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Trip Reports |
| If you would like to a trip report of your own, then you can send it to me via E-mail and I will post it here. |
| #70- 8/11/2002 11:58:43 by Pieter pieter.johnson@btopenworld.com |
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We arrived around lunch time and if you arrive before 3pm do not expect to get into your room, it will not be ready. However they do give you the ability to use the facilities until your room is ready.
The rooms are basic and can be a bit grubby. Ours was a ground floor sea facing room with a balcony. The room does not get cleaned until late in the afternoon as they prioritise check out rooms first. Once checked in you will be mercilessly pestered by staff proposing to get you a welcome meeting and a tour of the facilities. When I was asked for a $10 deposit, we realised this was timeshare selling at its best. We were quite resentful of their approaches and eventually had to be quite rude in telling them to stop approaching us. (This was day 3 of our vacation and I had paid all I was interested in paying for the vacation and was not interested in timeshare. Ps. they even call your room and wake you up). Those are the negative points. On the positive; the hotel has a beach to die for. The beach is large and clean and on good days the snorkelling is great. You only have to go a few yards from the beach to see stingrays and barracuda amongst all the normal Caribbean fish. Unfortunately the hotel only has limited number of masks and snorkels so it can be frustrating waiting, so bring your own if you have them. The pool is where all the activity takes place and the games seem fun. Jennifer from Wisconsin US and Amanda from the UK were always around organising the games. Our favourite member of staff was from Italy and he played John Travolta and the Genie in the shows. (Sorry we forgot his name but he was a great laugh). The shows were very good and provided good evening entertainment, make sure you go to the Game Show, it was great. The bars are well stocked and serve you quickly, however, the beach bars get a bit rowdy when locals are around and you will have to be careful if young kids are around as the swearing gets quite loud. The food is boring and not of a high quality. If you don’t eat meat there are lots of salads and fruit, but it would have been nice if the rice and pasta did not always have meat in them! Do not arrive late for meals as they clear away the food 30-40 minutes before the main restaurant closes. Very frustrating, if you are returning from a trip and still expect the food to be there as the restaurant is still open. Even more frustrating if you are on time and go up for desert only to find it finshed and no chance of them bringing anymore out. The separate Italian restaurant is OK but the menu is limited. Eating outside in the early evening was very pleasant. We only went on a few trips. We went into Port Lucaya to shop which is fun. Our taxi driver (Henry) was very good and arranged and booked tables for us at Pier 1 (a restaurant in the main Freeport Port area). Even though he was unable to pick us up to take us there, he arranged for another taxi to come for us. Look him up if you are there, he tried hard to help us. Pier 1. DO NOT MISS THIS. The food is OK but a little pricey but the main attraction is the arrival of an armada of very large fish and about 10 fully grown Bull Sharks at 7pm, 8pm and 9pm for feeding. The owner has done this for 12 years and throws them a small amount of fish. Seeing sharks in a feeding frenzy only a few feet from the shore is unbelievable and great fun. They are only given a small amount so they cannot rely on it and are totally wild. The only other trip we made was to the glass bottom boat trip from Xanadu sports. The boat broke down twice but this did not spoil the enjoyment of the trip that visits three wrecks (you can see them 100ft down), as well as a coral reef and the largest Brain Coral on the west coast of the Island. Good fun and Kevin, your host is a real laugh a minute. Travel in and out is a bit frustrating as you have to arrive early and there is not much to do at the airport. Did we have a good time. Yes, the weather was very very hot (One of the party got heat stroke so beware), the beaches are some of the best we have seen and the locals are very nice. |
| #69- 8/05/2002 11:58:43 by Therese therese.davies@Vanderbilt.Edu |
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I recently returned from Viva Fortuna, after a 4 night stay from
7/25/02 through 7/29/02. I made the trip with two women friends - it
was a "ladies birthday trip". How delightful it was ! From the first impression when we arrived throughout our stay, it was all we hoped for. The staff was friendly & hard working. The room, with two queen beds & balcony, overlooking the pond was wonderful, & beautifully quiet at night. The food was very good, with a lot of variety at every meal. The beach was wonderful & so was the water, we had no rain & no bugs - the bartenders worked hard & remained cheerful - We walked down the beach to Club Caribe, what a charming & fun place. Our trip to the straw market was fun and not very expensive. The whole Bahamas experience was great, just too short; we are already planning to make the trip again. I would recommend Club Viva Fortuna, a nice & reasonably priced vacation for old, young or families - It's not a 5 star but after all haven't we all enjoyed a drink out of a plastic cup before - a great all-inclusive deal - Thanks Club Viva - |
