Best Way to do Atlantis Aquaventure

We can not afford to do the Aquaventure through the cruise ship. Six people just costs a lot for anything. I have priced Comfort Suites and it's more doable as well as ResortForADay.com

I'm looking at the Pro's and Con's of each as I've seen them both mentioned but never directly compared.

Thank you.

I cruised to Nassau 3 times last year and used Resort for a Day once for the Comfort Suites Paradise Island which worked out perfect for my family of 4 while we were in port from 8a - 11:59p.m we were able to check in at the Comfort Suites as soon as the ship docked and they gave us an ID card to take to the Atlantis Royal Towers to pick up our Aquaventure wristbands. The Atlantis is just steps away from the Comfort Suites. This option worked well for us to have the private room to freshen up and enjoy the private nightlife offered.

The last two times I visited we were only in port from 9a to 5p so we didn't really need a room. We purchased our passes from Bahamas Day Pass dot com and it was about $50 less per person and we arrived about an hour before the cruise line did so we were able to enjoy the waterpark more.

Either choice the Taxi rate was just $4 per person one way and it's about a 10 minute ride.

So what are the advantages of using ResortForADy over just booking a room directly with Comfort Suites? We will be one ticket short with a room so I will also use Bahama Day Pass for one with either of the above options

The reason I booked with Resort for a Day instead of the Comfort Suites directly was because Resort for a Day was a lower price and they did not charge me any additional taxes or resort fees. Another point for them was that if my cruise ship did not dock in Nassau, for any reason it was fully refundable. Directly with Comfort Suites I had to cancel 72 hours in advance for a refund.

so If I booked tody: $399 at Resort for a day vs. $259 at Comfort Suites covering 4 people? How much are the fees and extra? If I put 2 adults 2 children into the search at comfort suites do I still need to pay extra 2 people to go to Aquaventure (for a total of 4).

Nevermind. If I'm reading right, there is approximately $90 in fees plus $40 x 2. So it does appear it would be more expensive.

I'm going to join this thread as I have similar question(s)...

I've already booked Atlantis' Aquaventure water park for the day we are at Nassau through BahamasDayPass.com. I found out about Comfort Suites after booking our passes; and while I can change at this time and save a few more $s, it's not worth the hassle or worrying about uncertainty of possible last minute changes/cancellations due to any changes from our cruise. For anyone else looking into the hotel vs. Bahamas Day Pass, at first I thought it was big savings, but when I proceeded to reserve a room, there were additional expenses for taxes, fees, or whatever. So just be sure you research it through.

While we get in to port early (7am), we also leave early (2pm), so unfortunately will not have much time at the park itself. So - I am looking for tips, advice, etc on how to best optimize our time there.

Since we port early, I am expecting that we could easily be at the resort by 8am, depending on what time we actually get off the ship and then our 10-15min taxi ride; although paperwork from the excursion says to allow at least one hour for transport from cruise ship terminal to Atlantis' Coral Towers. Not sure about the time discrepancy, maybe it just takes long to get off ship, over to a taxi, etc., but the ride itself once you get going is only about 15min, right?

The Aquaventure Desk doesn't open until 9am, which is where we will will get our wristbands for the water park. Can we do anything at Atlantis before getting our wristbands or do we have to wait to get the wristbands to do anything at the resort? Or should we get there early and just wait in line at the desk? I'm not sure if it gets crowded at the desk or not?

I was hoping from 8-9am we could explore the resort and especially the aquarium (what time does that open?), and rent a locker (what time are these available?). At 9am, we can get our wristbands and then go enjoy a pool or two while we wait for water park's water slides and river rides to open. Is this doable, or do we literally have to wait until 9am before we can start? Are they pretty strict with the 10am start or do some things open early?

When looking back at our cruise ship's excursion, it says "early access" however it then states the 9am availability for beaches and pools and 10am water park start... so I don't think we would really get early access to anything. Could I be mistaken?

The paperwork from BahamasDayPass.com recommends to taxi from Atlantis back to the ship an hour and a half before ship sailing time... Sound about right?

I've also read that we can leave Atlantis from any of their buildings so, Royal Towers being closer to the water park may be better than having to go back to Coral Towers, right?

