Maximize your time in this magical oasis with out Top Tips for Disney’s Castaway Cay!
Advance Port Adventures Are Not Required
There is a lot to do in Castaway Cay and you do not need a Port Adventure to enjoy the island. Things like snorkeling equipment rentals, tube rentals and bike rentals will be available once you’re on the island should you choose to go and enjoy those activities. I do highly recommend taking the bike ride – it’s a really enjoyable bike ride and you get to see a lot of the island that you might not have seen otherwise.
But There Are Port Adventures That Should Be Booked Ahead
If you want a cabana, this should definitely be booked ahead. If you are not sailing at concierge level, there is a high chance you will not be able to secure a cabana rental on Castaway Cay. Keep an eye out in the app and maybe someone will cancel a caban and you can pick it up. Other Port Adventures that do tend to book up are the Castaway Cay Fishing Adventure, the Castaway Triple Adventure, the Extreme Getaway Package and the Glass Bottom Boat Voyage. If you have an interest in any of these, you should add that booking in the Disney Cruise Line app as soon as you are able. If you change your mind, closer to your sailing date you can always drop the reservation and someone else will find that Easter Egg available to them.
Do the Castaway Cay 5k
The Castaway Cay 5K is a race that happens on the island. It is free – you simply need to sign up at guest services the day or two before your cruise stops at Castaway Cay. It’s a fantastic experience but it is a earlier in the day and occurs first thing in the morning.. If your family is ready to get up early, go do it! You can rise early, go do the Castaway Cay 5K and then come back to the ship afterwards to grab your beach supplies. There’s no need to get everything all at one time – getting on and off the ship is very easy at Castaway Cay.
Pro Tip: Disney Cruise Line provides complimentary beach towels at Castaway Cay as come and go from the ship!
Check the Photo Ops
Be sure to check the character appearance schedule for Castaway Cay. Great characters appear in their beachwear on the island with wonderful tropical backgrounds. Plus it’s one of the few chances you get to see Olaf in actual sand. There’re also unannounced character appearances throughout the island day. Typical photo spots are Mount Rustmore, the post office and Scuttle’s Cove. Even when there are no characters, Mount Rustmore is a fantastic photo spot!
Ride the Tram
No matter where you are headed on the Castaway Cay, go ride the full tram route. It will take you to every stop on the island and you can get a quick overview of what each area has to offer on your ride-through. Leaving the ship, the tram pick up (Kargo Handling Tram Stop) is just at the end of the dock.
The first stop on the tram route is at Scuttle’s Cove. This stop gets you to the first section of family beaches and near Scuttle’s Cove Youth Club and the snorkeling lagoon.
The second stop on the tram route is at Pelican Point. This is very centrally located and great section of family beach to setup on for the day. As the name implies, it is very close to Pelican Plunge. This stop is also close to the teen area Hideout and Spring-a-Leak.
To ride all that way to tranquil Serenity Bay (adults only), you will need to transfer trams at Pelican Point. If you want to take a peaceful walk on the beach at Serenity bay, make sure your kids are checked in at Scuttle’s Cove Youth Club and then get to that tram!
Take the Walk
From the family beach area it is a easy walk back to your ship The Walking path is wide easy to to traverse and has a wonderful points of view especially delete in both directions walking to the beach and walking back to the ship. Plus you might stumble across an extra character sighting along the way.
Eat on the Island
The food at Castaway Cay is delectable. They will be serving up some superb BBQ at all three eateries on the island: Cookies BBQ, Cookies Too BBQ and Serenity Bay BBQ. The entrees will include burgers, ribs, steak, chicken, fish as well as potato salad, corn on the cob, potato chips, coleslaw and more. You can also get a veggie burger, if meat is not your thing. Alternatively, you can go back to your ship and have lunch there. On Castaway Cay there are also lovely fresh fruit stands available that are delicious after some time spent on the beach. And don’t forget all the soft serve stations as well – so grab a cone to go!
Be Flexible
This one is a must for Castaway Cay. You have got to stay flexible because Disney Cruise Line cannot control the weather. Some cruises that have a scheduled stop in Castaway Cay have to skip it entirely due to high winds. We have also been on Disney cruises where our stop at Castaway Cay was not very enjoyable because the winds were so high on the island that the sand was whipping around and stinging your skin. But it was no big deal because we were on a Disney cruise! We simply went back to the ship and had a fantastic afternoon on the ship. If your cruise skips the port entirely, the cruise cast membe staff will adjust the onboard activity schedule to create activities and experiences during the day onboard. So just relax and have a magical time!
Shopping & Charging
Last but not least – shopping and charging on castaway key. Buying specialty drinks or smoothies or souvenirs on Castaway Cay works just like it does on the ship. You will use your Key To The World card and charge your purchases back to your onboard account. Local Bahamian taxes will apply to these purchases. I do recommend having a look around and getting a souvenir from Castaway Cay because that’s the only place you can buy them!
