Passengers on the Disney Dream disembark for a day at the beach at Castaway Cay.Castaway Cay• Snorkelers can enjoy a 12-acre snorkel trail with sunken treasures, including a submarine from "20,000 Leagues Under the Sea."• Guests can swim with southern stingrays in a private lagoon.• Disney characters are available for meet-and-greets throughout Castaway Cay.• Tweens (ages 11-13) have scheduled time to hang out together supervised by the cruise line's youth counselors.• Teens can snorkel, bike and kayak on a special excursion.• Two-person hammocks dot the beach.• To learn more about Disney Cruise Line, visit disneycruise.com.Source: Disney Cruise Lines
Passengers on Disney Cruise Line ships in the Caribbean typically circle one special port-of-call on their itineraries.
I call it "Cay Day."
Castaway Cay (pronounced "key") is Disney's Eden-like private island in the Bahamas and, for many cruise-goers, a stop there is the highlight of their vacation. If you can imagine a day at the beach designed to Disney's exacting specifications, you can begin to envision the wonders of Castaway Cay. Some four- and five-day cruises feature two days at Castaway Cay, others just one.
Only Disney Cruise Line guests are allowed on Castaway Cay's white-sand beaches so the experience is delightfully unhurried -- and uncrowded.
Last month, my family sailed for Nassau, Bahamas, on a four-night voyage on the Dream, one of Disney's latest and greatest cruise ships. A virtual floating city, the 14-deck Disney Dream carries about 4,000 passengers and up to 1,485 crew members.
It was our second fall cruise aboard the three-year-old Dream. We like traveling during the moderate temperatures of October when the kids are out of school on fall break and the 10-hour drive from Chattanooga to Cape Canaveral, Fla., is a clear shot, uncluttered by summer-vacation traffic.
The Dream, which is longer than the Eiffel Tower is tall (1,115 feet vs. 986 feet), sits majestically at the dock at Castaway Cay as visitors disembark for a day of sun and sand. Or, in the case of our cruise, clouds and sand. Rain threatened on the horizon for about six hours during our visit, but never made it to the beach. Inside Disney's quality-controlled cocoon, it's easy to imagine that the captain has merely instructed the rainstorm to stand aside.
The phenomenal success of the Disney Cruise Line -- occupancy rates on its ships are among the highest in the cruise industry -- are no doubt due in part to the unique Castaway Cay experience. Four-night fall cruises aboard the Disney Dream range in price from about $3,000 to $5,000 for a family of four, depending on stateroom selection.
Pelican Plunge is a twisting water slide on the beach at Disney's Castaway Cay.While staying aboard the Dream offers the charms of an onboard theater (which screens first-run movies) and one of the cruise industry's only shipboard water slides, the AquaDuck, most passengers disembark early to enjoy the crystal-clear, turquoise waters of Castaway Cays swimming lagoons.
My wife and 13-year-old son rolled out of bed at 7 a.m. to participate in an early-morning, 5K run on Castaway Cay. If you need an incentive, every finisher gets a gold medal that says "Winner." When you get back home, you can boast that you're the 5K champ of the Bahamas -- not.
There was a Disney staff member at the finish line providing a stream of encouragement.
"I haven't been this excited since the Spice Girls got back together," he trilled in an English accent, as one sweaty participant bowed to receive her medal.
For an extra charge, watercraft are available for rent on Castaway Cay.Most visitors leave the ship by mid-morning and eventually settle into a cluster in beach chairs and umbrellas that ring the Castaway Cay swimming and snorkeling lagoons. Rock walls built several hundred yards out in the surf keep ocean waves at bay, which makes for calm waters near the shore. It's about a 10-minute walk from the arrival plaza near the ship to the lagoon, and there are electric shuttles running a continuous loop if you prefer to ride.
On an adjacent family beach, the Pelican Plunge is a kid-centric water-slide platform where many teens and pre-teens wind up. As on the ship, the Disney staff organizes age-appropriate activities for kids and teens throughout the day at Castaway Cay. There are private family cabanas nearby which can be reserved in advance for a fee.
A short distance from the family beaches, there's an adults-only area called Serenity Bay, an exclusive beach for those 18 years old and older. For those who want a respite from the squeals of little people, Serenity Bay offers a great escape. On the other hand, if you have toddlers or pre-schoolers, check out the storytelling at Scuttle's Cove or romp through the fountains at the Spring-A-Leak wet play area.
My boys, ages 13 and 8, headed straight for the beach sports area, where they tested Mom and Dad at tether ball. On a previous cruise, my older son played soccer with some children from Israel, and the whole family enjoyed a two-hour bike rental to explore the interior roadways of Castaway Cay.
Lunch is served mid-day at Cookie's BBQ and features burgers, hot dogs and barbecue short ribs, along with a variety of side dishes and pasta salads. My favorite dessert is the famous Pineapple Upside-down Cake. Disney cruises are all-inclusive except for alcohol and shore excursions, so the mid-day barbecue is part of the fare.
My 8-year-old and I enjoyed a 30-minute ride on an aqua-trike, a paddle-boat-like conveyance that roams a special boating harbor. The cost is extra but nominal. There are also sea kayaks, sailboats, stand-up paddle boards and snorkel gear for rent.
When it's time to pack it in after a long day at Castaway Cay, there's none of the early-evening rush that's often a part of an ordinary beach vacation. You're welcomed back onto the ship with a glass of lemonade and can retire to your stateroom to rest up for your nightly gourmet feast in one of the Dream's many dining rooms.