The Bahamas is a coral-based archipelago in the Atlantic Ocean. Its 700-plus islands and cays range from uninhabited to packed with resorts. You can reach the Bahamas within a few hours from the U.S. mainland and it’s therefor a pretty popular holiday destination for Americans. The Bahamas has (colorful) sandy beaches, great dive spots, golf courses and some of the best fishing in the world. It’s a perfect place to escape the cold of our winters!
Facts
- Capital: Nassau
- Language: English
- Currency: Bahamian Dollar (1 € ≅ 1.1 BSD)
- Population: 397.000
- Size: 13,878 km² (1/3 of Holland)
- Daylight saving time: Yes
- Visas: Not required for most nationalities
- Best time to visit: November – May (dry season)
- Visited: 2016 (part of Caribbean trip)
Nassau & Cable Beach
I reached the capital of the Bahamas (Nassau) by plane from Grenada with a short stopover in Miami. I already knew from visiting Grenada that traveling within the Caribbean is pretty expensive, and the Bahamas is no difference. It was February when I visited the Bahamas and I must say that it wasn’t very warm. It was too cold for sunbathing and swimming in the ocean, and I also needed a jacket during the evenings. I would advise to visit the Bahamas a little bit later in the season (March/April). Nassau lies on the island of New Providence and it’s a popular cruise-ship stop. Nassau isn’t the most charming capital of the Caribbean, but it will do for a half day of sightseeing. You will find here typical pastel-colored British colonial buildings and a lot of expensive shops aiming for the all-inclusive cruise-ship travelers.
The pink-hued Government House in Nassau, Bahamas.
I would advise to leave Nassau for what it is and spend your days with exploring the rest of the island. The island of New Providence has many lovely beaches and Cable Beach was one of my favorites. The turquoise Caribbean waters look so tempting for a dip, but unfortunately it was too cold for that. On the other hand it’s good for taking pictures without the crowds.
Lovely Cable Beach on New Providence.
So tempting, but yet so cold today!
Yet another island waiting to be explored!
After exploring New Providence it was time to head to Paradise Island which is just a short hop away from Nassau.
Paradise Island
With a name like Paradise Island you can’t go wrong! The majority of the island is occupied with the enormous Reef Atlantis complex. You’ve got everything here: beaches, a huge hotel complex, golf courses, giant aquarium, Aquaventure Waterpark and many more fun things! Paradise island is easily reached by taxi, ferry or foot from Nassau via the Sir Sidney Poitier bridge.
Approaching stunning Paradise Island!
The Reef Atlantis hotel looks amazing.
Paradise Island is all about having fun!
The Reef Atlantis hotel looks great and very similar to the one in Dubai. I heard some great things about the Aquaventure Waterpark so I just had to pay a visit to this Waterpark! They’ve got some really awesome water slides! Heaps of fun! And I was pretty lucky, because it felt like that I had the whole Waterpark for myself!
Welcome to the Reef Atlantis in the Bahamas!
The whole pool for myself!
Stunning view from the top of one of the water slides.
Some lovely beaches can be found just next to the Waterpark. I will never get tired of these shining turquoise Caribbean waters!
The beach is waiting for me!
Lovely beach just next to the Waterpark.
The highlight of the Aquaventure Waterpark is the Leap of Faith water slide. You descend from the top of a Mayan Temple and are rocketed through a shark-filled lagoon at the end. Well that’s spectacular!
Left: Leap of Faith! – Right: The back of the Mayan Temple has 2 more water slides
That are real sharks! I hope the tube won’t break!
Ready for my Leap of Faith!
The idea of the Leap of Faith is fantastic, but unfortunately you go to fast to actually see the sharks while you’re in the tube. Luckily they’ve made a slow tube through the shark-filled lagoon as well! Here you’ve got plenty of time to safely check out the sharks from inside the tube.
A fantastic water slide!
The slow tube gives you plenty of time to safely observe the sharks.
Alright, one more shot!
They’ve got also an enormous walk-through aquarium with plenty of fish, all Atlantis themed. Great for children as well.
The Atlantis themed aquarium.
The aquarium has some really nice decoration.
What does it mean?
Left: The old-fashioned way of diving – Right: That’s a scary creature!
After a wonderful day on Paradise Island it was time to head back to Nassau. Visiting this island is really a must while you’re in Nassau, it’s just so much fun!
The harbor in front of the Reef Atlantis.
I was planning to visit the famous Pink Sand Beaches on Harbour Island, but my hotel was filled with disappointed travelers who just came back from their Harbour Island trip that I skipped it. If you search on Google for the Pink Sand Beaches you will see this, but according to them it doesn’t look like that at all. If you would like to visit Harbour Island you can find the ferry schedule leaving from Nassau here.
After the Bahamas I flew off to my next Caribbean island: Turks and Caicos Islands!
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Thanks for the great guide