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| You are here: Home : Destination Guide : North America : Florida And Bahamas : Listings |
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Tourist Boards Greater Miami
Convention and Visitors Bureau St. Augustine
Visitors Convention Bureau St. Petersburg/Clearwater
Area Convention and Visitors Bureau Florida Keys
and Key West Tourist Development Council Naples
Marco Island Everglades Convention and Visitors Bureau Bahamas The
Bahamas Ministry of Tourism
Literally hundreds of airlines serve Florida's many international airports such as Miami, Tampa, Fort Lauderdale, Orlando, and Jacksonville. From there, Bahamas Air and American Eagle both have a number of flights out of Miami into the Bahamas. British Airways recently started a direct flight from the UK to Nassau. For island hopping by air between Florida and the Bahamas try: Chalks
Ocean Airways This well-run airline has been serving passengers between Florida and the Bahamas since 1910. Landing on azure waters in one of Chalks' picturesque sea planes is an experience not to be missed. Check out their reasonable prices and enjoy! 
Where to Stay
Miami Miami
River Inn Listed on the National Register of Historic Places, this beautiful timber built Southern-style inn dates back to 1906 and prides itself on being Miami's only bed and breakfast. In the 1980s it was immaculately restored and makes a splendid, tranquil, and luxurious haven for any traveller wanting to rest their weary feet. Guests are welcomed with a glass of wine and shown to beautifully furnished rooms with hardwood floors, brass, and wicker furnishings. Balconies or porches overlook the fabulously lush gardens which shelter a swimming pool and dozens of brightly colored birds in the foliage. The riverside area, once dodgy territory for wandering tourists, is now deservedly undergoing a regeneration. Colorful Little Havana and downtown's museums, galleries, shopping, and dining are all within walking distance. In short this place is a gem, a tropical jungle in the middle of metropolitan Miami with lovely staff and reasonable room rates starting at $69 and up to around $200 in high season.
The Clay
Hotel The
Beach Plaza Hotel This stylish three-story boutique hotel is the perfect choice for
anybody wanting to sample Art Deco architecture from the inside.
The hotel, restored in keeping with the tropical Art Deco style
of Miami Beach, provides comfortable and attractive rooms in the
heart of the Art Deco District. The hotel also benefits from a pretty
tropical garden, which is a haven from the bustle of Collins Avenue
- one of South Beach's busiest arteries. Rates for a double room
vary between $99 and $299 per night. Jules' Undersea
Lodge It doesn't get any quirkier than this. The is possibly the only place in the world where you can spend the night in a genuine underwater hotel. Every comfort is catered for once you have scuba dived down to your room! A highly recommended once-in-a-lifetime experience.
Grand Bahama The Sheraton In keeping with the style of most tourist developments in the Bahamas,
Our Lucaya is a very large resort comprising of three different
hotels. The casual, colorful Sheraton caters primarily to families
while the nearby Westin is designed primarily for adults. Guests
of both hotels have full access to all resort facilities and activities,
which include four large pools, two championship golf courses, and
a luxury spa. In addition, the hotels are located on one of the
best white sand beaches you'll find in the Bahamas. Room rates are
all-inclusive, clocking in at $189 to $249 per double in the winter,
down to $159 to $199 per double out of season. Nassau
Palm Resort and Conference Centre A centrally located hotel on the famous Bay Street right in the centre of town, overlooking the white sand of Junkanoo Beach and the Atlantic Ocean across Nassau Harbor. Room rates start at around $90 per night. 
Where to Eat and drink
Miami Beach Mangoes
Tropical Café Colorful cocktails, legendary raunchy floorshows, and Latino jubilance
at one of Ocean Drive's best established bars.
