Where to look
Nassau & Paradise Island — The Classic Bahamas
First-time visitors — Resort guests — Families — Cruise stopovers Nassau, capital of the Bahamas on New Providence island, is where 90% of visitors spend at least one night. The city offers the full spectrum from budget guesthouses in the historic downtown to ultra-luxury at Baha Mar on Cable Beach. The historic centre -- Nassau's straw market, colonial Parliament Square, the pink Government House, and Queen's Staircase (65 steps carved into limestone by enslaved workers in the 18th century) -- is walkable from the cruise port and gives a sense of the islands' colonial history. Cable Beach on the northwest shore has the best swimming and a line of large hotels. Arawak Cay (Fish Fry) is the local food scene: dozens of shacks serving fresh conch fritters, cracked conch, fish fry, and the Bahamas rum drink Sky Juice. Paradise Island is a short bridge-drive from Nassau, dominated by Atlantis -- a vast resort complex with a 141-acre waterpark, a walk-through aquarium with sharks and rays, casino, multiple pools, and 11 restaurants. Atlantis is the Bahamas' most famous attraction and most expensive hotel; families with young children often find it worth the premium for a self-contained vacation. Baha Mar on Cable Beach offers a more contemporary alternative with three hotels (Grand Hyatt, SLS, Rosewood) sharing a campus with a casino, waterpark, and beach club. For visitors who want Nassau as a gateway rather than a destination, downtown guesthouses and mid-range hotels offer good value for a single overnight before flying on to the Out Islands.
Exuma — Swimming Pigs, Grotto & Sand Dollars
Nature lovers — Snorkellers — Boat trip enthusiasts — Adventure seekers The Exuma Cays are the soul of the Bahamas -- a 160 km chain of tiny islands strung along a ridge between the shallow Great Bahama Bank and the deep Exuma Sound. The water colours here -- ranging from palest aquamarine through vivid turquoise to deep cobalt -- are among the most beautiful on Earth. Big Major Cay, about 15 km north of Great Exuma, is home to a famous colony of semi-wild swimming pigs who swim out to meet boats for food. Thunderball Grotto near Staniel Cay is an underwater cave system (featured in the Bond films Thunderball and Never Say Never Again) where snorkellers can swim through chambers lit by shafts of sunlight. The Exuma Cays Land and Sea Park -- a 453 km² marine protected area -- has pristine reefs with nurse sharks, eagle rays, and enormous green sea turtles. Most visitors base themselves in George Town on Great Exuma, the largest inhabited island, with a small hotel strip, marina, and the famous Chat N' Chill beach bar on Stocking Island across the harbour. From George Town, boat tours reach the swimming pigs and snorkel spots in one full day. The smaller cays -- Staniel Cay, Sampson Cay, Compass Cay -- have tiny boutique resorts and marina clubs accessible by boat or private charter. Dean's Blue Hole at Long Island (south of Exuma) is the world's second-deepest known marine blue hole at 202 m and a pilgrimage site for free divers.
Harbour Island — Pink Sands & Pastel Charm
Romantic couples — Honeymooners — Boutique hotel seekers — Photography enthusiasts Harbour Island -- a 5 km long sliver off the northern tip of Eleuthera -- is one of the Caribbean's most celebrated small islands and consistently ranks among the world's most beautiful beach destinations. Pink Sands Beach runs the full 5 km of the Atlantic-facing side: the pale pink colour comes from microscopic crushed coral fragments and foraminifera shells mixed into white sand, most vivid in early morning and late afternoon light. The beach faces northeast, giving it consistent small surf perfect for paddling and bodyboarding. The western (harbour) side of the island faces calm turquoise water ideal for swimming and kayaking. Dunmore Town -- the island's only settlement, named after the 18th-century colonial governor -- is a gem of colonial Bahamian architecture: narrow lanes, white picket fences, and candy-coloured clapboard houses. The island has no traffic lights, very few cars, and golf carts as the primary transport. Hotels here are small and expensive: Coral Sands Hotel, The Landing Inn, Pink Sands Resort (9 cottages set in tropical gardens), and Tingum Village are the main options. Rock House (boutique hotel with pool and restaurant) and the Valentine's Marina area have good mid-range options. There are no chain hotels on Harbour Island -- that is part of its appeal.
