Beach· Galliot Cay· Bahamas — Eleuthera, Andros & the Out Islands
Cape Santa Maria Beach (Calabash Bay)
23° 39.3′ N · 75° 19.9′ W
The four-mile sweep of powder-white sand along Calabash Bay on Galliot Cay, at Long Island's north-west tip, regularly called one of the most beautiful beaches in the Bahamas. Calm turquoise water runs out over sand to scattered coral heads, and you can walk for a mile without meeting anyone.
Practical
Position is the centroid of the OpenStreetMap sand-beach way in front of the Cape Santa Maria resort; the beach continues north and south along Calabash Bay. Oyster's resort review gives the length as four miles of calm sand; Stella Maris Resort lists Cape Santa Maria for 'pure white-powdery sand and some light off shore snorkeling'. From the Calabash Bay anchorages, land the dinghy on the beach (the resort asks cruisers to use its north end, clear of the rental houses; see the resort entry). By road: turn off the Queen's Highway at Seymour's, cross the bridge onto Galliot Cay and turn right at the T for the resort (left for the public Stella Maris gazebos further out the cay, open to the public as long as the site is respected). Above the high-tide line the shore in front of the private homes is private, so walk below it. No public facilities apart from the resort bar and restaurant. Calabash Bay rolls in any north swell and is exposed to the west in cold fronts.
Best for
A long beach walk and swim from the Calabash Bay anchorage
Season
Nov–May; rolly in N swell, exposed W in fronts
Nearby
- Cape Santa Maria Beach Resort0.1 NM away
- Calabash Bay Anchorage0.4 NM away
- Cape Santa Maria reefs snorkel trips (Calabash Bay)0.4 NM away
- Calabash Bay North Anchorage (Hoosie Harbour)0.5 NM away
- Sunset Restaurant (Hoosie Harbour)0.6 NM away
- Cape Santa Maria North Anchorage1.1 NM away
- Busted Bridge Bar & Grill (Newton Cay Beach)1.2 NM away
- Galliot Cay South Anchorage (Calabash Bay South)1.2 NM away