Hotels in the Abacos tend to be small and casual. Elbow Cay’s Abaco Inn draws return guests to its cheerful island-style rooms nestled among sand dunes and coconut palms. Perched at the crest of a sandy ridge with views of both the Atlantic Ocean and Sea of Abaco, the inn’s restaurant has a reputation for the best seafood around (try the grilled wahoo or crispy, pan-fried coconut grouper). Leave room for the desserts by Miss Belle, a fourth-generation Hope Town Bahamian whose fresh-squeezed key lime, coconut, and chocolate silk pies are a local legend. At the very tip of Elbow Cay is Tahiti Beach, a gorgeous curve of sand whose utterly placid, clear turquoise waters are so remote you can only get there by foot, bike, golf cart, or boat.
With pastel clapboard homes and white picket fences, Man-O-War Cay takes you back in time. Residents are justly proud of their 200-year history of shipbuilding, and continue to craft their famous fiberglass boats today. Great Guana, the longest of the Abaco cays, stretches nearly 7 miles tip to tip but has just 100 full-time residents. Its endless beach, alluringly deserted and with grassy dunes, runs the entire length of the island and is one of the loveliest in the Bahamas. It’s home to Nippers, one of the best (and most family-friendly) beach bars around. A multilevel structure perched high on a 40-foot dune, it offers snorkelers and divers easy access to the outstanding Great Abaco Barrier Reef Beach, which starts less than 50 feet from shore. Adults indulge in frozen Nipper Trippers—a frozen concoction of five rums and two juices—while kids can splash about in small swimming pools. Sunday is an all-day party disguised as a pig roast.
Some of the best fishing grounds border Treasure Cay. It’s also the place to be for golf. Treasure Cay Hotel Resort & Marina has a Dick Wilson–designed 18-hole course that is one of the best in the Bahamas. The property is just steps from the surprisingly uncrowded Treasure Cay Beach, a 3.5-mile-long stretch of incredibly powdery sand, which is perfect for swimming. On Green Turtle Cay, New Plymouth is another historic village settled in 1783 when Loyalists fled America to find a new home. Now it’s best known for Miss Emily’s Blue Bee Bar—a shack, really—hung with Junkanoo masks and home of the Famous Goombay Smash. The top secret recipe is believed to contain coconut rum, dirty rum, apricot brandy, and pineapple juice. Get one to go and amble over to Coco Bay beach, shaded by casuarina pines and, amazingly, almost always empty.
The fishing in the Abacos is renowned: Find yellowtail and grouper on the reefs, marlin and tuna in the deeps, and fast, canny bonefish in the Marls, 400 square miles of lush mangrove islands and sandy cays on the western side of Great Abaco.
Built in 1838, Hope Town’s Elbow Reef Lighthouse is powered by kerosene, one of the last lighthouses of its kind in the world.
VISITOR INFO: www.myoutislands.com. HOW: The Moorings rents bareboats and crewed yachts. Tel 888-952-8420 or 242-367-4000; www.moorings.com. JIB ROOM: Tel 242-367-2700; www.jibroom.com. Cost: dinner $25. ABACO INN: Tel 800-468-8799 or 242-366-0133; www.abacoinn.com. Cost: from $160; dinner $50. When: closed mid-Aug–mid-Oct. NIPPERS: Tel 242-365-5143; www.nippersbar.com. Cost: lunch $15. TREASURE CAY HOTEL RESORT & MARINA: Tel 800-327-1584 or 954-525-7711; www.treasurecay.com. Cost: from $130; greens fees $65 (guests), $90 (nonguests). BEST TIMES: Nov–May for nicest weather; Apr–Jun for Bahamas Billfish Championship; early Jul for Bahamas Cup and Regatta Time in Abaco; May–Aug for blue marlin fishing.
Blue Holes, Bonefish, and Beaches
ANDROS ISLAND
The Bahamas
Because of shallow channels called “bights” that indent and cut across the island, most of Andros, the Bahamas’ largest island, remains sparsely inhabited, little visited, and largely unexplored—except by in-the-know visitors drawn here by its gin-clear waters and the world-class diving and fishing they provide.
Running parallel to its east coast, Andros’s 142-mile barrier reef is the third longest in the world after those in Australia and Central America (see pp. 653 and 961). Venture beyond the reef for a wall that plunges 6,000 feet to a narrow underwater canyon known as the Tongue of the Ocean (aka TOTO). There, divers also find dozens of cathedral-like caves called blue holes (first made famous by Jacques Cousteau)—there are more in the Bahamas than anywhere else in the world.
