We decided to visit after our friends have been telling us how awesome this resort is and that we should join them for long weekend winter getaway. Our arrival at baggage claim by our concierge was wonderful and taken to our private vehicle. Greeted by Renaldo who was very gracious and friendly! At this point we’re excited and very optimistic about our upcoming 5 night vacation! Greeted by our Ambassador Raheem who escorted us to West tower to check in. So far so good. We are now at front desk at 2pm. Ernado warmly greeted us. Explained we could change our clothes and wait or a text when room was ready. We were supposed to have a ocean view with balcony. I asked if he thought it would be very long? AND as always I tip ! he thought if we went to lunch our room would be ready about a hour. After getting up very early , hungry and tired just wanted to unpack and join our friends at pool. Well about 330pm go back Two front desk, and told by or another front desk staff that just waiting on housekeeping to sign off the room is ready. After sitting there for another 3 hrs what I witnessed was just a nightmare! Family after family and couple after couple being told same story. Rooms not ready! Well it is now 530pm and still no room. At around 4pm we were offered a room with no view or balcony. We refused after have waited so long. Anyway, about 6pm Ernado comes up to me personally and tells me he went up to room himself. Hands me two bracelets. I’m literally almost in tears by now. Hug him and thank him profusely . Went to valet and wanted our bags back because we knew weren’t going to have more then 45 minutes to meet our friends for dinner . Huge argument with my husband and bellman because they wanted our room number and demanded they bring our bags to our room. We explained we didn’t have a room number! Finally we are in our room at 615pm in a room with a tiny 50 feet of ocean view with a huge tower blocking our view. This is obviously a long review. I have been back almost a month now and thought about it a lot and haven’t had time till today. I am a retired flight attendant with a major airline and traveled the world for the last 40 yrs of my life. I am the first one to write positive feedback and positive comments especially about special employees! We were three couples meeting for 5 night long weekend. Looking for sun, drinks,fun entertainment! We all are used to paying for top notch service and don’t mind as long as you get what you pay for. PROS:beautiful grounds,loved the live entertainment in piano jazz bar nightly. ( Bartenders amazing there) Adults! Very clean property and room Good high end shopping! Loved the roof top SkyBar on of SLS tower! Adults! Found a quiet exclusive adults only pool which was a beautiful infinity pool over near Rosewood tower. $1000.00 for cabana does not includes drinks of food. Loved Devon our waiter and bartender! Beautiful ocean views! Met a lot of very nice people at bar every night! Marcus Fish House excellent! Enjoyed Vegas style Casino! Love to gamble! Service in high limit was very good and friendly! Actually Won! Rented a private boat and had a blast! Highly recommend getting off property at least once! Took us to a private island with a bar Called Footpints! CONS; Check IN Process absolute nightmare as stated above. Serious issues with rude overworked front desk staff. Employees 50% to 50% good and bad. A lot of them don’t seem to want to be there even with bill having gratuities included. We tipped everyone extra all the time except when really poor Could never get Guest Services to pick up phone and if they did the would hang up on you. Ice Machine was broke our 10th floor the whole stay. Had to go to 9th floor. Extremely crowded in high season. Family oriented with water park which is not a con if your looking for a family expensive resort but we should have done our research. This is not what we were looking for. Our bad. Charged a fee from tennis court and never saw a tennis court. So suggest you review your check out bill. The woman in billing was very helpful in getting us a refund Nicole was her name which I found on another review. Difficult to get dinner reservations so book early out Our friends checked out a day before us and left a brand new pair of expensive designer shoes in there room. So she asked me to help her. I tried housekeeping, lost and found and security with absolute no help! was appalled that not one person in any department had any care or concern. Not cool for a high end property! So we made the best of it and had a lot of laughs on this vacation. But definitely not worth the price which I wouldn’t minded if it would have been a better experience. Cocktails are a average $25.00 each so it’s salty if you like to drink lol Won’t be returning! But if your a family looking for a water park and can afford this would think about off season travel.…
