Castaway Cay & Toddler Question

[Thumper43]

Hi! We are taking our first cruise with our 2 1/2 year old son in 3 weeks! I'm wondering what types of things are there for him to do on Castaway cay? Do I need to bring sand toys from home? Is there something we can sit under? Any type of advice would be appreciated. Also, can I buy diapers on the ship? I'm going to pack regular diapers and swim diapers however if i run out, I want to know there is a back up!
Thank you!

 

[hopeful1]

Hi there

There is tons to do. I did bring sand toys from home. I went to the $ store rather than paying $15 for a bucket on the island. Also there are umbrellas and chairs to lounge under. There is a water area with sprinklers and water spouts!

Have a great time

 

[1983disneykid]

There are diapers on the ship (they are expensive, and Huggies, I think).

We took our 1.5 year old two weeks ago on the double dip. We ended up going to the far end of the family beach (Pelican point tram stop) and there were plenty of open chairs and umbrellas there early (we were off the ship by 9 a.m.). Spring-a-leak, which is the water playground is right there, as are the bike rentals, and Cookies, Too.

My DD wanted nothing to do with standing/sitting directly on the sand, but she had a blast sitting in the chair and playing with the sand. We brought several dollar store sand toys with us.

She loved Spring-a-leak and sat on my raft in the water (we were holding her of, course). At lunch there were characters at Cookies, Too with no line (as compared with everywhere else we went on the ship).

We also did a bike ride (which she didn't like), but there are child seats on the back of some adult ones.

You could also take your son to Scuttle's Cove, the children's club on the beach, as long as you stay with him (same rules as on the ship).

Let me know if you have any other questions re: toddler. I'd be happy to help (I'm not very motivated to write a trip report yet. I am still wishing we were on the ship.)

 

[Homemom]

I'm going to pack regular diapers and swim diapers however if i run out, I want to know there is a back up!
Thank you!

Yes, but they're expensive. We used www.babiestravelite.com It was wonderful not having to cart everything from our home there. We had a box waiting in our stateroom with diapers, wipes, swim diapers, desitin, etc. It might be worth checking into if you're flying.

We did bring some sand toys, but donated them at the end of the cruise leaving room in the suitcase for souvenirs.

 

[Gdes1]

I was one of the first off the ship to secure a shady spot under the trees and it was fine. You don't even have to be first off the ship, just don't wait hours or the shade might fill up. Our son loved the beach and water. I got a thing of really cheap sand toys at Walgreens and packed them by taking stuff out of the basket and sticking things here and there, then reassembling in the room. Then you can leave them behind if you need space on the way home.

They did have these Nemo buckets with shovels for sale and every other kid had one and he wanted one, so since they were $6 we got him one, and managed to get it home.

They also have wagons for free, right before you reach the first beach and he liked being driven around in that, for a break.

We brought all of the diapers we needed and then some. He liked the sand and water so much we didn't do much else, and we were there two days.

 

[shillee]

Perfect thread for me! I will have a 25 month old and a just turned 4 year old on our trip!

--> by 'donate' of sand toys does that mean you left them in the room? Disney must have quite the collection of buckets in the hull of the ship if that is the case!
--> we were thinking we would just get of the ship and walk around at our stops (7 day Eastern so only two stops). What did you do for snacks? I am wondering if I need to bring things like juice boxes and say granola bars or other items to have with me for things like this
--> what kind of entertainment is there for dinners? Are there coloring books/crayons, etc at meals? I know kids can get bored fast a meal time and am worried I won't get to eat my meal before they want to leave or are hungry and unhappy they don't have food or something to do!
--> Anyone been on the Magic that can tell me about the pools and how they work? I think there is the Mickey one, the Goofy one and a splash area (where is it located)?

 

[PoopDeckPappy]

We used www.babiestravelite.com It was wonderful not having to cart everything from our home there. We had a box waiting in our stateroom with diapers, wipes, swim diapers, desitin, etc. It might be worth checking into if you're flying.

We did bring some sand toys, but donated them at the end of the cruise leaving room in the suitcase for souvenirs.

Same thing on both counts. babiestravellite was awesome since we flew into Orlando. Get more diapers than you think you need. Order via babiestl and you won't have to worry about anything. The prices were reasonable too. It was like buying the diapers and stuff at regular price in a CVS or Wallgreens at the time I did it. You pay for shipping but well, well worth it.

 

[katml14]

CC was my favorite place to spend the day with my 3 year old and 16 month old!

We spent the day swimming at the beach and playing at the splash area. Disney provides jogging strollers when you get off the tram, so it was awesome to grab one of those to help you trudge through the sand. I took my son for a walk in the stroller and he fell asleep for a short while, so I was able to sit in a lounge chair and relax. We got off the ship around 9 a.m. and there were still plenty of chairs under umbrellas with adequate shade at the second tram stop.

