Safe areas for shopping/walking in Freeport and Nassau?

[mom2mikel]

I haven't been to the Bahamas in over 30 years (that's dating me a little, huh?) . My 20yr old daughter and I are going on a cruise in March. We went to Cozumel last year and were a bit uncomfortable with the pushiness of the street vendors. Can I expect the same in the Bahamas?

 

All we really want to do is walk around a bit and shop. Whats the safest way to do this without being stuck on a lengthy excursion?

 

I initially booked a day pass at Grand Lucayan but worry about how it's held up post hurricane. Are there any other hotels/resorts that are known to be a good shape after matthew?

 

Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated!

[Langoustine]

We went to Cozumel last year and were a bit uncomfortable with the pushiness of the street vendors. Can I expect the same in the Bahamas?

 

Yes, though I don't think the Bahamas are quite---quite---as bad as Jamaica. You have to understand that we are human ATMs in many of these countries. If you want to go someplace where you won't be constantly bothered, I recommend Bermuda or Grand Cayman, two places where most of the citizens seem to have jobs and really aren't particularly interested in whether we're there or not.

Edited January 17, 2017 by Langoustine

[KcInGa]

Just came back from Freeport and Nassau last week. Not a lot of damage in Nassau. In Freeport we did a sailboat excursion which was amazing!!! In Nassau we did a day pass to Breezes. The resort is older but the passes were very wallet friendly and the food was good. The beaches were not crowded at all, though you may have a different crowd in March (Spring Break). We were only bothered right at the port in Nassau. In Freeport even at the port, not a single person came up to us.

 

 

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[KcInGa]

 

 

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[mom2mikel]

THANKS for the replies. Can you tell me where/when those pics were taken? So pretty! We are also considering parasailing through Carnival.

 

I'm thinking a day pass is probably my best bet - just have to select the hotel/resort. When we did Cozumel, the excursion ate up the whole day so this time around, I just don't want to be tied down all day.

[KcInGa]

The top and the last pic were both at Breezes in Nassau. The one with the jetty was when we were on the sailboat in Freeport

 

 

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[KcInGa]

And they were taken last week

 

 

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[Phoebebbb]

What is the name of the beach in Nassau? It looks lovely.

[KcInGa]

That was at a private beach at Breezes

 

 

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[mom2mikel]

Unfortunately, Breezes is sold out for our day in Nassau, so I booked at the British Colonial Hilton for the day. We are still debating parasailing in Nassau.

 

We are booked for a day pass at Grand Lucayan for our Freeport visit, but now that we disembark the next morning, we may just stay and enjoy the boat instead of going into town.

[tumblew467]

We have been to nassau several times. This 1st time I was worried like you, however we walked all around in town and had no problems. There are police at almost every corner. We even walked to the distillery and chocolate factory and had no problems. Just have your street smarts on and you will be fine. lol

we also visited the pirates museum : King and George St, Nassau, New Providence Island

John Watlings distillery:: Buena Vista Estate | 17 Delancy Street, Nassau 00000, New Providence Island

graycliff chocolatier: 8-14 West Hill Street, Nassau 00000, New Providence Island where you can tour how they make chocolate they also have a cigar rolling area as well you can tour.

 

All these are with in walking distance of the port off of the main drag of the shops.

you can find them on tripadvisor as well as well as other areas of interest for nassau.

Or just take a cab and do a city tour

hope this helps.

 

we are going back in may and am looking at the hilton day pass, It is $65 pp plus you get a $40 food/drink voucher for the day . The hilton is a 10 minute walk from the port. Since we have been all around nassau the past few times we went , we may just do the Hilton.

[atruetexan]

We are going Feb 25 2019.  I enjoyed reading your reviews.  Just wondering how walking with a rollator would be.  Hubby needs it to help and also to sit when to catch his breath.  Do you remember the distance from the ship to queen’s step, chocolate factory?  Thanks in advance.

