CocoCay Expansion: South Beach
If you haven’t been to CocoCay in a while then you will be in for quiet a surprise with all the upgrades and changes that have been completed. For those of you who maybe new to cruising, CocoCay (officially know as Little Stirrup Cay) is Royal Caribbean’s Private Island in the Bahamas.
Over the past several years Royal Caribbean has been working hard to upgrade the island with new amenities including a floating bar, tram service, cabanas, beach beds and beach bungalows. However the best upgrade in our opinion is the new South Beach.
If your looking for clear blue water on a tranquil white sand beach then the South Beach area is right for you. South Beach is located on the back of the island in what was formally know as the Bare Foot Beach area. The beach is divided up into two areas; one area is the VIP area for bungalow and beach bed guests while the other is a public beach open to all cruise ship guests. The public beach includes a selection of loungers that are available for no charge as well as the new South Beach Bar that features a selections of beers, mixed drinks and the islands signature frozen drink, Coco Loco. Interestingly, South Beach was almost completely empty which ensured that there was no wait at the bar.
For our stay at Coco Cay we pre-reserved a Beach Bungalow on cruise planner prior to departing for our cruise. When we arrived on the island we were taken by private shuttle (The Coco Limo) from the tender area to the South Beach area. Upon arrival we presented our shore excursion ticket to concierge (Yes, there really is a concierge on South Beach) who gave each member of our party a VIP wristband and showed us to our Beach Bungalow. The pictures on Royal Caribbeans website just don’t do these bungalows justice. The rental of the bungalow includes 4 bottles of Evian water, 2 loungers and 2 floating mats all of which were waiting for us upon arrival. Each bungalow has a maximum capacity of 6 guests.
The bungalow area also includes private restrooms and a private bar. While the bungalows are a significant distance from the beach BBQ the bungalows offer a special lunch menu in which the food is delivered directly to your bungalow. The menu included things such as fish tacos, chicken tacos, chicken sandwich, hamburger, fish sandwich, salad, nachos, desserts and more! Guests that were interested in the beach BBQ just needed to contact the concierge to arrange for the Coco Limo to drive them to the BBQ area .
At the end of the beach bungalow experience the Coco Limo again takes you back to the tender area where you can do some last minute shopping at the straw market or head back to the ship.
Overall the South Beach experience exceeded our expectations and is a great option for beach lovers of all ages. If your not renting a bungalow or beach bed, free tram service is still available from the tender area to South Beach.
Beach Bungalow Price: $150 (Prior to Sailing), $195 (Onboard Price)*
*Pricing information is provided based on our sailing. Pricing is subject to change based on sail date and ship.
Thanks for the detailed review! What made you select the bungalo over the beach bed? Do you know if the beach bed also comes with lounging chairs? Thanks for the advice!
Hi Jen,
Thanks for reading our review. On this trip we selected the bungalow over beach bed since there were 6 of us in the group and this offered a more relaxing environment. The beach beds looked like they would be comfortable for 2-4 people but I didn’t see any lounge chairs available with them. I would recommend the bungalow if there are more then 2 people in your group since you would have the lounge chairs plus seating in the bungalow. However, if there are only two people in your group then the beach bed would be a perfect option. They are bit further from the public beach area which makes the area very quiet and relaxing.
Hi!
Thanks for the pictures, this was the best review of the bungalows I’ve seen! I’m wondering if you saw families with small children in the bungalows? On Royal Caribbean’s website it says minimum age is 4, but I think these would be perfect for a family with small kids since you could let the kids nap in the shade without returning to the boat at nap time. What was your experience?
That’s a great question! Royal Caribbean does advertise that the minimum age for this excursion is 4 years old. However, when I visited there were multiple families with children that looked to be around 2 years old. It seemed that the concierge desk was only checking to ensure that there were no more then 6 persons per bungalow.
what did you notive RC would do if more than 6 people were in the Bungalow? We have 4 adults and 3 kids. Kids will most likey be in the water anyway.
