Review From Guest

Traveled to Atlantis with our family of four (kids ages 4 and 2.5). We stayed at the Royal Towers because it was the most central to all of the activities we planned to enjoy with our kids, and we were not disappointed. Upon arrival we were upgraded to a room on the 14th floor with a spectacular view of the ocean and the entire grounds. My kids got to say good morning and good night to the sharks and stingrays from our window, which was adorable. The room was fine. It was clean, had a table and chairs, and a sizable bathroom. Although we had issues with our phone, TV and safe not working properly. Only one of those issues was resolved by the end of our stay.

Kids loved all the pools, especially Splashers with the waterslides. Our oldest also loved The Current river ride. Really loved that there were children's life vests available to use, free of charge, at all of the pools and beaches on the property. Added an extra layer of safety for the little ones. We saw that the Atlantis beach tended to be very crowded and busy, so one day we brought our towels and parked ourselves on some lounge chairs at the edge of the cove beach, and it was wonderful. The kids spent the whole day playing in the sand and surf, and mom and dad even got to relax a little bit.

We did the shallow water dolphin encounter, which was a thrill for the kids. It definitely is not cheap, and if you have a person in your party willing to stand on the sidelines to take pictures, you might save yourself a little money on the overpriced photos. We also did the Sea Squirts program, which our daughter loved. She got to feed/pet lots of baby animals. One of our favorite things to do at the resort was walk through The Dig. It is a beautiful aquarium exhibit, and it is not to be missed. Our kids adored it so much that we did it twice.

Food was fine. Our nicest meals were at Nobu and the Seafire Steakhouse. We didn't do restaurants for breakfast or lunch. We didn't want to spend a lot of time in the mornings on food - we preferred to grab a quick bite and get outside to the activities. And for lunch, we ate by the pool/beach every day, and there are some decent options available. We had a particularly lousy experience at Carmine's one night, so I cannot recommend it.

My biggest complaint was regarding the dissemination of information to staff. I understand this is an enormous property, but after all of my experiences interacting with the staff, from before we booked the vacation through our stay at the property, I did not feel as though the staff were well informed about the resort, the activities available, or what was happening on any given day, etc. One day, we walked, with the kids, across the entire property to go to the lazy river ride, asking staff for directions along the way (they were all considerate and pointed us in the direction), but we got there to find out the ride was closed for renovations. I just don't understand how that information isn't written anywhere, or that none of the staff was aware. The resort puts out a daily schedule of events for the day - why on earth can't they include a list of closed attractions??

All in, we had a great time. Yes, it is pricey, but that's just the way it goes. I highly recommend doing your homework and orienting yourself with the property before arrival, and also making some reservations in advance of your trip. The kids adored this place, and we loved how much there was for the kids to do and see. I'm sure we will be back again.