Bahamas, A Paradise Near You

The Bahamas is an archipelago of some 700 islands and cays in the Atlantic Ocean between Florida and Hispaniola. Sun, sand, and sea are merely perimeters of the Islands of the Bahamas. Christopher Columbus’s first landfall in the New World in 1492 is believed to have been on the island of San Salvador (also called Watling’s Island), in the southeastern Bahamas. The climate is tropical marine moderated by warm waters of Gulf Stream and it’s perfect for sun vacation all year long. The islands are less than 10 miles from the south Florida coast, closer than other Caribbean destinations, and can be reached quickly and easily either by air or by sea. Lots of large airlines have flights to the Bahamas, and also several charter airlines can drop you there. Frequent flights are available to Nassau, Freeport, and the Out Islands.

There are a lot of things to do in this tropical paradise. Anyone in search of the perfect beach should start here. The relatively small islands offer amazing beaches like Treasure Cay Beach, considered by National Geographic one of the best in the world or like Pink Sands Beach rated as one of the Caribbean’s best beaches by Caribbean Travel and Life magazine. If you get bored you can explore the amazing reefs, wrecks, and coral walls of the Atlantic. There are numerous companies that offer dive and snorkel trips. Also let’s not forget about dolphin encounters adventures. For fishermen the Bahamas islands are a true paradise. The Bahamas islands are among the premier destinations in the world for sport fishing including bone fishing and fly fishing. The Andros Island is also called The Bahamas BoneFishing Capital and there are numerous guides and fishing lounges in the area. The islands are surrounded by hundreds of miles of soft and hard bottom flats, creek channels and ocean drop off. You can catch jacks, barracudas and many more species.

Sailing finds an ideal location in The Bahamas. Each major island hosts its own regatta. The contests are taking place in late summer; the best are to be found on Exuma, Long Island, Nassau/Paradise Island or Freeport/Lucaya.

Also the islands are a great place for birding. One of the top destinations for ecotourism is Abaco National Park. The park is located in the southern part of Great Abaco Island in Bahamas between Hole in the Wall and Crossing Rocks. You can expect to see warblers, yellowthroats, West Indian woodpeckers, swallows and Cuban Emeralds and also hardwood forests, nature trails and wild Atlantic coast scenery, and fauna include butterflies, egrets, herons, spoonbills and rare hummingbirds. You can explore the natural beauty of these islands by plane or by bicycle. Or you can choose a round of golf, a set of tennis, or a visit to any of the island’s shopping arcades or casinos.…