We ordered three books from the Amazon.com. This book lives up to the Fodor's reputation. We got good information about our means of transportation from land to sea to golf carts. My only regret is that Fodor's doesn't tell me much about how to rent a boat in the Bahamas. That's our main interest- go to the Bahamas and rent a boat to check out the cays. We do like the lodging reviews, it is very thorough, even tells me that a certain hotel had large vaulted ceilings and a private dock/beach. Another one is more torn up in certain parts. We also like the listing of restaurants and foods served. We found a hard to find local bakery, since we are celebrating our anniversary, it means a lot. Would like to see more detailed maps of the outislands though. All In all, We got some valuable information, it's worth every penny ... I wish Fodor will give us more outislands lodgeing listings beside the major ones. Maybe next year.

"Hotel Paradiso" caught my eye a while back, and I must confess that it had the misfortune of being buried in my "to-be-read" pile for quite a while. I wish I'd gone to it earlier than now.

Despite a somewhat slow start (the only real negative thing I can say about the book), "Hotel Paradiso" is a rather unique reading experience. David, our main narrative voice, has come to Pigeon Cay to get away from the rotten relationship and rat race that Montreal represents. In Pigeon Cay, he is running the only bank on the island in a world where drug running, back-room dealings, and white-collar crime walk hand in hand with racism, beatings, murders and voodoo.

The book, however, reads nearly lyrically. The passages where David describes the slow pace of the world around him are nearly meditative, and when the action begins, it garners your attention all the more for the sharp change of pacing. The myriad plots and deals and secrets of Pigeon Cay are a marvel to unravel, and definately a worthwhile reading endeavour.

Despite the slow beginning, I'd definately reccommend this one. And, as always, it's a pleasure to read strong writing from a Canadian author.

'Nathan

Insight's City Guides combine stunning photography with literate text and a smattering of basic travel information. The Insight Venice guide is worth adding to your bookshelf, but its practical advice is getting a bit long in the tooth and its heft makes it less than ideal as a take-along guide. - Durant Imboden, Venice for Visitors, http://govenice.miningco.co

"The People Who Discovered Columbus" is a well-researched account of those first peoples who actually discovered The Bahamas, where they came from, how they lived and why they came.

Keegan paints a vivid picture of the Bahama Island chain in those years prior to the arrival of the first human inhabitants, describing the lush, untouched landscape like a tropical Eden into which comes man, probably migrating from the south of the Bahamian archipelago. His theory about the motivation for this migration still holds true for tourists today: The Bahamas is just too attractive a location to pass up.

This book is also a treasure for anyone interested in Caribbean archaeology. Although, since the book's publication, many more aboriginal sites have been discovered, this book lists, island by island, the number and types of sites that provide evidence of intense Lucayan habitation. From open air sites to caves, Keegan leads the reader through The Bahamas, walking in the footsteps of those ancient people.

Reading this book, you begin to question, as Keegan does, whether Columbus' motivation for his 1492 voyage was to actually get to the Indies or the much more personal goal of territorial conquest.

This book is a must read if you want to really experience the Bahama Islands of those centuries long before Columbus. I would recommend it unreservedly as a well written, well documented book that, in spite of its scholarly value, is quite easy and enjoyable to read. It certainly puts to shame the theory that Columbus could have discovered a whole nation of people - complete with customs, traditions and history - who were never lost in the first place!

has something for everyone. treasure hunting. island living. pets. boating. rescue at sea. very genuine. well written.

dave gale is a good story teller.

The info about the Bahamas country in general was good, but the info specifically about Grand Bahama Island is skimpy and out of date. I found the Fodor's Bahamas book much more useful for that island.

Interesting approach: Suggest itineraries and give details for the trips. Detailed info but only on NewProv,GrandBah,Abacos,Eleu,Harbour,Cat,Exumas,Andros,Bimini. Skimpy info on out islands. Good complement to more detailed and complete travel book. Includes mailboat info. Gives real prices, not $ signs. Doesn't give low budget accomodations. No good maps.

I just came back from the Bahamas using this book as my guide and had a fantastic time. Although the cheapo hostels are not covered, all the great small and large hotels were honestly reviewed, and all the best isalnds were covered in real detail. An excellant book for people who want to discouver the real Bahamas and have one to two weeks to do so. I would strongly recommend this one above Fodors or Feildings...

I am usually a fan of Lonely Planet, but having just returned from Grand Bahama, I would not recommend this guide. Published in 2001, which means it was researched before that, it is quite out of date given the tough post 9/11 economy. Examples: Running Mon Resort- closed. Hydroflora gardens- closed. Rand Nature Center- closed. Many retailers- closed, moved, renamed, etc. Restaurant prices - way out of date.

Some of this is just irritating, but some is more dangerous- eg. LP suggests that, to get to Water Cay you drive the 'dirt road' to the 'north dock' and hire a boat from a local. Do it their way, and you may be a lot lonelier than you bargained for: That dirt road takes 45 minutes on a rutted logging road, lots of forks, no signs, and there is no dock- just a narrow ramp and a couple abandoned cars. High tide there swamps a good 2-300 yards of the shoreline. Time to do a new edition, guys!

