If I wanted to visit Coco Cay, I'd cruise Royal.

[Hawkstar33]

Coco Cay was really nice, and clean.  Peaceful walking around.  Swim up pool bar is really nice. Chilly depending on time of year. Same crew you have on the boat,  they just go onto the Island.  The vendors at the little tiki huts are locals, and prices for trinkets are a bit uppity.  Several spots to eat, all included, except the wing place.  Think they call it Capt Jacks or something like that.  High price water park.  Too much $$, especially with multiple kids.  Lotta walking, watch for the occasional, passing monsoon..  Honestly, one and done for us

[Gracie115]

2 hours ago, Mark_K said:

Princess has way more cruises stopping at Princess Cays than Celebrity will have stopping at Coco Cay.

Princess Cays is NOT an amusement park

[MommaBear55]

I really prefer Coco Cay over many of the ports such as Dominica, Costa Maya or St Maarten. It's clean, well set up and no beggars or scam artists. There can't be more than two ships, so it doesn't get crowded like Cozumel or St Thomas.

[smeck]

I have visited Perfect  day  many times and enjoyed it very much.  The food options are far superior than any other private island and the pool is incredible along with its acres of beaches. I have no doubt you’ll enjoy.

[TeeRick]

18 hours ago, jwlane said:

That's the point---everyone is getting upset over a VERY limited data set.

Who is getting upset?  I view at stop at Coco Cay as very favorable.  On RCCL, stopping there or at Labadee is nice, but full of kids.  There will be far fewer kids when stopping on Celebrity.

[Itchy&Scratchy]

1 hour ago, EatonDoolittle said:

Having been to both, CoCo Cay is as nice or nicer than Princess Cay.

Having been to both, I would confidently say that Coco Cay is a lot better than Princess Cay.

Free umbrellas for all. A pool for those who don't care for the beach. Much better free food on Coco Cay. Lots of activities for kids and young adults, if they are into that. Lots of regular beach space without the rowdy younger crowds (even with two ships in port, one of which is Oasis class) if you care to walk beyond the first part of Chill Island. No need to tender. Better beach itself. Frequently running shuttles for people with mobility problems.

 

On Princess Cay we've been hard pressed to find space in the shade and not shoulder to shoulder with other people every time we were in port. It has very little natural shade, but umbrellas aren't provided.

 

The same light snorkeling.

 

We have been previously overwhelmed by the grill smoke blowing right onto the beach on Princess Cay. Can't say the same about Coco Cay. 

 

Even though we cruise with a preteen, he is not interested in regular kid activities and would rather chill on the beach. We don't use or go to the "amusement" parts of the Coco Cay. For us, Coco Cay is perfect for a very relaxing time on the beach. And there is funnel cake!

 

 

Edited June 29, 2023 by Itchy&Scratchy

[Mark_K]

27 minutes ago, Gracie115 said:

Princess Cays is NOT an amusement park

And Coco Cay is not just an amusement park, more or less, it is Princess Cays with added, extra cost, features. Nobody forces you to visit any of the extra cost areas.

Edited June 29, 2023 by Mark_K

[jwlane]

22 minutes ago, TeeRick said:

 I view at stop at Coco Cay as very favorable.  

Agreed!  Lots of... posters seem to think otherwise.  "Everyone" was an exaggeration.

Edited June 29, 2023 by jwlane

[ecslady]

Remember that most times Cococay will have two ships in port.  So X will be there with an RC ship.  Scroll down and check out the schedule.

 

https://www.cruisetimetables.com/coco-cay-bahamas-cruise-ship-schedule-2024.html

[marieps]

19 hours ago, Saturngrl said:

I've done an Oasis Lagoon Cabana and a day at the Beach Club on CoCo Cay.   Both were great experiences, but I am no longer craving to go there again, anytime soon.  I agree the vibe on Celebrity is more adult and a bit more refined and love Celebrity accordingly.  

 

What makes me sad is that my beloved Reflection is going to do 3 and 4-night cruises to Nassau and CoCo Cay.   Such a beautiful ship with so many wonderful experiences.  Short cruises will never do that ship justice.  Glad we are sailing her to A,B,C in February, before the CoCo Cay business starts! 

Total agreement with you.  Too bad they didn't designate an M class ship for these short hops.

