Opinions: Glory or Magic?

[bakersdozen12]

So with the new itinerary released for the Magic, I am faced with a decision. I have a cruise booked for 11/5/16, and I am now considering switching to another cruise that leaves on the same day. Details are:

 

Booked cruise: 7 day on Glory out of Miami. Ports are: Cozumel, Belize, Isla Roatan, and Grand Caymen. Two of these ports will be new to me (Belize and Roatan). I currently have an aft wrap booked that I am really excited about.

 

Thinking about switching to: 7 day on Magic out of Port Canaveral. Ports are: Costa Maya, Cozumel, Belize and Isla Roatan. Three of the ports will be new (with the addition of Costa Maya. If I go with this option I probably won't book an aft wrap because I don't like that there is a deck below them on the Dream-class ships. Will probably get an L-shaped balcony cabin.

 

Pros on Glory cruise: the aft wrap cabin (which I really want); and it has Guy's (which I realize is really a small pro).

 

Pros on Magic cruise: cruise will end up being cheaper, even with the $100 change fee, due to the different cabin; an additional new port; and I love that the Magic has the rope course.

 

I think what it really boils down to is how much is the aft wrap experience really worth it? I am really excited about it, but would love to hear from people who have been on both ships. Is the Magic that much better of a ship, that I should consider giving up the wrap to sail on it?

Edited June 19, 2015 by bakersdozen12

[BallFour4]

We love the Glory, having sailed it from Boston to Canada and then last summer from Miami on the Eastern route.

 

The Magic is a very nice ship, but has one major difference for me that would be a deal breaker. The balconies above deck 5 don't have a view of the water right to the edge of the ship. You have a view of the outdoor promenade on deck 5, and they have the same view of you. I felt like we were on a stage.

 

The aft wrap on the Magic (ours was deck 9) was fantastic. This one has a full eyebrow overhead, and we were shaded most of the time.

 

We usually book port side, forward balconies, but have recently tried the aft wraps. Something to note; it's warmer in those aft cabins. We tote a fan aboard and usually my wife doesn't want the air on her. On the Magic she wanted it on hurricane setting.

 

Costa Maya is a very nice port, having been rebuilt after Wilma. Look at the excursions you want to book and then decide.

 

The Glory doesn't have a show band, it's all recorded music. They also use the LED video screens as part of the show and the music was loud. Good, but loud.

 

Here's some photos from the Eastern route:

 

Here's the Canada route:

 

 

Here's the Magic:

 

https://www.flickr.com/photos/leeusry/sets/72157628129712752

 

 

.

Edited June 19, 2015 by BallFour4

[bakersdozen12]

Thanks very much for you feed back! I'm still very torn. The itineraries are so similar that I don't think that will be the deciding factor. I looked at possible excursions in Costa Maya, and nothing really jumps out at me. At Grand Cayman, however, I really would love to do a sting ray excursion, as we won't be doing that when we are there this October. So I guess +1 for the Glory cruise.

 

As far as the ships are concerned, while I was looking forward to experiencing a Conquest-class ship, the Magic just seems like so much fun since it has the rope course! So +1 for the Magic cruise.

 

But when it comes to the cabin, the wrap on the Glory is what I was most looking forward to. The L-shaped balcony cabin on the Magic seems nice, but not sure that it's better than the aft wrap. So I think +1 for the Glory cruise here.

 

So that just leaves the cost. The Magic cruise is $476 less, although I would have to pay the $50 pp change fee and I would lose my $50 OBC. So total savings would be $326. Plus, I was looking at airfare, and Orlando is definitely cheaper vs Fort Lauderdale (I would be flying there for that one since Southwest doesn't fly to Miami). So...+1 for the Magic cruise when it comes to cost.

 

Which leaves me at a tie! Anyway, I have the room I want on the Magic cruise on hold just in case. Will mull it over this weekend.

[legion3]

Thanks very much for you feed back! I'm still very torn. The itineraries are so similar that I don't think that will be the deciding factor. I looked at possible excursions in Costa Maya, and nothing really jumps out at me. At Grand Cayman, however, I really would love to do a sting ray excursion, as we won't be doing that when we are there this October. So I guess +1 for the Glory cruise.

