Bahamas trip report with a side of covid.
Whelp, So I tested positive while here in the Bahamas. I have no symptoms and was only tested so that I can return to the US. I am here with my wife and daughter who tested negative and are flying back today. Upon getting my positive results, I was sent to my room to wait for a PCR to confirm covid and I am currently awaiting the results. So it looks like I will be here a while, and since the usual excuse of not having enough time to write a trip report won't work, here goes my first DDF trip report.
After status matching from Wyndham to Ceasers and seeing the promo for 4 nights free at Atlantis Bahamas, I decided to go for it and book. I read some trip reports before booking and had seen mixed messages. Some people absolutely loved it while others, including Dan, were less than impressed. I was not expecting much in the way of service, but I read that the rooms had been recently renovated and figured that I would give it a shot. It took approximately 15 minutes to book via phone and I was informed that I would have to pay the resort fee of $60 per day and have 4 hours of casino play to book this rate.
For flights, we booked JetBlue at 21,500 points and $117.47 in fees per person at the end of November and rebooked at 15,200 points when prices dropped closer to the trip.
Before departing to the Bahamas, you are required to take a covid test and apply for a health visa. I got my PCR done at Ezra Medical Center and received the results in less than 2 hours. The health visa took a few hours to be approved, and lucky for me included a mandatory insurance policy that covers covid. The health visa costs $40 per person on our 4-night & 5-day stay, but I believe that the price goes up the longer that you stay.
We were scheduled to depart on the 9 am flight out of EWR. While taxiing, the pilot got on the intercom and stated that there was a computer malfunction and that they would have to restart the engines. Unfortunately, that was unable to solve the issue and we were forced to go back to the gate to have the plane checked out by the mechanical team. After a bit over two hours from our original departure time, our pilot got on the intercom and said that although they could not fix that computer, it was redundant and we were cleared to depart. Due to the two-hour delay, we did not have a ground crew ready when we landed in the Bahamas and had to wait on board for an additional 30 minutes before taxiing to the gate. After clearing immigration, we got our luggage and took a cab to Atlantis. We made sure to confirm the price in advance and were told it was $51 plus a 2 dollar toll.
I was booked into the Royal and was upgraded to an ocean view upon request at check-in. While the room was a bit dated and nothing to write home about, the view was nice and it had a balcony with just enough room to walk out on but not sit. If you are a morning shower person, this place is not for you as the water is freezing first thing in the morning, but warms up as the day progresses. The grounds on the other hand are really nice and the Royal is in the center of everything. We spent the bulk of our time here on the beach, water slides, and just walking around and exploring all that there is to do at Atlantis. If you have read up on the Atlantis, you know that some of the pools are not heated and were a bit too chilly for my liking. All in all, we had a relaxing and enjoyable time during our stay at Atlantis.
A day into our stay, we got an email from JetBlue apologizing for the delayed flight and informing us that they had issued a $125 travel credit for each passenger.
For food, we brought along meals from Moisha's Supermarket and, as usual, they were fantastic. As have done in the past when traveling, we reached out to the takeout manager a few days before our trip, and he vacuum-packed, and froze our food for us. Thankfully, we brought considerably more than what we actually needed for what we thought was to be a short stay. We packed them in our Polar Bear cooler and they arrived frozen solid despite the delay. We warmed them up using the Hotlogic Mini which as mentioned on the forums is great for travel and quite compact. Since the frozen meals take a bit over an hour to warm up, we brought along a timer and set it to turn on an hour before we anticipated returning to our room. The Hotlogic is insulated so had no issues keeping the food cold until it turned on.
Now for the fun part. We were required to take a covid test prior to returning to the US, and since we were all feeling fine, we did not think that we would have any issues. As part of the stay, Atlantis gives 2 free rapid covid tests which have to be scheduled in advance. We tested yesterday morning and I received an email shortly after with my positive results and was told that I must immediately return to my room to quarantine for 10 days or until I get a negative Covid test. A few minutes after returning to the room, I got a call from the onsite medical clinic offering me a PCR for $450. I asked if I can take another rapid and they said that they could not permit me to take one as they were concerned about a false negative. Thankfully, it should be reimbursed by the trip insurance. About 3 hours after the call, they sent someone to my room to administer the PCR. He apologized for the delay and said that unfortunately, there were quite a few guests testing positive now and in quarantine in the resort. A bit later, I got a call from management checking up on me, and letting me know that they are charging me a reduced rate of $150 per night without a resort fee. Hopefully, I can get that reimbursed as well. I also got an email last night from the medical clinic stating that although the CDC changed its guidance to only quarantine for 5 days, the Bahamian government has not and that I can test once per day on day 5 and on but must quarantine for 10 days unless I test negative.
My wife and daughter are flying back now as scheduled, and I postponed my flight until Sunday and booked a refundable backup one for Friday. Thankfully, I should have enough food to last me for a bit, and am in good spirits. I still have no symptoms of covid. Hopefully, the PCR comes back negative, but as of now, it looks like I am stuck in an unwanted extended Bahamian vacation.