I always have a nice time just taking a cab over to the Atlantis and just sitting or walking around the grounds...Lots of people watching, and it's only a $4 or $5 dollar cab ride.....then again there is a lot of shopping to do...but can get very crowded...Just go and have a great time....
On our very first cruise on Mariner, our first Eastern stop was Nassau. Next to Ocho Rios, it is now the second place I hate. There are, I'm sure, many nice places and cool things to see and do, but we didn't even make it off the pier where we docked, and we were met by some of the most agressive "salesmen" pitching their rides and excursions and "deals". My wife almost went back to the ship afraid. We finally made it through the crowd and walked around the town on our own, but for a first stop ever, it almost put us off crusing ever again. Obviously every port and stop if different, but it was a little upsetting.I have heard that Atlantis is very nice, and the shopping is good also. Sorry to be a downer.
Have fun anyhow! As we say, do it once, and you'll be hooked.
Atlantis is incredible. Never experienced anyone pushy enough to make us want to stop cruising. We took the water taxi and it was great. Nasseu is not our favorite port but definatley worth a stop.
My husband and I stopped at Nassau when we were on Disney Cruise. We spent 45 minutes there..We did not like it there at all. Must agree with Jim1012..Sales people are extremely aggressive. Once you leave ship you have to go through what I would call an indoor farmers market (closest thing I could compare it to) There are a bunch of different taxi companies "hounding" you. Once we got on street store employees stand outside doors "hounding" you again. I tell people it's like going to your local mall and having an employee at EVERY store standing outside entrance begging you to shop at their store.
Nassau is a "poor" country..Not as wealthy as US. So I guess that is expected. We just were not used/ready for that. In fact when we went back to ship we talked to about 20 families/couple who felt same way. Now when planning a cruise I TRY to find cruise NOT going to Nassau, BUT if we do I would NEVER get off ship.
We did hear that Atlantis is great.
Sorry for being downer, But that's just my (our) feelings
Been there...done that several times and can said that you should enjoy Atlantis. There also is Cabbage Beach just to the East of Atlantis, where you can spend time on a great beach for free.
If anyone is going to travel and see the world, then you need to understand different cultures. Tourism is their lively hood. I have experienced aggressiveness throughout the world. Caribbean (including Jamaica, St Thomas, Grenada, and more), Vietnam, Philippines, China, Egypt, Mexico, to name a few. There is no need to be afraid. Learn to not make eye contact and learn to politely say "No".
Michelle asked for good and bad-glad to see she's getting both sides. Granted I haven't seen many other countries, but there are some that appear to be better than others in the way that they treat visitors, and people who are willing to spend money in their country. In my case, so far, I've only found two that I haven't liked-hopefully I won't find many more. Being a cop, I've mastered the word "No", but the wife is still a little slow on the uptake.
Have a great time wherever you travel!
There are a LOT of fun places in Nassau where you won't get hassled. Atlantis is definitely one of them. Cabbage Beach is also really nice. There's a Margaritaville and a Senor Frogs there, too. The Queen's staircase isn't as nice as it was when the Governor's Hotel was still there, but it is interesting. When we were there last year, we negotiated with a cab driver who took us to a few areas of interest then to Atlantis. He got us into areas of the aquarium we probably weren't supposed to be in, but no one hassled us. The aquarium is magnificent and the grounds are amazing. It's well worth a $4 cab ride.
The locals can be aggressive, but they're just trying to make a living. It's a foreign country, so they're not governed the way the US is. Just be aware of your surroundings and you'll be fine.
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