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Is Coco Cay worth the cost?


ecormier
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I posted this on the Private Islands area and have had no response. I will try here.

 

We are bringing our family on the Anthem of the Seas during the March Break. We had planned to purchase Coco Cay water park passes for six of our family members, four grandchildren and our two sons. There will be two ships in port that day and ours arrives two hours after the other ship arrives. So I ask:

  • Will there be huge lineups for the water slides and other activities in the water park?
  • Will they spend more time in lines than actually enjoying the slides?
  • Do they limit the number of passes sold?
  • Will we feel we overpaid for this outing?
  • Will both ships be able to dock?
  • Is there anything else to do at the port? 

 

Any and all information to help help us decide would be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance.

 

Cheers, Betty

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12 minutes ago, ecormier said:

I posted this on the Private Islands area and have had no response. I will try here.

 

We are bringing our family on the Anthem of the Seas during the March Break. We had planned to purchase Coco Cay water park passes for six of our family members, four grandchildren and our two sons. There will be two ships in port that day and ours arrives two hours after the other ship arrives. So I ask:

  • Will there be huge lineups for the water slides and other activities in the water park?
  • Will they spend more time in lines than actually enjoying the slides?
  • Do they limit the number of passes sold?
  • Will we feel we overpaid for this outing?
  • Will both ships be able to dock?
  • Is there anything else to do at the port? 

 

Any and all information to help help us decide would be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance.

 

Cheers, Betty

Huge line no, but lines yes.

kids don't care about lines.

No limit to passes at waterpark, only for the beach club.

I would definitely feel gouged, but hey you are on vacation.

Dock can handle three ships even if one is Oasis class. Royal says island is comfortable for 12000.

Only free thing to do is sit in the sun, go to the big pool, and eat eat eat. 

happy cruising

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Personally I would spend the time on the ship and put the money elsewhere. Disney or some park closer to where you live. With so many other people being off the ship it will be just that much nicer to be on it. Now if RC didn't charge an arm and a leg then it might be worth it to go. Considering you already paid for the fun stuff on the ship I would just stay on it. You can always get off to go an the beach and the bbq.

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15 minutes ago, ReneeFLL said:

Personally I would spend the time on the ship and put the money elsewhere. Disney or some park closer to where you live. With so many other people being off the ship it will be just that much nicer to be on it. Now if RC didn't charge an arm and a leg then it might be worth it to go. Considering you already paid for the fun stuff on the ship I would just stay on it. You can always get off to go an the beach and the bbq.

 

If you haven't been to Coco Cay since it's been refurbished, I definitely suggest you check it out!  So much to do without spending money.  Go to the Oasis Lagoon, the pool with the swim up bar.  There's also the Beach, and plenty of food options.  I went in December, didn't spend any money, and it truly was the perfect day!  Looking forward to going back in November!!

 

Celeste

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So we haven’t been yet ... but ... as far as perfectly free stuff to do - there’s hanging out on the beach, playing in the ocean (and there are a few different free beaches), eating at the food / snack places on the island, and the main pools. Then you can pay a small fee for a couple things like snorkeling or renting a kayak. (Or you could bring your own snorkel equipment and do that for free.) 

 

We went to Disney’s private island, and it was fabulous. A bit crowded, but absolutely amazing. We’re looking for a similar experience. I’m hoping my kids don’t freak at not being able to do the water park, but the price is just too much for me to justify when we’re going to Atlantis the next day. 

 

Maybe google “free things to do on coco cay perfect day” and see what you come up with, and whether the water park is worth it for you all. For us, i think we’re going to skip it and stay on the beach. We’ll see though. 

 

And we’re coming from NJ in April. No way are we staying on the boat. I need some beach time. 🙂

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1 hour ago, ecormier said:

I posted this on the Private Islands area and have had no response. I will try here.

