Half Moon Cay

[cabinluvn]

Last I heard, hurricane Irma took all the shade trees off the island. Enough so that there were no shade trees for the cruise ship passengers. Does that still hold true?  Plan on stopping there on a November cruise. Would rather not rent something as I won’t be spending all day there due to recent extensive cancer surgery and reconstruction on my nose. But I would like to sit and watch the ocean for a bit. Anyone there before the pandemic hit?

[CruiserBruce]

Some shade was removed, but far from all.

[Mary229]

I was there in April 2019 and must sit in the shade for medical reasons and was able to find ample shade

[jimgev]

Half Moon Cay is as beuatiful as ever. You cannot see any storm damage.

[rkacruiser]

Half Moon Cay has been a significant port for me ever since my first visit.  The improvements in the island and the guest facilities have been great decisions by whomever made them.

 

There is an important competitor in those waters, however.  MSC's Ocean Cay has the potential to make Half Moon Cay "yesterdays news" for some cruisers.  

[Skorpora]

I was there March 2020.  Plenty of shade. No need to rent anything. 

[rkacruiser]

22 hours ago, Skorpora said:

 Plenty of shade

 

The "I Can Stay Here Forever" bar has plenty of shade!  😁

[msmayor]

Half Moon Cay is one of my top destinations...and when I dream of a beautiful beach, that is the one that always comes to mind.

 

Walking along that pure white sand, swimming in that crystal clear water.  It's heaven...

[Himself]

I was lst there in February and all was good,  I, too, have a problem dealing with the sun. I am fair complected and I have dealt with some basil cell carcinoma. 

[SJSULIBRARIAN]

On 5/8/2021 at 4:04 PM, rkacruiser said:

 

The "I Can Stay Here Forever" bar has plenty of shade!  😁

Best place to be at Half Moon Cay

[rkacruiser]

4 minutes ago, SJSULIBRARIAN said:

Best place to be at Half Moon Cay

 

I miss my Pina Colada ....or two.  And the view across the beach with my ship awaiting my return..   

[Roz]

Due to the warm temps and rainfall in the Caribbean, foliage grows back quickly after a hurricane.

[CruiserBruce]

26 minutes ago, Roz said:

Due to the warm temps and rainfall in the Caribbean, foliage grows back quickly after a hurricane.

Except HMC isn't in the Caribbean, and it tends to be a drier climate, as opposed to tropical.

[Roz]

OK, technically it's in the Bahamas but I've still been amazed at how fast the island recovered from previous storms.

 

[helby]

[oakridger]

That's where I hang out on Half Moon Cay!  In the shade.  With a beer.

 

~Nancy

[smilesntravels]

The last time we were there was Dec. 2019.  What hurricane are you asking about?  I forget when the last one happened.

I don't see any shade on the beach.  it's a great beach and as others have said, the water is gorgeous.  I guess there's shade if you sit in the bar, or walk around under the trees, or at the bbq lunch.

I did notice the last time we were there was that it looked like the shore had eroded some.  Much less length of sand (from the trees to the water.)  I guess it had been five or six years in between cruises to Half Moon.  I don't know if that has to do with any hurricanes, or not, though.  We always find it pretty sunny too.

Edited May 11, 2021 by smilesntravels
Typo

[CruiserBruce]

20 minutes ago, smilesntravels said:

The last time we were there was Dec. 2019.  What hurricane are you asking about?  I forget when the last one happened.

I don't see any shade on the beach.  it's a great beach and as others have said, the water is gorgeous.  I guess there's shade if you sit in the bar, or walk around under the trees, or at the bbq lunch.

I did notice the last time we were there was that it looked like the shore had eroded some.  Much less length of sand (from the trees to the water.)  I guess it had been five or six years in between cruises to Half Moon.  I don't know if that has to do with any hurricanes, or not, though.  We always find it pretty sunny too.

There is shade in the tree line, same line as the cabanas...particularly past the Pirate Bar. Not so much south of the Pirate Bar.

[smilesntravels]

23 hours ago, CruiserBruce said:

There is shade in the tree line, same line as the cabanas...particularly past the Pirate Bar. Not so much south of the Pirate Bar.

I should have said that I don't see any shade on the beach where people lay out, excluding the cabanas or clam shells.  The loungers aren't spread out among the trees like they are in Grand Turk.

[rkacruiser]

On 5/11/2021 at 4:43 PM, oakridger said:

That's where I hang out on Half Moon Cay!  In the shade.  With a beer.

 

~Nancy

 

My beverage of choice is a Pina Colada.  

[AryMay]

On 5/11/2021 at 6:26 PM, smilesntravels said:

I did notice the last time we were there was that it looked like the shore had eroded some.  Much less length of sand (from the trees to the water.)  I guess it had been five or six years in between cruises to Half Moon.  I don't know if that has to do with any hurricanes, or not, though.  We always find it pretty sunny too.

I believe Hurricane Irma hit in 2017. We were there twice on a B2B cruise in November 2019 and were able to find shade near the cabanas. It meant sitting in the back row of loungers under the trees, but not a big deal since it wasn’t crowded in the least. 
 

As far as the erosion of the sand, I would expect that might just be a result of the tides. When we stopped at HMC on our first week, there was a wide stretch of sand between the loungers and the water’s edge. Also the sea was totally calm. 

 

 

The following week there were large waves and by the time we left the water was washing under the loungers (all the way up to the back row.) 

 

[smilesntravels]

6 hours ago, AryMay said:

I believe Hurricane Irma hit in 2017. We were there twice on a B2B cruise in November 2019 and were able to find shade near the cabanas. It meant sitting in the back row of loungers under the trees, but not a big deal since it wasn’t crowded in the least. 
 

As far as the erosion of the sand, I would expect that might just be a result of the tides. When we stopped at HMC on our first week, there was a wide stretch of sand between the loungers and the water’s edge. Also the sea was totally calm. 

 

 

The following week there were large waves and by the time we left the water was washing under the loungers (all the way up to the back row.) 

 

Oh, interesting point and pictures!  Your second one is what it looked like to us, not as severe though, the second time we were there.  But, the water only started coming up on the loungers later in the day.

Lucky you for doing B2B cruises.  One of these days we'll do a cruise longer than seven days, or a back to back.

[Tennessee Titan]

Was probably there 4 or 5 times when the TAs used to stop there. Never got off the ship.....