All this lies just 1 mile offshore from the Bahamas’ oldest (and arguably best) diving and fishing resort, Small Hope Bay Lodge. If you don’t know how to dive or snorkel, they’ll teach you at your own pace (you can even get certified), while nondiving guests are happy with a book or a beer in a hammock among the coconut palms. No one puts on airs at this easygoing beachfront cottage colony—no one even puts on shoes very often, except perhaps at dinner, a hearty, convivial affair that might include fresh conch fritters and chowder, lobster, and warm home-baked johnnycakes. Guests also come for the fishing: Marlin and bluefin tuna are plentiful, but Andros is known as the bonefishing capital of the world. With large numbers of trophy-size bonefish (often topping 12 pounds), Andros provides some of the most exciting light-tackle fishing there is. Cargill Creek is the place to hire a local specialist to guide you through the sandy, shallow flats.
Amp up the luxury quotient at Kamalame Cay, one of the few private-island resorts in the Bahamas’ Out Islands. A 96-acre hideaway off the northeast coast of Andros with a 19th-century British colonial atmosphere, Kamalame ranges from relatively affordable marina rooms to breezy beachfront villas. Only 3 dozen people enjoy this off-the-grid experience at any one time. And with the barrier reef just a mile away, divers and snorkelers are promised exceptional underwater thrills.
VISITOR INFO: www.myoutislands.com. SMALL HOPE BAY LODGE: Tel 800-223-6961 or 242-368-2013; www.smallhope.com. Cost: from $470, inclusive. KAMALAME CAY: Tel 800-790-7971 or 876-632-3213; www.kamalame.com. Cost: from $400. When: closed late Aug–mid-Oct. BEST TIMES: Nov–Apr for nicest weather; Nov and May for fishing.
Out-Island History and Pink Sand
HARBOUR ISLAND
Eleuthera, The Bahamas
The Martha’s Vineyard of the Caribbean and one of the oldest settlements in the Bahamas, Harbour Island is known for its colonial charm and barefoot glamour. It’s so diminutive at 3.5 miles long and less than a mile wide that everyone zips around in golf carts or on beach bikes. Celebrities and fashionistas arrive via the 5-minute water-taxi ride from Eleuthera, the narrow 100-mile-long island whose name is Greek for “freedom,” a reference to Puritan pilgrims who settled here in 1648 after being expelled from Bermuda.
Harbour Island (“Briland,” as it’s known by locals) is best known for its 3-mile pink sand beach, which runs the length of the island. The postcard-perfect crescent, whose color comes from flecks of red plankton mixed with finely crushed white coral, is languidly lapped by calm, turquoise waters that are protected by a reef, making for some of the safest and most enjoyable swimming in the Bahamas. It’s an unpretentious spot, unobtrusively lined with small villas and resorts, happily void of crowds. Along with barefoot R&R, the quietly posh island is favored for bonefishing and for diving the Current Cut Dive, an exciting underwater gully that ranks among the world’s finest.
Looking startlingly like a Cape Cod village, charm-packed Dunmore Town was laid out in 1791 by Lord Dunmore, governor of the Bahamas, after having lost the same job in Virginia during the American Revolution. Eating is excellent here, from the dive-y to the inspired. Start at Queen Conch, a simple shack right off the fishermen’s dock on Bay Street, where there’s just one thing on the menu: fresh-caught, -cracked, and -diced conch salad (be forewarned that locals consider conch an aphrodisiac), revved up with Scotch bonnet peppers and cooled down with a cold Nassau-brewed Kalik beer. Spicy conch chili is the draw at a lime green—painted beachside spot called Sip Sip—lobster quesadillas and rum-spiked carrot cake round out the simple menu.
A little slice of Miami Beach has arrived on a low bluff above the harbor, where the Rock House, a former Catholic schoolhouse, has been transformed into a very chic British-Mediterranean inn and sophisticated restaurant, with a centerpiece pool surrounded by
thatch-roofed cabanas. Wonderfully stylish rooms can also be found at the Landing, set right at the ferry dock and dating from 1800. It is one of the island’s stately old mansions, with original Abaco pine floors, limestone walls, and wraparound verandas where diners enjoy a globally inspired menu and fine harbor views.
At the heart of it all and setting the standard since it opened in 1951, Pink Sands Resort (formerly owned by Chris Blackwell, founder of Island Records) is still a glamorous destination for a young and decidedly cool crowd. Perched on one of the finest beaches in all of the Bahamas, its 25 pastel-colored cottages are spread over 20 tropical acres. Guests and nonguests alike frequent the Blue Bar for its Caribbean fusion menu. The elegant informality of the place is deliberately and deceptively unassuming, in keeping with the island’s vibe.
