If you’ve ever sailed on Disney Cruise Line, there’s a high likelihood that you’ve visited Castaway Cay, Disney’s private island.
Castaway Cay
The little paradise is teeming with fun activities, from snorkeling to banana boat rides to bike rentals and more. There are multiple beaches with swimming and lounge chairs, as well as play areas for the kids and restaurants to enjoy a seaside bite. But before there was Castaway Cay, there was another island…one that FAILED.
Back before the days of Disney Cruise Line, Disney had a partnership with Premier Cruise Lines. Premier was started by two men who wanted to make the cruise industry more accessible for families, because, at that time, it was mostly a vacation for the wealthy. Premier started its journey in 1983, subsequently buying the Oceanic and refurbishing it in a “not-so-luxurious” fashion.
Disney Dream
Around that time, Disney was looking to add some variety to vacation offerings, so they partnered with Premier Cruise Lines to offer “Land and Sea” vacations at Walt Disney World. Then in 1985, Disney characters began making appearances on the Oceanic (commonly known as “The Big Red Boat”), and Disney-themed onboard activities were offered. Eventually the land and sea vacation model became so popular that they added two new ships — the Majestic and the Atlantic.
©ShipSpotting.com | The Atlantic
With this popularity, Premier Cruise Lines was in need of more hot-ticket destinations for sailing. They had stops at Freeport and Nassau, but the next step came in the form of a private island at Great Guana Cay in the Bahamas. The place was named Treasure Island, but it had some problems right from the start.
In order to create a channel for the ships to get close to the island, Disney and Premier Cruise Lines had to dredge the bay. However, the dredging was unsuccessful, because the tides just kept refilling the dredged area with silt over and over again. Therefore, Disney abandoned the island, leaving the structures behind that had been built there.
©Bright Sun Films | Treasure Island
Disney went on to build Castaway Cay in the late 1990s and the Disney Magic set sail in 1998, joined by the Disney Wonder shortly after. Premier Cruise Lines struggled after Disney pulled out, due in part to their older, smaller ships. The company went bankrupt in 2000. However, they started a trend of family cruising that has made the entire tourism industry more accessible for families to this day!
Disney Magic
And now, Disney’s in the process of constructing a SECOND private island. Lighthouse Point will also be situated in The Bahamas, located in Eleuthera, where you will able to explore the natural world around you. With this new construction, Disney is taking a special interest in conservation, creating good economic opportunities for the area, and strengthening the community.
©Disney
Lighthouse Point construction began earlier this year, and the website for the island notes that it’s scheduled to be operational in the first half of 2024. We can’t wait to check it out on a Disney Cruise Line sailing in the future. The concept art has definitely piqued our interest!
©Disney
We’ll continue to watch progress on Lighthouse Point, hoping that it’s a bigger success than Disney’s old Treasure Island. With more ships being constructed for Disney Cruise Line and more destinations added, there are a lot of reasons to sail these days.
Disney just launched the Disney Wish in the summer of 2022, and it has been quite popular since. The new ship has new dining options, entertainment, and activities for a variety of guests. We got to sail on the ship before its maiden voyage, so check out our coverage if you’re interested in the Disney Wish as a vacation option!
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Im 59, and i was on the Big Red Boat with my fiance and remember Treasure Island very well. It wasnt luxerious, but I preferred it to the new island. There was a sort of wildness to it that was better than the overly artificial Castaway Cay. We walked an abandoned runway, stuffed ourselves on burgers, and planned to visit old Gilligan Island sets that signs said were there. Instead, I spent the entire time at a dangerous beach where i snorkeled for the first time. It was so much fun I went out so far they stationed a boat by me so I wasnt swept into a current between Islands. The water was warm and clear and although i cant swim, i deflated the swim bladder amd dived and took pictures. I still have a picture of the entire island from way out. I went back years later to finally visit the sets and to my dissapointment, it was a new island that was so artificial it was boring in every way. Sigh, thank you for the memories!
My mom took us on the Premier Cruise Line trip with WDW in the 80’s, even before they had the Big Red Boat commercials. We did visit a private island on this trip and I believe they called it Salt Cay. There were scenes for the Gillian’s Island intro filmed there. This would have been around March 1987. We had calm seas, but the cruise after ours experienced a storm which broke some of the items in the crystal shop and the slot machines in the casino. I believe we had to take a smaller boat from Nassau to the private island.
We went snorkeling and there were hammocks hung between trees to lay in. There was even an adults only beach available, but I was too young to see that part.
The last time I looked the island was being used for dolphin excursions and the Oceanic was turned into the Peace Boat and eventually scrapped.
It was a wonderful trip that also included Nassau.
This article is incorrect in its start up of The Big Red Boat. Their first ship was the Royal.
I loved the Disney cruise still talk about it. Hope to go again one day. It was my dream and it came true. I was on the DREAM and everything was perfect. The food ..entertainment…games..just everything and I love Mickey.♥️
My wife and I were on Premiere (Big Red Boat) Atlantic in 1992 for our Honeymoon. It was my first cruise and I was hooked on cruising after that. We had a great time on that island as well as Nassau. Not to mention all the Disney charactors on the ship. We went to Disney World after the cruise. One of the best vacations we ever had.
I think the dates in the article are a little off. My boyfriend (now hubby) and I went in 1991 or 1992 on The Big Red Boat with another couple and we stopped at a private Island for the day. We wandered off the beaten path to the other side of the island, and spent the hours jumping off the rocks into the crystal clear… and I mean CRYSTAL CLEAR water. We took lots of underwater pictures as well. It was lovely, pristine and no one there but us – probably because as young 22 yr old trouble makers, we ignored the “Do not got his way” sign LOL