No trip would be complete for families, or even big kids, without a visit to Atlantis' huge Waterscape. Claiming to be the world's largest open-air aquarium, it has a whole host of lagoons and is home to 200 species of marine life. Sun International remade the Paradise Island Resort & Casino as the Atlantis at a cost of US$850 million.
It now has waterfalls and the quarter-mile 'Lazy River Ride' for tubing, plus six exhibit lagoons filled with live coral, more than 14,000 fish and heaps of other sea life. It's best viewed from an underwater Plexiglas walkway or from other subaqueous tunnels surrounded by massive aquariums. The waterscape is centered on The Dig, a full-size depiction of the ruins of Atlantis, linked by interconnecting passageways; and a Mayan temple with six water slides, one of which - the Leap of Faith - sends brave vacationers through a Plexiglas tube that plummets down through the Predator Lagoon full of sharks.
The best time to check out Waterscape is at feeding times; check at reception. Tours depart from the Coral Towers Lobby.