Getting off the boat is a big part of the cruise! We had one island we loved and another we didn’t. Here is the recap of Disney’s two island cruises. See our Disney cruise overview and dining recap here. If you want to see the video version, check out my Instagram highlight.
Disney Cruise Islands
My favorite part of a cruise is the boat. I love the comfort of having everything we need at sea, and I also love the thrill of being in the middle of the ocean (as long as the weather is good and the seas are calm!). But a big part of cruising is getting off the boat to see different spots. It’s so convenient to keep everything on board and get off at a different island every day. That’s why we’re taking a European cruise this summer – so we can see more of Europe without having to lug a suitcase through train stations or airports.
Our cruise itinerary took us to two different islands. The first was Nassau in the Bahamas and the second was Disney’s private island, Castaway Cay. As a reminder, here was our itinerary:
Itinerary
- Departure from Port Canaveral
- Nassau, Bahamas
- Castaway Cay
- Day at sea
- Arrival at Port Canaveral
Not being much of a “cruise guy”, I knew Thomas would want to get down to both islands. I wanted it too! So we planned a paid excursion to Atlantis and enjoy Castaway Cay the next day.
When we were docked in Nassau, we were right next to the Disney Dream! The two ships ended up in a Disney horn song contest later that afternoon. So cool!
On the opposite side of us were some huge ships from other cruise lines.
First Island: Atlantis
Since the weather can be very hit or miss this time of year, we didn’t want to plan any snorkeling or boating adventures for our Nassau excursion. We decided to do a day pass Atlantiswhich we thought would be great for the kids. And they have indoor activities / aquariums if it was cold or rainy. The downside was that this was quite expensive and the super downside was that we really didn’t have a great time. Part of it was ours for the disorganization.
My sister and her family and my parents ended up staying on the boat. They didn’t want to spend the money and they also knew that the boat would have a lot of activities. At the end of the day, we wish we had stayed on the boat too. But you live and learn!
Disembarkation
We met in one of the closed dining rooms to get off the boat as a group. Everyone was putting on sunscreen and giving instructions on when to come back. The whole process of getting off in groups, walking through a confusing line, getting on buses, signing a waiver and getting wristbands for the day was a bit boring. It took us nearly two hours from breakfast to walking into the Atlantis lobby.
Despite his face, Mazen was excited LOL
The sharks and turtles were cool!
While our plans were to go to the water park, we decided to go dip our toes in the ocean first, which ended up being a 30 minute detour that left us all a little grumpy. The kids wanted to swim a bit, but there were no chairs, no towels, no shade, so we wanted to set up somewhere else before it dripped. We finally convinced them to go to the beach (after they got their feet wet and had to polish their crocs!).
River Rapids Ride
Just as we were heading back in the direction of the water park, we ran into River Rapids which I would describe as a lazy river with rapids and wave features. We didn’t want to commit to a $20 locker OR leave our credit cards, so we decided Mazen and I would go and Thomas and Birch would hang out until we got back. The river was a lot of fun, but it was a lot longer than we thought it would be and we felt bad for making them wait as long as they did (about 25 minutes!).
Children’s play area
After that we settled in the kid fort on some chairs that had used towels on them. But there were no empty chairs anywhere. Birch was starving, so I waited in a very long line to get him a pizza (The rest of us had our fill of breakfast and didn’t need to eat).
They also closed the fort briefly for a cleaning inspection, so our timing this whole day was just off! Birch never really wanted to come in and play.
While Birch ate, Thomas and Mazen went to ride this slide that had a 35 minute line for a 35 second slide. They said it wasn’t worth it.
Cove Beach
When we all met up again we walked to Cove Beach in an attempt to do some snorkeling. There were no chairs so we put our towels on the sand and just sat in the sun. Not ideal for such a steep day pass price. 🙁
Mazen ended up having a great time snorkeling with his goggles on. It was too deep for Birch to swim. Thomas and I went for short swims with Mazen.
Another major complaint we had was that all the water bottle refill stations were out of order. After the third one, I asked someone if any were functional and he just shrugged. I ended up spending $15 on bottled water. I also got the adults some hummus for snacks.
The Cove Pool
While Mazen snorkeled, Birch and I went to this pool for a swim. It was a huge nice pool and thankfully not as crowded as the others. But we were basically ready to get back on the boat.
Our time at Atlantis was a complete failure. Part of it was that we were unprepared, and part of it was that the resort was too big and too crowded for our liking. If we had known it would be crowded we would have stayed on the boat and saved $1000. It was nice, and Mazen at least had a great time, but we won’t be back.
Island Two: Castaway Cay
The next day we woke up docked at Castaway Cay! This is Disney’s private island that they have leased for 100 years from the Bahamas. You have to go on a Disney cruise to get there. It is a real paradise! It is also perfectly set up to accommodate cruise guests and we loved it!
Unfortunately we woke up to rain! We delayed getting off the boat until most had passed around 10:30. The forecast looked good for the rest of the day and the sun came out just after lunch.
The beach
Unlike Atlantis, there were TONS of chairs and umbrellas on the beach. Even with the 3-4,000 cruise passengers disembarking, there were no lines and plenty of chairs and towels to go around.
We were so happy when the sun came out!
The water play fort was so cool, and I loved that they had lifeguards everywhere and plenty of life jackets for young swimmers.
Lunch buffet
Lunch is also provided!! There is a cookout style buffet with burgers, chicken, BBQ sandwiches, potato salad, pasta salad, desserts and more.
They also had lots of whole and sliced fruit in a fruit stand
And the famous ice cream machines with a few different flavors!
And needless to say, water bottle refill stations were available. 🙂
Snorkeling
The only thing we paid for on the island was snorkel gear. We rented 3 sets (2 adults, 1 child) for $90. Thomas, Matt, Me, Mazen and Emerson rotated to use them (sometimes the kids just wore their googles). The snorkeling cove was so cool because there were Disney features under the water! They had Dumbo, Mickey, the Prince Eric statue from The Little Mermaid and more. It was like a scavenger hunt!
Bar
There were also several bars scattered around (and a secondary food area that I never looked at). Also an adults only beach which I suspect was pretty cool!!! I could only dream of spending the day there. 🙂
In the second trick, they had a waterslide in the ocean that Thomas and Avery made!
The Children’s Club
A really cool part of Castaway Cay is that they bring the kids club to the island! Birch and Avery went for about an hour and had a great time. I’m not even sure what was inside, but I think it was a lot of sand and sports activities. They used their same wrists to get inside that they brought from the boat.
Tiki Bar
While in the kids club, the adults were getting drinks! I was so happy that my margin was only $8.75. What a great honor!
Return
We had to get back to the ship around 4:00 so we did the long sandy walk back. I always feel so happy when I get back on board.
In conclusion, I would recommend staying on the ship in Nassau and definitely going down to Castaway Cay! This is what we wish we had done. It is the best experience for your money and also the best experience on the beach!
That wraps up my Disney cruise blog posts for the week. We hope you enjoyed reading about our trip! Feel free to ask me more questions about specific things I may have overlooked. I found it so helpful to read blogs before we left.
xx,
Prof
