What kind of stateroom?

[CMCTxMom]

Contemplating our first-ever Cruise. We live in the Dallas area and are thinking of taking advantage before they pull the Disney ships from Galveston, so I think we'd be on the Dream. My question: What kind of stateroom should we get? Are we going to be in there enough for it to matter a ton? Will we feel super-chlostrophobic in an inside stateroom? Is a verandah TOO over-the-top? I really have no idea. Would rather keep the cost down, but don't want to regret not upgrading. There are 4 of us, DD8 and DS5, DH and myself.

Any other advice in general would be welcome. Is there a huge advantage/difference being in the upper decks? I just have no idea... Thanks!

[Mgcamp]

We have done both the inside and the veranda state rooms, and both are good. If you go with the inside you won't feel cheated and the cast members treat you just as nicely as if you are in a suite. To me the best part of the veranda is ordering room service (which is included in the cost) for breakfast and sitting out on the veranda with some fresh baked pastries and a nice cup of coffee. The great thing is either way you can't go wrong and whichever decision you make will be the right one so don't second guess it once you have made a choice.

Have fun

[DizneyRox]

We won't do anything other than an outside stateroom with verandah. For us it's not about the time spent in the room. It's just nice being able to step out and enjoy the view whenever you want, and not necessarily having to get presentable.

We also like higher up on the ships. It usually means more walking, but there seems to be a little less traffic the higher you go.

Moving up decks isn't as big of. Price difference than inside to outside to verandah.

Is it a bad cruise if you don't upgrade to a "better" cabin? No, I don't think so, but I do feel the cost is worth it, at least for us.

[GreenBeetle]

Been off the boards for a while, so I'll throw my in now since I just booked our second Fantasy cruise.

We have older kids (22 and 16) and frankly, I'm surprised my 22 year old son still wants to go! But we have been long-time Disney lovers and DVC owners and our previous cruises on the Disney Wonder and Fantasy were fantastic!!

I can not say enough about the staff, service, food and overall atmosphere on these cruises. The Disney Fantasy is an absolutely gorgeous ship. I don't think you will be disappointed no matter where you choose to stay. However, our family always chooses a cabin with verandah. I am very claustrophobic, so an inside cabin was never a consideration for me. And the verandah is my husband's favorite place to relax and watch the world go by.

[My2Sons]

I've only been on one Disney cruise (my only cruise) - it was the Dream and it was AWESOME! I highly recommend the verandah. I am not claustrophobic, but I felt like there were so many people on the boat that the only place I could truly "get away" and relax was on the verandah. I loved it and don't think I could do a cruise without it. It's also very cool to sit out there and just be amazed at the beauty and the vastness of the ocean...

Have a great time!

[GoldenDreams]

We had a Verandah cabin on Deck 8 and liked both very much. We used the Verandah a lot. Up on deck,they have clear partitions above the rail - for safety or wind, I imagine, but on the verandah and lower decks you can lean on the rail and look at the water or the port. The nice thing about a cruise is that you are right there, so there is less rushing around and you have time to sit on your verandah and read or enjoy the sun & view. We used it a lot before & after breakfast and before & after dinner.

The cabin size on the verandah cabins is nice, so you don't need the verandah to get out of each other's way, but we just liked using it.

I too like to be higher up, but I feel like they've done a good job separating the room sections from the busy sections, so there isn't too much traffic anywhere. Deck 5 might be an exception to that though.

Enjoy your cruise!!