Castaway Cay Private Cabanas

[poohj80]

On our upcoming Fantasy cruise (in July), all cabanas were taken by the concierge guests. No luck for any other guests, no matter how many times they had sailed.

That's what I was expecting...unfortunately!

 

[disneyholic family]

is there piped in music in the adult cabanas?
or only in the family beach cabanas?

 

[princssdisnygina]

is there piped in music in the adult cabanas?
or only in the family beach cabanas?

There is no music piped in the Adult cabanas.

 

[TLSnell1981]

On our upcoming Fantasy cruise (in July), all cabanas were taken by the concierge guests. No luck for any other guests, no matter how many times they had sailed.

Platinum CC members have the same window, as concierge guests.

 

[ibouncetoo]

They most likely will all be gone with Concierge and Platinum booking windows. (Not always the adult beach ones though.) HOWEVER....keep checking right up till your cruise as people DO cancel them. Also, check the day you get on board.

ALSO, join in your meets thread...I've know of DISers who were going to cancel 'something' who would alert DIS folks that something was becoming available. I've seen it happen with cabins, Palo reservations and cabanas.

.

 

[disneyholic family]

There is no music piped in the Adult cabanas.

what's your opinion of that?

my sister and i are going absolutely crazy trying to decide if we want a family or adult cabana (we're 3 adults)..

of the 3 of us, i'm the only one who has ever been on CC, so it's making it even harder to decide.
She's trying to choose based on what i tell her and all the pictures, videos and reports i'm able to dig up to send to her.
And i'm trying to choose based on a knowledge of CC that pre-dates the cabanas and the pelican point area.

thus far, i've come up with the following:

Family Cabana pros:
- family cabanas are closer to bathrooms/food
- family cabanas have a private beach
- the family cabana area is 'prettier' - cleaner, more developed

Family Cabana cons:
- family cabanas seem to be rather close together (hard to tell from pictures and videos, but they seem pretty close)
- in one of the videos posted online, you can hear quite a lot of noise coming from the public family beach. However, in another video from one cabana over, it's quiet - you only hear the music, no shouting from the other beach at all.
- the bathrooms and cookies 2 are used by that same mass of people at the public family beach

Adult Cabana pros:
- only 4 cabanas so i would assume the service is a bit more special - since there are so few of you there
- cabanas 18 and 21 seem really quite secluded compared to all other cabanas (both adult and family)
- no kiddies around (always a good thing)
- the bathroom and BBQ are used by relatively few people

Adult Cabana cons:
- far from bathrooms/food - although you can get a ride there and back. But i assume if all 4 cabanas are full, you might have to wait for your ride
- no private beach.
- the beach isn't as manicured as the family beach, not as pretty...
- windy - from the videos i've seen, serenity bay seems to be much windier than the family cabana area
- serenity bay is far away. takes a while to get there. not near other things in case we want to explore around to see what there is and then pop back to the cabana to rest. or we'll leave our mom in the cabana and then go shop or explore a bit on our own.

the price difference and lack of snorkel equipment is not an issue for us so i haven't added it above. (i don't care about the price difference and we're not going to snorkel)

i don't know if the piped in music or lack thereof is a pro or a con.
i'm thinking i like it, but i'm not sure if i like it for 8 hours straight.

ok. so based on the above, it seems i should go for the family cabana area.

do you think that makes sense?

also, anyone know the smoking policy on the two beaches?
is it the same? if different, that would be a determining factor (my sister and mom both had lung cancer that they got from second-hand smoke - they never smoked even one cigarette - so being around smoke is definitely on the con side of things).

wild card - what are the two areas like in the 3rd week of october, when we'll be there?

i'm losing my mind!!!

 

[poohj80]

We enjoyed the music in the family beach cabanas but must admit we cringed at hearing John Denver's Country Roads island style. ;-)

 

[ibouncetoo]

what's your opinion of that?

my sister and i are going absolutely crazy trying to decide if we want a family or adult cabana (we're 3 adults)..

of the 3 of us, i'm the only one who has ever been on CC, so it's making it even harder to decide.
She's trying to choose based on what i tell her and all the pictures, videos and reports i'm able to dig up to send to her.
And i'm trying to choose based on a knowledge of CC that pre-dates the cabanas and the pelican point area.

thus far, i've come up with the following:

Family Cabana pros:
- family cabanas are closer to bathrooms/food
- family cabanas have a private beach
- the family cabana area is 'prettier' - cleaner, more developed