 

We are bringing our family on the Anthem of the Seas during the March Break. We had planned to purchase Coco Cay water park passes for six of our family members, four grandchildren and our two sons. There will be two ships in port that day and ours arrives two hours after the other ship arrives. So I ask:

  • Will there be huge lineups for the water slides and other activities in the water park?
  • Will they spend more time in lines than actually enjoying the slides?
  • Do they limit the number of passes sold?
  • Will we feel we overpaid for this outing?
  • Will both ships be able to dock?
  • Is there anything else to do at the port? 

 

Any and all information to help help us decide would be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance.

 

Cheers, Betty

Basing my reply on a friend who was recently there on a day there were two ships at Coco Cay. He said on facebook if you got off the ship early as possible there was no line for anything but the largest slide. A little later and the lines did get long so they went to eat and check out the rest of the island. He said in the afternoon the lines got shorter again. He said they had some system where they were assigning times for the biggest slide and he did it 3 times. Once early in the day and twice late in the afternoon.

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Rccl spent about 250 million updating the island.

Rumour has it that they will make that back in 6 months.

I really get annoyed that every one mentions "free" food, pools, etc.

You pay a lot of money for the cruise so you paid for it and it is not at all free.

Rccl is 2nd behind NCL for ASF's, added service fees. Added costs to each passenger.

Spending hundreds to go to a water park for a few hours and stand in line

is sort of a joke. 1st big hurricane and that big plastic tower will be heading towards 

New York...

I personally like Gilligan's Island over donating to their stock futures.

 

We are the Moore's

Tampa Bay  🙂

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54 minutes ago, loyalroyal17 said:

 

If you haven't been to Coco Cay since it's been refurbished, I definitely suggest you check it out!  So much to do without spending money.  Go to the Oasis Lagoon, the pool with the swim up bar.  There's also the Beach, and plenty of food options.  I went in December, didn't spend any money, and it truly was the perfect day!  Looking forward to going back in November!!

 

Celeste

I have been there several times. I really wished I would have seen it before they turned it into a water park. She was asking about buying tickets and the slides. There are plenty of free things to do, I just didn't think I would need to list them all since that information is freely available for such activities.

 

This was one of our more interesting days there. Go to post 14 and see my videos several posts down.

https://boards.cruisecritic.com/topic/2708980-allure-evacuated-coco-cay/?tab=comments#comment-58744000

 

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59 minutes ago, eddeb said:

Rccl spent about 250 million updating the island.

Rumour has it that they will make that back in 6 months.

I really get annoyed that every one mentions "free" food, pools, etc.

You pay a lot of money for the cruise so you paid for it and it is not at all free.

Rccl is 2nd behind NCL for ASF's, added service fees. Added costs to each passenger.

Spending hundreds to go to a water park for a few hours and stand in line

is sort of a joke. 1st big hurricane and that big plastic tower will be heading towards 

New York...

I personally like Gilligan's Island over donating to their stock futures.

 

We are the Moore's

Tampa Bay  🙂

So well said. I feel the same way.

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My daughter and I went to Coco Cay in November on the Navigator.  There was one other ship in port with us.  The island did not feel overcrowded.  The weather wasn't the best but I got the impression that, even if the weather was better, it would not have been too crowded.  People tend to cycle on and off the ships because its easy to get back and forth.  

 

NOW AS FAR AS COST....When we went the waterpark was $40/person.  We were not interested in the slides but really enjoyed the wave pool even though it was freezing cold.  We had our fill after about an hour so we ate and went off to explore the other (free) parts of the island.  Wave pools are exhausting.  We laid in the hammocks sat by the big beach "pool" area and had a great time.  We will be back in Coco Cay in June and I've noticed the prices have jumped to like $130/person.  There is no way in HELL I would pay that much to go to that waterpark.  Anthem (and most other ships) have FREE slides.  The wave pool is fun but not worth that price.  There are so many other FREE areas that are interesting to see and enjoyable. Royal will host several FREE activities throughout the day on the island that your family may be interested in as well.   Also with so many people off the ship you can easily enjoy the pools on board.  I'm pretty loyal to RCL but all this expensive "extra" stuff they try to suck you into gets on my nerves.  

