Help choosing excursions on 4 night cruise

Martini Mom · 11-05-2009, 07:05 PM

We are trying to make our final decisions on our shore excursions on our March 14- 4 night cruise. Family of 5, me, DH, DD 12, twin DS's 7 (almost 8 at time of trip).

I don't want to plan too much for Castaway Cay because I would love to have time just to hang out on the beach. (especially after a whirlwind week at WDW) We are thinking of the Seahorse Catamaran Snorkel Adventure. The kids have never snorkeled and I know they would love the abundance of interesting sea life. I am a little concerned about the open water and the 'choppy seas' as described in Passporters book. This excursion would take us away from the beach for 2-2.5hrs.

My husband and daughter are thinking about parasailing.

On our Nassau day we are considering either the Dolphin swim or the Dolphin Cay interaction plus the trip to the Aquaventure water park at the Atlantis resort, both very pricey! Has anyone done either of these and did you think it worth the $$$. I have to say I have mixed feelings about the whole dolphin encounter. I love dolphins but am not sure how I will feel about seeing them in captivity....

We could also just spend the day at the Atlantis resort. The kids love water slides and because we will be at WDW in early March I am not sure if it will be warm enough to spend a whole day at one of the WDW water parks, or if we want to take a day away from the other parks to go to a water park. I think one is actually closed while we are there....which would make the Atlantis one something to seriously consider.

Is there anything else we should think about doing/seeing at Castaway Cay or Nassau? Once again any insight/advice you can offer is very much appreciated.

Lara

**Niwel** · 11-05-2009, 09:19 PM

We have reviews of some of the Castaway Cay excursions here....

When we've gone to CC we just relax on the beach ... but I've heard good things about the Stingrays.

I've also heard good things about Atlantis.

**Drince88** · 11-06-2009, 05:40 AM

Do you and/or your husband feel confident providing snorkeling lessons to the kids? If so, I'd think just snorkeling off the family beach may be a better bet for you.

I haven't done any 'family' excursions, but the stingray one sure seemed to be popular, and I had a lot of fun with them when I got to play with them on a tropical vacation I took a few years back.

mom22gls · 11-06-2009, 02:16 PM

Last year, we did the Dolphin Encounter (the one where you stand on the platform, not swimming with the dolphins). My kids absolutely loved it, and we did too. Worth every penny. The dolphins are highly trained and friendly, and each person gets quality time with the dolphin. You can buy great pictures and video of the encounter. We went in the morning, and by the time we got back to the ship, the kids were hungry (we did buy them a snack, but there really wasn't much substantive food there), and all they really wanted to do was have lunch and hang out on the ship. It would be pretty tight to try to do a second excursion the same day-it's possible, but it does take time to get through ship security getting on and off the ship, and we just did not feel motivated to do it again. The dolphin encounter was a great excursion-a really different experience for the kids.

**GusMan** · 11-09-2009, 09:08 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Drince88

I haven't done any 'family' excursions, but the stingray one sure seemed to be popular, and I had a lot of fun with them when I got to play with them on a tropical vacation I took a few years back.

We did Castaway Ray's Stingray Encounter in August. All I have to say is that it was money well spent and it was a lot of fun. My 5 year old son loved feeding them, but did not want to snorkel.

One suggestion though... try to be one of the first groups of the day. Towards the end of the day, the water can get a little cloudy which makes it hard to see anything underwater.

4DWs · 11-09-2009, 09:22 AM

We did a 4 night cruise this past January-DH, DD(12), DD(10), me. On Castaway Cay we chose the Stingray adventure. I agree with GusMan's comments about being worth the money and scheduling an early time. Our day on the Cay was extremely windy and after our stingray time all others were cancelled. It's a great time getting to feed the rays and be that close to them and afterward you can snorkel in the stingray lagoon. Very shallow water and a lot of other fish to see, perfect for beginners! We scheduled parasailing, but sadly that was cancelled.

In Nassau we chose the Atlantis beach day. We had the 5 pm dinner onboard so this was just enough to fill our time. You can go to the beach or the swimming lagoon on property. And the Aquarium is included, which is impressive!

Whatever you choose will be fun, fun, fun!

