As others have said, that time will go by fast. Regardless of what you decide to do, don't feel like you have to "do everything" and just know that there will be far more you could do than what you will actually get to do. If you go and have fun, that's the key.
Seriously, though - what you want to do will depend a lot on your family's interests. I know some people could literally be happy spending all day at the pool and others never once get in. Some people want to see the shows or movies, others skip them. Some want to order room service and spend time in their cabin, others just barely even sleep in there. Some people want to do all sorts of drink tastings, other people don't drink at all. Some kids love the clubs and never want to leave, while others decide it's not for them and are wanting out. Some want to do the adult dining, some want to be sure to experience the different dining rooms. Some people like to sleep in, or stay up late, or take naps, etc. There's just so many differences between different families, that you need to filter any suggestions for your own group.
Still, here are a few of my own thoughts:
- Since it's your first cruise and you've got just 3 nights, I'd recommend staying with the main dining rooms each night, and not trying for an adult-only dinner. That gives you a chance to see all 3, and maybe get to know your servers a bit more. If you really want an adult meal, then sometimes I think they have Palo brunches on a Nassau day - if they do for your cruise you could try for that.
- For our family, the main nighttime shows were always a big must-do. (of course, we've known others who skipped them all).
- On the other hand, we found lots of the other family activities - the crafts, "secondary" shows, trivia, etc. to be hit-or-miss. While some were great, given limited time I'd probably skip those on the first cruise.
- For us, the deck parties (which were cut back during covid) were OK, but not worth a ton of effort. We liked the fireworks, though.
- For a Halloween cruise you probably want to make sure you do at least some of those activities, but I can't say much about them.
- Kids clubs will have a schedule of activities that you won't know until you're onboard. If there are particular things your kids might like (like particular games or activities), you can plan around those.
- Not really "fun" but something we have been glad we did: for our family, taking lobby photos (there will be photographers out) has always been something we do (even though the photos are expensive, and it takes a little extra time before or after dinner and then to get the photos later). Those have been some of our only semi-current family photographs at times.
- We always end up spending at least an hour (sometimes more) just wandering the ship. My older daughter and I used to look for Hidden Mikeys (we had a book of where to find them), and later she and my younger daughter would do the same (as well as Midship Detective Agency). You're on a giant ship, and just standing at the front or back and looking out at the ocean can be fun!
- If your kids will want swimming/aquaduck (or whatever) time, you should plan for that. On a short cruise, it's actually hard to find time to fit it in, sometimes....
- Also, if you all will want to "meet" characters, you might need to plan for that on the schedule. We were never that big on meeting characters, but some people love doing it, and it's much easier on the ship than at Disney World or something.
- I was going to say to skip the spa since it's something you can do in other places, but if you are looking for "relaxation" in limited time, it might actually be a good way to do that.
- For more "relaxing" time, I'd recommend not scheduling excursions on
Castaway Cay. You can still do some things (rent snorkel equipment and bikes) without advance reservation, if you decide you want to do them, and you won't be tied to an activity/excursion schedule during the day.
- Last, agreeing with others, you could consider not getting off at Nassau. That's easy for me to say having been there a few times already, but overall, it's not a must-see, unless you do a bigger excursion (like Atlantis). Keep in mind, though, that on-ship activities are reduced while in port (but there will still be more than you can actually do...). And, sometimes people might want to get off, just so they can say they've been in a foreign country!
[edited: I had a lot more, but it got cut off and some earlier draft mid-writing posted...].
