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Freeport: when your ship stops here

The caves and Gold Rock Beach in the national park, Lucaya's beach and marketplace, a nature walk in town; the old resort is a building site.

Facts checked Nov 1, 2026, each with its source. No prices on this page.

Freeport is the main town of Grand Bahama, and its harbour takes several cruise ships a week. On 1 September 2019 Hurricane Dorian struck the island as a Category 5 storm and damaged or destroyed nearly half its homes. The island is still rebuilding: in May 2026 demolition began at the long stalled Grand Lucayan resort, where a beach club and a cruise resort are planned.

Sources: Wikipedia: Freeport, Bahamas; Wikipedia: Grand Bahama; Caribbean Journal, 25 May 2026: MSC and Concord Wilshire move forward on the Grand Lucayan

Top 3 things to do

  1. 1. Lucayan National Park

    A 40 acre park on the island's south coast, kept by the Bahamas National Trust since 1982, with two sinkholes, Ben's Cave and Burial Mound Cave, that open into one of the largest underwater cave systems in the world: over 6 miles (10 km) of tunnels charted. Stairs lead down to platforms just above the water, and the bones of six Lucayan islanders were found on a cave floor in 1986. A boardwalk crosses the mangrove creek to Gold Rock Beach, called the Welcome Mat of Grand Bahama and voted the best beach in the Caribbean by USA Today in 2018.

    Tip: It is a drive out along the south coast, and the Trust's guides come only by arrangement, so this is a tour, not a taxi on a whim.

    Sources: Bahamas National Trust: Lucayan National Park; Wikipedia: Lucayan National Park

  2. 2. Lucaya: the beach and Port Lucaya Marketplace

    Lucaya is the island's resort area, with beaches and hotels, and Port Lucaya Marketplace is the main shopping place for visitors. The resort area and the cruise ships together bring most of the island's tourism, more than a million visitors a year.

    Tip: The easy choice: shops and the beach in one place, no tour needed.

    Sources: Wikipedia: Freeport, Bahamas; Wikipedia: Grand Bahama

  3. 3. The Rand Nature Centre

    100 acres of pine forest and coppice near the heart of downtown Freeport, kept by the Bahamas National Trust since 1992, with easy trails, benches, a freshwater pond and a garden of native plants. It is a birding hotspot from October to May, when northern songbirds winter here. The flamingos that once lived on the pond are gone.

    Tip: Open Monday to Friday, 9 am to 1 pm, so it is a morning stop on a weekday.

    Source: Bahamas National Trust: Rand Nature Centre

What to skip

Before you go ashore

You do not have to book a tour: you are free to go ashore on your own. Royal Caribbean sets the all aboard time about 30 minutes before the ship sails, posts it near the gangway, and says the ship does not wait for guests touring on their own.

Source: Royal Caribbean FAQ: Do I need to book a shore excursion?

Back-to-backs that stop in Freeport

Back-to-back cruises from these home ports have a stop in Freeport, from the Royal Caribbean sailings we track:

Sources

Read on Nov 1, 2026. Opening days, hours and rules change: check with the place itself before you go. legtolegcruises.com is independent and not affiliated with or endorsed by Royal Caribbean International or any place named here.

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