The Berry Islands

The Berry Islands are a chain of about thirty cays and many more small rocks running between Nassau and Grand Bahama, with a total population of about a thousand people and an unusual concentration of marinas, which has earned the group the description of having more millionaires per square metre than anywhere in the world. Deep water drops away just off Chub Cay at the southern tip, where the Tongue of the Ocean begins, which makes it one of the best sport fishing bases in the country, while the bank side to the west is shallow and pale. Great Harbour Cay has a long beach and a small settlement, and several of the cays are privately owned or used by cruise lines as private islands.

Highlights

• Chub Cay - the sport fishing base at the edge of deep water.
• Great Harbour Cay - the main settlement and its long beach.
• The flats - shallow pale water on the bank side.
• The cays - thirty islands, most of them uninhabited.

When to go

December to May is the dry season. Fishing runs year-round with the billfish season in spring and summer. Flights from Nassau are limited and boats are the practical way between cays.

Things to know

There is very little here for a visitor who is not fishing or arriving on a boat: minimal accommodation, few restaurants and limited shops. Several cays are private and cannot be landed on. Cruise lines use some of them as exclusive stops, which does not benefit the wider islands much. Flights are infrequent.

Nearby

Nassau is half an hour south; Andros is southwest.

Key facts