Bahamar has been the talk of the town as this multi-billion dollar resort missed their target deadline to open earlier this spring and additionally, it’s developer Sarkis Izmirilian filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in June. I personally never cared for our country having a mega resort but my opinion doesn’t matter and now that it’s almost, kinda, sorta here, I only wish them success because it means thousands of Bahamians can be employed. As for right now, those persons who were hired will now have to find other jobs and persons who jumped ship from the other hotels to get on board the blue Baha Mar bus will more than likely not be able to get their old jobs back.
There were a lot of issues and concerns with this project from the beginning including whether or not BEC (our one and only electricity company) could realistically provide energy to the island and this mega resort sufficiently. There were complaints about the quality of work produced by the Chinese workers brought in to help build this behemoth.
I just hope things can work out for them. As much as I’d like to share a thorough and well-developed opinion on the matter, I just don’t have the care to do so. For more information and updates, follow The Tribune. I like to think that tourists come here looking for a tropical, slower-paced, different kind of vibe, especially if they’re coming from bigger and more developed countries. Our islands in the sun don’t need a mega resort to be a selling point, we have nature and wonderful, friendly people. We have an amazing culture and a rich history worth sharing and merging to support the tourism industry.
Baha Life 
I have been going to the Bahamas from the West Palm Beach area since I was seven, 57 years now. My parents lived on Joyless Point in White Sound on Green Turtle for quite sometime. Prior to that my father owned a boat yard in Riviera Beach. Our family traveled and continues to travel to the Bahamas for exactly what you have described. When people tell me they have been to the Bahamas, if it was Freeport/Lucaya or Paradise Island, I tell them they need to go to the Family Islands or as we used to call them the Out Islands. We could stay on the line at Norman Cay until it was purchased and Gorda was an amazing place to anchor out and dive, before it became disneyesque. When we first went to Little Harbor there was only the light keepers family and the bats in the caves. The light keeper’s family came out and invited us to visit. And this welcome is what we found at Cat Island, Long Island, Spanish Cay, Moore’s Island, the Exumas, the Berry Islands and many more. I did not mind saltwater baths, no ice in my soda, and running off the generator when there were incredible star shows at night, crystal blue waters, amazing reefs and heads, fishing, diving, shell collecting and mangrove exploring; I still don’t. I know how to entertain myself when surrounded by great locals and incredible beauty.
Sounds you really have enjoyed our islands and gotten a true taste of Bahamian living and to me I think that authentic experience is what people want.