FREEPORT BAHAMAS
By Clint Leung
Freeport in Grand Bahama Island is the closest of all the Bahamas
to the USA. A quick 45 minute flight from Fort Lauderdale or Miami
will get you into Freeport. It is a very popular destination because of
its close proximity and the fact that US dollars are widely accepted.
There are two main clusters of hotels and resorts on Grand Bahama
Island. One is at the Port Lucaya area located on the south shore of
island and the other is near downtown Freeport which is more
inland. There are also other individual resorts scattered around the
west and south shores of the 97 by 17 mile island.
I have traveled to Freeport twice and stayed in the Port Lucaya area
both times. Most of the hotels here are next to the Port Lucaya
Marketplace which is a collection of restaurants, boutiques and
other retail services. In addition to the higher end retail, there are
also small outdoor vendors selling cheaper goods such as
souvenirs and t-shirts. One should be aware that much of the items
available for sale from these vendors are not actually made in the
Bahamas but overseas in Asia. There is also a nice sized marina
here for those coming to the island via private boat. For those
interested in scuba diving, the Unexso operator is very convenient
since it is located next to the marketplace. There are also deep sea
fishing excursions offered here as well. At the center of the
marketplace is the Count Basie Square where free entertainment is
featured on some evenings. A casino is on location here as well.
The white sand beach is quite nice with no rocks in the water but it
could use some cleaning up since I did see some cigarette butts
and small litter scattered around. This is also true for some of the
areas around the Port Lucaya area in general as it seems that
nobody wants to take responsibility for bottles and other trash visible
to tourists.
The taxi fare to Port Lucaya from the airport was $19 US. There is
also a public bus service which utilizes vans to take people to other
parts of the island. The fare is $1.50 US per person to downtown
Freeport so this is definitely a much more economical way to get
around. One can take this bus service to the nearest grocer called
Winn-Dixie or the other major shopping area on Grand Bahama
Island called International Bazaar. International Bazaar is actually
next to downtown Freeport and near the other cluster of hotels there.
This shopping area was similar to the Port Lucaya Marketplace
except that it had an international theme. Unfortunately, the
International Bazaar is rapidly going downhill as over half of the
stores are now closed. This is not that surprising since even though
there are attractive hotel rates and another casino located in this
area, it is really too far from the ocean to make it a decent Caribbean
spot to stay. Therefore, it is highly recommended to stay in the Port
Lucaya area (or one of the individual resorts near the ocean if one
prefers more seclusion).
Both of my trips to Freeport were primarily for scuba diving and with
opportunities to dive with both dolphins and sharks here, I was not
disappointed. There are other activities available in Grand Bahama
Island including golf, horseback riding, sea kayaking and bird
watching but these didn't seem to be too popular. From the
conversations we had with other tourists, it seems that most people
came to Grand Bahama Island for scuba diving, deep sea fishing or
just to relax by the beach. Otherwise, one could get bored here quite
easily as there's not much in terms of experiencing local Bahamian
culture since much of the tourist services are Americanized.
Clint Leung is owner of Free Spirit Gallery
http://www.FreeSpiritGallery.ca , an online gallery specializing in Inuit
Eskimo and Northwest Native American art including carvings,
sculpture and prints. Free Spirit Gallery has numerous information
resource articles with photos of authentic Inuit and Native Indian art
as well as free eCards.
By Clint Leung
Freeport in Grand Bahama Island is the closest of all the Bahamas
to the USA. A quick 45 minute flight from Fort Lauderdale or Miami
will get you into Freeport. It is a very popular destination because of
its close proximity and the fact that US dollars are widely accepted.
There are two main clusters of hotels and resorts on Grand Bahama
Island. One is at the Port Lucaya area located on the south shore of
island and the other is near downtown Freeport which is more
inland. There are also other individual resorts scattered around the
west and south shores of the 97 by 17 mile island.
I have traveled to Freeport twice and stayed in the Port Lucaya area
both times. Most of the hotels here are next to the Port Lucaya
Marketplace which is a collection of restaurants, boutiques and
other retail services. In addition to the higher end retail, there are
also small outdoor vendors selling cheaper goods such as
souvenirs and t-shirts. One should be aware that much of the items
available for sale from these vendors are not actually made in the
Bahamas but overseas in Asia. There is also a nice sized marina
here for those coming to the island via private boat. For those
interested in scuba diving, the Unexso operator is very convenient
since it is located next to the marketplace. There are also deep sea
fishing excursions offered here as well. At the center of the
marketplace is the Count Basie Square where free entertainment is
featured on some evenings. A casino is on location here as well.
The white sand beach is quite nice with no rocks in the water but it
could use some cleaning up since I did see some cigarette butts
and small litter scattered around. This is also true for some of the
areas around the Port Lucaya area in general as it seems that
nobody wants to take responsibility for bottles and other trash visible
to tourists.
The taxi fare to Port Lucaya from the airport was $19 US. There is
also a public bus service which utilizes vans to take people to other
parts of the island. The fare is $1.50 US per person to downtown
Freeport so this is definitely a much more economical way to get
around. One can take this bus service to the nearest grocer called
Winn-Dixie or the other major shopping area on Grand Bahama
Island called International Bazaar. International Bazaar is actually
next to downtown Freeport and near the other cluster of hotels there.
This shopping area was similar to the Port Lucaya Marketplace
except that it had an international theme. Unfortunately, the
International Bazaar is rapidly going downhill as over half of the
stores are now closed. This is not that surprising since even though
there are attractive hotel rates and another casino located in this
area, it is really too far from the ocean to make it a decent Caribbean
spot to stay. Therefore, it is highly recommended to stay in the Port
Lucaya area (or one of the individual resorts near the ocean if one
prefers more seclusion).
Both of my trips to Freeport were primarily for scuba diving and with
opportunities to dive with both dolphins and sharks here, I was not
disappointed. There are other activities available in Grand Bahama
Island including golf, horseback riding, sea kayaking and bird
watching but these didn't seem to be too popular. From the
conversations we had with other tourists, it seems that most people
came to Grand Bahama Island for scuba diving, deep sea fishing or
just to relax by the beach. Otherwise, one could get bored here quite
easily as there's not much in terms of experiencing local Bahamian
culture since much of the tourist services are Americanized.
Clint Leung is owner of Free Spirit Gallery
http://www.FreeSpiritGallery.ca , an online gallery specializing in Inuit
Eskimo and Northwest Native American art including carvings,
sculpture and prints. Free Spirit Gallery has numerous information
resource articles with photos of authentic Inuit and Native Indian art
as well as free eCards.
CRUISE-INFORMATION.COM
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