Cheburashka
Momketeer
- Joined
- Dec 25, 2020
I just disembarked from a 5-night sailing on the Disney Magic. Given the conflicting reports from post-dry dock cruisers, I thought I would share my takeaways from the cruise. This was my 10th DCL cruise, and my 4th on the Magic, so I have a seasoned perspective on what to expect from a Disney Magic cruise.
Pros:
I booked this cruise OGT, so I got a very good rate for it, about half of what it would have cost without the discount. If I had paid full price, I would have been incensed about my stateroom issues, but as it was, I was philosophical once the initial odor issue was taken care of. The cruise was just about worth what I paid for it, especially since I lucked into a cabana on Serenity Bay, which was the highlight of my cruise.
One other fyi: Before this cruise I had asked about taking DCL transfers vs. taxis as a solo cruiser, and was told they were about the same price. This is untrue, as taxis now cost a little over $50 each way after a 15% tip, and this was without any heavy traffic. There are no more flat rates for this route- only meter. DCL transfers are much cheaper than taxis for solo guests sailing out of Miami.
Pros:
- The Magic is a beautiful ship in good condition. If you sailed her right now with no prior information about the post dry-dock issues, you wouldn't guess that those issues had occurred.
- The air conditioning works normally throughout the ship. Deck 3 was very warm during boarding, but that's because the door was open all afternoon in June in Miami. The other floors were fine at this time and deck 3 was fine the rest of the cruise. Temperatures in staterooms are completely normal (you can have cold AC if you want) and you can adjust the stateroom temperatures as you want them as usual.
- My MDR service and food were good- the expected quality for DCL. Service was caring and engaging, and this was a relief for me, because the service I had in the MDR on the Dream in January had been poor. The shows at Animator's Palate and Rapunzel's Royal Table were spirited and fun. The entertainers at the latter were very engaging when they stopped by every table during dinner.
- The food and service at Cabanas, the pool deck, room service, Palo and MDR breakfasts & lunches is at the same DCL standard as always.
- The service throughout the ship and on Castaway Cay was good- the expected DCL quality.
- Public areas and bathrooms were kept very clean as always.
- The theatre shows were Tangled, Twice Charmed and Disney Dreams. Tangled and Twice Charmed were great. Disney Dreams was marred by technical difficulties, but was otherwise good.
- I got the 25th anniversary print on the second day (no reminders to Guest Services required) and it's very nice.
- The pool decks were in good, normal condition. Twist & Shout is a great waterslide- hint, there is no wait for it during the last hour it is open each day. Aqua Dunk looked good, but I don't like drop-down slides so I stayed off of it. I've ridden it on a prior cruise and that was enough for me. The adult pool deck hot tubs are very nice, as always.
- The atrium looks beautiful, with the statue and chandelier in good repair. I'm not one to analyze the quality of a carpet, but I didn't notice any glaring problems with carpeting anywhere onboard. It looked normal to me.
- The spa and gym were in good, normal condition.
- Soul Cat Lounge is an attractive space and was well-utilized for family activities (crafts and trivia) during the cruise.
- Many people decorated their doors and participated in Fish Extenders, which imo makes for a fun atmosphere.
- There were 2 fireworks shows: 25th anniversary and Pirate Night. I could see these from my stateroom window.
- There were lots of great photo opportunities with characters, and against backdrops, as always.
- I saw a full crew painting the top front portion of the ship (not sure what it's called) while I was working out at the gym while the ship was docked at Cozumel. They're obviously working hard to keep the Magic looking beautiful, and plan to maintain her for years to come.
- The muster drill was prompt and over mercifully quickly (everyone in each stateroom has to attend, btw).
- Touchscreen elevator buttons generally worked well. Once I pressed a number that was nonresponsive- that was only one time out of a lot of elevator rides, so overall it worked just fine. No excessive stopping on non-selected floors, so that isn't an issue.
- I didn't get my Castaway Club gifts (lanyard, dry bag and wet bag) automatically upon my arrival to the stateroom. I had to call Guest Services and tell them they hadn't been laid out. They then arrived later that day.
- Every day of this cruise, they were painting the edging of the entire length of the promenade on both sides of the ship. The promenade was still available, but portions of it always reeked of paint fumes due to the active painting, which made for unpleasant portions of your walk if you're the type who likes to walk or jog laps around the promenade, or just lounge there. They probably finished this by the end of my cruise, because they were working on it every day. That's something I wish they had done during dry dock.
- I experienced being very slightly dripped on twice: once outside the deck 4 aft elevator, and the other also near an elevator, but I didn't note which one. Each time, it was only a single drop of water, and I couldn't see the leak. I never smelled any moldy odors onboard, btw.
- This one is just a typical post-Covid cruise issue: there is still no officers' pin trading event. Such a downer as the DIY pin trading boards always only had the cheap-looking pins that nobody really wants. Bring it back, DCL!
- My stateroom was attractive and clean. I have to list this under cons, though, because it was a bad stateroom overall: noisy throughout the cruise, with a noticeable dent in the mattress, and it smelled bad upon my initial arrival. Maintenance was prompt and caring and worked to quickly remediate the odor issue.
- Every morning for a short time, there would be an odor of fumes in the stateroom, like paint thinner. Then it would go away. I don't know how that worked, but it happened each morning, fortunately not lasting long. I wonder if it was somehow related to the painting that was being done outside of the ship.
- The TV in my stateroom had problems throughout the cruise, with the Disney on Demand movies blacking out at least once every day. They taught me how to reboot the TV, which I had to do daily, and sometimes multiple times per day.
- Bottom line: avoid stateroom 2598 on the Magic class, and probably also the staterooms around it. Even without the odor/mattress/TV issues, it's a loud area, especially at night. It's right over the engine and under a restaurant galley.
I booked this cruise OGT, so I got a very good rate for it, about half of what it would have cost without the discount. If I had paid full price, I would have been incensed about my stateroom issues, but as it was, I was philosophical once the initial odor issue was taken care of. The cruise was just about worth what I paid for it, especially since I lucked into a cabana on Serenity Bay, which was the highlight of my cruise.
One other fyi: Before this cruise I had asked about taking DCL transfers vs. taxis as a solo cruiser, and was told they were about the same price. This is untrue, as taxis now cost a little over $50 each way after a 15% tip, and this was without any heavy traffic. There are no more flat rates for this route- only meter. DCL transfers are much cheaper than taxis for solo guests sailing out of Miami.
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But also glad we booked deck 7 after hearing your report of your deck 2 stateroom.
