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Atlantis impression - Scubagirl?

imapris

By imapris,
in Bahamas

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imapris

imapris

Posted
Posted

So I was just in Nassau Jan. 28 on the Imagination. We just hopped in a taxi tour we picked up on the pier. Three hours driving through town, stopping at the vendors at the water tower and then an hour stop at Atlantis to walk around.

 

I've never been a fan of the large all inclusive resorts anyway because I feel they detract from the true nature of the destination. That's just my travel style. BUT, after hearing the way our driver talked about Atlantis, I'm severely against that resort. He made it sound like Atlantis has put some establishments out of business, forcing them to allow Atlantis to buy the existing hotels due to the decline in business alone.

 

As a tourist and someone who values culture, it makes me sick to my stomach to hear his version of Atlantis' existence.

 

I wonder what your perception is Scubagirl. How do you feel Atlantis has impacted the tourist industry in Nassau? I wonder how much of its profits are really shared among the locals...

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scubagirrl

scubagirrl

Posted
Posted
So I was just in Nassau Jan. 28 on the Imagination. We just hopped in a taxi tour we picked up on the pier. Three hours driving through town, stopping at the vendors at the water tower and then an hour stop at Atlantis to walk around.

 

I've never been a fan of the large all inclusive resorts anyway because I feel they detract from the true nature of the destination. That's just my travel style. BUT, after hearing the way our driver talked about Atlantis, I'm severely against that resort. He made it sound like Atlantis has put some establishments out of business, forcing them to allow Atlantis to buy the existing hotels due to the decline in business alone.

 

As a tourist and someone who values culture, it makes me sick to my stomach to hear his version of Atlantis' existence.

 

I wonder what your perception is Scubagirl. How do you feel Atlantis has impacted the tourist industry in Nassau? I wonder how much of its profits are really shared among the locals...

 

Your taxi driver was correct. The locals call it the Plantation and refer to it's owner as massa..

 

I know many people who have lost there business and have lost their homes as well Although they hire 8000 people.. that's 7999 low paying or minimum wage jobs. .. no living wage for those who lost their own restaurants and businesses.

 

They bought up stores and restaurants in the area and tore them down and made a parking lot. They bought out Club Med.. one of the premier properties on the island and left it to ruins. They even had the nerve to move the natural lagoon (that's why we are having such bad erosion problems.. you DO NOT MESS with mother nature. )

 

Locals are not allowed on the property unless they work there.. same for paradise Island in general .. No public transportation allowed. Only certain taxi's are allowed in queue. kickbacks are the norm.. it's disgusting.

 

And the prices are artificially inflated. They state that they have to import everything.. yet due to a deal with the PM, they don't pay import fees or customs duties as ALL other restaurants and hotels must do. They should be able to undersell the competition.. yet they are 20-30% higher than Nassau's best restaurants. They also have long time moritorium on paying casino taxes.. .

 

They clean up a few parks and donate $1000s of dollars, yet these deals have cheated the people out of millions and millions of $$.

 

Atlantis deals with the cruise ships have had a heavy impact tours operators. Many have been put out of business. They even have their own transport, cutting out the taxis and ferry boats that would be making a living from the cruise passengers. We all know that our PM has his pockets lined by these deals.. and are glad we have an election coming up to get him out.

 

Besides the politics.. I don't see the beauty of this property. I watch it being built.. everything is a facade and thin veil of luxury. There's really nothing High end, just the illusion.

 

People buy into the commericials.

 

Ok.. off my soapbox.

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VIQT

VIQT

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I'm so glad I found this post. I've been to Nassau twice and will be going again next February on the Imagination. First time I did the Island Tour. Last time I did a resort day pass. I didn't know what else to pick so I came looking for an Atlantis review from Scubagirrl . . . gonna X that off the list now. Back to seeing the Zoo and the Pirates museum . . . will try to find some other things to fill our time.

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nodogkisses

nodogkisses

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So glad I never stepped foot on their property and I've been to Nassau via cruise ships six times in the past three years. Never had a desire since it seemed so Disney World to me. I like what ScubaGirl said about it's just an illusion. Thanks for the info. I'll be passing that along. So disgusting.

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nodogkisses

nodogkisses

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Sorry, I just hit the send button too quickly. There is SO much to do in Nassau without going to Atlantis. I love the Hilton and Sheraton Cable Beach is great, too. I love to go to Junkanoo and Cabbage Beaches. Love shopping on Bay Street. We had a great tour of Nassau with a great taxi driver named "Iron". Went to Anna Nicole's grave and watched the kids in Nassau practice for their drivers test. We had to go to Senor Frogs just to see what it was all about. Even like the Straw Market--I've been to all three of them over the years. Yay! We love Starbucks and Dunkin Donuts in Nassau. I feel so safe in Nassau and I've only ever had good experiences with the people there, too. It's really probably one of my favorite ports and it makes me sad when others bash it on these boards. Such a beautiful island. Atlantis is ridiculous. I apologize that I got off the topic of Atlantis, but it just came out.

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SailorDeb

SailorDeb

Posted
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How easily swayed by a crying heart liberal are you fools? There are other things to do on the island. And if they are competitive, and safe, and the natives don't annoy the tourists, they will thrive. There are good reasons why they can't let the locals roam the PRIVATE properties on most of the Caribbean islands. And, given the culture, I'm sure those employed by the resort are glad to have those jobs.

 

Why can't you delight in what man has been able to create? The resort receives spectacular reviews from people who are quite satisfied with what they received for their money. It sounds like a dream come true water park for my nine year-old and we plan on taking our group.

