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BAHAMASThe Commonweath of The Bahamas is an archipelago comprised of 700 islands and 2,500 cays located in the Atlantic Ocean southeast of Florida. Due to its close proximity to Florida and other American east coast population centers, popular destinations such as Nassau are always swamped by a human tsunami of package tour fodder lured by cruise ship and resort ads that guarantee a week of paradise for only $699 (double occupancy, tax and tips not included). Other popular mass-tourism destinations such as Thailand and Hawaii have long since eclipsed The Bahamas in terms of total annual tourist arrivals, but none can compare in terms of dumbing down the holiday experience to the lowest common denominator tourist product. From dolphin parks and shark feeding dives to theme park hotels and duty-free shopping, The Bahamas celebrates crass consumerism and instant tourist gratification like no other holiday destination on the face of the planet. HISTORY Lucayan Indians inhabited the islands when Christopher Columbus first set foot in the New World on San Salvador in 1492. British settlement of the islands began in 1647; the islands became a colony in 1783. Since attaining independence from the UK in 1973, The Bahamas have prospered through tourism and international banking and investment management. Because of its geography, the country is a major transshipment point for illegal drugs, particularly shipments to the US and Europe, and its territory is used for smuggling illegal migrants into the US. WHEN TO GO The peak season is from mid-December to mid-April when rates are high. Prices drop by half during hurricane season from May to November when it's often hot and humid. FACTS ABOUT THE BAHAMAS - Location: Caribbean, chain of islands in the North Atlantic Ocean, southeast of Florida, northeast of Cuba
- Geographic coordinates: 25°4′N, 77°20′W
- Area: 13,890 sq km
- Coastline: 3542 km
- Max elevation: 63 m
- Population: 330,211
- Main cities: Nassau and Freeport
- Government: Parliamentary democracy and Constitutional monarchy
- Currency: Dollar (BSD)
- Ethnic groups: black 85%, white 12%, Asian and Hispanic 3%
- Languages: English (official), Creole (among Haitian immigrants)
- Religions: Baptist 35.4%, Anglican 15.1%, Roman Catholic 13.5%, Pentecostal 8.1%, Church of God 4.8%, Methodist 4.2%, other Christian 15.2%, none or unspecified 2.9%, other 0.8%
- Internet Country Code: .bs
- Major Industries: Tourism, banking, cement, oil transshipment, salt, rum, aragonite, pharmaceuticals, spiral-welded steel pipe
- Natural resources: salt, aragonite, timber, arable land
- Environmental issues: coral reef decay; solid waste disposal
- Climate: The Bahamas has a semitropical climate with two seasons. The winter season from December to April and the summer season from May to November, with relative humidity ranging from 60 to 100%. Average annual precipitation is 1,320 mm (52 inches) and most rainfall occurs between May to June and September to October. The hurricane season which lasts from June to November does experience gale force winds, although normally wind rarely exceeds 24 kmph (15 mph). Average temperature ranges in Nassau are from 18 to 25 degrees Celsius (64 to 77 degrees Fahrenheit) in February to 24 to 32 degrees Celsius (75 to 90 degrees Fahrenheit) in August.
- Average sea surface temp: 24.5 °C
- Average annual rainfall: 1,320 mm
- Average tourist arrivals: 4.6 million
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