Good things:
Our room (1007) was nice, new, and clean. I don't know if we had a newer room than the other posters or what, but it wasn't musty, even though the windows didn't open. The safe, tv, a/c, and fridge worked fine, and the bathroom was redone and modern. I thought it was great. Sad though it is to admit, after snorkeling, walking to the beach, swimming, and playing games all day, we were in bed before midnight each night. We are pretty light sleepers and were not kept up at all by hall noise. In fact, I didn't hear much at all from inside the room.
The staff is really really nice and helpful. We arrived at about 10:15pm on a Monday night. We had been traveling all day and were hungry. I asked about food, and Aaron at the front desk was like, "Drop everything, go into the dining room and tell them Aaron sent you. Get some food, and then we'll finish your checkin and you can go up to your room with it." We went into the dining room and the manager greeted us. They were breaking everything down, but they let us take as much as we wanted, and we were able to eat. They were very friendly about it, though I'm sure I would be pissed if people came waltzing in after hours expecting to be fed after I've been working all day. This type of service is indicative of the type that we received all week. Everyone was always very kind, accomodating, and helpful (though not always fast.) But speed is not something you can always expect in the Bahamas. The culture is much slower and more relaxed.
Stuart Cove's snorkeling trips can be purchased right from the hotel. We went, and it was a fabulous value for $52 a person. You received free transport to the opposite end of Nassau, which was nice, because it was like a free tour. The snorkel trip was unbelievable, especially at the end with the sharks. Highly recommended.
Atlantis is really only a 10 minute walk. We had fun exploring the aquarium and ogling the multi-million boats in their marina. It was a good after-dinner walk.
Cabbage beach is a short 10-15 minute walk, and it is unbelievable. If you are looking to relax, this is the place to go. Just bring your own water and snacks, as there are no concessions.
Not so good things:
The food is not great. It's a lot like a dormitory cafeteria. I'm not a complainer, but the food (besides breakfast) is not going to knock your socks off. However, there are plenty of restaurants around to go to if you want fine dining.
The drinks are watered down. But you don't pay any extra for them, and you can have as many as you want, so it's really nothing to complain about. I prefer beer anyway, and they can't mess that up.
The pool area is a little loud. We were on this vacation to have fun and hang out, so it was fine for us. However, if you're looking to relax, it is a little raucous. There are lots of kids, so there are a good deal of splashy basketball games, bellyflopping, etc. Be aware of this.
If you plan to do what everyone else does: hang out all day and shower before dinner-be prepared for no hot water. It stinks, but we just dealt with it. I think they just need a new hot water heater and they can't accomodate nearly everyone in the hotel showering at the same time. The water during peak times is not cold, but it's tepid, like room temperature. Be prepared for this.
We don't have any kids, but we like them and played our share of pool volleyball and H-O-R-S-E in the basketball area with them on this trip. We went on the week that NY and MA mid-winter holiday falls on (on purpose, my sister in law is a teacher and this is the week she had off.) There were a ton of kids (probably a little more than normal.) We didn't mind, but be aware that this is not an adult resort. It's really a family place.
The Bahamas is plagued with ferile cats and stray dogs. The cats seem to like this resort. One night we saw a cat that was bleeding profusely and had been badly injured. No one on staff knew what to do. I'm not a veterinarian, so I couldn't help either. Apparently there is no ASPCA-type organization to refer to on the Bahamas. This upset me very much, and pretty much ruined my evening.
The bottom line:
If I wanted to stay in a 5 star and eat at Nobu every night, I could have paid for Atlantis. I didn't, because I couldn't afford it. If I wanted to save on hotel and eat at Nobu every night, I could have stayed here and walked the 10 minutes to Nobu. I didn't do that either. I paid a very reasonable price for a nice clean hotel very close to all amenities that you can expect on a tropical isle. The food wasn't great, but it wasn't so bad that we felt the need to pay elsewhere. In fact, I kind of liked it, since I didn't overeat like I've been prone to do on cruises when plied with unlimited amounts of great food. I actually lost a little weight on the trip, which I can't complain about!