Grand Bahama — Reef Diving & National Parks
Divers — Budget travellers — Nature seekers — Families on a budget Grand Bahama island, 130 km north of Nassau and just 90 km from Palm Beach, Florida, is the Bahamas' second main island. Freeport is the commercial hub -- a planned city with a casino, international airport (FPO), and a cluster of hotels along the south shore. The island was severely damaged by Hurricane Dorian in August 2019 (category 5 at landfall) and tourism infrastructure is still rebuilding, but the natural assets remain: Lucayan National Park in the east has Ben's Cave -- one of the world's largest charted underground cave systems -- accessible by kayak from the Gold Rock Creek entrance. Gold Rock Beach within the park is an undeveloped, wild Atlantic beach of exceptional beauty, often entirely empty. The underwater landscape around Grand Bahama is excellent for scuba diving -- UNEXSO (Underwater Explorers Society) based in Freeport is one of the Caribbean's most respected dive operations, offering dolphin interaction dives in open ocean (not a tank), shark dives, and wreck dives on the shallow reefs. Port Lucaya Marketplace is the main tourism and dining hub on the south shore, with the Pelican Bay Hotel and Grand Lucayan (slowly rebuilding post-Dorian) nearby. The island is significantly cheaper than Nassau and a viable alternative for budget-conscious visitors who want beach and diving without Nassau prices.
The Out Islands — Abaco, Eleuthera & Beyond
Sailors — Fishermen — Off-the-beaten-path explorers — Long-stay visitors The Bahamas Out Islands (also called the Family Islands) cover hundreds of sparsely populated islands stretching from Walker's Cay in the far northwest to Inagua near Cuba and Haiti in the far south. The Abacos -- a crescent of islands around a central protected sound -- are the Bahamas' sailing capital: Marsh Harbour (the largest settlement), Green Turtle Cay, Man-O-War Cay, and Elbow Cay (with the 1838 Hope Town lighthouse) form a classic sailing circuit with excellent marinas, pristine snorkelling, and American colonial architecture. Green Turtle Cay's New Plymouth is one of the most photogenic settlements in the Bahamas. The Abacos were also heavily damaged by Dorian -- Marsh Harbour in particular -- but have largely rebuilt. Eleuthera is a long, narrow island (180 km long, in places just 1-2 km wide) with some of the Bahamas' most dramatic scenery: the Glass Window Bridge (where the dark Atlantic and turquoise Exuma Sound meet on either side of a narrow limestone ridge only a few metres wide) is one of the Caribbean's great natural wonders. Eleuthera's surf beaches on the Atlantic east side are among the Bahamas' best for surfing and bodyboarding. The south end (Windermere Island, Cape Eleuthera Marina) has secluded villas and a dive centre. Long Island is famous for Dean's Blue Hole for free divers, Deadman's Cay Caves, and isolation. Andros, the largest Bahamian island, has the world's third-largest barrier reef and virtually no tourist infrastructure -- a frontier destination for serious divers and bonefishing enthusiasts.
