A guide to the fantastic deserted beaches of this island in the Bahamas
Lots more information on Eleuthera is available from the sites listed below.
When there are so many fabulous beaches to choose from selecting the ten best is a very difficult thing to do. You may not agree with our rankings but you certainly won't be disappointed by any of our choices.
We would really like to know which of Eleuthera's beaches YOU think is best. If enough people send us their choices we can publish a list by popular vote.
Just fill in the quick form on the bottom left and click the VOTE button - only one vote per email address please.
This spectacular pink sand beach, located at the southern tip of Eleuthera, is our all time favorite. It's not easy to find or get to, but it is well worth the effort. On certain days you can watch cruise ships go by. On any day, it's a good place for a relaxing swim. If you're coming from the northern part of the island, it can be a long drive - 2 hours or more - so pack a picnic lunch and plan to spend the day.
The miles-long pink sand beach on Harbour Island is probably the most well known beach in Eleuthera and perhaps the most photographed as well. It has been featured in many travel magazines and articles not only for the spectacular beach but also because of the number of celebrities that frequent the island. The reef-protected beach is wide and the water is shallow and calm even though it is on the Atlantic side. All the expensive hotels here keep the beach well cleaned and groomed. The rest of Eleuthera’s beaches are “au naturel”.
It is no wonder that Club Med chose to build at this beach. It is simply spectacular. Unfortunately, Club Med no longer operates here. Hurricane Floyd did major damage in 1999 and the club never re-opened. However, the perfect, reef protected, pink sand beach is till there.
Ben Bay, at the northern end of Eleuthera, is one of our favorite beaches. It is horseshoe shaped and picture perfect. The narrow opening to this bay means you have calm water no matter how rough the Atlantic may be.
This beach rivals the beauty of Lighthouse beach even if it doesn’t rival the size. This reasonably large bay is reef protected and, therefore, remains calm and clean most of the time. The sand is soft, powdery and pink and is firm enough to make walking the shoreline both pleasant and easy. Jack’s Bay is definitely worth the effort to find. It is also on our list of the ten best beaches in Eleuthera. Bring your camera to this beach as well and try taking pictures from several perspectives here. On sunny days the turquoise of the ocean complements the pink of the sand. With the palm trees and other vegetation as a backdrop the scene is - well, for lack of any better words - picture perfect!
Unfortunately, access to this beach, from the road anyway, is restricted. If you want to visit this beach you’ll have to get to it by boat. This is one of the best beaches on Eleuthera. It has soft, powdery, white sand and the water is calm and shallow for a long way out. We have been told that this is also referred to locally as Nude Beach. We believe it got this designation because it is very secluded and, before access was restricted, it was still very difficult to get to. As always, we encourage you to respect other people’s property and not trespass on restricted land.
The beach at Winding Bay is long and curving and well protected from the Atlantic waves. The sand has a decidedly pink tinge to it. It’s a lovely wide beach, but the sand can be a bit gravelly just as you enter the water. Other than that, well, it’s just perfect. We have revised this listing because we discovered a better, more appealing access to this beach, which is also away from the homes that grace the opposite side of this bay. You can also continue on the access road and find Sand Quarry Beach - a new addition to this book.
It seems that the more difficult a beach is to find, the more spectacular it is - and Whiteland Beach is no exception. The shore is lined with palm trees. The sand is white and powdery soft. The water is turquoise, warm and welcoming. At the end of the access road you come upon a tiny cove and the rest of the beach stretches out on either side of this cove. Be sure to bring your camera with you to this beach. It is truly like something out of a South Pacific movie or, at the very least, a perfect picture postcard setting. We have picked this as one of our ten favorite beaches in Eleuthera and when you visit Whiteland Beach you will understand why we have put this one on such a prestigious list.
We had driven by the Papaw Beach street sign many times before we actually decided to explore down this road. We’re certainly glad we did! It leads to a lovely beach with a small cay just offshore. Being a Caribbean side beach, the water is shallow in most places and relatively calm most of the time. But, as we frequently suggest, check the weather. Even the calmest water can become choppy if the weather gets rough. But this is a terrific beach to spend some time just walking the beach and playing in the water.
The beautiful pink sand here rivals Lighthouse beach. The beach is cool, soft and firm making it great for those long, leisurely romantic strolls. To the south you can see the remains of the US Naval base and the damage that was done by hurricane Andrew. The military has long since left, but you can find some nostalgic websites about servicemen’s days in Eleuthera.
