Trying New Ships

[PrincessShmoo]

View attachment 824585
I believe it's because the Magic was given a "tail" during a dry dock a couple years back.

Hmm... I thought the Wonder also got the refit. The Magic got her new tail in 2012. And the Wonder in 2014.

 

[JoeFromSeoul]

We are fortunate to have sailed Fantasy, Magic, Magic, Wonder, Dream, Wish, & Wish with the last two being a B2B. Now we are looking forward to returning to our ‘home’ ship as we sail on the Fantasy in December.

Each has her charms and quirks, but I love them all. No disappointment here.

 

[FastPasser.]

We’ve reached the “been there done that” phase with DCL and after trying RCCL’s newest super ship recently, I discovered that I liked it. It’s time to move on. I’ll still do DCL but only if it’s something we haven’t done before and if it’s a deal I can’t refuse.

 

[Dug720]

Why are they different? They were built identically, I thought.

IDK. The stats I found. Probably, as @JM_97 said the tail

 

[MamaMermaid]

We've sailed on all but the Wish (we are going in March!). I think it's hard to go from Dream/Fantasy to Magic/Wonder, to be honest.

 

[Drfate102]

We have done all five ships and we have the Treasure booked. We went from Dream, Magic, Fantasy, Wonder then the Wish. I would sail any of them time and time again. I love the Wonder and my wife loves the Fantasy. But they all have their give and takes. My wife prefers the theming of the adult area on the Fantasy over the Dream. I like the smaller size of the classic ships and the Wonder has Tiana's.

 

[kiford]

They all have their unique charms.

So very true. Our favourite is still the Magic (I like the Wonder too but I prefer the decor on the Magic) but there are things I really like about the Fantasy and Dream and things I really like about the Wish. Some things I miss on the Magic (e.g., Midship Detective but it's not a deal breaker, Meridian Lounge/Rose Lounge, Remy but not Enchante). Some things I think were a big miss on the Wish (adult-only area). I prefer the rooms on the Magic and Wonder. I like the distribution of the lounges on the Wish better than the grouped areas on the other ships. I prefer the adults-only pool on the Fantasy/Dream but the Cove Cafe on the Magic/Wonder. I don't like the really small movie theatres on the Wish while the main live theatre I think is the best of all of them. I still prefer the more intimate feel of a smaller ship - and the ease of disembarkation - to ones of the size of the Fantasy/Dream/Wish. While the Magic is still our favourite (is it largely sentimental or because we've spent more days on her or a true preference?), I can't say that there is one ship that is 100% the absolute best and satisfies everything we want all of the time.

I approach each cruise with an open mind, recognizing pros and cons of each one, and roll with it. Even when we do a cruise where the ship selection is more important than the ports (or just fits our schedule better), there are still some compromises to be made. For each cruise, we look at ship, schedule, ports, and length of cruise and decide which works best for us at the time.

 

[msmama]

I can tell you, I'm the opposite. Magic and Wonder were my first few cruises and then just finally did the Dream. I was not as much of a fan of the Dream. The smaller ships feel more personal, I feel like you get to know people better. The Dream, I felt, I was just a random person - there were a few stand out CM's, but I feel there are a lot more of them on the smaller ships?

That said, I wouldn't hesitate to sail on any ship if the itenerary and price were what I wanted.

 

[brentm77]

I can tell you, I'm the opposite. Magic and Wonder were my first few cruises and then just finally did the Dream. I was not as much of a fan of the Dream. The smaller ships feel more personal, I feel like you get to know people better. The Dream, I felt, I was just a random person - there were a few stand out CM's, but I feel there are a lot more of them on the smaller ships?

That said, I wouldn't hesitate to sail on any ship if the itenerary and price were what I wanted.

I noticed that the FB group for our Med cruise on the Magic was the best one we have been part of. I wasn't sure how much of that was all of us returning to travel after the pandemic and the comradery that created, or the smaller size of the ship. It also helped that it wasn't a full ship. But I really liked it.

 

[chuff88]

We did Wonder first, then Fantasy (same class as Dream), and then were back on Wonder for our 3rd cruise. We really liked our first cruise, then LOVED the Fantasy, and then the Wonder was nice the second time but I did feel like I missed some things about the Fantasy. That said, we really enjoyed both of the ships we've been on so far and would gladly go on either again. We'll be on the Wish in February and the Dream in September, finally followed by the Treasure next January, so I'm definitely excited to experience the different ships.

 

[Lomac924]

We have sailed on the Dream several times, then the Wish, and then the Magic this past summer. I loved the adult pool are on the Magic.. I felt it was far superior to the Wish especially. I think the only let down I had on the Magic was that our rooms felt dated and were a little musty but overall, it was a fabulous vacation. Definitely loved less people at Castaway Cay.

 

[auntlynne]

Magic/Wonder cabins are slightly larger than Dream/Fantasy,

Things to also consider for your family’s preferences:
theming/shows in the MDRs
shows offered in the Walt Disney Theater
Water features - the long tube v the drop-down ride
Do you go to the extra $ candy /ice cream shop (D/F)
kids clubs - do your kids use them and what are the differences?