Description: My husband and I traveled to the Bahamas from June 4 through June 12 (2006) for our Honeymoon. We stayed in Paradise Island at Harborside from June 4-6, island hopped to Coral Sands on Harbour Island from June 7-11, and then spent the night in Nassau at Orange Hill Inn on June 11 before heading home. We came in expecting a fun vacation with lots of activities, ‘Disney-style’ food at a high price, and crowds.
Hotel Room
We had the Deluxe 1 Bedroom Villa in building 7 (#3714) at Harborside. This was one of the older buildings but we found the room to be clean, well kept, and spacious. Check out the posted pictures to see our view. We had a great view of the harbor, yachts, and Atlantis. Looking around the property at the location of those 2 buildings, they are definitely one of the few that overlooked the harbor versus the parking lot or Paradise Island bridge.
The maid service came daily as we booked as a hotel room and we had no problems with anything in our room. The bathroom was pleasant and the room was always made up by the time we came back around noon. We didn’t use the kitchen to make meals, but we found it to be well stocked with everything you’d need to cook with.
Weather in June
Prior to leaving, we were concerned about what the weather would be like during the ‘Rainy Season." It’s the Caribbean and we stayed during a week where a tropical depression was heading towards Florida. Of our 9 days in the Bahamas, we got 2 half days of rain – heavy rain, hard showers … fun stopping rain – once at Atlantis and once on Harbour Island. And don’t believe the weather report. We had days that called for 100% rain and it was sunny with blue skies and other days that said no rain or 20% scattered showers and it poured for hours. It is hit and miss.
The Dig
The Dig is amazing. One look at the Dig and the surrounding marine habitats, pools, restaurants, and other amenities, I understood why this cost of this resort is so high as it requires a lot of upkeep and ultimately to make a profit, they’d have to push that thru to the customer. The marine habitats are splendid and we enjoyed looking through them more than once. Be sure to stop and look at the huge ray in the main tank of the Dig … We’ve never seen anything like it.
One note for those outside of the resort looking to pay to view the dig... Although we enjoyed looking at it, I wouldn’t recommend paying $30 to go see it. It’s not worth that much to view some fish. We noticed they did check wristbands upon entrance when we went one afternoon; however, on our first night’s arrival, we went to the Dig around 8-9pm and no one checked. My recommendation is to try to see it free when they aren’t actively checking bands and if not, go view the marine habitats that are available for free.
Dining
Dinner: We decided to venture off the property to eat most of our evening meals. We were glad we did. We ate at Bimini Rd on our first night at Atlantis and that was the last Atlantis dinner we had. The food was average at best and our most expensive meal (relatively) for what you got – a hamburger, fish tacos, and conch fritters for $67. We ventured to Dune the next night and had one of our best meals during the trip. It was also the most expensive, but the quality of the food and the service was well worth the cost of the meal. Plus, save the money on the taxicab because the shuttle will take you out to Ocean Club. We also had an amazing time exploring their gardens while we waited for our reservation time. They are magnificent and I can’t imagine having not seen them during our trip. Definitely a highlight and a nice change from the bustling activity of Atlantis. Finally, we had dinner at Columbus Tavern and found delicious and local Bahamian fare. The meal was the same price as Bimini road and if you print the 10% coupon off their website, it covers the cab fare to the restaurant.
Lunches: We only had 2 full days at Atlantis, but we didn’t really think the prices were all that bad. The Caves by the River pool was actually a great deal. They had a number of combo meals for 2-4 people for around $15. The menu is mostly fried foods and what I would call ‘poolside cuisine.’
If you want something a little bit healthier, we tried the Lagoon Bar & Grill above the entrance to the predator lagoon. I had a sandwich and my husband had a salad for $30 total. Their pizzas that people were ordering also looked quite good and large enough to split. It was probably not quite worth the price, but it was good food and not fried. If you want cheap, bring your lunches or you’ll be eating fried food. But I guess I don’t think that paying $15 for lunch is any different than eating on any other island where food must be flown in from the states.
Pools:
We mainly camped out at the River pool because it was steps from the beach and the lazy river, which we were most interested in. One thing I was pleasantly surprised to note was they have a live band that plays in the afternoon from about 1-3pm. It really added to the atmosphere around the area and they took requests which was fun. Don't know if they played music at the other pools as we didn't visit any others longer than to see what they looked like.
Service and Friendliness of the Bahamian People
We had anticipated that if we were nice to the locals and talked to them first, they would be nice to us in return. Quite the opposite – they were just plain friendly whether we were nice or not.
Chairs
The only situation we experienced with rudeness came from other guests at the hotel. We had NO problem finding a covered chairs around the River Pool each day. We noted that if you arrive by 9:30, you will have no problem getting a chair. After that over the next half our or so, the prime spots gradually got taken. Our first day, we had no problems with anyone trying to take a chair. The second day, though, we went to the lazy river and left our chairs and came back and one of the nearby guests informed us that a couple had attempted to come by and take our chairs and another group of chairs around us stating that ‘there was no stuff on the chairs and towels don’t count.’ We were quite frustrated as I had left a water bottle and books on the chairs with our towels and had the pool bag under the chairs. Thankfully, the nearby guests shooed the couple away and they found another area to annoy. Note regarding chairs: don’t just put a towel down … make it evident that your chairs are taken. And get to know your nearby neighbors. If you look out for them, they will look out for you. Other than that, we had no problem.
Fish Feedings
The Atlantis prints out a little ‘newspaper’ of the daily activities at the resort. Be sure to grab one at any of the hotels and find the interactive feedings listed for the day. We got to feed the turtles and sting rays around the beach tower which was a blast. We could tell that many of the kids really enjoyed doing this as well. Portions of the resort (room/food) can be expensive so our advice is take advantage of the free things they offer that make it the amazing place it is.
Overall Impression
Overall, we would definitely go back and my husband already misses it. We are ADD Honeymooners and enjoyed the many activities Atlantis had to offer (especially the lazy river) and we would definitely recommend Harborside as the place to stay! It may be a short shuttle ride to Atlantis, but what it loses with not being a step away from the pool it certainly makes up for with the quality of the rooms and the friendliness and escape from Atlantis.
We also felt like the longer you stayed the more likely you'd get frustrated with prices and/or annoying chair stealers, smokers, loud kids, etc. If you're concerned about that, take our advice and escape to Harbour Island for a few days. With such a small island, you won't have to worry about any of that!
Okay, so that’s it! We loved Atlantis and would love to return one day. Hopefully, we will!
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