Bahamas Out Island News

With very few exceptions, travelers in search of soft sand, crystal-clear waters and balmy breezes will find a good beach on almost any island in the West Indies. And everyone has a favorite.

There are a few standouts however, which www.frommers.com does a good job of summarizing in its list of “best beaches.” Those include Seven Mile Beach, a stretch of sugar-fine sand lined with condos and high-end resorts on Grand Cayman; Grace Bay Beach on Providenciales in the Turks and Caicos, which is conveniently fringed by a reef for snorkelers; and Grenada’s Grand Anse Beach, which is within walking distance of most of the island’s best hotels.

One island that’s not on that list — and thus might offer a better chance to find a beach of your own — is Eleuthera, one of the so-called Out Islands of the Bahamas, about 60 miles from Nassau. There are few direct flights from the United States to this sickle-shaped island: you either have to fly down to Florida first, and get a connecting flight from there, or else fly to Nassau, where you can catch a flight or a ferry. (It’s also not technically in the Caribbean; any geographer will tell you it’s too far north to qualify. But who cares?)

Once there you’ll have your pick of beaches. About 110 miles long and roughly a mile wide, the island is basically one big sand bar. There is Surfer’s Beach for wave riders, Winding Bay for windsurfers, and Ten Bay Beach has soft sand and shallow waters for young children or people who prefer not to get their hair wet. You can also take a water taxi to Harbour Island, a three-and-a half-mile long cay just off Eleuthera’s northern shore with pink sands that run along the island’s eastern side. In the last decade, these remote shores have become favored by the likes of Elle Macpherson, Diane von Furstenberg and other bold-faced names.

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