 

That's my take anyway.  Happy sailing!  Ahh I can't wait till June!

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I live in Minnesota and woke up to -33 windchill.  Obviously we don’t have access to outdoor water parks, so waiting in line with friends and family for 20-30 minutes in order to enjoy a water slide isn’t a burden.  Its all relative.

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1 hour ago, eddeb said:

Rccl spent about 250 million updating the island.

Rumour has it that they will make that back in 6 months.

I really get annoyed that every one mentions "free" food, pools, etc.

You pay a lot of money for the cruise so you paid for it and it is not at all free.

Rccl is 2nd behind NCL for ASF's, added service fees. Added costs to each passenger.

Spending hundreds to go to a water park for a few hours and stand in line

is sort of a joke. 1st big hurricane and that big plastic tower will be heading towards 

New York...

I personally like Gilligan's Island over donating to their stock futures.

 

We are the Moore's

Tampa Bay  🙂

I agree with your statement and would never pay the outrageous price they charge for just about everything on the private island.  I would book a land vacation at a resort if I wanted any of the offerings. With that said, in terms of it being a free day, you are not at another port of call where you have to pay for drinks , lunch, transportation or an excursion so even though it's included in the cruise fare there are no extra costs unless you don't have the drink package. I understand that the water park is great if you have kids but I just can't justify  $1,600 for a cabana just to use as a home base for my belongings which is mentioned quit often here. We haven't been to Coco Cay since 2001 but we enjoyed that and our recent trip to Labadee without spending a dime.

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We were just there a couple of weeks ago.  2 ships in port that day (not big ships... Majesty & Mariner).  We enjoyed all the included amenities (don't want to make anyone mad using the word "FREE").  We hung out most of the day at the beach but also went over to the lagoon pool for a while.  We were the 2nd ship to arrive, but I think by only a short time.  Get off the ship as quickly as you can to get some chairs & umbrella closer to the water.  

 

And be sure to head over to the Snack Shack.  They have great funnel cakes for free... um, I mean they are included.  

 

The only complaint I have is the pool was not heated and the water was very cold.  I assume that is the same for the water park.  It should be warmer for you in March (I hope).

 

I can't comment on the actual water park as we did not do it.  It may depend on how old your grandkids are.  There were plenty of younger kids hanging out at the beach all day having a good time.  If they are older, that may be boring for them and the water park would be appreciated.

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5 hours ago, Leeba25 said:

So we haven’t been yet ... but ... as far as perfectly free stuff to do - there’s hanging out on the beach, playing in the ocean (and there are a few different free beaches), eating at the food / snack places on the island, and the main pools. Then you can pay a small fee for a couple things like snorkeling or renting a kayak. (Or you could bring your own snorkel equipment and do that for free.) 

 

We went to Disney’s private island, and it was fabulous. A bit crowded, but absolutely amazing. We’re looking for a similar experience. I’m hoping my kids don’t freak at not being able to do the water park, but the price is just too much for me to justify when we’re going to Atlantis the next day. 

 

Maybe google “free things to do on coco cay perfect day” and see what you come up with, and whether the water park is worth it for you all. For us, i think we’re going to skip it and stay on the beach. We’ll see though. 

 

And we’re coming from NJ in April. No way are we staying on the boat. I need some beach time. 🙂

 

Don't say that around Captain Johnny! He corrected a passenger who asked a question about the "boat" but in a nice way. Pretty funny Captain.

Edited by Illbcruzn4life
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4 hours ago, RonPaula said:

I live in Minnesota and woke up to -33 windchill.  Obviously we don’t have access to outdoor water parks, so waiting in line with friends and family for 20-30 minutes in order to enjoy a water slide isn’t a burden.  Its all relative.


I’d save the money and put it towards a weekend in the Wisconsin Dell area (depending on how far away you are)

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Unsure how to apply to this.

