Compass Point Beach Resort, Nassau

I stopped off at the Compass Point restaurant for lunch on 10/4/2011 and ordered the grilled fish of the day (that took 45 minutes). Within 3 hours (thankfully back in Florida), I was on the toilet for the rest of the day. Then next day, I couldn't get out of bed with weakness and flu-like symptoms. Now 6 days later, I'm still suffering from a classic case of "Ciguatera", cause by eating toxic fish like Barracuda. I'll probably be sick for weeks to months. I was later told by a Bahama Customs agent that restaurants will sometimes serve Barracuda because it's cheap and plentiful and they expect most customers won't know the difference. (I didn't know I and it tasted fine.) A friend of mine was also there later that week and had diarrhea all day from eating their fish and chips, although is not as sick as me. I can usually put up with the typical total lack of enthusiasm and attentiveness from Bahamian wait staff, but I suspect Compass Point is knowingly serving toxic fish to unsuspecting customers that they know will be long gone before they get sick (with my backpack, it was obvious I was not staying there). And why not? It's the Bahamas, Mon! It would take a year and 10 bribes before their "Health Department" did anything about it.

Anybody who likes this place must not have high standards. This place is a glorified Boy Scout Camp, painted like a McDonald's Play Land. If you have $400 to spend on a room/night, I would suggest ANY other hotel on Nassau. This is NOT above a 3 star, and could easily be a 2 star. My partner and I stayed at Compass Point for one night. We arrived on Dec 8, for a nephews wedding at the hotel the following day, Wed. Dec. 9th. In July 2009 I contacted the hotel directly with some pre-booking questions. I was immediately concerned by the snotty attitude of the front desk. So much so, that after several calls, and rude treatment, I would only book through the wedding planner Anita. Why she is not the General Manager is ridiculous. She seems to be the ONLY person there that gives a crap. During the wedding, this classy good looking 50-something woman, was working her butt off. She was sweating hard as she served drinks, made drinks, served food, cleared food, pretty much EVERYTHING, with very little or no assistance from any of the other staff. And there is a lot of staff here, too bad none of them like to work, and are so often unpleasant. This place is a good deal, if you were paying $85.00/night. And there ARE hidden fees, so BEWARE!!! They also charged my credit card twice, once in August 2009. And again in October 2009. When I called the General Manager, he seemed pretty ill-equiped to handle the error, and the staff. Almost like he was afraid of them. Very weird. With disgust, I called Anita to handle it because I hated speaking with him and the front desk so much. Anyway, if you are planning a wedding, this place is okay, but ONLY if Anita is in charge. I would NOT stay here overnight. The food was VERY good, and Brendan the new chef from Atlanta seems very talented. I must say, ALL the food we had here was excellent. If it was available. Check with your server, to see what is available, and what they feel like preparing for you. DO NOT make a selection, and assume the cook's feel like cooking it. Again, what we had was excellent, the dinner, the breakfast, and the wedding food. Bar and restaurant service stinks, expect to ask for everything, at least twice, from an ashtray, to a toothpick. I was amazed that the bartenders had no clue when an ashtray was full and needed to be emptied. Again, two bartenders for maybe 10 people, but it felt like you were putting them out when you asked for anything. Expect eye rolling, and disdain from the entire restaurant staff. I remember the bartenders slapping down these cheesy, dirty placemats. The two of us spent $275.00 at the bar/restaurant for dinner/drinks. Of course, when it came time for bed, (around 9:30, the kitchen closes at 10) we ordered some desserts to take to our room, but the only thing available was Chocolate Cake. Back to the room conditions, like other posters, we also checked in and were just pointed to the room. Had one of the 3 front desk people showed us to the room, MAYBE the broken TV would have been noticed before we had to change rooms at midnight. And the night manager was miserable. Maybe because we are gay they chose to give us the worst possible room? There were, after all, another 15 rooms available. Maybe they just like to see how abyssmal the service can get before someone says something? The room was very dated, crowded, and not very romantic. The floor was dirty with sand. The mirror was filthy, and there were cobwebs everywhere. Something like food staining the TV screen. The bathrooms are RV sized, with no real counter space, so be prepared. . The "safe" didn't work. The clock couldn't be set to the proper time. Neither of our two keys worked, and so the room couldn't be locked. All of this we didn't care much about, as there were really no other guests, and we weren't ever far from seeing our front door. Again, this was 400.00 per night? This "funky place" was worth $85.00. Hidden fee number 1: $35.00/night "Housekeeping Gratuity".

it was a wonderful resort....very rustic but clean, and comfortable. we were there over valentines day week 2009....everyone from the grounds keepers, house keeping, bar staff, wait staff, front desk, G.Mgr went out of their way to make us feel at home and like family. the bar staff Ian, Garth, Jacoby, were wonderful and kept us entertained.....We had a cab at our disposal the entire time we were there and Mr. Leo (our driver) went out of his way to take care of us...the waiters/waitresses, I can't remember their names now, went out of their way to take care of us....we were always greeted with a smile. it's almost as all of the staff didn't have a care in the world....and in todays world we all know that's not the case.....the only negative side was that we had to leave.....the location was about 20 min from the center of town so that at night you didn't have to worry about alot of noise.....if you're brave enough you can rent a car (they drive on the opposite side of the road and the roads are narrow) we had no trouble getting a cab. this was a first time trip out of the country for my wife and I and were not dissapointed.....we will deffinately return!!!!

