Ohhh What to do!-HMC & Atlantis

[thinktink02]

Hi Everyone,

 

I’m traveling on my first cruise with DH and the kids 7 and 13 years old this summer on the Sunshine 5/24 (I know, I know, I know….I tried to tell them about crowds, I wanted to sail on the Glory...sigh) anywhoo….we are going to Half Moon Cay, Nassau and Freeport and I have a couple of quick questions.

 

In Half Moon Cay-

 

1. Do they run out of clam shells?...so if we dock at 8a…but don’t make it off the boat until 10a or so...will we still be able to get a clam shell?

a. How much do these cost?

b. Will they just bill it to my sign and sail card?

2. We are bringing sand toys with us…can we also bring a couple of noodles? We are driving to Port Canaveral.

3. Do they have non-motorized sports we can rent (paddle boat..etc)

 

Nassau (Atlantis)-

 

I know it’s expensive but my kids really love water slides…and can spend all day in a wave pool and lazy river. We truly picked this cruise based upon the day in Nassau. Our Ship is in port from 8a to 5p so I need help with the following questions

 

1. Carnival offers a ½ day and full day aquaventure excursion…what’s the difference besides lunch?...Can we just book ½ day and stay until last bus leaves?

a. Is half day only offered when they are in port for a shorter time frame?

2. Do we need water shoes? or will we be okay walking around barefoot?

a. If we do purchase can you wear them on each slide?

3. Must we rent a locker?

a. We can’t just put our bags on 1 lounge chair?

4. Now for the big question…Which is the best way to book? When I go on Comfort Inn Suites and book one night…I see the message about all the the additional fees for example:

 

Booking Info

 

• $279.00 Sub Total

• $90.73 ** Estimated Taxes and/or other charges

• $369.73 (US Dollar) Estimated Total: [/color]

 

Please note: Must have one adult 21 years or older in each room. Guests 12 years and older are subject to an additional 17.15 USD energy surcharge and a 5.00 USD housekeeping gratuity per person. per night. Groups occupying 5 or more rooms require a 2-night minimum stay. For groups please call 1 855 603 1105. Persons 16 and older are charged as adults. There is an extra-person charge of 40.00 USD for each guest after two per room.

 

 

So far this appears to be the cheapest way..unless I can book the ½ day excursion and stay longer…but back to my question..

 

Must I add in all the other fees to my estimated total if we’re checking in and out at the same time?

 

$370 total

$54 energy surcharge

$20 housekeeping gratuity

$80 add’l guest per room fee

$524 total

 

 

Are these fees already included in the taxes and other charges above or will they add them in when we arrive?

 

At this rate is we still need to add in transportation to and from ship….

 

 

Full Day Carnival rate/w lunch $652

Half Day Carnival rate no lunch $480

 

 

Thoughts and thanks for the guidance.:D;)

[Donny-Joe]

I know it’s expensive but my kids really love water slides…and can spend all day in a wave pool and lazy river.

 

Just FYI, there's no wave pool at Atlantis. There is a lazy river, but it's way over at the Beach Tower, which is not very near Aquaventure. In Aquaventure, there is only the Current, which is a "rapid river." It's actually somewhat hairy in sections. It's very sedate in some parts, but don't be fooled. It has a few very fast sections with fake concrete rocks you could easily whack into. Keep an eye on the 7 year old, though if he's like my youngest, he'll have no trouble. I was the one who thought some of the sections were a little on the intense side.

 

I mean, if you like water parks, Aquaventure is pretty amazing. There are some very neat slides and the aquarium (The Dig) is very well done. I just wouldn't want you to be disappointed because it didn't have the specific things you most wanted.

 

Can we just book ½ day and stay until last bus leaves?

 

I think you need to ask Carnival.

 

 

Is half day only offered when they are in port for a shorter time frame?

 

That's the way it works with Disney; they only offer it when they will need to leave Atlantis early. But again, Carnival has the answers.

 

Do we need water shoes? or will we be okay walking around barefoot?

 

I would strongly advise water shoes or flip-flops. Unless you have the calluses of an experienced fire-walker. The decks get hot, and the sand gets very hot.

 

If we do purchase can you wear them on each slide?

