Several informative tours of Grand Bahama Island are available. One reliable company is H. Forbes Charter Services Ltd., at West Sunrise Highway, Freeport (tel. 242/352-9311; www.forbescharter.com). From its headquarters in the International Bazaar, this company operates half- and full-day bus tours. The most popular option is the half-day Super Combination Tour, priced at US$25 (£13) per adult and US$15 (£7.50) per child age 5 to 12. It includes drive-through tours of residential areas and the island's commercial center, stops at the island's deep-water harbor, shopping, and a visit to a wholesale liquor store. Departures are Monday through Saturday at 9am and 1pm; the tour lasts 3 1/2 hours. Full-day tours, conducted whenever business warrants, last from 9am to 3:30pm. In addition to everything included in the half-day tours, they bring participants in a bus or van, with guided commentary, all the way to the Caves, near Grand Bahama Island's easternmost tip, for US$40 (£20) per adult, US$30 (£15) per child.
Land & Sea Eco-Tours -- If you're a nature lover, escape from the casinos and take one of the bush and sea safaris offered by East End Adventures (tel. 242/373-6662), whose guides take you through dense pine forests and along deserted beaches, going inland on hikes to blue holes, mangrove swamps, and underground caverns. You may even learn how to crack conch. A native lunch is served on a serene beach in Lightbourne's Cay, a remote islet in the East End. Most of the tour is laid-back; you can snorkel in blue holes or shell hunt. The safaris happen Sunday to Friday between 9:30am and 5pm, costing US$120 (£60) for adults and US$60 (£30) for kids ages 2 to 12.
