Back at it with another day at Castaway Cay. A big incentive to book this cruise was that it included two stops at Castaway Cay, our favorite private island. I've gushed about it before, but Castaway Cay is truly a large step above any other cruise line owned private island, including Royal Caribbean's Labadee. This post is composed mainly of photos which are pure eye candy of the island. Warning - you may have an urge to drop whatever you're doing and book a cruise to Castaway Cay. Because that's what I wanted to do when composing it.

That morning, we dined in the Enchanted Garden restaurant. Both Enchanted Garden and Royal Palace are open for breakfast in the mornings and can be a nice break from the craziness of the morning buffet crowd.

This time we did not run a 5K before enjoying the island. There was only one "official" 5K, but I heard others say they did it, again, so I think it was an on-your-own thing. No thanks. One tortuously humid run per cruise is enough for me.

That meant we got off the ship in time to meet Mickey. The characters alternate meeting near where you get off the ship in the mornings, then there are other meet-and-greet locations on the island later in the day.

We stuck to our regular itinerary which is to take the tram all the way to Serenity Bay....

I've said this before, but I really think that Serenity Bay is what sets Castaway Cay apart from any other private island. It's expansive and quiet and just perfect for a relaxing tropical getaway. This is what you think of when you think adults-only-getaway..... and you get here on a Disney Cruise!

To rent the cabanas at Serenity Bay, your party has to be 18 and older. It seems like when there is cabana availability (they are surprisingly popular, despite the high price tag), it's usually at Serenity Bay, rather than the family beach. You can reserve a Serenity Bay cabana for $399 for 4 people, each additional person $50 with a maximum of 10 people. I'm not really interested in a Serenity Bay cabana because Serenity Bay, in my experience, is always relatively uncrowded, and it's easy to find a beach chair. There are plants in front of the cabanas for privacy, but that blocks off immediate beach access - if you have a cabana, you have to walk all the way around to a point of entry to access the beach... inconvenient! The only thing that a Serenity Bay cabana would really be handy for is cover from torrential downpours which occur pretty much every afternoon in the summer.

Lunch was barbecue at Cookie's Too. I got a burger. Pretty good for island food.

This is the bar at Serenity Bay. Bartenders walk the beach area, as well.

Doesn't this look like a postcard??

With a few hours left in our afternoon at Castaway Cay, we headed back to the kid-populated area of the island. I had to get one of these Olaf cups. Dad did, too.

Note that if you want Castaway Cay souvenirs, you need to buy them when you're on Castaway Cay. They don't sell them in the gift shops on the ship. If you're on a double-dip cruise, you'll have two opportunities to stock up on Castaway Cay merch.

There was also more downpour. Note familiar travelers hiding out from the rain...

Olaf is finally living out his dream of enjoying summer.

Again, water slides in the afternoon - lines are never a problem.

Rachel headed to Head's Up to get a real drink, and I asked for a shot of rum to put in my Olaf cup.

One of these is not like the other......

This is the snorkeling area. Next time, I'm going to snorkel. And hopefully next time we go on a Disney Cruise, Rachel will re-read my cruise blog and remind me that I wanted to snorkel at Castaway Cay.

Whaddup, fam?! Just closing down the Castaway Cay bar like always...

It was at this point that I decided to walk back to take more photos. And Mom ditched us for the tram because she needed to glam up for pirate night.

Castaway Cay