Lookout Cay long pier.

[FreeTime]

I agree with @DCLMP that we have huge problems in society if we are complaining about such a short walk for non-disabled individuals. I don’t buy the “we will be tired from swimming and sunbathing all day.” You probably aren’t being very active on the island to warrant not being able to walk back to the ship. Many people work 10+ hours a day either up and down on day or standing and moving all day, and then go for a walk when they get home. Maybe we should make a “let’s get moving for LC” group.

Also, it is our responsibility to protect other species that can’t protect themselves from us. I’d rather they not have built LC at all because of the environmental impact. I enjoy cruising but I am not so naive to not recognize the huge impact it has on ecosystems.

 

[Cheburashka]

Many people work 10+ hours a day either up and down on day or standing and moving all day, and then go for a walk when they get home.

Not small children or their grandparents, both of whom are frequent types of Disney cruisers. This is a family cruise line, not a line oriented towards young adults.

Not to mention, this is a vacation we're talking about, not work. I don't want to cook or clean on my cruise, either, and I do that every day, too. That's why I'm paying thousands to DCL for the cruise experience. To take a break from the hard work of daily life. That's why most people vacation.

Your post was very dismissive of people with disabilities and physical limitations, as if they should be an afterthought for Disney. A lot of people cruise Disney because DCL has in the past accommodated disabled people well. Disney should have designed Lookout Cay with people's diverse physical needs in mind.

As another poster mentioned, making the pier a little narrower isn't going to save the coral reef from the impact of regularly visiting cruise ships and thousands of passengers swimming or wading in the waters.

 

[Lucien Franciosa]

As another poster mentioned, making the pier a little narrower isn't going to save the coral reef from the impact of regularly visiting cruise ships and thousands of passengers swimming or wading in the waters.

So what’s the answer? Because cruising itself has a negative impact just don’t even try to improve things? Use the dirtiest diesel available? Throw trash overboard? Plastic straws for everyone? Of course not. Improve how you can, what you can, where you can. The impact of people swimming and wading is they literally touch the coral and that kills it. Not much of that happening along the pier.

the pier may be an inconvenience or even impediment that requires us to work around, but we need to stop second guessing its ecological impact. We may not be engineers but we can read, the government required it to approve the project because people educated in such matters believed it would help. That’s on the record.

 

[MomOTwins]

The measurement clearly includes the curve. It is missing the very small distance from the ship to the start of the curve and the very small distance from the end of the curve to the tram stop. There's no way that those distances are 0.33 miles when the curve itself is 0.47 miles, though.

Tim Tracker measured the walk exactly with his smart device and said it was 0.7 miles. I've seen other videos that gave similar quotes or step counts that added up to about the same. Plus there is just the time to walk that is in an indication. Most people seems to say it is 15/20 minutes--per google that's the average time it takes to a full mile, not a half mile. Either way, you just need to look at the pier to know this is not a short walk.

So what’s the answer? Because cruising itself has a negative impact just don’t even try to improve things? Use the dirtiest diesel available? Throw trash overboard? Plastic straws for everyone? Of course not. Improve how you can, what you can, where you can. The impact of people swimming and wading is they literally touch the coral and that kills it. Not much of that happening along the pier.

the pier may be an inconvenience or even impediment that requires us to work around, but we need to stop second guessing its ecological impact. We may not be engineers but we can read, the government required it to approve the project because people educated in such matters believed it would help. That’s on the record.

No, but we also don't shrink the size of the staterooms to the point that families have cram in 4 to a bed, or switch to dorm-style communal bathrooms to make a smaller sized for the ship. Nor ration toilet paper or reduce meal service to twice a day instead of three to reduce waste, even though nobody NEEDS three meals and an physically fit person should be able to handle intermittent fasting. Or perhaps most on point, we don't restrict elevators on cruise ships to only those that can prove a disability and make everyone else including little kids walk up and down the 11 flights of stairs. It would probably cut down on the elevators' electricity use by more than 25% percent. Does that mean we should do it? I can tell you this, there would be a lot of parents carrying children and children complaining they are too tired to keep going at about the 7th flight.

And yes, as I've said before, kids CAN walk that far, as can most adults, but that doesn't mean it's enjoyable or even pleasant, especially not in beach attire/footwear, in all kinds of weather, with no shade. At the end of the day, a disney cruise is meant to be a luxurious and experience that prioritizes guests comfort and convenience. It's always been the relaxing, chill alterative to the theme parks for those who just want to relax on vacation. The Wish got a ton of hate on these boards for requiring a slight detour to get to the adult only area, putting a single flight of stairs on the promenade, and having a handful of dead ends that required retracing steps. None of that is anywhere close to the inconvenience of a 15-20 minute walk in the sun on concrete, and yet somehow it's way out of line to suggest Disney missed the mark here?

 

[insureman]

How in the world would you go to WDW if you can’t walk half a mile. Not counting mobility scooters. You can also use scooters on a cruise.

Scooters are hard to use on a cruise. Smaller tight spaces and unless you have an HA cabin they're difficult to store when not in use.

