My Son And I Went To Disney's New Cruise Destination, Lookout Cay, And Here Were The Positives And Negatives From Our Visit
Recently, I was invited aboard the Disney Magic to sail to their new island destination, Lookout Cay at Lighthouse Point.
This is Disney's second island destination in the Bahamas. Disney ships have sailed to Castaway Cay for over 20 years. Unlike Castaway Cay, Lookout Cay is on Eleuthera.
Audrey Engvalson / BuzzFeed, Google Maps
*BuzzFeed was provided this trip free of charge; however, we were under no obligation to give a positive review.
We went on a three-day cruise. I was initially scared because ANY trip with my one-year-old is typically a clusterfudge, but both he and I really enjoyed ourselves. I think we're cruise people now?
We docked at Lookout Cay the morning of the second day on the cruise. We were invited to disembark at 10:45 a.m. and had to be back on the ship by 5 p.m.
I'm not a beach person, so I thought that would be plenty of time, but actually, time got away from us and we probably could've been there longer. There was so much to do and see (and drink)! This is a spiked Dole Whip.
It was off to a rocky start. Disney really wanted to keep the environment in mind and didn't want to mess with the natural reefs, so they dock pretty far away. Once we left the gangway, we had to trek down a long pier to the island.
The pier was long. I overheard another ship passenger say her watch measured it 0.55 miles from the gangway of the ship to the tram stop on the island.
It was hot and the walk was in the sun, but along the way, all I could keep thinking about was how BLUE the water was. When I think of the Caribbean, I think of that color of water. I had no idea it was really like that and not just an artistic interpretation.
I guess I can forgive the pier since it was to save the reef, which I'm partial to saving. Disney said, "An innovative, open-trestle pier that extends to deep water prevented the need to dredge a ship channel. The location of the proposed pier was based on a scientific assessment of the ocean floor to avoid areas where coral reefs were present. The island’s small marina was also designed to support a healthy marine environment." They also said they used limestone to build a "fish highway" so fish could travel under the pier. IDK why, but the term "fish highway" is so gosh darn cute to me.
At the end of the pier were private cabanas, a shop with coffee and smoothies, a bathroom, and a little kiosk selling some essentials like sunscreen, hats, swimmies, and such. The shop with coffee and smoothies was called Mangroves and Go, and it had EDIBLE STRAWS. I had a full-on interview with the barista because they fascinated me. They came in lime or coffee flavors, felt like bamboo, and tasted like white chocolate.
All of the drinks come in reusable metal cups, too. We grabbed at coffee (with an edible straw) and headed to the tram stop, which took us to the main part of Lookout Cay.
When we arrived, we were totally transported to vacation mode. We walked over when Rush: A Junkanoo Celebration was going on. Junkanoo is a Bahamian festival with lively music, dancing, and magnificent costumes.
The celebration made its way from the Cultural Center down the boardwalk, and had people lining the way dancing.
Donald Duck danced so much, he broke a sweat!
The food looked good, but my family and I have recently become vegetarian, so there weren't a lot of options. The things we did eat, like vegetable curry, fresh fruit, and plantains were very good.
I was excited to take my son to the splash zone. There was a King Triton splash zone that we walked to that wasn't open for kids outside of 3–12 years of age until 2 p.m., so I took him to the family splash area, Rush Out Gush Out.
He liked it for a while, but there was a lot of squirty water features, and when a bucket of water dumped on his head from above him, he was done. It was too big for him, plus it was after 2 p.m. so I decided to take him back to the King Triton splash pad, which was more his speed. It had little fountains and there wasn't anything that could dump on his head.
On the way, though, we stopped for drinks, which, IMO, were the most reasonably priced drinks I've had in a while.
It was $26 for two cocktails and the souvenir pineapple cup.
While the baby stayed with my mom on a lounger and took a nap, we went snorkeling. I'll tell you what, things don't typically hold my attention very long, especially since I'm not a beach person, but I was underwater for two HOURS. It was breathtakingly vibrant reef full of coral and tropical fish.
Just like that, our time on the island was up! We started making our way to the tram, but not before a stop at the gift shop. There are two gift shops, one that has exclusive-to-the-island Disney Lookout Cay merch, and one that's kind of a co-op for locals to sell things from the island.
I still regret not getting a purse.
There was so much to do at Lookout Cay, we couldn't fit it all in. If I went back, I'd definitely go on the nature trail, go to the adults-only beach and restaurant, and explore the rest of the island (it's got caves and pink sand beaches).
I did appreciate Disney's environmentality. It seemed from edible straws to reusable cups to the boardwalk that they really wanted to try to minimize their footprint.
And I also really liked how the feel of the island was shaped by the art from Bahamian artists and Eleuthera locals. It felt really authentic.
Disney, Kent Phillips / Disney
Overall though, I liked how Lookout Cay made me feel like I was walking through a love letter to the Bahamas. I was able to enjoy an island paradise in another country without me having to worry about customs, currency, or transportation logistics. I just stepped off a boat and I was there!
Do you have an awesome vacation spot you like taking your youngin'? Tell us in the comments below!
