Convince me to go for the Grand Slam on the Wonder...

[KashasMom]

Home with a sick daughter yesterday I started looking for a vacation in November. I had no intention to book another cruise - much less Disney at this time. Then I saw that the Wonder has a Very Merrytime cruise that would fit perfectly into our schedule. There are many pros but the biggest con for me is that it's the Wonder. (My fav is the Fantasy, least fav is the Magic.)

Please tell me the good (and the bad) about the Wonder!

 

[happytime]

It would hard to convince you to go on the Wonder EXCEPT it's DISNEY!!!

If you have sailed on the other 3 ships, this would make a grand slam cruise. As you probably already know, Disney started with the Magic and the Wonder, so you would be cruising a ship that is still sailing from its inception. And smaller ships have their charm.

I would recommend, if I may, you take a short cruise with them. The MerryTime cruises are wonderful. The ships are all "decked out" for the holiday. It feels like the holidays, too.

My husband and I have just returned from sailing on the Magic, which is our 2nd time with them and our first Disney ship cruise, and it was like going home. Smaller, more intimate than the Fantasy and Dream.

I also agree with you. I like the Fantasy, too! Much more activities, more to explore, rooms are bigger. BUT nothing like being with a cosy homey feeling aboard the Magic and I think the holidays are a perfect time for family!!

 

[GoofyLovingFamily]

I love Tianas. It is my favorite restaurant aboard any of the Disney ships. I also loved the Frozen show. These are only available on Wonder for now.

 

[AquaDame]

Home with a sick daughter yesterday I started looking for a vacation in November. I had no intention to book another cruise - much less Disney at this time. Then I saw that the Wonder has a Very Merrytime cruise that would fit perfectly into our schedule. There are many pros but the biggest con for me is that it's the Wonder. (My fav is the Fantasy, least fav is the Magic.)

Please tell me the good (and the bad) about the Wonder!

Hmm.. well the first thing that strikes me is that she IS the sister ship to the Magic so.. what did you not like about her?

I don't really like the Magic (its my least favorite ship) but I love the Wonder - she is my favorite followed closely by the Fantasy. I do wish she had some of the bells and whistles of the larger ships, but as the Little Mermaid was my favorite movie growing up I love a lot of the little meaningless details like the MDR being Triton's with a nice mural, and the statue is Ariel. She goes on a lot of the more interesting (to me) itineraries like Alaska and the Southern I am going on next week, and it was SO NICE being able to take a 2 hour flight to board her to go to Mexico! I can't do that with any other ship - they're all on the East Coast or further away. Tiana's is such a fun addition as well, and I love that kind of food (we often eat at Blue Bayou in Disneyland on our trips there for the jambalaya and we make beignets at home even though they are a pain to make due to the frying). I was in the group that found Cariocas bland and uninspired... maybe I will like the Magic more once it is a different restaurant.

 

[Amw1064]

Loved Tianas as well on the Wonder. The Frozen show was also good. Besides no Aquaduck, you won't miss being on the bigger ships.

 

[tlprice]

Just got off the Wonder yesterday. It was our first time on one of the smaller ships. The first day and a half, I think my daughter was a little disappointed by the Wonder. We had just been on the Dream last month and on the Fantasy and Dream previously. By the end of the 2nd day, she was in love with the Wonder and was extremely sad to leave yesterday. Due to its smaller size, she was able to more easily explore on her own, made some great friends, and had some incredible experiences. I feel like interactions with the cast members were much better, the addition of Tiana's was nice, the ship was in fantastic shape, everything looked great, the shows were excellent, I found the food to be good, some of my tablemates did not (I think it was what they kept ordering though), the pools were much less crowded than on the bigger ships, lines were shorter for everything, I liked the pirate show better, they had a sectioned off area for kids for the deck shows which was really nice, the elevators were smaller but never as long of a wait or as extremely crowded, etc., etc. I could go on and on. I am already looking to book another trip on the Wonder in the future. I guess, as with anything, it's all about how you approach it and what your expectations are going in.

 

[mjfisherdc]

Looking forward to the Grand Slam next week. The Wonder will be our last ship. We loved the small size of the Magic. Shorter lines, more interaction. My daughter is looking forward to dining at Tiana's!

 

[lklgoodman]

We've only been on the Wonder once, several years ago for an Alaska cruise. We will be sailing on her again in March for a 7nighter, I'm really excited since our previous cruise was before her last major dry dock. Looking forward to the Frozen show and Tiana's. I've noticed that, at least for our cruise it's a lot cheaper than a 7nighter on the Fantasy. Also looking forward to less people on CC. We did a cruise on the Fantasy last year, and while the extra things(aquaduck, detective agency, etc) were nice, I don't think I'll miss not having them on the Wonder. We have another cruise booked on the Fantasy for Jan. 2019, I've tried to convince my dh to change it to a Merrytime cruise on the Magic, but he doesn't want to do anything less than 7nights. I've been on the Magic before, but it was nearly 17 years ago, I really want to see the Tangle show and try out the new restaurant. If you don't go on the cruise what would your other options be? Also if you do this cruise it will help you get closer to your next Cast-away level, of course if you're already platinum it won't matter. Either way, any vacation is better than no vacation.

