Fodor's Expert Review Graycliff Hotel

The old-world flavor of this Georgian colonial landmark—built in the 1720s by ship captain Howard Graysmith—has made it a perennial favorite among both the rich and the famous (past guests have included the Duke and Duchess of Windsor, Winston Churchill, Aristotle Onassis, and the Beatles). Al Capone stayed here in the Roaring Twenties when it was owned by his sweetie, Polly Leach, and Lord Mountbatten visited when Lord and Lady Dudley were the proprietors. It's easy to forget that you're steps from downtown Nassau when you stay here. Thick foliage envelops a series of garden villas and cottages, amid limestone courtyards with ponds, pools, and fountains. Rooms have been renovated, giving life to the plush upscale interiors. They each bear a Bahamian name—Hibiscus, Yellowbird, and Baillou (for the name of the road it overlooks). For refined Continental fare, the hotel's namesake restaurant is one of the island's premier places to dine. The hotel also operates a cigar factory and chocolate factory on the grounds, and a small shopping village across the street.