Berlitz Cruising & Cruise Ships 2017 (Berlitz Cruise Guide) (2016)
Disney Magic
★★★★
Berlitz’s Ratings
Ship: 397 out of 500
Accommodation: 155 out of 200
Food: 201 out of 400
Service: 287 out of 400
Entertainment: 88 out of 100
Cruise: 318 out of 400
Overall Score: 1446 out of 2000
Disney Magic Statistics
Size: Mid-size Ship
Tonnage: 83,338
Lifestyle: Standard
Cruise Line: Disney Cruise Line
Former Names: none
IMO Number: 9126807
Builder: Fincantieri (Italy)
Original Cost: $350 million
Entered Service: Jul 1998
Registry: The Bahamas
Length (ft/m): 964.5/294.0
Beam (ft/m): 105.7/32.2
Draft (ft/m): 26.2/8.0
Propulsion/Propellers: diesel-electric (38,000kW)/2
Passenger Decks: 11
Total Crew: 945
Passengers (lower beds): 1,750
Passenger Space Ratio (lower beds): 47.6
Passenger/Crew Ratio (lower beds): 1.8
Cabins (total): 875
Size Range (sq ft/m): 180.8-968.7/16.8-90.0
Cabins (for one person): 0
Cabins (with private balcony): 388
Cabins (wheelchair accessible): 12
Wheelchair accessibility: Good
Cabin Current: 110 volts
Elevators: 12
Casino (gaming tables): No
Slot Machines: No
Swimming Pools: 3
Hot Tubs (on deck): 6
Self-Service Launderette: Yes
Dedicated Cinema/Seats: Yes/270
Library: No
Onboard currency: US$
Ultra family-friendly cruising in a casual, big ship setting
Overview. Disney Magic is like a floating version of Disney’s incredibly popular theme parks - seagoing Never-Never Lands. In reality, they provide a highly programmed, well organized, and regimented onboard experience, with tickets, lines, and reservations necessary for almost everything. Children of all ages (minimum 12 weeks old) will have a great time aboard this ship.
The Ship. Disney Cruise Line’s first ship’s profile is sleek, and combines streamlining with tradition and nostalgia, a black hull, and two large red and black funnels reminiscent of the ocean liners of the past - Disney Magic was the first cruise ship built with two funnels since the 1950s. The forward funnel is a dummy containing various public spaces, including a teen center, Aloft.
There are two outdoor pools: one pool for adults only (in theory), and one for families. One has a large poolside movie screen. In a 2013 makeover, a super-popular AquaDunk water-slide experience was added.
Inside, the ship is quite stunning. Most public rooms have high ceilings, and the Art Deco theme of the old ocean liners or New York’s Radio City Music Hall has been tastefully carried out. Have a look at the stainless steel/pewter Disney detailing on the handrails and balustrades in the three-deck-high lobby. The lobby provides a real photo opportunity, with a 6ft (1.8m) bronze statue of Mickey Mouse in the role of a ship’s helmsman.
A highlight for most is a day spent on Disney’s private island, Castaway Cay in the Bahamas. It is an outstanding private island - perhaps the benchmark for all private islands for families with children. It has its own pier so that the ship can dock alongside. Water sports equipment - floats, paddle-boats, kayaks, hobie cats, aqua fins, aqua trikes, and snorkels - can be rented.
Take mainly casual clothing, although there are two ‘formal’ nights on the seven-day cruises. Gratuities are extra, suggested at about $10 per person, per day, and 15 percent is added to all bar/beverage/wine and spa accounts.
Families. The ship has three main zones: one for adults only, one for families with children, and one for families or single parents with toddlers. Each group has its own swimming pool and open deck/sunbathing areas - adults only at the front of the ship. A 24 x 14ft (7 x 4m) Goofy Pool Jumbo Screen is positioned by the family pool area, just behind the forward funnel; it shows classic Disney animated and live-action movies, TV shows, and sporting events.
A child drop-off service is available in the evenings, and private babysitting services are available at around $11 an hour, as are character ‘tuck-ins’ for children, and character breakfasts and lunches - all at extra cost. Free strollers are available, and parents can be provided with beepers in order to enjoy their time alone, away from their offspring for much of the day.
Accommodation. There are just six different cabin layouts, in several price grades; the price will depend on the grade, size, and location chosen, and are linked to the resort accommodation for those taking a combined resort/cruise vacation. Spread over six decks, all have been designed for practicality and have space-efficient layouts.