 

Yes, you can wear regular flip-flops or water shoes. They encourage them.

 

Must we rent a locker? We can’t just put our bags on 1 lounge chair?

 

No one will force you to rent a locker. We had phones, credit card, ship IDs, personal IDs, etc. that we didn't want to leave on a chair. We did leave sunscreen, sunglasses, hats, etc. in a beach bag on a chair, and no one messed with it. But I wouldn't say it couldn't have been snagged. I wouldn't leave ship IDs or credit cards on a chair. And you need your ship IDs and personal IDs to get back through port security, and a credit card to buy stuff at Atlantis.

 

Must I add in all the other fees to my estimated total if we’re checking in and out at the same time?

 

The fees are already added in. That's what the $90.73 is - those fees and the hotel tax. Whatever that final quote is, is what you'll pay, as long as you list all the adults and children correctly.

 

As for transportation, the standard rate from the cruise terminal to Atlantis is $4/person plus tip. We paid $20 for four of us, mostly to keep it easy; the cab ride wasn't especially awesome but I didn't want to quibble over a couple bucks. I just thought of $20 bills as "cab tickets." :)

[tikib]

Just to add - water shoes cannot have any buckles, snap, clips or hard surfaces that may scratch the slides.

[thinktink02]

Hi!!

 

and thanks for your quick and detailed response. I'm truly nervous about this cruise...because DH is not a cruise person..and I'm making him go kicking and screaming. :p

 

Okay, no wave pool...that is a bummer..but they will get over it.

 

In Aquaventure, there is only the Current, which is a "rapid river." It's actually somewhat hairy in sections. It's very sedate in some parts, but don't be fooled. It has a few very fast sections with fake concrete rocks you could easily whack into. Keep an eye on the 7 year old, though if he's like my youngest, he'll have no trouble. I was the one who thought some of the sections were a little on the intense side.

 

Do they have double tubes on the Current so I can sit with my little one and do you think that would be more dangerous (hitting rock walls) vs me just trying to keep up with him in single tubes.

 

Also will we be able to see the entrances to the slides we can enter from the current? or which ones it is?

 

I mean, if you like water parks, Aquaventure is pretty amazing. There are some very neat slides and the aquarium (The Dig) is very well done. I just wouldn't want you to be disappointed because it didn't have the specific things you most wanted.

 

I appreciate that...So the Dig is an aquarium??? and do they keep the sharks in this part?

 

I would strongly advise water shoes or flip-flops. Unless you have the calluses of an experienced fire-walker. The decks get hot, and the sand gets very hot.

 

Ha ha ha this is very funny...nope no calluses :D but we have walked around a few water parks in Florida and have not used them ...but this is a different location that appears a little more spread out...so I will pick some up..I rather be safe than sorry and pay walmart prices vs resort prices.

 

Yes, you can wear regular flip-flops or water shoes. They encourage them.

 

This is good to know...I've been on a few of the taller slides where they may you take the shoes off and hold them.

 

No one will force you to rent a locker. We had phones, credit card, ship IDs, personal IDs, etc. that we didn't want to leave on a chair. We did leave sunscreen, sunglasses, hats, etc. in a beach bag on a chair, and no one messed with it. But I wouldn't say it couldn't have been snagged. I wouldn't leave ship IDs or credit cards on a chair. And you need your ship IDs and personal IDs to get back through port security, and a credit card to buy stuff at Atlantis.

 

Understood, I typically wear waterproof neck case with id/ccards...now do they allow these on slides?

 

Also I'm ordering myself a KYSS bag...

 

 

The fees are already added in. That's what the $90.73 is - those fees and the hotel tax. Whatever that final quote is, is what you'll pay, as long as you list all the adults and children correctly.

 

Thanks for the explanation...I didn't want to go this route and then try to check out out of the room and they charge us additional $$$.

 

Have you heard of the Bahamas Day Pass website before? I wonder if they are reliable?

 

 

As for transportation, the standard rate from the cruise terminal to Atlantis is $4/person plus tip. We paid $20 for four of us, mostly to keep it easy; the cab ride wasn't especially awesome but I didn't want to quibble over a couple bucks. I just thought of $20 bills as "cab tickets." :)

 

Okay thanks for the info on the transpo...now is the $20 buck round trip or just one way?

