Escape to The Exumas in Bahamas Out Islands

Get Away From It All Like The Locals From Nassau and Freeport Do

Feb 26, 2009 Steve Mirsky

Head to Great and Little Exuma away from tourist crowds for wide open beaches, limitless coral reefs for snorkling, and small islands just offshore awaiting discovery.

Avoiding crowded beaches, casino gambling, and throngs of people much like yourself looking to get away from it all are great reasons to visit the Exumas in the Bahamas.

Wide Open Beaches

Since there are no signs advertising beach access, it is always an adventure hunting down the best sandy stretches. Start out by driving north of Georgetown on Great Exuma towards Rolleville on the Queens Highway. A couple portions of road in the vicinity of Hermitage are close enough to the ocean to see aquamarine waves lapping against sugar white sands. Park alongside the road, get out, and explore! Further up in Rolleville at Coco Plum Beach, you can stroll along endless sandbars and collect sand dollars.

Offshore Adventures

From the Peace and Plenty Inn in Georgetown, take the round trip ferry running twice daily to Stocking Island . It will be the best $10 you ever spend. This is truly an untrammeled paradise complete with cabanas, palm studded white sand beaches fringed with frangipani and hibiscus, and crystal clear waters with coral reefs right off shore to snorkel. The Peace and Plenty Club is the only venue for lunch unless you pack your own. Doralee Roache grills up her specialty tender and spicy conch burgers.

For the more intrepid, Minns Water Sports and Starfish Adventure Tours are the two main water sport outfitters. Minns Water Sports rents Boston Whaler outboard motor boats enabling even the greenest of skippers to explore Elizabeth Harbor. They provide detailed laminated maps of the harbor and reliable radio communication for assistance. Starfish Adventure Tours rents both single and tandem sea kayaks by the half day up to a week. One noteworthy kayaking excursion begins at The Ferry, a village where Great and Little Exuma meet, and leads into the Mariah Harbour Cay National Park. Once off paddling along the main channel colored like pool water, mangroves anchor the shore, and the sound of crashing waves becomes clearer until your journey dead-ends on a sand bar. Tidal waters course over the beachhead separating this sand bar from the ocean. A modest coral reef nearby makes this a perfect paradise for snorkeling and lounging in the sun without encountering another soul all day.

Contacts

All travelers including U.S. citizens are required to have a passport to enter or re-enter the United States from the Bahamas.

Daily nonstop flights to Georgetown International Airport (GGT) from Miami (American Eagle), Fort Lauderdale (Lynx Air International, Continental Connection) and Nassau (Bahamasair)

Taxi service available from the airport. Average cost is $25 - $30 for a 20 min. ride

Coral Gardens Bed and Breakfast (242) 336 880 $95 for B&B rooms, Separate apartments units start at $108

Minns Water Sports 242 336 2604 15 foot Boston Whaler rental $85 per day plus $200 deposit

Starfish Adventure Tours 242 336 3033 One day kayak rental $100 single, $150 tandem

The copyright of the article Escape to The Exumas in Bahamas Out Islands in Latin Am/Caribbean Travel is owned by Steve Mirsky. Permission to republish Escape to The Exumas in Bahamas Out Islands in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.