Does anyone have a good picture of Aquaventure? The map online is so tiny and hard to read.

Any guidance on best way to accomplish as much as possible given our (unfortunate) short time there? Are any rides more popular than others? Do some tend to have longer lines and we should go there first? Good to go in a certain order? Not sure if there's a logical sequence for way things are laid out there. Other than doing our best to get a jump start as soon as things open there, I'm not sure where to start.

Thanks in advance for any advice and tips!

I'm going to join this thread as I have similar question(s)...

 

I've already booked Atlantis' Aquaventure water park for the day we are at Nassau through BahamasDayPass.com. I found out about Comfort Suites after booking our passes; and while I can change at this time and save a few more $s, it's not worth the hassle or worrying about uncertainty of possible last minute changes/cancellations due to any changes from our cruise. For anyone else looking into the hotel vs. Bahamas Day Pass, at first I thought it was big savings, but when I proceeded to reserve a room, there were additional expenses for taxes, fees, or whatever. So just be sure you research it through.

 

While we get in to port early (7am), we also leave early (2pm), so unfortunately will not have much time at the park itself. So - I am looking for tips, advice, etc on how to best optimize our time there.

 

Since we port early, I am expecting that we could easily be at the resort by 8am, depending on what time we actually get off the ship and then our 10-15min taxi ride; although paperwork from the excursion says to allow at least one hour for transport from cruise ship terminal to Atlantis' Coral Towers. Not sure about the time discrepancy, maybe it just takes long to get off ship, over to a taxi, etc., but the ride itself once you get going is only about 15min, right?

 

The Aquaventure Desk doesn't open until 9am, which is where we will will get our wristbands for the water park. Can we do anything at Atlantis before getting our wristbands or do we have to wait to get the wristbands to do anything at the resort? Or should we get there early and just wait in line at the desk? I'm not sure if it gets crowded at the desk or not?

 

I was hoping from 8-9am we could explore the resort and especially the aquarium (what time does that open?), and rent a locker (what time are these available?). At 9am, we can get our wristbands and then go enjoy a pool or two while we wait for water park's water slides and river rides to open. Is this doable, or do we literally have to wait until 9am before we can start? Are they pretty strict with the 10am start or do some things open early?

 

When looking back at our cruise ship's excursion, it says "early access" however it then states the 9am availability for beaches and pools and 10am water park start... so I don't think we would really get early access to anything. Could I be mistaken?

 

The paperwork from BahamasDayPass.com recommends to taxi from Atlantis back to the ship an hour and a half before ship sailing time... Sound about right?

 

I've also read that we can leave Atlantis from any of their buildings so, Royal Towers being closer to the water park may be better than having to go back to Coral Towers, right?

 

Does anyone have a good picture of Aquaventure? The map online is so tiny and hard to read.

 

Any guidance on best way to accomplish as much as possible given our (unfortunate) short time there? Are any rides more popular than others? Do some tend to have longer lines and we should go there first? Good to go in a certain order? Not sure if there's a logical sequence for way things are laid out there. Other than doing our best to get a jump start as soon as things open there, I'm not sure where to start.

 

Thanks in advance for any advice and tips!

If you can't get your wristbands when you get there, I think the Digs is open - not sure if security will be there yet. Get your wristbands, rent a locker, enjoy the pools/small slides. There aren't that many big slides, but find them on the map and do them starting at 10. Then the not so lazy river, and you can access some of the slides from the river.

It is true, the waterpark is not open until 10. We got off the ship, caught our cab and headed to Comfort Suites then Atlantis for the wristband and were still waiting for everything to open.

My advice is not to underestimate the time you need to get back - especially if there is more than 1 ship in port. We got back in lots of time, but must have waited in the customs/security line at the pier for 40 minutes. Traffic coming back to the port was also very heavy.

We used Bahamas Day Pass back in November and it saved us over $300 for our family of 5. Highly recommend it. Check in is quick and easy as long as you have your printed passes, and your Cruise ID's out and ready.

