Wanderlust & Wishes

Episode 78: Disney Island Showdown: Castaway Cay and Lookout Cay at Lighthouse Point

• Julie & Krystle

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This week, Krystle and Julie dive into the ultimate Disney Cruise Line showdown: Castaway Cay vs. Lookout Cay at Lighthouse Point. Whether you’re planning your first Disney cruise or you’re a seasoned Castaway regular trying to decide which island is the better fit for your next sailing, this episode breaks it all down with the details that actually matter.

We compare both islands across multiple categories — from beach access, layout, and transportation to cabanas, food options, cultural experiences, excursions, kids’ areas, shopping, and the overall vibe. We talk through the developed areas at Lookout Cay, the new Bahamian-forward design elements, and what’s different from the long-loved Castaway Cay experience. And yes… we get into chairs, shade, snack shacks, and exactly how far that Lookout Cay tram ride really feels.

If you're trying to decide which island is right for your family, your itinerary, or your style of vacation, this episode gives you the insider perspective you need

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SPEAKER_00:

Welcome to Wonderlust and Wishes, the podcast where we explore the world one destination at a time. I'm Julie.

SPEAKER_01:

And I'm Crystal. As travel agents with fantastical vacations, we are here to share our passion for travel and help you turn your wonderlust into reality.

SPEAKER_00:

From hidden gems to bucket list adventures, join us as we dive into the sights, sounds, and stories of our favorite destinations.

SPEAKER_01:

So grab your passport, pack your bags, and let's embark on this journey together. Hi, everybody. Welcome to episode 78 of Wonder Lust and Wishes. Today we're going to talk through Disney's private islands to do a little head-to-head comparison of Castaway Key and the newer island lookout key at Lighthouse Point. What we wanted to do with this episode is we're hoping to go through the ins and outs of both of the islands so that when you are looking at itineraries for or for a Disney cruise, if it has one or the other, which one might be the better one for you and either your family or your group that's going on the cruise? Because there are definitely some key differences, no pun intended, to both of these islands. So just to start out, um, we're going to talk about the basics. Castaway Key was opened whenever Disney cruise line first opened. It opened in 1998 and it's a roughly a thousand acres of land.

SPEAKER_00:

Lookout Key at Lighthouse Point, often referred to as Lookout or Lighthouse Point, whatever you want to call it, is Disney's Eleuthra destination. It officially welcomed its first guest on June 10th of 2024. Disney emphasizes Bohemian culture with daily entertainment like Rush, a junkanoo, celebration, and Disney Fun in the Sun Beach Bash. The site encompasses a peninsula area, often cited to be around seven to nine hundred acres, with Disney developing a small fraction to preserve the environment. So the biggest keys is Castaway is its own island. Lookout point is just a portion of an already booming island that people live and work there all the time. Right.

SPEAKER_01:

The other thing is that if you're a cruiser, you know that a lot of times when you go to other ports, that there will be multiple ships that dock on a certain day. With these islands, the capacity is one ship. So Disney hosts one ship per day at each destination. So you're only going to be sharing the space with your own ship. You're not going to be sharing it with another Disney ship or another another cruise line at all.

SPEAKER_00:

Another point is the ease of access. Both destinations have piers. You walk off the ship. There's no tendering. So tendering kind of gets a bad rap, especially if you have any accessibility issues. Um at Castaway, it's a short walk to the tram and it look out K. It's been a hot topic. There's a long peer walk, it's about a half a mile to the welcome area. And then you tram or bus to the beaches from there. Yeah.

SPEAKER_01:

It's definitely a lot longer. Speaking of that, Castaway Key is very easy. You basically, as far as you know, accessing the uh beach and the island itself, you step off the ship and maybe five minutes. They do have a tram, but it's really unless you're just exhausted or you have accessibility issues, it's very short walk and you don't necessarily need it. The tram stops at Suttles Cove, which is a kids' area, Pelican Point, where there's family, beaches, food, and Serenity Bay, that's where it's 18 plus. But everything is definitely walkable. It doesn't feel like it's super far away.

SPEAKER_00:

On lookout, I just spread out a little more. After the long pier, tram carries you to Maprika Cove, which is like the welcome hub or the family cabana check-in, and then the family beach zone with pavilions like the True True Barbecue, the Play Play Pavilion, and further along to Serenity Bay, which is again the 18 plus area. It's beautiful, but distances are greater than Castaway. Oftentimes I hear people who have like a cabana don't even go to the other side because it's a hike.

