Castaway Cay

Our favorite stop on our cruises is Castaway Cay! Reserved exclusively for Disney cruise Guests, Castaway Cay is a port-of-call paradise on Disney Cruise Line Bahamian and Caribbean cruise vacations, where you enjoy such tropical leisure as snorkeling, boating, swimming and old-fashioned sunbathing. Disney's private island in the Commonwealth of the Bahamas is 3.1 by 2.2 miles in size and features a post office with its own unique Castaway Cay postmark.

Things to Do and See
Castaway Cay visitors find an island completely outfitted for premium family leisure, evoking a "happily away from it all" mood. In addition to open-air BBQ dining, a gift shop featuring Castaway Cay gifts and souvenirs, and island music broadcast throughout the island, you enjoy:

• The Snorkeling Lagoon, the Swimming Lagoon, sports and more at the all-ages Castaway Family Beach


• Swimming, kayaking, sports and more at the private Teen Beach


• Open-air massages with an ocean view, a yoga class and a bar at the secluded, adults-only beach, Serenity Bay


• Biking, nature trails and organized walks and runs


• Watercraft use such as kayaks and paddleboats in the Boat Harbor


• Port Adventures for everyone in the family, including stingray interactions, glass-bottom boat tours, parasailing, fishing, jet ski tours and offshore snorkeling


• Free childcare at Scuttle's Cove, an expansive child's area supervised by Disney counselors


• Spring –A- Leak Wet Play Area


• Disney Character Greetings, including a Dance Party with Lilo and Stitch
  

Past and Present
Formerly known as Gorda Cay, Castaway Cay is located amid the Abaco Islands in the northern Bahamas, an area first occupied in 1783 by European settlers in exile from the American Revolution. More than two centuries later, Disney purchased the island—used as a location in the classic 1984 Disney film Splash—to create a private paradise for Disney Cruise Line Guests. It took builders 18 months to perfect the rustic, "castaway" landscape and motif that lend the pristine scenery additional charm. Of the island's 1,000 acres, only 55 have been developed for Guest use, leaving the remaining land unspoiled and untamed.

Castaway Cay invites cruisers to enjoy balmy tropical weather and world-class recreation on a Bahamian oasis with signature Disney hospitality. You may use your Key to the World cards for retail transactions on the island, and can obtain beach towels after disembarking to Castaway Cay. While still on board, be sure to get the Castaway Cay-vents activities schedule from your stateroom so you know when and where to find all the unique island fun.

Fun Facts & Tips
Disney's Castaway Cay is reserved exclusively for Disney Cruise Line Guests.
Serenity Bay is reserved for Guests ages 18 and older.

Check out the exclusive beachwear, hats, souvenirs and collectible pins with Disney's Castaway Cay logo—all on sale at She Sells Sea Shells...and Everything Else!

From start to finish, your day at Castaway Cay is full of delightful discoveries. Be sure to bring along the Castaway Cay-vents schedule found in your stateroom. Here are just some of the noteworthy locales and activities:

Scuttle's Cove
The youngest cruisers will enjoy this sandy play spot supervised by Disney counselors from the ship. With organized activities, a playground featuring barrels and other diversions, and Monstro's Point, a giant whale-bone excavation site, kids will be delighted all day long. (A limited number of all-terrain wheelchairs can be obtained here.)

Marge's Barges & Sea Charter Dock
Charter a boat and then get on board for offshore recreation like snorkeling, fishing, parasailing and sightseeing in Castaway Cay's clear blue waters. Vessels include a glass-bottom boat, a fishing boat and a power catamaran.

Grouper Game Pavilion
Play all day in this fun-filled, shaded recreation area featuring complimentary foosball, ping-pong, pool, shuffleboard, basketball, golf wiffleball—even monster chess and checkerboards! Play classic sand sports at Goofy's Sand Lot nearby.

