Wish or Dream for 3 year old?

[pixiedust33]

I’m looking into a 5 night cruise for March and I’m down to either the Dream out of Ft Lauderdale to Cozumel or the Wish out of Cape Canaveral to the Bahamas. Both stop at Castaway Cay. I’ve heard dining is better on the Wish but the Kids Club on the Dream looks much cooler with the Toy Story and Star Wars stuff. From the perspective of a young kid, which ship do you think offers more? Any general key differences I should be aware of? I’m not finding the Disney site that helpful for comparing. We’re not interested in adult only stuff and mostly plan to be together as a family.

ETA: he is fully potty trained and is also a very tall nearly 42 inches already.

 

[auntlynne]

If she is potty trained and out of swim diapers - so can use the pools, Wish has more little pools than Dream’s pool. So if someone has an accident and it has to be drained, it’s not a total closure if swim areas.

If not potty trained, swim diapers are used for this area on the Wish.

 

[auntlynne]

Pools on the Dream

• AquaDuck – height 42 inches or taller
• Donald’s Pool – adults and children ages 3 and older
• Mickey’s Pool – ages 3 and older
• Mickey’s Slide – ages 4 to 14; height at least 38 and no more than 64 inches tall
• Nemo’s Reef – ages 3 and younger (swim diapers required)
• Whirlpool Spa tubs – adult supervision required for Guests under age 16

 

[sponica]

We chose the Wish because it was a 4 night out of Port Canaveral. Honestly, I don't think a 3 year old will care that much. My 3 year old wasn't fully potty trained and when we were at open house for the kids club with my 7 year old, she found the kids club very overwhelming. But she also hated the nursery because it was filled with babies. My 3 year old loves spiderman, so the highlight of her trip was seeing spiderman at dinner at Marvel.

The splash pad on the Wish is fun (and conveniently located near an adult beverage station). The downside is, you don't get to see the sail away party if you use the splash pad at that time.

 

[auntlynne]

Ft Lauderdale airport is a much shorter drive to hotels or port. (10-15 minutes v 60+ for PC). The airport is also smaller.

If she will watch any TV /Disney videos in the room, on the Wish she will need to sit in the big bed. Placement is not designed for viewing from the couch/ kid’s bed. At 3, maybe not a factor.

 

[auntlynne]

Potty training is a big deal. At some point, she has to be an independent toilet user. Is this a factor for her?

 

[sponica]

Ft Lauderdale airport is a much shorter drive to hotels or port. (10-15 minutes v 60+ for PC). The airport is also smaller.

If she will watch any TV /Disney videos in the room, on the Wish she will need to sit in the big bed. Placement is not designed for viewing from the couch/ kid’s bed. At 3, maybe not a factor.

We loaded a bunch of stuff onto our tablets ahead of time and just used that for the kiddos.

 

[auntlynne]

Are you planning on staying on the ship in Cozumel? Or doing an excursion? Going during Hurricane Season?

I would pick Bahamas over Cozumel. But Fort Lauderdale over PC (for pre-cruise convenience, especially with a preschooler).

 

[auntlynne]

We loaded a bunch of stuff onto our tablets ahead of time and just used that for the kiddos.

That is what I expected to hear was the modern way to go.

 

[TheRichFam]

I would say that your kiddo is going to have the best time of their life regardless of which ship you choose. I'd say the difference between the Dream and Wish is MUCH smaller than the Dream/Wish vs. the Magic or Wonder. I've taken young kids to each of the three classes of ships and definitely would say the Wish and Dream are far superior to the Magic or Wonder.

That being said, this is your cruise, too. I honestly believe the Wish has tended to get a bad rep based on "confusing layout, no storage in the stateroom, too many shopping venues," etc. However, my wife and I went into our first Wish cruise (kid free!) expecting to be aggravated by those things but ended up loving it so much we decided to go again and take kids. Bottom line for me- the things that the Wish does better than the other ships (food, coffee, lounges, coffee, movie theaters, did I mention coffee?) far outshine the things about the Wish that are annoying. Yes, the layout is different, but it only took us about one full day to figure it out. Since, in my opinion, your kiddo will love the Wish and Dream equally, I'd recommend the Wish based on the fact that I think you will prefer it quite a bit over the Dream.