| #68- 8/01/2002 16:39:59 by ALISON GREGORY gregory.2000@btinternet.com |
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I returned to the UK on 29.7.02 following a week at Club Fortuna. I
am a mum and stayed with my 2 teenager daughters aged 15 and 17. We
had a great time. The temperature was in the 90s every day. The sea
was lovely and warm and a beautiful colour. The beach was lovely,
stretched for miles with no one on it when you left the front of the
Club. We walked both ways, to the right is the back of millionaire's
row and eventually leads to the inland canal. There are two small
bars/restaurants along the beach. To the left there are a few houses
but we did not walk to the end. We felt totally safe on our walks,
which cannot always be said in the
Caribbean. There were a few beach sellers but they never pestered
and a few hairbraiders. We borrowed snorkelling equipment most days
and swam out to the orange buoy marking the small reef in front of the
Club. There were loads of fish there and people must feed them as
sometimes they gather all around you. On my swim out one day I saw a
stingray. Twice we saw dolphins swimming out at sea. The beach is
cleaned regularly by a tractor.
We stayed in Abaco 3. The rooms are quite basic and Abaco 1 has been refurbished. However, the room was clean and tidy and we had a lovely view. We have been to many Caribbean islands and have found rooms are often tiled floors and similarly furnished. I do know people complain about the rooms but we found them perfectly OK. They are cleaned everyday and new towels supplied every day. The swimming pool can get quite busy but mostly we were able to get a sunbed. It is warm and clean. The entertainment team were great. They work tirelessly all day, do the evening performance in the theatre and then go to the disco which doesn't finish till 1.30 am. They were all very friendly and we loved the nightly performances. We heard comments they were a bit amateurish but considering how hard they work, I am surprised they are able to learn so many routines. They were great. We found the bar staff fine and never had to wait particularly long for drinks, I did see some people tip, but we didn't and they were always polite and friendly. However, the same could not be said for the reception staff. Although they were not actually rude they certainly were not very friendly, but it did not affect our stay. The food was wonderful, always hot, loads of choice. The only bad thing was that I put on 7 lbs in weight. Having read previous comments on your site, I was slightly apprehensive, as more recent comments were a bit negative. We did not find anything negative to say about Club Fortuna at all, we would all go back any time. 1 week was enough for me as it is quite isolated and taxis are relatively expensive,around $10 - £15 one way to go to Lucaya/Freeport. I was once approached regarding timeshare in the reception area. I told him we were not interested in attending the presentation and we had already looked around the grounds and club and he was fine. No more approaches. I have to say we did try to dodge the "Doctor". He is the photographer, he is a bit persistent, but we had a laugh with him and he didn't take our photo as we were not interested. He was fine. My advice to anyone visiting is, don't expect a five star hotel, because it isn't luxury but it is fun, friendly, hot, good food, lovely beach and the rooms are adequate. We always had hot water and the hairdryer worked!! If you are coming back to the UK, enjoy the lovely weather, as we have returned to rain, and more rain. Have fun and be positive, it's great. |
| #67- 7/30/2002 19:30:42 by deedoll@comcast.net |
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Just returned from Club Fortuna 7/29, after 4 wonderful nights. I had
the time of my life. Grounds were very nice, beach beautiful and the
most polite staff I have ever seen. I was in the Cays bldg
overlooking the turtle pond. Very private and quite. Our room was
exactly what we expected. Clean, cool tile floors with a nice view
from the balcony on the second floor. We were very pleased. I thought the food was excellent, the buffet offered something different each night. There were 2 little birds that peaked around on the floor, which we enjoyed watching. No one seemed to mind. Oh, the theater is a MUST. The animation staff is awesome! These kids come from all over the world and put on a great show. All introductions were in 4 languages! Quite impressive performers at night to all be on the day staff also. The children loved them. So did I, for that matter. I was truly amazed. And "Dr. Love" was the most fun. He is one of the resident photographers. Funny man. I highly recommend this resort and wish I HAD sat in on the time-share thing. I am having info sent to me. I will definitely go back and enjoy this island paradise again and again. |
| #66- 7/30/2002 16:28:17 by WCL wndowbug@optonline.net |
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Dear Reader... wife, me and boys 12 and 10 yrs. old vacationed at viva
fortuna from 7/20-7/26/02... We had a great time..weather, staff, room,
beach, water, entertainment all fine... even the food was good and
plenty of it... free drinks from 10A to 12Midnight...boys hooked up
with other kids and were off doing their thing... people, for the
money this is a very good FAMILY vacation package... sure one can
nitpick this and that but come on, you make it work for you. This is
not a five star vacation so don't think of it in those terms. You
can do just fine there for the money.....It's a kid friendly place...
