A Review of One of the Smallest Staterooms on the Disney Magic

I stayed in one of the smallest staterooms available on the Disney Magic. Was it worth the money I saved? Was it really that bad? I answer these questions and share my honest thoughts!

Disney Magic

The Disney Magic is Disney Cruise Line’s oldest ship, which means it has some of the smallest and oldest amenities onboard. The ship holds approximately 2,700 Guests whereas the Wish and Treasure hold about 4,000 Guests.

I personally love the feel of an older and smaller ship. It was incredibly easy to move around and get from place to place. Other than one time when several characters were meeting at the same time in the Atrium, it did not feel crowded at all.

My family of 8 (three generations) decided to embark on the Disney Magic for Halloween on the High Seas with stops at Lookout Cay and Nassau. We needed to decide what type of stateroom, keeping in mind our family size and budget!

Stateroom Types

The great thing I love about cruising vs staying at a Disney resort is that you can choose your stateroom number. Reading reviews and looking at photos online will help you visualize yourself in the space and determine if the view will be good or if you will hear any loud noises from surrounding areas.

There are several room types, concierge all the way down to inside staterooms.

Concierge – each with a large private Verandah and premium amenities and services:

• Concierge Royal Suite with Verandah
• Concierge 2-Bedroom Suite with Verandah
• Concierge 1-Bedroom Suite with Verandah

Verandah – the most spacious non-Concierge staterooms, each with a private verandah, some with partial views:

• Deluxe Family Oceanview Stateroom with Verandah
• Deluxe Oceanview Stateroom with Verandah
• Deluxe Oceanview Stateroom with Navigator’s Verandah

Oceanview – scenic vistas through a real porthole window—or possibly 2!

• Deluxe Oceanview Stateroom

Inside – the base accommodation, featuring a porthole mirror and no exterior view:

• Deluxe Inside Stateroom
• Standard Inside Stateroom

What We Chose

None of the staterooms on the Disney Magic sleep 8, so we knew we would need to get two connecting staterooms. Some members of our party also suffer from motion sickness, so I was worried about looking out at the ocean from our stateroom.

Therefore, we decided to save the money and book the Deluxe Inside Stateroom. Mid-ship will feel the least amount of movement and we knew we wouldn’t be in the stateroom much, so we were on Deck 2 Mid-ship with connecting rooms (2071 and 2073 if you are curious).

I really loved being on Deck 2. It was a quick flight of stairs to the Atrium on Deck 3. I really only took the elevator when I was heading up to Deck 9 for the pool and buffet. Being Mid-ship also put us in the middle of everything so we did not have a far walk at all to any of the amenities.

Deck 2 is also where 1 of the 3 laundry areas are, and I made sure our staterooms were halfway between the elevator and the laundry area. While I only did one load of laundry, I did need to iron clothes a few times! We also never heard any noise and felt almost no movement in our staterooms!

Deluxe vs Standard Inside Staterooms

You may be wondering why we didn’t just get the cheapest stateroom available, which is the Standard Inside Stateroom. The biggest reason is because the Standard only has 1 bathroom with a sink, toilet, and shower/tub. Deluxe staterooms have 2 bathrooms. One with a sink and toilet, and the other with a sink and shower/tub.

With 4 people in each stateroom, we knew having the extra bathroom space was important.

The other reason we chose the Deluxe is because it has 30 extra square feet (214 vs 184). Trust me, that doesn’t sound like a lot but it made a huge difference in terms of storage and bathroom space!

Bathrooms

Probably the most important thing about a stateroom is the storage capacity. When you have a family in one stateroom, you need plenty of adequate space to store items and keep organized. I am happy to report that there was a ton of storage in the Deluxe Inside Stateroom!

Starting in the first bathroom, there was a ledge above the sinks, a shelf down below, and some shelves on the wall in the corner. There was space on the sink to place bags and other items as well.

In the second bathroom, the sink is set up the same with a ledge above the sink and a shelf down below. I also think it’s genius that the trash cans have their own spot under the sink where they can’t move around. I was pleasantly surprised with the shower/tub. I was expecting a shower stall, but it was definitely big enough to bathe a couple of babies (I don’t have babies anymore, but my mom brain still notices things like that!).

I also placed magnetic hooks on the doors to hold bags, refillable cups, and more. While the space is tight, I just kept our personal items in the travel bags and tucked away on the shelf when we weren’t using them.

Across from the bathrooms you will find an armoire with hangers, the in-room safe, and some cubbies. I put our travel backpacks on the floor of the armoire and the shoes in the cubbies. There is also a small chest of drawers with more flat surface space.

Main Space

The main sitting area has a couch that magically transforms into a bed every evening. Also, there is an upper berth that pulls down directly from the ceiling, which our stateroom host also made sure was ready for us each evening. This creates a bunk bed effect. Unfortunately, I could not get a photo of this, but you can see it in one of the photos I shared earlier in this post.

Across from the couch is a desk with flat surface space, drawers, and two cabinets. This is also where you will find the television and beverage cooler.

The biggest area of frustration in the main space wasn’t the available storage but just the lack of square footage to move around. When all 4 of us were in the stateroom together we couldn’t move around well. Thankfully, we weren’t in the stateroom much as it was, but if you do plan to be in the stateroom a lot with your family this is something to consider.

Sleeping Area

The main sleeping area has a curtain for added privacy and a queen bed. Very small bedside tables (more like shelves) are on both sides of the bed. Essentially, the bedside tables are just big enough for your phone. The bed was also tall enough to fit suitcases under!

Across from the bed is the dresser space. There are four drawers on top, and the bottom cabinets have more shelf space. We pack pretty light when we travel, so I left the clothing in the packing cubes and each person had their own drawer.

I was shocked and so happy with the amount of storage space we had. There was plenty of room for all of our personal items.

Final Thoughts

Would we have loved a verandah? Of course! Is it my dream to stay concierge? Oh, yes! However, my travel party is just too big to have two expensive staterooms that we aren’t even in a whole lot.

The Deluxe Inside Staterooms offers plenty of storage space to keep your travel party organized. In fact, there were several drawers that I left empty! Other than a few moments when we all felt cramped together, I have no complaints.

We also had an AMAZING stateroom host who took wonderful care of us. He came in after we left for the morning to make our beds, clean up a bit, and dispose of our trash. When we came back for dinner and evening entertainment, our beds were turned down with cute animals and chocolates.

Service on Disney Cruise Line is top notch! In my opinion, the $14.50/person/night is not enough for the level of service you receive. Feel free to tip your stateroom host even more – we did and he was so grateful! It made my day to give that to him and hear how he was going home to visit family soon and that the extra money would help him!

What questions do you have about the Deluxe Inside Stateroom on the Disney Magic? Ask them below, and I will be sure to answer them!