Planning a Trip

Getting There

By Plane -- There are three airports 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). The latter doesn't have an airstrip, but yachters can 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, but usually include 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, there's often 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, 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. For details on sailings (subject to change) and costs, contact the dock master at Nassau's Potter's Cay Dock at tel. 242/393-1064.

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

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 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 charge is about US$13. From Treasure Cay Airport, it's about US$15 to Green Turtle Cay. 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 on Albury's Ferry Service (tel. 242/367-0290; 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 US$15 for adults, half-price for children 6 to 11, and free for kids 5 and under. Ferries also go to Guana Cay. The ferry docks aren't far from Marsh Harbour Airport; it's about a 10-minute, US$13-to-US$16 cab ride for two passengers (plus US$3 for each additional passenger).

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