Planning a Trip

Getting There

By Plane -- Three airports are found in the Abacos: Marsh Harbour (the major one, on Great Abaco Island), Treasure Cay, and Walker's Cay. The official points of entry by water are at Marsh Harbour, Treasure Cay, Walker's Cay, and Green Turtle Cay (New Plymouth). Green Turtle Cay doesn't have an airstrip, but many members of the yachting crowd clear Customs and Immigration there.

Many visitors arrive from Nassau or Miami on Bahamasair (tel. 800/222-4262 or 242/377-8451; www.bahamasair.com). Flight schedules change frequently in The Bahamas, but you can usually get two to three flights out of Nassau on Fridays and Sundays, going first to Marsh Harbour and then on to Treasure Cay. From West Palm Beach, you can often take a direct morning flight to Marsh Harbour and Treasure Cay.

Other connections include American Eagle (tel. 800/433-7300 or 242/367-2231; www.aa.com), with flights from Miami to Marsh Harbour once daily; and Continental Connection (tel. 800/231-0856 or 242/367-3415 in Marsh Harbour, 242/365-8615 in Treasure Cay; www.continental.com), which flies to Marsh Harbour and Treasure Cay two to three times daily from several Florida locales. A smaller carrier is Twin Air (tel. 954/359-8266; www.flytwinair.com), flying from Fort Lauderdale to Treasure Cay on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays.

By Boat -- The mail boat MV Legacy sails on Tuesday from Nassau to Hope Town, Marsh Harbour, Turtle Cay, and Green Turtle Cay. It returns to Nassau on Friday. Trip time is 12 hours. The MV Legacy leaves Nassau on Tuesday, with stops at Green Turtle Cay, Hope Town, Marsh Harbour, and Turtle Cay, going back to Nassau on Thursday. Each trip takes 12 hours. For details on sailings (subject to change) and costs, contact the dock master at Potter's Cay Dock in Nassau (tel. 242/393-1064).

Bahamas Ferries (www.bahamasferries.com) operates a direct service from Nassau aboard the Sea Wind. A round-trip passage costs $110 (£58) for adults and $70 (£37) per child. For more information and for bookings, call tel. 242/323-2166. The trip from Nassau to Sandy Point in the Abacos takes 1 hour and 50 minutes.

Getting Around

By Taxi -- Unmetered taxis, which you often have to share with other passengers, meet all arriving flights. They will take you to your hotel if it's on the Abaco "mainland"; otherwise, they will deposit you at a dock where you can hop aboard a water taxi to one of the neighboring offshore islands, such as Green Turtle Cay or Elbow Cay. Most visitors use a combination taxi and water-taxi ride to reach the most popular hotels. From Marsh Harbour Airport to Hope Town on Elbow Cay, the cost is about $13 (£6.90) for the transfer. From the Treasure Cay Airport to Green Turtle Cay, the charge is about $15 (£7.95). Elbow Cay costs about $12 (£6.35) for the transfer.

It's also possible to make arrangements for a taxi tour of Great or Little Abaco. These, however, are expensive, and you don't really see much.

By Ferry -- Mostly, you'll get around with Albury's Ferry Service (tel. 242/367-3147; www.alburysferry.com), which provides several ferry connections between Marsh Harbour and both Elbow Cay (Hope Town) and Man-O-War Cay, a 20-minute trip to either destination. The one-way fare is $15 (£7.95) adults, $7.50 (£3.95) for children 11 and younger. (Ferries also go to Guana Cay.) The ferry docks are not far from the Marsh Harbour Airport; it's about a 10-minute, $13 to $14 (£6.90-£7.40) cab ride for two passengers (plus $3/£1.60 for each additional passenger).

For car-ferry service to Green Turtle Cay, see the section, "Green Turtle Cay (New Plymouth)," later in this chapter. Ferries go from Great Abaco Island to Green Turtle Cay, but those docks are a 35-minute, $70 (£37) cab ride for up to four passengers from the Marsh Harbour Airport. It's better to fly to Treasure Cay than Marsh Harbour to do this, and then take a taxi to the ferry docks.