Wondering About the Disney Wonder...or Why I'm Too Excited to Sleep!

I'm writing today from the Atlanta airport as I am on my way to Houston where I'll take a bus to Galveston, TX, this evening.

Tomorrow morning I will board the re-imagined Disney Wonder...and I'm crazy excited! I was too excited to sleep, and I'm currently working on 3 hours of sleep!

Disney Fantasy at Castaway Cay

I'm often asked which Disney ship is my favorite, and honestly, it's hard to choose! I've sailed on all four and enjoyed each of them for different reasons.

The Fantasy was our first Disney cruise experience and started our love of Disney cruising. The Fantasy is just amazing! It's huge and has tons of cabin options and high-tech upgrades in Animator's Palate and in the cabins.

There is so much to do, too--AquaDuck, mini-golf, Midship Detective Agency, beautiful spa, large Bibbidy Bobbidy Boutique and lots of great adult spaces! But it's also huge and the pools can feel overcrowded. Kids sometimes make a friend in the club and never see them again!

AquaDuck at sunset on the Disney Dream

The Dream is the sister ship to the Fantasy, so it's almost as amazing! It's had some recent upgrades and added a candy and ice cream shop and some awesome Star Wars options in the Oceaneer's Club.

But it's also huge, so you have the same feeling with the pools. Since it only does 3- and 4-night cruises, too, it's often hard to connect well with your servers or for the kids to make friends, since the cruises are so short.

The AquaDunk on the Disney Magic

The Magic is the Disney Cruise Line flagship and the ship I've spent the most time on. I recently did the math and discovered I have 17 nights on the Magic, and yet, the Magic isn't my favorite ship.

Our favorite server is on the Magic, and we've had Janna from Croatia on two cruises. She really adds a special touch to our dinner each night--it's like seeing an old friend! Disney added the AquaDunk and updated the dining rooms and the kids clubs but somehow we've had fewer magical moments on the Magic.

Then there's the Wonder...The Wonder doesn't have an AquaDuck or an AquaDunk. It has felt like the forgotten ship in recent years as the Magic got so much attention during its reimagining in 2013. My family sailed through the Panama Canal in 2015 on the Wonder, and I was a little nervous. Would the ship look run down? Would there be enough to do? It was a 14-night cruise, and I sure didn't want to be disappointed! But I shouldn't have worried at all.

The Disney Wonder in port at Cabo San Lucas.

The Wonder was fabulous. The crew clearly loved the ship, and they were often bragging on their ship--how it was distinctive from the Magic! I loved that it still had so much charm and class and didn't feel too large or too flashy.

So, when I think about it, I love the Fantasy. I like the Dream and the Magic, but my heart is on the Wonder.

I was nervous hearing about the reimagining...Would it still feel like the Wonder I loved? Would it lose its identity and be the twin to the Magic? From what I've seen, it looks amazing and updated and fresh. I hope I can find the magic on the Wonder tomorrow!

I'm so excited that I'm operating on 3 hours of sleep!

Stay tuned...I'm sure there will be more pictures to come after I return!

Susan Burks is a Disney travel planner at WishdrawalsTravel, a military wife, and a homeschooling mom to a 

robot-programming, space-loving 11 year old!  

She and her family love visiting Disney World and taking Disney cruises. With six Disney cruises under her belt, she is now preparing to embark on a seventh Disney Cruise--this time to Norway--and planning her next Disney World visit, too!