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Half Moon Cay Question

august1963

By august1963,
in Carnival Cruise Lines

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winddawn

winddawn

Posted
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You can walk the beach or relax on the beach in free lounge chairs. This is a beautiful private island and is a bird sanctuary. Visit the shore excursion desk on the ship to check out all your options for activities and gear. The free open air barbecue has very good jerk chicken and other typical barbecue fare. There is one gift shop. Don't expect commercialism. There isn't any. Everything consumed on the island is taken off the ship, and then what is leftover is put back on the ship. You even pay for your drinks (alcohol) with your sail and sign card--just like on the ship. The island is uninhabited except for a handful of caretakers that clean up the island after the cruise ships leave. You can take your own snorkel equipment. Here are a couple of pictures to give you an idea of what you'll find. There is a line of open air cabanas just behind where you see the chairs on the beach. There is one small road behind the cabanas where an open air bus operates back and forth.

2100165544_AUGUST2009070.jpg.f4e9509af7ee0be4d4cedcceb60fee81.jpg

710117169_AUGUST2009073.jpg.4a87c064c0ea4ea981b7392a5ea137f0.jpg

686680328_HALFMOONCAYJUNE2009.jpg.ef83a2bdfe9c172aa754e0d428fa12e9.jpg

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spideyfam

spideyfam

Posted
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180.jpg

 

Play area for the kids. There are "bouncies" out in the water. Sorry, didn't get a picture of them.

 

179.jpg

 

Very nice beach. Just like walking on sugar! This is the crowded side. Go all the way to the left and it is almost like a private beach.

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AJI2596

AJI2596

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180.jpg

 

Play area for the kids. There are "bouncies" out in the water. Sorry, didn't get a picture of them.

 

179.jpg

 

Very nice beach. Just like walking on sugar! This is the crowded side. Go all the way to the left and it is almost like a private beach.

 

Holy crowded!! Is this just one ship?

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spideyfam

spideyfam

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Holy crowded!! Is this just one ship?

 

Just the Destiny.

 

Three quarters of the beach was virtually empty. Not sure why everybody wanted to be at that end. I know that is near the tenders, BBQ, and children's area, but I liked it at the other end. Very quiet!

 

If you look at the picture of the play area, you can see the whole beach in the background. Not many people at the other end.

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IMDORY

IMDORY

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If we settled down more to the left on the quieter side of the beach...how far away are we from getting an adult beverage every now and then? (like once an hour/hour 1/2 or so...) Should we bring a little travel cooler and ice for a few beers? Do they have the buckets of beer on the island like they do on the ship?

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Synthetic

Synthetic

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If we settled down more to the left on the quieter side of the beach...how far away are we from getting an adult beverage every now and then? (like once an hour/hour 1/2 or so...) Should we bring a little travel cooler and ice for a few beers? Do they have the buckets of beer on the island like they do on the ship?

 

Yes - they sell buckets of beer just like on the ship (and you use your sign and sail card)... Don't bother with your own cooler...

 

Although try a cabana - you get your own cabana steward who runs drinks and ice for you!

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Synthetic

Synthetic

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You can walk the beach or relax on the beach in free lounge chairs. This is a beautiful private island and is a bird sanctuary. Visit the shore excursion desk on the ship to check out all your options for activities and gear. The free open air barbecue has very good jerk chicken and other typical barbecue fare. There is one gift shop. Don't expect commercialism. There isn't any. Everything consumed on the island is taken off the ship, and then what is leftover is put back on the ship. You even pay for your drinks (alcohol) with your sail and sign card--just like on the ship. The island is uninhabited except for a handful of caretakers that clean up the island after the cruise ships leave. You can take your own snorkel equipment. Here are a couple of pictures to give you an idea of what you'll find. There is a line of open air cabanas just behind where you see the chairs on the beach. There is one small road behind the cabanas where an open air bus operates back and forth.

 

BTW - Cabana 8 is my favorite cabana! Thanks for the pic - fond memories!

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poobears

poobears

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We went there last year and it was absolutely amazing. This is by far our favorite spot to go now. If I could live there I would LOL We rented a cabana and we pretty much had the beach to ourselves other than the friends we met on board that had cabanas by us. The water is beautiful and clear. When we got to the cabana we had water, soda, chips, salsa and fresh fruit waiting on us.

 

We munched on some of the fruit and played then decided to go get lunch (a few hours after being there). We barely got lunch they were already shutting it down to load back on the ship. I'd suggest getting lunch first then enjoying the island. Not many choices for lunch but it was probably because we hit the end of it. We had a burger and salad. Not great, average picnic lunch.

 

If you rent a cabana they will loan you snorkeling equipment free. You just tell them the size you need. We weren't going to use ours so we put in sizes for the teen boys of the people we met up with. That way they could go snorkeling.

 

I never went to the end of the beach in the photos, it did look really crowded down there but everyone seemed to be having fun. We stuck to our relaxed corner of the beach. Not sure I would like to go there without a cabana it really did make the whole experience more enjoyable and relaxing and that relaxation is what we were going for on that port.

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Panelope Barnabus

Panelope Barnabus

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Holy crowded!! Is this just one ship?

 

That's how it was when we went... but we just walked further down the beach and there were literally about 5 other people around us. I suppose everyone stays at the crowded area so they don't have to walk and it's near the buffet? But don't be discouraged - that's only a small piece of the island. :)

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hi2you

hi2you

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we brought our own snorkel gear but there really isnt much to see.

We were lucky-swimming in the water, suddenly my sister noticed a stingray with a couple fish trailing behind-right in the regular beach area.

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