ships).
- Cabanas had more of a laid back, beachy feel on the Magic, and having just come off the Fantasy I think this is only due to some differences in the decor used.
- Hard to choose between the AquaDuck and AquaDunk... maybe the Dunk because on my cruise there was barely any line for it the entire week
- The atrium lobby on the larger ships is far nicer, I agree the Magic's feels a bit claustrophobic.
- As others have mentioned, you can definitely tell that one holds twice as many people as the other especially on Castaway Cay. We weren't amongst the first off the ship, and slowly strolled our way to Serenity Bay while on the Magic (never got that far when on the Dream) and still got a prime spot on the beach. On the Fantasy, we were one of the first off (in the 5K group), did the run and then caught the tram, so arrived up there at probably a similar time... the beach was PACKED and we had to go all the way up the end to find empty seats.
- Very trivial stuff, but I found the Magic had some interesting flavors that they rotated through the soft serve machines. On the Fantasy it was the same (vanilla, choc, strawberry, banana) the entire week.

 

[bumbershoot]

Thanks for your review but it seems like you were already heavily slanted towards the Fantasy so I would say this isn't exactly an objective review. I haven't been on the Magic yet but heard it's spectacular.

So...how do you feel like the OP was "already" slanted one way or the other. She went on one ship last year, and the other this year. And now she's comparing them.

NOW perhaps she's slanted, but why do you think it was like that before this trip?

 

[dkfogt]

OP - I really appreciate your post.

I have done the Magic (pre reimagine) and the Wonder because they've gone out of Galveston, so it's SO EASY for my family. They are great, but I really want to try the bigger ships, mostly because of my kids. My 7 year old LOVES the Oceaneer Club, but she saw the "Disney Cruise Line Behind the Magic" and keeps asking if we are going on the one with the light up floor.... My teenagers would have nothing to do with the Edge or Vibe (we when they were 11 & 14 on the Magic and then 14 & 17 last month on the Wonder). I am hoping my "then 15 year old" will at least give Vibe a chance.... it looks neat on the bigger ships. My younger one also wants to try the midship detective agency... and Animator's Palate looks awesome on the Fantasy.

Regarding Castaway Cay - we just docked with the Wonder and couldn't find any lounge chairs at all on the family beach after a couple hours. Serenity Bay was EMPTY - maybe a dozen people?? That was pretty cool.

I've never done the Spa, but I think I will check it out on the Fantasy.

We have done the Western Caribbean and the Bahamas (I will not get off the boat if we ever dock in Nassau again), so we are doing the Eastern Caribbean next time. I have always thought I would prefer the big ships, so looking forward to future cruises, I've been disappointed that the big ships never go anywhere else... Maybe it won't be ME that is disappointed to go back to the classic ships when we want a new itinerary - I'm worried it will be my youngest because of the kids clubs.

 

[oklamomof4boys]

We have done both- I don't know which we prefer. I always thought Disney managed the crowds pretty well on the larger ships, but the last 2 times on the Magic it definitely felt less crowded- especially waiting to get in the restaurants at night. We also noticed it on Castaway Cay. Meals on the Fantasy did seem a little more hurried because of the number of people and our meals always took longer on the Fantasy. But the last 2 times we were on the Magic (March and October 2015) the service in the main dining rooms didn't seem as good- maybe we were just unlucky with who we got. Our absolutely favorite server at Palo is on the Magic. I prefer the adult pool areas- and hot tubs-on the Fantasy but it was much less crowded on the Magic. I much prefer the Aquaduck to the dunk (the dunk scares me)but my husband loves the dunk and it rarely had a line. But I did like the water slide on the Magic- I can't remember what it is called.

 

[grantclaire]

We have sailed on all 4 ships and all the cruises were great! I thought the Fantasy had the best layout and facilities and the Magic had the best staff and service. Just my opinion.

 

[Madzac]

We've done Dream in 2013 and Magic in 2015. Excited to try the Fantasy this summer. We too loved both but had a few similar observations. ..

Atrium felt much smaller and less of a wow factor when we boarded the Magic vs the Dream. That we felt right away. Otherwise we liked the shorter hallways and shorter character lines. I also preferred Animators Palate on the Magic, liked the classic show and design a lot. CC did seems less busy too particularly at lunch.

We actually had better service and more invested servers and cabin steward on the Dream unlike most report! We again just felt everything seemed grander. We also preferred the aquaduck. We never had a chance to do MDA or mini golf...hopefully this time.

Kids had no preference in clubs...littler ones loved both and my for my tween it was more the people in Edge.

Overall though we had a blast on both and we go on either again! Can't wait to try the fantasy!

 

[Shanti]

We just got off the Dream a little over a week ago (it was our first Disney cruise) and booked our next cruise on the Magic for Feb 2017. It will interesting to see and feel the differences going from a large ship to the classic ship. My kids are excited, although they lived on the Aquaduck so I know they will miss that. For those with kids who utilized the Oceaneers Club, are the scheduled activities similar? My boys really liked the Super Sloppy Science series.

They had Super Sloppy Science on the Magic last week.

 

[phinz]

Thanks for your review but it seems like you were already heavily slanted towards the Fantasy so I would say this isn't exactly an objective review. I haven't been on the Magic yet but heard it's spectacular.

Most reviews aren't objective. That's the point of a review. They are based on the opinions of the author. That's why the OP called it a *comparison*.

 

[KMovies]

It's so hard to compare all of the ships. I think one thing that makes a difference is the cruise length. Often, with the longer cruises, you tend to get to know your servers better, the ships have more activities, etc. so that factors into which ship someone may prefer. When it was just Magic vs. Wonder, the Wonder won out for ship but Magic won out for cruises since it was 7 nights. So, Fantasy vs. Dream would be impacted by 3/4 night vs. 7 night which really plays into how ones opinion may fall. Now Magic vs. Wonder, Magic would now win since it was redone. Someday, Wonder is to get the same treatment, so it may win out again. Honestly, I love the newer ships, but basically, because they are newer, more advanced, and in some cases, larger such as the balcony on the newer ships for the WDW theatre.