Bahamas Out Island News

Lovers of casinos and glitzy boutiques can cross Eleuthera off their lists. But if you value glorious uncrowded beaches, open countryside, and kind and friendly local people, this could be the island for you. A narrow 110-mile-long strip of land 70 miles east of Nassau, Eleuthera is little more than an hour by plane from Florida but embodies the Bahamas Out Island experience: rural, unspoiled and easygoing.

Where to Stay

Harbour Island, a three-mile-long cay just off the main island that has drawn celebrities and jet setters to its gorgeous pink sands, is generally expensive but has some affordable options in Dunmore Town, Eleuthera's oldest and liveliest settlement.

Tingum Village International Hotel (Colebrook Street, Dunmore Town; 242-333-2161) anchors a small island empire owned by the enterprising Percentie family. Rates for one of 18 pleasant rooms, with a terrace opening onto a secluded backyard, begin at $125 (the Bahamian and American dollars are used interchangeably).

The six garden-shaded rooms at the Bahama House Inn (Dunmore and Hill Streets, Dunmore Town; 242-333-2201; www.bahamahouseinn.com) start at $170 in high season, but breakfast is included.

On Eleuthera's main island, near its middle, is the Tropical Dreams Motel Resort (North Palmetto Point; 242-332-1632; www.eleu.net/tropicaldreams.html), a modest, two-story motel that offers clean, simple rooms with kitchens from $90 in high season.

Where to Eat

Don't look for elegance at Angela's Starfish Restaurant (Dunmore and Nesbit Streets, Dunmore Town; 242-333-2253), but the conchburger ($7; made from the mollusk with the big, cone-shaped shell) makes for good munching as you watch a stream of local takeout customers come and go.

Ma Ruby's at Tingum Village, where the matriarch Ruby Percentie presides near the outdoor bar, claims to serve the inspiration for Jimmy Buffett's song “Cheeseburger in Paradise.” But then, so do several restaurants on other islands. Have the cheeseburger anyway ($8).

For breakfast in Dunmore Town, join the locals for a $9 omelet or the Bahamian souse, a hearty and sour soup made with chicken, sheep's tongue or other meats, at Avery's Restaurant and Grill (Colebrook Street; 242-333-3126).

In central Eleuthera, Mate and Jenny's (South Palmetto Point; 242-332-1504) serves a conch pizza big enough for two ($22).

In Governor's Harbour, Eleuthera's small capital in the center of the island, a spot marked by picnic tables right on the downtown cove jumps to life weekly for the Friday Fish Fry, where vendors serve the local catch and Bahamian beer (6 p.m. to midnight).

Cheap Beaches

All the beaches are free, and there are miles and miles of them. on Harbour Island, where shining turquoise waters ripple over a rosy strand in a mesmerizing play of colors, deserves its reputation as one of the Bahamas' loveliest. It's also where you might spot the occasional sunbathing celebrity.

In Governor's Harbour, head to the sugary, tawnier pink sand of French Leave Beach, once the domain of a Club Med that was blown away by a hurricane in 1999. To get there, turn right off Haynes Avenue and left on a dirt road.

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