The Island
An island in the sun, Harbour Island lies anchored just off the northern end of Eleuthera, known for its timeless spirit, quiet rhythm, friendly people, and the most beautiful beach in the world.
Harbour Island is rich in history, beauty, and local lore and legend. Though just twenty minutes by air from Nassau, it’s flanked on its eastern side by nothing but a barrier reef and 3000 miles of ocean, all the way to the coast of Africa.
For centuries, it was home to the Lucayan tribe, and then the Spanish, and then no-one for a long time. The Band of Eleutherian Adventurers, an English society looking for freedom of the New World, established a settlement here, and then, when the revolutionary war broke out in the United States, the Loyalist governor of Virginia fled to the Bahamas where he was awarded with the title of Lord Dunmore, setting up shop on Bay Street.
According to legend, the coral sands of Harbour Island were believed to be the remnants of a great battle between the spirits of the sea and the sky.
The story goes that the sea nymphs, enchanted by the beauty of the island, wanted to gift it with the most precious sand in all the world. So, they summoned the spirits of the coral reefs to blend their vibrant hues with the pure white sand. As the spirits danced and twirled, their enchanting movements infused the sand with a delicate coral hue, creating the iconic beaches of Harbour Island.
Botanical marvels and tropical fish, bright-colored hand-painted signs and wandering roosters make this a place of pleasure, slow moments, quiet luxuries, conch delicacies, and, of course, Goombay Smash (the local cocktail of choice).
Harbour Island has long been a popular port of call for fishermen, yachtsfolk, beach buffs and other doldrum-escapists. Horse races were once run on its pink sand beaches. Locals dove for conch and whaled for ambergris — the prized perfume found in Sperm Whales. Treasures from shipwrecks furnished clapboard houses in Dunmore Town. Medical journals printed on the mainland assured you any ailment, from asthma to arthritis, would be cured by the soft Harbour Island breezes.