Disney Magic Cruise Review
October 13, 2012
Just The Facts:Ship: Disney Magic
Ship Captain: Captain John
Cruise Director: Mr. Peter
Ports: Galveston, Grand Cayman, Costa Maya, Cozumel
Weather: Very good all week
I was excited about this cruise and review as this is my 1st Disney (DCL) cruise, but 75th overall. I am traveling with the Dear Wife (DW) and we know that there will be a lot of new experiences this cruise.
Day One--Saturday--Embarkation
Cabin 6543 - Deck Six |
Day Two--Sunday--at Sea
Signals Bar in Quiet Cove (adult only) |
Very nice seas and we had a very good nights sleep. The weather today is perfect with clear skies and warm, but comfortable temperatures in the mid 80’s. We slept late and went up to Topsiders buffet for breakfast. Not a wide variety but all the basics for breakfast. After breakfast I made some notes in the cabin then we went exploring the ship. We just happened to walk by Topsiders buffet as they opened for lunch and although early for us we went to see the fresh presentation of the food. It was Italian themed so I had some Antipasto, Chicken Cacciatore, a Shrimp and Rice dish, and small Tiramisu for dessert. After lunch we went to Quiet Cove to swim. It’s a very nice adult only swimming pool and area. At 2:30 we attended a Martini Cocktail Presentation in the Sessions Bar. It was interesting and they served us four small martini’s while explaining various types and styles of the drink. Following we went back to Quiet Cove to relax, swim, enjoy a cocktail, and visit with new friends. They made an announcement that the evenings feature presentation (our time would have been 6:15 to attend as late dining has the early show times) had been cancelled for tonight so we just extended our little deck party through sundown in the Quiet Cove. Dinner tonight was in Animators Palate dining room, another interesting MDR. For dinner I ordered a Slow Roasted Duck & Cheese Quesadilla, The Beast’s Potato & Sausage Soup, and the Peppercorn Crusted New York Strip Steak. All very good. For dessert I ordered Cinderella’s Lemon Cheesecake and a Princess Aurora Sundae. After dinner we went to Rockin’ Bar D, a smaller showroom and bar, to see the physical comedy of Steve Carte. It was an adult only show and very entertaining, we then stayed to watch the Love & Marriage show following.
Day Three--Monday—at Sea
Minnie at Character Breakfast |
Day Four--Tuesday--Grand Cayman
Pirate Night Deck Party |
It’s a warm and beautiful day. We arrived at Grand Cayman and anchored off Spott’s Bay not the usual downtown Georgetown location. We have decided to stay on board and enjoy the ship since we have been here many times. DW had room service breakfast and I went to Lumiere’s for my first proper breakfast of Eggs Benedict, bacon, hash browns, etc., it was the best breakfast of the cruise so far. After breakfast it was up to Quiet Cove the adult only area to swim and relax. They have a large pool, two hot tubs, Signals Bar, padded loungers, tables, and a small cafe: The Cove. They also have entertainment in the afternoon and evenings, a very nice touch. The three beers on tap at Signals bar: Shiner Bock, Longboard Island Lager, and Bud Light. Everyone knows about Shiner Bock, a great Texas beer, but the Longboard, a Hawaiian beer is very nice as well. We had lunch in Topsiders and it was again very good. They had Crab Legs, Sirloin Steak on the carving station, Lobster Rolls, and much more. A really amazing selection for lunch. For dessert they had a make your own Sundae station. After lunch we returned to the Quiet Cove area. It’s really busier than I thought it would be as many cast members were also enjoying the pool and great weather. Interesting seeing them and speculating on who is which particular Princess, Prince Charming, Pirate, or Disney character. We sailed from Grand Cayman about 4:30 and we enjoyed our day on ship. We returned to the cabin to get ready for the 6:15 show featuring David McWilliams or Magic Dave. He had an interesting show, very family oriented as he used children in the act. After the show we went to Sessions for piano music and a couple of Side Car cocktails. Tonight is Pirate Night on the ship and many guests and most of the crew are dressed in pirate gear this evening. Dinner tonight was back in Lumiere’s. The wait staff is dressed as pirates and there were Pirate scarves for the guests as well as a Pirate Caribbean menu. They again had Hearts of Palm for me and I ordered a wonderful Pirates Golden ‘Pot Sticker’ (a dumpling stuffed with pork) and a Castaway Chicken Breast in light jerk sauce. After dinner we went on deck for the big Pirate Deck Party. They had entertainers and Disney Characters dressed as pirates dancing. Also some new characters: Smee and Captain Hook made an appearance. The highlight was pirate Mickey sailing down, by zip line, from the top of the stack to the stage on lido deck followed by fireworks. Very impressive and the first time I have seen fireworks from a cruise ship. The night was not over though as we went to the Buena Vista theater to watch Finding Nemo in 3D. It was almost 1:00 am by the time we got back to the cabin...a very long and enjoyable day.
