Paradise Island Honeymoon, the Bahamas

Consider a honeymoon or romantic getaway holiday on Paradise Island, one of the Bahamas’ most exciting and popular islands.

Blessed with stunning white-sand beaches, high-octane water sports and a nightlife that comes complete with Vegas-style gaming action, revues, nightclubs and fine dining restaurants, Paradise Island offers all the ingredients you need for the perfect Caribbean honeymoon holiday – all just a 35-minute flight from Miami.

Things to do and see
Sunbathe on the pristine casuarina-fringed, powder-white and often pink-hued sands of Paradise Beach, swim in the calm turquoise waters and snorkel the offshore coral gardens.

Then check out the thrilling waterslides, high-intensity rapids and outdoor aquarium at the Atlantis Paradise Island Resort & Casino, a towering 2900-room Vegas-style resort.

This 14ha playground features an entertainment centre, restaurant complex, casino, luxury hotel and theme park that includes an underwater snorkelling trail called Paradise Lagoon, a five-storey replica of a Mayan temple, a Lazy River Ride for tubing and 11 lagoons and pools that are home to 200 marine species. At touch tanks, let the kids handle starfish, conch and sea urchins and watch sharks, stingrays, lionfish, lobsters and piranhas gliding through glassed-in underwater viewing tunnels.

The Atlantis also offers the 2323m² Mandara Spa, a Zen-inspired enclave of calm and serenity where you can be pampered with a choice of exotic body scrubs and wrap treatments.

For the best views of the island visit Fort Fincastle, just 60m above sea level. Then check out the magical pink and mauve sunsets from the Cloister, a reassembled 12th century French monastery surrounded by manicured gardens of tropical flowers and classical statues. The monastery is located at the exclusive 5-star One&Only Ocean Club resort on Paradise Drive.

After dark, head to the vast Atlantis Paradise Island Resort & Casino, a nightlife mecca boasting a choice of gaming tables, Vegas-type revues and several fine dining options that include the unforgettable Café Martinique, where you can dine on French gourmet cuisine in a classic setting.

Or check out the Dune restaurant, a creation of culinary legend Jean-Georges Vongerichten, at the One&Only Ocean Club, which is also great for breakfast and lunch (and less expensive).

Explore further afield with an excursion to the Blue Lagoon on uninhabited Salt Cay, just a half-hour ferry ride from Nassau. Here you can snorkel, swim with dolphins (in captivity), hike nature trails, parasail and play volleyball – or simply relax in a hammock slung between two palm trees and do nothing at all.

Accommodation
Paradise Island offers an excellent range of hotels to suit most budgets. High flyers can splash out in style at several luxurious 5-star resorts, including the Atlantis Paradise Island Resort & Casino, the One&Only Ocean Club, The Cove or The Reef. Budget conscious holidaymakers may wish, instead, to try the Comfort Suites, Best Western Bay View Suites or the Paradise Harbour Club and Marina.

Yoga lovers may want to try the Sivananda Yoga Retreat, a one-time favourite of Beatle George Harrison, with mandatory 5am yoga classes and vegetarian meals facing a private white-sand beach.

Best time to visit Paradise Island?
The best time for Paradise Island honeymoon holidays is from November to April when temperatures average a balmy 24°C, with refreshing trade winds. The temperature averages 28°C during the rest of the year.

Summer, from May to October, is the rainy season, while June through November is the official hurricane season (and probably best avoided for this reason). For more climate info: Bahamas Weather Guide

Location – Paradise Island, just 6.5km-long by 800m-wide, is only 180m off New Providence Island’s north shore and is connected to the capital, Nassau, by a toll bridge (for which there is no charge for pedestrians).

The Bahamas comprises a chain of more than 700 islands and 2000 cays (small islands) stretching for 96km in the Atlantic, southeast of Florida. Paradise Island, New Providence Island and Grand Bahama receive the most visitors, followed by Exuma and Andros islands.

Getting there – A regular ferry service links Nassau to Paradise Island. Nassau is usually the main point of entry to the Bahamas by air. Nassau’s Lynden Pindling International Airport is just a 55-minute flight from Miami and less than 3 hours from New York. How to get to Paradise Island. . .