The location is great, very close to the airport and it is a beautiful spot. The problem is the resort has changed hands. Chris Blackwell is no longer the owner. The new owners have turned Compass Point into a Wedding Factory Outlet. We stayed for 7 days in April 2008 and there were 3 weddings during our stay. The resort is too small to host these events and as such, our relaxing vacation was interrupted constantly. Loud music/DJs and partying right outside our door. It was awful. We will never return.

I booked here at the last minute and so had to stay three nights. It's a nice place, right on the water at the west end of the island so pretty quiet. I had a bungalow right on the walkway, across from the pool, beach. It was nice but could have been a little cleaner for my taste, cobwebs...same for the pool area. It would be nice if they were to brush off the beach chairs every morning so you didn't have sand and hair from the previous day facing you when you plan to sit. the food is awful and really expensive for what it is. wine list could use help too. staff very friendly and helpful. had a fantastic massage out on the pier one morning. there was some construction going on across the road starting at 8 am but I was already up. not too loud though. it is also in the flight path to the airport but you soon drown that out. when you sit on a chaise and gaze out at the amazing water you tend to zone everything out. very small beach, good for a few days but wouldn't want to spend my whole vacation here. for the bungalow I stayed in, there wasn't a comfortable place to sit inside. outside it was a rocking chair-so so. everyone can see you if you sit outside so ask for a different arrangement if you can.

My son and daughter in love were married at Compass Pointe 5 years ago. It couldn't have been a more romantic setting. The wedding ceremony was at sunset at the gazebo which virtually is in the water! The ceremony began at 7:30 while the sun was setting and continued until 8:15 when the skies were moonlit. The restaurant became the reception site on Saturday evening and the service, food and all around ambience were 5*. However, I do not believe that breakfast on Sunday morning was up to par. It felt that the staff had a hard time accomodating 100 people for breakfast. After a perfect Saturday and Saturday nite, Sunday brunch was a bit of a disappointment. Hopefully since that was 5 years ago, things have improved. With the popularity of destination weddings increasing daily, I truly recommend Compass Point!

Located right on the ocean, I was surprised to find that this lovely property is only 1.5 acres. It is beautiful - both the buildings and the landscaping. I love the bright colours rather than the traditional Bahamian pastels - really gets you in the spirit. Take your meals al fresco or in the dining room that looks out over the ocean and the pool. Unwind in the hot tub as soon as you get there! The accomodations are very upscale "little grass shack" and very clean and comfortable, the Aveda products just one of the available amenities in the rooms - also TV, stereo - all the stuff you like. The best thing about this place is the staff: they're more than polite. They really made me think they realized that I came a long way to get there, and that I wanted to indulge myself, and they did everything they could to make sure my holiday was perfect - and it was!

Hotel is beautiful, staff very nice..food terrible!!!They really need to correct this. Tried dinner 3 nights,,expensive and bad!!! Too bad..beautiful place. Also there are no beach chairs. The setting is gorgeous, quiet and romantic but if you like a beach chair and good food go somewhere else.

My husband and I stayed here in January with our 18 month old son. It was beautiful! We had a unique seaview hut on stilts that we LOVED. The unit came with a large bed, flat screen TV, great speaker system, aveda products in the bath, and an efficient A/C that we rarely used because the weather was so perfect. It was wonderful to just open up the double-doors to our deck (incredible views), and be lulled to sleep by the sounds of the ocean. We had a very relaxing time, and would recommend it highly to anyone looking for a calm, relaxing, hide-away type of beach vacation. Con's - restaurant was good, but pretty overpriced (i.e. 3 tiny pastries breakfast plate w/ a Small O.J. for over $10) but there are not really any other food options close by. That is the other thing - this could be a pro or a con, depending on what you are looking for, but it is fairly secluded. There arent any restaurants, grocery stores nearby, so be prepared that their restaurant seems to be the only food option (unless you are willing to take a $15-20 taxi ride to get your food elsewhere.) The restaurant is good, but nothing to write home about. The beach is beautiful and quiet, however hard to access and navigate down a slippery stairway. I would like to see the pool heated during the coldest months. Other than that this was a perfect vacation, and just the kind of quiet relaxation my family needed. We would definitely come back.

My wife and I and 2 children stayed in 2 sea veiw huts side by side - they were great (would have been fantastic if they were ajoining and one of the rooms had twin beds) the service from skip and linda was warm and welcoming - just what you want and expect (the service and food in the restuarnt was mixed the service was very inconsistent pushy- always trying to up sell your food selection and the food while good for a couple of days was too heavy for a longer stay with or without children- they need a lite menu for those of us that are health conscious and or vegitarian like my daughter). The place is truely boutique and that is what makes it work so well.I recomend it and plan on returning. and many thanks again to Linda and Skip.