Plus, the slide from the Grand Hall down to the kids area is REALLY cool.

I hope that makes sense!

 

[pixiedust33]

Potty training is a big deal. At some point, she has to be an independent toilet user. Is this a factor for her?

Lot of people asking this and yes! He’s been fully potty trained since last January so wasn’t thinking about this. He’s also very tall - just shy of 42 inches and not quite 3.

 

[pixiedust33]

Are you planning on staying on the ship in Cozumel? Or doing an excursion? Going during Hurricane Season?

I would pick Bahamas over Cozumel. But Fort Lauderdale over PC (for pre-cruise convenience, especially with a preschooler).

We’re going in late March so shouldn’t be hurricane season. I am actually leaning towards staying on the ship in either Cozumel or the Bahamas, which is why that wasn’t much of a factor for me. I was thinking we wouldn’t have any sort of priority as it’s our first cruise and we’re not doing club so was thinking more time to explore the ship when it’s less crowded might be good. We will definitely get off for Castaway Cay though.

I hadn’t realized just how convenient Ft Lauderdale is so that’s tempting! I know Cape Canaveral is a pain to get too but we would also combine it with a couple nights at a Disney resort (no parks) so I’m also kinda tempted by that, even though it would obviously be more expensive. I was trying to not let that influence the ship choice though.

 

[pixiedust33]

My 3 year old wasn't fully potty trained and when we were at open house for the kids club with my 7 year old, she found the kids club very overwhelming.

Totally valid! He is potty trained but I’m also very unsure of how he will react to the kids club and if he will want to stay and we won’t force it at all if he doesn’t want to go. But I did think the cooler the club, the more likely he might be tempted. And I think he’ll like seeing them in the open house either way.

 

[auntlynne]

Any sensory issues? The Marvel restaurant could be overload.

Honestly, either one should be great. Whatever combo of air, hotels, cruise you cobble together - and you enjoy can be great.

Don’t forget Christmas with kids - sometimes it’s the box that they choose to play with. You can pick the “best boat experience” present and they can like something inconsequential. Don’t overthink it.

 

[pearljammer]

I’m looking into a 5 night cruise for March and I’m down to either the Dream out of Ft Lauderdale to Cozumel or the Wish out of Cape Canaveral to the Bahamas. Both stop at Castaway Cay. I’ve heard dining is better on the Wish but the Kids Club on the Dream looks much cooler with the Toy Story and Star Wars stuff. From the perspective of a young kid, which ship do you think offers more? Any general key differences I should be aware of? I’m not finding the Disney site that helpful for comparing. We’re not interested in adult only stuff and mostly plan to be together as a family.

ETA: he is fully potty trained and is also a very tall nearly 42 inches already.

Hi there, this is about the age when we took ours for the first time. I’ll start by saying that I don’t think you can go wrong with either. So as someone else pointed out, do YOU have a preference? I’ll be honest with you. My child did NOT stay in the kids clubs as much or as long as I thought he might; despite how cool we thought it was. So please keep that in mind that it is a possibility. We never thought it would be possible and we even went with friends and the 2 boys just weren’t digging it at that time. Granted things have changed since then but our intro was the Dream. It does have the midship detective agency which he may enjoy. I would say this is your call unless of course you show him pics of the clubs and what to do and get his input; especially if he says “nope” to the clubs and then you are supervising him perhaps more than originally thought. Either way it’s a win and it’s going to be special. We actually picked up a small stuffed mickey that “magically” appeared the first night when the room “changed”. That in itself was magical to him. So the trip will be what you make of it honestly. Sounds to me like a win-win. Just snag your placeholder while on board. And don’t wear yourself out trying to do all the pictures with all the characters. Plan for pirate night or schedule him a makeover (before dinner). What fun!

 

[dreamer17555]

Okay I this will likely not be a popular take but here goes- Book the sailing you as an adult want to go on (or is cheaper if you really cannot decide).

He is 3. He will likely enjoy either sailing. I get we all want our children to have the best experience but by booking a DCL sailing you are already paying a premium over other lines and getting him wonderful kids clubs, great family events, and fantastic shows.

