An outstanding place for laid-back luxury, this resort attracts both honeymooners and snorkelers. The excellent full-service on-site marina and dive shop draw serious anglers, boaters, and divers. The waters around the resort are shallow enough to spot schools of fish from the shore -- sometimes you'll even see a green turtle paddling above the sandbanks. Spread across 32 hectares (79 acres) of low-lying scrubland, the inn feels very much like a country club. The courteous staff members offer assistance, yet don't intrude on peace or privacy. The resort's yacht club, host of the prestigious Bahama Cup Around the Island Race, is associated with Florida's Palm Beach Yacht Club and England's Birdham Yacht Club. Members have their own villas right on the water, often with private docks.

Temporary guests lodge in spacious bungalows (usually two units to a building), set within a gently sloping, carefully landscaped garden. The accommodations are among the region's most upscale and luxurious -- think England in the Tropics. Bedrooms boast mahogany furniture, four-poster beds, French-inspired draperies, oak floors, terra-cotta tiled patios, and wicker or rattan furniture. Villas with kitchens are also available.

The flag-festooned bar is the resort's social center, where there's occasionally live music. There's an unmistakably British tone to evenings here, which begin with pre-dinner cocktails beside a roaring fire in the bar's iron stove (in chilly weather only, of course). Everyone then adjourns to the pine-paneled dining room for well-prepared dinners. Breakfast and lunch are usually served on the veranda.