Sports Beach
Meet at the Sports Beach for beloved beach pastimes, including volleyball and tetherball.

Character Greetings
Throughout the day, meet and befriend some favorite Disney Characters at the Post Office, Gazebo, gangway and elsewhere on Castaway Cay. And don't forget: These are perfect moments for photo ops!

Gil's Fins and Boats
Rent snorkel gear for all family members, along with kayaks, paddleboats, aqua trikes and other water equipment for your day as a marine adventurer.

Snorkeling Lagoon
Snorkelers of all skill levels will be enchanted by the undersea realm of marine life off Castaway Family Beach. Novices can follow the Discover Trail, and more experienced snorkelers the Explorer Trail. Keep an eye out for the hidden Mickey.

She Sells Sea Shells...and Everything Else
Be sure to stock up at this gift shop featuring exclusive Disney Castaway Cay T-shirts, polo shirts, hats, pins, key chains, magnets and towels—and have Disney cruise staff deliver your purchases to the ship.

Dining on Castaway Cay offers an array of delectable dishes and is included in the price of your cruise package. Alcoholic beverages are available for purchase by our Guests 21 years of age or older.

Cookie's BBQ
This delightful outdoor restaurant dishes up burgers and BBQ chicken and ribs, grilled island style. Situated steps from Castaway Family Beach, Cookie's BBQ and Cookie’s Too are ideal spot to grab a bite and get back to the fun in no time.

Take your delectable meal to any of these shaded outdoor areas:

• Pop's Props and Boat Repair


• Dig In


• Gumbo Limbo
  

Bars
Find signature frozen drinks, cocktails and cold beer at these watering holes:

• Conched Out Bar near the Gazebo



• Castaway Air Bar at Serenity Bay



• Heads Up Bar near Castaway Ray's Stingray Adventure
  

The island has recently expanded to accommodate the new ships! You can either take the tram or walk to the family beach area with Cookies and She Sells Seashells and it continues on to a second stop where Cookies Too, Bike Riding, Cabanas, and the new slide area are located. If you are going to the Adult beach, you switch trams at this stop. The island is extremely accessible! There are also wagons and sand wheelchairs for you to use for free – first come first serve – to get about the island easily. I will include a map with the new locations and an idea of what activities are available. I also took some photos of the new enhancements!

Bike Riding on Castaway Cay

One of the activities available on Castaway Cay is bike riding. I had heard from people who have done this in the past that the trails were not in the best of shape, but I'm guessing along with the new additions to the island, they have also repaired the bike paths. I am not in the best shape of my life, but I found the paths to be very easy and enjoyed exploring the island with my family! The bike rental is for children ages 5 and up, but they do have bikes with additional child seats for the younger children to ride along with an adult. The trails lead you to an observation tower and then another set of trails takes you beyond the new cabañas on the adults only beach. This trail goes much further than it looks on the map and takes you out to the end of the island that has not been developed. There are rest and water stops along the path. Here are some photos from our recent trip that I took on our bike ride.

Voyage of The Little Mermaid

January 7th, 1992 marks the opening of Voyage of The Little Mermaid at MGM Studios (Hollywood Studios).

Voyage of The Little Mermaid, in Disney's Hollywood Studios theme park, is a scheduled 15-minute show appropriate for the entire family that recreates the popular Disney animated film The Little Mermaid using colorful puppets, live performers, special effects and movie clips.

Begin in the reef-walled theater and feel the cooling effects of water mists. Follow Ariel as she travels back and forth from the ocean floor full of fish and mercreatures up to the world where she dreams to be, among the humans.

Voyage of the Little Mermaid includes many memorable songs, like Ariel's wistful "Part of Your World" and the Academy Award-winning song, "Under the Sea," sung by the calypso-ing crab Sebastian. A mildly menacing moment occurs when the enormous evil sea witch, Ursula, belts out "Poor Unfortunate Soul." True to the movie, this musical stage production ends on wave of happiness.