 

[FreeTime]

Not small children or their grandparents, both of whom are frequent types of Disney cruisers. This is a family cruise line, not a line oriented towards young adults.

Not to mention, this is a vacation we're talking about, not work. I don't want to cook or clean on my cruise, either, and I do that every day, too. That's why I'm paying thousands to DCL for the cruise experience. To take a break from the hard work of daily life. That's why most people vacation.

Your post was very dismissive of people with disabilities and physical limitations, as if they should be an afterthought for Disney. A lot of people cruise Disney because DCL has in the past accommodated disabled people well. Disney should have designed Lookout Cay with people's diverse physical needs in mind.

As another poster mentioned, making the pier a little narrower isn't going to save the coral reef from the impact of regularly visiting cruise ships and thousands of passengers swimming or wading in the waters.

I said “non-disabled”. Bottom line is you are not forced to buy their product.

 

[Lucien Franciosa]

Tim Tracker measured the walk exactly with his smart device and said it was 0.7 miles.

you mean his video "our day at Disney Cruise's NEWEST destination.."? In the first 30 seconds he says 'when you get here it looks shorter than the pictures make it look... from what I am hearing its a 1/2 mile, but for ecological reasons which I am okay with."

he also commented positively on the golf carts for the impaired.

he started his measurement from the gangplank, which can be variable. but then says the length of the pier by his measurements is about 1/2 mile. Then he wanders around looking at the stores, kiosks, and bathrooms, then gets to the tram. for 0.69 miles. Not the length of the pier but includes wandering about.

There have been dozens of vloggers that measure the pier length at 1/2 mile.

Regardless, it is long.

No, but we also don't shrink the size of the staterooms to the point that families have cram in 4 to a bed, or switch to dorm-style communal bathrooms to make a smaller sized for the ship.

sorry you lost me here. who is talking about this? shrugs. And I dont recall the Eleuthera government asking for that. but maybe they did and Disney rejected it.

We can debate our opinions forever, isn't going to change the width of the bridge now. It is a fact it was part of the decision Eleuthera made to approve the project. I get some people would prefer Disney just passed on the project.

 

[DCLMP]

I said “non-disabled”. Bottom line is you are not forced to buy their product.

The same posters keep bringing up disabled people when clearly that is not what were talking about.

 

[Lucien Franciosa]

Scooters are hard to use on a cruise. Smaller tight spaces and unless you have an HA cabin they're difficult to store when not in use.

Which is what the HA cabins are for, people that need them. Which is what we are discussing yes? Disabled people's access to the island? That's assuming they don't want to ask a day before for a golf cart transport. I think the point people are making is while no one really loves the 1/2 mile pier except from a ecological point of view (sure I would love a monorail from my deck, midship thanks), there are options for those that need them.

 

[Lucien Franciosa]

The Wish got a ton of hate on these boards for requiring a slight detour to get to the adult only area, putting a single flight of stairs on the promenade, and having a handful of dead ends that required retracing steps.

Great point. A lot of vloggers moaned about the wish layout. Worst ship ever. Hated it. You don't hear much about that these days do you? Sorry, some Vloggers thrive on hate for clicks.

I ignored them, went on the Wish anyway, and loved it. Honestly, just isn't that difficult as the Vloggers made out. Talking about the Wish now. I will find out for myself about LC in September.

 

[DCLMP]

How far is it from the ship at CC to Cookies. I good majority of the ship choose to walk at CC. I know its hard to believe, but a lot of people enjoy walking. For every person that complains about the walk at LC there is someone that enjoys the novelty and peacefulness of waking over the ocean.

 

[Henlady]

Deleted

 

[DCLMP]

Great point. A lot of vloggers moaned about the wish layout. Worst ship ever. Hated it. You don't hear much about that these days do you? Sorry, some Vloggers thrive on hate for clicks.

I ignored them, went on the Wish anyway, and loved it. Honestly, just isn't that difficult as the Vloggers made out. Talking about the Wish now. I will find out for myself about LC in September.

I did not like the Wish, but I'm giving it a second try. I was hoping Disney would change the things I didn't like about the other ships. They did change them, but in my opinion they made them worse.

I was hoping for a more open concept and more ocean views. The Wish was designed to make you feel like your not on a ship. Now I know what to expect I'm going to try to look for the positives on the ship. Hopefully I find some.

 

[MomOTwins]

he started his measurement from the gangplank, which can be variable. but then says the length of the pier by his measurements is about 1/2 mile. Then he wanders around looking at the stores, kiosks, and bathrooms, then gets to the tram. for 0.69 miles. Not the length of the pier but includes wandering about.

You're really stretching this--he says he has reached the half mile mark while he was still on the pier, so clearly it is more than half mile. And yes, I do count the walk from the end of gangplank to tram--that is all part of the walk.

sorry you lost me here. who is talking about this? shrugs. And I dont recall the Eleuthera government asking for that. but maybe they did and Disney rejected it.

We can debate our opinions forever, isn't going to change the width of the bridge now. It is a fact it was part of the decision Eleuthera made to approve the project. I get some people would prefer Disney just passed on the project.