VISITOR INFO: www.myoutislands.com. SIP SIP: Tel 242-333-3316. Cost: lunch $40. ROCK HOUSE HOTEL: Tel 242-333-2053; www.rockhousebahamas.com. Cost: from $300; dinner $75. When: closed Aug–Oct. THE LANDING: Tel 242-333-2707; www.harbourislandlanding.com. Cost: from $250; dinner $70. When: closed Sep–Oct. PINK SANDS RESORT: Tel 800-407-4776 or 242-333-2030; www.pinksandsresort.com. Cost: cottages from $495 (off-peak), from $750 (peak); dinner $55. BEST TIMES: Nov–May for pleasant weather; Jul for Eleuthera Pineapple Festival; Oct for North Eleuthera/Harbour Island Sailing Regatta.
Swimming Pigs! Plus Spectacular Sailing and a Marine Preserve
THE EXUMA CAYS
The Bahamas
If you arrive in the Exumas by air, book a window seat. Swooping in over the 110-mile-long, spiny chain of 365 cays, which start about 30 miles southeast of Nassau, provides one of the most stunning sights in all of the Caribbean, and a first glimpse of why these mostly undeveloped islands are often considered the crown jewels of the Bahamas. Like a sand painting rising out of the sea, elaborate channels and sandbars are surrounded by waters in every imaginable shade of blue.
While the Abacos (see p. 1059) are traditionally touted as the Caribbean’s best sailing, many claim the Exuma chain steals the show. Its centerpiece is the Exuma Cays Land and Sea Park, a 176-square-mile, breathtakingly beautiful “no take” marine preserve where coral gardens flourish with conch, grouper, and lobster populations that are so abundant they’re helping to repopulate the whole archipelago. Established in 1959 and accessible only by boat (your own or a tour company’s), this is the oldest land and sea park on the planet. But while the land is pretty, providing habitat for turtles, iguanas, and birds, it is the sea that truly dazzles, offering some of the best sea kayaking, yachting, snorkeling, and diving in all the Bahamas.
The closest civilization is an hour away at Staniel Cay Yacht Club. It is a perfect home base for access to the park and other attractions, like Thunderball (a beautiful marine cave excellent for snorkeling and named for the 1965 James Bond movie shot there), and friendly swimming pigs (they paddle out to greet boaters who often bring them food). It may sound swanky, but the yacht club is a congenial social center of just nine unpretentious cottages in fun colors right on the water, an 18-slip marina for boaters, and a small landing strip. It becomes the yachting world’s preferred place to be during the New Year’s Day Cruising Regatta.
Great Exuma Island anchors the southern end of the Exuma archipelago; George Town is its charming pink capital. The popular Augusta Bay Bahamas is a freshly updated property whose 16 spacious suites enjoy sweeping views of a perfect white beach. Check in and then check out the local Fish Fry, a collection of colorful beach shacks at the pier where everyone hangs out, playing cards and listening to music while dining on conch salad, fried fish, and just-caught lobster. Or join the models, photographers, and sailors who make the short trip to nearby Stocking Island for its especially gorgeous beaches and the legendary Chat ’N’ Chill, a beach bar known for its grilled conch burgers, barbecued ribs, and on Sundays, a rowdy pig roast with music.
VISITOR INFO: www.myoutislands.com. EXUMA CAYS LAND & SEA PARK: www.exumapark.com. STANIEL CAY YACHT CLUB: Tel 242-355-2024 or in the U.S., 954-467-8920; www.stanielcay.com. Cost: from $145 (off-peak), from $210 (peak). AUGUSTA BAY BAHAMAS: Tel 242-336-2251; www.augustabaybahamas.com. Cost: from $175 (off-peak), from $225 (peak). CHAT ‘N’ CHILL: Tel 242-336-2700. Cost: dinner $30, pig roast $20. BEST TIMES: Dec–May for nicest weather; late Apr for Family Island Regatta in George Town.
Enchanting Creatures, Face-to-Face
DOLPHIN DIVE
Little Bahama Bank, The Bahamas
The Bahamas is a vast archipelago of 750 sun-soaked islands with 2,500 cays, stretching over 100,000 square miles of green and cobalt blue seas. It’s so close (but with a faraway vibe) to Florida that many visitors launch their island-hopping on private sailboats, yachts, or planes from there. How convenient, then, that one of the Bahamas’ finest attractions—a weeklong encounter with wild dolphins, strictly on their terms—actually departs from Palm Beach.
