Theme parks on sand: Cruise lines expand private island projects

Private islands owned by cruise lines are surging in popularity. Are they slices of paradise or commercialised enclaves of unreality? You decide.

Norwegian Cruise Line has just upgraded Great Stirrup Cay, its private island in the Bahamas. Guests will no longer be tendered ashore thanks to a new pier that fits two ships.

They’ll disembark to find a gleaming new lagoon-style swimming pool with a splash area for children, two swim-up bars and private cabanas. The new Vibe Shore Club offers an adults-only retreat with its own exclusive beachfront.

Meanwhile, Horizon Park features minigolf, pickleball, a barbecue buffet and 50 hammocks. And there’s more coming mid-year, when Great Tides Waterpark opens with 19 waterslides, a kids’ splash zone, dynamic river and jet karting.

Some might think that Norwegian already offers many of these things on its ships, and that cruising should be about going places. Growing numbers of cruisers disagree, however. The company expects a million passengers at Great Stirrup Cay this year.

Great Stirrup was the first island bought by a cruise line, in 1977. Several others opened in the 1990s, such as Holland America’s Half Moon Cay and Princess Cruises’ Princess Cay. In 2019, Royal Caribbean’s Coco Bay set new standards.

Norwegian isn’t alone in upgrading private-island offerings.

This year MSC Cruises has a swag of new entertainments at its eight-beach private island Ocean Cay, which had its capacity recently upgraded with wellness programs, sports and an augmented-reality treasure hunt among others. A new two-ship pier and more facilities are due by 2027.

Disney Cruise Line inaugurated its second private getaway – Lookout Cay at Lighthouse Point in 2024 (the other island is Castaway Cay). Carnival Cruise opened Celebration Key, its seventh private destination, in mid-2025.

Cruisers are loving it. In customer-satisfaction surveys, Great Stirrup is one of Norwegian’s most highly rated destinations, and Coco Bay is Royal Caribbean’s highest, beating out “real” ports across the region. Cruise lines now design itineraries around private-island visits.

Passengers see private islands as safe, hassle-free and well managed: essentially an extension of the shipboard experience. They can avoid the surprises and challenges of ports and discover a version of paradise without the real-life problems.

Detractors bemoan the inauthenticity, lack of local culture, environmental impact and heightened cost of everything on shore, from cocktails to meals and sporting activities.

Most private islands are in the Bahamas, but some elsewhere: Norwegian’s Harvest Caye in Belize, Carnival’s Amber Cove in the Dominican Republic and its recently expanded Isla Tropicale in Honduras. Royal Caribbean’s Labadee in Haiti has suspended operations due to security concerns.

Will there be more? You bet. Islands are hard to come by, but an alternative solution lies in private beach clubs in or near regular ports.

Royal Caribbean opened its first private beach club in Nassau in the Bahamas in December 2025 and others are due in Cozumel in Mexico and Santorini in Greece this year. Lelepa Island in Vanuatu arrives in 2027. Perhaps the South Pacific should prepare itself for more.