Today was the last full day of our cruise and it included a stop at Castaway Cay, Disney’s private island.  We’ve stopped at Castaway Cay several times over the years on our cruises, with the exception of our Alaska Cruise.  When we checked in for the cruise 105 days ago, we looked for a private Cabana on the family beach.  Unfortunately, they were all booked.  We instead decided to try some new excursions on the island. 

My oldest daughter and I decided to try out parasailing!  We had watched other people do it on our previous visit to Castaway Cay and it looked like fun.  We selected a really early time so we could do the excursions and then get on with the rest of our day.  We were directed to Marge’s Barges, which is on the left almost immediately after you get off the ship.  You check in at the booth and then head towards the waiting area.

The waiting area is a raised area closer to the ship.  I had thought for years that it was a bar, because it kind of looks like one.  We waited here until our activity was called (parasailing at 9:30 AM). They told us that we couldn’t bring any footwear on the boat, but that we could leave them on the pier.  They also said we were responsible for anything we brought onto the boat.

We then were led down the pier to the boat.  We got instructions for climbing onto the boat (go backwards down the ladder).  We left our shoes on the dock and got onto the boat.  Everyone grabbed a seat and met the driver and assistant.

The boat headed down next to the Fantasy and out to the open water.  This was a great time to snap a few pictures of the Fantasy as we were right next to it. 

The parasailing boats go to the area right outside the barrier and go back and forth. I’ve drawn the area on the map below to give you an idea of where we went.

Once we got into open water, the assistant started setting up the parachute.  He got it hooked up on a rack on the boat that would keep it filled as different participants took their turns.  Everyone got a harness to wear that would allow them to clip onto the parachute.  All of the flights would be in tandem, with one person behind the other.

When it was our turn, we were directed to hold a railing in the center of the boat and make our way to the back of the boat.  We were then hooked up to the chute.  The assistant checked over the rigging as well as the harnesses.  Once we indicated we were ready, the chute was released from the harness and we climbed into the air. 

My daughter was wearing a Go-Pro, but we made the decision to use a chest mounted harness.  Unfortunately, it didn’t give us the best position for the video.  We were up in the air about five or six minutes.  It was GREAT!  Once we left the boat, it was completely silent except for a little bit of wind.  You could see a really long distance.  We were even higher than the top of the Fantasy.  Here is the video we took:

The excursion was a bit expensive at $104 per person for the one hour we were out on the boat and the five minutes we were in the air.  Since it was the first time we had done it, I thought it was worth it.  I wouldn’t do it every time we go to Castaway Cay, but it was fun!

After our activity, my daughter went off to the Vibe hangout area.  I joined Nancy and our other daughter in the chairs and hammocks right at the start of the family beach.  After relaxing for a bit, we decided to head off to Cookie’s BBQ for lunch.  This was our first visit to Cookie’s, we usually go to Cookie’s Too.  We found the food and layout to be almost identical.  We got our lunch and then went to the covered seating pavilion to eat.  We also made a stop at the soft serve station for dessert.

 Nancy and our younger daughter selected the Castaway Ray’s Stingray Adventure as their excursion.  Their start time for this was 2:30 PM.  They headed over and took a seat in the briefing area.  It is a building with bench seats.  They received snorkeling equipment, were provided with background and safety information, then were led out to the water.

At the water, there were a number of feeding platforms.  The stingrays at Castaway Cay have been taught to swim up onto the platforms (that are held in the water by cast members) to eat.  While eating, guests can pet them. 

Everybody is assigned to a platform and the cast member takes it out into the water.  Soon after, the stingrays start swimming up.

As the stingrays come up to eat, the guests can touch them.  They have had their barbs trimmed, so there is no danger here.

Once the feeding time is over, you can snorkel in the stingray area for a while.  The water was really clear, so you could easily see the rays.

After the Stingray adventure, we just relaxed the rest of the day.  The water was a bit cold, so we didn’t get in too much.  We had another cruise scheduled in a short time (we had rescheduled our October cruise that got canceled), so we weren’t in a hurry to rush around and do stuff knowing we would be back soon. 

We enjoyed the rest of the day, then headed back to the ship.  We showered and got something to drink.  We were about to watch one of Nancy’s favorite things from our cruises: The Castaway Cay Wave Good Bye.  The passengers eventually all funnel back onto the ship, then the crew continues to pack up all the items that were taken off the ship (towels, food, etc).  There is a small crew of people that stay behind on the island to clean up and make it ready for the next ship.  A handful of them wave goodbye to the ship as it sails away using Mickey gloves.

We took a video of it as well!

The girls and I went to see the show, which was Believe.  It was a cute show and everybody enjoyed it.  Nancy stayed behind to pack everything up.  We had signed up for the Disney On Board Airline Check In, which I will talk about later, so she got the bags together.  

Dinner tonight was in Royal Court.    The menu tonight was the See Ya’ Real Soon Dinner.  This turned out to be a great menu, mainly just because of the Malaysian Chicken Satay.  It was so good I ordered two!

All of the entrees were good, as were the desserts.

Our older daughter got a special dessert because her birthday was coming up and her little sister wouldn’t stop talking about it.

We headed back to the room to put the bags out.  The girls went off to their clubs for their good bye programs.  I think the kids in the Vibe had spent the week making a zombie movie, so they were going to preview that.  The girls actually headed back early tonight, so we all got to be before midnight.

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