My children saw this show three years ago (they were 2 and 4) and still remember
seeing Ursula! It is a great show!

Guest Policies

• Reflective Captioning system is available. Contact a host or hostess at the attraction for assistance.


• Guests with young children may take turns experiencing attractions. See a Cast Member for additional information.


• Assistive Listening Receivers, which amplify the audio, may be used at this location. Please visit Guest Relations to obtain a receiver.


• Disney's FASTPASS service, a reservation system that reduces time spent in line, is available for this attraction.


• Guests may remain in their wheelchair, motorized scooter or ECV to experience the attraction.

Disney Cruise Line Wave Phones

On our 11 night Christmas cruise this recently past year, we were among the first to experience Disney Cruise Line’s Wave Phones. There were rumors before our cruise began that they would be available for our cruise, but nothing was promised. When we got to our room there they were! On the desk next to the TV were two brand new Philips G955 handsets, a base charger, and an instruction pamphlet.

These are wonderful tools and an incredible way to keep in touch at sea. We have tried Walkie-Talkies and found them to be unreliable at best due to the ship construction and others on the air waves. Cell phone rates are pretty high, so not a great option, plus reception is spotty at best on lower levels. There is always leaving a message on your room phone or putting a message board up on your door – but who wants to run by the room for messages when there is so much fun happening! The wave phones are a great solution to these problems – and at a great price! The two Wave phones are provided for free use to each cabin, with additional phones available for a rental fee of $3.50 per day per phone. Losing, damaging, or failing to return your Wave phone will cause a charge of $250 per phone.

The phones can be used to call each other directly or call the room. You can send text messages as well. You can reach any phone on the ship with these. They have taken the place of pagers for the children’s areas. There are also functions such as an alarm and calculator. It is also a good way to tell time without changing your watch as you change time zones! Pre-programmed contacts are: Character Hot Line, Fire, Guest Services, Host/Hostess, Maintenance, Medical Emergency, Medical Non-Emergency, Oceaneer Club, Oceaneer Lab, Room Service, Security, Stateroom Request, and Vista Spa.

The wave phones can be used on the ships as well as Castaway Cay – yes, I tested them out all over! On our trip we used our phone when we left the room without our room key to reach the room attendant, when our program was moved to a new location and we needed to catch people in route, to talk with our daughter in the kids area – she just enjoyed calling and saying ‘Hi” to check in, it was also wonderful when our family split up on Castaway Cay to be able to reunite on the island! We were also tempted to call room service on our way home late at night for a snack. These phones are great!

There is one thing that would be very helpful to know when planning on using the Wave Phones during your cruise. The phones do not come with a clip or carrying case and are set on vibrate so as not to disturb a show or others. You need to plan on having good pockets or something else to carry your phone in when you are out and about the ship. I think a fanny pack would be a good option. I used my camera case and missed a few calls because I didn’t feel the vibration. The ship’s crew has a clip on their phones, but this is not available for the passengers. I would think this will be added in the future, but until then be prepared!

Disney Dream Arrives to Fanfare

Fireworks, water pageantry and cheering fans greeted the newest ship in the Disney Cruise Line® fleet as it arrived for the first time at Port Canaveral, Fla., on Jan. 4, 2011.

Hundreds of people lined the shores to welcome the Disney Dream™ to its new home. The 4,000-passenger luxury liner cruised into the newly expanded, state-of-the-art port facility at sunrise accompanied by a flotilla of watercraft.

The Disney Dream will sail 3-, 4- and 5-night cruises to the Bahamas beginning with its maiden voyage on Jan. 26, 2011. Check out the next issue of D-Mail for a special link to watch the official christening ceremony on Jan. 19, 2011!

Disney for Christmas!

If you would like to suprise someone at Christmas with the plans of a future trip to Disney, I can create a certificate you can wrap and put under the tree! Let me know if I can help plan this magical gift!