Carnival Horizon vs. Disney Magic and Wonder: A Cruise Ship Comparison

When planning a cruise vacation, choosing the right ship can make all the difference in your experience. Today, I'm going to compare the Carnival Horizon with Disney Cruise Line's classic ships, the Disney Magic and Disney Wonder (since these are the three ships I've been on in these two companies), to help you determine which might be the best fit for your next vacation at sea.

Size and Capacity

Carnival Horizon:

• Launched: 2018
• Gross tonnage: 133,500 GT
• Length: 1,062 feet
• Passenger capacity: 3,960 (double occupancy)
• Crew: Approximately 1,450

Disney Magic & Wonder:

• Launched: 1998 (Magic) and 1999 (Wonder)
• Gross tonnage: 83,000 GT
• Length: 964 feet
• Passenger capacity: 2,713 (Magic) and 2,400 (Wonder)
• Crew: Approximately 950

The Carnival Horizon is significantly larger than either Disney ship, accommodating nearly 4,000 passengers compared to the Disney ships' 2,400-2,700 range. This size difference impacts everything from dining options to potential crowds.

Family Experience

Disney Magic & Wonder: Disney's ships are designed with families as the primary focus. The ships feature:

• Character experiences with Disney, Marvel, and Star Wars characters
• Themed kids' clubs divided by age groups (Oceaneer Club, Edge, Vibe)
• Family-friendly entertainment including Broadway-style Disney shows
• Rotational dining where your servers follow you to different themed restaurants

Carnival Horizon: While Carnival Horizon is family-friendly, it offers a more balanced approach:

• Dr. Seuss at Sea program with character breakfasts
• Camp Ocean kids' club with age-appropriate activities
• Family Harbor staterooms and lounge designed for families
• WaterWorks aqua park with slides and water features

Disney excels at creating magical experiences for children, especially those who love Disney characters. Carnival offers solid family programming at a usually more affordable price point.

Dining Options

Carnival Horizon:

• Main dining rooms (MDR) plus numerous specialty restaurants
• Guy's Burger Joint and BlueIguana Cantina (included)
• Fahrenheit 555 Steakhouse, JiJi Asian Kitchen, Bonsai Sushi (extra fee)
• Late night pizza, ice cream, and room service options
• Options for drink packages
• MDR gave you a different kind of bread with your meal every night--we thought that was cool and it was super good!
• You have the option to choose early or late dining, or Your Time dining which essentially allowed you to check in and eat whenever within dinner hours. we did YT dining and it worked well for us.

Disney Magic & Wonder:

• Rotational dining between three themed restaurants with option for early dining or late dining, no in-between
• Casual dining at Cabanas buffet
• Palo fine dining (adults-only, extra fee)
• Limited complimentary room service
• Fewer casual dining options but higher quality overall food
• No drink packages (however, sodas are included)

Carnival Horizon offers more dining venues but Disney typically receives higher marks for food quality and service.

Adult-Oriented Amenities

Carnival Horizon:

• Serenity Adult-Only Retreat
• Cloud 9 Spa with thermal suite with Thalassotherapy pool
• Casino
• Multiple bars and nightclubs
• Comedy club

Disney Magic & Wonder:

• Quiet Cove adult pool area
• Senses Spa
• Adults-only restaurants (Palo)
• After Hours entertainment district with lounges
• No casino

While Disney provides dedicated adult spaces, Carnival Horizon offers more variety for adult entertainment, especially with its casino and extensive nightlife options.

Entertainment

Disney Magic & Wonder:

• Broadway-style Disney shows
• First-run Disney movies in the Buena Vista Theatre
• Character meet-and-greets daily
• Pirate Night deck party on Caribbean and Bahamas sailings, "Frozen" night on Alaska and northern Europe sailings
• Daily programming for all ages

Carnival Horizon:

• Playlist Productions shows
• IMAX Theatre and Thrill Theater (extra fee)
• Dive-in Movies at the pool
• Deal or No Deal, Love and Marriage, and other audience participation events
• Lip Sync Battle and other dance competitions around the pool
• More varied nightlife options

Disney's entertainment focuses heavily on its intellectual properties with high production values, while Carnival offers a wider variety of entertainment options.

Price Point

Perhaps the most significant difference is cost. Disney cruises typically command a premium price—often 30-50% higher than comparable Carnival cruises. A 7-night Caribbean cruise on Disney Magic or Wonder might cost a family of four $5,000-8,000, while a similar itinerary on Carnival Horizon might range from $3,000-5,000, all depending on the room type, of course.

Other Differences

Wifi: When we sailed the two Disney ships, the wifi was horribly slow and hard to use (we sailed in 2021 and 2022).  On the Horizon this year (2025), the wifi was SO fast and reliable. I even got calls because I had wifi assist on.

Room cleanliness: On the Disney ships, the room was spotless and seemed like it got cleaned every time we left the room. On the Horizon, we wiped everything down with a Lysol wipe when we came in and it looked super dusty and like it hadn't been thoroughly cleaned.  Note: it was not DIRTY. It was just super dusty and you could tell it hadn't been wiped.  Also the room attendant did make the beds, switch the towels and dump the trash, but it was once a day in the morning.  Not a problem at all but our trash was definitely overflowing a couple times.

Elevators: The elevators on the Horizon were smart elevators and they were super efficient...when people used them correctly! Essentially you click the floor number you want to go to the number of times that matches your party. So there were three of us, so when we wanted to go to floor 7 to our room, we hit "7" three times and it told us which letter to go to.  Now...this didn't work well when people didn't follow it because then it would tell you to go on an elevator that was full.  On the Disney ships, the elevators seemed smaller and sometimes one would come and it was full.  Both ships we easily took the stairs places.

Shopping: There were a lot more stores on the Carnival ships, but for die hard Disney people, you just need one store (the Disney merch store). LOL!

Photo Areas: There were lots of areas with different backdrops for families to get pictures on the Carnival Horizon...and not just Disney-themed pics.

Drinking: Drinking alcohol seems to be a lot more of a thing on Carnival, probably largely due to the drink packages offered (where you get 15 drinks a day).  There is definitely people drinking alcohol on the Disney ships, but I never saw anyone actually act drunk or intoxicated. That's not true on the Carnival ship.  However, I never witnessed anything wild or crazy. 

Outdoor activities: We really liked the SkyRide on the Horizon. It also has a small ropes course, putt putt area, outdoor fitness area, etc.  The basketball area was also very large. The Disney ships we were on were smaller ships and didn't have all these things. They did have a basketball court that seemed smaller than the Carnival one, and the Disney Wonder does have a small putt putt green.  

The Verdict

Choose Disney Magic or Wonder if:

• You or your children are Disney fans
• You value character experiences and Disney-themed entertainment
• You prefer a slightly more upscale experience
• You don't mind paying a premium price

Choose Carnival Horizon if:

• You want more dining and entertainment options
• You're traveling on a budget
• You enjoy casino gambling
• You prefer a larger ship with more amenities
• You're traveling with older children or in a mixed adult/family group

Both cruise lines deliver excellent vacations, but they cater to different priorities and budgets. Disney excels at creating magical moments for families, while Carnival Horizon offers tremendous value and variety for cruisers of all ages.

Ready to plan your next cruise? Let me help you plan! Head to https://www.lindsaydollinger.com/travel to get a quote today!