Just say no thanks to the time-share people and thats that... We would
go back. Long Island, N.Y. |
| #65- 7/29/2002 22:27:42 by donnaabbott@excite.com |
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We just got back Saturday, my husband, myself, our 15 yr old daughter
and her best friend. We had 2 rooms in Abaco facing the garden. It was
much quieter than the rooms facing the beach and very close to
everything. A very good location. When we arrived, I was told the travel agency had not paid for our room! The front desk people were not rude, despite everything I had heard from other postings. Eventually everything was straightened out. In fact I received a call at home from Karen at the hotel today letting me know that the problem had been solved. The food was variable. The Italian items on the menu were quite good. The seafood chowder was excellent! The omelets were good. The hash was good. The meat entrees were strange. One night there was very good roast turkey with cranberry sauce. The dinner desserts were very good buy the best choices ran out early. Best to get your dessert with your entree. The hoagies at snack time were quite good. The Italian bread they were on was excellent. This bread was also available with all meals. We went to the sit-down restaurant one night. At 8:30 they were out of some entrees. We all had individual pizzas which were quite good. The beach was perfect. Nice powedery sand. The water was perfect except for 1 day when it was slightly choppy. You did not even need to snorkel out to the reef to see lots of little fish swimming around you. There was plenty of shade on the beach. The strawberry daiquiris from the bar on the beach were much better than the ones inside. The beach towels were big and fluffy, but you need to get yours early in the morning before they run out. The air conditioning in the rooms was industrial-strength. The beds were comfortable. The cable TV reception was as good as we get at home. I was pleasantly surprised to find the TV received Boston stations. The girls got their hair braided by ladies who work for the hotel for $40 each, down from an initial asking price of $2 per braid (that would have been over $100 each). You can bargain but you need to be nice and remember that this is how these folks make their livings. A bit down the beach on the right some locals set up shop with jewelry, clothing, etc. I did not find the quality of the items as good as in other places. The same goes for the native crafts in the Int'l Marketplace or Port Lucaya. A lot of the items were made in China! I went on a tour of the island through the Executive Tours desk which is in the hotel. It was definitely worth the money! The Karaoke on Sunday and Wednesday was awesome. Two other nights there was a musician, very low key. They should have other entertainment between supper and showtime. Also they should think about utilizing the disco in the early evening for the teens. The lobby is usually totally deserted. The bar is much nicer and usually quite busy. The under-18 crowd has red bracelets so they cannot be served liquor. The adults have blue bracelets. There were 65 families of little leaguers from NC there when we were there! Also lots of teens, babies, older couples. Very few singles. This is definitely a family oriented place. Every night at 9:30 the staff puts on a show. Not to be missed. They really work hard. Don't be put off by the fact that a lot of the staff does not speak English that well. The staff is from all over the world, Italy, NZ, Sardinia, Argentina, France. Just speak a bit slower. The girls found plenty to do: windsurfing, kayaking, archery, snorkeling. My husband took out a sailboat a few times. There is no charge for the non-motorized sports. I was never afraid to let the girls go off by themselves, even swimming in the ocean in the dark. The resort is very casual. I did not wear the dress I brought. Shorts, T Shirt, Shoes. That's all you need to wear to dinner, etc. All in all we had a very good vacation, the price was right. |
| #64- 7/07/2002 21:57:57 by jerry d howard jdhsr@attbi.com |
|
our family stayed at viva fortuna july 1 to july 5 we had no hot water until july 5 friday the day we departed we repeatedly complained to the front desk every day (rooms b3103 and b3104)
thursday nite july 4 a staff repair man finally got a plumber out from freeport and found a broken water line under the sidewalk also the entire bldg bemini 3 complained to no avail as well as building 5
the employee told us that the viva folks bought the place 18 months ago from beach fortuna and hasnt spent a dime on maintenance
the place has run down badly
we found several outdoor light fixtures by the pool that children could get to with exposed sockets and bare wiring
also the hot water heater closets are not locked and the 480 volt wiring terminals are exposed when you open the door to the closet some of which were open when we walked by
there were signs in all public areas selling time shares ask us plus the staff drove us nuts constantly hitting on us to sell us time shares
the staff wasnt friendly nor where they helpful
we asked for the manager but he was never around ?
