Great Stirrup Cay, Norwegian Cruise Line's private island in the Bahamas, hit a milestone this past weekend: for the first time, two ships docked at its new pier on the same day. The Norwegian Prima and Norwegian Getaway pulled in together, a first in the line's history.

The pair came from different itineraries. The Getaway was running a quick three-night weekend loop from PortMiami that also stopped in Nassau, while the Prima — spending its first Caribbean summer — was midway through a seven-night sailing from Port Canaveral that also called at Puerto Plata, Tortola and St. Thomas.

The pier itself only opened in August 2026, and it's the centrepiece of a much bigger upgrade of the island. Before ships could dock, visitors had to come ashore by tender; now two vessels can tie up at once, which changes how many people the island can handle in a day.

Also new this summer is the Great Tides Waterpark, with 19 waterslides and an 800-foot-long dynamic river, plus a handful of lower-key additions: Horizon Park, with lawn games and pickleball courts, and Hammock Bay, which does exactly what it says with more than 50 hammocks.

The double-call debut isn't a one-off. Around 30 more two-ship days are on the schedule through the end of 2026, mostly in the winter season, and one date stands out: 21 December, when the Norwegian Epic and Norwegian Getaway are expected to bring roughly 8,500 passengers to the island in a single day, both sailing weeklong cruises from Florida ports.

For cruisers, this matters in a couple of ways. If you like your private-island beach day quiet, a double-call day means more crowds at the waterpark and the best beach spots — worth checking how many Norwegian ships are in port on your date. On the flip side, the pier means no tendering, so you're ashore faster and can maximise the day, and the new facilities give the island far more to do than the basic beach-and-barbecue setup it was known for. Travellers who want the waterpark with shorter queues might aim for a single-ship day, while the busiest days around the holidays suit anyone who enjoys a lively atmosphere.