I love Ocean Cay

[Elkins45]

I just returned from a seven day cruise that overnighted in Ocean Cay then went to Costa Maya and Cozumel. Ocean Cay was by far my favorite part of the cruise.
 

I wish they offered a 3 or 4 day cruise that just stayed at the island.

[sealynx]

Good to hear. Can you elaborate on what you enjoyed specifically at Ocean Cay and maybe compare to other cruise lines' islands?

[dexddd]

Lots of beaches, food, bars.  Spread out.  NCL only a couple beaches and food.  DCL by far the best due to size and activities plus free water activities/slides.

[Morgsmom]

11 hours ago, Elkins45 said:

I just returned from a seven day cruise that overnighted in Ocean Cay then went to Costa Maya and Cozumel. Ocean Cay was by far my favorite part of the cruise.
 

I wish they offered a 3 or 4 day cruise that just stayed at the island.

they Do!  Just got off 4 night Divina. Day 2 in Nassau, then arrive day 3 at 08:00 and stay until 17:30 on day 4.

[dznymom]

I also love Ocean Cay, and actually prefer it to all of the other private islands.  Currently, I have only been booking the 4 night cruises that overnight there, (except for one b2b 3/4 nighter so 3 out of 7 days were there).  I especially appreciate that with the ships being at such low capacity, the island is truly magical!  

[GonzoWCS]

Glad to hear this we “fixin” to try this out soon

 

Cheers

[1kaper]

I enjoyed Ocean Cay and it was beautiful but Half Moon Cay (Carnival and Holland America) was my favourite.  
It does depend on what you want. Im not YC so it’s just sitting on the beach for me. We did rent a clamshell on HMC and umbrellas on Ocean Cay. 
 

The beach itself was nicer at HMC. Softer sand. And the water was a colour I’ve never seen. 
 

I’d take either any day though. 😂

[Elkins45]

2 hours ago, 1kaper said:

I enjoyed Ocean Cay and it was beautiful but Half Moon Cay (Carnival and Holland America) was my favourite.  
It does depend on what you want. Im not YC so it’s just sitting on the beach for me. We did rent a clamshell on HMC and umbrellas on Ocean Cay. 
 

The beach itself was nicer at HMC. Softer sand. And the water was a colour I’ve never seen. 
 

I’d take either any day though. 😂

The one time I went to HMC (April of this year) I spent three hours total standing in line to board the tender. No thanks on doing that again.

[1kaper]

Just now, Elkins45 said:

The one time I went to HMC (April of this year) I spent three hours total standing in line to board the tender. No thanks on doing that again.

ah. That is a downfall. 
 

[Elkins45]

On 5/13/2022 at 7:58 AM, Morgsmom said:

they Do!  Just got off 4 night Divina. Day 2 in Nassau, then arrive day 3 at 08:00 and stay until 17:30 on day 4.

I have zero desire to ever go to Nassau again. I want a cruise that stays at the island multiple nights instead.

[rkacruiser]

35 minutes ago, Elkins45 said:

The one time I went to HMC (April of this year) I spent three hours total standing in line to board the tender. No thanks on doing that again.

 

Having to tender is a negative for HMC.  But, unless one wants to go to the island or return to the ship in "prime time", it is not a serious issue.  HAL has built a shelter for guests waiting to return to the ship that did not originally exist.  Much better than standing uncovered in whatever the environment is at that time.

 

2 hours ago, 1kaper said:

I’d take either any day though.

 

I agree.  Ocean Cay is a work in progress just as all of the other cruise lines' Private Islands have been.  I see so much potential at Ocean Cay that islands like Princess Cay and Half Moon Cay may not be so well considered in the future.  