SPEAKER_01:

And when you get off at Castaway Key, you're basically pretty much right there. Like maybe five-minute walk to the first section where chairs and stuff. You obviously can continue to walk more into back into the island and to other things, but to get to the first area, basically the food is to the right, and then you have chairs and things to the left. It's like five minutes for lookout. It's a half a mile pier, so it's a little bit of a hike. And then you have a tram ride that's depending on if you have to wait for another tram. We didn't have to. I think some of that was because it wasn't the greatest weather, but um, it's still like five to ten minute tram to where the beaches are. One of the things that was extremely noticeable is the shade. I don't think that there's a spot, except for basically out in the water on Castaway Key that doesn't have shade. Like everything is shaded, whether it's with umbrellas or trees or both. There's basically shade everywhere. And on Lighthouse, it was so hot because there was no, there was really no shade.

SPEAKER_00:

Disney has stated multiple times that Lookout Key will gain natural shade over time as the native plants mature, confirming that shade is expected to increase gradually, but right now it is noticeably limited. It's still just a baby vegetation, whereas castaways had 25 years to mature and grow and gain that natural shade.

SPEAKER_01:

Yeah. It makes it all the more important that you're hydrated. And I think a lot of times what I've seen, and honestly, we kind of did something similar. I've also seen that people will go early in the morning to look out because it gets so hot, go early and then have lunch, and then basically go back to the ship, or maybe even go back to the ship for lunch as well. Just spend the day out on the beach or doing things out on the island first thing in the morning while it's not quite so hot. But I think you could spend all day just lounging in a chair on Castaway underneath an umbrella and underneath a tree, or in a hammock underneath the tree.

SPEAKER_00:

So let's talk food. First, we're gonna talk about the food on Castaway. So it's a barbecue lunch. It's included with your cruise fare. The buffet style barbecue restaurant is cookies, barbecue, cookies to barbecue and on the family beach and Serenity Bay barbecue on the adult-only beach. It serves your burgers, your hot dogs, your ribs, grilled chicken, fresh fruit, salads, corn on the cob, that kind of thing. The hours are generally around 11:30 to 2 or 2:30 for lunch service. Remember, there's no breakfast on the island. Get that on the ship. The adult-only barbecue also sometimes offers extra items like a steak or mahi-mahi that the family areas may not see. My favorite soda fountains, self-served drinking stations are available on the island. You can get your water, your soda, Vyduan water, or Power Aid stations on Castaway, just like on the ship or in the parks. Soft serve ice cream is included, and it is the standard for Disney cruises. While lunch is included, other snack items like pre-packaged snacks may need to be brought or purchased. Basically, if you need snacks, I would try and bring them from the ship. Like take a little thing of cereal from the buffet. The main cruise line policy on board and on the island for the adult beverages or bars. There are many on island. For example, the conched out bar, the sand bar, the heads-up bar on the family beach, and the castaway air bar on Serenity Bay. The bar serve frozen specialty drinks, cocktails, beer. These are an extra cost, just like they are on the ship. And then you can have a beach waiter service on the family beach, and you can have your drinks delivered to your lounge chair. You just give them your room number and your name, and then they'll add it to your account.

SPEAKER_01:

