Top 10 things to do in Nassau, Bahamas
Nassau is the capital of the Bahamas and the’one of the best destinations in the Caribbean, so you know that’There are many things to do here to amuse and entertain visitors to the island’island. We’ve sorted through the endless options and picked out the 10 activities and attractions we think you can’t miss when you stop in this historic city.
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Climb the’Queen’s Staircase
Climb the 66 steps from Fort Fincastle to downtown Nassau, and you’ll be moved by the sweat and toil that’it took slaves to carve the’600 foot high Queen’s Staircase of solid limestone. Built between 1793 and 1794, the’The staircase was named in the year 2000’in honor of Queen Victoria.
L’s Hill makes a great photo op and, of course, provides access to historic Fort Fincastle, which sits on the highest point of the island’New Providence Island, Bennett’s Hill. The fort is open daily for guided tours, so tip your guides, if you’d like to see them’it pleases you !
Go to Graycliff for Chocolate, Cigars, and More
Don’t let the name’Graycliff hotel and restaurant fool you – there is much more than rooms and food. Of course, the’hotel, with rooms in and around the hotel’a historic colonial home with lush, charming grounds is awesome, and it’s’The Charliebird’s Distillery is a real step back in time when you enter the’hotel and settle in for a semi-formal lunch or dinner.
But the Garzaroli family has turned this hillside spot in downtown Nassau into a virtual entertainment complex, complete with a chocolatier where you can sample and even make delicious chocolate treats and a cigar company where stogies are hand-rolled on the spot and can be paired with rum tastings. There is also a pizzeria and a Bahamian heritage museum on site – and n’Don’t forget to ask for a visit from the’Graycliff’s amazing wine cellar, filled with over 200,000 bottles.
Rum sampling at the John Watling Distillery’s Distillery
Just steps away from Graycliff and the beautiful pink Bahamian Government House, the John Watling Distillery is located on the spacious Buena Vista Estate — built in 1789, this is the only distillery in the Bahamas that is still in operation’is a taste of old Bahamas in the heart of Nassau. Speaking of tasting, you can sample Watling’s small-batch, oak-aged rums, which come in “pale” (white), amber and “Buena Vista” aged five years. The distillery is open daily from 10am to 6pm.
Take a diving trip to Stuart’s Cove.
L’Stuart dive operation’s Cove is located on the less visited southwest side of the island’The hotel is located on New Providence Island, in a cozy cove that is constantly bubbling with activity’activity. Beginners receive diving lessons while experienced divers are taught how to dive’dress for open water adventures, including the chance to dive with wild sharks. D’Other options include snorkeling, SNUBA (a cross between snorkeling and SCUBA), a wall dive with an underwater scooter, and the possibility of piloting your own mini-sub.
Get your fish on at Arawak Cay
This collection of eclectic beachside restaurants, huts and bars may be a bit touristy for Caribbean fish fries, but locals still’Get fresh fish and conch fritters, cold Kalik beer, music and dancing every night of the week. For fresh fish off the boat with an even more authentic local feel, try Potter’s’s Cay under the Paradise Island Bridge.
Browse the straw market for the perfect souvenir.
Bahamians sell loot’It’s been a favorite of visitors to Nassau for hundreds of years’years, since’s west side of downtown Nassau is the time when slaves gathered in a “straw market” to sell bowls woven using skills brought from their native Africa. The tradition continues to this day’Today, the Nassau Straw Market, moved from its historic home a few years ago as a result of a major reconstruction, is the place to be’a fire in a new building on Bay Street. These days, it’s’is much more than baskets for sale – you’ll also find t-shirts, wood carvings, bead necklaces and every type of island-themed souvenir imaginable.
Take a day trip to Rose Island’a day trip to Rose Island.
The Bahamas Out Islands (a.k.a. The Family Islands are a completely different experience from urban Nassau, and instant serenity can be found through seclusion, beach and water sports’in-between’a quick boat ride to Rose Island. This close neighbor n’It’s not much more than an Atlantis Resort’a glorified sandbar, but there’s just enough to get you there’seclusion, beach and water adventure’A shadowy place to take a tour of the area’a perfect day. Sandy Toes will drive you there, serve you lunch and a welcome drink, and provide you with the necessary equipment’snorkeling equipment. If you fall in love with Rose Island, ask for an overnight stay !
Shiver Your Timbers at the Pirate Museum in Nassau
From the’It may look like a tourist trap on the outside, but the Pirates of Nassau Museum tells a good story about the city’history of pirates in the Caribbean. Nassau was a notorious pirate haven in the early 18th century, and the museum’s interactive exhibits take you back to the past’The year 1716, the’culmination of the “Republic of Pirates.
Expect interactive exhibits, dioramas, displays of authentic pirate loot and, of course, a trip through the gift store. You’ll also have the chance to visit the’lock your kids in the stocks, which alone could be worth the’13 admission ($6.50 for children 4-17). At the corner of King and George Streets in downtown Nassau; open Monday through Saturday.
9 a.m. to 6 p.m., Sunday 9 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.
Play at the Aquaventure water park in the Caribbean’Atlantis Resort
There may be new water parks in the Caribbean, but we still love the resort’Aquaventure’Atlantis for its lost world theme and its incredible aquariums, some of which are thrown onto the park’s waterslides. The easiest way to play is to stay in the’One of the Atlantis Resort properties; the second easiest (and least expensive) is to visit the island’get a room at the Comfort Suites Paradise Island, just across the street, which also gives you access to all the Atlantis amenities. A limited number of day passes to the water park are also available.
Go to the beach, of course !
Nassau has so many distractions that you can sometimes forget you came here to relax on the beach. Cabbage Beach on Paradise Island and Cable Beach on New Providence Island are the best known, but you can also visit Junkanoo Beach in downtown Nassau for a lively beach scene near the cruise port.
Love Beach has a real bar atmosphere on Nirvana Beach, and Saunders Beach, just outside the resort, has a real bar atmosphere’s west end, is the time when slaves gathered to fight for their rights’where the’local flavors can be found: check out the weekend food stands set up to raise money for local charities.
You want a side of the’story with your drinks on the beach ? Fort Montagu, built in 1741, is located on the beach’Montagu beach end – c’is the oldest fortification in Europe’island. For the ultimate in privacy, consider Yamacraw Hill Beach at the’end is of the’New Providence Island: few tourists find this place isolated. Jaws: The Revenge was the stench of’a movie, but the only positive point is that it is not a movie’is that’includes scenes shot on Jaws Beach, a quiet stretch of sand near Nassau’s Clifton Heritage Park.