A pod of wild spotted dolphins congregates regularly north of Grand Bahama Island in spring and summer to play and swim and interact with people; they come without the enticement of food or reward, apparently charmed by their human playmates. Captain Scott of Dream Team, who has spent over 30 years leading weeklong expeditions, is an honorary member of the pod. Upon hearing the sound of his 86-foot boat, the Dolphin Dream, the dolphins appear, riding the bow waves of the boat. The dolphins have learned it’s “zoo time” and come to see who Scott has dropped into the crystal-clear waters. Baby dolphins play with these strange but harmless creatures while the mothers circle nearby, keeping a watchful eye. They may stay a few minutes or a few hours. You’ll usually have one or two encounters a day (or perhaps at night) over the weeklong trip on the boat, which serves as a hotel for 8 to 12 passengers. The water over the Little Bahama Bank—shallow, calm, and with excellent visibility—is perfect for nondiving snorkelers and swimmers, who can enjoy themselves even after the dolphins slip away.
Wild spotted dolphins have become habituated to sharing their waters with humans.
DREAM TEAM: Tel 888-277-8181 or 561-848-5375; www.dolphindreamteam.com. COST: weeklong trips from $1,595 per person, based on 8 passengers, all-inclusive. WHEN: Apr–Aug.
Extravagance Both Showy and Discreet
CLUBS PARADISE
Paradise Island and New Providence Island, The Bahamas
Paradise Island is the tiny neighbor of busy Nassau, the capital of the Bahamas on New Providence Island. The long and narrow island is the home of Atlantis megaresort and the most developed, priciest stretch of gorgeous white beach in the Bahamas. Yet you can still manage to feel like you’ve gotten away from it all at the One&Only Ocean Club.
Now one of the most beautiful resorts in the Caribbean, it began as the private estate of A&P heir Huntington Hartford II. Its terraced hillside gardens were inspired by Versailles and decorated with a 12th-century French cloister purchased by William Randolph Hearst and brought piece by piece to the U.S. One&Only became such an ultraposh, British Colonial-style enclave that the James Bond film Casino Royale found its perfect location here.
With just 105 rooms and suites, situated on 35 acres, honeymooners love its quiet and intimate feel, while enjoying big-resort amenities, including an 18-hole championship golf course designed by Tom Weiskopf; six tennis courts; and a beachfront restaurant, Dune, by celebrity chef Jean-Georges Vongerichten. Eight exquisite Balinese-style spa pavilions open onto gardens and offer private waterfall showers.
Atlantis looms next door, a 3,000-plus-room theme park, like Vegas in the tropics, that is both loved and hated by locals and tourists. The 141-acre Aquaventure water park includes a man-made lagoon for encounters with dolphins and the world’s largest open-air marine habitat, home to over 50,000 sea creatures, while adult pleasures include a casino and the celebrity-chef outposts of Nobu Matsuhisa, Bobby Flay, and Jean-Georges Vongerichten. Of Atlantis’s many towers, two are recently built hotels-within-hotels: the swank all-suite Cove Atlantis, which appeals to couples, and the family-friendly Reef Atlantis. When the n
eed for escape calls, nearby Cabbage Beach still retains some of its glitz-free vibe, unfolding for 2 miles of broad white sand and lined with palms and casuarinas before morphing into Paradise Beach.
Across the bridge, urban Nassau is best known for its casinos, megaresorts, and endless parade of cruise ships, but the aptly named A Stone’s Throw Away provides welcome respite outside town. Though recently built, this small hideaway evokes a handsome old Bahamian plantation home, with wood floors, louvered shutters, and a wraparound porch. Or keep driving west for a romantic sundowner drink at Compass Point Beach Resort’s oceanfront bar, a few steps from justly famous Love Beach. Crayola-colored clapboard cottages provide steady breezes and views of one of Nassau’s few unadulterated stretches of beach. Their colors evoke Junkanoo, the lavish Afro-Bahamian carnival that originated when plantation owners gave their slaves a rare holiday between Christmas and New Year’s—it’s still celebrated today with elaborate parades.
VISITOR INFO: www.bahamas.com. ONE&ONLY OCEAN CLUB: Tel 888-528-7157 or 242-363-2501; http://oceanclub.oneandonlyresorts.com. Cost: from $515 (off-peak), from $1,030 (peak). ATLANTIS: Tel 800-285-2684 or 242-363-3000; www.atlantis.com. Cost: from $280 (off-peak), from $480 (peak) for Atlantis; from $590 (off-peak), from $790 (peak) for Cove Atlantis; from $465 (off-peak), from $705 (peak) for Reef Atlantis. A STONE’S THROW AWAY: Tel 242-327-7030; www.astonesthrowaway.com. Cost: from $190. COMPASS POINT: Tel 866-431-2874 or 242-327-4500; www.compasspointbeachresort.com. Cost: from $300; dinner $50. BEST TIMES: Dec 26–Jan 1 for Junkanoo; Jun and Jul for Nassau/Paradise Island Junkanoo Summer Festival.
1,000 Places to See Before You Die Page 167