Family Cabana cons:
- family cabanas seem to be rather close together (hard to tell from pictures and videos, but they seem pretty close)
- in one of the videos posted online, you can hear quite a lot of noise coming from the public family beach. However, in another video from one cabana over, it's quiet - you only hear the music, no shouting from the other beach at all.
- the bathrooms and cookies 2 are used by that same mass of people at the public family beach

Adult Cabana pros:
- only 4 cabanas so i would assume the service is a bit more special - since there are so few of you there
- cabanas 18 and 21 seem really quite secluded compared to all other cabanas (both adult and family)
- no kiddies around (always a good thing)
- the bathroom and BBQ are used by relatively few people

Adult Cabana cons:
- far from bathrooms/food - although you can get a ride there and back. But i assume if all 4 cabanas are full, you might have to wait for your ride
- no private beach.
- the beach isn't as manicured as the family beach, not as pretty...
- windy - from the videos i've seen, serenity bay seems to be much windier than the family cabana area
- serenity bay is far away. takes a while to get there. not near other things in case we want to explore around to see what there is and then pop back to the cabana to rest. or we'll leave our mom in the cabana and then go shop or explore a bit on our own.

the price difference and lack of snorkel equipment is not an issue for us so i haven't added it above. (i don't care about the price difference and we're not going to snorkel)

i don't know if the piped in music or lack thereof is a pro or a con.
i'm thinking i like it, but i'm not sure if i like it for 8 hours straight.

ok. so based on the above, it seems i should go for the family cabana area.

do you think that makes sense?

also, anyone know the smoking policy on the two beaches?
is it the same? if different, that would be a determining factor (my sister and mom both had lung cancer that they got from second-hand smoke - they never smoked even one cigarette - so being around smoke is definitely on the con side of things).

wild card - what are the two areas like in the 3rd week of october, when we'll be there?

i'm losing my mind!!!

Also, if you actually want to get IN the water and play/swim/float, the family beach area is much nicer for that (and 'netted' to inhibit large marine animals). I've done a FB cabana and loved it.

.

 

[disneyholic family]

Also, if you actually want to get IN the water and play/swim/float, the family beach area is much nicer for that (and 'netted' to inhibit large marine animals). I've done a FB cabana and loved it.

.

what number cabana were you in? did you feel that the cabanas next to you were too close?

in the video below, at 0:54, you see a man standing at the cabana nextdoor and he seems really close.
was that disturbing to you?
i mean, if you happen to have a cabana next to you with 10 people, and they're that close - that's going to be the antithesis of peaceful and quiet, not to mention not very private.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WXEbktCYzs4

another thing that i'm really worried about is weather.
We'll be there in October. Will serenity bay be terribly windy? it somehow seems that the family beach is somewhat more protected from weather. But maybe not?

 

[poohj80]

what number cabana were you in? did you feel that the cabanas next to you were too close?

in the video below, at 0:54, you see a man standing at the cabana nextdoor and he seems really close.
was that disturbing to you?
i mean, if you happen to have a cabana next to you with 10 people, and they're that close - that's going to be the antithesis of peaceful and quiet, not to mention not very private.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WXEbktCYzs4

another thing that i'm really worried about is weather.
We'll be there in October. Will serenity bay be terribly windy? it somehow seems that the family beach is somewhat more protected from weather. But maybe not?

We have now had a cabana on the family beach twice - #3 and #5 - and I preferred 5. 3 was too close to the roped off area of the family beach and we just felt like everyone was staring at us. 5 isn't that much farther down but we felt more isolated (if that makes sense). It was nice to be close to the restrooms and Cookies 2 with a 6 year old, so would definitely take 3 over 16. Yes, we could see the people in the cabana next to us but it wasn't that big of a deal as most everyone was down by the water.

 

[disneyholic family]

We have now had a cabana on the family beach twice - #3 and #5 - and I preferred 5. 3 was too close to the roped off area of the family beach and we just felt like everyone was staring at us. 5 isn't that much farther down but we felt more isolated (if that makes sense). It was nice to be close to the restrooms and Cookies 2 with a 6 year old, so would definitely take 3 over 16. Yes, we could see the people in the cabana next to us but it wasn't that big of a deal as most everyone was down by the water.

thanks! i was thinking of trying for cabana 7 (the one in that video).
i thought it would be far enough away for some quiet, but not too far for the bathrooms (60 year olds need it as much as 6 year olds ).

but that's if we decide to go with the family beach.