And they are constantly like circling, they're constantly like walking around asking if you need anything. So you really don't have to get up and go find them. I mean, we were there several hours on Castaway, and I we probably were asked five or six times. And I did not feel at all like they were overbearing or they were being pushy or hovering or anything. They were just walking by, you know, and they would just walk through and say, hey, you know, do you need anything? And we never ordered anything, but it was very easy to do so if you needed something. So moving over to Lookout Key, similar to Castaway, they have barbecue lunch. There are three main spots: True True Barbecue, True True 2 Barbecue, and the adults-only Serenity Bay barbecue. So it's a very similar fare. They do have a little bit more Bahamian-inspired dishes, such as Bahamian pigeon peas and rice, grilled snapper, marinated limestyle plant-based island curry, etc., things like that. But they also have like the typical ribs, burgers, rotisserie chicken, similar to what's at Castaway. They do have covered seating in the pavilions. So that was nice. That was at least a little bit of shade on that particular island. They also have the soft drink stations and soft serve as well. They have a couple of different non-alcoholic beverages at multiple venues, such as mangroves and go. Similarly, if you want snacks, you really need to bring them because they don't have anything outside of their lunch for the most part. And then they have the adult beverages as well. They have mangroves and go, blue hole bar, bow and ribbon bar, watering hole, reef and rec bar, and sensational smoothies. The signature cocktail is the Eleuthra Euphoria. It has premium aged rum, pineapple smoothie, and dull whip. I did not have one of these, though. It sounds really good. I don't know if you guys remember, but our day at Lookout was a little um chaotic. So we probably didn't experience some of those like fun things like the signature drink. We didn't really get to do that as much. But for the most part, the food is very similar. They have the same barbecue-ish type food. They have the soft serve, they have the bar options for adult beverages, and then they have the soda, basically unlimited soda refills, which is really nice. And they do have water at the soda refill station. So you don't have to buy bottled water.

SPEAKER_00:

All right, let's talk about cabanas. Castaway K offers family cabanas along the family beach and additional cabanas at Serenity Bay. Accounts and the pricing can vary just as a sample pricing for the cabanas at the family beach. They are about$900 to$1,000 for up to six guests. You can add up to 10 total guests, and you're going to be about$50 to$60 per extra person, ages three and above. At the family grand cabanas, you're looking at$1,200 to$1,400 for up to 10 guests, or you can add up to$16 at$50 to$60 per guest. And then the Serenity Bay area, you're looking at five to six hundred dollars for up to four adults, and then add up to 10 with the same$50 to$60 per person. Okay.

SPEAKER_01:

So moving over to Lookout Key, the pricing is very similar. It's pretty much the same for the most part. When you're looking at the different types of cabanas and adding on extra guests, the one of the biggest differences is that the cabanas are in a completely separate area from where most everything is. So where the shopping and where the main family beach is, where the food is, where the cultural center is, all of those things, if there's any entertainment, it's basically in a completely separate space. Most people that get a cabana on Lookout Key pretty much stay in their cabana for most of the day because it's just a lot to go back and forth. So if you're going to do any shopping, or maybe if you wanted to see a particular show or something, you may want to start there and then go to the cabana or go to the cabana and then time it where you're coming back and you're leaving where you can do some of those activities. So just to round up the pricing, the Family Beach cabanas or Mabrika Cove, again, they're about the same as Castaway. It's 900 to 1,000-ish dollars for six guests. And then if you want to, you can add up to 10 guests. And when you add on each guest, it's$50 to$60 per extra guest. The grand family cabanas, they are like$1,200 to$1,400 for up to 10 guests. You do have the ability to add up to$1,600. And that again is like$50 to$60 per extra guest that you add on. In the Serenity Bay, which is the adults-only area cabanas, those are like five to six hundred dollars for up to four adults. And similarly, it's a$50 to$60 per extra guest if you want to add up to 10. They do also have a grand serenity cabana for the adult-only area. That is closer to$1,000 for up to 10 adults. But all of these are extremely difficult to get. Like Crystal said, if you are a first-time cruiser, your success is going to be based on your castaway club status. For concierge guests, they are able to book. You're basically able to book whenever everything else opens up for port adventures. That's whenever you have the ability to book a cabana. For concierge, that's at 125 days. For platinum, it's 120 days. For gold, it's 105 days. For silver, it's 90 days. And then for first-time cruisers, it's 75 days. So basically, for concierge and platinum, you have a pretty good likelihood of getting a cabana, especially if you log on at midnight and you're ready to go as soon as your window opens, you're going to probably get the cabana. For gold and silver, theirs are low. They're pretty low. It kind of drops off after platinum. It doesn't mean that you can't, but for the most part, you're probably not going to get one. And for first-time cruisers, you pretty much just don't think that you're getting a cabana.

SPEAKER_00:

Like you're probably not getting one. Never say never because if it's like an older ship that has less concierge state rooms, you can always be waitlisted and you might look out. I've heard of that happening, but it's very rare.

