This was my third visit to the island of Nassau in the Bahamas (the first being when I was back in college and the second, a few years ago to run the Bahamas Marathon).
A local band greets you at the airport – you can feel the Bahamian warmth right from the start
Baha Mar is home to three hotels: Rosewood, SLS and Grand Hyatt. Ever since the Grand Hyatt Baha Mar opened, I was looking forward to staying there! The hotel is a category 5 World of Hyatt hotel. If you use points, it is 20,000 points per night. Price can vary widely due to the time of season of your stay.
I should note that the hotel is divided into two towers – the East Tower and the West Tower. Each has their own vibes, but since the Grand Club is located in the West Tower, our preference was to stay on that side of the hotel.
Check in at hotel front desk
The Baha Mar complex is built around the casinos. So to go from your room to the beach or even from one tower to another, you walk through the casino area. I don’t usually like casinos. However, I found that this casino was pleasant and not imposing.
We used a globalist suite upgrade. I’m pretty sure that our room was a premium suite rather than a standard suite. It is called a one bedroom residence!
Hotel hallway
The suite is fabulous – over 1,000 square feet – including a bedroom, a living room and dining room area, and a full kitchen with state-of-the-art appliances and a washer-dryer! I could live here and be very happy.
This is the living and dining room area:
We were treated to a bottle of wine and a lovely card from hotel staff.
The kitchen is totally awesome. We mainly used the refrigerator and the washer/dryer.
The suite has what is known as a Juliette Balcony (think: Romeo, Romeo, where for art thou…?). We had an ocean view, but a lot of the area in our view was a construction site.
The bedroom was perfect. It was large, clean, modern and airy.
The bathroom was also great. Very clean and very teal (one of my favorite colors), with a lot of amenities.
We were really looking forward to the Grand Club. Every raving report we’d heard about it, was true. From breakfast in the morning to salads and canapes and drinks in the evening, it was exceptional. (Until, of course, we were notified that the Club would be closing for maintenance two days into our stay – see POST ABOUT CLOSURE HERE). The staff was great too! (I’ve kind of mish-moshed the morning and evening shots – but the main point is the wide variety of fresh and delicious foods offered).
Evening service included wines, beers and mixed drinks.
The Grand Club had plenty of indoor seating as well as outdoor balcony seating.
One morning, when the Grand Club was closed, we had breakfast at the Tides Restaurant (see, Heads Up: Baha Mar’s Grand Club is Temporarily Closed, but Breakfast at 3 Tides Restaurant is Good). I will never forget crab eggs benedict!
I hit gold with the Crab Eggs Benedict, which consisted of two huge and delicious crab cakes on an English muffin with Hollandaise sauce!
The grounds of the hotel were huge. There were many beautiful pools (including an adult-only pool) and an assortment outdoor restaurants.
photo: Hyatt website
I love walking on a beach
The Daiquiri Shack is not on the Baha Mar premises, but is a 5-minute (or less) walk, near the Melia hotel. This is a refreshing afternoon break!
The hotel gym was great. Though it was a bit warm, I particularly enjoyed the scenic view while biking on the balcony!
Evenings, we enjoyed walking around the grounds and watching the water shows. One night, we had dinner at a nearby local restaurant (taxi was about $25 each way).
The hotel water show is recommended for guests young and old. In the evening, every ten minutes, colorful fountains of water sprout and once every thirty minutes the water show is accompanied by music.
Final thoughts.
I really liked the hotel and will definitely return again (though, in advance, I’d confirm that the Grand Club would be open during my stay).
Like many other island locations, it is expensive to get around. Taxis to anywhere are very expensive. I think the hotel would benefit by a offering free or discounted shuttle service around the island. If not, next time, I’d consider renting a car.
The Residence suite was fabulous, but if you’d prefer a full balcony, you might consider a Grand Suite (which though a bit smaller than the Residence, is still wonderful).
A New York frequent flyer who elegantly combines her passions for worldwide travel, running a gazillion marathons all over the globe and staying fit ... without sacrificing her fancy for good wine and food.
Thanks for the very nice review. I’ve noticed that many Hyatts allow children into pools that are adult only. Any idea if that was the case?
I don’t recall seeing children in the adult pool, but I honestly didn’t spend much time at the pool.
Were you given any compensation for the Grand Club closing?
I just had to comment as I’ve seen several reviews over the past couple of months about this property. I cannot disagree that that the property is beautiful in every aspect, but the vast majority of the reviews barely mention if at all how INSANELY expensive food and beverage cost are ($10 Non-refillable Ice-T/$25 for a small one topping pizza are just a few examples). I do understand while it not an all-inclusive property, the cost were still above and beyond prices for other non-all-inclusive properties I have stayed at in the area. Just my two-cents.
Agreed. Being a globalist and having access to the Grand Club makes all the difference in the world.