 

[1983disneykid]

Perfect thread for me! I will have a 25 month old and a just turned 4 year old on our trip!

--> we were thinking we would just get of the ship and walk around at our stops (7 day Eastern so only two stops). What did you do for snacks? I am wondering if I need to bring things like juice boxes and say granola bars or other items to have with me for things like this
I brought three juice boxes and some sippy cups. Juice isn't at the 24 hr station, so I would stock up on milk and juice at breakfast for the day and stash them in the fridgebox in the room. I also had a few of her other favorite snacks with us for when we were off the ship. I would also grab a couple of pieces of fruit from breakfast each morning, but i definitely overpacked the snacks.

--> what kind of entertainment is there for dinners? Are there coloring books/crayons, etc at meals? I know kids can get bored fast a meal time and am worried I won't get to eat my meal before they want to leave or are hungry and unhappy they don't have food or something to do!
There are crayons/coloring activities on the menu; I would also bring a book and a few plastic mickey mouse figures that we had bought to keep DD18mo entertained. We were on the Magic and Wonder as adults and I felt that the dinners were more entertaining there (parades/etc.) than the Dream.

 

[Thumper43]

Perfect thread for me! I will have a 25 month old and a just turned 4 year old on our trip!

--> we were thinking we would just get of the ship and walk around at our stops (7 day Eastern so only two stops). What did you do for snacks? I am wondering if I need to bring things like juice boxes and say granola bars or other items to have with me for things like this
I brought three juice boxes and some sippy cups. Juice isn't at the 24 hr station, so I would stock up on milk and juice at breakfast for the day and stash them in the fridgebox in the room. I also had a few of her other favorite snacks with us for when we were off the ship. I would also grab a couple of pieces of fruit from breakfast each morning, but i definitely overpacked the snacks.

--> what kind of entertainment is there for dinners? Are there coloring books/crayons, etc at meals? I know kids can get bored fast a meal time and am worried I won't get to eat my meal before they want to leave or are hungry and unhappy they don't have food or something to do!
There are crayons/coloring activities on the menu; I would also bring a book and a few plastic mickey mouse figures that we had bought to keep DD18mo entertained. We were on the Magic and Wonder as adults and I felt that the dinners were more entertaining there (parades/etc.) than the Dream.

Does the Room Service have Juice/Milk 24 hours? Snack type things for toddlers? Thanks!

 

[Thumper43]

CC was my favorite place to spend the day with my 3 year old and 16 month old!

We spent the day swimming at the beach and playing at the splash area. Disney provides jogging strollers when you get off the tram, so it was awesome to grab one of those to help you trudge through the sand. I took my son for a walk in the stroller and he fell asleep for a short while, so I was able to sit in a lounge chair and relax. We got off the ship around 9 a.m. and there were still plenty of chairs under umbrellas with adequate shade at the second tram stop.

I will have to take my son for a nap in the stroller too!! Where the strollers hard to get? Do you have to wait in line for them or rush to get them? Do they seem to have plenty of wagons and such so you don't have to stress about getting them? Thank you!

 

[1983disneykid]

Does the Room Service have Juice/Milk 24 hours? Snack type things for toddlers? Thanks!

I am pretty sure they do have juice and milk, but it wasn't on the menu, and when my brother when to one of the bars to ask for orange juice he was told to go to the 24 hr station (which we knew didn't have it) and then they wanted to charge him $4 for the juice, so I didn't bother trying it out for room service. Although, I am pretty sure it was on the breakfast menu hang tag, just not the main menu.

There are snacks like fruit and cheese/crackers if you are good with those. I am sure someone else may have a few more ideas. Nothing that I remember that was processed, but we try to keep those limited for her anyway.

 

[1983disneykid]

I will have to take my son for a nap in the stroller too!! Where the strollers hard to get? Do you have to wait in line for them or rush to get them? Do they seem to have plenty of wagons and such so you don't have to stress about getting them? Thank you!

Something we did, that worked well was schedule nursery time for 1:30-4:30. So, we all went to lunch at noon, one of us walked back to the ship with her, gave her a bath and sent her down there for play/a nap. It then gave us a few grown-up hours to go to serenity bay (or if you have older children to spend time with them / send them to Scuttle's Cove for adult time).

But...to answer your question: there were plenty of strollers every time I walked by. We were at the Pelican Plunge Beach tram stop though; the ones at Scuttles Cove may have gone faster. I'm not sure. The wagons were abundant in the morning, but by noon, there were only a few...maybe three left.