Grand Bahama Overview

Shy on historic sites but generous in things to do, Freeport/Lucaya on Grand Bahama sings with activity. Plan on sun and sea-filled days--and at sundown, fine dining venues, clubs and casinos take center stage. Truly an extraordinary island destination.

Districts

The fourth largest and second most populated island in the Bahamas, Grand Bahama Island has recently enjoyed a spurt of commercial growth. While the island was originally developed in the 1950s, the cruise ship traffic tended to bypass it in favor of nearby Nassau. However, lately ships such as the Discovery have begun to make Freeport their main port of call, revitalizing the tourist trade on this sleepy island.

Although 41,000 people live on Grand Bahama, they are spread out over such a wide area as to make the island seem nearly uninhabited in parts. Wide stretches of road and miles of white sandy beach are empty for days at a time. You can walk for hours without seeing anyone. On the other hand, if you travel a few miles to bustling Port Lucaya or the International Bazaar, it becomes obvious that while the island is not a tourism capital, it’s on its way to becoming one.

An interesting piece of trivia is that locals call Freeport “The City,” and Nassau “The Town.” One would think it would be the opposite; after all, Nassau is several times larger. However, downtown Nassau is a pell-mell collection of shops, services and businesses, squeezed together wall-to-wall with no real logic. Freeport, on the other hand, is composed of a few separate districts, distinctly separated by land and highways, and each possessed of its own specific qualities.

As far as tourists are concerned, Port Lucaya is the center of Grand Bahamas. The cruise ships dock here, the activity boats depart from here, and the night life is concentrated here for the most part, in the Port Lucaya Marketplace. Several large hotels are also located in Port Lucaya.

Aside from the three main districts on Grand Bahama Island, there are a number of small villages and beachfront resort communities. They are spread out around the perimeter of the island, and make for entertaining daytime excursions, if one is of a mind to sightsee. The West End and the East End of Grand Bahamas are both very secluded areas. What little tourism trade exists caters to nature lovers. Most of the resorts offer a full range of amenities and activities, making it unnecessary for guests to leave the secluded property and venture into town.

One interesting thing to keep in mind while traversing Grand Bahama Island: Freeport is the main city on the island. For the purposes of addresses, it is also the only city. Every business, from the downtown BatelCo to secluded Old Bahama Bay, is listed as being in Freeport. Put simply, Grand Bahama Island is Freeport, and vice versa.

Grand Bahama Island likes to call itself a cosmopolitan center, but as of yet it hasn’t reached that level. It does, however, boast an array of outdoor activities and natural wonders that are largely unspoiled by the human touch. It also has a decent amount of shopping and dining options. While no one finds it to be a whirlwind of activity, anyone who enjoys the outdoors and the early morning is going to find much to see and do on the island.

Entertainment

If water sports are your thing, you are in the right place. Numerous dive operators will take you to reefs shallow and deep, even on shark, wreck and cave dives. Certification is not only required but smart, since you have to know what you are doing in an environment strange to most, namely, relying on artificial apparatus to keep you breathing. There also are numerous opportunities for jet ski rentals, charter fishing, parasailing, snorkeling and shelling.

Golfing can be found at some of the larger resorts, but you're likely required to be a guest to use their courses. In addition, there is horseback riding at the Pinetree Stables, with experienced guides leading the way. It's a great ride, along the shore of the Williams Town beach.

Like shopping? The International Bazaar on Sunrise Highway is as good a mall as you will find anywhere, with name brands for sale at costs much more inexpensive than you would find in your hometown mall. Shopping, though, is not restricted to the big International Bazaar. You need to go to the smaller Straw Market behind the International Bazarre. That's where you’ll key in on everything Bahamian, from red, white and green bags to earrings to hair-braiding to pipes! It’s where everyone calls you mon. Same thing at the Straw Market at Port Lucaya, where 12 structures house numerous buildings offering everything from wooden carvings to jewelry to the quintessential Bahamas bags. And like at the Freeport market, the Port Lucaya Marketplace is a place not only to shop, but also to hang out and chat with the locals to get a real feel for the place. Port Lucaya Marketplace & Marina is a 12-acre waterfront complex comprised of 55 duty-free shops and 32 restaurants. This is where you are likely to catch local entertainment in Count Basie Square at the site. An interesting side note: The hair-braiders are unionized.

And nightlife? Well, there more than you can probably handle. From the funky locals' joints to the massive casino, there's something for everyone.

Dining and Drinking

Dining out in Freeport is a fairly low-key event. The city—in fact, the entire island—is rather sleepy, and has yet to hit any kind of cultural boom as far as cuisine and entertainment are concerned. There are a few expensive restaurants, and quite a few inexpensive ones, but most of them land squarely in the middle in terms of price, choice and quality. Nearly every restaurant in Freeport devotes at least a section of the menu to Bahamian fare; it seems like you can get crack’ conch or grouper fingers at just about any eatery, from a roadside stand to a hotel grill.

A number of restaurants are located at Port Lucaya Marketplace, and even more are spread out around the Marketplace. Port Lucaya is also the only place in Freeport that offers anything approximating a nightlife scene. There are six or eight bars in the Marketplace; locals and visitors can easily spend an entire night wandering from one place to another. Most of the bars are exactly the same, but the meandering journey around the Marketplace is half the fun.

Many of Grand Bahama's most unique restaurants are scattered around its beaches. While it’s hard to find out about them and even harder to get to them, it’s often worth the trip. They offer ten times the ambience of the Port Lucaya or International Bazaar eateries.

Where To Stay

Grand Bahamas is a sleepy island, but thanks to new cruise ship traffic and a concerted effort by the Bahamian Tourism Board and local government, it’s growing at breakneck speed. New resorts and luxury hotels are in every stage of development, and the older hotels are renovating constantly.

Most lower-priced accommodations are found in small, independently owned hotels—some of them a fair distance from the center of Freeport. While budget lodgings are hard to find, it’s easy to get a room in a luxury hotel for a very reasonable rate. Most tour operators can find package deals to any hotel on the island, and if you opt for a package, you can stay in one of the most luxurious hotels on the island for only a few dollars extra.

Did You Know?

Freeport is a free trade zone under the Hawksbill Creek Agreement, which states that businesses in the area will not pay taxes before 2054.

Orientation/Geography

Freeport is located on the island of Grand Bahama, which is approximately 90 miles east of South Florida.


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