| Fifty-five miles east of Miami, Grand Bahama
looks from the air to be a flat, dry slab of bleached limestone
bristling with
tall, thin pine trees and edged by a ribbon of powdery white
sand and multihued bands of blue-green water. Accessible by
daily ferry service and direct flights from several major American
cities, the island is ninety-six miles long and seventeen miles
wide, and has a range of appealing features: gorgeous white
beaches
, aquamarine seas , and an exotic profusion of lush coral reefs
and undersea gardens . The island's interior landscape is as
stark and rugged as its coastline is colourful and brilliant,
with seemingly barren forests revealed up close to be teeming
with life - home to numerous species of birds, lizards, plants
and trees. Although the sun-dappled stands of pine, with an
understorey of emerald-green thatch palm, are accessible on
old logging roads
that may be explored on foot or mountain bike, the rest of
the interior is a vast monotony of unkempt bush and swamp that
is
decidedly less picturesque.
Despite the natural surroundings, most of the half-million
annual visitors to Grand Bahama rarely stray far from the
urban conglomeration of Freeport - located three miles inland
from
the south coast - and its seaside suburb Lucaya , which together
are home to most of the island's 47,000 residents. Not surprisingly,
the local economy is geared almost entirely to the tourist
trade . Here, you can golf, gamble or just relax poolside
at any number of all-inclusive resorts. |
ROOMS BAHAMAS