[1kaper]

1 minute ago, rkacruiser said:

 

Having to tender is a negative for HMC.  But, unless one wants to go to the island or return to the ship in "prime time", it is not a serious issue.  HAL has built a shelter for guests waiting to return to the ship that did not originally exist.  Much better than standing uncovered

 

that may have been the key. We weren’t in a rush to get off. We happened to be all ready to go and they announced that there were a bunch of seats on the tender and we were deck 3. We walked down got on the tender and away we went. 
 

apparently the last tender coming back is the key for no waiting. We got the second last and did wait a bit. 
 

i agree the tender is a definite downside. 
But I still feel like it was the most beautiful water I’ve seen yet. I’ve travelled a bit. Others I talked to that day agreed. 
 

in the end it is all personal preference and opinion. 
 

the biggest thing I dislike about HMC is with Carnival drinks are not included.   In fact, with my last cruise it came down to a Carnival casino deal with Nassau and HMC or MSC with Nassau and Ocean Cay and that was the deciding factor and how I ended up on my first MSC cruise. 

[rkacruiser]

20 minutes ago, 1kaper said:

But I still feel like it was the most beautiful water I’ve seen yet. I’ve travelled a bit. Others I talked to that day agreed. 

 

The water is beautiful.  The view from the "I Could Stay Here Forever" bar is the most scenic view from such a facility that I have ever seen.  

 

21 minutes ago, 1kaper said:

the biggest thing I dislike about HMC is with Carnival drinks are not included.

 

You had a drink package?  I never buy these things.  For me, there is no value in them.  I will pay for whatever I drink and of whatever brands/quality that I want during my cruise.  

[sfaaa]

21 hours ago, rkacruiser said:

 

Having to tender is a negative for HMC.  But, unless one wants to go to the island or return to the ship in "prime time", it is not a serious issue.  HAL has built a shelter for guests waiting to return to the ship that did not originally exist.  Much better than standing uncovered in whatever the environment is at that time.

 

Another negative with HMC - rough sea = no tendering. That said,  the HMC waiting shelter with cooling mist sprinklers is a nice touch.

[no1talks]

On 5/18/2022 at 6:57 PM, rkacruiser said:

"You had a drink package?  I never buy these things.  For me, there is no value in them."

A drink package is indispensable for me.

One of the best things a cruise affords a passenger is the chance to try unfamiliar dishes at no extra cost. "Well, I've never had osso buco... Oh, why the hell not! Bring it on."

In the same spirit (pun intended) one can try unfamiliar adult beverages under the auspices of the ever-so-handy drink package. I try new cocktails and wines often and I've no compunction about drinking just ⅓ to ½ of a trial beverage, since there's no further cost incurred than the package price.

We've done the math. If we paid full fare for all our drinks, we would be paying a fair bit more than the cost of his-and-hers packages. Plus, we would be inclined to consume more of the individual drinks.

Our wallet (and our livers) are glad we get the package.

[Elkins45]

On 5/13/2022 at 6:31 AM, sealynx said:

Good to hear. Can you elaborate on what you enjoyed specifically at Ocean Cay and maybe compare to other cruise lines' islands?

Being able to walk off the ship and directly onto the beach is a large part of the appeal. Plus you have the choice of several beaches, including the lagoon that is sheltered from the wind and surf. The food selection is also more varied than others that just do burgers and hot dogs. The ribs are fantastic.

[blueskadoo]

Ocean Key is amazing. I agree that just having a long time there (2 or 3 nights straight like ships do with Bermuda) would be awesome. I keep putting it on the surveys and telling anybody at MSC who might listen my "big idea" but so far...crickets.

[rkacruiser]

22 hours ago, no1talks said:

One of the best things a cruise affords a passenger is the chance to try unfamiliar dishes at no extra cost. "Well, I've never had osso buco... Oh, why the hell not! Bring it on."

In the same spirit (pun intended) one can try unfamiliar adult beverages under the auspices of the ever-so-handy drink package. I try new cocktails and wines often and I've no compunction about drinking just ⅓ to ½ of a trial beverage, since there's no further cost incurred than the package price.

 

I think your reasoning is impeccable.  

 

I suspect we may be at different stages of life.  Regarding wines and liquors, I have done my experimenting.  (I still do try others with which I am unfamiliar, however.)  But, when it's HH or choosing a dinner wine, I am most likely going to order a "comfort" drink/wine.