Any info on Royal Caribbean cruise to Nassau & Coco Cay?

Question

We leave in a week for a 4 day/3 night cruise to Nassau & Coco Cay and I was curious if there is something we shouldn't miss doing or seeing. We've looked over the excursion info the ship gave us, but seemed very pricey for such short time durations. We may do the kayak trip in CoCo Cay. Anyone done that?

Also was wondering about the cost of drinks on the ship (alcohol and soft drinks).

This is my first cruise so I have no idea what to expect. Any info would be appreciated. Thanks!

Answer 1

I went on the same cruise a couple years ago, except we did the 4 night that included Key West.

If I could do Nassau all over again I'd go to the Altantis hotel (the one with the bridge in the middle) its very famous and I would have liked to have seen it. We did the glass bottom boat tour and it was nice but kind of short. I know how expensive the excursion prices are but we felt like this one was reasonable.

As for CoCo Cay, its just a small island the cruiseline owns. We were a little surprised at how little was on the island. Just some hammocks and the buuffet the cruiseline sets up. Some locals have some huts with craft and souvineers set up too. (I have no idea how they get there every day, there is no housing on the island). The kayak sounds nice. We just walked around the island a little bit and eat at the buffet. Parasailing always looked great but we didn't want to pay for it at the time. There isn't much to miss on the island.

You don't have to do any excursion, you can always just walk around or arrange your own excursion. People have had a lot of success doing that and it was a lot cheaper. I've never personally done that and wouldn't feel comfortable testing it out in a place I've never been.  

You can buy a soft drink card that is unlimited for your entire stay. They price it by the length of nights on your cruise so I'm not sure how much it would cost. Probably the neighborhood of $25-$30 per person for a 3 nighter. A la carte a soft drink would be about $2-$3. One thing to keep in mind is that there is no soft drink dispenser or fountain machine. Each time you want a soft drink it you will either need to find bartender or one of the dining staff to go get you one. This isn't such a big deal in the dining room but its a big hassle at the buffet or on the deck. They have fountain machines for juice/tea/lemonade that you can help yourself and its unlimited and free. My advice if you really like to drink a coke/pepsi or other pop is to bring some in your luggage. They will let you bring a small amount on and you can store it in your fridge in your room. That way you can have drinks in your room and won't have to pay for the pop.

Alcohol is pretty much what you's pay in the bars. $5-$6 per drink. They add gratuity when you pay for the drinks. They have a drink of the day special and you can keep the souvineer glass for about the same price. We usually drink the fruity island drinks and those are on special a lot.

Hope this helps! Have a great time!

Answer 2

Get the soda coupon.  $6 a day per person for unlimited sodas.

The alcohol if I remember correctly is anywhere from $3 to $7 per drink.  When fiance and I went on our cruise we had the daily special drinks out on the pool deck and they were about $4 each.

Just remember, alcohol adds up QUICK, so prepare wisely with your on board account.  :)

I assume you'll be on the Majesty of the Seas?  Great ship, fiance and I were on that particular cruise, but ours was diverted from the Bahamas due to Tropical Storm Ernesto, or I'd have some suggestions and whatnot for you.  We planned on doing the SUB Bahamas adventure and then snorkeling on CocoCay.

Answer 3

Hi...a soda package is $6 per day + gratituity and includes sodas purchased on CocoCay.    Alcoholic beverages run about the same as you would expect in a nicer bar....usually the drink of the day runs around 3.95.  

Coco Cay is one of my favorite stops.  Kayaking is an awesome choice.  I also like the waverunner excursion and snorkeling is fun there because you are not on a time limit...the day is at your leisure.  My personal favorite is to spend 10 bucks and get a float and just relax on the water.  Have a great time!!!

Answer 4

I went on that cruise about 13 years ago. Lots of fun. I did snorkleing at Coco Cay(disposable underwater camera is a must!).  The rum boat from Nassau was a lot of fun as well.  Freeport was kind of boring.

Answer 5

There's no better place to visit that the cruise critic boards, they can't be anymore helpful.  Here are some links and i hope they help.  Once you visit this link it will take you to your Roll Call which it means, once you find the date you are travelling, these people will be on the same boat.  You can also find out more about what to do or not and tons of info about your Port of Call.  Helpful indeed, i hope you enjoy this page and of course your cruise.

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/

Answer 6

Coco cay was a great place to do nothing all day. I had the greatest time playing volleyball there. everyone just got together made up teams both passengers and crew it was a blast. the snorkeling was great and the reading time on the beach priceless. As for Nassau you should get over to see Atlantis but you can't do much if your not a guest there, the shopping in town is great if you like that sort of thing. doing the excursions from the ship are pricey and you can do it for less on your own the local cabby's can take you any where but you have to be mindful of the time the ship will not wait for you. When they say 5:00 the mean it. As for drinks $4 beer, $6 mixed,and $7-8 frozen also a daily special around $5. Your not supposed to bring you own but I always bring some with me in my luggage and never had a problem. HAVE FUN!!