Anything in Nassau worth leaving the comfy ship?

[Danni75]

For dolphin experience you should verify minimum age ; in discover cove the minimum age is 7 as they are afraid younger kids could hurt the animals.

 

[SpaceSquirrel]

Do a quick google search for Nassau crime before deciding whether or not to leave the ship.
We did an excursion to some type of bird zoo last time we were at Nassau (a different cruise line) and felt "at risk" when we were were off the ship. That was years ago and I read it's only worse now.
Not trying to scare you but knowledge is power. I'm really surprised DCL still uses Nassau.
BTW if you decide to leave the ship there is a pirate museum just a short walk from port and it was pretty neat.

 

[sambycat]

Knocked our socks off? No, but my husband really liked the Junkanoo excursion and this last trip we did the Ardastra Gardens tour and really liked it. We liked feeding the little birds apples and it was just kind of a cool little funky zoo and we had a nice driver that we did a little bit of a drive around and saw more of the island than I had before. We will probably check out greycliff next time. Anyways, they were fun, different not expensive or stressful.

 

[chicagodisneyfan]

I travel to Nassau for work every six weeks or so and have never felt unsafe. I guess if you are not street smart or a savvy traveler it could be an issue.

 

[ludari]

I actually went scuba diving in Nassau this past November off the Dream and I had a great time. The water temp, dive crew, vis and dive sites where great.

 

[KingRichard]

Anybody been to Señor Frog's in Nassau? We were thinking of hitting that when we go, but I don't know,.... With the kids and all.

They will have a great time, but not remember much!

 

[P'colaBeachBum]

Ooooh - are you Grand Slam Plus on Disney cruises? Not too many in that club.

Not yet! Just 3...BRB, Magic and Dream.

 

[Fuzzywuzzy]

Went ashore on our first visit there. Just to look around. Stay on board now...pools are near empty, you can move around the ship easily, enjoy the amenities.

I heard that if you do go downtown you can buy a bottle of nice Cuban rum and one of cheap Bahamas rum. You drink all the Bahama rum, then pour the Cuban rum into that bottle. You then take the empty Cuban bottle and full "Bahamas" rum home as souvenirs.. When you get home you pour the rum back into the empty Cuban bottle and display it proudly on your backbar. Or so I'm told.

 

[cijay]

Mostly what I'm hearing about Nassau is the same. Go if you haven't been yet but don't really expect much. I plan on going because I've never been there before but I think it sounds like I'll be back at the ship LONG before the "all aboard".

 

[Goaliemom30]

Been off the boat twice to shop and stretch our sea legs. The second time we got off specifically for my husband to find this back alley merchant from our first cruise who makes stuff out of pop cans. Goofy I know, but my husband thought it was cool. In search of this guy the second time my family walked through a drug transaction, I am sure. Money exchanged, tiny plastic baggy exchanged. I just mumbled heads down and keep walking. Bought our pop can guitar and back on the boat. Surprisingly, this is not the first vacation drug deal we have witnessed as a family. I am a former D.A., so maybe I notice things. We witnessed a hand to hand sale in West Virginia once too.

 

[Jkpark]

For those of you that stay on the ship, is it noticeably less crowded? We recently spent part of a Grand Cayman day on the ship and it was very empty. I have heard on 3 day cruises many people stay aboard to enjoy the Aquaduck on Nassau day, since there is no at sea day and nobody wants to miss Castaway. Curious what everyone's experience with that is. Sorry if I just hijacked this thread, but I'm also on the fence about getting off in Nassau. Don't want to miss out on something to learn the ship is actually pretty crowded.

 

[MUN]

We've always stayed on the ship when it docks in Nassau. It just never appealed to us. We have a cruise on the Magic later this month and I'm beginning to wonder if we're missing out. Are there any shore excursions that knocked your socks off? I'm starting to consider the idea of not being a stick in the mud on this trip. Thank you.

I can't answer your question without knowing what kind of things you like to do. Otherwise, your post is an invitation for others to bash Nassau.

