South Eleuthera Eco & Historical Tour (LPT06) is a Disney Cruise Line Port Adventure offered at Disney Lookout Cay at Lighthouse Point taking guests away from their private destination into South Eleuthera. I briefly mentioned this excursion as part of a trip report from the cruise, but I wanted to take this opportunity to share a proper review of this experience. Let’s get started by taking a look at the port adventure overview. At the time of our visit, the price of the port adventure was $124 for ages 10+ and $84 for ages 3-9, guests aged 0-2 are free.

Journey off the beaten path to discover South Eleuthera’s cultural history and breathtaking natural beauty. Experience Bannerman Town, Cathedral Cave, Ocean Hole and more.

On this adventure you will…

• Meet your guide at The Gathering Tree by the Goombay Cultural Center Tram Stop and embark on a scenic 20-minute drive as you leave Disney Lookout Cay at Lighthouse Point toward Bannerman Town. During your journey, learn about the diverse array of medicinal plants flourishing alongside the road and the profound history of one of South Eleuthera’s richest and earliest settlements.
• Make a stop at Cathedral Cave to marvel at the tree roots that gracefully cascade from the top of the cave to its floor. With natural light streaming throughout, it makes for a stunning backdrop to a memorable selfie. If time permits, this stop may also include a visit to the Boiling Hole, also known as “nature’s hot tub.
• Make a scenic stop at the charming town of Rock Sound. When available, shop for original handcrafted souvenirs.
• Journey 20 minutes to the world-famous Ocean Hole-once explored by the legendary Jacque Cousteau. This famed oceanographer also called this breathtaking part of the world home..
• Conclude your eco-cultural adventure with a relaxing 40-minute drive back to Disney Lookout Cay at Lighthouse Point.

Know Before You Go

View important additional information to help you prepare for this exciting adventure.

• Wheelchairs need to be standard size and collapsible: no electric wheelchairs/scooters will be permitted. Guests must be able to board and disembark the vehicle on their own.
• All times and distances are approximate and subject to traffic.
• This tour includes approximately 0.5 miles of walking at a steady pace, part of which will be on uneven and/or gravel surfaces. There will also be steep steps, approximately 20-30 stairs. Wear comfortable walking shoes.
• Guests are encouraged to bring currency to purchase extras such as souvenirs or snacks.
• You should never feel that gratuities are expected. However, it is customary to leave a tip in recognition of exceptional service at restaurants and in taxis, as well as for outstanding excursion guides and drivers. It is always up to you to determine the amount.

We had a meeting time of 9:15 AM a Rocky Point which is on the Atlantic Ocean side of Disney Lookout Cay at Lighthouse Point. That meant we needed to head ashore at least 30-minutes beforehand to allow time to walk the pier, and for the potential wait and ride on the tram across the property.

As described in the overview, the South Eleuthera Eco & Historical Tour (LPT06) Port Adventure will take you outside of the Disney property on a journey off the beaten path to discover South Eleuthera’s cultural history and natural beauty. Points of interest on this excursion include the Cathedral Caves, Boiling Hole, Ocean Hole, as well as some other areas along the way such as the schools and Rock Sound Airport.

After checking in at Rocky Point, we boarded a small tour bus for what turned out to be a private tour for our group of five. Originally, we were waiting for another family, but they either no-showed or cancelled at the last minute. Anyway, our guide welcomed us to Eleuthera and we began our journey to the Lookout Cay guard gate and into South Eleuthera. As you can see, in the photo below, Disney built a paved road which was previously an uneven dirt road used by locals when venturing into the Lighthouse Point area.

Eleuthera spans about 110 miles from north to south. During this tour we are visiting areas in South Eleuthera taking us about 25 miles north of Lookout Cay into Rock Sound. Our tour guide provided us with a laminated handout with the map of Eleuthera on one side and 12 popular Bahamian bush medicines on the opposite. He mentioned several times that the map was provided to him by Disney for guests to use on the tour, but that it was incorrect in several places.

Since our tour was focusing on South Eleuthera, I made the following map to help follow along better.

There is a checkpoint or guard gate at Disney Lookout Cay which we stopped at while leaving as well as returning allowing our driver to check-out/in with the guard on duty.

As part of the property development, Disney paved a long stretch of the roadway.

That is, up to a point when the road changes back to unpaved which was graded and smoothed out all the way to the main roadway.

If you’ve taking the time to explore the nature trails at Lookout Cay, you may be familiar with land crabs which are found all over.

The land crabs are frequently harvested by locals and taken home for dinner. On our way, we saw a family collecting land crabs.

Our first stop was the Boiling Hole and the Cathedral Caves, which are located in the same roadside stop.

