DaltonsdoDisney-Castaway Cay

[daltonsdodisney]

I woke up and realized it was beach day, so headed to the nearest open deck to check the weather. It was gorgeous! Couldn't have been better. I woke up my family and soon we were eating Mickey waffles at BBB overlooking picturesque Castaway Cay! We lined up early at the deck 1 gangway to get a good spot. My husband hurried ahead as the kids and I straggled with flipflops, video camera, etc.. Ken found a great spot in front of the water playground with a hammock, beach chairs and umbrella. We bypassed all the picture ops since my husband wasn't with us anyway. AFter unloading, my 8 yr. old and I rented snorkel equip and started that before the sand was kicked up too much. It was new to both of us and I was getting frustrated at first, trying to maneuver out in flippers and keep the mask from pulling out my hair. Finally, we got the hang of it (somewhat). I never could keep water from coming in my mouth so I ended up holding my breath most the time. My husband came for my daughter, who was ready to move on to other things, and I continued along the rope course for awhile with my underwater camera. I never really saw much more than a normal sized fish and I didn't want to spend all my time alone, so I drug all the gear back up and found my chair. The kids and I rented a mat and floated out to the water playground. They were too afraid to do the do the monkey bars and drop into the water so we came back. By then, it was lunch time. I had suggested to my parents to take the tram to Serenity Bay and they could have a peaceful lunch there, but after an hour, they called us on the family radio saying they were heading our way. They said it was mostly younger couples or singles, no music and they felt a little out of place and wanted to be near the grandkids and the action. They said it was beautiful and quiet though. I attempted to put the kids in the clubs again, if only to go through the lunch line without tension. They reluctantly went. My husband and I went to the Cookies BBQ, which we enjoyed. They also offer fresh fruit stands throughout the day. Right after lunch, I felt so guilty about the kids being there and not having a good time so I went for them. They were happy to see us and they did eat lunch with their groups. Back to the beach, they happily built sandcastles, played with the snorkel stuff and floated on the mat. It made me feel sorry for the kids who were in the club day and night, missing out on the Mickey pool slide, night time deck parties and the beautiful turquoise waters of the beach. I was hoping they'd really love it for their sakes, but it didn't work that way. We reboarded the ship around 3pm and cleaned up. I called guest services about hair braiding on the ship and they told me it wasn't offered. I was so dissappointed. We missed Nassau because of the rain and didn't want to waste time at CC doing it and now our chances were over.
Anyway, my dad got in a ping-pong tourney and won a pin, then we ate at Animators. Very good and entertaining. We were really starting to enjoy our servers. We would miss them tomorrow night when we would be at Palo's. I wanted to go to the 70's party, but knew the kids would kill me if I made them go back to the club. They wanted to do family disco again. The bad thing about it is the adult parties start around 10pm and that's when the 5-7 yr. olds start a movie and have them lay down. My 6 yr. old was dying to try on the dress up clothes that they never seem to let them do. I think you need to get your kids in early on that first day when all the face painting, dress up, etc.. is going on to show them how fun it can be. But we were so busy with everything else and after that, it seemed really boring. The club workers didn't seem to be up to the standards of the other cast members or servers. Most of them hovered around the registration desk, looking rather bored while parents stood in a long line with one check-in open. I finally asked if my 8 yr. old could move down into my 6 yr. olds club. They allowed that and my daughters were happier. I asked about dress-up and they told me they do that at 10, so I was excited for them. We headed to the 70's which was really cool, but after a long beach day, I was so tired and working on a headache, I couldn't really get my groove on! We went back to pick them up at 11 and my 6 was asleep and my 8, lying down watching the movie. I asked her if she dressed up and she said no. I asked again at the desk about it and they said it's open during the movie. That kind of ticked me off, because they obviously didn't make an announcement or anything, they just steer the restless kids in there. I really don't think they want to mess with them much. My oldest is very compliant and when the movie was on, she watched it. Otherwise, it was an enjoyable day as the weather made it unforgettable.

 

[zurgswife]

Thanks for your posting....

 

[peg2001]

I am enjoying your trip report. I especially appreciate hearing about the shortcomings of the kids clubs. I will be cruising with 2 young daughters and would rather know that they may not have the best time in the clubs. That's really too bad about the dress-up clothes being off-limits most of the time as my kids love that sort of thing. I wonder if they would have been available during "family time" in the clubs?!?

 

[daltonsdodisney]

I think so. I noticed all kinds of activities and more enthusiasm on the first day, when we just dropped by to check it out, but we didn't have time to participate. They were face painting in one area, dress up in another, computers, making crafts, etc.. They did finally get to dress up the last night, as I made a special effort to let the leaders know to notify them during "open" time.