Day Five--Wednesday--Costa Maya, Mexico
Mahahual, Mexico - 100% Agave |
Day Six--Thursday--Cozumel, Mexico
Disney Dreams cast |
Day Seven--Friday--at Sea
Caption above cabin bed |
Debarkation
We arrived back in Galveston just after 6:00 am well ahead of schedule. We had planned on using the Express Walk-off debarkation, but really had no choice as we were much too weak to pack on Friday. We began packing about 6:45 am in hopes it would begin early and we could beat even the early crowd. I was feeling much better and DW was still weak, but we made it down to the Rockin’D the designated Express Walk-off location about 7:15 and yes they were allowing pax off early. We were through customs about 7:30 am.. We walked to the car, filled with gas at our usual Galveston location ($3.42 gal), and was on the bridge by 8:00 am. We did run into Texas A&M football traffic that delayed us somewhat, but we were back at the ranch at 1:00 pm..
Ship
Maiden Voyage: July 30, 1998
Passenger Capacity: 2,400 | Gross Tonnage: 83,000 tons
Length: 964 feet | Beam: 106 feet | Draft: 25.26 feet
Cruising Speed: 23 knots
Passenger Capacity: 2,400 | Gross Tonnage: 83,000 tons
Length: 964 feet | Beam: 106 feet | Draft: 25.26 feet
Cruising Speed: 23 knots
We both love the design of the ship. It has an old fashioned Ocean Liner theme and has a lot of Art Deco and Nautical themes throughout. It uses large portholes in lieu of square windows and the uses lots of rigging to give it an older feel. All the public rooms are wonderful, especially the themed MDR’s and Art Deco rooms.
Crew / Staff
The staff and crew always greet you. From the beginning of embarkation to every crew member on ship they always acknowledge passengers with a greeting. The bar staff all very friendly. The cabin steward, Rohan Murray did a very good job. Our dining room waiters were excellent. Aditya Salian, from India, our server and Servet Yuksel his assistant were probably the best team I have ever had on a cruise. It helped that they have fewer tables and really well for us that on late setting we were their only table.
Cabin
We had cabin 6543 a category 11 interior, It’s 184 sf (the same as a Carnival interior cabin). Decorated in a nautical art deco style with a couch, curtain separator, push button safe, small refrigerator (not a mini bar), flat screen TV, radio/phone communication system, and two closets. The cabin seems larger since there is the full couch, there is good floor space. Since Disney cabins are designed for families there is a drop down bunk and the uncomfortable couch makes into a bed. There is not really that much storage for the two of us, I would hate to have any 3rd or 4th along. The bath room is very small with very little storage for toiletries. The cabin Television features many Disney channels and programs. There was a wide variety of Disney classics and newer movies throughout the week.
Food
I have mixed feelings about the food. Breakfasts are very weak and not a good salad bar anywhere. The lunches were half and half...some great, some just ok. Two days were some of the best lunches I’ve ever had on a cruise ship. The dinners were all very good to excellent. Steak is available every night either on the main menu or the everyday menu. We had dinner reservations for Palo, but canceled as the dinners in the MDR were so good. I would do Palo for brunch since breakfast is the weaker meal. There were ice creme machines and a soda fountain on Lido deck.
Highlights
We really enjoyed and took advantage of the adult Quiet Cove area. The productions shows in the Walt Disney Theater were all excellent. The Disney first run movies in the Buena Vista theater were also great. We also enjoyed the Sessions, the piano bar. The crew and staff were also all so very well trained. Also the unlimited soda fountain was great for us that drink Coca-cola products.
Comments
It was our first Disney cruise and in spite of the final day we really enjoyed it. Our initial fear was that there would be too many children. There are so many scheduled children’s activities that the kids are kept very busy and as experienced cruisers we took advantage of being on ship when most were away and did activities at different times in order to minimize those ‘family’ times. My contrarian cruise theory worked very well. If you are into the Disney experience you will have a fantastic time. There are numerous Disney character gatherings, the limited addition Disney collector pins, Disney activities & games, and so much more. You literally can not walk for more than a few minutes on board without running into a Disney Character.
The new 8-day Disney cruise from Galveston next year will be very Disney intensive with calls at the private island of Castaway Key, Key West, and a day at WDW. I’m not sure I will do that, but DW and DD would. I will cruise the Disney Wonder when she comes to Galveston.
Disney Magic - Costa Maya, Mexico - 10/17/2012 |