Nassau, Bahamas

All you want to know about Nassau, Bahamas

For other uses of "Nassau", see Nassau (disambiguation).

Nassau is the capital, largest city, and commercial centre of the Commonwealth of the Bahamas. The city has a population of 210,832 (2000 census), nearly 70 percent of the entire population of the Bahamas (303,611). Lynden Pindling International Airport, the major airport for the Bahamas, is located about 10 miles (16 kilometres) west of Nassau city centre, and has daily flights to major cities in the United Kingdom, United States, Canada and the Caribbean. The city is located on the island of New Providence, which functions much like a federal district. While there is no local government, it is governed directly as an administrative division of the national government.

1 Geography
2 History
3 Junkanoo
4 In popular culture
5 Twinned cities
6 See also
7 References
8 External links

Geography

Located on New Providence Island, Nassau has an attractive harbor, a colorful blend of old world and colonial architecture and a busy port. The tropical climate and natural beauty of the Bahamas has made Nassau a popular tourist destination, with a reputation for relaxing days and an exciting nightlife.

Summertime temperatures rarely exceed 92 degrees Fahrenheit (33 degrees Celsius) and the winter months have daytime temperatures between 68 and 80 °F (20 and 26 °C), rarely falling below 50 °F (10 °C).

The city's proximity to the United States (180 miles (290 km) east-southeast of Miami, Florida) has also contributed to its popularity as a holiday resort, especially after the banning of American travel to Cuba. The world famous Atlantis resort on nearby Paradise Island accounts for more tourist arrivals to the city than any other hotel property. The mega resort also employs over 6,000 Bahamians, the largest outside of government.

Cruise ships docked in Nassau

History

Nassau was formerly known as Charles Town; it was burnt to the ground by the Spanish in 1684, but later rebuilt and renamed Nassau in 1695 in honour of King William III of England (from the Dutch House of Orange-Nassau).

Junkanoo

The city also boasts of Junkanoo, an energetic, colourful street parade of brightly costumed people dancing to the rhythmic accompaniment of cowbells, drums and whistles. The celebration occurs on December 26th and January 1, beginning in the early hours of the morning (1:00 a.m.) and ending around 10 a.m.. They also have junkanoo June which is a month long celebration akin to Mardi Gras. Festivals begin at sundown.

In popular culture

Nassau has been an important location for numerous James Bond novels and films. The most notable is Thunderball released in 1965 where most of the film was based in Nassau and the Junkanoo festival also featured in the film with Sean Connery. Nassau was again the location for the 1983 unofficial remake of the film Never Say Never Again, and it was more recently Nassau featured in the 2006 James Bond film Casino Royale. Nassau was also featured in the famous Beatles movie Help!