Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Discovering the hiking paths of beautiful
Stocking Island
(
Click here
)
Snorkeling or diving in the exquisite
Thunderball Grotto
(
Click here
)
joining the crowds for the fabulous
Family Island Regatta
(
Click here
)
Hearing tall stories about the making of
Pirates of the Caribbean
at
Santana's Grill
(
Click here
)
finding your own virgin beach cruising the incredible
Exuma Cays
(
Click
here
)
Chilling out and catching up on the local gossip in the bars and restaurants
of
George Town
(
Click here
)
History
During the 17th century, many residents of New Providence settled Great Exuma to escape
ruthless buccaneers, and made a living as salt rakers. Following the American Revolution,
Loyalists under Lord Denys Rolle arrived with 140 slaves aboard a ship named the
Peace
& Plenty
. Granted 7000 acres on which to plant cotton, Rolle's plantations blossomed until
the chenille bug chewed through the cotton crop. The salt industry also (rather ironically)
evaporated, done in by more profitable operations on neighboring islands. In 1834, the year
of emancipation, most white people uprooted and left, while the newly freed slaves stayed
and took over Rolle's land.
It was common back then for slaves to adopt the name of their master. Today every
second person in Exuma is a Rolle, and since the 1890s every Rolle has been permitted to
build and farm on common land. Rolleville and Rolle Town, the two most important his-
toric settlements on Great Exuma, are certainly worth a look. Although now claimed by
bush, there are decrepit forts and ruined plantations lying scattered around in between the
farming and fishing villages.
The island plunged headlong into the modern world with the arrival of mass tourism in
the shape of the Four Seasons Resort (now the Sandals at Emerald Bay), which opened in
the 1980s and suddenly saw plane-loads of tourists touching down each week, changing
the island's once quiet face forever.
Getting There & Away
AIR
Most travelers to Exuma fly into the small Exuma International Airport, 6 miles north of
George Town. There are several flights (one way $85) per day on Bahamas Air, Western
Air and Sky Bahamas, as well as international connections to Miami (American Eagle),
Fort Lauderdale (Continental), Atlanta (Delta) and Toronto (Air Canada).