So, you’ve likely read the many reviews on Baha Mar. You know that Atlantis is akin to MGM Grand Las Vegas while Baha Mar is akin to Aria. You know that everything is going to be 25% more than what you had initially priced out because of the 15% automatic gratuities that are added to everything and the variety of VAT taxes that will be assessed. You probably know that your quoted room rate is just the tip of the iceberg because you’ll also need to add the daily twenty-dollar-and-change housekeeping fee plus the $60’ish resort fee. Bottom line … it’s a great place to vacation but it’s going to be pricey. On our end, our party is a mom, dad, a 14-yr old girl and a 12-yr old boy. Here are a few tips to perhaps stretch your dollars out a bit more here at Baha Mar. We stayed at the Grand Hyatt, so these observations mostly focus on that property. 1. Don’t be afraid to plan meals at the fast-casual Chinese restaurant (Stix) and the fast-casual Italian restaurant (Pizza Lab) as the food there is actually quite good. For the 4 of us, eating at any of the fine dining spots (more on that later) would routinely bring the bill to over $200 (and we didn’t order any alcohol!) once the VAT and gratuities were added. You could probably keep the bill to about $120 or so at these fast-casual but no less delicious eateries. I can’t comment on the only other fast-casual, Sugar Factory, as we never ate there. 2. Of the all the fine dining restaurants we tried (which included Cinko, Cleo, Fi’lia), our dollars went farthest at Cleo. That’s the Mediterranean restaurant located on the SLS side. I say this because they offer a Mezze platter for 2 for $120. It consists of several proteins and sides and I think that it was enough to feed our family of four (although we did add in one more appetizer). So, perhaps two Mezze platters for a party of 6 adults could be enough. In any case, this was the only dinner that we had where the total bill came in under $200 and we felt full (I think the bill was about $175). Moreover, it’s not that it was the only meal that held value, but I thought it was the tastiest of the three restaurants that we tried. 3. Breakfast? Hmmm… Starbucks is always reliable and not really overpriced. Café Madeleine is very good and reasonable and something you should try, although the selections are a bit limited (their best items are the honey-infused fruit plate and the French toast; we were able to get breakfast for under $100 after the VAT and gratuity). If you need a buffet though, there are two. The Regatta and the aforementioned Cleo. IMHO, Regatta is the better option. There are more food options on display. But, in keeping with stretching your dollar, this one is the better value overall. Cleo is $10 more per adult, with a price tag of $55. Also, Cleo’s “adult” pricing starts at 6 years old. Regatta comes in at $44 for an adult, $15 for any child 11 and under. Regatta gets the nod here on every level that counts. 4. The housekeeping fee includes up to 4 bottles of Dasani water brought to your room every day. And, you’re going to want water. Even if you didn’t finish the water from the night before, hide the unopened ones so that housekeeping gives you four more when they clean the room. If you totally run out of water, you can actually find complimentary bottles of Dasani in the Departure Lounge (Grand Hyatt West, lobby level). Obviously, don’t abuse this secret. Take one bottle if you need one. Don’t be THAT tourist. If you purchase Dasani from somewhere on property, that will cost about $4. 5. There is actually a place where you can get some “free” drinks. And, that’s at the entrance of the Grand Hyatt West lobby entrance (by the bell hop). Between 11a’ish and 4:30’ish every day, there is someone there who will gladly give you a cup of either punch (non-alcoholic) or rum punch. There is no tip jar there, but I know that leaving them $1 is something they’d appreciate. Every time I walked from one part of the hotel to the other, I would find a way to make my way past this punch station. It probably saved me $50 in drinks a day that I would’ve spent otherwise at a bar. 6. The casino – although I admit my lack of planning costs me in this department, but I don’t usually bring loads of cash to a casino nor do I establish casino credit. If I feel like I want to play, I usually will take money out of my credit card (I have a card through my credit union that I keep handy solely for this purpose). I bring this up because the fee for withdrawing from your credit card here at Baha Mar is 3% of the amount withdrawn. That is actually incredibly reasonable. Here in Washington DC at the nearby MGM Grand National Harbor, that fee is 7%. And, most of the casino properties in Las Vegas levy 5%. 