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The two main attractions outside Freeport - Lucayan National Park
and Paradise Coe - lie on opposites sides of the town. Straddling
the Queen's Highway 25 miles to the east, Lucayan National Park
(daily 9am-4pm - phone 242/352-5438) encompasses forty acres of
mixed forest, limestone
caverns and sinkholes, mangrove creeks, a spectacular beach and
several nature trails all less than a mile long.
A trail from the
parking lot on the north side of the highway leads to a
six-mile-long underwater cave system, one of the world's longest.
One of them, Ben's Cave, is named for Grand Bahamian Ben Rose, the
first diver to explore the entire cave system.
Others have died
trying to repeat this feat, but certified divers may explore the
underwater stalactites and stalagmites of the tunnels with a permit
obtainable from the Bahamas National Trust (phone 242/359-1821, and UNEXSO (phone 242/373-1244, ) offers guided
expeditions.
The opening of Ben's Cave, accessible by a steep
staircase, is home to a large colony of bats and is closed to
visitors in the summer months when they nurse their young. Nearby,
in Burial Mound Cave, another limestone sinkhole, divers discovered
the skeletons of four indigenous Lucayans.
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Heading west from Freeport along
Queen's Highway, a sign on the left
marks
the turn-off to Paradise Coe (phone 242/349-2677, fax 352-5471) at Deadman's Reef, and a beautiful stretch of white sandy beach backed by
tall grass and bush, with great snorkeling around the teeming reef just
offshore.
East from Ranfurly Circus on Sunrise Highway, and south on Seahorse
Road, Port Lucaya and the beachfront ho phone s of Lucaya comprise a resort
area with a more cheerful atmosphere than Freeport's, with carefully
tended lawns and shrubbery, and tidy, candy-colored shops and houses. A
seaside suburb first developed in the 1960s, Lucaya is dominated by the
brand-new and massive Our Lucaya Beach and Golf Resort, fronting
Lucayan Beach, with two golf courses. Across the street from Our Lucaya
is Port Lucaya Marketplace, a busy, colorful tourist market
overlooking the boats at Port Lucaya Marina, with shops selling
clothing, jewelry, perfume, crystal and china, open-air stalls
displaying straw work and other souvenirs, and several lively
restaurants and bars packed with vacationers. |
Bahamas
travel
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Grand Bahama
Grand
Bahama
Arrival Brief
history Information Getting around
Boat excursions
diving
& snorkeling Other
outdoor
activities
Freeport
/ Lucaya
Long Island
Long Island
Arrival and
transport
Getting around
Eating
New
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New
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Island Arrival,
transport. Practicalities |
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