11-05-2009, 07:05 PM	#1
Martini Mom Registered User Join Date: Feb 2009	Help choosing excursions on 4 night cruise We are trying to make our final decisions on our shore excursions on our March 14- 4 night cruise. Family of 5, me, DH, DD 12, twin DS's 7 (almost 8 at time of trip). I don't want to plan too much for Castaway Cay because I would love to have time just to hang out on the beach. (especially after a whirlwind week at WDW) We are thinking of the Seahorse Catamaran Snorkel Adventure. The kids have never snorkeled and I know they would love the abundance of interesting sea life. I am a little concerned about the open water and the 'choppy seas' as described in Passporters book. This excursion would take us away from the beach for 2-2.5hrs. My husband and daughter are thinking about parasailing. On our Nassau day we are considering either the Dolphin swim or the Dolphin Cay interaction plus the trip to the Aquaventure water park at the Atlantis resort, both very pricey! Has anyone done either of these and did you think it worth the $$$. I have to say I have mixed feelings about the whole dolphin encounter. I love dolphins but am not sure how I will feel about seeing them in captivity.... We could also just spend the day at the Atlantis resort. The kids love water slides and because we will be at WDW in early March I am not sure if it will be warm enough to spend a whole day at one of the WDW water parks, or if we want to take a day away from the other parks to go to a water park. I think one is actually closed while we are there....which would make the Atlantis one something to seriously consider. Is there anything else we should think about doing/seeing at Castaway Cay or Nassau? Once again any insight/advice you can offer is very much appreciated. Lara

11-05-2009, 09:19 PM	#2
Niwel Romance @ Disney Goddess MousePlanet Staff MousePad Community Leader Join Date: Apr 2001 Location: Harrington: The Glad Town Blog Entries: 29 Latest Blog Entry: Pixie Dust and Packing Fairies	We have reviews of some of the Castaway Cay excursions here.... When we've gone to CC we just relax on the beach ... but I've heard good things about the Stingrays. I've also heard good things about Atlantis. __________________ Hakuna Matata & Feed the Birds Cast Place Editor, Disney Cruise Line Community Leader, DL College Program Alum (PM me for info) and Plush Princess MouseAdventure Winter 2009: Will Rudolph be joining us when we play Reindeer Games? There's nothing like listening to "Feed the Birds" while on the steps of St. Paul's.

11-06-2009, 05:40 AM	#3
Drince88 Local family MousePad Subscriber MousePad Community Leader Join Date: Aug 2003 Location: N.O. LA Blog Entries: 3 Latest Blog Entry: Yes, Virginia, It Can Snow in New Orleans!	Do you and/or your husband feel confident providing snorkeling lessons to the kids? If so, I'd think just snorkeling off the family beach may be a better bet for you. I haven't done any 'family' excursions, but the stingray one sure seemed to be popular, and I had a lot of fun with them when I got to play with them on a tropical vacation I took a few years back. __________________ *Cathy*

11-09-2009, 09:22 AM	#6
4DWs 4DWs Join Date: May 2007 Location: North of Disneyland	We did a 4 night cruise this past January-DH, DD(12), DD(10), me. On Castaway Cay we chose the Stingray adventure. I agree with GusMan's comments about being worth the money and scheduling an early time. Our day on the Cay was extremely windy and after our stingray time all others were cancelled. It's a great time getting to feed the rays and be that close to them and afterward you can snorkel in the stingray lagoon. Very shallow water and a lot of other fish to see, perfect for beginners! We scheduled parasailing, but sadly that was cancelled. In Nassau we chose the Atlantis beach day. We had the 5 pm dinner onboard so this was just enough to fill our time. You can go to the beach or the swimming lagoon on property. And the Aquarium is included, which is impressive! Whatever you choose will be fun, fun, fun! __________________

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11-06-2009, 02:16 PM	#4
mom22gls Registered User Join Date: Nov 2003	Last year, we did the Dolphin Encounter (the one where you stand on the platform, not swimming with the dolphins). My kids absolutely loved it, and we did too. Worth every penny. The dolphins are highly trained and friendly, and each person gets quality time with the dolphin. You can buy great pictures and video of the encounter. We went in the morning, and by the time we got back to the ship, the kids were hungry (we did buy them a snack, but there really wasn't much substantive food there), and all they really wanted to do was have lunch and hang out on the ship. It would be pretty tight to try to do a second excursion the same day-it's possible, but it does take time to get through ship security getting on and off the ship, and we just did not feel motivated to do it again. The dolphin encounter was a great excursion-a really different experience for the kids.