Cat Island

Cat Island sits in the eastern Bahamas, about 130 miles south-east of Nassau and roughly a 35 minute flight away. It is around fifty miles long and rarely more than four miles wide, with somewhere near 1,700 people living along it. There is one main road — the Queen’s Highway — running almost the whole length, and most of what you will want to see hangs off it.

It is the quiet end of the Bahamas. No cruise terminal, no resort strip, no traffic. What it has instead is empty beach, deep Bahamian culture, and a pace that takes most visitors about a day to adjust to.

Getting here

Most visitors fly into New Bight Airport (TBI), which is a five minute drive from us. There are also flights into Arthur’s Town (ATC) at the north end, about an hour away by road. Domestic carriers including Bahamasair and Southern Air run the Nassau route; schedules change with the season, so check before you book onward travel.

The mail boat from Potter’s Cay in Nassau also serves the island, and there is anchorage at New Bight for anyone arriving by boat. We collect from both the airport and the anchorage at no charge — just send us your arrival details.

Mount Alvernia and The Hermitage

At 206 feet, Mount Alvernia — also called Como Hill — is the highest point in the entire Bahamas, and it is a ten minute walk from the main road at New Bight. At the top is The Hermitage, a miniature stone monastery built by hand by Father Jerome, the architect-priest John Hawes, who lived there until his death in 1956. The doorways are built to his own height, the chapel seats about three people, and the view takes in both coasts at once.

It is the single thing every visitor to Cat Island should do, and it costs nothing. Go early or late — there is no shade on the climb.

Beaches

The island’s beaches are the reason most people come, and the reason a car matters. A few worth the drive:

• Fernandez Bay — a sheltered crescent near New Bight, calm and good for swimming.
• Old Bight Beach — long, shallow and almost always empty.
• Greenwood Beach — a stretch of pink-tinged sand running for miles on the Atlantic side, near Port Howe.
• Pigeon Cay — up toward Bennett’s Harbour, worth the run north.
• Port Howe and the south end — the ruins of the Deveaux Mansion sit near here, left from the cotton plantation era.

The settlements

New Bight is the island’s centre of gravity: the airport, the government offices, the Regatta site and the road up to The Hermitage. Arthur’s Town at the north end is where the actor Sidney Poitier grew up, and says so proudly. Port Howe, Old Bight, Orange Creek, Knowles and Bennett’s Harbour are strung out along the highway between them, each a handful of houses, a church and usually somewhere to eat conch.

Before you come

Bring reef-safe sunscreen, insect repellent for the evenings, and a cooler bag. Cash is useful in the smaller settlements. Fuel is available near New Bight — fill up when you pass a station rather than when you need to, because there are long stretches of road with nothing on them.

Then pick a vehicle and go and look at it properly. If you have questions about the island itself, ask us — we live here. Our FAQ covers the rental side.