 

I'll leave remarks about our experience when we return in March.

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LittleMissMagic "Live from...." Rare

LittleMissMagic

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As a travel and tourism minor, I actually did a research paper on Atlantis last semester because one of my group members had been to the resort twice and was obsessed with it. That, of course, was what initially annoyed me. He really was an Atlantis cheerleader - which was difficult because we were supposed to be analyzing it as a tourism location, identifying strengths and weaknesses. So I had to be the Debbie Downer, adding all of the resort's flaws. Of course, I was focusing more on management and marketing than on how they are running locals out of business.

 

There are a lot of lawsuits against the resort. But most of the lawsuits are still from the visitor, not local, viewpoint. They had for many years been charging guests a "services and cleaning" fee - which turned out to not be going to that purpose.

 

I don't understand the Atlantis craze. When we were children, my sister and I wanted to travel there because that's where Mary-Kate and Ashley filmed Holiday in the Sun. That's actually how Atlantis does a lot of its marketing - movie filming locations (Bieber filmed a music video there) and concerts (Taylor Swift recently performed there), rather than typical marketing promotions like commercials and mail brochures.

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Patches1966

Patches1966

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Atlantis still charges all of those extra fees. I just called the Comfort Suites today. Besides your room you have to pay 13.95 for electricity, 5.00 for maid service and 40.00 for a third adult in the room each day per person, that adds up to a lot of extra fees.:eek:

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Lily429

Lily429

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I get what scubagirrl says...we watched big money take over Guana Cay, it was heart wrenching to see the natural reefs go to ruin by all the pesticides they are using on the golf course that the filthy rich need on their island vacation. There is a place for big business and it's not on a small island....

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kickballpro

kickballpro

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Spent a week at the Atlantis Resort. It was amazing. Beautiful scenery, wonderful for the kids, decent beach, But it was the most expensive place on the planet.

 

However, I will say, after 2 days at the resort, we started taking the ferry into Nassau daily and spending time there. On day 3, we looked at each other and said, "Are we in the Bahamas?" It felt like we could have been anywhere. It was us and several thousand tourist going down slides, eating overpriced food, shopping in stores owned by the resort, gambling in a casino, etc...

 

My best memories of the Atlantis Resort was not being at the Atlantis Resort. When the ships came and thousands more poured into Atlantis for their excursions, I wondered why they chose Atlantis. You're in a foriegn country, go see it!

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Lily429

Lily429

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Is there a free public beach close to the Sheraton? Don't want to pay for a day pass for an hour or so.

not sure, but if you are with someone in the casino I doubt they would mind you using the beach....day passes are generally for towels, chairs and pool use.

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scubagirrl

scubagirrl

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not sure, but if you are with someone in the casino I doubt they would mind you using the beach....day passes are generally for towels, chairs and pool use.

 

No, not close to the sheraton.. It's flanked by stone walls and other private properties. There IS a public access point to Cable Beach a little way down the road next to Thai Lotus, but you can't access the sheraton, and the beach is not maintained, no amenities, no restrooms or anything else.

 

I don't recommend going anywhere you can't be seen by others. For water safety, as well as other crimes.

 

Junkanoo Beach near port has amenities and a restroom and is free.. as is saunders beach.. on the way to Cable Beach.

 

 

Day passes at the sheraton are $25/ $12.50 kids regardless of whether or not u use the casino.

 

Atlantis casino users can't use their beach either.

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DevilDogsWifey215

DevilDogsWifey215

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Your taxi driver was correct. The locals call it the Plantation and refer to it's owner as massa..

 

I know many people who have lost there business and have lost their homes as well Although they hire 8000 people.. that's 7999 low paying or minimum wage jobs. .. no living wage for those who lost their own restaurants and businesses.

 

They bought up stores and restaurants in the area and tore them down and made a parking lot. They bought out Club Med.. one of the premier properties on the island and left it to ruins. They even had the nerve to move the natural lagoon (that's why we are having such bad erosion problems.. you DO NOT MESS with mother nature. )

 

Locals are not allowed on the property unless they work there.. same for paradise Island in general .. No public transportation allowed. Only certain taxi's are allowed in queue. kickbacks are the norm.. it's disgusting.

 

And the prices are artificially inflated. They state that they have to import everything.. yet due to a deal with the PM, they don't pay import fees or customs duties as ALL other restaurants and hotels must do. They should be able to undersell the competition.. yet they are 20-30% higher than Nassau's best restaurants. They also have long time moritorium on paying casino taxes.. .

 

They clean up a few parks and donate $1000s of dollars, yet these deals have cheated the people out of millions and millions of $$.

 

Atlantis deals with the cruise ships have had a heavy impact tours operators. Many have been put out of business. They even have their own transport, cutting out the taxis and ferry boats that would be making a living from the cruise passengers. We all know that our PM has his pockets lined by these deals.. and are glad we have an election coming up to get him out.

 

Besides the politics.. I don't see the beauty of this property. I watch it being built.. everything is a facade and thin veil of luxury. There's really nothing High end, just the illusion.

 

People buy into the commericials.

 

Ok.. off my soapbox.

 

 

WOW. I was digging through the threads to find good info on how to visit Atlantis but now I am going to avoid it completely! That said do you have any suggestions for swimming with dolphins??

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scubagirrl

scubagirrl

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WOW. I was digging through the threads to find good info on how to visit Atlantis but now I am going to avoid it completely! That said do you have any suggestions for swimming with dolphins??

 

 

Blue Lagoon has a great dolphin experience in a natural setting on a private island. It's cheaper (and most think it's better) than Atlantis.

 

www.dolphinencounters.com

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