There was no one enforcing the amount of guests per bungalow after check in so it is unlikely they would know, however I can’t guarantee they won’t say anything about it.
Thanks so much for the review! I went ahead and booked one for our upcoming trip as I have kids and wanted to make sure we had somewhere to relax. How crazy does it really get around there? Since anyone can go to the beach not just the ones that have bungalows or beds I am worried it may get packed. Also do you recommend getting a bungalow in the front or back row? Is that even an option or do you get what ever they assign you? Oh one more thing… about how long is the tram ride there? 10…20…30…minutes???
Thanks,
Hi Elisa, Great questions! The area actually isn’t crazy at all, the bungalows and beach beds are roped off but like I said before other guests can still come on to that beach area but that was very few and far between (About 50% of the bungalows and 10% of the beach beds were reserved on our trip). The South Beach area is probably the most under utilized area of Coco Cay mostly due to its distance from the tender station. That being said it is about a 15 minute walk from the tender station or about a 5 minute ride on the included Coco Limo.
Once on board the ship you will have the option to select your bungalow or beach bed location. To do so you will have to go to the Shore Excursions desk and let them know you purchased the excursion and would like to make your selection. They will show you a drawing of the beach area and let you select which bungalow/bed you would like. I would recommend going to the Shore Excursions desk as soon as possible if you want a specific bungalow, by the first night of our trip, all the front row bungalows were already reserved. The front row is probably a little bit better but the way they are staggered you will have great few of the water either way. There really isn’t a bad bungalow/beach bed option. Enjoy your trip and please let us know how your experience was when you return!
Hello Kevin,
Thank you for the review. Does everyone who pre reserves a bungalow have the option to select their bungalow aboard the ship or is this a privilege/courtesy extended to suite guests only.
Thank you
Great question! At the time of our review the option to select your Bungalow location onboard was available to everyone.
There are also Cabannas available to suite guests on a sepreate area of the island. Unfortunately I am not sure of the selection process for those.
Hello, I have seen a few reviews and pictures stating that the tide can be very low in this area. In fact, I saw a picture of low tide with a bird and sea grass only! Have they built up the beach in the south beach area where the bungalows are? We were really hoping to do that on our visit to coco cay. Thank you for any additional information you can provide!
Leslie,
The tide can be very low at times in this area however in my experience low tide seems to be closer to the end of the day when you will be heading back to the ship.
Any ideas of whether the bungalows are better than the cabanas with the deluxe buffet? We like seclusion from the crowds but also have kids who want to swim and it looks like the cabanas are not near a beach
Bryan,
If your looking to spend time swimming I would recommend the bungalows due to there location on the beach. As you mentioned, the cabanas aren’t located on the beach, although the snorkel beach is only a short walk away.
Kevin,
Thanks for taking the time to respond. Did the bungalow reservation include priority tender tickets to Coco cay. I’ve read that the tender process can be cahotic.
Thanks again,
Moni
Great question! Generally speaking all excursions booked through Royal Caribbean including the beach bungalow are given priority disembarkation usually on the first tender over to the island. That being said the tendering wait time can vary significantly from ship to ship. The wait times for smaller ships such as Majesty and Enchantment are usually very minimal, however it can be longer for ships such as those in the Freedom class. That being said if you plan out your schedule properly you can board a tender with little to no wait. I recommend getting on an early tender while most people are at breakfast, usually before 9:00am is best!
Is the cabana the same as the bungalow? I called and they acted like it was.
Hi Kevin,
The cabanas are actually different the bungalows. The cabanas are located near the tendering stations in their own private area and also include a special buffet lunch. The downside to the Cabanas is that the water is rougher in this area, however it is in walking distance to other beaches on the island.
If your looking for relaxation, calm waters and a more tranquil environment then I would recommend the bungalows.
I tried to get the bungalows and RC tells me they are no longer available?
I was able to book a bungalow online using the online cruise planner for our upcoming Nov 2017 trip. It’s was listed under shore excursions.