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- <text id=93CT1632>
- <title>
- Bahamas, The--Travel
- </title>
- <history>
- Compact ALMANAC--CIA Factbook
- Caribbean
- The Bahamas
- </history>
- <article>
- <source>CIA World Factbook</source>
- <hdr>
- Travel
- </hdr>
- <body>
- <p> Customs: No visa or special permission is required to enter
- The Bahamas; however, the airlines require a return ticket.
- Proof of US citizenship is necessary when departing. A passenger
- departure tax is levied on visitors and residents.
- </p>
- <p> Currency: No restriction is placed on the amount of US
- currency that may be brought into The Bahamas. US currency may
- be used where prices are shown in both Bahamian and US dollars.
- </p>
- <p> Health: No inoculations are required. Health requirements may
- change; check latest information. It is not necessary to
- sterilize foods bought in reputable stores. Water is potable
- but saline, and many people use bottled water. Mosquitoes,
- sandflies, and termites are ubiquitous pests. Poisonous insects
- include the ground and black widow spiders, scorpions, and
- centipedes.
- </p>
- <p> Transportation: New Providence and Grand Bahama have
- international airports. Both have local bus service; however,
- the vehicles are small, unscheduled, and usually crowded. Taxis
- are plentiful but expensive. Traffic moves on the left.
- </p>
- <p> New Providence has more than 420 km. (260 mi.) of paved
- roads; Grand Bahama and the other islands have 500 km. (340
- mi.). There are no railroads. Transportation between the
- islands is by air and sea.
- </p>
- <p> Tourist attractions: Nassau can be explored in about a week.
- Trips to adjacent beaches, such as Paradise Island, can be made
- by boat or bridge. Popular Family Islands for fishing are
- Eleuthera, Abaco, Exuma, and Bimini. Other Family Islands are
- accessible by air or by boat, but tourist accommodations on the
- more remote islands may be primitive. The most colorful events
- are the native Junkanoo parades on Boxing Day (Dec. 26) and New
- Year's Day.
- </p>
- <p> National holidays: Establishments, including the US Embassy,
- may be closed on the following Bahamian holidays:
- </p>
- <p>New Year's Day, January 1; Good Friday, date varies; Easter Monday,
- date varies; Whit Monday, (7 weeks after Easter--date varies);
- Labor Day, first Friday in June; Independence Day, July 10,
- Emancipation Day, first Monday in August; Discovery Day, October 12;
- Christmas Day, December 25.
- </p>
- <p>Source: U.S. Department of State, Bureau of Public Affairs,
- April 1990.
- </p>
-
- </body>
- </article>
- </text>
-
-