Ahoy there Larry, and welcome back to planDisney!
It's so great to hear that your family's heading on board the
Disney Wish next month; I cruised on her for the first time in March and had an absolute blast navigating a new vessel with all of her unique intricacies and differences from
her sister ships in the fleet!
If you've cruised on another Disney Cruise Line voyage with a stop at
Disney Castaway Cay, you may be familiar with the Castaway Cay 5K of the past which was much more of a formal, organized event with specific start and end times; guests could pre-register online or at the
Guest Services Desk, have a designated meeting time to disembark the ship earlier, join a large group of fellow participants clad in race bibs and successfully complete the circuit with a photographer tasked with capturing every photo-finish.
Now, many of the formalities have since gone away for a much more simplified activity based on the honor system that can be completed at one's own leisure. In fact, I was surprised to discover that when I had initially inquired about this activity, the shoreside Cast Members provided me with information that was different from the reality of what the experience is currently like on Castaway Cay. (This may be largely due to the fact that as with anything at Disney Cruise Line, all offerings are subject to change without prior notice at the discretion of the Crew Members on your particular sailing.)
I directly inquired with the Cruise Staff who were in charge of distributing medals over at the Bike Rentals shack and they confirmed that in recent years, younger children who were previously not permitted to participate have now been able to do so and may even receive a completion medal at the end as long as they are available. In fact, we saw folks completing the Castaway Cay 5K on bicycles, in their swimwear and even pushing strollers - all receiving medals for their self-paced efforts. They did let me know that there have also been voyages where medals may not have been distributed to guests, so availability cannot necessarily be guaranteed for this complimentary activity.
To avoid any disappointment regarding the availability of medals and whether any age-restrictions may once again be enforced, I recommend checking with the Cruise Staff on board the day prior to your stop at Castaway Cay to confirm with them as they will most likely be one of the folks working at that location on the island. (Here's a handy bit of nautical nomenclature: many First-Time and Frequent Cruisers alike on Disney Cruise Line may get this confused, but "
Cruise Staff" refers to a Crew Member Role that specifically refers to the folks in the Entertainment department who run the trivia events, game shows and family activities, and not a general term for the staff on board!)
I hope that this was useful for you and the family ahead of your upcoming voyage on the Wish; don't hesitate to
come back to planDisney to ask me any more questions and connect with our Disney Cruise Line specialists
Tracie and
Adrianna for the wealth of cruising knowledge that they share!
Wishing you all the best as you race towards your next adventure!
Prince