Castaway Cay Cabana - a few questions

[Eeyorebabies]

My children all agree that the cabana was the best part of our cruise. Great escape from the crowds, free beach toys, floatation devices, snorkel gear, etc. We didn't bother waiting for a cart to go anywhere since we were in #4. We walked to the kids club for a small portion of the day to let the kids play there while we went to the small shops on the island. We were gone from the kids maybe an hour and they were already done at the kids club and wanted to go back to the cabana. Our youngest (4 at the time) wanted to stay and play which was unusual for her since she was always calling us to get her from the kids club on the boat. As far as food, we just walked to Cookies and brought the food back on the trays they have. There wasn't anywhere to sit in the food area anyway since it was crowded. Which was fine since we were more comfortable in the cabana anyway. The walk wasn't bad, we brought back the soft serve ice cream to the cabana and ice cream didn't melt on the way back. We are doing concierge again and hoping to get a cabana.

 

[andrencau]

Question for those who may know -- could you bring food from the adult bbq on the tram back to your cabana on the family beach? I've heard the adult bbq has some better selection such as steak

I did this last October. Serenity Bay has some better offerings. I always get a ribeye (or 2). There were no issues and nobody staring and pointing. Would do it again and again!

 

[mom2mizmous]

I did this last October. Serenity Bay has some better offerings. I always get a ribeye (or 2). There were no issues and nobody staring and pointing. Would do it again and again!

I don't see a problem at all doing this, UNLESS you bring the kiddos with you( the Serenity Bay bbq area is 18+ just like the beach itself)

 

[chimo2u]

Good thing we don't have any kiddo's with us This is just a Adult only trip for our 25 anniversary with DH.... kiddo's are all grown up and not accompanying us this trip

 

[mom2mizmous]

Good thing we don't have any kiddo's with us This is just a Adult only trip for our 25 anniversary with DH.... kiddo's are all grown up and not accompanying us this trip

Happy anniversary! We did our FIRST Disney cruise for our 25th! Cruise, cabana, and castaway cay great way to celebrate-enjoy!

 

[chimo2u]

Happy anniversary! We did our FIRST Disney cruise for our 25th! Cruise, cabana, and castaway cay great way to celebrate-enjoy!

Thank You! we are very excited too! .... We added on concierge for the cruise. Then we will do 4 nights at WDW at BWI CL, and 3 nights at Universal HRH Club Level after the cruise, it'll be one big splurge, but I'm very excited to celebrate and share time with hubby!

 

[robmacref]

Looking for experience and guidance here... Does everyone get a wristband? Heres our problem we have a party of 13 and we would be willing to pay for 10. Can the extra 3 people make there way into the Cabana area and hang out? Anyone ever had guests join there area without paying? Does Disney check everyone?

 

[daisy112878]

Yes everyone will have a wristband that is a paying cabana guests. The concierge team goes around the whole time to check in on the cabanas and they do have a list of how many people should be in each cabana. The wristband must be worn at all times. I have seen people be asked to leave that were not cabana guests.

 

[daisy112878]

I think we have decided to reserve a cabana on Castaway Cay, and hopefully, we will not have a problem doing that since we are concierge on our first cruise at the end of the year. I have been researching a few things, and I have been searching old discussions, but I still have a few questions:

• I can see from some of the youtube videos that Cookies is at the end of the path and walkable from the cabanas. Do people generally walk down at lunch and bring food back? Are there food items that you can order from the cabanas?
• Is the Kid's Club on Castaway Cay fun for the 7 year old, active boy crowd for a few hours? How far is the club from the cabanas? I would love to play with him on the beach, but I wouldn't mind an hour or so to relax.

Thanks!!!

I highly doubt you will have an issue getting a cabana since you are concierge. We have always gotten one as a concierge guest. Shoreside concierge should call you about 4-5 days before hand to see if they can schedule anything for you. But you can always call them first if you'd like too. Just make sure your cruise is paid in full before the booking date.

 

[amanda ek]

Looking for experience and guidance here... Does everyone get a wristband? Heres our problem we have a party of 13 and we would be willing to pay for 10. Can the extra 3 people make there way into the Cabana area and hang out? Anyone ever had guests join there area without paying? Does Disney check everyone?

I think this would be very difficult to pull off. The cabana hosts know exactly who should be there and who shouldn't. They are always around and popping in to see if you need anything. There was also an attendant at the rope turning ppl without wrist bands away.

