Disney Fantasy runDisney Castaway Cay 5K Recap

On our recent family vacation aboard the Disney Fantasy, we got the opportunity to run the runDisney Castaway Cay 5K.  Being a runDisney bling fanatic, this was the excursion I was most looking forward to experiencing.  One of my first stops once I got aboard the Fantasy was to stop by Senses Spa and the Shore Excursion desk to find how I could register for this race.

Good news - no preregistration is required.  Simply wait until the night prior to your stop at Castaway Cay and look for the race information in your Navigator.  The meeting place & time will be listed.  There is no additional fee to participate.  You will receive a race bib, safety pins and when you complete the race - a Castaway Cay 5K "medal."

Please note that you must be 12-years old or older to participate.  We were unaware of this rule and had hyped the race up with the kids (10, 9, and 7) so our family was a little surprised and disappointed, but hey - we were still at Castaway Cay with a beach and water slides so all was well once again!

The Castaway Cay 5K is a fun run and is not officially timed, but a race clock will run.  The course runs along the airstrip and loops the bike trial.  Our race start was around 10am so the sun was up and the temperature was rising fast.  Water is provided on the course and the 5K course is detailed on the above video.

We were all really looking forward to this race and earning our runDisney Disney Cruise Line bling.  If you have the opportunity to run this race during your stop at Castaway Cay I highly recommend it! 

Disney Cruise Line: Spring Break Bon Voyage!

 

Hi!  My name is Kimberly and I’m a Disney addict.  It’s been 12 years since my last Disney Cruise. GASP!!

Actually, the Disney Cruise was my first cruise experience ever.  Having grown up watching the Love Boat TV show, I thought that cruises were for old people, were boring with nothing to do and that the boat was basically a floating glorified hotel.  How wrong I was! 

In January 2001, my husband and I were still newlyweds and used our Disney Vacation Points (purchased for use on our Hawaiian honeymoon) for a 4-night Bahamas sailing on the Disney Wonder.  One word – WOW!

The Port Canaveral building was beautiful.  The ship was beautiful.  The food was good.  The room was clean, well decorated and comfortable.  There was plenty to do and I wasn’t bored even for a minute!  Our Disney Cruise Line experience was fantastic and we didn’t even have children with us!  

Cut to 12 years later and we are going on our second Disney Cruise aboard the Fantasy!  We are taking a 7-night Western Caribbean cruise and will have our two children, ages 10 and 6, with us.  Why did we wait this long to go on another cruise?  The ages of our children and cost were the biggest factors for us. 

The children cannot wait to experience the Oceaneer Club.  On our last trip, we saw first hand children visibly upset and yelling at their parents for picking them up “early” from the Club.  It was at that moment that I knew I couldn’t wait to voyage again aboard Disney Cruise Line with children!

New (to me) from last time are “fish extenders” and “pirate night.”  If you don’t know what a fish extender is - don’t worry, I didn’t either.  It is basically a file you hang next to our stateroom door from a fish light.  You sign up prior to your cruise with others on your sailing and you exchange gifts with each other! 

I don’t know what happens on pirate night – and I’m looking forward to the surprise since I don’t get many NEW TO ME Disney surprises – but I know that we should “dress for the occasion.”  I made each member of my family Captain Jack Sparrow inspired pirate garb for this DCL experience!

We are traveling with our good friends and have several fun experiences lined up including a Dolphin Swim, Chacchoben Mayan Ruin tour, beach excursion as well as dinners at Remy and Palo.  I’m most looking forward to stopping in Castaway Cay.  I can’t wait for the children to have fun on the beach (reminds me a little of River Country – remember that!!!) and I really want to run the 5K to add the medal to my runDisney Bling!  Sea you really soon…..!