SPEAKER_01:

You just have to stalk the app. Definitely be on as soon as your window opens up. You know, you never know, like Crystal said, maybe it pops up. But if you log on when your window opens at midnight and there's nothing available, then just continue to stock the app between the time your window opens and the time you're sailing. You may potentially get something. I didn't even try to get one, even though I mean I was a first-time cruiser for Disney, but I didn't try to get one because it was like a thousand dollars.

SPEAKER_00:

I'm true to like a sailing like yours that hits both islands, if you'd have a greater chance because doubt everybody's gonna get one at both stops, maybe one or the other.

SPEAKER_01:

So you have like double the likelihood. Um, I actually do think something at one point did pop up, but like I said, it was like I'm pretty sure it was like twelve hundred dollars. Whatever one it was, it was twelve hundred dollars. And that just wasn't in our budget to do something like that. Although it would have been really nice, especially on I could see be castaway for sure, having a cabana is probably the way to go if you have the budget.

SPEAKER_00:

Sit there and have them bring your lunch to you. You can get sand toys for the kids.

SPEAKER_01:

Mm-hmm. Yeah. And you have the shade until it gets until that shade grows up, vegetation, that natural vegetation grows up and there's more shade, the cabanas have to be amazing because you're not sitting out roasting in the sun. Speaking of excursions, so we just talked about when your excursion window opens. We kind of talked about this, I believe, when we did my kind of trip wrap-up, but Castaway Key has a lot more of the excursions like the Stingray Adventure, Parasailing, snorkeling, those kinds of things. And they also have the 5K that is official, and you do get a medal if you run the Castaway Key 5K. They also have bike rentals, you know, that kind of thing. Lookout is more geared towards nature, also has bikes, kayaks, nature walks, that it has a lot of cultural themed tours on the island. They also have a path for the 5k, but it is not official. So if you run the 5K on that island, do not expect a medal because my mom was sorely disappointed that she ran it and when she finished, there was no medal. And it's because it's not actually official yet.

SPEAKER_00:

I know she's not the only one. Avid Castaway runners have been upset because it keeps saying it's like it's coming, it's coming, but yeah, she was quite salty for good reason. All right, let's talk about some of the entertainment aspects, some of the highlights at Castaway. You have the pelican plunge, it's the floating slides and splash feature. You have to swim out and climb up. Probably not best for the toddlers, maybe older kids and adults. There is the Spring Leak splash pad, it's freshwater for those littles. And then you also have Scuttles Cove, it's a supervised kids' area. You have your teen hideout and in the shade games pavilion, then frequent character meet and greets in their tropical outfits, and then you have your like famous Mount Rustmore. Yeah. These picture ops. You can't miss that.

SPEAKER_01:

I don't know why we didn't see any characters. And we, I mean, we obviously went right, we were right there, and I just never saw any, or maybe I just wasn't paying attention. I have no idea, but we did not see. We saw people taking pictures at the Mount Rust Moor, but not any characters.

SPEAKER_00:

That's a bimmer.

SPEAKER_01:

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00:

Such cute outfits.

SPEAKER_01:

Yeah. Lookout key. You have probably noticed there's a lot more of the Bahamian culture in the things that they do. So they have the cultural heartbeat rush, a junkanoo celebration at the Goombay Cultural Center. They also have, when they're not doing that, they have at the Goombay Cultural Center, they have activities pretty much all day for the kids to do. It's kind of like a gigantic gazebo area. And if you've seen any of the reels or you know, videos of the island, like that's where you'll see the dancers to make better outfits on. Yeah, yeah. They have Disney Fun in the Sun, Beach Bash with games at the Play Play Pavilion. They also have Rush Out, Gush Out, family water play area with slides and sprays, and then Sebastian's Cove for Littles with, and they do have youth counselors there. And then, of course, they have the beach area.

SPEAKER_00:

Let's talk about my favorite thing, Chapin. On Castaway, you have your classic island merch at she sells sea shells. Sorry. That's so rude of them to call it that. And everything else is what it's called. And by the seashore. Lookout K, they blend Disney souvenirs with local artisans at Disney Kings and Treasures of Eleuthra, gray for culturally grounded keepsakes. I've been eyeing their little grass bags with the Disney characters on them.

SPEAKER_01:

Oh, you should have told me. I would have could have gotten you one. Ease of access. I don't want to say that Lookout is not accessible because it is. They have options. They have a golf cart that will take you down the pier if you need it. But for sure, Castaway has is better. Like if you're looking for something that's more accessible and not quite as um, it's not as hard to get from place to place in castaway. It's literally right off the boat. And then look out, it's just probably 15-20 minutes to get to where the beach is or to where all the things are.

