Bahamas Honeymoon Idea – Private Sailing Charter in the Abaco Islands

Exactly two years ago today, Nick & I were boarding planes and traveling to our honeymoon! So what better way to celebrate the year anniversary of our honeymoon, than to dream of going back to The Bahamas with this Bahamas honeymoon idea! It’s a different, unique, adventurous and also incredibly relaxing option for a honeymoon & also a really incredible dream family vacation.

To say our honeymoon was perfect would be an understatement. We got to spend the week sailing around Abaco Island in The Bahamas on a 57’ Catamaran called Shearwater. Check out Captain Bruce’s website here, I can’t brag about Captain Bruce enough! Also check out Shearwater’s latest feature in Curated magazine!

 A Few Favorite Things about the Trip:

• The obvious—I got to spend 7 uninterrupted days with my hubby!
• Traveling with the hubby—this was our first time really traveling together. We’ve done little driving trips from MD to PA before but that’s been about it. So it was very exciting to see how we would do traveling a much further distance, on airplanes, through check-ins and security, customs and baggage claims. I’m happy to report we did it perfectly without stress or arguments 🙂
• Nothing was required of me on the trip, which means, I got to relax! No running errands, doing laundry, cleaning the kitchen, walking the dog in the freezing cold, getting up early to go to work. Just relaxation at it’s best.
• I didn’t have to use my brain. My brain very much thanked me for it. I didn’t have to process a massive to-do list, or think about work or business. There was a moment while sitting on the boat, Nick was next to me and I was just staring off into space, no book in hand, no music playing, just looking out over the water. He looked at me and asked “What are you doing?” Which I replied, “Nothing.”

       “Is that a good nothing?”

       “Oh yes a very very good nothing”.

• Because we were on an island in another country, our phones were roaming the entire trip. Which meant no phones calls in or out, no 3G network, no wireless connection. So we were completely Unplugged! I loved it!

One of my ultimate favorite things ever, is adventure & trying new things. The Bahamas offers plenty of both! & Captain Bruce knows exactly where to take you and what activities to suggest to make your trip everything you dream for it to be! Everyday we got to explore a brand new place: a little town, a beach, a lighthouse, a cave. We were constantly trying new foods(another favorite of mine): conch fritters, red snapper fish, grouper fish, avocado on salad, conch salad, Bahamian lobster, a Bahamian BBQ buffet.

So while you sit wrapped up in sweaters and blankets, holding that steaming cup of coffee in your hand trying to stay warm—sit back and try to picture yourself in The Bahamas!

Shearwater is just a beauty!

Our room for the week – so comfortable, clean. One of my favorite parts was having the windows open overnight and getting that cool salty breeze coming through.

Treasure Cay is a dream Bahamian beach!

A perfect spot for…

• relaxing
• basking in the sun
• seashell hunting
• enjoying an island drink at the bar
• taking long walks along the stretches of empty beaches

There a few options while your chartering with Sail the Abacos. Those are outlined here.

But a quick run down would be:

• Deluxe (Fully Crewed) – basically you don’t lift a finger for anything. Food is provided, cooked and served, the boat is fully manned and cleaned for you.
• Bareboat with Captain – the best choice for a “hands on” family (this is the choice we went with & loved it!)
• A few day options

Even when a storm rolls in during your trip, Captain Bruce knows exactly how to make your day perfect! We headed back to Marsh Harbor and spent the afternoon reading and playing games before taking a car trip to Little Harbor, where we explored some caves, the Foundry, and a fantastic dinner at Pete’s Pub.

Friday as the water was still recovering from the rough storm, meaning choppy seas…the boys sailed the boat to Hope Town, getting wet and very wind blown in the process.

Oh how I love love love Hope Town & Elbow Cay!

We grabbed some lunch at Cap’n Jack’s – you can see it in the picture below, the pink building on the left side of the frame. Scrumptious. That’s the thing about the restaurants down there – everything is fresh and wonderfully scrumptious.

I just loved the streets of Hope Town covered in colorful buildings and sun kissed palm trees.

You can rent bicycles to ride around the island from the Sugar Shack. Unfortunately the clerk had left for a break when we decided to rent some so we weren’t able to.

My “cookie monster” ice cream…a little surprised when I was handed it. Wasn’t expecting the literal “cookie monster”. It was very yummy, homemade, fresh ice cream! I can’t remember the name of the place we got it, but just ask Captain Bruce he’ll know and can refer you!

After we explored the town, we headed over to Elbow Reef Lighthouse, one of the last manual lighthouses in the world.

Nick really enjoyed sailing the boat around with Captain Bruce’s instructions 🙂

Good morning!! Talk about quite a view to wake up to!

They say, kayaking is a true test of a relationship. Well we tested ours…we in fact did survive…with a few little bumps in the road I must be honest hahaha. It was still fun! We kayaked over to Tahiti Beach. I didn’t take my camera – or else I would have some STUNNING images from this beach!

Some lunch was much needed after our trip across the ocean, so we headed over to Firefly on Elbow Cay! YUMMY!!

You must also make sure to do some sun soaking on the boat!

 Sunday was spent on Great Guana Cay , more specifically Nipper’s Beach Bar & Grill. All week when we told people we’d be headed there on Sunday, everyone always had a story about how crazy Nipper’s gets on Sundays during their “pig roast”(it’s not really a pig roast, it’s more of a bbq buffet, still good). Sadly though when we got there, it was a very low key Sunday and not totally crazy like everyone said it would be. But we very much enjoyed the big beautiful beach, the buffet, and the Frozen Nipper(drink).

Our last day 🙁 was spent on Man-O-War–relaxing on one of the private beaches and exploring the cute little town.

As they say…all good things must come to an end. Our week was perfect and we can not wait to get back there as soon as possible! This is a Bahamas Honeymoon Idea that I highly recommend!!