mnag

We recently visited Elbow Cay in the Abacos. Left Newark Airport at 7am and landed at Marsh Harbor by noon. Small turbo prop from W. Palm beach to MHH. Had lunch at Sapodilly's before taking the ferry over to Elbow Cay. The ferry dropped us off at the Hopetown Harbor Lodge Dock where we were staying. Elbow Cay is quaint. The hotel was ok. The rooms were very small and the shower area even smaller. The views from the balcony were nice. We could see the harbor as well as the beach (although a bit far). The grounds were more natural looking and not manicured. Nothing fancy. The bahama out islands are not known for fancy resorts. The service was good. The dinner at the restaunt was excellent. The beach was really nice. Clear water and white sand. We visited Tahiti beach on Elbow Cay which was a different kind of experience. The water is very calm and only about two feet forever...great for kids. On a busy day there were only about 5-6 on the entire beach. We did a day trip to Great Guana Cay and loved it. In my opinion even more quaint/pretty/quieter than Elbow. Nipper beach bar was great. The beach by Nipper on Guana is spectacular. Bright turquiose blue...heavenly. The snorkelling trip with Froggies to fowl cay was great also. Saw a ton of beautiful fish. I've snorkelled in the BVI and I thought this was way more beautiful. The locals in the cays were very friendly. Very safe island. Nobody tries to sell you anything. Overall I would highly recommend elbow/guana cay to individuals looking to get away to a relaxing/quiet place with great beaches.

joan

Mnaq, thanks for your trip report! We are booked for our first ever trip to Elbow Cay with another couple next month. We are renting a house with a dock "steps from" Tahiti Beach, so it's nice to hear how beautiful it will be. We will be sure to dine at HH Lodge and of course Nippers is already on the list. We are renting a boat for the week, and plan to follow lots of Robert's advice for where to snorkel. I'm thrilled to hear such great quality snorkelling. We've been to Eleuthera several times, and ever since Hurricane Floyd, there was damage to the reefs and not as much to see...can't wait!

I've seen some horror stories about departing the Marsh Harbour airport on the Abaco message board - that even two hours is not enough lead time for security and check-in, and that lots of flights get cancelled and the rest overbook...what was your experience (we are flying Continental)? Also, how were the noseeums?

Robert

Oh, I miss Hopetown...I'm jealous. Stop in at the Fantasy Boutique if you want to bring back a "Potcake." The woman who works there will steer you to adopting one. If you're renting a boat, also explore Tiloo Cay. The Sandy Cay Park area has great snorkeling, too. If I didn't mention it before, the Hopetown Harbour Lodge has a great coral reef only 30 feet off their beach. Have a great time. Robert

mnag

Hi Joan, You will enjoy elbow cay. Try Mangoes restaurant in Marsh Harbor if you get a change. We had lunch there on our way to the airport. I would also recommend Capt Jacks for a causal dinner or lunch. Right on the harbor and good food. The beach accessible in hopetown (by the church) is beautiful also.

We took Continental in and out of Marsh Harbor. No problems. Our flight was to depart at 2:45pm. We took the 11:30 ferry from hopetown, had lunch at Mangoes and were at the airport by 1:15pm or so. We checked in in a few minutes. They did however cancel the American Airlines flight out of MHH (they said because of bad weather??....it was basically a cloudy day). The agent at the gate told us that AA does this often. I would suggest that you get your assigned seat numbers for the fligt in and out of MHH at the airport of your departure (we made sure we got seat numbers for the fligt back from MHH to W Palm Beach at Newark airport when we were leaving for the bahamas). Also make sure you get to MHH 11/2 hours prior to the departure time.

We had no problems with noseeums. I did use OFF as a precaution though once a day. I hear they are worse on Guana Cay in the summer months.

makai1

Thanks for the TR mnag,

Last year we stayed in a private home on Elbow Cay, just down the way from Tahiti Beach. It was heaven.

Great shelling and chilling. The water was indescribable! We snorkeled & "lobstered" until we were blue... rented an Albury boat from Island Marine for our time there... we had a private dock... it was terrific... Man o War was our fav Cay to browse.

Your report brings back great memories.

Many thanks.

Dustin

MNAG - After your advice from the St. Martin posting, I ventured over here. Great trip report. I think that we may be leaning toward Elbow Cay for the trip/wedding. Did you by any chance see the small church in town? If so what were your impressions?

Makai1 - just curious, how hard is "lobstering"? I think that I would really get a kick out of doing that.

Dustin

makai1

Dustin,

Hopetown, Elbow Cay is the most quaint lovely town I've ever walked through. The houses, scattered throughout town are every pastel color you could imagine... I'm trying to picture the church... I'll have to pull out the photo album.

"Lobstering" was one of the highlights, although we were only able to catch the last 3 days of the season... I believe it ended on April 3... we were there in 2003. It wasn't easy, but it also wasn't hard... sorry, I know that sounds flippant.