7. Invest in an afternoon at the Beach Club within the water park. Let’s assume that you plan to be at the water park all day. Let’s also keep in mind that we have the mom/dad/two kids scenario. This Beach Club is a premium experience within the water park. It’s a private area where you can rent an all-day chaise lounge chair for one adult ($100); a two-person day bed ($200); or a cabana (not sure of costs). This private area gives you access to their gorgeous infinity pool and a private bathroom area. But what made this worth it for us is that the entire $200 (we rented the day bed) can be used as food credit while you’re there. The food comes from a beachfront restaurant called 25 Degrees North, so the food is “high-end” as opposed to coming from a hot dog stand / burger stand. Technically, we purchased the day bed so only two of us are allowed in that private area. But the monitors are pretty lax about letting kids come in and out to connect with their parents. In any case, the kids would probably just check in with their parents, grab some food, and then head back to the main water park anyway. So, the $200 entry for us equated to good food throughout the day, private time for mom and dad, wading in the infinity pool (or joining up with the kids in the water park). BTW, while I say it’s $200, it’ll be $250 when you get the bill due to the VAT and auto gratuity. 8. Finally, consider whether this (or Atlantis) is where you really want to go. Let’s say you’re a solo business traveler and you find that you have meetings to attend / work to do from 9a-5p. You won’t then be able to enjoy the water park or the swimming pools (they all close at 6p). Do you then really need to stay at a property like this (as well as Atlantis) that charges $80’ish extra dollars for water park access and 4 bottles of Dasani daily? Or maybe your goal is to try the local island cuisine (like the restaurants of the Fish Fry where a taxi ride will be $22 one way there) more than just once. You may just want to find a different property all-together in downtown Nassau where you can still enjoy the island vibes and proximity to Bahamian culture without being charged all those fees for services you won’t really use and taxi costs that you can otherwise avoid.…
Lots to do great options as far as entertainment. The piano bar and jazz bar were a blast.! You did not need to leave the resort. The facility was absolutely beautiful and so clean. Our room had a great view of the ocean. We would definitely go back.
Service from everyone --bellhops to servers-- was consistently great. They all seemed genuinely glad to help and interacted with warm friendliness. Nicest kindest people on this island than we've met in our world travels Pools and beach were wonderful. Loved the conch. Visit fish fry.
Inept and rude front desk staff went out of their way to make check in as difficult as possible. No problem solving capabilities. Money and jewellery room theft from numerous guests was insufficiently investigated by security and management staff.
I Love the hotel and the entire place is nice. I am just disappointed that we are in Bahamas and no local food restaurants in the hotel. No Conch no local Grouper or Red snapper . where is the shrimp combo or Grouper fingers. You are in the Bahamas with loads of Cheeseburgers, and Wings and a pizza bar. Getting dinner Reservations is like pulling teeth. if you visit the Baha Mar. spend 20 on a taxi and go to the Fish Fry for some delicious Bahamian Food.
I did not choose this place, as I as attending a convention, but was looking forward to staying here. Many friends have stayed here and love it. They clearly did not come when the resort is full capacity. This place is just too big and has way too many rooms for any exceptional service. Only two places for breakfast and lines were irritating and long. You pay for any and everything and nothing is more than average. Again, just too large and when full, the attendants cannot do anything but tell you to wait. The idea that we could not book dinner and we has tried weeks before should have been the sign that we would be treated with true indifference all week. The good news is there are wonderful restaurants a shot cab away For the same price I could have a week in Paris. Not coming back……
This is my first negative review ever... but I wish someone had told me sooner. Something is seriously wrong here. From the latest reviews, it's systemic problem with their dining. They have too many rooms and not enough seats. I don't care about the price, I will pay for food. The fact that this resort is "family-friendly" and yet you can't get a dinner reservation prior to 9 pm is unacceptable. I have two elementary school kids who are asleep prior to 9pm.... We are three weeks out from travel and were told by the concierge that we can eat at "Stix" noodle bar every night or attempt to get a table as a walk-in at 6pm each night. I have been tracking reservations, and for the last month, the only dinner options at ALL the restaurants (not just the 'exclusive ones') were at 9pm. I thought the app was broken or perhaps they have certain times on hold. After contacting Bahamar, we were told we should have made our reservations 2 months prior. How foolish to think I vacation I would be able to purchase an expensive dinner and eat before 9 pm. I would cancel if I could. Instead, I will tell everyone I know not to visit. …