I have no problem spending money to take a ship tour. Is this any different? We're not beach people, don't do water toys. Definitely NOT water park people.

Personally I would not spend the money here but would spend it on another excursion. 

Your vacation. You do you.

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7 hours ago, kendevjay said:

I'm pretty loyal to RCL but all this expensive "extra" stuff they try to suck you into gets on my nerves.


I don't see it this way at all.

The expensive stuff is OFFERED, but not mandatory by any means.  It's completely possible to spend the whole entire day on Coco Cay, have a great time, eat plenty of food, and never spend a dime.

Cruising is just like any other situation -- you spend your time and your money on the things that have value to you personally.  

I'm perfectly happy with an inside stateroom, because I only spend time in my room when I'm sleeping, showering, or changing my clothes.  It's not worth it to me to spend money on a window or balcony (and yes, I've done both windows and balconies more than once, but only for special circumstances or because it was just as cheap as an inside).  It's just not something that has value to me, personally. Other people spend lots of time in their rooms / on their balconies, and they wouldn't enjoy their vacation if they didn't have a suite or balcony room -- there is value to them in spending that extra money.

Similarly, I'm perfectly happy in a free/included lounger under a free/included umbrella and eating the free/included buffet and Snack Shack food items on Coco Cay.  Other people wouldn't enjoy that like I do, and so they pay extra for cabanas or beach club passes or waterpark tickets or whatever.  

Just like how I don't spend big bucks on a fancy vehicle -- my car is a dozen years old and nothing special, but I paid cash for it years ago and it gets me where I want to go reliably and economically and it meets my needs.  My housemate, on the other hand, has a fancy  sports/muscle car that costs a fortune in car payments and insurance payments and upkeep and probably only leaves the garage 20 times a year (and only between May and October), which requires paying for a whole second vehicle to have to actually go to work, to the grocery store, etc.  My housemate sees value in what he's spending his money on, while I do not.  

The house we live in is in a modest neighborhood, with modest furniture -- other people in this area spend 5-10 times on their housing and furniture.  I'm happy with clothes from Wal-Mart -- other people will only wear expensive name-brand clothing from high-end stores.  Some people spend several thousands of dollars a month on rent in a city like New York and would hate to live in a flyover state like me, where a mortgage payment (including taxes and insurance) is under $1000/month.

I'm GLAD that Royal Caribbean charges extra for things like the waterpark and specialty dining and the booze package and internet access and the sushi / cupcake / martini classes on its cruises.  If there's something that has a value to me, I can buy it and enjoy it, and if there's something that isn't important to me, I can pass it by and save my money.  

 

It's one of the (many) reasons why I don't cruise on the higher-end cruises that are "all-inclusive" -- if I don't actually want all the included amenities, why would I want to be paying for all the included amenities???

People like to complain about "nickel and diming" by cruise lines, but I just don't see it that way.  They're not charging you for every individual roll of toilet paper you use, or every bath towel, or every fork in the buffet -- it's entirely possible to spend a week on a cruise ship, eat plenty of food, see plenty of shows, spend plenty of time in a pool / hot tub / lounge chair, and not spend a single additional dime (other than gratuities/daily service charge, which is a known expense and can be paid for as part of your cruise fare).  

They are only charging for "extra" things because they are, by definition, "extra things"... not part of the regular/basic cruise experience.  Your cruise fare covers your room and your food and your spot on the ship.  Anything else that you want is going to be at your expense.  If you don't want anything else, you're not going to have any extra expenses. 

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8 hours ago, kendevjay said:

My daughter and I went to Coco Cay in November on the Navigator.  There was one other ship in port with us.  The island did not feel overcrowded.  The weather wasn't the best but I got the impression that, even if the weather was better, it would not have been too crowded.  People tend to cycle on and off the ships because its easy to get back and forth.  

