Upswing in Bahamas tourism good for travelers, too

Pink-cheeked and Kalik-guzzling coeds filled the streets, bars, and Junkanoo Beach. Little girls kept hair-braiders' fingers flying at the cruise-ship harbor. Shoppers thronged Bay Street.

The lobbies of Atlantis' Beach Tower resounded with the cacophony of kids and sundry vacationers. Shop owners, resort managers and restaurateurs wore big, if harried, smiles.

Nassau buzzed during a late February week, at least in the resort areas downtown, on Paradise Island and in Cable Beach.

After a big hurt in 2009, tourism in the islands has bounced back, according to the Bahamas Ministry of Tourism & Aviation.

In tempo with general island pacing, change comes slowly on these islands. It does come, though. And a new heydays appears to be on its way as development again picks up.

In January, the tourism ministry announced that visitor numbers for 2010 had climbed nearly 15 percent above 2009.

By October, air arrivals alone were up 4.1 percent - an increase of almost 45,000 visitors over 2009.

The main airport in Nassau, Lynden Pindling International, has been staying ahead of the game as it works on an expansion in three phases.

The first stage, a 247,000-square-foot, $198 million U.S. departures terminal, opened in March. The old departure terminal will make room for a slightly smaller international arrivals terminal in fall 2012.

For those flying from Nassau to Freeport or the Out Islands, a new domestic terminal will complete the project in fall 2013.

The new facilities promise to accommodate upwards of 5 million more passengers with 34 additional gates and, tourism officials hope, more flights.

In downtown Nassau, the bustling, shopper-happy Bay Street is being turned into a walking mall with a mix of local and duty-free outlets. In the meantime, the new Straw Market will open by August. It replaces a temporary tent market erected after a fire in 2001 burned down the original marketplace.

The new, concrete, two-level market will concentrate on local, handmade crafts and food, whereas the old one was known for cheap imports and designer knock-offs. The second level will host live entertainment.

On Cable Beach, the long-awaited Baha Mar mega-resort development broke ground in February. Following the opening of the new boutique Marley Resort (yes that Marley) and massive renovations at the Sheraton and Wyndham, Cable Beach promises to reinstate its former "Riviera of the Caribbean" reputation with three new hotels, a new 18-hole Jack Nicklaus signature course, a bigger casino, spas, and a water park and retail village.

For those with simpler tastes, the new and growing Nettie's Different of Nassau is just down the street.

Part out-island cultural experience, part inn, part restaurant and culinary school, its eponymous operator, Nettie Symonette, is nothing short of a hoteling legend in this land. Here, visitors can find home-style meals served indoors or out, a patio bar that attracts the locals, too, and a courtyard pool.

Nettie's is minutes from Cable Beach and the attractions of downtown Nassau. But for those who want to duck the cruise-ship crowds, escape is easy on a taxi to some of the island's outlying historical and natural attractions.

Worth the drive out to the west end, Clifton Heritage National Park has plantation ruins, slave steps, a museum, nature trails, and a beach all in one.

At the island's other end, The Retreat national park is making a comeback with its trails, structural ruins, and lush gardens filled with rare palms and native vegetation.

Just over the bridge from Nassau, Paradise Island has something new to offer to the hardest-to-please of resort visitors: teenagers.

In December, the 3,500-room Atlantis Resort, Bahamas opened its $11 million teen club, CRUSH. It's so awesome, parents will wish they could stay. They can't.

The club has everything 13- to 17-year-olds could want in the electronics, music, and mocktails field. Open from 8:30 p.m. to 1 a.m. each night, it holds up to 500 kids, plus a hefty contingency of security guards.

For $25 admission, teens can play an assortment of cutting-edge solo electronics game in a speaker-rigged chair or as a group in a game cabana.

Electronic surface tables allow them to order food and retail items. Might want to keep a grip on this - there's everything from a $6 glass nail file to a $259 iPod available with a touch of a finger and slide of a room key.

Designed to look part-casino, part-club, CRUSH has a disco with a full bar of mocktails (ma-jito anyone?) and energy drinks.

Coming to Atlantis: From the same people who brought popular Carmine's Italian restaurant to the resort, the New York-style Virgil's Real BBQ debuts this fall with 650 seats - part of a $100 million expansion plan.

Nassau's vigor extends to some of the Out Islands, where development, redevelopment, expansion, and major renovation have been underway since last summer.

For jump-starters, there was the highly publicized reopening of the Bimini Big Game Club under the auspices of Guy Harvey Outpost on North Bimini Island.

