Which would you pick?

[SteffyLou]

We have been on many Disney cruises (12) and kids ages 10 and 12 have been on 4 (Fantasy and Dream only). None of us have cruised in the winter nor out of Texas.

We are looking at either the 4 day Magic from Galveston with 2 sea days and Progresso in late January or the 4 day Fantasy out of Port Canaveral with stops at Nassau , Lighthouse, and a sea day over the same weekend.

The prices are almost exactly the same for the cruise and flights for us. We are coming from the Chicago area so travel time is also basically the same.

Which would you pick and why? DH and I have never been on the Magic but we have been on the Wonder.

 

[Peaseblossom36]

I would pick the Magic, but we love sea days and weren't fans of Lighthouse. On our early February cruise the water was too chilly for our daughter, but your kids are older so may not be as bothered.

 

[JM_97]

4 night on the Fantasy is a better ship and better itinerary. Nassau vs Progreso is probably a wash but with the Fantasy you get a Disney island.

 

[nephykupo]

Lighthouse is the best stop among the list imo. I never been on Fantasy but I've been on the Magic twice. It's a very good small ship, especially if you love Tangled. But tbh, the Fantasy port stops you gave are better and you could do a park day or more too

 

[SnowWhite2]

There are lots of things to do and see for pre-teens in Houston/Galveston. If you're interested in doing something different and seeing different things, I’d do the Magic out of Galveston.

 

[hardcorestitch]

Go for the Galveston ship! Great time to try the Galveston port if you haven’t tried yet.

 

[DCL58]

We just went to Lighthouse for the first time and loved it. Our cruise went to St Kitts, Tortola, Antigua, castaway and Lighthouse. Lighthouse had the best beach of all those ports for us!

We stayed almost all day and we never stay more than a couple hours at castaway.

 

[MrMagoo]

Have you been to Chichen Itza or Uxmal?
That alone would make us chose the 4 day on the Magic.

Since you say you have been on the Dream I can assume you have already been to Nassau.
It is not that great of a destination to us anymore.
If you have been there at least 2 times you probably have seen all you will see.
Then it becomes just a beach stop or just staying on the ship.

However, if you haven't been to either Chichen Itza or Uxmal, just seeing those over Nassau
should be a great learning experience for your 2 kids as well as you also.
They are both fascinating places!
Just know Chichen Itza has vendors ALL around while Uzmal doesn't, yet.
It is also more well known and has a lot more tourists.
We took a Disney excursion to Chichen Itza that also included a Cenote swim and lunch.
There wasn't really enough time for the swim part but at least the kids did get to swim a little.

Disney used to go to Chichen Itza from Cozumel but last year on our cruise stop there it wasn't offered.
Do not know when they stopped going there from Cozumel.
It had been a few years since we were there with Disney.

Just know the water at Lighthouse may only be in the high 70's.
But coming from the Chicago area in January even that will probably feel good!

 

[Amunet]

I would probably go Fantasy because I have never done Lighthouse. I have been on both ships and my favorite is the Magic. I would also want to tie in WDW with the Fantasy cruise.

But that's me. What do you want most out of your vacation: the ship? the ports? departure location?

 

[ditchdiggert200]

OP, what does your family enjoy when cruising? The ships? The stops? What were your thoughts of the Wonder? Do the kids know you're planning this? What are their thoughts? What are the characters or experiences you like to do? Have you and your DH done the Remy Dessert experience? Do you want to hit all of the ships eventually?

Our family has sailed on the Dream and the Wish. For us, we like the experience of trying new (to us) ships, going different places, and spending time together as a family. We are currently scheduled to sail on the Magic in 2 weeks, so for us the choice would be the Fantasy because it's a ship we have yet to sail on. Coupled with the fact DW and I LOVED the Remy Dessert experience on the Dream, we would do that again in heartbeat.

All of that to say, my grandfather is having some health issues and we may have to reschedule our cruise on the Magic. (Shameless plug about travel insurance here.) If that does happen, Magic all the way. DD (16) favorite movie is Tangled and Rapunzel wins!

 

[SteffyLou]

All 4 of us have already been to lighthouse, castaway, and Nassau. We’ve got off the ship in Nassau last time, but would probably just stay on it if we went there again. We’ve all already been on the Fantasy. We’ve done the dream together 3 times and the kids love that ship. They have not been on a smaller or larger class size.

DH and I used to love the Wonder more than Fantasy/Dream, but to be honest it’s been over 14 years since we’ve been on that ship size. We haven’t seen any of the Magic shows or eaten at the Tangled restaurant which makes me lean towards this trip . But then I just question if 2 days at sea and Progresso is more worth it. I also watched a video from this past year and it was 45 in Galveston to leave ( which why yes that will probably be warming than Chicago doesn’t seem awesome).

Kids love the clubs, trivia, food . We have never seen the sites in Mexico. This would just be a short trip just for the cruise and back home. We would go for outdoor time since we will be coming from cold.