Our guys, 3 couples on this trip, purchased a video, "Lobster Tail Tamer" and the hawaiian sling and a noose. They studied, all in fun, of course, and were set to go when we got there. We ordered the video & equip from diversdirect.com.

You have to understand that our "men" are avid "hunters & fishermen" from the midwest. They were bound & determined to "hunt" down dinner.

Fun, fun...

BTW, are you getting married there??

Dustin

Makei1 - Yes, we are planning on getting maried there... have not yet decided weather to do the legal version first in the states first or all of it there.

I am, too, from the Midwest so I understand completely - Central Illinois.

I am fairly certain that we will be going in April or May so lobstering may be out for me... I will stick to fishing I guess.

Thanks for the feedback.

makai1

Dustin,

I scoured my photos and found a couple beautiful shots of the church in Hopetown... email me @ makaiguard-aloha.net w/ your address and I'll mail them to you... sorry they're not on disk, and for ease of getting them to you mail will work best.

Lovely, lovely.

BTW, we are in northern IL, Antioch. Go Cubs!!

AbacoPeach

Lobster season is from August 1 - March 31.

mnag

Hi Dustin, glad you are considering Elbow Cay for yor wedding. Very friendly place and we saw people of all age groups vacationing there. As makai1 indicated there is a church in the center of town. I did not see it from the inside but it looked quaint from the outside. I also remember that there is public access to a beautiful beach close by. The couple that was married at the harbor lodge while we were staying there got married on the hotel beach.

Dustin

Sorry for the delay but thanks for the responses.

Mnag - we now focusing on Abaco... thanks so much for the suggestion. I was really not familiar with the area at all until you mentioned it; however, I think it will be perfect for our needs and desires. We are now considering Hopetown and Guana Cay. In Hopetown, a large blue house on the Atlantic side named Calypso or Hope Town Villas (4 villas) + recommendations on some other properties/rooms to provide for additional guests (with either option). On Guana, we are considering Dolphin Beach. Do you have any recommendations with these specific properties or in general between Hope Town/Elbow Cay and Guana Cay?

Makai - I am sending an email to your adress now. Thanks for the pictures in advance.

Dustin

Makai - I could not get your address to go through... you can email me at [email protected]

Thanks - Dustin

AbacoPeach

I think you will really like Dolphin Beach Resort!!

makai1

Dustin,

Sorry... try [email protected]

mnag

Dustin, glad I could be of help. I am not familiar with Calypso but we did meet a couple who was staying there while attending a wedding on elbow when we went for dinner at the abaco inn. I think we saw the hopetown villas from the ferry in and out of elbow. They seemed nice from the outside however note that the water in the harbor is a bit murky so if you're looking for a view of clear water these may not be for you....We did a day trip to Guana..rented a golf cart from Donna Sands and toured the island. We loved it. If I were to go back..I would definately stay on Guana. Its in my opinion more picturesque and quaint than elbow. The one big difference is that the roads on elbow are full of potholes (bigger than the ones in manhattan). The roads on Guana are great. The island is bigger than elbow. There is a neater/cleaner look about guana. Houses are quaint and more spead out. The beach by Nippers is to die for. I thought the water in Guana was a bit more turquoise than elbow (I think the beaches in elbow are great also...though). We did not see the Dolphin resort so cant help you there. I think you may have more restaurant selection on Elbow.

Lizpearl

Hi all! I am so glad to have found this chat. We honeymooned at Hopetown Harbour Lodge 20 years ago and I am starting to plan an anniversary trip.

Does anyone have any idea why the HHL web page links all seem 'dead'? I cannot get any of them to lead me to the rest of the pages.

Is HHL in good repair? I remember that Floyd did lots of damage.

Thanks in advance,
Liz

mnag

Hi Liz, I just tried their website and it worked for me. As I mentioned in my trip report the lodge is quaint but very basic. But I'm sure you know that already since you honeymooned there. They have added on some beachfront cottages/cabanas. I beleive you have to stay for a week to rent those. We stayed at the harbor/oceanview room on the third floor cause it was the only one availabe. I thought the room was small..the bed took up most of the space. There was no closet...just some hangers in the bathroom. The water pressure was terrible on the third floor especially in the evenings. I thought the grounds (very small area) were very natural looking and not manicured at all. The beach bar closed at 6pm sharp. The beach was wonderful. No beach service. You have to go get your own drinks. The food at the restaurant (dinner) was very good. The breakfast was continental. Bagels and coffee and fruit.

RobertoB

Liz

There is a very active Abaco specific forum at this site that will help you plan your anniversary:

http://coconuttelegraph.net/cgi-bin/...ds/abacos.cgi?

Congratulations-twenty years ago the Abacos were undiscovered.

joan

Lizpearl, here's the link that works for me also, for the Hopetown Lodge:
http://www.hopetownlodge.com/

P.S. I love the conch salad stands all over Eleuthera. Does anyone know if such stands exist in the Abacos (especially the cays - Elbow)? Also, do you think Eleuthera pineapples will be available on the cays? I'm going in June, which seems to be pineapple season, and my mouth is watering!