It's pointing out the flawed logic about how a 25% environment impact savings over a wider pier that could accommodate a tram justifies a poor guest experience. Disney makes tradeoffs every single day with its cruise ship to make guests comfortable, while mitigating the environmental impact in other ways that don't cause guests major discomfort or inconvenience, like using LNG fuel, recycling, avoiding single use plastics etc. And yes, I do absolutely think that if Disney could not provide a good guest experience for its family-friendly, multi-generational guests, then the right thing to do is to pass on the project and look elsewhere for a second island stop (I won't say private island, since it isn't actually private). If negotiations on LC failed, there are plenty of other places they could have proposed a development. As others pointed out, Carnival is building its new Celebration Cay to launch in 2025, and chose a location where it could provide guests easy access to the beach via a short pier.

How far is it from the ship at CC to Cookies. I good majority of the ship choose to walk at CC. I know its hard to believe, but a lot of people enjoy walking. For every person that complains about the walk at LC there is someone that enjoys the novelty and peacefulness of waking over the ocean.

I looked this up the other day - 0.4 miles. I'm all for giving people options. On Castaway, that's what guests have: options. Those that want a tram can take a tram. Those that want to walk can walk. LC has no options--unless you qualify as disabled, you have to walk. And there are plenty of people who don't need an HA room but have trouble with the walk.

 

[DCLMP]

I looked this up the other day - 0.4 miles. I'm all for giving people options. On Castaway, that's what guests have: options. Those that want a tram can take a tram. Those that want to walk can walk. LC has no options--unless you qualify as disabled, you have to walk. And there are plenty of people who don't need an HA room but have trouble with the walk.

You have the option to not take a cruise that goes there. Maybe DCL should have notified people before the launch. Maybe it's not the issue people make it out to be on social media. Now that everyone knows. Sales should determine whether people care or not.

 

[nancipants]

All I know is after watching Tim Tracker’s video, Lookout Cay looks absolutely beautiful and I’m willing to make a long walk to get there.

 

[Lucien Franciosa]

I did not like the Wish, but I'm giving it a second try. I was hoping Disney would change the things I didn't like about the other ships. They did change them, but in my opinion they made them worse.

I was hoping for a more open concept and more ocean views. The Wish was designed to make you feel like your not on a ship. Now I know what to expect I'm going to try to look for the positives on the ship. Hopefully I find some.

What I liked about the Wish was ... how open it felt in the interior. I had a veranda room so I had plenty of ocean views to enjoy while sipping wine or sometimes a mai tai, or Pina colada. I don't tend to look for that (views) elsewhere. I know, now that I type that sounds stupid lol. And I had great ocean views from Palo and Enchante. It was my birthday cruise so my daughter in law credited $150 into our account and I spent a day at sea going from one specialty themed bar to another trying out their specialty drinks. REALLY loved the theming of the bards more than the Dream and Fantasy. Great time. I thought I would find the Wish too big, but for some reason, maybe all the white, it felt no larger to me than the others (havent tried the Magic yet, looking forward to that). Had no problems getting around, but admittedly thats because I had seen the reviews beforehand so knew what to expect and avoid. I tend to research a lot I booked the Treasure hoping to do another tour de lounges lol

 

[Lucien Franciosa]

You're really stretching this--he says he has reached the half mile mark while he was still on the pier, so clearly it is more than half mile. And yes, I do count the walk from the end of gangplank to tram--that is all part of the walk.

we can agree someone is stretching... all I know is of the 10 or so vloggers I saw, they all said about half a mile. even tim. but okay, you want to see it differently thats cool. not a hill I care to die on. it is what it is.

It's pointing out the flawed logic about how a 25% environment impact savings over a wider pier that could accommodate a tram justifies a poor guest experience.

still seems a stretch especially as you weren't talking about 25% reduction of anything. what you keep ignoring is that perhaps it wasn't totally up to Disney. They did have to get plans approved by the Eleutheran government.

And yes, I do absolutely think that if Disney could not provide a good guest experience for its family-friendly, multi-generational guests, then the right thing to do is to pass on the project

Disney apparently decided its customers were intelligent enough to decide for themselves if LC was the guest experience they wanted. I like having choices. Not all choices have to fit me. I am fine if they fit others instead. I look forward to exploring personally this one. It might not be what I like, but I am not going to rely on vloggers to make that decision for me . no one is forcing the customer to go there.

As others pointed out, Carnival is building its new Celebration Cay to launch in 2025, and chose a location where it could provide guests easy access to the beach via a short pier.

Cool. Let me know how your visit there goes. I doubt I will be going because Carnaval isnt my jam. I prefer the Disney experience, tends to be more relaxed. less confrontational around the buffet. but again, choice is good. Go Carnaval!

 

[RedHead0186]

All I know is after watching Tim Tracker’s video, Lookout Cay looks absolutely beautiful and I’m willing to make a long walk to get there.

Same! We're booked to go in September and we're all so excited to see it. Not totally thrilled about the pier walk, but also aren't upset about it.

 

[RedHead0186]

I will find out for myself about LC in September.

Maybe I already asked you this: when are you going in September? We're on the September 16 sailing on the Magic.