[zitsky]

1 hour ago, TeeRick said:

Who is getting upset?  I view at stop at Coco Cay as very favorable.  On RCCL, stopping there or at Labadee is nice, but full of kids.  There will be far fewer kids when stopping on Celebrity.

 

You may get me interested if the adults only section is REALLY adults only.  I like kids but I don't think I'd enjoy a few hundred kids running around screaming.  If I'm there I want to relax.  I suspect more adults with kids will book on Celebrity.  So there will be more kids on the island over time.

 

Another poster called it "pearl clutching" if you don't  like the changes.  So I guess you can call me an old lady.

[lv2cruisgrl]

22 hours ago, Eve said:

I can't be the only one who is dismayed that the new head of Celebrity is trying to incorporate more "Royalness" into the cruise line. I choose Celebrity because I enjoy the more upscale experience that it has traditionally offered. The blurring of the brands makes me think she is going to look for more way to cut costs on Celebrity at the expense of service, amenities included in fares, and a more centralized focus on being "family-oriented". There are already enough cruise lines that cater to water slides, kid-friendly amenities and mega ships. The "luxury" lines like Regent and Oceania skew much older than I like and are far too expensive to allow me to cruise regularly on them. Celebrity was always the sweet spot. A little more refined than Royal and a lot less stuffy than Regent. I feel like the upscale elegance the line has always been known for is not trending in the right direction with the addition of Coco Cay. Thoughts???

TOTALLY AGREE!

[NutsAboutGolf]

If folks don't want to go here, think of it as a charter cruise.  Would you prefer to not be on a chartered nudist cruise?  Skip it...Same with cruises that go to Coco Cay

[Host Anne]

Let's start with RCI has spent millions upon millions of dollars to revamp Perfect Day at CocoCay.  With a few exceptions, there will always be two ships at CocoCay. But if you look closely, it is possible to select a date/cruise when Celebrity  stops here with a smaller Royal ship (Grandeur for example).   I hadn't been here in years and was actually surprised when we visited.  We've been twice now in the past two years.  I wouldn't sail Royal again to stop at CocoCay, but we would sail Reflection or Beyond to do so.  Here's why:

 

CocoCay has a variety of different areas allowing you to get the type of experience you'd like from a stop at a private island.  We've enjoyed two areas of CocoCay.... Chill Island where we rented a small cabana.  The second time we bought the day pass at the Beach Club which included a wonderful Bahamian lunch  Both were quiet with private beaches and very enjoyable . Yes, we paid for both of these experiences but you pay for any excursion when you are in a port.  The key here is that you are not forced to pay if you don't want to and both of these areas limit the number of passengers.

 

Yes, the main pool area and water slides here get very crowded.  But we only passed them on our walk to and from the area where we rented. We spent the day(s) pretty far away from them.

 

Bottom line for us.... this isn't a bad thing.  We'd sail a Celebrity ship with a stop at Perfect Day at CocoCay.  Like any other cruise, if we don't care for a port, we simply enjoy a day on the ship.  

[ECCruise]

I think this is probably a good thing for Celebrity, but for us, it just nudges it another small step away from our preferred line, with the caveat that we have 4 sailings with them, albeit in Asia and Europe, in the next year.

Celebrity started to move away from our focus with the loud music beats (largely in the Martini Bar) a number of years ago. Then another tick away with the introduction of E Class, which we, frankly and ONLY in our opinion consider hokey with Magic Carpets and Eden and Infinite Verandas as examples. 

 

Not that we would ever sail the Caribbean again, so for us, CC isn't an issue, but it does define the direction the line is taking.  Which, as I said, is likely a good thing for =X=.

[D C]

Certainly not looking forward to going there as we don't care for going to the beach.   Will likely be a walk around the island followed by a ship day. No worse than Nassau. 

[Cap_D]

1 minute ago, ECCruise said:

Then another tick away with the introduction of E Class, which we, frankly and ONLY in our opinion consider hokey with Magic Carpets and Eden and Infinite Verandas as examples. 

Eden decor may be whimsical, but having a high end meal freshly prepared in a kitchen that does about 60 covers a night on 3k passenger cruise ship, is nothing short of a fantastic opportunity. 

