Gold Rock Seaside. The Goombay Summer season Competition. The procuring in Port Lucaya. The meals at Flying Fish.
The island of Grand Bahama, simply over 60 miles from Palm Seaside, is stuffed with must-see and must-do points of interest.
However since Hurricane Dorian in 2019, the island’s tourism sector has been in an uphill climb.
That largely modified final 12 months, when the vacation spot reported 33 p.c progress in vacationer arrivals — larger progress than every other island in The Bahamas.
And to date in 2024, the renaissance of Grand Bahama is constant: with arrivals forward by one other 8 p.c over final 12 months.
It’s a development that’s prone to proceed, with a lot of airways ramping up service and including flights to the island within the coming months. Subsequent month, Fort Lauderdale-based Western Air is including new flights between Fort Lauderadle and Freeport.
A couple of weeks later, Bahamasair will enhance capability on its Freeport-Fort Lauderdale route.
In October, American Airways will resume its day by day service from Miami, with plans for twice-daily service starting in November — a major raise for the shoulder season.
American may also offer a once-weekly Saturday flight between Charlotte and Grand Bahama.
However that’s not all.
On Nov. 17, Bahamasair will inaugurate a brand new nonstop route between West Palm Seaside and Freeport.
The optimism in Grand Bahama isn’t simply on the airlift facet, although. A brand-new Six Senses resort is coming to the island (with actual property gross sales already performing properly) and a brand new wave of buyers need to assist play a job in creating Grand Bahama 2.0.
“We proceed to discover new markets for Grand Bahama, in addition to place the island for returned service from each native and legacy airways,” stated Bahamas Deputy Prime Minister and Tourism Minister Chester Cooper. “As Grand Bahama’s overseas airlift arrivals, in addition to seat capability, proceed to see double digit year- over-year will increase, we’ll stay resolute in our effort to ‘put extra heads in beds’ from new markets, in addition to the at present serviced routes that embrace Charlotte, Durham, Ft. Lauderdale, Miami, Milan, Montreal and Toronto.”