If you want to escape your mega resort and get a taste of real local Bahamian life, why not drop in at this little beach front bar and try a local beer and a conch salad or a plate of conch fritters. You may not see many tourists, especially after the 2004 hurricanes did their worst to this sleepy fishing village, but you will experience the very best in Bahamian hospitality and the freshest seafood. Next door is the battered Star Hotel, the island's oldest hotel which since 1946 has opened its doors to the likes of everyone from Ernest Hemingway to Martin Luther King, Jr. West End is at the very western tip of Grand Bahama, about a 45-minute drive from the center of Freeport. The West Enders are famed for their hospitality and friendliness and they'll make your visit worthwhile.  Shopping
Miami Just one of the many botanicas in Calle Ocho, Little Havana. Pop
in and buy a potion for less than a dollar that will help you stay
young, find love, achieve business success, or remedy any other
malady in your life - spiritual or physical! This and the other
botanicas along Calle Ocho (8th Street) are treasure troves where
the mournful faces of alabaster saints nestle between Santeria dolls
and mantelpiece ornaments. Nassau Straw Market  Attractions
and entertainmentFlorida John
F. Kennedy Holocaust Memorial Spanish Military Hospital On the site of the Hospital of our Lady of Guadalupe which was active during the Spanish Colonial Period from 1784 to 1821. Today, you can take an eerie candlelit tour and learn about some of the gory medical tools that were used on the suffering soldiers who are said to still haunt the premises. Zero Gravity
Corporation It doesn't get much more exciting than this. The elation of floating weightlessly in zero gravity, between earth and space, is unforgettable, and this is the only outfit in Florida - and one of the few in the world - who can offer you the experience. Hemmingway House Located at 907 Whitehead Street and nestled in the heart of Old
Town Key West, Hemingway House was home to one of America's most
honoured and respected authors. Ernest Hemingway lived and wrote
here for more than ten years. Calling Key West home, he found solace
and great physical challenge in the turquoise waters that surround
this tiny island. Step back in time and visit the rooms and gardens
that witnessed the most prolific period of this Nobel Prize winner's
writing career. Educated tour guides give insightful narratives
and are eager to answer questions. Wander through the lush grounds
and enjoy the whimsy of the more than sixty cats that live here.
The Ernest Hemingway Home and Museum is a significant address on
any Key West itinerary. The museum welcomes thousands of visitors
from around the world each year and looks forward to welcoming you! Established in 1963, John Pennekamp Coral Reef State Park was the
first undersea park created in the United States. The park, combined
with the adjacent Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary, encompasses
178 nautical square miles of coral reefs, sea grass beds and mangrove
swamps. These areas were established to protect and preserve the
only living coral reef in the continental United States. Named for
the late Miami newspaper editor John D. Pennekamp, who was also
instrumental in preserving the land that would become the Everglades
National Park, Coral Reef State Park now enjoys over a million visitors
per year from around the world.
Florida's premiere nightly arts festival takes place at Mallory
Square in Key West. The participants of this Key West attraction
consist of arts and crafts exhibitors, street performers, food stalls,
psychics, and hundreds of visitors from all over the world. Each
night, around two hours before sunset, masses of people, locals
and tourists alike, flock to the water's edge to experience a multicultural
happening and to watch the sun sink into the Gulf of Mexico.
Big Cypress is the Native American reservation in the Florida Everglades. The Ah-Tah-Thi-Ki Museum will teach you about the Seminole tribe and their history as the only tribe in the Americas never to have been vanquished in battle. A little further down the road is Billy Swamp Safari, from where you can take wonderful tours of the everglades in a swamp buggy with a guide who can tell you about every creature you see. Alternatively, take an exhilarating airboat ride across the shallow waters of the swamps and eyeball the alligators that slide past your boat, as well as the dozens of other species of wildlife who exist in this delicate eco system. For an authentic overnight experience, why not stay for Indian folktales by the bonfire in the evening then bed down in a native Thi-Ki hut. Kayak
Nature Tours Take a magical kayak tour through the mangrove swamps and experience some of the islands typical flora and fauna. Also available are nature walks with expert guides who can take you to discover secluded beaches far away from the resorts, or days out on mountain bikes that can reveal another side to the island. A small locally run business well worth supporting. Stuart Cove's
Aqua Adventures An internationally respected dive outfit with a wonderful dive
shop and its own little harbor. There's a dive on offer for everyone
whether you want a chilling shark encounter or a tranquil potter
around the coral. There's even an option for non-divers who can
experience aquatic life in a personal submarine. Stuart Cove can
also organize pick-ups from your hotel.
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Travel
Tours