In Eleuthera -- known for its gorgeous, off-the-beaten-path beaches -- the design-forward Sky Beach Club near Governor's Harbour will be adding more rooms, rental homes, tennis courts, and a spa and fitness center to its current inventory of three poolside cabana rooms, four four-bedroom homes, a hip restaurant next to the black-bottomed infinity pool, and a secluded beach.

Also in Governor's Harbour, a new 25-acre botanical preserve is expected to open soon, and an equestrian farm for beach horseback riding is under construction.

Eleuthera's most exclusive destination, Harbour Island, has kept vital with its celebrity reputation and movie shoots. The two big guns in the resort scene there continue to upgrade and expand.

At 48 years old, The Dunmore is under new ownership. It's gotten a complete facelift to its restaurant and 16 rooms and added a new oceanfront swimming pool. It recently broke ground on a residential component; the first home should be finished by November.

Celeb-favored Pink Sands, too, is getting into the residential sales business with plans to offer new luxury homes for multi-generational vacationers in its rental program.

For those without rock-star budgets, colorful and funky Tingum Village is locally owned with basic accommodations that sleep up to eight. It, too, is getting a spruce-up for the strengthening market.

On Grand Bahama Island, growth and recovery seem to have stalled despite big plans - particularly downtown Freeport and at the West End.

However, at the other extreme of the 96-mile island known for stellar bonefishing, East End Lodge just opened five new, charming Bahamian-style guest rooms in McLean's Town.

"I've been to every bonefishing lodge in the north Bahamas," says owner Robert Neher. "I took the best of all and made it better and more affordable."

Year-round packages include all-day boat-fishing, breakfast and dinner in the dining room, and a box lunch for fishing or beaching.

On Great Exuma Island, Sandals Emerald Bay celebrated its one-year anniversary in February by announcing the completion of a million-dollar renovation of its Greg Norman-designed golf course, upgrades to its dining options, and the addition of 66 rooms set to debut April 15.

As a result of the Bahamas' strong re-emergence into the vacation scene, airlines are responding by resuming seasonal service and, in some cases, adding new flights, including more flights from Miami to Exuma and an AirTran weekly nonstop from Orlando to Nassau.

IF YOU GO

Information: Call 800-BAHAMAS (224-2627) or visit www.bahamas.com.

Lodging

Rates for European Plan double occupancy unless otherwise noted.

•Atlantis, Paradise Island; (242) 363-3000, www.atlantis.com. The islands' mega fantasy resort, starts at $280.

•The Dunmore, Harbour Island, Eleuthera; (242) 333-2200 or (877) 891-3100, www.dunmorebeach.com. Newly renovated historic cottages - relaxed with a bit of British formality. Rooms start at $320.

•East End Lodge, McLean's Town, Grand Bahama Island; (561) 354-8005, www.eastendlodge.com. New five-cottage nicely appointed bonefishing lodge with all-inclusive rates starting at $1,395 for a two-night fishing/dining package.

•Marley Resort & Spa, Nassau; (242) 702-2800 or (866) 737-1766, www.marleyresort.com. Once the vacation home of the late reggae icon Bob Marley, it has been dressed by his family into a reggae-themed upscale resort with 16 rooms named for Marley songs, Simmer Down restaurant, Stir It Up bar, and Natural Mystic spa. Summer rates start at $295.

•Nettie's Different of Nassau; (242) 327-7921, www.nettiesplace.com. A re-creation of a Bahamian Out Island yard with a museum, restaurant, and 15 rooms decorated in wood furnishings and equipped with televisions. Rates start at $105-$150.

•Pink Sands, Harbour Island, Eleuthera; (800) 407-4776, www.pinksandsresort.com. Top chic on Harbour Island with 25 one- and two-bedroom cottages and airport transportation. Rates start a $495 for a one-bedroom garden view.

•Sandals Emerald Bay, Great Exuma Island; (888) SANDALS (726-3257), www.sandals.com. Part of the new Sandals Luxury Included brand, it takes all-inclusive vacationing up a notch with free scuba diving and more. Rates start at $330 per person.

•Sky Beach Club, Governor's Harbour, Eleuthera; (242) 332-3422 or (800) 605-9869, www.skybeachclub.com. Original architecture and design with poolside rooms starting at $225.

•Tingum Village, Harbour Island, Eleuthera; (242) 333-2161, www.thesecretkiss.net. Close to the beach, its 19 rooms and suites and three-bedroom cottage are comfortable and tropical, if a little dated and worn at the edges. Rates start at $95.