Most cabins have common features like a neat vertical steamer trunk for clothes storage, illuminated closets, a hairdryer located at a vanity desk or in the bathroom, and bathrobes for all passengers. Many cabins have third and fourth pull-down berths that rise and are totally hidden in the ceiling when not in use, but the standard interior and outside cabins, while acceptable for two, are extremely tight with three or four. Some cabins can also accommodate a fifth person. Cabins with refrigerators can have them stocked, at extra cost, with one of several drinks/soft drinks packages.
Bathrooms, although compact due to the fact that the toilet is separate, are really functional units, designed with split-use facilities so that more than one person can use them at the same time - good for families. Many have bathtubs, which are really shower tubs.
Accommodation designated as suites offers much more space, and extra goodies like CD and DVD players, big-screen TVs, and extra beds (useful for larger families). Some suites are beneath the pool deck, teen lounge, or informal café, so there could be noise as the ceiling insulation is poor - although cabin-to-cabin insulation is good.
Wheelchair-bound passengers have a variety of cabin sizes and configurations, including suites with a private balcony - unfortunately you can’t get a wheelchair through the balcony’s sliding door - and over-sized bathrooms with excellent roll-in showers, and good closet and drawer space. Almost all the vessel is accessible. For the sight-impaired, cabin numbers and elevator buttons are braille-encoded.
Dining. There are three main dining rooms - non-smoking of course - each with over 400 seats, two seatings, and unique themes. Lumiere’s (in the center of the ship on Deck 3) has Beauty and the Beast; Parrot Cay (Deck 4) has a tacky, pseudo-Caribbean theme; also on Deck 4 aft, with great ocean views over the stern, is Animator’s Palate, the most visual of the three with food and electronic art that makes the evening decor change from black and white to full-color (this author’s signature is on a hidden wall panel in this venue - it was done in the shipyard at Disney Cruise Line’s invitation).
You eat in all three dining rooms in rotation - twice per seven-day cruise - and move with your assigned waiter and assistant waiter to each dining room in turn, thus providing the variety of different decor and different menus. It’s a great concept - and unique in the cruise industry. As you will have the same waiter in each of the three restaurants, any gratuities go only to ‘your’ waiter. Parrot Cay and Lumiere’s have open seating for breakfast and lunch, but the lunch menu is pitiful.
Other dining options. Palo is a 140-seat reservations-only alternative restaurant with a small cover/gratuity charge, serving Italian cuisine. It has a 270-degree view and is for adults only; the à-la-carte cuisine is cooked to order, and the wine list is good, although prices are high. Make your reservations as soon as you board or you will miss out on the ship’s only decent food. Afternoon High Tea is presented here, on days at sea.
Topsider’s (incorporating Beach Blanket Buffet) is an indoor/outdoor café serving low-quality self-serve breakfast and lunch buffets with limited choice and presentation, and a buffet dinner, consisting mostly of fried foods, for children. But the venue is often overcrowded at lunchtime, so it may be better to go to the Parrot Cay dining room, which offers breakfast and lunch buffet, too. A poolside Goofy’s Galley has grilled panini and wraps, and soft drinks are complimentary.
Scoops, an ice cream and frozen yogurt bar, opens infrequently; other fast-food outlets include Pluto’s for hamburgers, hot dogs, and Pinocchio’s, which is open all day but not in the evening, for basic pizza and sandwiches.
On one night, there is also an outdoor self-serve Tropicalifragilisticexpialidocious buffet.
A casual Outlook Café, installed in 2010, has fine views from Deck 10, just forward of the first funnel housing. Vegetarians and those looking for light cuisine will be underwhelmed by the lack of green vegetables. Guest chefs from Walt Disney World Resort prepare signature dishes each cruise, and also host cooking demonstrations.
Entertainment. The entertainment and activities programs for families and children are extremely good. There are three big stage shows in the stunning 977-seat showlounge, presenting original Disney musicals and the latest comedy productions, bring together a cast of Disney baddies from many Disney films. Sadly, there is no live orchestra, although the lighting, staging, and technical effects are excellent. There is also a Disney-themed Trivia Game Show.
Spa/Fitness. The Vista Spa is the ship’s fitness/wellbeing complex measuring 10,700 sq ft/994 sq m. The fitness/workout room, with high-tech Cybex muscle-toning equipment, has ocean-view windows overlooking the navigation bridge one deck below. There are 11 rooms for spa/beauty treatments - but note that the pounding from the basketball court on the sports deck directly overhead makes spa treatments less than relaxing.