Boiling Hole is one of Eleuthera’s many blue holes, formed long ago when the island’s limestone bedrock eroded. It connects to an offshore hole about 1/4-mile to the west, via a network of underground caves. The Boiling Hole is not a geothermal pool, the feature gets its name from the bubbles that form as a result of the movement of ocean tides moving air and water through the caves.

Down a pathway from the Boiling Hole, is the entrance to the Cathedral Caves. The Cathedral Caves, also referenced as Spider Caves on some websites, are a stunning natural wonder located in Rock Sound. The caves are an example of karst topography, which is formed through the dissolution of limestone in this instance. As we traversed the caves, we encountered tree roots cascading from the ceiling, some extending up to 60 feet to the surface.

Skylights allow natural light to illuminate the interior, creating a magical atmosphere with dark regions where the bats were hanging out.

Rest assured, there are facilities available when traveling on this port adventure. After departing the caves, we continued north towards Rock Sound when we pulled off the road for a restroom break at a standalone facility feet away from one of the numerous Lookout Cay jobs available billboards.

Rock Sound Airport (RSD) was the northern most spot on our tour and was basically just a spot where we drove through the parking lot. Airports can be a bit dull, but I can’t help but imagine how exciting it would be to land on an island airport like this.

The port adventure continued to our next stop, Ocean Hole, another one of Eluthera’s blue holes. Ocean Hole is an inland blue hole renowned for its striking turquoise waters and vibrant marine ecosystem. This natural limestone sinkhole, estimated to be around 75 to 600 feet deep, is connected to the Atlantic Ocean through underground tunnels, causing its waters to rise and fall with the tides. Visitors can access the hole via steps and ladders, making it ideal for swimming, snorkeling, or cliff jumping from heights of 5 to 15 feet. Teeming with tropical fish like angelfish and sergeant majors, Ocean Hole is a protected area since 1970, where feeding fish is popular but fishing is prohibited. Local legend attributes healing powers to its brackish waters, adding to its allure as a must-visit natural wonder. Jacques Cousteau once attempted to map the underground tunnel system, but was unsuccessful adding to the overall mystery.

Our guide had some bread for us to feed the fish and the fish pounced on the scraps like guests heading to Cabanas for churro waffles.

During our drive around South Eleuthera, we passed by a number of the schools Disney Cruise Line has donated to and built playgrounds for as part of the cruise line’s commitment to Eleuthera.

Since we were visiting Eleuthera on a Sunday morning, most of the shops and businesses were closed as locals were attending church service and spending time with family. However, on other days of the week, there are opportunities to shop for local items if you so choose that you will not find at Treasures of Eleuthera, the retail shop featuring locally made gifts and artisan crafts back at Lookout Cay.

The Eleuthera Business Hub provides business owners with access to shared workspaces and full-service office amenities. Opening in 2021, the business hub came to be as a result of a partnership between the Eleuthera Chamber of Commerce, Access Accelerator Small Business Development Centre and Disney Cruise Line. For me, it was nice to see a spot I wrote about years ago leading up to the opening of Lookout Cay.

Another spot we drove around in was the container port in Rock Sound which is currently staged with some mobile construction trailers used during the initial development of Lookout Cay waiting to be loaded on a vessel. Also in this turn off was a hardware store, and the local office for registration, driver’s and vehicle licences.

As we headed back to Disney Lookout Cay at Lighthouse Point, our guide handed out snacks including plantain chips, cookies, and a choice of beverage. I spotted The Bahamas Goombay Punch in Nassau a while back and while I do not drink soda, I was interested in trying it out… While exceptionally sweet, the beverage was very enjoyable – we have a can in our refrigerator at home that we are going to use in a cocktail once we come up with an idea. The Switcha Original Limeade was exceptional and would also make an excellent cocktail mixer. Come to think of it, I am surprised the Goombay Punch is not included at the drink station at True True BBQ at Lookout.

Along our drive there were numerous ‘Now Hiring” billboards for Disney Lookout Cay at Lighthouse Point. Our guide mentioned there are a number of new non-cruise related developments underway in Eleuthera which will create even more opportunities for residents to work in the hospitality industry.

Below is a highlight video of our morning exploring South Eleuthera.

Overall, the South Eleuthera Eco & Historical Tour (LPT06) offers a great opportunity explore Eleuthera and see some of the inspiration used by Imagineering when designing Lookout Cay. Now, is this the right tour for you? Well, that is not for me to answer, but I will say this is a great option for you if you are into sightseeing around a port of call, or if you have been to Lookout Cay a few times already and looking to change things up a bit.