Dream Cruise: Balmoral Island vs. Blue Lagoon Island

[Cruella 66]

Good day to everyone! We are getting close to our booking window for our July Dream cruise. It is a 5 day Castaway Cay double dip with a Nassau day. I'm inclined to stay on the boat for Nassau but my husband said the kids would probably like to get off and do something. The kids' are 17 and 15. I am thinking a beach day. I read about both Balmoral Island and Blue Lagoon Island. Who has done either of these or both? Tell me about it. How's lunch, how crowded is the island, what did you love about it, etc. Would you recommend it? Cost isn't a factor since they are both the same. Thank you! Cindy

 

[mousefan73]

Bump as I want to know too!

 

[mevelandry]

I've done Blue Lagoon. It looks amazing. I would definitely recommend it. Now, I have not done Balmoral Island therefore I can't tell you which one of the two is better. They may have better facilities and restaurants but I am not 100% sure.

 

[dcassetta]

I like the beach and amenities at Blue Lagoon, but the food is terrible.

 

[csdavis10]

We just did Balmoral Island in April. We didn't eat lunch there but did get a snack. It was expensive but from what I hear, not uncommon. It didn't seem crowded at all and were plenty of chairs and umbrellas. It was actually very relaxing. The best thing was the pools. It was chilly in the ocean but the pools were heated and we ended up going there for the remainder of our time. The bathrooms were pretty iffy but that was the only negative. It was also nice that ferries ran pretty much every hour and you could get on any of them. We ended up leaving an hour early so we could get back in time to pick up some rum cakes.

 

[JHops]

We have taken the excursion to Blue Lagoon twice. Once in 2015 for the dolphin experience. Once in 2018 for the full beach day. The first time in 2015 we fell in love with the island. The Lagoon is natural and picturesque. Laid back vibe. Plenty of beach and plenty of chairs. Steep prices for dolphin pics, but no surprise there. Both times we enjoyed what I would call grandma’s island home cooking. Buffet style Chicken, rice and beans, fried plantains. Delicious. Hot dogs and burgers for kids.
In 2018, the water level was so low you couldn’t swim, just wade. Very little coral. Very few fish. There were pieces of rusty metal rebar sticking up out of the underwater rocks on the far side of the Lagoon. And a rotten egg smell permeated. Disappointing. DH feels it must have been hurricane damage. You can even see the water marks on the boulders where the water line used to be. Now instead of coral with little colorful fish, the Lagoon is full of soft sand and no good snorkeling left. I hope the island recovers and that smell goes away. It is so naturally beautiful. The dolphins are still fantastic, though. Another member of our party did that this time and loved it.
We have not been to Balmoral.

 

[Frozen2014]

We did Blue Lagoon beach day and really enjoyed it. Quite pretty with calm water and use of basic beach floats, etc. My son also did the aqua park for a small fee and had fun. My younger one had fun in the hammocks. Food isn't anything to write home about but good to be included. We didnt do the dolphin part, but did walk over and it looked pretty good...have heard good comments too. We also enjoyed the boat ride over as it's a nice scenic ride.

It's a shame from the above poster though the current state after the hurricaine. Hope it recovers.