We recently stayed at the Grand Hyatt Baha Mar in the East Tower and we really enjoyed our stay. We liked that our room had a tub and double sinks in the bathroom. I don’t believe the layout is the same in the West tower so make sure you know what tower you are in if that matters to you. Decor also varies between the two towers. As many people have previously stated, the resort is pricey but the service we received was great during our stay. Some restaurants we enjoyed more than we expected to: Cafe Madeline: breakfast spot we enjoyed if you want more grab and go or just a breakfast sandwich or a pastry. They do have a good amount of seating there if we want to eat there. The Swimming Pig: great food and drinks! A great spot for lunch if you aren’t spending it at the beach. They are also open later at night if you need a snack. Stix: We stopped here after we checked out of our room. We didn’t have high hopes initially but we had a great lunch and the staff at that restaurant were so nice and they even held our luggage for us behind the hostess area. Other restaurants we tried within the Baha Mar property that we enjoyed: Cleo, Cafe Boulud and Marcus. Make reservations in advance of your stay for dinners! Lunch we never seemed to have any issues. One of our favorite parts of our stay was the Baha Bay Beach Club. If we didn’t do research about this place and booked in advance, we never would have found it. We booked a daybed between the two infinity pools and it was the perfect spot. Secluded enough but close to the pools and the restaurant. You can book the chairs and beds online in advance of your stay. The additional money you spend to reserve a lounger, daybed, or cabana is directly given back to you as a credit for food and drink to use while you are there. Our server Charles was the best! Super friendly and regularly came to check on us. The perfect amount of service we thought. We aren’t huge water park people but we were so close on our beach club day that we checked out the “lazy river” in the park. The river was more than lazy in some parts but we loved it. The parts of the water park we saw looked nice and a lot of available seating even on a busy day. Overall we had a great time. It’s nice to have the ability to walk over to the SLS and the Rosewood properties within Baha Mar to try their dining options and for a change of scenery. The beach gets busy but we never had an issue finding chairs. There is the occasional beach vendor we walks by but no one was pushy or too intrusive.. The Adirondack chairs at the end of the pier were a great spot to relax to get away from the action. There is a little bit of a Vegas vibe because of the casino and the look of part of the hotel but it didn’t deter us from having a enjoyable relaxing time. The weather couldn’t have been more perfect while we were there in March. We would definitely recommend!…
Beautiful place, staff very friendly and helpful for the most part. We went with two older teenagers, both enjoyed the beach, waterpark and pools, but there wasn't really a whole lot else for them to do, especially in the evening. Everything outside shuts down at 5 pm (pools, waterpark), leaving a lot of free time with not a lot to do. Yes, it is really expensive. Again, very nice grounds, big but not overwhelming. Rooms were nice, but a bit small for 4 people, especially the bathroom. Food was a bit better than we expected, however still a minimum of $200 or more for the 4 of us for dinner and we generally did not eat in the more expensive restaurants. The only meal that we had that was really not great was at the Sugar Factory, just go there for dessert. Beer costs were ridiculous, generally $10 or more per can of 'cheap' beer. Cocktails almost always $20 or more. I thought the staff were always hard-working, helpful and pleasant. Everything at the resort was always clean and well maintained. My only truly bad experience was at Baha Bay, where we rented a cabana for the day. Long line to get in, and we didn't realize we had rented a cabana that only allowed 6 people and we had 8 (2 extra kids). I didn't think it would be a big deal since they were really only using the waterpark anyway, but the manager informed us we would need to pay an additional $1000 to have the extra two. Yes, that is correct, an extra grand so that 2 extra kids would be able to put their belongings with ours. She also said that there was 'nothing she could do' and we refused to pay it. We were there in the beginning of March, and there was already a difference in how crowded it felt from when we first got there to the end of the week. Lots of Spring Break kids, both high school and college. Finding food without a long line became a challenge, especially for breakfast. Food trucks on the beach were great, but again, expect to pay twice as much as you think you will. We knew the Bahamas were expensive, but even we were surprised at how much more we spent, even trying to be careful. I just can't say I would go back.…
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