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| Pink Sand Beach, Harbour Island |
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| BAHAMAS |
Harbour Island is a popular vacation destination for Americans. Known
as Briland to the locals, Harbour Island is colourful with New England-style buildings and flower lined streets.
Harbour Island, one of the Out Islands of the Bahamas in the clear and
gentle waters of the Caribbean, is most renowned for its pale pink sand
beaches of some 3 plus miles long and half a mile wide. The sand is a
composition of bits of coral, broken shells, minute rocks and calcium
carbonate from tiny marine invertebrates. This rare pink color of sand
is caused by Foraminifera, tiny microscopic sea creatures with bright
pink or red shells. Their colorful shells are broken down into fine
granule-size pieces when they die, mixing in with the native sands and
creating the rosy-hue that is seen today.
The Bahamas is blessed with good weather most of the year, and for the most part, water sports and activities abound on Harbour Island year-round. The outlying coral reefs protect the shore from rolling waves of the Atlantic. These reefs provide large areas of relatively calm and shollow waters, making the ocean safe and ideal for swimming and snorkeling in The Bahamas.
Harbour Island serves as the perfect outpost for a scuba diver's paradise. It features one of the top dive sites in the world known as "Current Cut Dive." The Current Cut is a fast drift dive that moves between the rock walls between Eleuthera and Current Island. From Eleuthera, divers can explore wrecks along the Devil's Backbone, and even the rare underwater remains of a train wreck.
Harbour Island activities are as laid-back as the island atmosphere. Other amenities - fine cuisine, deep sea fishing, surf fishing, bonefishing, horseback riding on the beach, shopping for souvenirs from the sidewalk vendors in Dunmore Town, and day trips to Eleuthera and Spanish Wells - mark island attractions. There's something for everyone on Harbour Island.
The best time of year to visit is from December to May with temperatures around 70-75 degrees F. Tropical storms are a possibility during the rest of the year, when the weather is warmer and the climate more humid.
You can reach the island by flying into the nearest airport, North Eleuthera Airport (ELH), which is only 20 minutes away by a combination of land and water taxis, or by taking a 45-minute taxi ride to the ferry terminal from Lynden Pindling International Airport in Nassau, and traveling two hours by high-speed ferry directly to Harbour Island. From the US, Continental Connections and American Airlines offer connections via Fort Lauderdale or Miami to North Eleuthera Airport (ELH).
US citizens need a certified birth certificate and an official photo I.D. (driver's license) for entry. A departure tax per person applies to all visitors. US currency can be used. Most stores do not accept Discover or AMEX cards. An ATM can be found at the Royal Bank of Canada, and Internet access is available at Red Apple Rentals.
The Bahamas is blessed with good weather most of the year, and for the most part, water sports and activities abound on Harbour Island year-round. The outlying coral reefs protect the shore from rolling waves of the Atlantic. These reefs provide large areas of relatively calm and shollow waters, making the ocean safe and ideal for swimming and snorkeling in The Bahamas.
Harbour Island serves as the perfect outpost for a scuba diver's paradise. It features one of the top dive sites in the world known as "Current Cut Dive." The Current Cut is a fast drift dive that moves between the rock walls between Eleuthera and Current Island. From Eleuthera, divers can explore wrecks along the Devil's Backbone, and even the rare underwater remains of a train wreck.
Harbour Island activities are as laid-back as the island atmosphere. Other amenities - fine cuisine, deep sea fishing, surf fishing, bonefishing, horseback riding on the beach, shopping for souvenirs from the sidewalk vendors in Dunmore Town, and day trips to Eleuthera and Spanish Wells - mark island attractions. There's something for everyone on Harbour Island.
The best time of year to visit is from December to May with temperatures around 70-75 degrees F. Tropical storms are a possibility during the rest of the year, when the weather is warmer and the climate more humid.
You can reach the island by flying into the nearest airport, North Eleuthera Airport (ELH), which is only 20 minutes away by a combination of land and water taxis, or by taking a 45-minute taxi ride to the ferry terminal from Lynden Pindling International Airport in Nassau, and traveling two hours by high-speed ferry directly to Harbour Island. From the US, Continental Connections and American Airlines offer connections via Fort Lauderdale or Miami to North Eleuthera Airport (ELH).
US citizens need a certified birth certificate and an official photo I.D. (driver's license) for entry. A departure tax per person applies to all visitors. US currency can be used. Most stores do not accept Discover or AMEX cards. An ATM can be found at the Royal Bank of Canada, and Internet access is available at Red Apple Rentals.
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