How come X does not go to private island's

[bEwAbG]

Haven't they been doing a bunch of construction at Coco Cay?  They have upcoming sailings that go to Labadee, so they haven't given up on private islands altogether.  

[Iamcruzin]

On 10/1/2019 at 5:25 PM, dolittle said:

Many on this site (and this cruise line) are bored with some Caribbean stops .Was wondering why X does not do private islands the parent co. has spent big time on these (I think they have two). Is it just to be different or set them  apart . I know many do not like P.I . but many would . Does anyone know and would you like to do a P.I. on your next cruise.

I enjoyed Labadee on Royal Caribbean and would welcome a private island on Celebrity as long as it isn’t a tender port. I hate Princess Cay which is their private island because it’s rocky and you have to tender. It’s just an awful beach. The private islands are just a beach day and if you are bored with other Caribbean islands a private island won’t solve that problem.

[phoenix_dream]

I also remember the good ole days when a stop at a private island was like a visit to paradise - no crowds, a lovely beach, etc..  Now it is like visiting Six Flags.  I suspect they normally don't stop there as the stops are geared towards families with kids, and despite the fact that Celebrity can accommodate a certain number of children, they are not the target market and the ships are not designed with all the bells and whistles kids appreciate.    They can't handle, and don't want to attract, large numbers of kids on their ships.  They will use the islands periodically for scheduling needs, but I wouldn't expect them to go there very often because their target market is well-to-do millennials traveling without children.

[Iamcruzin]

Last time I was on Coco Cay it was more like Gilligan’s Island. My kids were 5 and 8 and they had a great time with the privative beach activities like snorkeling, volley ball, and sand  castles. Now they extended the island to accommodate families and water park activities. That can only be a good thing in terms of still having the original beach areas and hopefully directing the majority to the water park.

[George C]

39 minutes ago, bEwAbG said:

Haven't they been doing a bunch of construction at Coco Cay?  They have upcoming sailings that go to Labadee, so they haven't given up on private islands altogether.  

Looked somewhat complete in March , pier was there but they were extending it, we were docked , I probably should have gotten off but stayed on the ship. 

[Iamcruzin]

On 10/6/2019 at 7:22 AM, ipeeinthepool said:

 

I'm not sure what you expected when you went to the artisan craft village, but I want to make sure everyone understands the very limited area where the locals sell their goods.  One is a building dedicated for the craft sales.  If you don't go in you won't have any interaction with the locals selling their goods.  The second area is along a road leading to the beach for about 100 yards. The locals stay in there shops and are not allowed to go past a fence along side the road.  They call out to you as you walk along the road, if you're not interested just ignore them or say no thanks and keep walking.  If you take the tram to the beach, you will drive by this area without stopping.  I've been to Labadee many times, enjoyed each stop and I wanted to make sure everyone understands that you won't experience any harassment.    As far as this being a 3rd world country experience, it's much more uncomfortable walking along many streets in Los Angeles or San Francisco where there are numerous panhandlers with garbage and needles littering the streets.   For me that's far more uncomfortable.  

I agree with your assessment. We were on Labadee this past June. We walked to the beach that had the swim up bar. There was a store close to where we sat that I walked into. I was not bothered by a single person. I wasn’t even asked if I wanted help. I never came across the strip of locals who I have read about being very aggressive. As far as it being a 3rd world country I never experienced any of that. However the majority of the Caribbean is 3rd world and that I have seen first hand over my 30yr span of cruising there. I travel into Manhattan quite often and have also been harassed by the homeless which are on every corner, and train station.  If that’s not bad enough you also get harassed by Green Peace, whatever political group that is campaigning that day and the mass of people handing out flyers. People wonder why New Yorkers aren’t friendly. It’s because we spend half our life trying to ignore solicitation.  

[hvsteve1]

We were on Labadee with "X" suite class which is a private beach.  Much different from rest of the island.