✈️ Nassau (New Providence)
Capital. NAS international airport. Most flights, most hotels, Cable Beach, historic downtown, Baha Mar. Gateway to all Out Islands. Convenient but busier than the Family Islands. Gateway — Resorts — History — All budgets
🇨🇦 Paradise Island
Bridge from Nassau. Atlantis mega-resort and waterpark. Cabbage Beach. Most expensive accommodation in the Bahamas. Largely self-contained resort experience. Luxury — Families — Waterpark — All-inclusive
🍀 Exuma Cays
Swimming pigs, Thunderball Grotto, turquoise sandbanks, pristine reefs. GGT airport to George Town. 5-night minimum to do it justice. Best Oct-May. Premier snorkel destination. Nature — Snorkel — Pigs — Iconic
🏖 Harbour Island
Pink Sands Beach, golf carts, pastel houses. ELH airport + water taxi. Small boutique hotels only -- expensive. Most beautiful beach in the Bahamas. 3-7 night minimum. Romance — Pink Beach — Boutique — Luxury
🌊 Grand Bahama
FPO airport near Freeport. UNEXSO diving, Lucayan National Park, Gold Rock Beach. Still rebuilding post-Dorian. Cheaper than Nassau. Easy from Florida by ferry. Diving — Budget — Nature — Rebuilding
⛵️ Abaco
Sailing capital. Marsh Harbour (MHH airport). Green Turtle Cay, Hope Town lighthouse, Man-O-War Cay. Rebuilt post-Dorian. Marina-focused, excellent snorkel and sailing circuit. Sailing — Charming — Snorkel — Rebuilding
🌁 Eleuthera
Long narrow island. Glass Window Bridge, surf beaches, Harbour Island offshore. ELH airport. Less crowded than Nassau. Pink Sand beach day trips. Excellent for independent travellers. Scenic — Surf — Independent — Uncrowded
🐘 Andros
Largest Bahamian island, least visited. World's third-largest barrier reef. ASD airport. Famous for bonefishing. No tourist infrastructure -- serious divers and fishermen only. Diving — Fishing — Frontier — Untouched
Tips for booking
- Nassau's beaches are good but the Out Islands have better ones -- plan accordingly. Cable Beach and Cabbage Beach (Paradise Island) are pleasant but can be crowded. If beach quality is your priority, Nassau is best used as a 1-2 night gateway before flying to Exuma, Eleuthera, or Abaco. NAS airport has good connections to the Family Islands on Bahamasair and Southern Air. The ferry from Potter's Cay Dock beside Paradise Island Bridge connects Nassau to the Family Islands by sea -- slower but cheaper and scenic.
- Stay in George Town for 4-5 nights to do the Exumas justice -- day-tripping from Nassau is rushed. The flight from Nassau to Great Exuma (GGT) takes 35-40 minutes and runs several times daily. Day trips from Nassau by chartered seaplane or boat are possible but exhausting and expensive. Staying in Exuma lets you do the pig swim in the morning before the day-trip crowds arrive (boats from Nassau arrive around 10:30-11:00; local tours depart at 08:00-08:30). October to May is the best period -- summer brings strong winds and choppy seas that make boat tours uncomfortable.
- Getting to Harbour Island requires a short water taxi from North Eleuthera -- factor in two flights or a ferry. Fly Nassau to North Eleuthera Airport (ELH), then take a 5-minute water taxi across the channel to Harbour Island. The water taxi is cheap and runs constantly. Alternatively, fly directly from Fort Lauderdale or Miami to ELH on small charter airlines. Budget minimum 3 nights to justify the effort; 5-7 nights is better. The pink colour of the sand is most visible in early morning before the light is overhead -- plan a sunrise walk for the best photography.
- Grand Bahama is rebuilding after Hurricane Dorian (2019) -- check hotel status before booking. The Grand Lucayan resort complex was badly damaged and has undergone ownership changes. Some hotels have reopened fully, others partially. Port Lucaya Marketplace and UNEXSO are operating normally. Gold Rock Beach and Lucayan National Park are open and unchanged -- the natural assets are unaffected. Grand Bahama is an easy day trip from Fort Lauderdale by Bahamas Ferry (3.5 hrs) if you prefer a day visit over staying overnight.
- Inter-island transport in the Out Islands is by small aircraft or mail boat -- plan carefully. Bahamasair and Southern Air connect Nassau to most Family Island airports. Flight times are 20-45 minutes, but schedules are limited (2-4 flights per day on busy routes, fewer on remote islands). Mail boats from Potter's Cay Dock Nassau travel to most Out Islands weekly -- a 6-24 hour journey that is cheap, authentic, and slow. Having a rental car or golf cart on each island is essential as there is no public transport. For multi-island itineraries, book the internal flights before the international leg.
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