I'm just so unsure of what to do!! Family beach vs serenity bay

maybe i'll just flip a coin?

 

[ibouncetoo]

We had cabana #2, chosen for the proximity to Pelican Plunge (which you would be wanting to avoid) and bathrooms (two folks with mobility issues). Honestly I couldn't even tell you who the people were in the other cabanas, I barely even noticed them. And, just like the luck of the draw with folks in the cabins by yours on the ship, you can't really predict how your neighbors are going to behave!

I know I've not always been able to find QUIET at Serenity Bay, so you can't count on that either (though it is more likely). Basically, I just don't like the swiming conditions...especially if the tide is out.

.

 

[disney minnie]

We need two cabanas if we decide to book because we have so many people. 11
My in laws are concierge so they can book at 120 days and the rest of us are booking at 90. What are the chances in getting two and getting them next to each other? We would need the family beach because of the children and wish we could fit in one cabana instead of two.

 

[poohj80]

We need two cabanas if we decide to book because we have so many people. 11
My in laws are concierge so they can book at 120 days and the rest of us are booking at 90. What are the chances in getting two and getting them next to each other? We would need the family beach because of the children and wish we could fit in one cabana instead of two.

Make sure all your reservations are linked and just ask your in-laws to reserve 2 cabanas when their booking window opens.

 

[Bear3412]

thus far, i've come up with the following:

[

Great comparison list.
I didn't see any mention of the view in your list. I would prefer to see the ship in background, however I could live without the 2500 people on the beach view.
Also aren't they both about the same distance from the dock?
No swimming? on family high #ered units / must walk 3 minutes?
More rocks in / on beach at adult.

Just adding to your list for all.

 

[princssdisnygina]

what's your opinion of that?

my sister and i are going absolutely crazy trying to decide if we want a family or adult cabana (we're 3 adults)..

of the 3 of us, i'm the only one who has ever been on CC, so it's making it even harder to decide.
She's trying to choose based on what i tell her and all the pictures, videos and reports i'm able to dig up to send to her.
And i'm trying to choose based on a knowledge of CC that pre-dates the cabanas and the pelican point area.

thus far, i've come up with the following:

Family Cabana pros:
- family cabanas are closer to bathrooms/food
- family cabanas have a private beach
- the family cabana area is 'prettier' - cleaner, more developed

Family Cabana cons:
- family cabanas seem to be rather close together (hard to tell from pictures and videos, but they seem pretty close)
- in one of the videos posted online, you can hear quite a lot of noise coming from the public family beach. However, in another video from one cabana over, it's quiet - you only hear the music, no shouting from the other beach at all.
- the bathrooms and cookies 2 are used by that same mass of people at the public family beach

Adult Cabana pros:
- only 4 cabanas so i would assume the service is a bit more special - since there are so few of you there
- cabanas 18 and 21 seem really quite secluded compared to all other cabanas (both adult and family)
- no kiddies around (always a good thing)
- the bathroom and BBQ are used by relatively few people

Adult Cabana cons:
- far from bathrooms/food - although you can get a ride there and back. But i assume if all 4 cabanas are full, you might have to wait for your ride
- no private beach.
- the beach isn't as manicured as the family beach, not as pretty...
- windy - from the videos i've seen, serenity bay seems to be much windier than the family cabana area
- serenity bay is far away. takes a while to get there. not near other things in case we want to explore around to see what there is and then pop back to the cabana to rest. or we'll leave our mom in the cabana and then go shop or explore a bit on our own.

the price difference and lack of snorkel equipment is not an issue for us so i haven't added it above. (i don't care about the price difference and we're not going to snorkel)

i don't know if the piped in music or lack thereof is a pro or a con.
i'm thinking i like it, but i'm not sure if i like it for 8 hours straight.

ok. so based on the above, it seems i should go for the family cabana area.

do you think that makes sense?

also, anyone know the smoking policy on the two beaches?
is it the same? if different, that would be a determining factor (my sister and mom both had lung cancer that they got from second-hand smoke - they never smoked even one cigarette - so being around smoke is definitely on the con side of things).

wild card - what are the two areas like in the 3rd week of october, when we'll be there?

i'm losing my mind!!!

The adult cabanas are not that far at all from bathrooms or the food. And personally... it feels like you have a private beach because the adult beach is never really that crowded because most everyone is at the family beach.