I thought the maps provided were inadequate. For some reason, LP takes the trouble to make a map of Downtown Freeport with some of the restaurants (including a Burger King!?!) and attractions located and numbered, but they don't put the map number with the review! Add that to the Bahamian's indifference to street address numbers, street signs.

Conclusion: Not up to LP's usual standards. Though useful for background information, be prepared to check everything by phone or on the web before you depart. Or skip the guide and start with the web...

Found the book useful as a starting point. Complete, thorough. Interesting tidbits. But when it came down to actually scheduling trips and tickets, I found out that most of the information was already out of date.

BahamasAir wasn't familiar with the AirPass, so I had to fax them the section where the author cattily railed on them. All they had to say was "interesting."

The suggested weekend and week trips were a little sketchy as well. In fact, when I had acutally arrived, I never used the book because of the terrific tourist infrastructure already in place.

Overall, I felt the author was a little harsh on his take with Bahamian culture, keeping a good sense of humor but almost crossing the line of offensive in some places.

People should remember that these tour books are a subjective peephole into their place of destination, and should always keep an open mind to discover for themselves.

I had a great time there.

This is one of the best travel guides that I have read. I thought the political information about the Bahamas was really interesting. Just the level of detail--which is probably too much if you're just cruising to Nassau--but it really explains a lot about why things are the way they are in the Bahamas. I dont really use the Lonely Planet guides while on vacation because you dont need that much information. However they really help a lot when you are reasearching a destination.

I lived in the Bahamas for 8 years and traveled to Normans Cay several times and explored the island after Carlos Laeder left. After I read the book I went there two more times and looked through the "Ruins" that his group left and could almost relive the book. Although the island paradise that he built at the club has been devestated, the rest of the island has been slowly retaken by new inhabitants. I believe that Mr. Novac told a very true story and I only wish that I hadn't given away my hardback copy of the book. I would like to buy two copies again.

A very good, exciting account of two risk-takers who went to great lengths in the pursuit of their dreams, the people who got caught up in the swirl of their dreams, and how their dreams came to clash on an island in the Bahamas, Norman's Cay. The two principals in this true account, college professor Mr. Novak and the leader of the Medellin drug cartel, Carlos Lehder-Rivas, both seemed to have missed opportunities for personal fulfillment and contribution to humanity: the former by circumstance, the latter by choice. It's sad that Mr. Novak's dream for a Marine Biology research center and his dive shop on Norman's Cay never came to be. It's sad that Carlos Lehder-Rivas misdirected his charisma and tremendous organizational abilities towards trying to establish an island kingdom and trafficking drugs, and not to, say, organizing relief missions for the United Nations. A thrilling ride. Good work, Mr. Novak and son, and Mr. Kirkpatrick!

I grew up cruising on a sailboat in the Bahamas with my dad and remember Norman's key before and after Carlos. I find that it is a real shame that the island is in ruins now when it was once so prosperous. It's too bad that after Carlos was brought down, they couldn't have saved the island's beautiful houses. It's quite a mess now, everything has been picked over and trashed. I find that this book really makes the island come alive. You can walk on the island today after reading the book and picture what it was like back then. It's fascinating and a shame that there were ever drugs involved with such a beautiful island.

This book recommended a dive shop in Grand Cayman for Scuba diving, because it was so reasonable. The book said it was $60 for a 2-tank dive. In reality, the shop charges $85 for a 2-tank dive, and the rental equipment was another $50 - outrageous!! I showed the dive shop the book, and they said they can't remember when their price was that low.

For overall advice or history on a port of call, this book was ok. If you want current information, look elsewhere.

This book is an absolute must for cruise passengers. It details every port from the perspective of the cruise guest, rather than the regular hotel-bound island visitors. If you want to do your own thing rather than buying shore excursions from the ship, this book will make that possible. Ship personnel are notorious for knowing little or nothing about what to do in port, other than take their expensive tours; you can take matters into your own hands with this detailed guide. I highly recommend it!

The murder of Sir Harry Oakes and the subsequent investigation, together with a supreme cast of characters, cries out for some actual literary talent to come to bear on the subject. Unfortunately, very little in the way of ability is evident here. Sir Harry Oakes was one of the early land merchants of Nassau and a friend and cohort of various British social luminaries of the post-WWII-era, including the Duke and Dutchess of Windsor. What could be a compelling account of his mysterious murder, which has never been solved to satisfaction to this day, is instead a clumsily written attempt at conspiracy grasping and groundless guessing on Marigny's part. The actual writing was no doubt done by Mickey Herskowitz, who has been paid to ghost-write numerous books. For those who have spent enough time on the island to be acquainted with its history and legends, this is the only source I'm aware of for any treatment of the story. That's a shame.

I found A Conspiracy of Crowns very good. As far as I know there are 3 books written concerning this offically unsolved mystery. Only Alfred de Marigny gives a first hand account of the events surrounding it. I lived in Nassau 14 years after the occurrence, and rumours and stories continued to abound even then. The conclusions that Mr. de Marigny came to regarding the perpetrators of this crime are very logical and feasible.
Following Alfred de Marigny's acquittal of the false accusations against him, of the murder of Sir Harry Oakes; a publisher asked him to write his account of the events. He agreed, but after his life was twice threatened, he did not have the book published until decades later.