 

[acndis]

I agree with all the other posters. We were in #3 and carrying food back to the cabana was very easy. The host cleared our trays without us even asking.
As for Scuttles, my 7-year-old loves the clubs but only liked Scuttles. He went while we got a massage at Serenity Bay but was more than ready to go when we came to get him. He really wanted to play on the beach and loved the snorkeling. We thought he would want to be at Scuttles for most of the day so my husband and I had to shift gears (planned on cocktails and reading/napping in the cabana). It ended up to be a wonderful family day. We did the Pelican Plunge slide many times, snorkeled and just had a great time. We have the same cabana this time and will plan on a similar day. So, don't worry about whether your child enjoys Scuttles or not. Castaway Cay is wonderful and it's a great place to bond as a family.

 

[robmacref]

Here is our problem... Party of 13. - 6 adults and 7 kids ages 14,14,10,10,8,5 and 3

We are having a hard time justifying paying another $590 for a second Cabana to accomodate. We would glady pay the $50 extra per person if we could all use the same Cabana. Has anyone asked disney to go over the limit of 10 especially when the kids are under 10?

 

[over50visits]

Thinking of further questions you might have, here's a list of fun facts:

- There is a safe, just like the one in your room
- You get a plate of cold, wet, hand towels, great for cooling down through the day
- There is a wall socket if you want to plug in electronics
- Towels are provided
- The curtain to pull around for changing provides plenty of room and privacy to change
- There is a ceiling fan
- The water in your shower is not cold (kind of tepid/warm). Be sure to let it run for a few seconds at first to clear out accumulated rusty water from a few days of nonuse
- There are a few magazines for reading
- You can eat your lunch there (the attendant will bring you back, and there are enough chairs and tables for a party of 6 to sit and eat)
- Snacks provided are packages of various chips and granola bars
- There is a trash can inside under the counter
- Three inner tubes (they are G-R-E-A-T, clear plastic you can look through like a glass bottom boat) and three float pads
- A plate of fruit (apples, bananas, etc.)
- There is no mirror (would have been nice to comb hair at the end of the day)
- Have to climb about 4-5 stair steps to get in
- Private hammock
- Free bicycle use
- Easy access to the beach, a part of the ocean where the floor is nice and smooth (the first part of the adult beach has some rough spots when you walk out into the water, but not in front of the cabanas)
- You can stay there until 4:30 if the ship is leaving at 5
- Canned Coke products and bottled water in the refrigerator (a real fridge, not like in your stateroom)
- A button to call the attendant
- Bar service provided…a waiter will come and take your order
- Suntan lotion (sunscreen)
- Sofa/chairs inside, reclining (wooden) chairs on deck.
- The attendant there gave us a ride (golf cart) back to the ship at the end of the day

You may want to tip the attendant. If so, bring cash, as there is no way to charge the tip to your room account

 

[PrincessShmoo]

Here is our problem... Party of 13. - 6 adults and 7 kids ages 14,14,10,10,8,5 and 3

We are having a hard time justifying paying another $590 for a second Cabana to accomodate. We would glady pay the $50 extra per person if we could all use the same Cabana. Has anyone asked disney to go over the limit of 10 especially when the kids are under 10?

Have you checked into the possibility of getting the large cabana? Or is it already booked with a large group? That one costs $966.43 (with Bahamas VAT) for up to 10 people, and you can add up to 6 more at $50.00 each.

I would doubt that they would bend the requirements "just for you". If so, that would cause more problems with others saying "well, they did it before".

 

[Cali Cat]

Here is our problem... Party of 13. - 6 adults and 7 kids ages 14,14,10,10,8,5 and 3

We are having a hard time justifying paying another $590 for a second Cabana to accomodate. We would glady pay the $50 extra per person if we could all use the same Cabana. Has anyone asked disney to go over the limit of 10 especially when the kids are under 10?

You can always ask, but I'm pretty sure they'll tell you no.
They have one big cabana on the end that holds 20. I think it's over a thousand to rent though.

You might try going to your cruise meets thread and seeing if anyone else is also renting a cabana that is not at capacity. Then you could pay them the extra $50 a person just to get the extra three wrist bands to get in the cabana area.

 

[robmacref]

Has anyone done this? Can you share with others? Can they add even if they are not in the stateroom

 

[Cali Cat]

Has anyone done this? Can you share with others? Can they add even if they are not in the stateroom

We shared a cabana with our friends in another stateroom. We just told the concierge who was going to be in it and how we wanted the charges split.