Disney's Castaway Cay is getting a new neighbor. The government of the Bahamas has approved Disney's proposal to allow the Disney Cruise Line to develop another port of call in the islands.
The National Economic Council's approval gives Disney the okay to buy 746 privately-held acres at Lighthouse Point on the island of Eleuthera. Now Disney and the Bahamian government will begin formal negotiations on a letter on intent that will govern the terms of Disney's development of the site. Disney's initial plans call for developing about 20 percent of the site, while giving about 25 percent of it to the government for conservation. Disney is proposing an open trestle pier design to bring passengers from the ship to the beach, minimizing the effect on currents and the need for dredging. The final designs for the site and its accommodations for cruise passengers will be determined during the review and permitting process.
With three new ships under construction for Disney's fleet, the DCL needs additional ports of call to fill the itineraries for its new ships. Disney last month announced its early 2020 itineraries, including the addition of the Port of New Orleans for the first time and a return to the Hawaiian Islands.
The new DCL destination site lies about 80 miles southeast of the Bahamian capital of Nassau, which lies about 75 miles south of Disney's private island of Castaway Cay. No word yet on when cruise guests can expect to visit Lighthouse Point, or whatever new name Disney comes up with for the port.
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Apparently you haven’t been on a Disney cruise. Sea days are amazing! There is no such feeling as being “stuck on the boat” when the “boat” is a Disney cruise ship.
Yeah the sea days are a must and amazing .
I agree with Russell Meyer... it’s NOT about Disney Cruise Line’s enormous success.
@67.172.219 & 126.34.66.81 - Days at sea are the equivalent of being at a resort. So why should guests pay 3 times what it costs to spend a day at a Disney resort to spend it stuck on a boat? DCL does provide a lot of activities and diversions while on board, but they have to because their ships spend so much time at sea. Perhaps if their fares weren't so expensive, it would make sense, but I don't go on a cruise to be cooped up on a ship for days at a time. If I wanted to do that, I'd go to an all-inclusive beach resort.
Again, DCL is clearly successful most likely because the Drones buy up anything with the Disney name and assume anything from the House of Mouse is superior to all other competitors (plus all those DVC owners have to spend their points on something). However, for the cost and extremely limited itineraries, DCL is one of the worst vacation deals on the planet. My parents are departing on a 14-day Western Mediteranean cruise next week with a balcony stateroom and 10 ports of call for less than what it would cost for a 7-day DCL in a standard exterior stateroom with just 4 ports of call.
Hi Russell, Daryl here i’m glad you enjoy your cruise vacations. I think the point you’re missing is Disney Cruise guests love the days at sea. They love being immersed in the “Disney magic.” I sense that is so not your thing:-) They love the entertainment they love the character interaction, they love the theamed restaurants. They love the fact that the teenagers at sea and have tons activities designed for them. Same with the little ones. They love the ship architecture and hidden Mickeys. They never feel trapped on a boat. Sounds like you probably would and that’s OK. Disney cruises are not for you that’s OK too.
Hi Russell, Daryl here I’m glad you enjoy your cruises and make the most of your ports of call. I think the point you’re missing is Disney Cruise guests love the days at sea. They love being immersed in the “Disney magic.” I sense that is so not your thing:-) They love the entertainment they love the character interaction, they love the theamed restaurants. They love the fact that the teenagers at sea have tons activities designed for them. Same with the little ones. They love the ship architecture and hidden Mickeys. They never feel trapped on a boat. Sounds like you probably would and that’s OK. Disney cruises are not for you. that’s OK too.
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"With three new ships under construction for Disney's fleet, the DCL needs additional ports of call to fill the itineraries for its new ships."
How about going to actual islands in the Caribbean like other cruise lines do? DCL has some of the worst itineraries in the industry. I understand the desire to always dock at a port that they own, but they spend more days at sea than any other cruise line in the business. Simply stopping at a second private beach is not going to fix their woefully pathetic itineraries. Some people may enjoy spending 4 out of 7 days stuck on the boat, but that's not my idea of cruising. Part of cruising is seeing the different cultures and sites around the islands, not being forced to a privately developed island that's been Disney-fied.