Going to Ithaa (I think the first time included in a TR on DDF)!
I had reserved cocktails at Ithaa (the underwater restaurant) for the first morning because I figured it would be a nice leisurely thing to do on the first day. If you do want to go it is almost always sold out so they do recommend always reserving before you arrive. It isn't cheap, morning cocktails are $60pp but we were willing to pay just to have the experience and imagine people pay $250pp for lunch and $500pp ++ (SO ADD 22% TO EVERYTHING) for a FIXED menu so this was actually "reasonable."
It really was a cool and spectacular experience and I'm so glad I did it. Normally they offer champagne and some appetizers but they bent over backwards for the whole trip for us about Kashrut and just gave us some cut fruit and fresh fruit juice but they will do whatever you like (I'm sure if you did want something alcoholic you could ask for a beer or whatever you wanted).
We went a little early to sit at the tables and enjoy the view from the above water entrance to the restaurant:
Here is from the outside and even from above you can see all the beautiful fish:
In this pic you can see the diver that was cleaning the glass right before we went in:
They suggest you arrive a little early and they seat you in a lovely lobby where you get your drinks (yes, those are real flowers is pools of water within the table...just another lovely Conrad touch).
It was at this point the waiter came and confirmed with us about our different drinks and food.
And then you head down the stairs and you cans see that without seeing any fish yet, just they way the light plays on the floor from the sun and water is so beautiful:
And then you sit down and I really can't describe the complete and beautiful sensory experience. It just takes your breath away to have the water and amazing fish literally all around you and in many instances inches away.
All in all it was about an hour and I thought it was worth every penny. Are there other people there with you? Yes. Are they taking pictures most of the time? Yes. Was it still an amazing and unforgettable experience, absolutely!
If I didn't keep kosher and could eat there would I plop a grand on a dinner there? No, but it was so worth us going for cocktails, especially since my DH is not a strong swimmer to really take advantage of the snorkeling or diving. If you are big scuba diver, it might seem cheesy but for us it was truly a spectacular experience and I apologize that my pictures don't do justice to the amount of fish, the color and sheer movement of all these beautiful creatures swimming right around you. Because they feed the fish after the people arrive, an insane number of fish, sharks and rays converge all at once and even compared to what I saw on my snorkels, the experience was truly amazing!
Since I'm one of the rare women posting on DDF, if you wanna know if your wives would appreciate going, I think the answer for most women (again especially if you guys aren't going scuba diving) is a resounding yes...if you're going to the Conrad spend the money and go to Ithaa!!
If you need more encouraging (since let's be honest, my pics are not that great...lol...and I'm a techno-loser without a YouTube account to post videos) here is the official Ithaa video from the hotel:
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