Freedom or Magic?

We are looking at a cruise out of Galveston in September. It looks like Freedom and Magic have the same itinerary. We have been on Freedom, but not for many many years, so I know it has changed. I'm a bit wary about how big Magic is, but intrigued by the cove balconies.

But which would you choose, and why?

And which would you recommend?

My husband and I are child-less 30 something who are relatively boring- we don't drink or do Lido deck activities. We like good food, great shows, comedy club, and trivia. I travel for ports, so there things are equal. I love feeling connected with the water.

We are looking at a cruise out of Galveston in September. It looks like Freedom and Magic have the same itinerary. We have been on Freedom, but not for many many years, so I know it has changed. I'm a bit wary about how big Magic is, but intrigued by the cove balconies.

 

But which would you choose, and why?

 

And which would you recommend?

 

My husband and I are child-less 30 something who are relatively boring- we don't drink or do Lido deck activities. We like good food, great shows, comedy club, and trivia. I travel for ports, so there things are equal. I love feeling connected with the water.

Freedom is my favorite out of the two. Here are my pros and cons of each ship.

Freedom:

Pros: Food, 2.0 upgrades, Shows, size of the ship, lots of seating areas.

Cons: Doesn't have the Lanai deck that I like, lack of Trivia, crew was friendlier on the Magic, cabins were smaller on the Freedom.

Magic:

Pros: Waterworks and Sports Square for the kids, Lanai Deck with Oceanside BBQ, Cove Balconies, friendly crew.

Cons: Long lines due to the size of the ship, shows weren't my favorite, lack of seating areas, doesn't have 2.0.

Could someone also tell me what Chef's Table menu is being used on the ships now?

We sailed the Freedom over Spring Break in March and we're going on the Magic as soon as school gets out.

I wasn't impressed with the Freedom, to be honest. The decor was nice and of course, the cruise director (Jen Baxter) was awesome as always but we were just kind of underwhelmed. There wasn't much trivia during the day (which is something we love) and absolutely NO karaoke during the day. Most of the events that we had any interest in took place at night and a lot of them took place either at the same time (the shows, which we really liked, and karaoke for example) or were really late at night (Red Frog pub trivia) after I was already in bed since I was trying to keep a half normal schedule because I knew I'd be going back to work as soon as we got back.

I'll let you know what I think of the Magic...I've been watching some YouTube videos people posted from there and I'm kind of excited. :D

I agree with what the others had said.

On the Magic you will have more trivia and fun things to do during the day. I also like the shows better on the Magic.

The Freedom starts the "fun" about 3:00 pm each day. Prior to that, there's not much going on. Playlist shows aren't as good either.

However, you are on a cruise...so have a great time either way!

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However, you are on a cruise...so have a great time either way!

 

I don't know... what is fun about being on a boring cruise?

There are sea days on the itineraries, so Carnival needs to plan something to do on them! I guess that leans me towards the Magic.

I don't know... what is fun about being on a boring cruise?

 

There are sea days on the itineraries, so Carnival needs to plan something to do on them! I guess that leans me towards the Magic.

If Trivia and activities are important to you throughout the day then the Magic might be better for you. Trivia is not important to me. I spend my day outside.

We are looking at a cruise out of Galveston in September. It looks like Freedom and Magic have the same itinerary. We have been on Freedom, but not for many many years, so I know it has changed. I'm a bit wary about how big Magic is, but intrigued by the cove balconies.

 

But which would you choose, and why?

 

And which would you recommend?

 

My husband and I are child-less 30 something who are relatively boring- we don't drink or do Lido deck activities. We like good food, great shows, comedy club, and trivia. I travel for ports, so there things are equal. I love feeling connected with the water.

We aren't on the Freedom until October but have been in a Cove Balcony on Magic. LOVED the cove balcony & lanai deck on Magic. You will like Magic.

I spend my day outside.

I'd be happier outside than inside- but there has to be something to do out there- I can't just lay around and tan. It is one reason we've gravitated towards land vacations, but it doesn't fit into our schedule this year.

I really enjoyed the Freedom so I'm sad to hear the activities are now sparse. But it does sound like Magic will be the way to go this time. Bummer to hear they don't have the 2.0 food though.

While any cruise is a good cruise, our recent cruise on Freedom was my least favorite of our 20 cruises on Carnival. There's very little seating near the main pool and almost none is shaded. As mentioned by a previous cruiser, karaoke was basically nonexistent and there was very little trivia. The cruise director and her staff Lacked the enthusiasm and ability to get a party started we've come to expect. While the food was good, overall Magic is much more enjoyable.

