Biggest Differences Between Classic Ships and Dream Class Ships

[g3pak]

My wife and I have been on both the Dream and the Fantasy. We brought our two teenagers with us on the Dream. Looking at an anniversary cruise on the Wonder- just my wife and I. I am very interested in what others think we will notice as different between the Wonder and the Dream Class ships. For example, it looks like no Satellite Falls.

Thank you so much for your insight.

 

[HappilyEverAfter80]

No Aqua Duck, no Midship Detetctive Agency, no virtual portholes in the inside rooms on the classic ships. Much smaller atrium and overall smaller pool area. Especially for the kids. No Sattelite Falls, but we found the adult only pool on the Magic better than on fantasy. Fantasy also has a much nicer rainforest room in the Senses spa.
Magic was a lot easier to navigate and we also loved the Promenade lounge, not found on on the Dream class.

 

[undertheradar]

My wife and I have been on both the Dream and the Fantasy. We brought our two teenagers with us on the Dream. Looking at an anniversary cruise on the Wonder- just my wife and I. I am very interested in what others think we will notice as different between the Wonder and the Dream Class ships. For example, it looks like no Satellite Falls.

Thank you so much for your insight.

No mini golf.

 

[twitterpated31]

I thought I read that the midship detective agency was added on the Wonder during its dry dock

Is that not correct?

 

[scgustafson]

For me it is first the itineraries, as the classic ships have variety and length, are not stuck into either the 3/4-night Bahamas milk runs, or alternating 7-night Caribbeans. Next is the size, while the classic ship smallness would seem to be a detriment, it is actually a huge benefit as you have much fewer people. This means at onboard events, you are have fewer people attending them, as the number of events scheduled are not based on the number of guests on the ship, but rather the length of the itinerary and the number of sea days. Even though the newer ships are bigger, they did not make onboard amenities, such as pools, bars, etc, larger in the same proportions that they added guests between the classic ships and the newer ones. Yes, some of the big items are missing, AquaDunk, Satellite Falls, MDA, etc, but those things have much more people trying to use them in a limited amount of time. Honestly, on the classic ships, I have never felt anywhere as crowded as on Disney Fantasy, or especially Disney Dream, which has far more first-time cruises adding to the crowdedness as they wander around lost, often just stopping in major thoroughfares and coming off elevators trying to figure out where they are going.

 

[Shanti]

I thought I read that the midship detective agency was added on the Wonder during its dry dock

Is that not correct?

It is not correct. No midship detective agency. No magical artwork, either.

The classic ships also do not have Disney movies on demand in the stateroom. You have to just choose what to watch from whatever happens to be already playing on one of their channels.

The inside staterooms also do not have "magical" portholes.

For us, the food and service on the Fantasy was better than what we had on the Magic.

We're looking forward to sailing to Alaska on the Wonder next year, but will miss the extra amenities we enjoyed on the Fantasy.

 

[mevelandry]

Smaller spaces. Tiny elevators. Bigger adult only section (but showing wear and tear). No mini-golf. No Remy. Spa doesn't have jacuzzis. Nicer bars. Tiana's Place is amazing.

 

[Cackyschmackers]

Less crowded, less walking, less getting lost, less crowded CC, and in our opinion, much better food and service.

 

[disneymagicgirl]

No mini golf.

That was the first thing my son asked about when I was trying to talk the kids into the Wonder. Well, we are going on the fantasy for the 3rd time instead.

 

[psac]

Much smaller lines for the character meets, too. (Still long, but not as long.)

 

[g3pak]

Thank you so much to everyone. I am looking specifically at the Wonder. I like the idea of fewer people, even if it is a smaller ship, but wonder if we will miss the things that are only on the bigger boats. We enjoy the mini golf and my wife and I even did a round or two of MDA. We are not really into night clubs. We enjoyed the Rainforest Room on the Fantasy.

I will take any more input if someone can comment about the Wonder. Thank you!

