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Castaway Cay Bike Rental: A Disney Cruise Line Port Adventure Review

by Angela Jenkins, PassPorter Guest Contributor
Last modified 06-12-2014

During our first cruise on the Disney Dream last fall, we thought about inexpensive shore excursions to try.

Not many of the shore excursions appealed to us, for various reasons, mostly because we really just wanted to enjoy being on the ship, but also because of our budget. We had never cruised before and it seemed like a good idea to just relax this time.

While reading PassPorter's Disney Cruise Line guidebook, the excursions on Castaway Cay seemed pretty reasonable and I ended up highlighting one in particular: the bicycle rental. Renting a bike for an hour sounded fun and I knew our family would enjoy it. We didn't make a reservation, just in case we had other plans. It was only $6 per hour at the time, well within our budget.

On the morning we docked at Castaway Cay, we were actually looking forward to getting out on the bike trail. We had been eating very well and even though the boys were having the time of their lives, the thought of fresh air and stretching our legs a bit sounded great. We debarked a little after 9:00 am - we wanted to start the day with a little exercise and then relax for the rest of the day. We also wanted to get on the bike path before it got too warm or crowded. Our 11-year-old wanted to hang out with some new buddies, so it was just my husband, myself, and our 9-year-old. We found the bike rental place after walking by the family beach. By the time we got there, the folks who had been doing the Castaway Cay 5K were finishing up.

After paying for the rentals (charged to our stateroom), we spent a few minutes picking out the perfect bikes. There were plenty of cruiser-type bikes to choose from; adult women's and men's bikes, and kid's bikes, some with training wheels. Child seats were also available. The main difference turned out to be the difference in air pressure in the tires. All of the bikes seemed well maintained and oiled. We also picked out a helmet for our son. The crew member had shown us the bike path on the map. If you are worried about getting lost, don't be! There are signs everywhere and the path is wide and clearly marked. The path takes you along a very nice, clean nature trail with some interesting photo ops along the way. There are also ice water coolers along the way which were very nice, even though the path had some shade during the morning. The first part of the path takes you on a sort of circular route that leads you to the observation tower. Be sure to bring your camera, as we got beautiful photos of the island and the Dream beyond.

The second part of the path starts when you take a right out of the trail onto the tram road (old runway). You can ride your bike down to the adult beach, Serenity Bay. From there you can go all the way to the end of the trail that runs parallel to the beach, to get a beautiful view of the ocean and Serenity Bay. There are tables there to rest, and more ice cold water. This part of the trail is behind the cabanas and it has some nice shade.

On our way back we noticed that the tram road was a little more crowded with trams and people, so if you have little ones, I would keep that in mind. When we turned in our bikes the crew members didn't even seem to notice. I really don't think they were keeping track of our one-hour time limit - I'm sure we could have had the bikes longer if we wanted to.

We really enjoyed our little inexpensive excursion. The paths were smooth, the bikes were comfortable, and there were water stations along the way. I believe that it was only a mile to the end. I was so glad I brought my camera with me, as we took many pictures on the trail, at the observation tower, and at the end of the trail. We got some exercise and had some relaxing fun together. The bikes are on our must-do list for next time!

About the Author: Angela is a homeschooling mom who has been happily bitten by the Disney Cruise Line bug. She is known as "Goofyboysmama" on the PassPorter boards.

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Updated 06-12-2014

Check for a more updated version at http://www.passporter.com/articles/castaway-cay-bike-rental.html