The Abacos are the sailing capital of the Bahamas — and they've been that way for a long time. The chain of cays running southeast from Grand Bahama forms a protected inland sea called the Sea of Abaco, creating conditions that are almost impossibly good for cruising: calm, clear, shallow water that you can navigate in a catamaran for days without ever facing open-ocean conditions. The cays themselves are distinct, unhurried communities with their own personalities. Marsh Harbour, the main town on Great Abaco, is the gateway and the best-provisioned harbour in the northern Bahamas.
Destination Guide
Marsh Harbour & The Abacos
The Harbour
Marsh Harbour
Marsh Harbour took a direct hit from Hurricane Dorian in September 2019 — a Category 5 storm that stalled over the northern Bahamas and caused catastrophic damage to Abaco and Grand Bahama. The recovery has been long and ongoing, but the town is functioning, rebuilding, and open. The Conch Inn Marina is the main cruising hub, with fuel, water, and reasonable provisioning. Maxwell's Grocery is well-stocked, and there are several good restaurants within walking distance of the docks.
The practical appeal of Marsh Harbour is exactly what you'd expect from the largest town in the northern Bahamas: it's a place where you can fix things, get ice, find a laundromat, make a phone call, and eat a meal that someone else cooked. For a week-long Abacos cruise it's typically either the start or end point — everyone passes through.
The Cays
Where the Character Lives
Hope Town, Elbow Cay: The candy-striped red-and-white lighthouse at Hope Town is one of the most photographed landmarks in the Bahamas. It's one of the last hand-operated lighthouses in the world — Fresnel lens, oil lamp, and a keeper who winds the clockwork mechanism by hand. Climbing it on a clear day rewards you with a view of the entire Elbow Cay coastline and the Sea of Abaco stretched out below. The town itself is small, car-free, and very pretty.
Man-O-War Cay: A completely different kind of island — no alcohol sold anywhere, a tight-knit community of Loyalist descendants, and a tradition of fine wooden boatbuilding that stretches back centuries. The Albury family has been building sailing dinghies and tenders here for generations. Go for the quiet and the craftsmanship.
Green Turtle Cay / New Plymouth: The northernmost cay worth visiting in the central Abacos, with a settlement that looks more like a 19th-century New England fishing village than anything typically Bahamian. The New Plymouth Inn, the Albert Lowe Museum, and Bluff House Marina are the landmarks. The White Sound anchorage to the north of the cay offers excellent protection.
The Sea of Abaco
The inland passage between the mainland of Great Abaco and the outer cays creates a protected body of water that is genuinely exceptional for sailing. Depths are generally 8–20 feet, the bottom is sand and grass, and the prevailing northeast trades that can make open-ocean passages uncomfortable actually create ideal conditions here — steady wind, flat water, and short tacks between clearly marked anchorages. A week in the Abacos can cover an enormous amount of ground with very little stress.
The snorkeling and diving is quieter here than in the Exumas but no less rewarding. Pelican Cays Land and Sea Park protects a section of reef south of Marsh Harbour that's in excellent health, with good coral coverage, sea turtles, and regular eagle ray sightings. Sandy Cay reef just south of the park boundary is a reliable alternative when conditions aren't perfect for the park anchorage.
"The Abacos don't try to impress you. They just quietly show you what good sailing feels like — protected water, a new cay every afternoon, and communities that have been doing this for centuries."
Keep Reading