in addition i found that they had blocked access to at&t 800 credit card 800 service to force the guest to use there direct dial to the states at $ 3.09 per minute
we will never stay there again nor will we recommend the place to any one
our room had no soap nor towels on check in we had to request them
jerry d howard carrollton texas |
| #63- 6/24/2002 20:57:10 by NANCY NancyHothead420@aol.com |
|
HELLO EVERYONE, I STAY AT THE CLUB JUNE 10TH-16TH.FIRST OF ALLWHEN WE ARRIVED IT WAS 88*,THEN WHEN WE GOT TO OUR ROOM AND CAHANGED INTO OUR SWIMWEAR AND WAS HEADED FOR THE BEACH.IT STARTED RAINNING AND DIDNT STOP UNTILL THURSDAY.FOUR DAMN DAYS LATER.ITS HURRICANE SEASON.....HELLLOOOOO.!!!!!!! IT WAS SO BORING!!!! NO INDOOR ACTIVITIES,EXCEPT FOR A POOL TABLE YOU HAD TO FEED QUARTERS TO.THE ALL YOU CAN DRINK BAR IS HOUSE LIQUIOR,WHICH WILL GIVE YOU A MASSIVE HANGOVER.....LIKE IT DID ME!!! THE FOOD IS BUFFET SYTLE,LOTS OF PASTAS AND RICE,VERY PLAIN AND BORING.NO LSLAND FOOD.I WAS LOOKING FOWARD ON EATING CULTURAL FOOD,SUCH AS PEAS AND RICE AND STEW CHICKEN.THEY HAVE RAW STEAMED CHICKEN WHERE WAS SO NASTY...I COULDNT EAT IT.NO DUMPLINGS ONLY JONNY BREAD. IT WAS REALLY CRAZY...THE STAFF WAS KOOL,THEY DID ANYTHING I ASKED.OH YEAH DONT LET ME FORGET ABOUT THE PAIN IN THE AZZ TIMESHARING REPS.THEY DONT LET UP.THEY R VERY RUDE ONCE YOU DO NOT BUY INTHE THEIR PROPERTY.THEY WERE SO RUDE,I HAD TO GIVE THEM A TASTE OF GOOD OL NEW YORK CITY.I PUT THEM ALL IN THE PLACES SO WELL,I WAS AWARDED A STRAW BAG WITH A BOTTLE OF RUM AND TWO CLUB VIVA T-SHIRTS.....JUST TO SHOUT ME UP!!!! I DO NOT RECOMEND THIS BOOTLEG RESORT.IF YOU WANT TO GO TO FREEPORT,LOOK IN TO OUR LUCAYA OR REEFS VILLAGE.THEIR RESORT IS SO BEAUTIFUL AND IT HAS A BEACH FRONT.ROOM SERVICE AND A COFFEMAKER, IN YOUR ROOM. SO GOOD LUCK AND PLEASE TRUST MY WORDSS.THEY ARE FROM THE HEART!!!!!!!! |
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| This page was last modified on 7 October 2002. |