 

What time do you think we need to start heading out of Aquaventure if the ship leaves port at 5p?

 

I know this is a lot ....my son says I'm asking too many questions at once...:eek:

 

thanks again!!

[thinktink02]

Just to add - water shoes cannot have any buckles, snap, clips or hard surfaces that may scratch the slides.

 

Thanks this is good to know...I will make sure we pick up the velcro kind from walmart ;)

[Donny-Joe]

Hi!!

 

and thanks for your quick and detailed response. I'm truly nervous about this cruise...because DH is not a cruise person..and I'm making him go kicking and screaming. :p

 

I was the same way before our first cruise. My basic feeling was that it would be like a hotel I couldn't escape from. My attitude turned around by the second day, and I suddenly "got" why people cruise. Now I'm the one bugging my wife to take another cruise.

 

There's no guarantees; some people love it and some don't, but the stats say that about 95% of people who take a cruise say they want to take another. Your hubby may be one of the 5%, but the odds are he'll enjoy himself.

 

Do they have double tubes on the Current so I can sit with my little one and do you think that would be more dangerous (hitting rock walls) vs me just trying to keep up with him in single tubes.

 

They do have double tubes. I guess I'd probably want to go once around in a double if my son was still 7, and then judge how well he could handle it. Once you see it, you may pooh-pooh my assessment of the rapids section, but all I remember is when I came out of it, I thought, "man, they would never allow that in the US."

 

There's a part of me that remembers that I used to tube down actual rapids in Arizona as a kid, and somehow we all managed to survive. The rapids at Aquaventure were significantly less dangerous than the real rapids on the Salt River. Still... I don't expect to have to watch out for rock hazards in a water park. :)

 

So the Dig is an aquarium??? and do they keep the sharks in this part?

 

There are three or so aquarium sections; the main one is The Dig, which is a bunch of aquarium tanks with sunken "Atlantean" ruins in them. You walk through some twisty passages past Atlantean artifacts and art, and big glass windows through which you can see the fish. There are also the predator lagoons, which have sharks in them, and apparently have a tunnel through them, though we never quite found that. And there's a water slide that has a bit of a run through a shark tank in a clear tube.

 

I've been on a few of the taller slides where they may you take the shoes off and hold them.

 

They might do that on the body slides; we didn't ride them. We spent most of our day in the Current and on the Power Tower, and were in line for our first ride in the Mayan pyramid (which has the body slides), and thunderstorms rolled in and they shut down the whole park. We decided it was time to go home.

 

Have you heard of the Bahamas Day Pass website before? I wonder if they are reliable?

 

I first encountered it maybe a week ago. It's owned by the same company as ResortForADay.com, which I've seen lots of feedback on. I haven't heard anything too horrible about them. We're considering using them on a future trip, so I've been researching.

 

Okay thanks for the info on the transpo...now is the $20 buck round trip or just one way?

 

One way.

 

What time do you think we need to start heading out of Aquaventure if the ship leaves port at 5p?

 

I'd pack up and head for the exit at least 90 minutes early. You won't have to go all the way back to Comfort Suites if you checked out at the same time you checked in. You can just walk out the front of the Royal Towers and get a cab. It's only about 15 minutes to the cruise terminal, but there may be traffic, there may be line-ups at the port, there may be line-ups for cabs. You want to know you could handle at least one catastrophic failure (flat tire, etc.).

 

thanks again!!

 

You're very welcome; I wish someone would write a good guide to Atlantis and Aquaventure; you can easily spend an hour or more just kind of learning the lay of the land. It's very large and very confusing.

[Donny-Joe]

Here's a section of another CruiseCritic member's trip report that has good pictures of the rapids section of the Current. You can see the "rocks" in the water. They're not sharp or anything, just hard. :)

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showpost.php?p=43292253&postcount=30

[mommytotwins]

I was the same way before our first cruise.

I wish someone would write a good guide to Atlantis and Aquaventure; you can easily spend an hour or more just kind of learning the lay of the land. It's very large and very confusing.

 

I nominate you Donny-Joe. :) You have really helped me with lots of information about Atlantis. Thanks so much!