 

[Genie-In-Training]

I can't answer your question without knowing what kind of things you like to do. Otherwise, your post is an invitation for others to bash Nassau.

I respectfully disagree. The post was not intended to be a negative thread. I wanted to see if we were missing something. Also, I have read many "bashing" threads lately, and the responses I've read here are not even close to that. I think the answers I've gotten have been very helpful. You can not like something and not be bashing it. But I thank you for your response.

 

[MUN]

I respectfully disagree. The post was not intended to be a negative thread. I wanted to see if we were missing something. Also, I have read many "bashing" threads lately, and the responses I've read here are not even close to that. I think the answers I've gotten have been very helpful. You can not like something and not be bashing it. But I thank you for your response.

No, I didn't say you intended it to be a negative thread. However, it was certainly an inviation for negative comments. Not your fault and I'm not blaming you.

MUN

 

[timrousbeastie]

We've always stayed on the ship when it docks in Nassau. It just never appealed to us. We have a cruise on the Magic later this month and I'm beginning to wonder if we're missing out. Are there any shore excursions that knocked your socks off? I'm starting to consider the idea of not being a stick in the mud on this trip. Thank you.

I've only been to Nassau once on a 3-day Dream cruise. We did a tour of Atlantis and, though I'd definitely stay on the ship next time, I am glad that we went since the day brought a lot of cultural memories, from good to shocking. I don't think we'll ever go back to Nassau, but I am glad we tried it and got a glimpse of the island. It's a hard question since it is so individual, but, if you are on a 3-day cruise, I would either do a short excursion or stay aboard. There is just not enough time to experience the beautiful ship. If I were on a 5-day or longer cruise and had not seen Nassau before, I'd at the very least read up on it, set my expectations realistically, and then probably use the opportunity to check it out.

 

[AquaDame]

I heard that if you do go downtown you can buy a bottle of nice Cuban rum and one of cheap Bahamas rum. You drink all the Bahama rum, then pour the Cuban rum into that bottle. You then take the empty Cuban bottle and full "Bahamas" rum home as souvenirs.. When you get home you pour the rum back into the empty Cuban bottle and display it proudly on your backbar. Or so I'm told.

Besides being very much illegal - and thus not in anyway recommended or condoned by the DIS - I'm not sure how this would turn out now that Disney doesn't allow you to bring liquor onboard. I suppose you could just dump the Bahamian rum and switch the liquid up (please don't try to take down an entire 1/5th of alcohol before getting on the ship!). Also you now have an open bottle that could leak all over everyone else's confiscated liquor and they may well have you toss that empty bottle of Cuban. Havana Club is good but its not THAT good - it'll be imported over here soon enough I'd wager.

 

[Genie-In-Training]

No, I didn't say you intended it to be a negative thread. However, it was certainly an inviation for negative comments. Not your fault and I'm not blaming you.

MUN

I understand that. All I'm saying is that by that logic, most posts would be an invitation to bash one thing or another. People who want to do that don't need an excuse. Like I said before, while some experiences to Nassau were negative, I hardly consider the responses in this thread "bashing." Oh well, agree to disagree.

 

[over50visits]

Not yet! Just 3...BRB, Magic and Dream.

Just two more ships and you'll have all five! Grand Slam Plus here you come....

 

[bekkio]

Anybody been to Señor Frog's in Nassau? We were thinking of hitting that when we go, but I don't know,.... With the kids and all.

My DD19 and I went over there early in the day - about 11 or 11:30 to grab a drink and some lunch. There was only one couple and one large family there at the time. We had a blast - got lots of attention from a cute waiter, and had the best chicken nachos we've ever had. I imagine it would get crazier later in the day, but if you go earlier, I bet it would be kid-friendly enough.

 

[krisinparis]

Knocked our socks off ? Nope.

Glad we did it the once but also won't do it again ? Yep. Atlantis Aquaventure. Blue Lagoon beach day.

Well, the not-so-lazy lazy river at Atlantis nearly blew the hat and glasses off !

SW

Hubby lost his hat, sunglasses and a toenail on that not-so-lazy-river!