Eleuthera Trip Report 10-2007
 

Hello all:

Just want to post a quick trip report on our trip to Eleuthera this past week.

Flights in and out of Nassau were fine. We took a connection to Governor's Harbor via Bahamasair and the short 20 minute flight was fine as well. I was very happy that the agent at Bahamasair would let us check in early (at 10am) for our 3pm flight to Eleuthera - by doing so we were able to take advantage of the 3 hour layover by taking a cab out to Paradise Island and had lunch at Dune, which is a Jean Georges concept. The lunch was fine and the first two Kaliks were even better.

My impression of Paradise Island was that it is a very commercial place, and a little over developed for our tastes. Especialy Atlantis, which sticks out like an eyesore. I guess large resorts are just not our cup of tea!

Naaman our car rental guy met us at the airport, alongside with the keys to our apartment, Oceansong. It is located at Rainbow Bay, and believe me, it is one of the most well-maintained houses that we've stayed at (we've rented houses in USVI, BVI, and Culebra). Very homey and everything is intact and in working order.

As with most islands, supplies are limited. We brought a lot of frozen steaks/chicken etc. prior to departing and was glad that we over packed in this department, as we found out that most dining establishments were closed for the hurricane season. We cooked all our meals in the house this time (for the chef in me that was great!).

We came to Eleuthera for her beaches and they were nice! We definitely prefer the ones on the Caribbean side for their calm, turquoise waters. Ten Bay Beach is our favorite. Saw numerous star fish there, and a sting ray too! We also picked up our first sand dollar there. Very cool, and not to mention a lot of conch shells to pick up. After this, we also liked Gaulding Cay and Alabaster Bay.

We also visited Tay Bay, Tarpum, Twin Cove, Club Med (French Leave), as well as Harbor Island. Not too impressive, but I think it has something to do with the hurricane season. The surf was strong and there was a lot of sea weed on the beach. Harbor Island was worth the side trip, as I really liked the architecture on the island. You can tell that there's a lot of money there. By the way, the book "Elusive Beaches of Eleuthera" is a must! But do be careful when reading the instructions/directions to the beaches. I went by the odometer of my jeep to the dot, but still found entry and turn off points to be less than exact. Be very careful on the dirt roads as we missed a turn en route to Ben Bay Beach and ended up stuck in the mud - we had to hitch a ride back to the gas station to get a tow truck.

The biggest highlight happened on our way back from Ten Bay one day. As we passed through the dock at Governor's Harbor, a diver just came in with his fresh catch. We picked up a whole red snapper (2 pounds) for $5!!! It truly was ocean fresh and we threw it on the grill seasoned with some Old Bay, Orange Juice, and Salt and Pepper. Delicious! There was a guy with lobsters as well when we passed James Cistern, but they were already spoken for. At $10 per piece, what a bargain.

Supplies are expensive there. The store at Governors Harbor had the most selections but we still found fresh produce in very short supply. Better off getting frozen veggies. Beer (Kalik) is about $40 a case. Rum is dirt cheap. Due to the "no liquids" restriction on planes now we only packed two bottles of wine on our trip. But let me tell ya, that bottle of 1995 Heitz Bella Oaks was tasty!

People say Eleuthera is not for everyone. I agree. If you want solitude this is the place to be. My wife and I got just that.

Cheers,
Ed & Peg

Enjoyed reading your trip report. Ten Bay is our fav beach as well. Am surprised to hear that the surf was up at club med beach, its usually calm even though its on the atlantic side. Thanks for posting. It was fun to read about one of my fav islands.

Foodiechan,
Thanks for the trip report! Do you have any pictures you can share? Also, is there a site for the house you rented? We were thinking of possibly renting a villa on Eleuthera and would love to see the one you rented as you said it was nice. Thanks!

Nevermind! I found the site to the house. Sounds like you had a great time :)

foodiechan, thanks for taking the time to post this report.

I'd love to see pictures if you have any you'd like to share ;)

Here's the link to our album on Webshots:

http://travel.webshots.com/album/561...w?vhost=travel

Your comments are welcome!

Ed & Peg

foodiechan, great trip report and pictures,sounds like you had a great time.my bf and i are going in april and i have a ?. how was it bringing the frozen meat on the airlines? did you carry-on or check it and did they check it,did you have to have reciepts? have gotten conflicting info so if you could help it would be great. we are staying at ten bay and hope to love it as much as you two did! thank-you, deb

Hello Deb:

Bringing frozen meat into the Bahamas was a breeze. When we cleared customs they didn't even bother to ask nor check.

As far as how we packed, after we marinated the meat, we would freeze them. On the day we left for the Bahamas, we packed them into a cooler (one of those Coleman ones are fine), alongside with a number of ice packs. We would check the cooler (having duct-taped it shut) upon checking in. Be sure to have an extra roll of duct tape should customs want to inspect the contents. We packed the meat at 6am, and when we unpacked the meat at 5-ish the meat was still frozen.

If you plan on cooking be sure to bring essential spices as well.

Have fun!

Ed & Peg

Foodiechan-
Where did you rent a house in Culebra. Any suggestions for a group of 6 in terms of a house to rent or comments about the island in general. We have been to Vieques.

Thanks foodiechan for the trip report. We are headed to Eleuthera for the first time in April and have rented a house in N. Palmetto Point. I enjoyed your photos! We are going through Nassau but spending the night at Orange Hill Beach Resort to "decompress" before going to GHB via Southern Air. Any additional tips you think of would be great about sightseeing, restaurants, etc. Thanks again!

Foodiechan,

If you can share photos of the villa we would love to see them. My wife and 4 kids are looking for a good way to experience the island life and keep costs down. Kids are ages 21, 20, 17 and 15 so they are big kids.

Many thanks,

fishmelia

To Fishmelia: if you scroll up on this thread I posted a link to my pictures from the trip. The villa might be a bit small for your family as it is only a one bedroom. However there are plenty of other options.

To Virginia Fish: like you I've been to Vieques first and then Culebra. I think Vieques is better and definitely there were more things to do. We rented a simple studio apartment, but looks as if there are plenty of other options to pick from.

To Ishkribbl: when we went most places were closed because of the hurricane season. That said, do speak with the locals about their local "fish fry" on the weekends. Check out the ferry docks by Governor's Harbor and Jame's Cistern for the fresh daily catch. My wife still gives me grief for not picking up the fresh local lobsters. There's also a BBQ joint (just off the street) just north of James Cistern that serves pretty good local grub. Do miss a day trip to Harbor Island!