For non-Lido folks (like myself), I recommend Magic. We love all the things on Deck 5 that the Freedom does not have.... Ocean Plaza is a comfortable place to hang out and listen to live music or play trivia. The internet area is next to Ocean Plaza, out in the open, a pleasant place to catch up on your email or social network. The outer Lanai deck, also on Deck 5, is never crowded. There are two big hot tubs on each side of the ship, and they are rarely crowded. The Seaside BBQ on sea days is a good lunch option. We find that we spend most of our time on Deck 5 on the Magic. Serenity Deck is nice, too. You can have lunch at the Italian place for free, but there is a charge for dinner there. For these reasons, I would choose the Magic.

We've been on the Magic before and are trying to decide as well. I loved the the spa on the Magic! The only thing that I'd like to try on the Freedom is Guy's Burgers, the Cantina & the Alchemy Bar. But Magic does still have their regular burgers & the burrito bar which we really enjoyed. It also has Cucina del Capitano which was great. It's a toss up. We're going to try a cove balcony this time if we chose the Magic and I'm excited about that. We are also considering the Navigator of the Seas but it costs more.

Playlist shows aren't as good either.

 

I have to disagree. With the old style production shows, it's the SAME DANG SHOWS for several years at a time because they can't afford to change out the costumes, sets, etc as easily as they can do with the Playlist shows. The shows we saw while on our Spring Break cruise (80s To The Max, 88 Keys and Heart of Soul) were really, really well done I thought.

Go Magic.

We were on the Freedom in 2013 prior to the 2.0 upgrades (but have been on the both the Liberty and Pride with the 2.0). It has been my least favorite cruise with Carnival. I loved the Liberty, but the Freedom fell short in decor and I thought the service wasn't as good either.

Just got off the Magic yesterday. Although the ship is bigger - it is easier to navigate IMO than the Conquest class ships. Like another poster stated, deck 5 is a great hangout. I didn't utilize the Sports deck or Waterworks because I don't use those things - but they looked fun. I had a Cove and absolutely loved being that close to the water. The Cove is also so much more private than the standard balconies.

Magic, Magic, Magic, did I say Magic? LOL As you can tell from my signature, we're partial to the Magic. :) We've had a cove balcony both times we've been on her, and I can tell you that the coves are absolutely fantastic. Being that close to the water is amazing. The view, the sound of the water, you just cant beat it. We like to drink (LOL), but we're not Lido/party people, but we really enjoy the Ocean Plaza, the piano bar, etc. We're gonna get one more run on her in October before she goes to dry dock then moves to Florida, and I'm just as excited to board her as I was the first time! :)

Thanks everyone for the advice, we went with the Magic.

I wanted a Cove balcony, but we ended up on the Empress deck. Maybe we will do a cove next time. Husband wanted to be a little closer to the action, though I love the convenience of coming back from port on a low deck!

We chose Magic too. Last time we were on deck 8, which was ok. We went down and peaked at a cove though and loved how close to the water they are. So this time we got a cove. So excited! Happy cruising!

We've been on Magic 3 times and love it. We are going on the Freedom in June though just for a change of scenery. We've been on other Conquest Class ships and we think the Magic is superior. But we will give Freedom a whirl. I wish the Breeze was in Galveston but that won't be for a while yet.

I don't know... what is fun about being on a boring cruise?

 

There are sea days on the itineraries, so Carnival needs to plan something to do on them! I guess that leans me towards the Magic.

I spend sea days with my ipod, a good book and a lounge chair:D I consider that having fun.

I spend sea days with my ipod, a good book and a lounge chair:D I consider that having fun.

To each their own. I'm a voracious reader. But, I could (and do) do that at home without spending money.

Me too...I'm going to be spending a LOT of time reading this summer as I've set myself a goal--to read all 5 of the books in the Game of Thrones series by the time school starts in August.:eek::D

We did the freedom back in 2012 and loved her. (it was my first cruise so nothing to compare to) I was also that person who sat in a chair and read the entire hunger games series while cruising. my DH was off working out and eating burgers (yes you read that correct).

Going on the magic in 31 days! I am very excited, this time brining the kiddos, so I doubt I will have much reading on the lido... but the sports square sounds so fun for us!

We sailed on the Magic in December and will be on the Freedom in a week. I'll try to report back!

We have been on both ships and have the Magic booked for July. We would choose the Magic hands down. We spend a lot of time in the Ocean Plaza and on the Lanai. We chose Deck 6, just a short trip to these places.

The last two times we sailed Magic (Christmas 2014 was the last) the dining room and buffet were TERRIBLE. This was the worst food we've had in all of our cruises.

We leave out on Freedom July 4 and have high hopes. If she's anything like her sister (Liberty) we are going to LOVE our cruise.

Please don't misunderstand- we have had 3 wonderful cruises on Magic, but the food was awful. Food doesn't make or break a cruise, but room service was the best offerings that Magic had to offer.

Guess we are "those kind of people"... the foodies. Enjoy!