Carnival Corporation has announced that it will develop a pier for cruise ships at its private island Half Moon Cay in the Bahamas, eliminating the need for passengers to tender ashore.

The addition of a pier, which was first reported by Cruise Radio, will make calling at the island more reliable as tendering can be cancelled at short notice by inclement weather.

Central Bank of the Bahamas released a June 2019 report confirming the upcoming changes to Half Moon Cay, which also include the expansion of an existing beach entertainment facility.

Passengers currently have to tender ashore at Half Moon Cay

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Additional landside facilities will also reportedly be developed, but details are currently sketchy.

The pier alone will reportedly cost around US $80-million to develop on the island, which is a staple of Carnival Cruise Line and Holland America Line’s Caribbean cruise itineraries.

The island’s official name is Little San Salvador Island, but is branded as Half Moon Cay. It was purchased by Holland America Line in 1996 for US $6-million after first being owned by Norwegian Cruise Line, which had re-developed it to serve as a private cruise island.

The island offers swimming, sunbathing, scuba diving, jet-skiing, cycling, and snorkeling, as well as deep-sea fishing, parasailing, glass-bottom boat rides, and nature walks.

A variety of water toys are available for rent, including Hobie catamarans, Sunfish sailboats, windsurfing sailboards, and kayaks.

Horseback riding through the surf is one of the most popular activities at Half Moon Cay

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There are volleyball and basketball courts, horseshoes, shuffleboard, a fitness trail with exercise stations, horseback riding, and nature trails for hiking.

It also, of course, has several bars with fun names like the “I wish I could stay here forever bar” or the “Rum Runner’s bar” or “Captain Morgan’s Bar” – a unique bar hosted in a ruined pirate ship kind of a structure and lastly at the quiet “Look Out Bar” that looks out to the bonefish lagoon.

According to Cruise Hive, the island features a full nine miles of beach, and although there are plenty of sun loungers laid out by Carnival and Holland America, there are also cabanas and private beach villas.

The beach has no palm trees offering protection from the sun, so there are umbrellas that you have to rent for shade.

You can rent out the clamshell-shaped shades, but if you are looking for more room try renting the cabanas, a beach villa if you are a group or the private oasis to party in VIP style and in exclusivity.