When traveling, I always try to approach each destination with an open mind and a desire to experience the culture, meet the locals, see the guidebook recommendations, and get off the beaten path whenever possible.
06.06.2024 - 14:59 / insider.com / Royal Caribbean / Cruises
I've been on nine Disney cruises with my husband and two teenage sons. Although we've sailed on other cruise lines like Carnival, Celebrity, MSC, and Royal Caribbean, Disney Cruise Line is always our top pick.
Stellar service, subtle theming, top-notch kids and teen programs, and a dreamy private island in the Bahamas are some of the reasons we keep returning.
So far, we've been on all five Disney Cruise Line ships — Disney Magic, Disney Wonder, Disney Dream, Disney Fantasy, and Disney Wish. However, we'll soon have more ships to explore, with Disney Treasure planning to set sail in December and Disney Destiny set to embark on its maiden voyage in 2025.
Out of the five ships we've been on, two stand out as favorites, and there's only one I'm not in a hurry to travel on again.
Disney Wonder and Disney Magic are my favorite ships within Disney Cruise Line.
They have nearly identical deck layouts and are the fleet's two smallest ships. Although some may see this as a negative, I prefer the smaller, more intimate size and the ease of getting around the ships.
Disney Wonder also has my favorite Disney Cruise Line restaurant, Tiana's Place. It offers a delicious, Cajun-inspired menu and a fun "The Princess and the Frog" theme. There's even a lively floor show with jazz music.
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I love Disney Magic, too, but I thought it was more dated and in need of an update than Disney Wonder.
I also didn't love the Magic's Rapunzel-themed restaurant nearly as much as I loved Tiana's Place.
The food at Rapunzel's Royal Table was just so-so, but the entertainment and theming more than made up for it. The in-person appearance of Rapunzel and Flynn, capped by a lantern processional to the tune of "I See the Light," was glorious.
Although I had a great experience on board Disney Wish, it was my least favorite ship to travel on.
The Wish is unarguably beautiful — everything is sparkling new, and the atrium is decked out with a life-sized Cinderella sculpture. However, I thought the layout was a little clunky.
I may have felt this way because many of Disney's ships are laid out very similarly, and after nine cruises, we're pros at finding our way around.
Disney Wonder and Disney Magic have nearly identical deck layouts, as do Disney Dream and Disney Fantasy. Disney Wish, however, is laid out much differently.
Unlike the other Disney cruise ships we've been on, Disney Wish doesn't have a specific area for adults-only lounges.
Instead, the adults-only bars and lounges, which are off-limits to kids after 7 p.m., are scattered throughout the ship. This means the Wish doesn't have that true kid-free haven that the other ships have.
I also found that many parts of the ship felt crowded, from the dining rooms to the
When traveling, I always try to approach each destination with an open mind and a desire to experience the culture, meet the locals, see the guidebook recommendations, and get off the beaten path whenever possible.
Until last month, I had never been on a cruise. Neither had my parents or my sister, but my grandmother — my nan — often travels by cruise ship, so we decided to join her on a cruise .
I finally realized that my parents are, in fact, always right. Unfortunately, learning my lesson took a stint in a windowless cabin on a Carnival cruise.
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Silversea is one of the highest-end cruise lines on the market. So, as you can imagine, its new ship's most expensive suites are luxurious.
Tourists headed to the expensive hotels of Mykonos and Santorini: rejoice!
Luxury cruise line Lindblad Expeditions is expanding its presence in the Galapagos with plans to buy two ships from fellow cruise line Celebrity Cruises. Lindblad will purchase both the 48-guest Celebrity Xpedition and the smaller, 16-guest Celebrity Xploration for the Lindblad Expeditions-National Geographic fleet, the company announced Wednesday. Following the sale, which is expected to close in January 2025, both ships will undergo multi-million dollar renovations. Each ship was purpose-built for the Galapagos. «We recognize and appreciate the immense privilege our company has to operate and grow our expedition cruise offerings in the Galápagos Islands,» Sven-Olof Lindblad, the founder and CEO of Lindblad Expeditions, said in a statement. «By sourcing well-appointed vessels and onboarding the most experienced crew and staff who meet our exacting standards of responsible exploration, we're able to transport guests from around the world to the iconic archipelago and help them understand the importance of protecting and preserving its wonders and wildlife, as a consequence of their personal experience.»
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I am a very, very avid cruiser. Last year alone, I spent 73 days on cruise ships.
Before I took my first cruise in April 2022, I had never even seen a cruise ship.
It's a summer of savings for a popular low-cost airline. Spirit Airlines, based in Fort Lauderdale, recently published dozens of new flight deals, with fares starting at only $20 to popular destinations such as Charlotte, Dallas, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Orlando, and Portland. Travel + Leisure spotted fares available including: