Disney Cruise Line's new island, Disney Lookout Cay at Lighthouse Point, is now open for guests! Located among the small chain of islands in Eleuthera, Bahamas, Lookout Cay joins Disney Castaway Cay as one of the line's two privately owned ports of call.
Around here we love sharing the joys of Disney Cruise Line for adults. The newest member of the Disney Cruise Line family is great for kids and families, yes, but there's plenty for grown-ups to do on Lookout Cay as well.
Recently, I sailed to this Caribbean destination aboard the Disney Magic, and spent a full day with my party of four adults, exploring everything Lookout Cay has to offer. Without a single kid in our group, we toured the island, ate a delicious lunch, snorkeled, and spent time in Serenity Bay, the area of the island designated for people ages 18 and up.
While Lookout Cay is new and enhancements are rolling out, the day was lots of fun and felt like a great adults-only escape.
Here's what grown-ups should know before visiting Disney Lookout Cay at Lighthouse Point.
Is Lookout Cay good for adults?
There's something exciting for all ages about a Disney-themed island filled with activities that celebrate both beloved Disney characters and Bahamian culture. It's also a great spot for adults, whether they're parents who've dropped their kids in the island's childcare area or traveling totally kid-free.
Overall, the island is a great spot for any Disney-lover who wants to spend a day splashing in clear blue water, interacting with characters like Mickey, Goofy, and Donald Duck, and learning about Junkanoo, a vibrant Bahamian street parade that heavily influences the island's design.
It's a fun spot and, although there were parts of the experience that need some ironing out, it's worth a visit, especially if you and your sweetheart are fans of all things Disney and Disney Cruise Line.
What are the adult-friendly activities at Lookout Cay?
There are lots of adult-friendly activities at Lookout Cay, from exciting shows to nature scavenger hunts to snorkeling. Some of our favorite activities during our visit were catching the shows and relaxing on the island's beautiful beach.
- Snorkel among the reef: It is so easy to see beautiful coral, reefs, and small fish mere moments from the shoreline. Snorkel equipment is available for rent. It's a must-do snorkel experience for romance and beauty.
- Rush! A Junkanoo Celebration: This exciting show honors the Bahamian street festival Junkanoo and features incredible Bahamian musicians and dancers in colorful costumes. Mickey, Minnie, Daisy, and Donald also participate in Rush! A Junkanoo Celebration and interact with the crowd. The show takes place twice daily at the island's Goombay Cultural Center pavilion, but the guest viewing area is not shaded, so it can get a bit hot standing in the sand watching the performers do their thing.
- Disney Fun in the Sun Beach Bash: This show takes place beneath the shady Play-Play Pavilion twice each day, and it's geared toward kids who want to interact with Disney characters. During the Disney Fun in the Sun Beach Bash, little ones get to limbo with Goofy, play ring toss with Pluto, and help Chip and Dale out with a water brigade. There are Bahamian-inspired Disney tunes and the characters wear their Lookout Cay outfits, making it a colorful and vibrant show that's worth adults checking out, even if they stand at the back of the pavilion and dance to the Bahamian beats.
- Lookout Cay family beach: There's also a family beach at Lookout Cay. This main beach area has lots of beach chairs and umbrellas, but they tend to fill up early once the ship arrives and guests are cleared to disembark. If your preference is to set up at the family beach instead of the beach at Serenity Bay, we noticed many shaded umbrella spots opened up after lunch when guests started heading back to the ship.
- Disney character meet-and-greets and photo ops: There's a large Bahamian-inspired Mickey Mouse backdrop at Lookout Cay, with plans for additional backdrops featuring Minnie Mouse, Daisy Duck, Donald Duck, Pluto, and Goofy to be added to the island. In addition to these backdrops, there were photographers all over the island, including a few who offered “magic shots,” photos where animated Disney characters are added into the image after it's shot. Characters like Mickey, Minnie, Donald, and Daisy—all in their Lookout Cay outfits—also appear throughout the day for meet-and-greets.
- We noticed none of the character meet-and-greet areas were shaded, another reason hats and sunscreen are key on Lookout Cay.
Is there an adults-only area at Lookout Cay?
Lookout Cay has its own adults-only beach area, Serenity Bay. Inside Serenity Bay, guests 18 and older can visit a kid-free beach, eat lunch at Serenity Bay BBQ, order bar drinks, rent cabanas, and more. While the area isn't as secluded as the Serenity Bay location at Castaway Cay, it's got plenty of room for grown-ups who want some peace and quiet.
Serenity Bay at Lookout Cay is the perfect place for moms and dads to head once they've dropped their kids off at Sebastian's Cove.
Is there childcare at Lookout Cay?
At Lookout Cay, there's a dedicated childcare area that has the same check-in and security process as the kids' clubs on Disney Cruise Line ships.
At Sebastian's Cove, there's a shaded water play area complete with shooting fountains and colorful statues of under the sea creatures from “The Little Mermaid.” During an open house for the facility, we saw craft-making stations, lots of toys for water and sand play, and plenty of shaded tables for kids to take a rest. What's more, there's a dedicated food service area inside the club for kids to eat lunch items like hot dogs and burgers.
How long does it take to get from the ship to Lookout Cay?
A downside of Lookout Cay is the amount of time and effort it takes to get from the ship to the island. Upon disembarking the ship, there's a long pier-style walkway that took my party of four adults about 12 minutes to walk at a leisurely pace. There's a good reason for this long walk though, it is to protect the natural reef the borders the island.
The morning slog to the island is hot and unshaded, but once the sun had changed directions in the afternoon, the walk back was pretty pleasant. In the future, it'd be nice to see Disney Cruise Line add misters and shade tarps to the walkway. In the meantime, prepare for a .5-mile walk to the island in some pretty hot morning sunshine.
After walking the pier, you'll arrive at an area of Lookout Cay that has a coffee shop, merchandise stand, charter boat rental, and tram stop. The tram ride is another 15-20 minutes, taking guests over to the part of the island where the beach (and the rest of the action) happens.
When our party decided to leave the beach at Lookout Cay and head back to the ship, the process of walking to the tram, catching a tram, and walking the walkway back to the ship took over 30 minutes, so it's a good idea to allow 30-45 minutes of travel time if you're trying to make it off the ship for an excursion or back to the ship for a dining reservation.
Carts were available to transport guests who needed extra assistance getting from the tram station area down the walkway to the ship.
Can you rent a cabana at Lookout Cay?
There are beach-front cabana rentals available in the Serenity Bay area of Lookout Cay which offer stunning beach views and a super-close proximity to the rest of the island. Kids aren't allowed in this area, so if you're traveling with little ones, you'll want to consider whether a family cabana is a better option.
The family cabana area at Lookout Cay is across from the initial tram station, near the area where you first enter the island from the pier-style walkway. This means in order for your family to meet characters, see shows, do crafts, access Sebastian's Cove, or do any of the other activities on Lookout Cay, you'll need to take the trams into the main part of the island.
How does Lookout Cay compare to Castaway Cay?
Lookout Cay and Castaway Cay are similar in lots of ways, from the barbecue-style food served to the distinctly Disney touches seen throughout the islands. Both offer kids clubs, family beaches, adults-only areas, biking, snorkeling, and water excursions, bars with plenty of drinks, shopping, and more.
While Castaway Cay's overall vibe is that Disney dropped its characters and theming onto a Caribbean island, Lookout Cay feels more aware of and immersed in the Bahamian culture.
Visiting Disney Cruise Line's newest island gives the feeling of having visited the Bahamas and learned about the people there—sort of the same feel as a Bahamian pavilion would give at Walt Disney World's EPCOT.
Tips for a great visit to Lookout Cay
- Pack (and reapply) sunscreen. There's little shade at Lookout Cay, so much so that I (someone who never burns) got sunburned despite using sunscreen. Remember to pack sunscreen and reapply it often throughout the day. Shade umbrellas and floppy hats are also a great idea at this destination.
- Stay hydrated. Since Lookout Cay provides lots of hot temperatures and sun exposure with minimal spots to seek shade, it's important to stay hydrated. One of the things we carried off the ship with us that came in the handiest were our reusable tumblers, which we filled with water, lemonade, or Vitamin Water each time we passed a drink station. The insulated tumblers kept our drinks icy and cold all day, and we congratulated ourselves on how well we did with staying hydrated because of them.
- There's good coffee at Lookout Cay. Once you've walked from the ship to the gates of Lookout Cay, you'll find Mangroves and Go, a coffee and Dole Whip stand that sells some pretty impressive Bahamian coffee drinks. Whether you skip your morning coffee on board the ship or are ready for round two on Lookout Cay, you'll be thrilled with the coffee available at this kiosk.
- Get creative with costuming. We saw many guests who'd taken the time to create shirts, skirts, and swim cover-ups that looked like the outfits worn by Disney characters on the island. It was an “I wish we'd have thought of that” moment for my group, and the next time I return to Lookout Cay, I'll definitely be twinning with one of the characters for great photos on the island.
- Consider a later disembarkation. Since the sun is harsh in the mornings walking to Lookout Cay, consider getting off the ship a little later. Not only will the island be a little less crowded, but you'll have a better chance of snagging beach chairs under the shade of an umbrella.