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Stay on the ship during Castaway Cay


Barry ATL
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We are researching for a Disney Cruise. We are not fun in the sun kind of people. DH uses a wheelchair so beaches and pools are really our thing. When we cruise, generally, the ship is the destination.

 

From all of the vlogs we have seen on Castaway Cay, the only thing that is really appealing is a little shopping and getting a couple of pics with characters. After doing those things we will spend most of the day on the ship.

 

I have read that there are only about 60 full time employees on Castaway Cay and that the rest of the needed staff come from the ship. So, if we are on the ship most of the day, will there be anything to do?

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From what I recall, there are some activities on the ship, but not a lot is planned since the focus really is on Castaway. No MDRs are open for lunch, but Cabanas may be for a short time. It could be a good day for a spa day / Rainforest room if you're interested in that. Have you looked up past Navigators (disney's daily activity sheet) - check out disneycruiselineblog.com as he has lots of them :)

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It is true that the focus is on the island, but there will be food available on the ship, pools are open, some spa services are available, and there are usually movies showing. It is a great time to take photos of the ship without other people in them. If it is your last day, it is also a great time to take care of any business at Guest Services as there will be no lines. And the laundry rooms will be empty.

 

If the weather is bad so that many people are staying on the ship, the staff will quickly change things around so that one of the MDRs will be open and they will issue a supplemental Navigator with on board activities.

 

In good weather, all kid activities are moved to the island, as are most of the things that require a "cruise staff" person to run them--like trivia, etc. There are beach wheelchairs available when you exit the ship, but they were HARD to push on the sand. You can get around on the paved paths without difficulty.

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I'm not sure what the correct name for it is, but the ships do have a device that allows people in wheelchairs to get in and out of the pools. It is a portable one, not fixed, so you have to call guest services and set up a time when they will bring it to the pool for his use.

 

And yes, we did stay on the Fantasy on CC day...again, great for pix, etc. And the island is hard for people with mobility issues. I'm not faulting Disney...any island is hard.

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Most of the programming on Castaway Cay day is on Castaway Cay. There really isn't a lot going on on the ship. Perhaps look at the Navigator for that day and see what appeals either on or off the ship.

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The above is exactly right--there isn't a lot that needs someone to run it happening on the ship unless the weather is awful. On the other hand, we had a great day when we decided to stay on the Fantasy during CC day. We took photos of the ship, had private access to Satellite Falls, pools, Goofy Golf, etc. Seriously, it was almost like having our own private yacht.

 

We did it for two reasons--daughter has mobility issues and really doesn't enjoy beaches and the difficulties they present, and we wanted some time for good photos. It was a neat experience to remain on board.

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If you're not interested in going to the beach, but do want to explore Castaway Cay a bit, I would recommend planning your shore time around posted lunch times on the island. Or at least check the hours for the different lunch locations and see what would work best for you. There are trams on the island - both from near the ship to the main activity area, and then from there to Serenity Bay - so that could be a big help in exploring the island at your leisure as well as being able to enjoy the island lunch that is typically reviewed as a highlight of the cruise.

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My mother and I haven't gotten off at Castaway Cay the last 2 times we've been there. Sun and I just don't mix and like your husband, my mother uses a wheelchair; we've tried the beach wheelchair thing and she doesn't want to do it again ;p.

 

Anyways - one of the MDRs was open for lunch (and it was one of the best meals of the week) and there was movies and a few activities during the day. The crafts they have on CC day tend to be better than the others through the week because they are expecting fewer people (one time we got to make buttons - and the CM let the few who attended make an unlimited amount).

 

If you're on the Dream or Fantasy - it's also a great time to try out the Aqua Lab - it's wheelchair accessible and on our CC day it was completely empty (which made my mother feel better about going up there in her wheelchair - didn't have to worry about running over any little toes).

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I wouldn't get off just to have lunch on CC. It's a good beach lunch, but the food on the ship was better, imho. And being the only two in Enchanted Garden was almost funny--there were more servers than guests, and we actually had a good time.

 

I'll have to check out Tricia's crafts next time--don't remember any scheduled activities. But we really had a good time on the ship and didn't feel that we'd missed anything.

