Disney Magic Review
Wonderful Cruise Experience to Norwegian Fjords Villages
Rating by category
Additional details
I chose this cruise for the ports of call-Norwegian Fjords towns of Stavanger, Alesund, Geiranger & Bergen. I went with a friend who used her Disney Vacation points to take the cruise and she is a huge Disney Cruise Line fan. She has had wonderful experiences and really enjoys seeing the children have so much fun. Great memories.
I have been on 14 cruises on various cruise lines including Disney. I choose a cruise because of the itinerary not the ship or cruise line. I prefer smaller to mid-size ships like the Magic because they are less crowded and can go into ports the larger ships cannot. The Disney Magic was a perfect choice. Although the same cruise is offered by Holland America & Princess and probably several others cheaper than the Disney Cruise.
The ports of call were excellent. Lovely fishing villages with unique experiences in each town. We took several Disney excursions at each stop each one was well organized and interesting. We also booked 2 excursions on our own which were identical to several of the Disney excursions for about 1/2 price. They too were well organized. check out Trip Advisor, Cruise Critic etc for suggestions.
Cabin Review
Deluxe Oceanview Stateroom
The rooms are still very nice with the 2 bathroom setup with one having a tub/shower & sink and the other having a toilet and sink which is a very good set up especially for families. There were only 2 of us on this cruise as on my last cruise with Disney. The bathrooms are fairly large and all rooms have the tub/shower which is a must for me. Ships with showers only are undesirable as the showers are way too small for anyone except a child. the shower curtains cling to your body and you get water all over the floor. So I always get a room with a tub/shower combination which usually costs more. for example HAL has balcony rooms with tub/showers but on Princess you have to get a mini-suite in order to get the shower/tub and this is quite expensive for what you get - a small room with balcony. Our outside room on the Magic was spacious and as large as a mini-suite on Princess and as large as outside rooms on RCL and HAL ships. I usually get a Verandah room but the outside cabin room was also nice with a large single window. Another change in the Magic is that they no longer offer single beds but all the rooms have a queen and bunk beds. I miss the single bed option especially when you travel with non-family members. One of us had to sleep on the bunk bed which was tolerable but would have been a lot better if we both could have had single beds. Most cruise lines offer this set up, I wish Disney did. The mattress on the queen bed was very comfortable.
Port Reviews
Stavanger
Norwegian home visit was outstanding experience. visited with Norwegian family walked through village to home and had a great time getting to know the family. very limited number so book early.
Alesund
Alesund - we took another Disney excursion to the island of Giske & Godoy with a Lighthouse tea break which cost $85 but without tea a little less. Tea consisted of Norwegian waffle & cup of tea nothing special about this tea break. We enjoyed the islands and this excursion was the best way to see them. Alesund is a beautiful town so take the HOHO bus ($18) or train tour ($12) for a good way to see the architecture. both tours stop at the Fjallstoua viewpoint overlooking the town or you can climb the 400 steps up from town center. Alesund is a nice town to walk around with grocery store near ship. We took the train tour which was about 1hr 15min and enjoyed it.
Geiranger
Geiranger Fjordservice which have the same excursions as Disney for a lot less. Geiranger Fjordservice was easy to work with and to set up tours through. We chose a combination tour which included a 60 minute boat cruise out to the Geiranger Fjord and a Panoramic bus tour up Eagles Rd for $47pp which is half of what Disney charged for exact same tours. Boat cruise and bus tour were located @ pier and very easy to use. The cruise tour was very scenic. We got up close to the waterfalls, and could see the abandoned goat farms much closer than when our ship cruised in and out of the port. The Eagles Rd experience was interesting as the views looking down on the town of Geiranger were beautiful. lots of hairpin turns on a big tour bus.