The Bahamas is not an island, it is seven hundred islands and more than two thousand cays spread over a thousand kilometres. Only a handful are served from Quebec, and which one you pick changes the nature of the trip completely. Nassau and the Exumas are the same country and two holidays with nothing in common.
The essentials in four lines
Where to go: Nassau for buzz and Paradise Island, Freeport for proximity, the Exumas for sandbars, Harbour Island for pink sand, the Abacos for sailing.
Best time to go: December to April. The water stays cool in January and February, cooler than the southern Antilles.
Entry: Canadian passport valid six months beyond your planned departure, no visa for a tourist stay.
Position: the archipelago sits in the Atlantic, not the Caribbean Sea, which explains the water temperature.
Where to go
Nassau and Paradise Island
The front door and the only island where everything is within walking or taxi distance: Cable Beach and its resorts, Paradise Island and its water park, the colonial old town and the straw market. It is also the busiest cruise port in the world, which you feel on call days.
Freeport, on Grand Bahama
The northernmost island of the chain, quieter than Nassau, with long beaches and a marina. The region was hit hard by hurricanes in recent years and has rebuilt in part: check the state of the property with your travel advisor before booking.
The Exumas
Three hundred and sixty islands and water whose colour does not survive a photograph. Great Exuma opens onto the sandbars, the rays and the famous swimming pigs of Big Major Cay. You go by boat, for the day, and it is the outing nobody forgets.
Harbour Island and the Abacos
Harbour Island, off Eleuthera, has five kilometres of pink sand and is crossed by golf cart. Marsh Harbour, in the Abacos, is a sailing archipelago of small islands and colonial villages of wooden houses. Both are reached by domestic flight or ferry.
When to go
December to April is dry and sunny. That is high season. One nuance worth knowing: the Bahamas sit in the North Atlantic, at the same latitude as Florida, and the sea drops to around twenty-two degrees in January and February. It is swimmable, but it is not Barbados.
Hurricane season runs from early June to late November. The archipelago lies on the usual track of Atlantic systems and has been hit seriously in the past. This is a destination where cancellation insurance is not up for debate between August and October.
May and the first half of June offer the best balance: warmed water, prices down, risk still low.
What you need in hand
A Canadian passport valid at least six months beyond your planned departure from the Bahamas. That is stricter than the French Antilles or the Dominican Republic.
No visa is required for a tourist stay, which can run up to eight months. An immigration card must be completed and stamped on arrival. Customs may ask for an onward ticket and proof of sufficient funds.
A departure tax applies when leaving the country; it is normally included in the price of the air ticket.
For the current official advice, see the country page on travel.gc.ca.
On the ground
Money
The Bahamian dollar is pegged to the US dollar and both circulate interchangeably. You can pay in US dollars anywhere and get change back in either currency.
The cost of living
The Bahamas are expensive. Almost everything is imported, including water and vegetables, and the bill for a meal outside the resort catches people off guard. That is the main difference from Cuba or the Dominican Republic, and it is better learned before you go than in front of the cheque.
Moving between islands
Domestic flights and fast ferries link Nassau to the other islands. These are connections to plan, not trips you improvise the same morning.
Who the Bahamas suit
Families who want a short flight and a water park at the bedroom door: Paradise Island is unbeatable there. Divers and boat people, because the water is among the clearest on the planet. Couples looking for a small quiet island and willing to pay for it.
Less so anyone after a cheap all-inclusive in January: the water is cooler, the all-inclusive format is less common than elsewhere, and the budget climbs fast.
To plan this trip, see also Columbus Isle, Freeport, Great Exuma, our month-by-month calendar and the All-inclusive vacations section.
