Lighthouse Point to welcome guests in Summer 2024

[durangojim]

Yea, that’s pretty gross when you can’t tell whether that’s black pepper or fly specs on your food…

Do we know what kind of flies they are. Also are there birds on the island that could eat the flies? I didn't see any birds in any of the videos I watched.

 

[donaldtoo]

Do we know what kind of flies they are. Also are there birds on the island that could eat the flies? I didn't see any birds in any of the videos I watched.

No clue as to what kind of flies they are.
There are over 260 bird species in and around Eleuthera. I have no info on how many eat flies.
Hatchet Bay Cave up in the northern part of Eleuthera even has a bat colony, but I have no info on what species and how large the colony is.

 

[Henry Mystic]

We do know that a lot of the design choices around the pier were environmentally focused.

I'm SURE there is a monetary savings achieved by lengthening a pier versus dredging the seabed to accommodate a cruise ship, but part of the agreement with the Bahamian government to obtain and develop this land was contingent upon satisfying an Environmental Impact Assessment and approval of an Environmental Impact Plan (both of which extend FAR beyond just the pier, and include the wildlife both in the sea and on the land).
The Heads of Agreement (HOA) contract with the Bahamian Government has been made public record and can be found hosted on DCL Blog here

Of note, on the above linked page, you can see the initial site development proposed plans include this long pier in the place it is today, dating back to 2019 when the agreement was signed. Well before the EIA had been performed. They had been doing their own assessment for years prior and I'm sure had been in negotiations with the government during that time. They knew this pier was the environmentally sustainable solution.

In 2021, once the EIA had been completed, DCL held a public meeting, the transcript of which can be found online here
And the meeting can be viewed on YouTube here:



Here is a quoted section from Dr, Mark Penning that touches on why they chose the pier they chose, and how they decided where to place it. (Emphasis mine):


And, while it is wholly unrelated to this discussion, I'm going to add in a quote about those ruins he mentioned in case anyone found it interesting and wanted to hear more. From Kim Prunty

AMMC = Antiquities Monuments and Museum Corporation, a non-profit entity that promotes the historic cultural resources of The Bahamas.


Earlier in the same Public Meeting they also talk about why they chose Lighthouse Point, Eluthera noting that they looked at several other locations nearby, including Egg Island in Eluthera and Morgan's Bluff in Andros and some locations in the Berry Islands - and after initial EIA they didn't want to move forward with those because they would all require dredging and destruction of coral reefs.

Thanks for the extensive information.

I do find it wild that people were originally complaining about Disney’s plans when other developers were going to develop if Disney didn’t and the result would have been actually terrible for the environment.

 

[BrianLo]

I get that things happen, just wonder if they should push their projected opening date way out in the era of social media. Or do test runs with cast members like they do for the parks. Having those first viral videos full of flies and kinda bare bones spaces seems like it might hurt bookings in the long run. Again, though, I get that no matter how generous a timeline is unforeseen things can always happen.

Princess, Royal and Norwegians most recent ships all lacked half of their major entertainment for the first 4-6 revenue sailings or so. Maybe not acceptable, but it’s pretty normal in the industry that they aren’t quite fully up to snuff at release.

 

[BrianLo]

What needs to bake more? It's a beach day with a gorgeous beach.

They need to deal with the flies, yes. And some nature paths are still under construction. It's meant to let vacationers experience the natural beauty of the Bahamas in a way Nassau has never allowed. I think it does that well. Some of what I've seen has led to the first time I've ever thought, "the Bahamas actually are beautiful."

Nassau is an ugly city with turquoise water and Castaway, while filled to the brim with Disney magic, very much feels manufactured. It's technically in the Bahamas but it could be in Florida, honestly. Disney just happened to build on that particular island. There's nothing particularly breathtaking about walking along a plane runway other than the fact that's it's a novel experience for most.

Perhaps the bigger question is: would many be interested in visiting Lighthouse instead of Castaway at this point? I'd imagine not. But, Castaway is a mature private island. Lookout Cay is new and not even being called a private island (because it's not). I view it as a new destination for a Bahamian cruise and it's certainly better than a trip to Nassau!

All of this, totally. I truly want to know from the peanut gallery… what beaches are people being brought to, for free, that are anywhere as nice, uncrowded and free of locals pedaling beach trash? The Caribbean is nice in your mind but often a poor product. This is an exceptionally nice beach, which unfortunately still requires slightly more work than it should to reach.

I think the ultimate endgame is to stop going to Nassau entirely and do a day at both Lighthouse and Castaway on the short revenue sailings. That’s the itinerary I booked.

Royal is navigating around it by making a Nassau Beach club.

Nassau is one of the worst ports for guest scores across all lines and I have a feeling lighthouse will be on the very strong end of things. Not the best though, because people do like their theme parks as evidence by this forum. So Coco Cay probably reigns supreme.

 

[ToTBellHop]

All of this, totally. I truly want to know from the peanut gallery… what beaches are people being brought to, for free, that are anywhere as nice, uncrowded and free of locals pedaling beach trash? The Caribbean is nice in your mind but often a poor product. This is an exceptionally nice beach, which unfortunately still requires slightly more work than it should to reach.

I think the ultimate endgame is to stop going to Nassau entirely and do a day at both Lighthouse and Castaway on the short revenue sailings. That’s the itinerary I booked.

Royal is navigating around it by making a Nassau Beach club.

Nassau is one of the worst ports for guest scores across all lines and I have a feeling lighthouse will be on the very strong end of things. Not the best though, because people do like their theme parks as evidence by this forum. So Coco Cay probably reigns supreme.