[30scruiser]

On December 30, 2018 at 8:40 AM, atruetexan said:

We are going Feb 25 2019.  I enjoyed reading your reviews.  Just wondering how walking with a rollator would be.  Hubby needs it to help and also to sit when to catch his breath.  Do you remember the distance from the ship to queen’s step, chocolate factory?  Thanks in advance.

This post is almost a year old so no sure if anyone on her previously will reply. 

From what I gather everything is uphill from the port so depending on your husbands mobility you may want to take a cab out and walk back? 

Here is a post with some maps and suggestions for walking tours as well as some comments about the difficulty of the walk.

 

https://boards.cruisecritic.com/topic/2560759-nassau-self-guided-walking-tour-and-souvenirs-to-look-for/

 

[atruetexan]

Thank you for answering.

[jolchip]

Looking for recent feedback with safety to walk to distillery and then possibly walk or take cab to Baha Mar?

[HangFire21]

Still safe to walk around in Nassau? I saw the state dept has a warning for south of Shirley St. We want to take this route in a couple weeks:

 

 

[cruiseapril]

If concerned- take a taxi.

 

[CaribbeanLover22]

On 1/4/2019 at 9:54 AM, HangFire21 said:

Still safe to walk around in Nassau? I saw the state dept has a warning for south of Shirley St. We want to take this route in a couple weeks:

 

 

 

From what I've been reading on other posts it is safe as long as you are smart. We leave January 20 and plan to walk this route with our group in a couple weeks also, going a little bit further, adding john watlings distillery and junkanoo beach.

[HangFire21]

The cab fare to the sand bar was about $80 total for 2 people, that included going to Port Lucaya market as well. Port Lucaya was clean and pleasant and about what you would expect an overseas market/outdoor mall to be. Margaritavilla/The sand bar was awesome. The beach was beautiful and we had it to ourselves. Highly recommend you check it out if you're in the area.

[tammystaug]

On 1/21/2017 at 9:25 PM, tumblew467 said:

We are going back in may and am looking at the hilton day pass, It is $65 pp plus you get a $40 food/drink voucher for the day . The hilton is a 10 minute walk from the port. Since we have been all around nassau the past few times we went , we may just do the Hilton.

 

Current pricing as on February 2019 is $100/per day

[mskaufman]

On 1/7/2019 at 2:36 PM, CaribbeanLover22 said:

 

From what I've been reading on other posts it is safe as long as you are smart. We leave January 20 and plan to walk this route with our group in a couple weeks also, going a little bit further, adding john watlings distillery and junkanoo beach.

We walked to Queens Staircase about 14 months ago.  Parts of the route went through a run down area (stores closed, fences up) but no one bothered us.  Things I have read since then have been more alarming and not sure I would do it today.

[hazelgreen]

we were just in Nassau and never felt unsafe. We walked (downhill) from John Watling's distillery towards downtown, 2 of our group split off to visit Queen staircase. We went down alleys and said hello to locals, who were helpful in telling us directions too.  We had taxi drivers who assured us that safety for tourists in Nassau is a priority, that they value us as visitors.  Physically, I have some issues on rough terrain, so to answer your question, atruetexan: I would taxi up and maybe walk back.  It's probably a mile each way. 

[April78]

How do you book day passes to the hotels ? 

[April78]

On 2/11/2019 at 12:32 PM, mskaufman said:

We walked to Queens Staircase about 14 months ago.  Parts of the route went through a run down area (stores closed, fences up) but no one bothered us.  Things I have read since then have been more alarming and not sure I would do it today.

Where do you read about the danger ? 

I’d like to read it as well. 

[GUEST71919]

20 hours ago, April78 said:

Where do you read about the danger ? 

I’d like to read it as well. 

You need to use the various links to learn more detail, this is an overview for the Bahamas. https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/international-travel/International-Travel-Country-Information-Pages/Bahamas.html