 

NOW AS FAR AS COST....When we went the waterpark was $40/person.  We were not interested in the slides but really enjoyed the wave pool even though it was freezing cold.  We had our fill after about an hour so we ate and went off to explore the other (free) parts of the island.  Wave pools are exhausting.  We laid in the hammocks sat by the big beach "pool" area and had a great time.  We will be back in Coco Cay in June and I've noticed the prices have jumped to like $130/person.  There is no way in HELL I would pay that much to go to that waterpark.  Anthem (and most other ships) have FREE slides.  The wave pool is fun but not worth that price.  There are so many other FREE areas that are interesting to see and enjoyable. Royal will host several FREE activities throughout the day on the island that your family may be interested in as well.   Also with so many people off the ship you can easily enjoy the pools on board.  I'm pretty loyal to RCL but all this expensive "extra" stuff they try to suck you into gets on my nerves.  

 

That's my take anyway.  Happy sailing!  Ahh I can't wait till June!

Anthem doesn't have any waterslides, but many Royal ships do.

 

Prices have gone up. We got a great deal for Navigator last August (purchased 8 or more months earlier) but missed the stop due to Dorian. Paid a bit more for anthem upcoming cruise (half day tickets so hoping converted to full day as these tickets no longer exist) and ok for Mariner. Current price is now are $$$. Our cruise for next March is $130 Cad which is crazy. We'll be enjoying the pool and beach going forward at those prices.

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13 hours ago, ecormier said:

I posted this on the Private Islands area and have had no response. I will try here.

 

We are bringing our family on the Anthem of the Seas during the March Break. We had planned to purchase Coco Cay water park passes for six of our family members, four grandchildren and our two sons. There will be two ships in port that day and ours arrives two hours after the other ship arrives. So I ask:

  • Will there be huge lineups for the water slides and other activities in the water park?
  • Will they spend more time in lines than actually enjoying the slides?
  • Do they limit the number of passes sold?
  • Will we feel we overpaid for this outing?
  • Will both ships be able to dock?
  • Is there anything else to do at the port? 

 

Any and all information to help help us decide would be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance.

 

Cheers, Betty

You are from Canada.  Going to a Caribbean Islands.  You are taking young kids.  Giant water park, zip lines, water activities etc.  I can't picture taking my grandkids to a fun filled island, and only have them look at it.  Remember the credit card commercial buying stuff.  The cost is not the issue, it is the fun and memories that are priceless. Enjoy, and don't worry about the stuff.  They will have a blast, and you will enjoy a cold drink while knowing they are having fun.

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Hi Betty.  I have adult kids and pre teen grandkids that all just love waterparks.  I can't imagine taking them to Coco Cay and not getting them water park passes.  There will likely be some lines; however, this is the case at any water park our family has ever been to.  My personal opinion is to get them the passes and relish the enjoyment of the day!

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Hi Betty!

 

I was at Cococay in Dec on Harmony. We were the only ship there that day so I can't speak to what your specific experience will look like, but we loved the waterpark! I am a thrill ride kind of person, so I thoroughly enjoyed my day there. We got off the ship as soon as we could, and beelined straight for the slides. The slides that have tubes or mats to sit on do get lines pretty early and stay steady throughout the day, so I'd hit those first. Then, the tallest ride, Daredevil's Peak, has a ticket return system to minimize the wait in line. I'd stop by there and see what the return time is and get your ticket. The other slides in that area didn't really get lines at all throughout the day, se we easily rode everything multiple times. These slides are no joke. They are truly fun, and if that's the experience you want, you will get it, even with a small line. We planned our day to do slides first thing in the morning, do lunch, we did the zipline after lunch, hit the wave pool for a bit (cold like everyone says but you get used to it) headed over to Oasis pool for awhile, then hit up the slides again to end the day. In the last two hours the ship is in port the lines essentially disappear. They stop handing out tickets to Daredevil's Peak as it essentially becomes walk on. If this what you want to do for your day, you won't regret spending the money! Or the time in a few small lines.

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