~ Straw Market in Freeport,
Grand Bahama Island ~
Within
the last decade, Grand Bahama Island
has undergone nothing a transformation. Major infrastructure improvements to the port and
airport have been fueled by major hotel investments in both Freeport and West
End. The two shopping, dining and entertainment villages at
International Bazaar and Port Lucaya Marketplace are both filled with tourists day and night, but that’s
only half the story on this multi-faceted island.
Port Lucaya’s world-class UNEXSO Dive
Center offers a host of dolphin interaction and diving programs. Tour
operators offer kayak, beach and hiking combo tours out among the pristine 40-acre Lucayan National
Park to explore pineland, mangrove marshes and sand dunes, along with one of the world’s
largest underwater cave systems.
Grand Bahama is also a golfer and active
traveler’s paradise with four championship courses. The island features more than
50 tennis courts, and sailors come from all over the Eastern Seaboard to moor their yachts at Port
Lucaya and the laid-back community of West End
about one hour west of Freeport.
Freeport, the country’s second-largest city, is sprawling and flat,
with good roads and modern infrastructure. Not many historical sites here, as the city
was not developed until the 1950s. Although you will find long, wide beaches, modern hotels
and marinas, and a thriving port.
Places to visit in Freeport are the Rand
Nature Centre, Grand Bahama
Museum, Lucayan National Park, and the Grand Lucayan
Waterway.
Nearby Settlements: High Rock, Eight Mile Rock, Hawksbill
Creek, Pinder’s Point, Lewis Yard, Hunter’s, Pelican
Point, McClean Town and Sweetings
Cay.
Arts & Craft Market:
Located across from the Our Lucayan Resort (Port Lucaya), the market offers a wide variety of
what should be locally made (but often not) straw, arts, crafts and souvenir
items.
Beaches: Crystal clear waters cuddle over 60 miles of pearly white beaches. The waves are usually absent thanks to an omnipresent barrier reef that surrounds the beaches.
Cinemas:
There is one major movie center in Freeport.
Diving: This is the best place to do it, bar none. See the UNEXO -or- Xanadu Undersea Adventures.
Fishing: Marlin, tuna, sailfish are a plenty in the deep water near the island and on the reefs,
grouper, snapper, yellowtail are waiting for you hook. Charter fishing and rental
boats are available at all the Marinas. (Fishing Regulations)
Golf: The Island has four 18 hole championship courses.
National
Parks: There are 2 national parks on Grand Bahama Island: Petersons Cay which is 7 miles due east of Freeport is a small islet with an
unspoiled reef and a small sand beach. The Lucayan National
Park is 20 miles east of Freeport and features a wide variety of mini eco-systems complemented by with hammocks,
caves, blue holes, a footbridge over a natural creek, a small cay and one of the best beaches on the island. The parks
are maintained by the Bahamas National Trust.
Rugby: The Freeport Rugby Club has a clubhouse on Settler's Way. They host matches between Nassau clubs, and clubs from the U.S and UK as well as hosting a Rugby festival each year for teams from Qatar, UK, California,
Jamaica, and Canada.
Sailing & Boating: Ride the banana boat, para-sail, or a
jet ski (or do all of the above!) at Superior Watersports. Excellent docking facilities with full service bait and tackle shops, gas docks are
available at most marinas.
Shopping: Excellent selection of merchandise from
all over the world at Port Lucaya with competitive prices on perfumes, jewelry, cameras,
designer clothes as well as beautifully carved native art-work. There are two
supermarkets--Winn Dixie-- in Downtown Freeport and another Winn Dixie on Sea Horse Road in Lucaya as well as food stores
like Butler's Specialty.
Snorkeling: Because
of the excellent visibility of the waters (due to the fact that the soil in the Bahamas is not rich, there is nothing to color
the water) snorkeling is a year round event.
Straw, Craft and Souvenir
Markets: Straw work in the form of hats to placemats, and dolls can be
easily found and bargained for.
Taxis: Taxi
cabs are located at the Grand Bahama International Airport, at the Lucayan Harbour, and major hotel and tourist locations.
Theatre:
The Regency Theater is home to the Freeport Players Guild which performs several plays a year. The Theater also occasionally features professional performers including opera, and ballet.
Water Sports: Water
skiing, jet skiing, parasailing, snorkeling, wind surfing and banana boat rides can be enjoyed off the Lucayan and other beaches.
Our average winter island temperature is 71 degrees.
Lucayan National Park on Grand Bahama houses the largest
explored underwater caverns in the world.
The Bahamas National Trust's Rand Nature Center is home
to Grand Bahama's only flock of flamingos. Nature Tours of the beautiful native flora and fauna are given daily.
Our crystal clear waters around the island are full of
fish.
Bone-fishing; Grand Bahama is home to some of the most
abundant supplies of Bone fish in the Bahamas. Daily bone fishing trips may be booked through the marina office.
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