Beach at Castaway Cay

[praisehisname]

Our family is taking our first ever cruise in January, and I had a question about our stop at Castaway Cay. Is it a far walk to the beach. All we want to do is go to the beach and swim. We're not interested in any of the other excursions. If we take our time getting off the ship, will we be screwed as far as finding a good spot on the beach?

Thanks for any help!
Denise

 

[LibertyBelle]

No it is not far to walk to the beach (they offer tram service as well if you don't want to walk). The beach is large so you should not have a problem finding a spot (a Hammock on the other hand may be tough). There is lots of space, you may have to walk farther down the beach as the early risers tend to get right in the first section (by the snorkel lagoon) but we have never had a problem (in 5 DCL cruises) finding a great spot to hang out.

 

[IrishCowboy]

The sooner you get off the ship, the better spot/closer to the ship you will get. However, there is plenty of room on the beach. You may have to walk a little further if you choose to get off the ship later in the morning.

Hammocks go fast, so if you want one of them, you need to be one of the first off the ship.

If you get a chance, try to visit Serenity Bay/Adult beach. It is very nice and worth the extra time that it takes to get there.

Have a great cruise!

 

[praisehisname]

Thanks for the tips. We're really excited!

Denise

 

[jeanie]

We got off early because we wanted to get a good spot...
We ended up going almost all the way down the beach in front of the bathrooms and it was deserted (well sort of) until around 11:00. It was a great spot near Cookies, the bathroom and the
play area was right in front off in the water....


Don't worry, there is no bad spot...

 

[disneyfan551]

jeanie... what do you mean by play area? we will have 3 2 yr. olds with us, and I would like to find the best place for them.

thanks!

 

[tkd lisa]

The play area is out in the water. It's pretty deep out there (the kids jump off the rope swings, etc), so unless your 2 year old are spectacular swimmers, it's probably not for them!

I honestly can't remember if there is a playground on CC. My DS wouldn't leave the kids programming since there was so much to do, and my DD wouldn't leave the water.

Anyone else know of a playground for tots on CC?

 

[CGC33A]

The play area is a swim out structure more geared towards school age children. Look at pictures of CC & look for it in the water. On our first cruise we didn't even know it was there. We didn't venture far enough out on the beach. Any spot is fine for 2 year olds. Just bring some buckets (or anything to put sand in) & they will play at the water's edge for hours. There is no surf at all. Even though, we have chairs under an umbrella, we spend most of the time at hte edge of the water. We pull some of the chairs into the shallows to keep cool & watch the kids. (DCL probably cringes at this, but everyone does it & I have yet to see rust). I pull them out of the water when I am done however.

 

[dianthus]

CC is perfect for just relaxing & swimming! If you get off the ship too late, you may not find an umbrella, let alone a hammock- they go quick. If you get off past 10AM, walk further down to the end of the family beach- it's quiet & you'll probably find chairs no problem. With a Jan. sail date, the ship may not be so full & you may not have any problems at all.

Tube & float rentals are fun & relaxing. There is a dig area for the little ones that looks like fun for them. I agree with other posters, the water play area is for older kids that can swim well.

If you want to send postcards from CC, buy your stamps first- bring cash- small bills. They sometimes run out of stamps at the end of the day.

You will love CC!! It's the best part of the trip!

 

[jeanie]

You may want to check out Barb and Tony's site castawayclub She had a map of castaway cay that you could printout. I used it to decide where to plant myself and although it was a long way down the beach (take the tram and save the walking for later)
it was a great spot...

 

[BAKAROMA]

I am guessing umbrellas in January may not be as needed. Is that true? I know the weather can vary in January proabably as much or more than any other month, but we may want to get as warm as possible (cruising 1/17).

 

[jrabbit]

You might not care about the umbrellas, but be sure to wear a lot of sunscreen and reapply it!!! You will burn there any time of the year!!