Castaway Cay Snorkeling with 5 year old

[joyful1nh]

Has anyone done the snorkeling and Castaway Cay? Is it set up in such a way and adequately supervised so that a 5 year old (which is the minimum age according to DU web site) would enjoy it (with parents?)

My DD will just have turned 5 and is pretty big for her age (tall and skinny). She has been taking swimming lessons for over two years and she is very comfortable in both pool and open (lake) water, though not a strong swimmer yet. I assume the equipment rental includes a vest. I am a certified diver, and my husband is not a big water fan but would try the snorkeling if it were in relatively shallow and clear water.

Anybody out there have any experience with this? Thanks!

 

[two4ruff]

My son was 6 last spring and not a very strong or confident swimmer.

Castway was perfert for his first snorkling experience as there were very few waves and he was able to float along holding a parent's hand. The snorkling jackets they provide added to his confidence also.

One bit of advice though - do your snorkling early. The sand did tend to get kicked up in the shallow water later in the day making visibility less than clear!

Have fun, it was my son's favorite day on the cruise!

 

[TootyJane]

I have to agree with Two4Ruff. CC is a good experience for a young snorkeler. Do your snorkeling early and if you have your own equipment I'd advise bringing it. The $25 for equipment rental was, in my opinion, too high for lousy equipment. Next time we'll bring our own. Since vests are mandatory they will provide you with one at no cost if you have your own equipment. HTH.

 

[disboo]

I second the bring your own equipment idea. We brought masks and snorkels but skipped the fins. We don't do much snorkeling anyway, and we didn't miss the fins, and didn't have room in the suitcase.

I think an interested five year old could handle the snorkeling.

As far as the visibility, it does get quite kicked up later in the day, but most of the stuff to see is a little further out, and that stays very visible all day. (I did my snorkeling from the family beach after 1:30. Did the adult beach in the AM and it was great, too.)

 

[AnnMorin]

My son's first time they even gave me the other type of life vest for him, it was more like the type one would use to water ski. (he now uses the regular one that you inflate by blowing in the tube) he was a bit apprehensive at first so I held his had as we swam out (being able to wade in from shore is a big plus versus jumping off a boat) he was quite excited about the sea life and although it was not as impressive as when we have since taken him to reefs offshore it was a great start. I think if he had come upon too much activity when learning he would have been scared off. (like DH was in the keys when he came face to face with a nurse shark when when turned a corner -althought to hear him tell it, it was a vicious tiger shark he had to fend off )

 

[eskimo]

My DD12 and I did it and it was our first time...we are both good swimmers, just never have done snorkeling....I would recomend it if your DS 6 knows how to swim, but there wasn't a lot to see...we saw the stuff they put in the water, and then the fish that are always around people. Someone had gone out really far and actually saw a baracuda, but I don't think you'll go out that far with your DS....as DDand I went out quite far.....It does stay quite shallow...maybe 10 feet at the most and we were out at least half way....it stayed pretty much the same depth all the way. The life jackets won't let you go under AT ALL... you stay above the water the whole time---they are very bouant. So don't worry about DS...if he can swim, he'll do fine.

 

[disneyholic family]

just be aware that you have to go quite a ways out before you're able to see anything...
the stuff that disney put into the water is very far out....
we were very disappointed in the snorkeling but we're used to snorkeling and scuba diving in the red sea..... i was expecting more from the caribbean....i assume this wasn't the best example of what there is to see in the waters of the caribbean...

as for snorkeling equipment....i'd rather rent than take up precious suitcase space for the few minutes we used the equipment...
of course if you're on the Magic and plan on going to several beachs during the course of the cruise, then i would bring my own equipment....but not just to use on CC....

 

[joyful1nh]

Thanks to everyone who replied. I definately will bring my own snorkel and mask and maybe get one for DD too -- since we are going from the Wonder to the WL we can always play with them in the pool too. DH says he will skip this experience -- just not an open water person! He'll probably video tape us from the beach!