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We got off briefly. We went to the adult's only beach, had lunch there and didn't think it was particularly good. We caught the tram back to the ship. Had a wonderful lunch at a nearly empty Cabanas and spent the rest of the afternoon relaxing on the empty Serenity Deck. There were movies playing in the theaters. We had a wonderful day on the ship.

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We will get off at CC to shop. DH collects Disney pins and wants to get the ones that are only available on CC.

 

The CC food choices we have seen on YouTube vlogs did not blow us away. We both looked at each other and said "picnic food". We can get the same on the ship.

 

The movies are a great idea. I always love seeing movies in an empty theatre.

 

So, everybody has made me feel better about staying on the ship for most of the day. Thanks!

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Barry and I have been chatting about this. We have been watching some YouTube videos and reading various narratives like this. We have pretty much decided to go ashore fairly early for the character interactions (in outfits they apparently only wear on Castaway Cay) to get some pictures, then a bit of pin shopping, then back to the ship in time for lunch and the other shipboard activities mentioned. We can be quite content with that. It's the little things. :-)

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Our next CC stop will be in early February 2019, the earliest we've ever stopped. The air temps have to be 85+ before we'll get into the water, so I'm not sure it will be a swimming stop for us. If it's cool, I'll take advantage of hiking and exploring around a bit. I've never gotten to the observation tower.

 

However, it's also a 5 day cruise with only 2 sea days, so I can see spending time on the ship. Nothing wrong with looking out at CC and enjoying the view!

 

From the recent Navigators I could find, including the one of our last cruise in April 2017, there young kid's clubs had on-ship activities, movies were shown in the theater, and Cabanas was open for lunch from 11:45 - 1:30. Quick Service, of course, was open. No MDR lunch. This is the Fantasy. Maybe they offer more in cooler months, knowing more people will stay on board?

 

Didn't look like much else was happening on the ship. Perhaps a great pool day?

 

Having dined in CC, it's good beach/picnic food, but not great lunch food. If I'm shopping or exploring I would eat lunch on CC, but I would be just as happy in Cabanas.

 

Dirk

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We've done may Feb. cruises as that is a birthday month for our family...Most of the time, the weather has been great, but there were 2 years when it was absolutely cold. Those times, they did add a lot more "on board" activities. People were on the island, but nowhere near the water! Do take a "cold weather" outfit on the ship. Worst case, you might not need it.

 

Your information is more current than mine. During our "island days," all kid activities were on the island, not the ship. And we did eat at Enchanted Garden. This was a good weather cruise and our first time on the Fantasy. Some of the crew thought we were a little nuts, but we wanted to explore the ship. We may have been the only non-crew on board....we didn't see anyone else.

 

Perhaps more people are choosing to stay on board, so DCL has added more planned activities. All we had scheduled was a couple of movies, but we didn't care.

 

Bottom line for OP, you can have a great day enjoying the ship largely by yourselves.

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I think it's worth exploring and maybe under an umbrella on the beach for a bit. Yes, it's cook out food, though on the adult part of the island they serve fish and steak which were quite good in May, but a nice change up from the ship in my opinion. I would get off the ship for a few hours. There is a tram, and I think they had carts closer to the ship for handicap issues, it appeared that way.

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We are researching for a Disney Cruise. We are not fun in the sun kind of people. DH uses a wheelchair so beaches and pools are really our thing. When we cruise, generally, the ship is the destination.

 

From all of the vlogs we have seen on Castaway Cay, the only thing that is really appealing is a little shopping and getting a couple of pics with characters. After doing those things we will spend most of the day on the ship.

 

I have read that there are only about 60 full time employees on Castaway Cay and that the rest of the needed staff come from the ship. So, if we are on the ship most of the day, will there be anything to do?

 

we mostly stayed on the ship, which is also our destination...

on our last cruise, last august on the disney dream, we only got off for about an hour and a half to take a bike ride and eat at the adult barbecue (which we always enjoy)..

 

we stayed on board in the morning to ride the aqua duck numerous times while everyone else was on CC...

i think the aqua duck opened at 10:00 and we rode it for about an hour (lost count of how many times we were able to ride it with barely any line at all)..

 

we got off the ship at 12 and were back on board at 1:30....we didn't notice a lack of activities..