SPEAKER_00:

So if we had to pick by traveler type, families with small kids, probably castaway is easier just because strollers and little legs, pelican plunge. You have spring leak, quick food access, lookout caves, fantastic too. Just plan for the long pier and tram time.

SPEAKER_01:

And they do actually have little wagons that they line up when you get off the ship at lookout because they probably learned the hard way. That they they needed them for people that have little kids that are not going to be able to deal with the half-mile trek across the pier. For culture seekers and photographers, Lookout K for sure, the colors of the Jicanoo show, the architecture of the whole space, and then also you have the lighthouse itself and the nature trails that are beautiful. And you know, once the vegetation grows back up, it's really going to be a nice spot for everybody.

SPEAKER_00:

For adults who want quiet, since both islands have Serenity Bay with adult cabanas and barbecue, Castaway is simpler to reach, but Lookout has stunning beach scapes, a pink sand, a little bit more secluded feel if you go deeper into the adult area. So you probably can't go wrong with either one.

SPEAKER_01:

And I would agree that Lookout probably is a little bit more secluded feel. And that's a pop that's a positive for somebody that's looking for that seclusion. It's just for people that are looking for the convenience of everything being close together, it's not as much. For activity junkies, Castaway still has the upper hand when it comes to just classic water sports and port adventures, plus it has the 5k that I where you actually get the medal. Lookout offers the more like natural trails and things.

SPEAKER_00:

Some tips for both islands. If you are looking for chairs and fade, the farther you walk down the beach, the more open umbrellas you'll find. Most people grab the first ones that they find. So the close ones are usually taken first.

SPEAKER_01:

For food allergies, I didn't really speak a lot about this episode, but I have in previous ones, you can pre-order your food from the ship. So your dining team that you have the entire time you're on the ship every night, you can pre-order your lunch for the next day if you're going to be on a Disney island. But if you don't, you still have the option to go. There's a specific section where you go to order your food if you want to order something from an allergy menu. It just makes it very convenient for you to be able to just walk up and say, hey, my name is such and such, and I was in room XYZ, and they already have it ready and they start your order for you.

SPEAKER_00:

We already mentioned this with cabanas, but book as soon as possible when your window opens, making sure you're paid in full by the time your window opens, we'll ensure that and just make sure you have all your documents and everything uploaded so you're not missing out.

SPEAKER_01:

For lookout key, plan to get off the boat earlier and spend the morning while it's not as hot. And because of the distance, just make sure that you're hydrated and you're prepared for the half mile walk. If you do have accessibility issues, you just need to make sure that someone is aware so they can take you on the golf cart instead.

SPEAKER_00:

So to kind of wrap it all up, if you want maximum convenience in a classic Disney Beach Day, choose Castaway.

SPEAKER_01:

If you're looking for more Bahanian culture and something that's kind of new and fresh, and you don't mind the longer trek to where all of the action is, then you would be happy with Lookout Key. We would love to hear your experiences if you have visited one or both of these islands. From my perspective, based on my experience, which I, you know, obviously I always throw that out as a caveat. This is my experience. Not everybody has the same experience. And I do want to do this again so that I can, I'm hoping to have a better experience at Lookout, but I'm for sure Team Castaway. It just seems like even if we had not had bad weather and had some of the chaos, I still think Castaway just felt like more of our vibe in general, or my vibe at least. And but we would love to hear your opinion on what your experience has been. And if you have not experienced either one, we would love to make that happen for you and get you booked on a cruise and get these two islands on your itinerary.

SPEAKER_00:

You really can't go wrong with either one. I'm excited that Disney is expanding their islands and giving us more options.

SPEAKER_01:

Thank you so much for listening, everybody. We hope you have a phenomenal week.

SPEAKER_00:

Bye.

SPEAKER_01:

Thanks for tuning in to another episode of Wonderlust and Wishes.

SPEAKER_00:

If you enjoyed today's episode, don't forget to subscribe and leave us a review on your favorite podcast platform.

SPEAKER_01:

And remember, the world is full of wonders waiting to be explored. Until next time, happy travels. Bye for now.