Castaway Cay

[fleeflicker]

I have been on a cruise many times, but this is my first disney cruise. Can anyone give me some suggestions on must do for castaway cay. There will be 3 adults a 13 year old and 11 year old. Thanks in advance

[mom x4,grandma x4]

Hi, do they all swim??

The snorkeling is very nice there, even for a beginner.
also the Banana boat rid eis great fun, but youneed to be able to swim to take it.

Parasailing is awesome if your real adventurious. my husband loved it!!!
I am a chicken and didnt try it:eek:

There are 2 bikes trails that are nice to ride, one is nice smooth, the other one is an old dirt path behind the adult beach which is also a
nice trail with a bench and apretty view at the end of it. Both trails have ice water on them. The newer trail has an observation tower for a great view, but it wasnt open when we were there.

Of course there is always water trikes, sailboats to rent oo!!
grouper game room has many fun things to do and it's all free too.

mom x4,grandma x4

[Dave Mck]

There is a lot of things to do at Castaway Cay. The thing I like to do most there is RELAX. I love to just sit and do nothing. Have a few drinks, go in the water a little bit, and take in the last of the Caribbean sun. Check out this link below. It has a lot of info on Castaway Cay.

http://www.wdwinfo.com/wdwinfo/cruise-new/cr-port-castawaycay.cfm

[lumpkin]

Going in Aug 08....double cast. cay visits on that cruise....can someone tell me what the extra charges are on the beach? Can I assume food is free? Drinks are probably all extra? Bikes free? water Tubes free? snorkeling free ( if no equiptment is rented)?
Thanks.

[Majesty Fan]

Your alcoholic drinks are not free but there are free drinks by Cookies Barbq. Some people bought the 6 waters and tote for $17. The conch cooler is great but sweet. Bikes were $6 per hour I think mats/floats were $4 for all day. Snorkel gear is free but buy a cheap one before you go. Must have a vest on. Don't forget the water camera before you leave home. The watercraft is not free but don't know the price. We did not get in the water this time too cold for us FL birds but our tablemates from Canada thought it was warm!
Lexi

[fleeflicker]

thanks everyone for your post. it gives me an idea on what to do. its just a long time to wait!:(

[Majesty Fan]

On our Wonder cruise last week we rented bikes and wented to Serenity bay just to look around. We did not even know there was an old air strip with planes. They make for a great photo op. We are going back next Feb/March and then the double dip in Oct 08 renting bikes is something we used to when we would camp and we can do it again as adults!
Lexi

[LSKC]

we plan on doing the sting ray thing with our son (who is 6)... our dd will be 4 and won't be allowed since the cut off age is 5 + up.

other than that we plan on snorkeling, chilling by the beach and i'm considering booking a cabana massage for dh & i while the kids play at the kids club onshore of castaway cay.

[MrPete]

My first visit, I don't think we left the water for 6 hours, although I know I must have had to reapply the sunscreen, and eaten at some point. I just don't remember. I just loved the "feeling" of being there.

http://thumb5.webshots.net/s/thumb4/5/93/25/174059325ztltCo_th.jpg (http://travel.webshots.com/photo/1174059325057720145ztltCo)

[lumpkin]

Can't wait! Can anyone tell me if their is food (at no cost) at Cast Cay? I assume this is an all-day stop...do you have to go back on the ship for the dining rooms? Or is it that you have to purchase food on the Cast Cay?

[MrPete]

Food is included!

[mom x4,grandma x4]

Cook's BBQ is from 11 to 2 on the island. Also over at the adult beach there is also a small BBQ place to eat. But there is NO dinner bell, so look at your watch because at 2 everything shuts down and you will have to go to the ship to eat.
They do sell alcoholic beverages but all the rest of the food and pop is free.

mom x4,grandma x4

[RadioCarla]

Castaway Cay is amazing! Your kids will love it. You may not see them much because they'll so busy with the activities with their friends from the ship. ;)

CC is where my husband and I fell in love with snorkeling. It's the perfect place to learn. We did one of the double dip CC cruises last November and we have a four night double dip booked for July of 2008 for our 10th anniversary.

Carla

[Imalismom]

When my DD was 13, she did the parasailing and had a blast. She went up by herself, and would do it again in a heartbeat.

On the other hand...

We did the feeding and snorkling with the stringrays and she was petrified. We could never get her to feed one, and that was a highlight for me. There was a 7 year old girl there that was having a blast, so you never know. If you are going to do this, I'd suggest the very first timeslot. The rays were very hungry, and the waters had not been stirred up, so the snorkling afterwards was great.

She also did the banana boat and loved it also.

We bought some snorlking gear with us, (it was cheaper than what CC wanted for rental prices), and she and several teens she met prior to going on the last cruise spent a lot of time snorkling out to the "Micky under the sea"

Ali's Mom

[Nobbi]

My partner & I just returned from our first Disney Cruise. Although we enjoyed Key West the most, our second favorite stop was CC. We went to the adult beach, relaxed, had drinks and some beers. Great steaks (well, I like tough meat!), burgers, salads, etc. Great water--I loved the ocean. Very relaxing.

Unfortunately they cancelled our only booked shore excursion during the cruise: parasailing. Perhaps next time.

[nopqrstuv]

We enjoyed Castaway Cay during our Nov 05 cruise. It was a lot of fun for the kids. We did the treasure hunt and although the prize wasn't much (a plastic, gold Disney coin) the kids had fun doing it.

