Nassau & Paradise Island – a playground of luxury hotels, colourful history and natural wonders
It was NASA astronaut Scott Kelly who described The Bahamas as “the most beautiful place from space” as he gazed down at this incredible archipelago from the International Space Station. Back on Terra Firma, during his subsequent visit to the islands, he told a group of science and technology students that “There are other places where the water is blue and clear, but there is nothing like it is (in The Bahamas). It is so expansive and so absolutely beautiful”.
Of course, you and I will probably never get to see it from such lofty heights, but there’s nothing to stop us experiencing it up close and personal, to see those clear blue waters in the flesh and feel that warm Bahamian sun on our faces; something that Kelly surely must have craved from up there in the coldness of space!
Nassau is the capital of The Bahamas, located as it is, right in the centre of the 700+ islands and cays that make up the country. It is home to the majority of the Bahamian population and is a thriving, historic city, cruise port and financial and tourism hub, surrounded by some of the most breathtaking beaches you’ll ever see. The city itself is very walkable and is best seen in the company of a tour guide who will take you on a culinary odyssey whilst regaling you with the colourful history of ne’re-do-well pirates, royals in exile, resident film stars and movie sets. Whilst on one of these culinary walking tours you will get to visit Graycliff, an 18th-century mansion in the heart of the city, and now home to the third largest private wine collection in the world – a mere 300,000+/- bottles all on display and available for purchase in the silver service restaurant upstairs, or the private dining room right there in the cellar.
If you consider yourself a bit of a connoisseur of wine, and maybe even dreamt of owning your own vineyard one day, well, Nassau can offer the next best thing – the opportunity to blend your own wine, name it, label it and have your secret recipe stored in perpetuity so that you, your friends and your neighbours can return to The Bahamas and request that unique blend whenever you or they choose! Graycliff’s Bahama Barrels is just one of a variety of culinary attractions in the heart of downtown Nassau, along with rum distilleries, a cigar factory, a chocolate factory, and a rum cake shop.
As Mr Kelly discovered, The Bahamas are all about the incredible gin-clear waters. You might not get all the way up into space, but you can charter a seaplane and skim across the islands for some of the most incredible scenery imaginable, hopping from island to island. For a more immersive water experience, shark diving is an incredible opportunity to get up close and personal with these magnificent and misunderstood creatures. Or if you’d prefer to seek your thrills on the surface, deep sea fishing charters promise a thrill ride and maybe a big catch of Barracuda, Tuna and even Blue Marlin.
The adventure doesn’t stop at sundown either! Locals and tourists alike will head to the Sky Bar at SLS in the Baha Mar resort to watch the sun sink gently down whilst they sip their cocktails. Dinner can be at one of a huge variety of restaurants across the island. A number of celebrity chefs have put their name to fine dining eateries such as Nobu at Atlantis, Jean-Georges Vongerichten’s Dune at The Ocean Club – A Four Seasons Resort, and Daniel Boulud at Café Boulud at Rosewood Baha Mar. Once you’ve mopped up all your winnings at one of the two largest casinos in the Caribbean, at Grand Hyatt Baha Mar or Atlantis Paradise Island, night clubs beckon, in the form of Aura at Atlantis and Bond at Baha Mar.
So, after all of this action and adventure, where are you going to lay your head? Nassau is famed for its variety of luxury resorts: at the very top end, The Ocean Club, A Four Seasons Resort offers ultimate luxury and pampering. As you enter the lobby you’ll feel an eery sense of familiarity – that is, if you are a serious James Bond fan and remember the opening sequences of Casino Royale where Mr Bond arrives in The Bahamas and enters a private poker lounge. This really is a playground of the rich and famous, although it’s hard to get the discreet staff to share which mega celebrities they have hosted.
A stay at The Cove at Atlantis will put you right in the heart of the action. Luxurious split-level junior suites either look out over one of the most stunning stretches of beach in Nassau & Paradise Island, or onto Aquaventure – 141 acres of thrill rides and marine exhibits. For a bit of kid-free relaxation, The Cove Pool offers an adult-only pool with outdoor gaming and butler-served pool and beachside cabanas for daily hire.
Luxury and stylish design can be found over on Cable Beach, or ‘The Bahamian Riviera’, as it has been dubbed. The newest resort to open in Nassau is Goldwynn Resort & Residences; a boutique property offering studios, 1,2 and 3 bedroom residences with views over stunning Cable Beach or the lush greens and fairways of the par 72, 18-hole championship Royal Blue golf course. Next door, the Baha Mar resort is a fantastic playground for couples or groups of friends. Consisting of three luxury hotels, Baha Mar houses the Caribbean’s largest Casino, an Espa Spa and Baha Bay, Nassau’s second largest water park and private beach club, with entrance included for guests of the three hotels which comprise Grand Hyatt, SLS and Rosewood.
For a combination of ultimate luxury and a bit of Bahamian history, Sandals Royal Bahamian offers the chance to hang out in the elegant former Balmoral Club, following in the footsteps of previous patrons including Edward & Mrs Simpson in the 1940’s and the Beatles in the 1960’s when they were in Nassau filming Help! This ultra-inclusive resort was renovated beautifully in 2021 and re-opened with an array of new pools, swim-up suites and plunge pools adjacent to the garden cottages. Its private, off-shore island offers the opportunity to indulge in spa treatments, dine by candlelight, visit the beaches on both shorelines, or just laze in a hammock that hovers just above the lapping water.
Getting to Nassau has never been easier, with daily British Airways flights and Virgin Atlantic flying three times per week, both out of Heathrow. Alternatively ,Nassau makes a fantastic add-on to a US or Canada holiday, with flight connections from 21 different north American cities. For more information on the hotels and things to do, visit www.nassauparadiseisland.com
For inspiration visit Nassauparadiseisland.com
To book: ba.com/bahamas