May 17, 2011
VERY relaxing
Just returned from 3 nights at Flamingo Bay. I had never been to the Bahams and was going by myself. Wanted a quiet, safe place where I could lay on the beach, float in the pool, disconnect and forget my name. I found the right place.
The beach was beautiful. I was private, not crowded at all. The water was extremely calm. If you are looking for waves, this is not the place. They do have a place where you can rent kayaks, wave runners, etc. on the beach.
Only 1 restaurant. It was fine. Nothing all that exciting. They do have nightly dinner specials that include a glass of wine in the price. The restaurant was perfectly fine you just need to know it is the only option there. The resort does have a daily grocery store run. If you are going to be there any length of time, that is the way to go.
Go to the welcome center for the timeshares to get all the info. There is also a business center there with computers to use.
Staying at Flamingo Bay, you get to use all the amenities of Taino Beach Resort. The pool is shared as is the beach. I wanted to be right on the beach. There are no rooms on the property that are right on the beach. The timeshares are perpendicular to the beach. Flamingo Bay faces the beach, but is about 400 yards away. It is across the street. But keep in mind this is a 2 lane, dead end street, with no traffic. So it is as if you are right by the beach.
I stayed in the front of the hotel, on the third floor and had a view of the water.
I arrived 6 hours before check in and was allowed to check right in. Colleen, at the front desk could not have been nicer. She even allowed me to view rooms and pick the one I wanted. My only issue was that I reserved a king. I could have had a king had I waited until 4pm to check in. I chose to take a double and check in early. Front of the resort is the way to go. I am the world's lightest sleeper. I did not hear 1 noise the entire time I was there. Nothing from the rooms beside me, nothing from the street, nothing at all. The cable was not working properly when I was there. On my 4th call down, I was finally told there was a cable problem in the area, it was not my room. I had been waiting 2 hours for the techinician to come as I was told on my first call. Not sure who the person was working that night (it was not Colleen) but she was about worthless. Everyone else I came in contact with was very nice.
The place seemed to be only about 25% full. It was quiet and at night, there was no one anywhere. You could float in the pool as late as you wanted and be the only one there. There is a swim up bar, a water slide and a sort of lazy river and grottos and caves at the pool. The pool was not the cleanest. But it was fine.
Here is something to note: It took me 3 days to figure out that tax is added to everything. I could not figure out why I was constantly being charged more than the advertised price for drinks. I knew it was added to food because it shows it right on your bill. But I did not realize that is what they were doing with the drinks. It would have been nice if someone would have explained that to me one of the many times I asked. But I figured it out and quit double tipping. 15% is added to all food and drinks. So keep that in mind.
Everyone was extremely friendly. I was there as a single female and I felt 100% safe. No issues whatsoever.
The place was beautiful. It just seemed like a quaint little neighborhood. I will definetely go back. But I will probably stay in the time shares. Saw one while was there. They have full kitchens and are newer. That is why I will stay there. But Flamingo Bay was fine. Rooms are old but clean. The box springs on one of the beds had been replaced with plywood and the toilet wasn't the strongest flusher, but it was fine. I travel all over for work, staying at very nice places. I was comfortable here.
The water taxi to Port Lucaya is out the back door of the hotel. Buy your ticket at the front desk. $5 round trip. Departs every hour. Comes back at 10 after each hour. Was excited to go to Port Lucaya. But it was sort of anticlimactic. I saw about 10 other people there. Many places closed. But I was able to find a place to eat each time and bought some trinkets.
My intention was to do nothing and that is exactly what I did. If you have to have entertainment on your vacation, you will be miserable here. But if you are looking for a beautiful, quiet place to relax, lay in the sun, float in the pool, have a few drinks and some food at a beachfront restaurant, then this is the place.
One final note: I was nervous about getting a taxi at the airport and getting ripped off because I had read about that in other reviews of the area. There is a person at the airport that stands outside (like I see at many busy american airports) and matches up the traveler with a taxi. The set price from the airport to this hotel is $25. Again that includes the tip. I put my standard taxi tip on top of that on the way out and the guy almost fell over. For the way back, the hotel called and made arrangements for a taxi to pick me up. They then called my room and gave me the name of the driver and her taxi id. She also called me to confirm. And she gave me her business card for any return trips. Could not have been easier.
Having been to some places in the caribbean and Mexico that are quite poor, where everyone is trying to rip you off and where you cannot drink the water, it was refreshing to go to a place like this.
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