I just returned from a March 30th – April 2nd trip to Grand Bahama Island. We stayed at the Westin Our Lucaya. The objective for this trip was a bit different than my normal romantic getaway with my husband. One of my good friends from childhood is getting married soon, and eight women went for her bachelorette party. Needless to say, we left our mark for sure. Let me preference any negativity in this report by saying that I am a fairly experienced Caribbean traveler. I understand “Island Time,” I don’t mind it, and I am not a traveler that insists on being pampered within an inch of my life.

The Westin

This hotel is very nice. It is a mega resort, with many rooms. It takes 10 minutes or more to walk from one end of the property to the other. Pools were fairly cold, but the weather was so temperate we didn’t really care. We had upper 70s, sunny, with a nice breeze. Perfect weather. Our room wasn’t the normal Westin luxury, but was acceptable and fit our needs just fine. Our view was fantastic (deluxe ocean view). I received a massage at the spa, and despite a scheduling change, everything was very good. It was one of the better massages I’ve had in my life. One of my friends had a problem at the spa though. She had requested a “blow out” to straighten her hair, and her hair was broken in many places by the “stylist.” She wasn’t charged for the service, but that result was still disappointing.

Restaurants

After two trips to Grand Bahama, I have figured out that one of the only restaurants that will give you top notch service is THE FERRY HOUSE. This restaurant was phenomenal. It was French St. Martin service, with a very innovative menu. I had a wonderful grouper with BBQ Thai Sauce. It was our most impressive dining experience.

The first night, we ate at “Le Med.” Le Terrible is more like it. Poor service (refusal to split checks despite a request at the beginning and a half-empty restaurant) and pretty bad food. Honestly, I think I was more annoyed because some members of my group were all worked up about how bad the service was. Had I been with my husband, I probably wouldn’t have minded the meal. Our waitress did try to converse with us at the end and ask why we were there, etc. I thought she was being nice, others thought it was too little, too late.

Our last night we ate at Pisces. It is a very popular pizza place, and the food was good. For our group of eight, the service was decent. Refilling drinks is not a popular practice in the Bahamas, but I really couldn’t complain as I personally didn’t have any issues. Food was good.

We had breakfast one morning at Zorba’s – fine, but long wait for service. The other times, I ate at the resort. The resort food is decent, but very, very expensive. Let me repeat: EXPENSIVE. $3.00 for a 16 ounce bottle of water? Come on! When practical, we went across the street and bought cheaper water and snacks at the Lucaya marketplace.

Snorkeling

We did a snorkeling expedition with Reef Tours. We were lucky and had only 15 people on our boat. Another tour boat pulled up towards the end of our snorkel, and they must have had 75 people on board. That looked miserable. The snorkeling was decent, but the 3-4 foot swells were a challenge, to say the least. Apparently, we caught a “wavy” day, but six in our group went out and all handled the conditions fine (including a new swimmer, first time snorkeller). Thank god I brought my own dry snorkel. I think a more calm day would have been awesome. The water felt great (around 76 degrees), but the wavy conditions caused a few in our group to get a little green in the gills on the way back.

Grand Bahama Island in General

This is the only island I’ve visited in the Bahamas, and I’ve been once before – in May 2004. While the island is nice, it’s much like Florida with bad service. Many of the Bahamian people are wonderful and warm, but a few bad apples can ruin the bunch. As a group of relatively young women (27-35), we felt as if some Bahamian women in our age group were downright hostile to us. We are all married or engaged, so no one was looking to flirt with local men or “hook up.” The only thing I can think is that one or two women in our group are of the “bossy” sort, and I think their attitude at times was perceived as rude. As a group though, I have to say we were very friendly and patient… but waiting 15 minutes for a waitress to acknowledge your table at breakfast (in a restaurant that wasn’t terribly crowded) is inexcusable.

Spring Breakers

We went during the tail end of Spring Break. I am no prude, but some of the things “the kids” are doing these days are really gross. I now know that any children I produce will not go on Spring Break without me there. Maybe when they are 21 or so, but not before then. We saw this one girl (we called her “humper”) who was doing the dirtiest dancing I’ve ever seen with every man in the place. She was literally being passed around – local men, spring breakers, it didn’t matter. All the while, her mom and aunt were watching her, laughing, and taking pictures. They should have been slapped upside the head. Hard.

Would I Go Back?

Hard to say… I won’t go back in a hurry. Grand Bahama Island could really be a premier destination if they would clean their service industry up a bit. It’s proximity to the US makes it an attractive destination (1.5 hour flight from Atlanta) but if I’m going to spend $1000 for a 3-night trip, I want better service. I guess I’ve just been spoiled by St. Martin, Aruba, etc, where you feel like you get what you pay for. Overall, we did have a great time. I do think this resort is more for larger groups and families rather than couples. If you want a romantic, quiet getaway, look elsewhere. If you want a 5 night or longer trip, look elsewhere. But for a quick getaway with friends or for a golf weekend, this isn’t a bad choice. Just adjust your expectations, expect to pay a lot, and make a reservation at The Ferry House!