I disagree.. I think Serenity Bay is gorgeous and seems to be a bit more secluded. I have several pics of the Adult beach that would make you cry. Makes me feel like I am away from the screaming kids for a while! Which I am of course! It is far from shopping but we always do that first thing or just before we go back to the ship. Not too much other exploring to do unless you do an excursion. I don't think its too inconvenient at all. Its worth the peace and quiet to me!

We love Serenity Bay and wouldn't do it any different! If we want music we typically just play it on my iPhone!! It is a bit windier but it is really nice if it is really hot!

As far as smoking goes.... They are allowed on both beaches in certain areas and on the outsides of the cabanas. I have never had a problem with cigarette smoke.

October will be nice. It will still be hot. The only downfall you MAY have is that it is still hurricane season and if there are any storms by you may get rained out. But most days are really nice.

If you are all adults, I would suggest the Adult beach. And plan your "excursions and adventures" before or after your stay in the cabana. When we get to the cabana we stay there except for lunch and bathroom breaks!

That is just my thoughts.

 

[poohj80]

We actually had an issue with several men smoking cigars on cabana family beach. I wasn't sure if smoking was allowed on the beaches or not. When I asked, they said it was allowed as long as the smokers were considerate. Since our cabana was downwind, we had a real problem with it. When the men were asked to stop smoking, they did (or moved elsewhere). Either way, the air was cleared.

 

[Wendy&Grumpy]

For those disheartened by not being able to reserve a cabana, don't give up!

We are silver castaway and I was online at midnight to try for one as soon as our window opened up and they were all gone.

We are sailing on the Fantasy in less than two weeks and one just opened up today!

 

[TLSnell1981]

For those disheartened by not being able to reserve a cabana, don't give up!

We are silver castaway and I was online at midnight to try for one as soon as our window opened up and they were all gone.

We are sailing on the Fantasy in less than two weeks and one just opened up today!

Geesh, the cabanas are so expensive, but incredibly popular. Honestly, I'm still in sticker shock.

 

[disneyholic family]

Great comparison list.
I didn't see any mention of the view in your list. I would prefer to see the ship in background, however I could live without the 2500 people on the beach view.
Also aren't they both about the same distance from the dock?
No swimming? on family high #ered units / must walk 3 minutes?
More rocks in / on beach at adult.

Just adding to your list for all.

the view!! that's what i also meant by "prettier" - and that includes the view of the ship!! definitely lovely to look at..

The adult cabanas are not that far at all from bathrooms or the food. And personally... it feels like you have a private beach because the adult beach is never really that crowded because most everyone is at the family beach.

I disagree.. I think Serenity Bay is gorgeous and seems to be a bit more secluded. I have several pics of the Adult beach that would make you cry. Makes me feel like I am away from the screaming kids for a while! Which I am of course! It is far from shopping but we always do that first thing or just before we go back to the ship. Not too much other exploring to do unless you do an excursion. I don't think its too inconvenient at all. Its worth the peace and quiet to me!

We love Serenity Bay and wouldn't do it any different! If we want music we typically just play it on my iPhone!! It is a bit windier but it is really nice if it is really hot!

As far as smoking goes.... They are allowed on both beaches in certain areas and on the outsides of the cabanas. I have never had a problem with cigarette smoke.

October will be nice. It will still be hot. The only downfall you MAY have is that it is still hurricane season and if there are any storms by you may get rained out. But most days are really nice.

If you are all adults, I would suggest the Adult beach. And plan your "excursions and adventures" before or after your stay in the cabana. When we get to the cabana we stay there except for lunch and bathroom breaks!

That is just my thoughts.

yes, i've finally come to the conclusion that we should try for the adult beach!!
i'm still not sure about the view, but i'd much rather be around a few hundred people, at most, than a few thousand!!

so i'm going to try for one of the cabanas on serenity bay..

by the way, i know that you didn't want cabana 20 since it's right next to 19, but if we end up getting 19 or 20, do you think it's too close?
or was it ok?

We actually had an issue with several men smoking cigars on cabana family beach. I wasn't sure if smoking was allowed on the beaches or not. When I asked, they said it was allowed as long as the smokers were considerate. Since our cabana was downwind, we had a real problem with it. When the men were asked to stop smoking, they did (or moved elsewhere). Either way, the air was cleared.

if we end up in 19 or 20 and have smokers right next door, i sure hope they'll be as easy about it as your neighbors were!!!