 

[IrishEye]

We too are on the Wonder next week and love the itineraries she sails. We have done all 4 and enjoy everything the Wonder has to offer. Kids clubs were a big hit even more so than the Fantasy for ours. Agree that it seems more personal and staff just seem more friendly. This will be our 8th time on Wonder, 17th overall with DCL.

 

[Shanti]

We're excited about sailing on the Wonder in June- that will make a grand slam for us, too. It isn't just Alaska I'm excited about, it's also the chance to dine at Tiana's Place and see the Frozen show. I love the Dream class ships & will miss a few of their anemitites (especially Disney movies on-demand in the stateroom), but the classics are great, too, and given my past experiences on the other 3 ships, I'm looking forward to:

• The classic version of Animator's Palate, which imo is better than the Dream-class version,
• Better Pirate night show,
• Better Till We Meet Again show,
• More/better for-all-ages game shows
• Hot tubs on the family pool deck (Fantasy no longer has one & the one on the Dream didn't work properly during our sailing)

 

[Geomom]

We're excited about sailing on the Wonder in June- that will make a grand slam for us, too. It isn't just Alaska I'm excited about, it's also the chance to dine at Tiana's Place and see the Frozen show. I love the Dream class ships & will miss a few of their anemitites (especially Disney movies on-demand in the stateroom), but the classics are great, too, and given my past experiences on the other 3 ships, I'm looking forward to:

• The classic version of Animator's Palate, which imo is better than the Dream-class version,
• Better Pirate night show,
• Better Till We Meet Again show,
• More/better for-all-ages game shows
• Hot tubs on the family pool deck (Fantasy no longer has one & the one on the Dream didn't work properly during our sailing)

Just wanted to say that they don't have Pirate night on the Alaskan cruises--they substitute the Frozen deck party for it (it's at sailaway on Skagway day, between dinner seatings). No fireworks are allowed in Canadian/Alaskan waters--or any of the Northern European/Norway/Iceland/British Isles cruises for the Magic--similar environmental regulations. Our first cruise was Alaska, second will be Northern European this summer...if we keep up with these type of itineraries who knows when we'll experience a Pirate night!

 

[mevelandry]

I guess it depends on the reason why you did not like the Magic... We had a great vacation on the Wonder but we enjoyed the Dream more because there was more stuff to do (aquaduck, mini-golf,etc.)

Also,(not saying you're doing it for that reason) the grand slam won't be a grand slam once the new ships arrive.

For the prices DCL charges, I would stick to a vacation that I know I'm going to enjoy.

 

[Shanti]

Just wanted to say that they don't have Pirate night on the Alaskan cruises--they substitute the Frozen deck party for it (it's at sailaway on Skagway day, between dinner seatings). No fireworks are allowed in Canadian/Alaskan waters--or any of the Northern European/Norway/Iceland/British Isles cruises for the Magic--similar environmental regulations. Our first cruise was Alaska, second will be Northern European this summer...if we keep up with these type of itineraries who knows when we'll experience a Pirate night!

In that I was referring to your Caribbean cruise, which does have Pirate Night. I know they don't have it in Alaska.

 

[Tara D]

We love the Wonder. I felt like the cast interactions there were fabulous, we never had to wait for anything because the crowds weren't overwhelming, love their adult area, Tiana's was great. Our complaint was the lack of nightlife. The ship kind of dies at 10 pm. We were there without kids in November and met a lot of people and made our own fun, though. I would go on the Wonder again in a heartbeat, seriously.

 

[jlynch924]

We've been on all but the Fantasy, and love the Wonder the most. While Dream has some cool stuff, Wonder is more intimate with smaller lines for everything. We've been on her pre- and post-reimagining, and find that she's only gotten better with age.

 

[oakleycat]

The Wonder is the only ship we haven't been on as well. After hearing all this I need to book a Wonder cruise!

 

[dcassetta]

You'll be able to add a fun image to your signature!

 

[Trera]

You'll be able to add a fun image to your signature!

Good point!!

 

[tallygirl]

The Wonder is my favorite ship. Even though we expected to sail the Fantasy next to complete a grand slam, once we heard about the new Frozen show and Tiana's, we decided to do the Wonder again.

We found the food to be better, cast member interaction better, less crowded, more intimate feeling.

I especially can't wait to experience Tiana's. Love that type of food, love jazz.

We are a bit older and don't travel with kids so can't speak to that aspect.

 

[scootch]

I have been on all four and like you, love the Fantasy. The Wonder was our first. I am trying it again next week as I wanted the Southern Caribbean. Hoping I am wowed a bit more. It did take some convincing for me to book it. I guess as other have said, it is Disney so I know I will have a great time. But do I expect to come home loving it as much as the Fantasy, I highly doubt.

For those of you who found it less crowded, is that so of Cabanas? We only did the Magic once and noone understood the "pods". People were lined up out the door to the elevators even though CM's were telling them not to line up. I am hoping that we don't have this issue on the Wonder. It was very frustrating.