PRICE:
Frommer's Very Highly Recommended

This massive US$400-million resort is one of the country's largest -- and by far, it's the finest, most appealing, and best-accessorized property on Grand Bahama Island. The resort is set beside one of the best white strands in The Bahamas -- Lucaya Beach. Although the area had been losing tourist business to Paradise Island, it got a big boost in 1999 when this sprawling metropolis opened its doors. Guests of any of this resort's subdivisions usually get more than they bargained for. The first of the three sections was completed late in 1998 as the Sheraton Grand Bahama Island at Our Lucaya Resort. With a vague South Beach Art Deco design, it's laid out in a massive open-sided, stone-trimmed hexagon. About half of the rooms face the beach and the swimming pool; the other half look toward the gardens. The 513-room resort is contemporary but relaxed. Its developers have created a young vibe that draws many families. Bedrooms are whimsical and fun, thanks to fabric designs you'd expect on a loud, Elvis-era Hawaiian shirt and maple-veneered furniture, all put together with artful simplicity. In 2000, two newer, more upscale, and more cutting-edge subdivisions opened immediately next door. The smaller and somewhat more private of the two is Westin Lighthouse Pointe, a 322-unit low-rise condo and timeshare complex that focuses on an adult clientele. Its larger counterpart -- and the one we find more appealing -- is the 536-unit Westin Breakers Cay. This grand 10-story, white-sided tower has edges that bend in a postmodern S-curve beside the beach. Each of this complex's three subsections stretches like pearls in a necklace along a narrow beach strip, allowing guests to drop in to any of the bars, restaurants, and gardens that flank its edges. Also on-site, in a two-story compound flanking the sea, The Lanai is composed of just 23 sprawling two-bedroom suites, each richly furnished and melding Colonial Caribbean style with 21st-century decor. A complex this big contains an impressive array of restaurants, each with a different theme and ambience. Consistent with the broad themes, each of the subdivisions has a dramatic or unconventional swimming pool. For example, the Sheraton's pool seems to flow around a replica of a 19th-century sugar mill, complete with an aqueduct that might be worthy of ancient Rome. And the Westin is separated from the powder-white sands of Lucaya Beach by a trio of lap pools, each 15m (49 ft.) long and 1.2m (4 ft.) deep, with edges replicating the hotel's sinuous "S" shape. Lap swimmers especially appreciate these spans of water, each of which has a subtly different temperature. The pools culminate in a watery crescent whose infinity edge seems to merge directly into the Atlantic. In particular, the swim-up bar and hot tubs seem perfect for wedding celebrations after the ceremony. A spa and fitness center, a quartet of tennis courts, a convention center, a state-of-the-art casino (called The Isle of Capri, it's the island's only one), and an upscale shopping mall have all also been added in recent years. There's also an increasing emphasis on golf, thanks to the opening of the spectacular Reef Course. An innovative feature for tennis players is the Fast Grand Slam of Tennis, which features replicas of the world's best-known court surfaces -- red clay at the French Open, manicured grass at Wimbledon, Rebound Ace at the Australian Open, and DecoTurf at the U.S. Open. Children aged 2 to 12 can be amused and entertained throughout daylight hours every day at The Bahamas' best-run children's venue, Camp Lucaya. Facilities: 9 restaurants; 10 bars; 5 pools; 2 18-hole golf courses; 4 tennis courts; health club; spa; watersports equipment/rentals; children's programs; business center; salon; room service; babysitting; laundry service; dry cleaning; nonsmoking rooms; rooms for those w/limited mobility

Copyright: Excerpted from Frommer's Bahamas 2009, (c) 2008, Wiley Publishing, Inc.

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