Snorkel with Stingrays at Castaway Cay

[SleepyDeb]

We'll be bringing our own snorkel equipment. I know we can snorkel on Castaway Cay without an excursion, but can we snorkel with the stingrays without an excursion? I don't know where the stingrays are in comparison to the lagoon.

 

[Marc D]

We'll be bringing our own snorkel equipment. I know we can snorkel on Castaway Cay without an excursion, but can we snorkel with the stingrays without an excursion? I don't know where the stingrays are in comparison to the lagoon.

The stingrays are only accessible through the excursion (and the extreme package). They are located between the boat beach and the family beach lagoon. If you look up the CC map online, they are at point H, near Gil, the first snorkel equipment hut.

 

[dcassetta]

There may be wild rays in the snorkel lagoon, but you cannot snorkel in the designated Disney stingray area without being a part of the excursion.

 

[Flying Fish]

Despite several trips to CC, we have never snorkeled there. If we bring our own snorkel equipment where can we snorkel on the island? Not intending to hijack the OP's thread, but just a follow-up question.

 

[Geomom]

Despite several trips to CC, we have never snorkeled there. If we bring our own snorkel equipment where can we snorkel on the island? Not intending to hijack the OP's thread, but just a follow-up question.

At the snorkeling lagoon, right before the family beach. You can use your own equipment, but they require you to wear their inflatable vests (pick up for free at the snorkeling equipment place) so the lifeguards can easily spot people in the water. They have a snorkeling trail there with markers pointing out where hidden treasures are. There are various Disney statues, etc under the water. The trail goes pretty far out. June was our first visit and DD22 who is so so at swimming and I just made it to the first 2 markers...also her first time snorkeling and I hadn't snorkeled in 23 yrs, so that was part of our problem. But it was fun!

 

[Geomom]

We'll be bringing our own snorkel equipment. I know we can snorkel on Castaway Cay without an excursion, but can we snorkel with the stingrays without an excursion? I don't know where the stingrays are in comparison to the lagoon.

The rays are in a netted lagoon and can only be accessed through the excursion. DH and DD18 did it in June since she loves rays, not really worth the cost, but great to do once if you love rays. They have feeding trays so the rays come up them and eat off your hand. There may be some random "wild" ones in the snorkeling lagoon as the net doesn't hold the babies, just the larger ones.

 

[dwg]

As I recall from a few years ago the stingrays on CC are debarbed. That was a selling point for us over doing non Disney stingray excursions.

 

[Cruzin’Sisters]

The stingrays are only accessible through the excursion (and the extreme package). They are located between the boat beach and the family beach lagoon. If you look up the CC map online, they are at point H, near Gil, the first snorkel equipment hut.

My son is bringing a male friend who wants to snorkel for the first time. Is Castaway Cay a good place for this? We will also be going to Nassau and they have excursion packages as well. Any suggestions for this first timer (age 23)?


TIA

 

[dcassetta]

As I recall from a few years ago the stingrays on CC are debarbed. That was a selling point for us over doing non Disney stingray excursions.

Trimmed, but not completely debarbed. You would have to remove their tail to keep barbs from regrowing.

My son is bringing a male friend who wants to snorkel for the first time. Is Castaway Cay a good place for this? We will also be going to Nassau and they have excursion packages as well. Any suggestions for this first timer (age 23)?


TIA

The nice thing about CC for a new snorkeler is that you can go right from the beach. No worries about getting off a boat, and then making sure your mask and snorkel are good.

The drawback to CC is that the really interesting things to look at are quite a distance from the beach, but as long as you are a strong swimmer, this is not an issue.

 

[Marc D]

My son is bringing a male friend who wants to snorkel for the first time. Is Castaway Cay a good place for this? We will also be going to Nassau and they have excursion packages as well. Any suggestions for this first timer (age 23)?

CC is definitely a good and safe place to snorkel for the first time. There are lifeguards and the inflatable vests can help stay afloat for a first-timer. There is also a lot of things to see underwater, so you never know what you can expect to find at the next buoy.

That being said, the snorkelling lagoon is quite large and it can be very difficult to come back to shore if you've gone to the far end, so manage your energy accordingly. When my son first started swimming, I had to drag him back to the beach because we went a bit too far and he was too tired to swim back on his own.

I can't really help you with Nassau. It's been years since we've gone off the ship there. We prefer using the onboard amenities and usually schedule our Palo Brunch for that day.