I admit my initial planning almost a year ago as part of Carnival’s 8-day Eastern Caribbean itinerary, Freeport did not excite me. The excursions all seemed “meh.” If you look up other reviews of Freeport, it feels like a pit stop on the way to the “real” ports. The pier itself is actually quite decent in regard to souvenir shopping. There are two straw markets- one is official and the other is more like a true flea market. The vendors were lowkey which is always nice.
If you watch some of the merchandise such as costume jewelry, you will see repeats. I overheard a vendor telling someone the necklaces were handmade… a few stalls down I saw the same necklaces. I’m going to take a guess the necklaces were not handmade by the first vendor. I did purchase some fun, inexpensive costume jewelry which made me happy though. There was also a pretty great linen goods shop which I’ve not seen in many ports and I love cool linens so I purchased some cool tea towels.
Freeport is the main city on Grand Bahama, an island in the northwest Bahamas off the Florida coast. It’s best known for the oceanfront Lucaya district, with beaches, resorts, and shopping. Nearby, Deadman’s Reef is popular for snorkeling, and the surrounding offshore waters host many dive sites. Up the coast, Lucayan National Park features extensive underwater caves, plus kayaking and nature trails.
Freeport, Bahamas Brief History
Freeport, Bahamas is a small island with a population of only about 40,000 inhabitants. The island gained its independence in 1970 and is still in a ninety-nine-year lease for 300,000 acres which started in 1925 and expires in 2025, under Ben G. Brinkman which has a long-standing arrangement with Freeport. Originally, the Grand Bahama Development Company wanted to use the island’s trees as part of their business. Freeport’s local government agreed to allow Grand Bahama Development Company to cut trees but with the agreement that the company would provide local schools and utilities. This contract ends in 2053. Tourism also is a major player in Freeport’s economy, making up approximately 65% of Freeport’s overall income.
Freeport is overall a pleasant island. The cruise ships dock on the industrial side of the island whereas the beaches, main shopping, and Garden of Groves are on the other side of the island. The first impression of Freeport is not terribly attractive since you arrive on the industrial side and have to travel through said industrial area to get to anything in town. It was strongly suggested to me both in my research and by those who have cruised there before that Freeport is one of those places you should seriously consider booking an excursion. However, a taxi ride to the beaches or go through a different agency such as Shore Excursioneer is, for the most part safe. I know I say this a lot but it’s worth repeating: make sure and do your research though before you just take my or anyone’s word for what to do.
Garden of the Groves
Since I was traveling with a friend who has some health issues which can limit her activities, we chose a “slower,” or less intensive excursion. I personally would have chosen something more adventurous like more snorkeling, but I didn’t want to overtax my companion. We opted for the Garden of the Groves and I admit I was not terribly excited about the prospect of merely walking around a few acres of gardens but there weren’t many other options that seemed more appealing. It actually turned out much better than I thought. Sadly, my friend woke up not feeling up to walking a lot. We changed her excursion to a day at the beach which I found out later she canceled for a day onboard at the spa. This also turned out for the best.
The cafe’s patio overlooks the gorgeous waterfalls, some super cute turtles, and an angry heron. Maybe the heron was ticked because we didn’t share our fritters or maybe because it rained while we were eating.
Remember earlier I mentioned how it actually turned out to be a good thing I went to the gardens? The weather while we were there was perfect but for most of this cruise, we were ahead of Hurricane Nicole. She let us have a lovely morning and afternoon but decided that was all we got. The excursion was supposed to stop at Freeport’s main shopping district, Port Lucaya Marketplace. The rain had other ideas so we went back to the ship early. This was fine by me since I had already shopped in the port earlier in the morning. I don’t think there was honestly much difference- it’s mostly the same touristy merchandise in both locations. I had purchased the linens earlier so I was a happy camper!
