What are The Bahamas known for?
700 islands and 2,400 cays (i.e., coral reefs), mostly nice weather, except for a few hurricanes every other year. The Bahamas are a tourist's wet dream, palm-fringed tropical islands surrounded by turquoise waters. Some of the islands even offer pink sand beaches.
It was in the Bahamas where Columbus landed on San Salvador Island on October 12, 1492, when he got lost on his way to India.
After 325 years of "peaceful" British rule, the Bahamas became an independent country within the Commonwealth of Nations in 1973.
For several years in the 18-century, the
Republic of Pirates was the stronghold of a loose confederacy led by privateers turned pirates in Nassau on New Providence Island. According to legend, the Pirates of the Caribbean used the place for binge drinking and other entertainments. This has not changed much to this day.
A Caribbean tourist dream or a nightmare? Hotel brochure description: "Atlantis Bahamas is a lush, oceanside resort located on Paradise Island in The Bahamas. The resort features five distinct hotels: the iconic The Royal, the laid-back The Beach, the multigenerational The Coral, the ultraluxury The Cove and the residential-style The Reef." Note the use of flowery adjectives.
Image: Navin75
Today, the Bahamas have become one of the world's foremost summer vacation resorts; the archipelago attracts more than five times its population in tourists each year.
Very popular with tourists are the large
all-inclusive-adults-only resorts. Unlimited food, cocktails and more. Girls from many foreign countries offer their services.
Cruise ships, the islands are easily accessible by these Polluters of the Seas; they come from Miami, Fort Lauderdale and Port Canaveral near Orlando, Florida, many of those are registered in the Bahamas. The country has one of the world's largest open-registry shipping fleets.
Tourism, international banking (offshore finance), and investment management account for more than 55% of the country's gross domestic product. The Bahamas are widely popular as a tax haven since the 1990s.
Tourist attractions
The main activities in the Bahamas are water sports, fishing, boating, diving, snorkeling, sailing and - duty-free shopping.
Besides island hopping, the Bahamas don't really have much to offer except two dozen lighthouses and some plantation ruins.
There are the
Blue Holes of the South Abaco Cave Systems and the underwater cave system in the
Lucayan National Park.
And there are, for lack of other attractions, the
Swimming Pigs of the Exumas; are they trying to escape before they get eaten?