[ECCruise]

56 minutes ago, Cap_D said:

Eden decor may be whimsical, but having a high end meal freshly prepared in a kitchen that does about 60 covers a night on 3k passenger cruise ship, is nothing short of a fantastic opportunity. 

True.

But the same could be said for Chef's Tables on many lines that have a similar experience for 10 guests in much more comfortable environments. 

But that is why there are so many choices available for today's cruise clienteles, which is a great thing.  Some mesh with our needs, some don't but the choices are great.

[Cap_D]

19 minutes ago, ECCruise said:

True.

But the same could be said for Chef's Tables on many lines that have a similar experience for 10 guests in much more comfortable environments. 

But that is why there are so many choices available for today's cruise clienteles, which is a great thing.  Some mesh with our needs, some don't but the choices are great.

Agreed.  

[WrittenOnYourHeart]

21 minutes ago, ECCruise said:

True.

But the same could be said for Chef's Tables on many lines that have a similar experience for 10 guests in much more comfortable environments. 

But that is why there are so many choices available for today's cruise clienteles, which is a great thing.  Some mesh with our needs, some don't but the choices are great.

 

However, Eden will offer a few more choices. As I understand it, the Chef's Table is pretty much what you see is what you get with minimal choice.

[ECCruise]

9 minutes ago, WrittenOnYourHeart said:

 

However, Eden will offer a few more choices. As I understand it, the Chef's Table is pretty much what you see is what you get with minimal choice.

Also true. 

There are always some choices, but the selections by the Chef is really the whole point of a Chef's Table. Otherwise just do a Specialty.

[mrgabriel]

Going back to the original question. I'm okay with Coco Cay. We don't generally get off the ship in Caribbean ports because after dozens of visits, all we want is a beach - and that's what Coco Cay provides.

 

For those who don't like it, there are alternatives in itinerary or ship or cruise line. No line is going to be all things to all people and money talks. And things change. Yes - I hate that justification but am hearing it more and more as younger generations than mine become the target demographic. 

[zitsky]

2 minutes ago, mrgabriel said:

Going back to the original question. I'm okay with Coco Cay. We don't generally get off the ship in Caribbean ports because after dozens of visits, all we want is a beach - and that's what Coco Cay provides.

 

For those who don't like it, there are alternatives in itinerary or ship or cruise line. No line is going to be all things to all people and money talks. And things change. Yes - I hate that justification but am hearing it more and more as younger generations than mine become the target demographic. 

We’ll have to agree to disagree.  I go on cruises to see different countries not sit on a beach.  Telling me to go book something else works until they make the beach part of every cruise.  Kaching!

[mrgabriel]

2 minutes ago, zitsky said:

We’ll have to agree to disagree.  I go on cruises to see different countries not sit on a beach.  Telling me to go book something else works until they make the beach part of every cruise.  Kaching!

 

Okay. Again, your choice.

 

We've been to pretty much all of the Caribbean Islands 4 or 5 times and there's only so much to do ... 

 

And I live in Canada - from October through April, there is nothing more attractive than a beach!

[Mark_K]

On 6/28/2023 at 1:08 PM, Eve said:

I can't be the only one who is dismayed that the new head of Celebrity is trying to incorporate more "Royalness" into the cruise line. I choose Celebrity because I enjoy the more upscale experience that it has traditionally offered. The blurring of the brands makes me think she is going to look for more way to cut costs on Celebrity at the expense of service, amenities included in fares, and a more centralized focus on being "family-oriented". There are already enough cruise lines that cater to water slides, kid-friendly amenities and mega ships. The "luxury" lines like Regent and Oceania skew much older than I like and are far too expensive to allow me to cruise regularly on them. Celebrity was always the sweet spot. A little more refined than Royal and a lot less stuffy than Regent. I feel like the upscale elegance the line has always been known for is not trending in the right direction with the addition of Coco Cay. Thoughts???

Just curious if you noticed that the vast majority of the Celebrity cruises visiting Coco Cay are three and four day cruises, and only one is even as long as seven days.  There aren’t a lot of options available for cruises that short, adding Coco Cay to the mix of what was basically Nassau, Key West, Bimini, and sea day, seems like a good idea to me.
 

In fact, I think I’d pick it first. Don’t even get off the ship anymore in Nassau, been to Key West enough, haven’t been to Bimini, but by most reports it’s not much.

Edited June 29, 2023 by Mark_K