(EDITOR’S NOTE: This article was posted by my friend Monte Pratt on his Facebook and I thought I would share it for readers of BAHAMAS CHRONICLE. An additional reason is that Bimini became one of my favourite Islands of The Bahamas when I was President of the Bahamas Baseball Association (BBA) in the 1960s and took teams to play against the excellent baseball teams Bimini produced back then on a weekly basis several seasons.)
By INKA PIEGSA QUISCHOTTE
Located just 50 miles off Florida’s coast, Bimini consists of two islands: North Bimini and South Bimini. Being the closest of the Bahamian islands to the U.S., it’s an ideal destination for a long weekend in lavish tropical surroundings. You can catch a 30-minute flight on a seaplane from Miami or a little longer one from Fort Lauderdale.
On land, you get around best on bicycles or golf carts. Bimini has only recently come onto the tourist radar, which means it’s less crowded and touristy than Nassau. What you can expect are glorious beaches, some serious game fishing, great food and accommodation, and plenty of history, starting with Spanish explorer and seafarer Ponce de Leon who, as legend has it, was lured to the island by tales of the Fountain of Youth in the early 1500s.
Ernest Hemingway wrote The Old Man and the Sea here (you can visit the house he often stayed in) and indulged in deep-sea fishing and rum drinking. Other well-known personalities who have left their mark are *Jimmy Buffet *and Martin Luther King Jr. Another legend is Bimini Road, which many believe to be a part of the lost city of Atlantis.
The best time to visit is between mid-November and late April. In the summer months, it can be very hot and humid. American citizens don’t need a visa for a stay of up to 90 days.
(Click on the link below to learn more about the Bimini’s.)
