Half Moon Cay

[jonda01]

Can we bring our own floats to HMC?

[south-carolinagirl]

Yes

[DontTreadOnMe]

I believe so.  You pack it, you lug it, you enjoy it.

[jonda01]

Woot! Thank you!

[davy jones]

We have used HMC as a beach day and love it, but have not snorkeled there.

 

How is the snorkeling there?

[Embem]

Yes. I brought my own floatie there in the past! 

[ProgRockCruiser]

5 hours ago, davy jones said:

We have used HMC as a beach day and love it, but have not snorkeled there.

 

How is the snorkeling there?

There were a number of people snorkeling there last week.  I don't think it is a super-duper experience full of miles of coral or anything, but it is easy to do - the water is very calm and clear (at least it was when we were there).  We brought our snorkeling gear but left it on the ship because we just wanted to float.  Next time we will definitely bring it.

 

EDIT: forgot to say - angel fish swam past me, amongst other fish species, just standing in three feet of water, and someone said they saw a stingray, so there seems to be some level of stuff to observe!

Edited September 13, 2021 by ProgRockCruiser

[jc811]

There are NO umbrellas there to provide shade from the sun (though there are cabanas you can reserve for $$).

We brought our own beach umbrella. Nice and shady!

[ninjacat123]

48 minutes ago, jc811 said:

There are NO umbrellas there to provide shade from the sun (though there are cabanas you can reserve for $$).

We brought our own beach umbrella. Nice and shady!

There are clamshells that can be rented for $30, I think, that come with two chairs.

[Ladybug5]

Are there any meals included with this excursion or a place to purchase food or drinks?

[Buckimion]

13 minutes ago, Ladybug5 said:

Are there any meals included with this excursion or a place to purchase food or drinks?

There's some shelters that serve up basic picnic fare - Burgers,  salads, hot dogs that sort of thing and dessert & drink for free.

[ninjacat123]

32 minutes ago, Ladybug5 said:

Are there any meals included with this excursion or a place to purchase food or drinks?

There are bar servers that are serving beach goers and there is the Pirate Ship Bar (that's what it looks like) that you can order drinks from.  Remember if you have Cheers, it doesn't apply on HMC.  Bummer.

[80sGal]

21 minutes ago, Buckimion said:

There's some shelters that serve up basic picnic fare - Burgers,  salads, hot dogs that sort of thing and dessert & drink for free.

The food buffet closes around 130, which we found out the hard way.  Ate breakfast, went to HMC and by the time we were hungry again ... well, let's just say we had an early dinner back on the ship later in the afternoon.  So plan accordingly.  🙂

[mondello]

42 minutes ago, Ladybug5 said:

Are there any meals included with this excursion or a place to purchase food or drinks?

Half Moon Cay is a private beach day. Carnival ships stop there all the time. They provide a basic beach cookout with free food and iced tea/lemonade. Bar service with drinks available to purchase with your S&S card. You can rent Cabanas, Clamshells and floats. There are plenty of beach chairs but not a lot of shade. Many guests take advantage of the dining shelter houses to eat and/or drink to get out of the sun. HMC is a highlight of most Bahamas cruises.

[IntrepidFromDC]

On 9/14/2021 at 8:52 AM, jc811 said:

There are NO umbrellas there to provide shade from the sun (though there are cabanas you can reserve for $$).

We brought our own beach umbrella. Nice and shady!

There are lots of clamshells. 

[Virga]

1 hour ago, mondello said:

 HMC is a highlight of most Bahamas cruises.

 

Boy, maybe it's just us, but I feel like this overstates it by quite a large margin.  Sure, it is a destination on many/most Carnival Bahamas cruises, but it is... just not worthy of the word highlight.  For Florida residents, it is most certainly nothing special - and for out of towners, I'd 100% recommend you just fly in a day early and home a day late, to spend some time on the beach on the mainland.  Then you aren't sweating flight changes, either! 

 

The above comes from a FL native who lives ON the beach but hasn't set foot on it before 4p in several years, so take it with a grain of salt.  But from our perspective, the food is meh, the drinks aren't included, and it's just not that impressive a beach.  We do enjoy the slightly emptier ship with some of our fellow cruisers off sunning on the island, though!

[IntrepidFromDC]

15 minutes ago, Virga said:

 

Boy, maybe it's just us, but I feel like this overstates it by quite a large margin.  Sure, it is a destination on many/most Carnival Bahamas cruises, but it is... just not worthy of the word highlight.  For Florida residents, it is most certainly nothing special - and for out of towners, I'd 100% recommend you just fly in a day early and home a day late, to spend some time on the beach on the mainland. 

I've spent time on many Florida beaches, some more than once... Sanibel, South Beach, Clearwater, Naples, Marco Island, several keys.  I think many of them are good but not amazing like HMC.  Perhaps part of it is the water temp, or the Caribbean breeze.  Last week, even in September, the water was 84.