One thing to keep in mind is that if you are going to tour the resort and The Dig Aquarium, is that The Dig Aquarium is located in the Royal Towers. You would have to walk back to the Coral Towers to pick up your wristbands at the Aquaventure desk, and then walk all the way back past the Royal Towers and out to the waterpark. You can save time by wearing a swim cover up over your swimsuit so no need to change, and have a credit card ready to rent a locker. (Pricing varies upon size from $10-$12-$15) Highly recommend watershoes (swimoutlet.com for $1-$2).

When you're finished and ready to head back, you can easily find taxi's outside of The Cove Atlantis, or the Royal Towers main entrance. It does usually take longer to get back because of traffic and the taxi's have to go down past the ships and turn around to come back up.

Are GoPros allowed at Aquaventure (on the rides) or best to leave it on ship or in locker?

Are GoPros allowed at Aquaventure (on the rides) or best to leave it on ship or in locker?

Yes, Go Pro's are welcomed and many use them on the rides. Great footage through out the park and on the rides. Enjoy :)

I have the same question....day pass from Resort for a Day or Bahamas Day pass or room at Comfort Suites. There are 9 of us in our party, plus another 3 maybe. I saw on the Comfort Suites website that there is a energy surcharge fee for guests over age 21 and a $ per person housekeeping fee, and a $40 per person charge for guests 3 & 4 (which I assume is in the hotel rate since I put 2 adult and 2 children in my search). Do you really have to pay the housekeeping fee if you never even go to the room? We had planned to check in and out at the same time, as people have mentioned on other posts. I'm just trying to see what the cost will really be to divide by 9 (or 12) and see which way is cheaper and more convenient. I already asked if there was a group rate since we are such a large family, but there wasn't through resort for a day. I just want to see who has actually done the Comfort Suite route and what additional fees they have had to pay. I was looking directly at the hotel website, which is cheaper than say, Expedia, but Expedia doesn't charge any additional fees, it's just a higher rate.

I'm guessing yes, you would have to pay all the fees at Comfort Suites. When I looked at their rates, at first I thought it was a much better deal but as I proceeded to "book it" the final rate ended up much higher, probably because of all the fees, taxes, etc. Honestly, I'm not sure. In the end, we were only saving about $100, so decided to just stay with Bahamas Day Pass, which had already been purchased anyway. Yes, more $ but as someone notes, if any ship changes I think we are better set for cancellations, where as with Comfort Suite we are stuck paying for room (whether literally used or not). Not worth the "gamble" for us. But - if you are talking 9 people, it may be a bigger savings and worthwhile to you. Also, from what I was reading the Comfort Suites does sound easy enough to use. If I was going to change and go with them, I was planning on calling them directly and asking them how it works. They obviously know people do it. And, for what it costs, I wanted to be sure exactly how it worked. I'd recommend calling them directly as well. Oh - and post back what they say so others can learn too. Let us know what you end up doing. Good luck!!

We booked at CS once, and yes, had to pay the fees. I do t think I ever saw the room.

CS is making some bank on this deal! I don't remember if it was this thread above, or another one (I've been reading so many in the last few days), but they could literally rent the same room out multiple times in one day- or even if only once per day, it is still not getting used and they are getting paid for it! Wish I had thought of it....could help fund my cruise addiction. :)

Do you really have to check out? Most hotels these days there's nothing to do at check out.

Do you really have to check out? Most hotels these days there's nothing to do at check out.

I used Resortforaday.com last year and we checked in and checked out at the same time since we were only docked from 9a - 5p we didn't need the room. I do think it is wise to "checkout" if you are not using the room so they know that there should not be any charges to your room, and they know to close out your account. I think it's great to have choices as each family and each situation is different. The Resort for a day option worked best for us as it was the best price, no additional taxes, no resort fees, no housekeeping fees and we were able to check in as soon as we arrived. They gave us an ID card to present at the Royal Towers to pick up our Aquaventure wristbands. The other plus for resortforaday.com was that if the ship didn't dock for any reason it was fully refundable. If I would have booked through the hotel directly after all the taxes and resort fees the price was higher, and I had to cancel within 72 hours.

