Fantasy ISLANDS

Unleash your inner Robinson Crusoe on one of these exotic private resorts exclusive to cruise lines.

- Sara Macefield

MSC CRUISES

Ocean Cay Marine Reserve, Bahamas

This is the line’s first private island and one of the newest to open, having welcomed inaugural guests in December.

It has taken nearly three years to transform the former sand-extraction site into an eco-friendly and sustainable marine reserve. Environmental experts helped to revitalise its ocean beds, marine life and endangered corals, and brought in more than 75,000 native shrubs to create lush, tropical surroundings.

Visitors can relax on the pristine sands or opt for water sports, such as kayaking and snorkelling. Spa treatments are o­ ered in private cabanas and there’s a Bahamian craft village. A conservation centre will serve as an active base for coral education and research. A one-week round-trip Caribbean sailing from Miami, which calls at Jamaica, Grand Cayman, Cozumel in Mexico and Ocean Cay Marine Reserve, departs on 12 September, costs from £1,559pp includes flights and gratuities (020 3426 3010; msccruises.co.uk).

Have you ever wondered what it would be like to be marooned on a tropical desert island – albeit one with all mod-cons and a few luxurious frills?

A growing tally of cruise lines, keen to give their customers a castaway-style experience, have acquired their own private islands or resorts where their ships spend a day on Caribbean sailings, offering full-on tropical escapism with dazzling beaches of powder white sand, fun-filled water play zones, buzzing bars and al fresco dining.

Most major cruise lines have their own exclusive escapes, many of which tend to be in the Bahamas.