Be pampered in your own floating cabana with butler service.
In 2019 Royal Caribbean completed a $250 million expansion of their private island in The Bahamas, Perfect Day at Coco Cay. Unfortunately, due to the pandemic, many people are just now getting the opportunity to see those improvements.
One of the additions made to the island is the Coco Beach Club. This is a section of the island with its own amenities and requires the purchase of a day pass. This is also where the Overwater Cabanas that you’ve probably heard about are located.
On my recent visit to Perfect Day at Coco Cay, I purchased an Overwater Cabana rental in the Coco Beach Club. The cabana rental allows access for up to eight guests in the beach club. Starting around $1300 per day, these ‘cabanas are by far the most expensive on the island. With that in mind, access to the beach club without a cabana is about $180 per person. So if you have a group of eight people, you would actually save money by getting the cabana in some cases. Even with six, it is only slightly more expensive, and the perks detailed below might be enticing to some patrons.
The Coco Beach Club is on the far side of the island, tucked away from the busiest areas like the Thrill Waterpark and Oasis Lagoon. It’s a perfect location if you plan to just relax and enjoy the amenities of the club. If you do plan to do a lot of exploring, you may find yourself doing a lot of walking back and forth, with not as much time to enjoy the club as you’d hoped. Just something to keep in mind!
The entrance to the Coco Beach Club will lead you to your private slice of paradise.
The amenities at the club are top notch. The entrance features a circular walkway surrounded by beautiful trees and fauna. The moment you turn down the walkway, you realize you’re entering a premium part of the island.
As you arrive to the club, you’re greeted by a host who will check you in. Cold scented towels are provided, and add a really nice touch. It’s a quick mental break to help you immediately relax and forget some of the hustle and bustle from the ship and the other parts of the island.
The premium Coco Beach Club towels are a major upgrade from the towels provided on the ship.
Once you are properly checked in, you will be given a tour of the club. You’ll receive your premium Coco Beach Club towels, and some fruit infused water. Since we had a cabana rental, our tour was pretty short, and we did not get the towels here since they were already in the cabana.
As you enter the club area you will immediately come upon the bar and infinity pool. You may even recognize some of the bartenders from the ship who will be there to greet you. If you have a beverage package, your drinks here will of course be complimentary. Otherwise, you will find the pricing to be the same as on the ship. The island specialty is the Coco Loco and there are select locations around the island where your drink will actually come in a free souvenir cup.
While nice to have, these cups are not too exciting, so I wouldn’t worry too much about searching them out on the island. Unless that’s your thing. Then go for it!
After your optional (but highly recommended) visit to the Coco Beach Club Bar, you will see the infinity pool. A stunning pool that is directly on the beach, with some incredible views. Since the pool is surrounded by palm trees, it’s not too difficult to find some shade most parts of the day. Of course you can also choose to relax under your own umbrella which are included as part of your pass.
The infinity pool offers excellent views of the ocean and features lounge chairs built right into the pool.
There seemed to be plenty of chairs and so far I have not heard of anyone having issues finding an umbrella. That’s something I will keep an ear out for as the cruise ships get closer to capacity. I believe there is a cap on the number of passes sold, so that should also help with any crowding.
The open air dining area offers plenty of shade and comfortable seating
Next to the bar you will find the main dining area. Like other dining areas on the island, this is an open air venue. The main dining area features a pitched roof, ceiling fans, and comfortable teak dining chairs and tables. Since we ate in our bungalow, I did not get to experience the service here. It looked well staffed though, and based on the service everywhere else in the club, I’d expect it to also be top notch. I didn’t see any soda stations, so that seems like something you’d need to get from your server.
The private beach area of Coco Beach Club is perfect for those who prefer to spend their day in the sand.
The beach area for the Beach Club is pretty much perfect. It is very similar to South Beach (right next to it) and offers excellent snorkeling near the Overwater Bungalows. Here you will find plenty of chairs and umbrellas for anyone looking to relax in the sand. Since the Beach Club is right on the beach, you will never have far to travel for anything. The pool, restaurant, bar, and restrooms are all just steps away.
The restrooms for the cabanas and beach club consist of restroom trailers. They are basically just an upgraded porta potty, but they are kept clean, nicely decorated, offer flush toilets, and blend nicely into the surroundings. Behind the infinity pool you will find the walkway leading to the restrooms.
This walkway will lead you to half of the floating cabanas on site. A walkway on the other side of the club leads to the rest.
A quick stroll through the lush landscape will lead you to the wooden walkways that span out to the floating cabanas. There are currently 20 floating cabanas in total, with rumors of more being added.
Some cabanas have slightly different views, but all appear to offer the same fantastic benefits. Any minor advantage one offers would also have a minor drawback. For example being the furthest out may offer a slightly better view, but you’re also further from the club and restrooms.
If you have rented an Overwater Bungalow for the day, you will be guided there by either your attendant, or someone working at the reception stand. The first thing you will notice is your name on the cabana sign, welcoming you to your piece of paradise for the day. Since all of the cabanas look the same, having your name right at the entrance is very helpful. Especially for kids or anyone else who may not easily recognize their belongings inside.
The name of your party will be prominently displayed so you will always know which cabana is yours.
Your attendant will then give you a thorough introduction to all of your amenities in the cabana, as well as the services they offer. You will be given the option to eat in your cabana, or back at the beach club. We chose to eat in our cabana and the food was served family style. Similar to any dining related to cruising, you will be offered as much or as little of any particular item you like. Our group loved the coconut lobster and grouper, so we made sure we had plenty of that delivered. The sides were pretty basic, but the main dishes and desserts more than made up for that.
Inside the cabana, you will find pretty much everything you need. There are plenty of plush Coco Beach Club towels, snorkel gear, floating mats, dishes, and cutlery, etc. Most of these items will be found in the changing room, which was a very nice feature that I had not thought of.
These cabana slides are a perfect way to cool off. Just watch out for the tides!
The water slides are a nice touch, and make for great pictures. In practice though, they are a little bit of a pain since you need to pour a bucket of water on the slide each time you want to go down. My attempt to use the floating beach mats also ended after only a couple of minutes as it’s nearly impossible to stay near your cabana without holding on. I found the catamaran bed much more appealing and relaxing!
You will see plenty of sting ray in the afternoon around the Overwater Bungalows.
The snorkeling right at our bungalow was pretty good, but there may be better snorkeling around the island if that’s something you’re really interested in. We did see plenty of tropical fish and sting rays around the bungalow however.
In summary, I absolutely loved our time at the Coco Beach Club. The food was incredible. The service was top notch. The infinity pool was absolutely fabulous, and cold drinks were only a few feet away at all times. The Overwater Bungalow cabanas were absolutely one of the highlights of my entire trip and I’m glad that I was able to book one to experience it for myself.
So who do I think would enjoy the Beach Club and Overwater Bungalow? If you have a party of six to eight people, I think it’s best to check the pricing for the cabanas as soon as it’s available. Often times, you can rent an overwater cabana for the same cost or less than you would pay for Beach Club access alone.
If you’re not interested in the Overwater Bungalow, or it’s out of your price range, the Beach Club alone still offers a great value in my opinion. The food is fantastic, and with with fewer people, you really do feel like you have your own piece of paradise. The relaxing infinity pool stands in stark contrast to the bustle of the much larger Oasis Lagoon.
If you are ready to book your next vacation, or you have questions about the Coco Cay Beach Club, send us an email at info@AshbyTours.com.
Click Here for our complete review of Perfect Day at Coco Cay