 

As far as the ships are concerned, while I was looking forward to experiencing a Conquest-class ship, the Magic just seems like so much fun since it has the rope course! So +1 for the Magic cruise.

 

But when it comes to the cabin, the wrap on the Glory is what I was most looking forward to. The L-shaped balcony cabin on the Magic seems nice, but not sure that it's better than the aft wrap. So I think +1 for the Glory cruise here.

 

So that just leaves the cost. The Magic cruise is $476 less, although I would have to pay the $50 pp change fee and I would lose my $50 OBC. So total savings would be $326. Plus, I was looking at airfare, and Orlando is definitely cheaper vs Fort Lauderdale (I would be flying there for that one since Southwest doesn't fly to Miami). So...+1 for the Magic cruise when it comes to cost.

 

Which leaves me at a tie! Anyway, I have the room I want on the Magic cruise on hold just in case. Will mull it over this weekend.

 

Never sailed the glory and probably won't but I loved the Breeze and the Magic would likely make me happy too. She may be getting Guy's at her drydock in February 2016 as well as other 2.0 stuff.

 

That said if you go to Costa Maya the Chacchobean ruins are a great trip, not to far away (like most Mayan ruins) and not to big, well shaded for the most part. And does not use up all of the day. (like most other mayan ruins do).

 

https://www.chacchobenruins.com/

[stargate fan]

So with the new itinerary released for the Magic, I am faced with a decision. I have a cruise booked for 11/5/16, and I am now considering switching to another cruise that leaves on the same day. Details are:

 

Booked cruise: 7 day on Glory out of Miami. Ports are: Cozumel, Belize, Isla Roatan, and Grand Caymen. Two of these ports will be new to me (Belize and Roatan). I currently have an aft wrap booked that I am really excited about.

 

Thinking about switching to: 7 day on Magic out of Port Canaveral. Ports are: Costa Maya, Cozumel, Belize and Isla Roatan. Three of the ports will be new (with the addition of Costa Maya. If I go with this option I probably won't book an aft wrap because I don't like that there is a deck below them on the Dream-class ships. Will probably get an L-shaped balcony cabin.

 

Pros on Glory cruise: the aft wrap cabin (which I really want); and it has Guy's (which I realize is really a small pro).

 

Pros on Magic cruise: cruise will end up being cheaper, even with the $100 change fee, due to the different cabin; an additional new port; and I love that the Magic has the rope course.

 

I think what it really boils down to is how much is the aft wrap experience really worth it? I am really excited about it, but would love to hear from people who have been on both ships. Is the Magic that much better of a ship, that I should consider giving up the wrap to sail on it?

 

Having sailed both ships and itineraries, Magic wins hands down in ship and ports. (Costa Maya is one of my very favorites.) Though she doesn't have Guy's, which is more hype than anything else imho, she does have Tandoor, which is Indian (I chose Tandoor for lunch every day on Dream, Breeze, and Magic. :D) and Red Frog Pub, which is where we spent our evenings listen to great music.

 

As far as aft wrap stateroom, I don't know how it is on Glory, but we had one on the old Destiny. We hated it. The cabin was pie-piece shaped and smaller than regular balcony cabins we've sailed. Though the balcony was large, we weren't able to use it at one of the ports due to scraping and painting above us. I understand that this might have been an isolated indecent but we aren't taking the chance again. We loved our Lido balcony cabins on the three Dream class ships. (We book Lido balconies on all ships that have them.) We were steps away from the pool and buffet.

 

Good luck choosing. You can't go wrong with either cruises.

Edited June 19, 2015 by stargate fan

[bakersdozen12]

Been mulling it over, and right now I'm leaning on sticking with the Glory cruise. I think what it will ultimately come down to is that I am really looking forward to the aft wrap on the Glory. The Magic aft wraps just don't seem as nice (narrower balconies and having a deck below is off-putting in my opinion). And while the L shaped balcony room that I would have booked on the Magic seems like a good deal, I like the thought of having two loungers so that my husband and I can both have one. Plus, whenever I watch this video of the cabin I have booked on the Glory, I drool over it, so I can't see giving it up for a ship with a ropes course since we will spend much more time in our room than on the ropes course.

 

Edited June 20, 2015 by bakersdozen12