It’s getting even better in the Bahamas

The Caribbean paradise is definitely worth a look this year as a winter destination. The Bahamas offers frozen Canadians a host of activities in a beautiful island setting less than 100 miles off the Florida coast.

The site of Christopher Columbus’s first landing in North America in 1492, the Bahamas is named after the Spanish “Baja Mar”, which translates as “shallow sea”. The islands are actually mountain plateaux that emerged from the Atlantic hundreds of thousands of years ago, now covered with generations of coral that now make up the islands’ limestone base.

This same geography was later an irresistible attraction for pirates, including the infamous Blackbeard, Henry Morgan, and Anne Bonney, who ruled the area for the next 70 years in “The Golden Age of Piracy.” They lured ships into the shallow waters “plundering them like insects trapped in a spider’s web”, according to a tourist guide.

Today, those same shallow waters are home to some of the world’s best scuba diving and snorkelling, and glass bottomed boats do a roaring trade. Bahamas’ interesting geography and perfect climate (from the Trade Winds) provide a wide range of activities for the outdoor enthusiast,ncluding hiking, cycling, golf, tennis and of course swimming. And for those who also like the night life, Bahamian casinos offer yet another diversion.