Book for you. He will have a wonderful time on either.

 

[pixiedust33]

Any sensory issues? The Marvel restaurant could be overload.

He’s not a big fan of a lot of noise so this could be an issue! I do bring noise canceling headphones. We did Disney world last March and he was totally fine with the park generally, and most meals, including Chef Mickeys, but he did find a few rides too loud, notably Winnie the Pooh which was both dark and loud and kind of chaotic. Is it prolonged loud noise there or lost occasional loud outburst?

So as someone else pointed out, do YOU have a preference? I’ll be honest with you. My child did NOT stay in the kids clubs as much or as long as I thought he might; despite how cool we thought it was. So please keep that in mind that it is a possibility

Oh my eyes are fully wide open to the possibility he won’t stay at all! He’s definitely a momma’s boy and would generally rather be with us. If we were going now, I’d say no way would he even try it. But he is starting preschool in the fall and I’m thinking maaaaybe by the spring? But also totally aware he may not stay and am more interested in kids stuff that the whole family can do. I have to look more into this midship detective agency thing. He loves paw patrol and the idea of going on “missions”, and scavenger hunts.

 

[pixiedust33]

Okay I this will likely not be a popular take but here goes- Book the sailing you as an adult want to go on (or is cheaper if you really cannot decide). He is 3. He will likely enjoy either sailing. I get we all want our children to have the best experience but by booking a DCL sailing you are already paying a premium over other lines and getting him wonderful kids clubs, great family events, and fantastic shows. Book for you. He will have a wonderful time on either.

Just realized this posted without my comment! I was just going to say that I’ve opened a bit of can of worms with this and I’m not entirely sure which ship I would prefer myself but am now digging in more on the restaurants and shows as a point of differentiation. Having never cruised, I’m not sure I have any informed opinions about the layout and stuff like that but there does seem to be notable difference there. Can anyone tell me what time the shows typically are? I’m wondering if those will be too late for my son anyway.

 

[Aimeedyan]

We sailed on the Dream twice within one year - when he was almost 3 (standard 4 night Bahamas) and when he was 3.5 (13 night transatlantic to Barcelona). After spending that many nights on it, I'm pretty partial to it but haven't done the Wish. It's still way too pricey for me.

I agree that I would pick whatever is cheapest and easiest for you. ALL the Disney ships are amazing and both of those are the larger ships with similar amenities.

Mine couldn't tell you which ship he went on but he knows he went on a Disney cruise and loved every minute of it! Both trips, he cried all the way through customs because we had to leave.

 

[Lillebelle]

I think you will have an amazing time on either, and ultimately you should prioritize what works best for you, as others have mentioned.

But, I will offer that for a three year old, unless he's super into Marvel or Star Wars already, I'd probably do the Dream. The meals are a lot less show-oriented (Dream really only has the Crush Turtle Talk vs Wish has the Marvel show and Frozen show). Both Marvel and Frozen are pretty constant throughout the meal (Marvel is mostly on screens but it's a lot of stimulation, Frozen is all live performance). The Wish kids clubs are amazing for kids old enough to appreciate them but I think the Toy Story area on the Dream for a 3 year old will be more appealing than the more advanced stuff the Wish has. I also kind of hate that slide on the Wish that leads into the kids club because...since it's the entrance, kids can't do it over and over. How many kids have you met that only want to do a slide once?

Regarding the shows, they are offset with dinner, so if you do early dining you would go to the late show (like 8:15pm) *but* for the most headline show, they also often do a matinee at like 1pm which I would recommend doing if you think your kiddo might like the show but won't want to stay up. Pro tip -- you can look at sample navigators with itineraries of activities here: https://disneycruiselineblog.com/personal-navigators/

One other consideration I don't feel like has been addressed - you mentioned 5 night Dream or Wish but the Wish only does 4/3 nights (right?). So if you're choosing between a 4 night and 5 night itinerary, I'd definitely recommend 5. I feel like that's the sweet spot where it's not too long if you end up not loving the cruise but it's long enough for you to 'hit your stride' and really enjoy it.

Good luck with your choice though -- really I don't think you can go wrong!