 

[sleepydog25]

I'm not sure one class is necessarily better than the other depending on your particular needs and wants, of course. There is a certain intimacy and classic nature to the older ships which the new generation lost. Are the older ships easier to navigate? Yes, but not exponentially so. While the AquaDuck is fun, it's not as though you'd spend half your voyage on it, same with MDA. I've appreciated the smaller feel of the classic ships, and food on both has been good. I would give the edge to the Fantasy-class ships on food due to the addition of Remy, though the Animator's Palate on the older ships is a better experience. I've had excellent service on both types of ships, as well. In the end, it might be the itinerary which best guides your decision.

 

[lspst8]

My husband and I took a kid-free trip on the Wonder this March, after 3 cruises on the Dream and Fantasy with our kids and extended family. I think the ships were more similar than different. Obviously, everything on the Wonder is smaller, but it was still just as well-kept and clean. I missed the grand lobby -- the Wonder's lobby is beautiful but a lot smaller than I was used to, having only sailed the newer ships.

We also missed having the Aquaduck, although adults are permitted on the yellow slide so we did that a few times.
I missed Meridian. That was my favorite place for a drink on the Dream/Fantasy, but there really isn't a substitute on the Wonder. I thought the Cadillac Lounge was very classy on the Wonder, and they had a great pianist/singer perform the night we were there.

The quick service food is more spread out on the Wonder, but they had good options. This would have been a little annoying with kids (mine are 4 and 6, so not old enough to go off alone), but with just adults it was no big deal.

The adult pool area was very nice, and it was easy to get a lounger whenever we were there. The Wonder also had a guitarist playing by the adult pool frequently, which we enjoyed.

Overall, I would go on another cruise on the Wonder in a heartbeat. Especially without kids, the missing activities (like mini-gold, sports stimulators, Detective Agency) aren't really that noticeable.

 

[DisneyConvert]

Thank you so much to everyone. I am looking specifically at the Wonder. I like the idea of fewer people, even if it is a smaller ship, but wonder if we will miss the things that are only on the bigger boats. We enjoy the mini golf and my wife and I even did a round or two of MDA. We are not really into night clubs. We enjoyed the Rainforest Room on the Fantasy.

I will take any more input if someone can comment about the Wonder. Thank you!

We are not night club people, and I suppose chatting with folks at or after the 2nd seating and then the "mini" show at Waves at 10:30 is our nightclub.

We prefer the Magic/Wonder primarily 'cause of the more interesting itineraries.

The list of advantages on the Dream/Fantasy is very limited for me.
1. Mini-Golf, with Goofy! Fun.
2. The two-deck access to both the WDTheatre and the Movie theater. Cool!
3. Deck 4 Promenade is 1/2 mile around instead of 1/3rd mile around.

I think that's it.

 

[kiford]

I think that the staterooms are larger on the Wonder and Magic, at least in the veranda rooms. I found the rooms on the Dream and Fantasy to be narrower; the space between the end of the bed and the wall was harder to get around.

Also, I found the bathrooms to be tighter. Dream and Fantasy also require a card to keep the lights on.

I actually prefer the Cove Cafe on the Magic better - seems a bit more private and cozy. I also prefer the hot tubs in the adult only area better although I do prefer the pool on the Fantasy/Dream.

 

[PrincessShmoo]

I think that the staterooms are larger on the Wonder and Magic, at least in the veranda rooms. I found the rooms on the Dream and Fantasy to be narrower; the space between the end of the bed and the wall was harder to get around.

Yes, while the rooms onboard the Dream class ships are still larger than the industry norm for similar category rooms on other cruise lines, the ones on the Magic class are larger than the Dream class.

 

[cruiser21]

I thought I read that the midship detective agency was added on the Wonder during its dry dock

Is that not correct?

Not correct.

 

[deanimal]

This isn't a ship thing exactly, but if you're stopping at Castaway Cay I found that it felt way less crowded when we went on the Wonder than when we were previously there on the Dream. With the smaller ship it felt like the island was half empty!

 

[g3pak]

I just remembered- the exotic rasul. Is it still offered on the Wonder?

 

[Ravenne]

I think the classic ships don't have ondemand in stateroom tvs. Please correct me if I'm wrong.