I was actually planning on Utopia of the Seas next year but it goes to Nassau and Coco. Couldn’t turn down the Castaway/Lookout itinerary on Magic for the same dates when it was announced. Wish somehow costs more for the same dates going to Nassau and Castaway. Why on earth would I pay more to go to Nassau on that ship?

 

[EOD K9]

We are headed for a Lighthouse/Castaway trip before the end of the summer. It will be interesting to see what changes were made from when it opened until when we go. As others have said, I’m hoping it’s not similar to the Wish and old ships comparison. While I was on the Wish once and it was nice, I am not in a rush to go back on it unless there is an itinerary that interests us. Hopefully, this won‘t be another one and done trip. I want to be excited, but I will pass judgement after the trip and not before.

 

[DisneyHead123]

Princess, Royal and Norwegians most recent ships all lacked half of their major entertainment for the first 4-6 revenue sailings or so. Maybe not acceptable, but it’s pretty normal in the industry that they aren’t quite fully up to snuff at release.

I wonder if that will shift in the social media era… the whole “You never get a second chance to make a good first impression” phenomenon.

 

[DisneyHead123]

All of this, totally. I truly want to know from the peanut gallery… what beaches are people being brought to, for free, that are anywhere as nice, uncrowded and free of locals pedaling beach trash? The Caribbean is nice in your mind but often a poor product. This is an exceptionally nice beach, which unfortunately still requires slightly more work than it should to reach.

I think the ultimate endgame is to stop going to Nassau entirely and do a day at both Lighthouse and Castaway on the short revenue sailings. That’s the itinerary I booked.

Royal is navigating around it by making a Nassau Beach club.

Nassau is one of the worst ports for guest scores across all lines and I have a feeling lighthouse will be on the very strong end of things. Not the best though, because people do like their theme parks as evidence by this forum. So Coco Cay probably reigns supreme.

I think Coco Cay and Half Moon Cay upped expectations and created the impression that Disney brought a knife to a gunfight in the cruise line competition.

Granted Disney has always been a bit different in its cruise line offerings. They don’t do the onboard water parks, go kart tracks, that type of thing. Instead they seem to focus more on the Disney magic feel onboard and family friendly offerings. But I do think if they aren’t going to offer any flashy new offerings and go with pristine, natural beaches, the beach experience has to be perfect. Like uninterrupted tropical bliss. The lack of shade, walking, and seating behind the dunes are probably more problematic at a beach that relies so much on the beach experience as a draw (the flies are problematic anywhere.) If they had a Disney themed pool lagoon with a swim-up bar, Journey of Water The Island Version, interactive Magic Band statues, teen water slides, etc., it probably wouldn’t matter so much. But I think if all the focus is on one thing, there’s very little room for error in that one thing.

 

[Chip Chipperson]

Do we know what kind of flies they are. Also are there birds on the island that could eat the flies? I didn't see any birds in any of the videos I watched.

I believe they are bar flies. They're eating the burgers to try to soak up some of the alcohol.

 

[Disney Analyst]

ETA:

 

[Nunu]

ETA:

Good they did that. Hope it's only a temporary solution, though.

Flies will still be attacking people's food when they take plates to their table. I would cover my plate with a napkin in-between bites, but that's not an ideal situation.

 

[Disney Analyst]

Good they did that. Hope it's only a temporary solution, though.

Flies will still be attacking people's food when they take plates to their table. I would cover my plate with a napkin in-between bites, but that's not an ideal situation.

Maybe they sprayed the island between visits?



Or the flies are napping.

 

[asianway]

New drinking game: Watch the bloggers reviews and take a shot everytime they apologize for Disney

 

[King Capybara 77]

Good they did that. Hope it's only a temporary solution, though.

Flies will still be attacking people's food when they take plates to their table. I would cover my plate with a napkin in-between bites, but that's not an ideal situation.

I would be lunching on the boat if I had to do that to avoid flies.

 

[Nunu]

I would be lunching on the boat if I had to do that to avoid flies.

Better yet!

 

[CampbellzSoup]

It seems that this may be an example of Disney not listening to guests but rather wanting to show them an "authentic Bahamian" experience especially with Joe Rhode leading this. Unfortunately I think Disney really missed the mark with this. From the video's I've seen it does not look inspired or interesting. It looks like a thousand other beaches with some buildings that appear interesting from above look quite bland and dull from ground level. The issue to me with the pier is not the length but the lack of theming and any sense of excitement about what a guest is about to experience. I can't stand Nassau but at this point Lookout Cay looks very boring to me and my family.

Amen. I can get a nice beach anywhere and people who book Disney are families with children this looks very boring, half baked, and bland.

 

[asianway]

They’re so desperate they put blacklisted bloggers back on the media list.

This guy didn’t hold back

 

[MR.Dis]

Based on what is being reported, my family has decided to wait at least 2 years before we take the plunge and visit. By then all the bugs should be ironed out (pun intended).

 

[HauntedPirate]

New drinking game: Watch the bloggers reviews and take a shot everytime they apologize for Disney

Are you trying to kill me???

I know it’s early, so personally I’m giving them a lot of leeway. I’m planning to view things with fresh eyes in September when we’re there. But out of the gate, the issues being reported (walk, flies, very young vegetation, the overall feel) seems like another misstep from a company that can’t seem to put a single foot forward these days. I know Castaway had its issues early on (I remember the beach in 2002 being awful, loaded with seashells and other assorted rocks and things that were very harsh on your feet), but you’d think they’d have learned from that.