[Virga]

6 minutes ago, IntrepidFromDC said:

I've spent time on many Florida beaches, some more than once... Sanibel, South Beach, Clearwater, Naples, Marco Island, several keys.  I think many of them are good but not amazing like HMC.  Perhaps part of it is the water temp, or the Caribbean breeze.  Last week, even in September, the water was 84.

 

See, and I'd have said that anything on the west coast (of Florida) was unarguably nicer than HMC!  The sand they've used to replenish on the east coast isn't as fine and is less 'nice' than the west coast.  I can't say as I've noticed much of a difference in the water temp, but maybe I haven't given it enough of a chance.  I think the breeze is just as nice on all the Florida barrier islands, but I do know how that effect is multiplied by that 'I am on vacation!' feel.  I suspect that's why we like west coast beaches more than east coast beaches - east coast might be any given afternoon, west coast is always a proper getaway.  

 

In any event, clearly, to each their own!  I'm glad others enjoy it, we definitely enjoy the emptier ship =p

[klstiger]

Spoiled by Destin beaches!!! 

[mondello]

@Virga Well, I'm taking into consideration the fact that we get off the ship and you're right there for a beach day. Chairs set up and waiting. Calm, clear water and no riptides that I'm aware of. A lot of cruisers do not live by the ocean and live for a day at the beach. 

This is nice because you don't have to find a taxi to get to the beach like most port stops. No worry about missing the ship. I may be wrong but, I'm pretty sure they do not allow alcohol on public beaches in Florida.

[tidecruiser]

A quick question for those who have been before.  I am spoiled by the relatively private Florida hwy 30a beaches.  Can’t stand to be stuck in multiple rows of chairs.  If we walk on down the beach can you get to a less crowded area?   The pictures show multiple rows of chairs together.   I am fine just sitting/laying on a towel if no chairs.  Or is there another more secluded beach we can walk on the island?  Thanks!

[IntrepidFromDC]

1 hour ago, tidecruiser said:

A quick question for those who have been before.  I am spoiled by the relatively private Florida hwy 30a beaches.  Can’t stand to be stuck in multiple rows of chairs.  If we walk on down the beach can you get to a less crowded area?   The pictures show multiple rows of chairs together.   I am fine just sitting/laying on a towel if no chairs.  Or is there another more secluded beach we can walk on the island?  Thanks!

Yes and yes.  But for me, I spend so much time in the amazing water and less time laying on the beach than anywhere else.  Afterward all my knee and other joint pains disappear for a magical day.

[Pellaz]

On 9/22/2021 at 1:00 AM, tidecruiser said:

A quick question for those who have been before.  I am spoiled by the relatively private Florida hwy 30a beaches.  Can’t stand to be stuck in multiple rows of chairs.  If we walk on down the beach can you get to a less crowded area?   The pictures show multiple rows of chairs together.   I am fine just sitting/laying on a towel if no chairs.  Or is there another more secluded beach we can walk on the island?  Thanks!

 

Yes, the further away from the tender pier you walk, the emptier the beach will be.  

Generally, when you get out past Cabana #11 or #12, the beach is nicely quiet.  

 

I've seen ships' crew who have the day off tend to go toward the end also.   (I've rented a cabana out that way on every visit.)  

 

Note that there is a service roadway that you can walk on that's a lot easier than walking on the beach.  You can get lucky and catch a ride on the tram, too.  

 

On 9/13/2021 at 11:25 AM, davy jones said:

We have used HMC as a beach day and love it, but have not snorkeled there.

 

How is the snorkeling there?

 

The snorkeling is...fair.  I'd suggest snorkeling over near the Private Oasis since I've seen more fish-life there.   Since it's a sandy beach out to the safety line, there isn't too much to draw the fish in along the shore.  The rockier area by the Oasis is a better bet.  

People have said that WAY out past the last cabanas there is better snorkeling by those rocks, but I've never ventured out that far.  

 

[pamesacruisin]

We were wanting to book a cabana at HMC, but when I go to reserve one under shore excursions it says availble 8:45-1:45.  Ship doesn't leave until 5 pm.  I also read that you need to vacate it for cleaning 90 minutes prior to ship sailing.  Anyone know what time you really need to be out?  For $360 I hope we'd get to use it up until 3:30 especially if we didn't get to it until later in the morning.

[ninjacat123]

11 hours ago, pamesacruisin said:

We were wanting to book a cabana at HMC, but when I go to reserve one under shore excursions it says availble 8:45-1:45.  Ship doesn't leave until 5 pm.  I also read that you need to vacate it for cleaning 90 minutes prior to ship sailing.  Anyone know what time you really need to be out?  For $360 I hope we'd get to use it up until 3:30 especially if we didn't get to it until later in the morning.

We were in our cabana over Labor Day weekend cruise till 3:00.  No one was trying to get us to leave any earlier.  Prior cabana rentals we have stayed as late as 3:30, taking the last tender back to the ship.