 

for us, it's not that we're not fun in the sun sort of people, but we live 10 minutes from a beautiful blue flag beach (on the med), so we'd rather spend time on the ship than out on the sand.....but a bike ride around the island has been our tradition since our first disney cruise (in 2002? something like that).. so for tradition's sake we can't pass that up....and the adult barbecue..

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The staff on the ship will push you to get off an explore CC, but I strongly favor staying one the ship. CC is nice, but unless you are doing something extra (like a shore excursion), most of CC comes down to a day at the beach. I can enjoy a day at a much nicer beach that CC for much less than a day on a Disney cruise. So, I'd rather maximize time on the ship than at the beach. For full disclosure, my wife completely disagrees. She's much more likely to do some of the other activities that you cannot do at a typical beach (bikes, snorkeling) than I would. Our kids are mixed.

 

What is there to do on the ship? All the pool restaurants around the pool and the buffet are open. The pools aren't crowded. The movie theater will be showing movies. Best of all, the place is almost all yours. The buffet will be crowded in the morning as very many passengers will want to be on CC as early as possible. Otherwise, the ship will be nearly vacant until the afternoon. Shortly after lunch on the island, many families will return to ship and eventually drift up to the pool deck.

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Would like to go to CC for a brief snorkel yet spend most time at the pool without crowds. I am thinking most people get off in the morning and then come back after lunch- would that be correct? So if I got off the ship at 2ish would I have the best of fewer people on the ship in the morning and at the beach in the afternoon?

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Would like to go to CC for a brief snorkel yet spend most time at the pool without crowds. I am thinking most people get off in the morning and then come back after lunch- would that be correct? So if I got off the ship at 2ish would I have the best of fewer people on the ship in the morning and at the beach in the afternoon?

 

If you're plan is to avoid the crowds, that schedule will work (as long as the weather behaves). You could even leave the ship earlier.

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My kids prefer the pool to the beach, we stayed on board last couple times at CC. Had the pool almost to ourselves, watched the movies while in the pool, just enjoyed the ship. Movies in theater also. I do like CC though, it is a beautiful beach and so easy to get around with the tram.

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My kids prefer the pool to the beach, we stayed on board last couple times at CC. Had the pool almost to ourselves, watched the movies while in the pool, just enjoyed the ship. Movies in theater also. I do like CC though, it is a beautiful beach and so easy to get around with the tram.

While I agree with you, OP's family has a mobility issue and that changes EVERYTHING. Yes, there is wheelchair seating on the trams, and they will happily keep everyone else waiting while they load the wheelchair passenger and the chair. But it is a pain and it will be repeated if going to Serenity Bay. Wheelchairs, even the "beach chairs" that DCL provides, are difficult if you leave the paved paths. Sometime the same issue that requires the chair also causes things like heat intolerance.

 

I'm just glad that there are things to do on the ship and that anyone can have a great day on the ship if they prefer to bypass the island.

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So, we have come up with a game plan.

 

Since most everybody gets off the ship right after breakfast, we will stay on the ship. After lunch, when people are starting to return to the ship, we will get off. We only need an hour or so to do a little shopping for CC specific items (specifically Disney CC pins).

 

Now, if we could just figure out how to get room service to deliver tea and coffee to the loungers in some of the more remote areas of the ship. That would really make me feel I am getting the classic cruise experience. :)

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So, we have come up with a game plan.

 

Since most everybody gets off the ship right after breakfast, we will stay on the ship. After lunch, when people are starting to return to the ship, we will get off. We only need an hour or so to do a little shopping for CC specific items (specifically Disney CC pins).

 

Now, if we could just figure out how to get room service to deliver tea and coffee to the loungers in some of the more remote areas of the ship. That would really make me feel I am getting the classic cruise experience. :)

The only possible problem I see with your plan is that prime shopping time is on the way off and on the way back to the ship.

 

If you want the shops to be as uncrowded as possible, you might get off just a bit before lunch time, do your shopping, and be back on board in order to enjoy lunch there.

 

Alternatively, do an early lunch on board (11 or 11:30), then get off and shop. If you wait till 1 or later, the ships will start to get crowded and you'll have issues with getting the chair thru the displays and the crowds.

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I think if you get off the ship at 11:30, when lunch starts on the island, you will have the trams and shops to yourselves, then if you're not interested in the bbq lunch, go back to the ship and eat. By 2ish, a lot of the early people had enough and head back, especially since the food ends at 2:00!

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