The further you walk down the beach the emptier it gets. We were glad we did the treasure hunt and found this out. Otherwise, because of our kids ages at the time (5, 3) we would have plopped first thing. There was a small game room hut, a place to get drinks and emty hammocks. Although it's not too far, the further you go you also get further from the bbq.

[travlRN]

we just got back, we loved biking together to the lookout. The stingray experience looked great. There barbs are removed so no worries about stings!
The snorkeling was very good as well!

[metrowon]

What is your adult situation, and who is the 3rd adult? Can the 3rd. adult watch the children for an hour and a half, while the two of you catch SERENITY Bay, the adult beach? It is just awesome. Metrowon

[NDCruiser]

There are lots of great ideas, but I can't believe that no one has mentioned the couples massage cabana at Serenity Bay. You & your "other" lie on side-by-side massage tables looking out at the gorgeous beach & the bay while the masseuses work you over head-to-toe. This is a G rated experience because it's Disney, but they are very good--we have done this 3 times now. For the ambiance I don't think it's too pricey, but be warned that this books up fast. Check the kids into the camp & treat yourself! Just allow plenty of time to get over there.

[sailordude]

Hi all,

I think snorkling is the best. Disney sells a excursion package on CK called the "getaway" package. You get the snorkle equipmment, a inner tube or float and a 1 hour bike rental for about $35 per person. One advantage that I saw for pre-booking the snorkle equipment is that there was a long line for people to rent on the spot their snorkle equipment, but almost no line if you had the tickets already. So it helps speed things along.

The snorkling is really great. Disney has sunk out in the family snorkle area some great things. Lots of pots, treasure chests, a mini-sub, a diving bell, a couple of statues of mickey, the nautalus from 20,000 leagues under the sea, a small boat, some old sailing ship cannons, anchors, a ships windless, etc. These form a habitate for fish, so once you get out there (and it's quite a swim out from the beach) then you will find lots of fish, fish and more fish.

At one point I surfaced next to a life guard tower (the outermost one) and was talking to the lifeguard. He mentioned the fish under his station. I put back on my goggles and dived down and here was a HUGH fish, about 6 feet long. It was a large Grooper. I surfaced and asked the LG if it was a prop, and he said no. Dived back down and sure enough, it was alive. I left not wanting to be near a fish THAT big.

Of course, once I swam all the way back and related the story to my wife and son, they wanted to see it, so I had to lead them all the way back to see the fish, but it was now gone (the one that got away). So we spent the time exploring the underwater wrecks, which they hadn't seen yet and they loved.

-- sailordude

[dreamin2cruz]

Castaway Cay was by far one of our favorite ports. I loved the snorkeling, sitting on the beach under an umbrella, playing in the water with DH and DS, having lunch at Cookies BBQ, Dancing with Minnie and Max, and just having fun with my family. If you bring your own snorkel gear, you must wear one of their vests. They were free last time we went and I found mine at the lifeguard station on the beach. Cookies BBQ was nice. They had burgers, hot dogs, chicken, salads, cookies, ice cream, tea, soda, and lots of other food items that I can't remember at the moment.

[JRsMom]

Hi all,

I think snorkling is the best. Disney sells a excursion package on CK called the "getaway" package. You get the snorkle equipmment, a inner tube or float and a 1 hour bike rental for about $35 per person. One advantage that I saw for pre-booking the snorkle equipment is that there was a long line for people to rent on the spot their snorkle equipment, but almost no line if you had the tickets already. So it helps speed things along.

The snorkling is really great. Disney has sunk out in the family snorkle area some great things. Lots of pots, treasure chests, a mini-sub, a diving bell, a couple of statues of mickey, the nautalus from 20,000 leagues under the sea, a small boat, some old sailing ship cannons, anchors, a ships windless, etc. These form a habitate for fish, so once you get out there (and it's quite a swim out from the beach) then you will find lots of fish, fish and more fish.

At one point I surfaced next to a life guard tower (the outermost one) and was talking to the lifeguard. He mentioned the fish under his station. I put back on my goggles and dived down and here was a HUGH fish, about 6 feet long. It was a large Grooper. I surfaced and asked the LG if it was a prop, and he said no. Dived back down and sure enough, it was alive. I left not wanting to be near a fish THAT big.

Of course, once I swam all the way back and related the story to my wife and son, they wanted to see it, so I had to lead them all the way back to see the fish, but it was now gone (the one that got away). So we spent the time exploring the underwater wrecks, which they hadn't seen yet and they loved.

-- sailordude


sailordude, did you do the getaway package? I was wondering if it was worth it, didn't know if we would use the tube or float and if 1 hr was enough time for the bikes.

I'd be a lot scared by a fish that size!!!:eek: I commend you for going down to it TWICE!!!!:D

[sailordude]

sailordude, did you do the getaway package? I was wondering if it was worth it, didn't know if we would use the tube or float and if 1 hr was enough time for the bikes.

I'd be a lot scared by a fish that size!!!:eek: I commend you for going down to it TWICE!!!!:D

We did do the getaway package. We really didn't use the floats that much. I think a hour on the bikes is enough. Their old simple 1 speed bicycles and after you spend a hour on them you've probably seen the entire island.

We really didn't use the floats.

I'd look again at renting the individual things vs the getaway package. What ever you do, make sure you snorkle! It's awsome.

Yah. Bigggg Fish.

-- sailordude