Our family had an incredible trip to Paradise Island in the Bahamas this past weekend.

We stayed at the  – the best value resort in the Bahamas, and perhaps the entire Caribbean. Every room is a suite equipped with fridge and an optional (free) microwave upon request. All guests enjoy free hot breakfast – and kids eat free for lunch and dinner too (with adult meal purchase)!  There is free parking and free WiFi – AND a free  all access pass to the famous Atlantis Resort – just a short walk across the street away. Guests at the Comfort Suites Paradise Island enjoy access to everything an Atlantis hotel guest does– the beautiful beaches, the many aquarium attractions, the Aquaventure waterpark.

THE HOTEL

Every room at Comfort Suites Paradise Island is a suite. Rooms either have 2 double beds and a pull out couch or 1 King Bed and a pull out couch. Rooms have all been recently renovated! Rooms have all the standard amenities, like coffee makers and hair dryers, but they also have a fridge and you can request a microwave as well free of charge.

Each room has a divider between the beds and the area which had a desk/office area with a  charging station and lounge area with a queen sofa bed.

The room was clean as a whistle and very roomy, even with our whole family and all of our stuff! The view out of our room was fabulous – the hotel is located on a quieter street – there was very little traffic noise and the rooms themselves were very quiet. You can see the attention to detail – like a nightlight in the bathroom and toiletries by the sink. If you forget anything, just call to the front desk and they will deliver to your room. When we needed shampoo, it was delivered to our room in 2 minutes flat.  The employees were all delightful and eager to help.

the gorgeous view from our room

Our favorite place was the courtyard next to the restaurant where we ate breakfast every morning – and enjoyed the pool (with swim-up bar!) Secluded and quiet, it was wonderful to enjoy our morning coffee outside in the warm Caribbean sunshine. The landscaping was stunning – it was a fabulous place to relax and unwind! The pool even has a swim up bar!

The free daily breakfast buffet at the Comfort Suites was more than a typical hotel continental breakfast of stale danishes.  Every morning, we enjoyed eggs (scrambled and hard boiled), bacon and sausages, waffles, yogurt, hot and cold cereals, coffee, tea and juices.  Perfect for charging up for a busy day of vacationing!

Kids eat free all day every day at the Comfort Suites if you eat lunch at their hotel restaurant by the pool or dinner at Anthony’s (across the street from the hotel). Coupons are for up to $7 with each adult meal purchased – if their meal is more than $7, they will just subtract $7 off your bill. Super easy and another great value!

FREE ACCESS TO ATLANTIS

The biggest part of the value of Comfort Suites Paradise Island?  EVERY guest at Comfort Suites gets free ALL ACCESS passes to Atlantis. For much less than staying at Atlantis Resort, you can enjoy everything an Atlantis guest does – PLUS all the free amenities that Comfort Suites offers! Day passes to Atlantis run around $120 for adults and $80 for kids, so that adds up to quite a bit for a family of 4!

Atlantis itself was amazing – our kids were fascinated with both the aquariums and the lagoon. Atlantis is home to 14 lagoons, eight million gallons of salt water and more than 50,000 aquatic animals representing over 250 marine species. Check the daily newsletter for free animal feedings you can watch. My kids loved the DIG aquarium – we could have spent hours in here!

Aquaventure is 141-acres of FUN!  It features Atlantean-themed towers, thrilling high-speed water slides, river rides with rolling rapids and wave surges, 20 swimming areas, a spectacular kids water-play fort and 11 swimming pools. I think we hit each and every one!

We loved the Mayan Tower that houses several water slides including the Leap of Faith and the Serpent Slide that finishes through a shark tank – you can see all the sharks while you float on your raft in clear tube that is in the shark tank. Colin was never so sad to be below 48 inches tall! Gracie was brave enough, though…

The kids’ absolute favorite was The Current – a mile long “lazy” river –  floating around for hours in their inner tubes via water escalators, rolling waves and extreme rapids powered by master blaster technology. Its so fun!!

Another tip to save money? Book your water adventure in the Comfort Suites lobby instead of Atlantis. The scuba excursion was over $30 cheaper!

The cons of staying at Comfort Suites Paradise Island (there always are a few – even in paradise!)

• To get your free pass to Atlantis, you will need to pick up a new wristband daily that lets you and your family enjoy the park. The only place to pick this up is in the Royal Towers Lower level lobby, a 15-minute walk from the Comfort Suites hotel, so you have to plan this into your day. It only takes a few minutes to do, but it is a bit of an inconvenience. (When you stay at Atlantis, your wristband is good for your entire stay.)
• Atlantis is so huge, it can be an half an hour round trip if you need to  go back to your room. Bring along a big beach bag to carry everything you need for the day.
• You can use your Comfort Suites card to charge food and beverages at Atlantis – but nothing else. You will need to bring a credit card AND id with you, since shops in Atlantis require id and many do not accept cash. Make sure you plan for this, so you don’t end up with a child holding a stuffed shark and looking crushed and heartbroken when you can’t buy it. NOT that I had to do that.
• WIFI is free – but was a bit spotty in our room. It worked great in main areas, so if you need to get significant work done, you may need to go to the lobby.

It is incredible that a stay at the Comfort Suites Paradise Island includes all this Atlantis action for free at a price of about $150-$300 depending on when you reserve your room. If you’re dying to visit Atlantis – this is an incredibly affordable way to do it!

Disclosure: Our accommodations and travel were provided by the  Paradise Island Bureau of Tourism and Development. As always all thought and opinions are our own.