PRICE:
Frommer's Highly Recommended

Permeated with one of the most quirky and idiosyncratic histories of any hotel in The Bahamas, and now painted a cheerful shade of yellow, this hotel is radically different from the way it was when it housed the reclusive billionaire Howard Hughes. Xanadu soars triumphantly above a scrub-dotted landscape that's crisscrossed with canals, mysteriously upscale villas, and reminders of the hurricane damages of the past several years. You'll get the sense here of a brave and valiant hotel that has struggled to provide service and comfort to visitors, despite negative fortunes and a hotel scene that has shifted to an increasing degree away from Freeport and toward Port Lucaya. Much of Xanadu's allure is the result of the hard work and devotion of the Donato family. It benefited in 2005 from a big influx of cash that reconfigured the lobby area into a Spanish Baroque fantasy. Macho-looking and elegant, it evokes a private club where billionaires might feel at home. Bedrooms are comfortable and the nearby beach is alluring. Is the ghost of Howard Hughes still lurking in the penthouse? Perhaps. Members of the staff, particularly the charming, capable general manager, Ms. Toni Donato, have a lot to say about that.

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

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