FWIW, I asked info@bahamasdaypass.com for a group discount and they need a minimum of 8 people for which they can give a 5% discount off the order. Since my party was 6 people, i went with another commenter's suggestion of resortforaday.com which ended up being cheaper than bahamasdaypass.com.

I have the same question....day pass from Resort for a Day or Bahamas Day pass or room at Comfort Suites. There are 9 of us in our party, plus another 3 maybe. I saw on the Comfort Suites website that there is a energy surcharge fee for guests over age 21 and a $ per person housekeeping fee, and a $40 per person charge for guests 3 & 4 (which I assume is in the hotel rate since I put 2 adult and 2 children in my search). Do you really have to pay the housekeeping fee if you never even go to the room? We had planned to check in and out at the same time, as people have mentioned on other posts. I'm just trying to see what the cost will really be to divide by 9 (or 12) and see which way is cheaper and more convenient. I already asked if there was a group rate since we are such a large family, but there wasn't through resort for a day. I just want to see who has actually done the Comfort Suite route and what additional fees they have had to pay. I was looking directly at the hotel website, which is cheaper than say, Expedia, but Expedia doesn't charge any additional fees, it's just a higher rate.

I wanted to buy 9 tickets from Bahamasdaypass and emailed them prior to buying about a group discount and sure enough they emailed me a discount code and it saved me money. Cant wait to go in May!

Can't you just buy the passes on the Atlantis website? I checked the pricing and it looked cheaper for a family of 4. Am I missing something?

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I am curious about this. I booked through Comfort Suites, and it's $25 cheaper than BDP - but being stuck paying for a room on the off chance we don't make the stop, not so good with that!

We are there in May, 1pm to 11:59pm. Our usual plan is head straight to Atlantis for sun, then head back ton Senor Frogs. Have always wanted to do Aquaventure, but usually its just me and my teenage (19) daughter. This time she's bringing her best friend, and I think they would LOVE the water slides. $150 per person is still better than the $189 the cruise line charges...

Anyone know the hours of the slides at this time of year? We usually cruise in the late fall/winter and the slides close early at that time... trying to see if it's worth it.

We can not afford to do the Aquaventure through the cruise ship. Six people just costs a lot for anything. I have priced Comfort Suites and it's more doable as well as ResortForADay.com

 

I'm looking at the Pro's and Con's of each as I've seen them both mentioned but never directly compared.

 

Thank you.

We have gone to the Atlantis waterpark twice through a booking at the adjacent Comfort Suites. The first time for less than $230 for 4 people, and the second time FREE (I signed up for a Choice Privileges Credit Card and received enough sign-on bonus points to cover the Comfort Suites - with no taxes or fees!) I provide a very detailed, picture-intensive review of our day at Atlantis, as well as cover the logistics of getting there in my Fascination cruise review beginning at post #28:

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2066091

BTW, the slight hassle to check in at the Comfort Suites and walk over to Atlantis is sooooo worth it!

Pros of cruise ship tour:

1- cheaper!!!!

2 - get there earlier and stay longer (be the first off the ship)

Cons: slight inconvenience to take taxi to comfort suites, and walk over... it may have taken 20-30 minutes longer than taking taxi directly to Atlantis. But, I bet it is still quicker than waiting on the ship excursion.

2- I guess you could get left behind if you do not keep an eye on the clock.

Here's one of the pictures I took atop one of the waterslides:

That is an AMAZING PHOTO! I also love your quote under the photo that you Cruise for the Ports, and the Ship is an added Bonus! Love that!

First timer here. Can anyone tell me how Bahamas Day Pass and Resort for a Day work? Like where do you pick up passes? Do you grab your own taxi and go to their office location? Cruise line excursion is almost double what prices are listed elsewhere for a family of four. Also, not cruising until March 2019, should I wait closer to sail date to purchase passes? Will cruise line lower the price for the excursion the closer we get to the date? Lastly, has anyone booked thru CS lately? Is it still a sure bet to be able to get access to Atlantis as a guest of CS? I remember reading a few nightmarish posts when I researched Atlantis vs CS for a hotel stay about guests of CS unable to get access to park bc Atlantis hotel was at capacity - apparently they were turned away and told to return the next day- but as cruise passengers, there is no next day. Thanks in advance!