9 Best Sights in Central Andros, Andros, Bimini, and the Berry Islands

If you enter Fresh Creek by boat or ferry, you'll see this old white lighthouse (circa 1892) east of the Andros Lighthouse Yacht Club & Marina. Walk through the marina and you'll see that the tower overlooks two rusty cannons and big shipwreck. To the east lies a quiet beach.

As you enter Fresh Creek Harbour, you’ll see this historical lighthouse built circa 1892 to navigate boats into the southern entrance of Fresh Creek Channel. No longer in use, the lighthouse, with a brace of rusty cannon near a delightful small beach, is an island landmark and offers a picturesque view, including a large, rusty old shipwreck.

The Androsia Batik Works Factory in Andros Town is home to the famous Androsia batik that has been adopted as the official fabric of The Bahamas. Small Hope Bay Lodge’s Birch family established it in 1973 to boost employment in Andros. The brightly colored hand-dyed cotton batik has designs inspired by Andros’s flora, fauna, and culture. You can prearrange a batik lesson ($30) and make your own design on a choice of fabric, garment, or bag. Self-tours are free. The unique brand is seen and sold throughout The Bahamas, the Caribbean, and online. The outlet store (with different opening times) offers bargains on shirts, skirts, wraps, fabric, jewelry, books, crafts, and souvenirs.

One famous sight that nature lovers should catch is Captain Bill’s Blue Hole in Blue Hole National Park. Blue holes are the top of extensive water-filled underground cave systems formed in the ice age, and there are hundreds on Andros. Located northwest of Small Hope Bay, the National Trust has made Captain Bill's popular and comfortable with a boardwalk and a shady gazebo. Steps allow you to jump 30 feet down to cool off, and there’s a nature trail around the hole’s 400-foot diameter. Accessible by car or bike, Captain Bill's is included on most guided tours.

Fresh Creek is an estuary, a hamlet, and a harbor, forming the north side of Andros Town and the south side of the Fresh Creek settlement, both joined by a small bridge. The north Fresh Creek side is more built up, with a few docks, stores, churches, motels, and restaurants, including Hank’s Place, a local hot spot. On the south Andros Town side, the ferry and mail boats off-load at the dock next to the closed Andros Lighthouse Beach Club & Marina. You can still walk around the resort's point to get close to the lighthouse, with its small beach and shipwreck. The Andros Tourist Office and some shops are a short walk away. The creek itself cuts over 16 miles into the island, creating tranquil bonefishing flats and welcoming mangrove-lined bays that boaters and sea kayakers can explore. Upstream, there's even a remote Sunset Point houseboat, where you can stay surrounded by the flowing water and scintillating views.

East of Staniard Creek lies a series of serene cays, idyllic for beach drops or consummating the ultimate Robinson Crusoe fantasies. The first is Kamalame Cay, home to the luxurious resort of the same name. Just past Kamalame, uninhabited Big and Little Saddleback Cays boast sparkling, white-sand beaches and crystal-clear waters. You'll need a small, private boat to reach either (note that these cays are a regular drop-point for guests of Kamalame Cay). Little Saddleback is tiny with no shade, so bring plenty of sunblock. Big Saddleback has a wider crescent beach, with plenty of shade from the pine trees. Also nearby is Rat Cay, which offers excellent snorkeling, especially around the adjacent blue hole. Amenities: none. Best for: solitude; snorkeling; swimming; walking.

Small Hope Bay Lodge is planted squarely on this long, coved beach where the near-shore snorkeling is excellent and the sand is white. Sign up for a resort course, a dive excursion, or simply enjoy a $55 beachside lunch buffet (with advance notice). A full day of beach fun with breakfast, lunch, and dinner, and all drinks and water sports included, is $199. Nonguests can also enjoy the dinner buffet with its open bar and music. Amenities: food and drink; showers; toilets; water sports. Best for: snorkeling; swimming; walking.

Two miles south of the Andros Town airport, off a long, beaten-up bare road through an arch of Australian pines, is Somerset Beach, a stunning, long, and wide beach with offshore sandbars that let you walk offshore for half a mile. The pines offer shade, and there's a picnic table built by the workers from AUTEC, the nearby U.S. Navy submarine-testing base. Bring a camera as this is one of the most beautiful beach sights in The Bahamas. Amenities: none. Best for: photography; shelling; swimming; walking.

Sand banks that turn gold at low tide lie off the northern tip of Staniard Creek, a small island settlement 9 miles north of Fresh Creek, accessed by a bridge off the main highway. Coconut palms and casuarinas shade the ocean-side beaches, and offshore breezes are pleasantly cooling. Kamalame Cove, part of nearby luxurious resort and private Kamalame Cay, is at the northern end of the settlement. Three creeks snake into the mainland, forming extensive mangrove-lined back bays and flats, good for wading and bonefishing.