Bermuda Tourism Guide
Bermuda is known for its
lovely pink beaches and coves where you can swim, snorkel or lounge to your heart's content. But there are lot more to the island than just the beaches - great museums that preserve the exhibits and artifacts depicting more than four century old history of Bermuda, caves with awesome limestone formations, historical forts dating from 1600s, churches with majestic architectures, parks and nature reserves that are ideal for watching island's flora, fauna and birds, and much more.
Island and Water Tours
(Guided and Self Guided)
Numerous tour operators on the island offer different kinds of tours including boating and sailing tours such as sightseeing cruises, glass bottom view of marine life and corals, snorkel boat tours, sunset and cocktail sailing etc, while others offer land based tours on taxis and minibuses for half or full day covering several attractions as well as lovely countryside. Such tours can be private or a group tour offered on per person rates. You can also take a train trolley tour on road at Dockyard, Hamilton City or St. George and go around. I have also designed many self guided tours which you can do on your own by walking or taking public bus, ferry or scooter. Visit
Tours in Bermuda for details.
Activities
You can guess that an island with so many lovely beaches and so much of waterbody around would offer plethora of water sports, and you are correct. You name a watersport, even the most modern one like flyboarding or ziplining can all be found here, and of course jet skiing, kayaking, parasailing, kite boarding, paddle boarding, windsurfing and lot more. But watersports is just one part, Bermuda is also unparalleled when it comes to golfing, fishing (both reef and deep sea), whale watching, horseback riding or even geo caching. Visit
Bermuda Activities for complete information.
Shopping in Bermuda
You may know that Bermuda is an expensive island as almost everything here is imported. But items like local handicrafts including glasswares and ceramic items, artwork from local artists, cedar items, and many small gifts and souvenirs including jewelry items are quite innovative. And if you want to buy things cheap then visit the Thrift Stores that mostly sell donated used items but in good condition. The primary shopping hubs are in Hamilton City (mostly on Front Street, Washington Mall and nearby), Dockyard (Clocktower Mall, Bermuda Art Center, Glassworks, Clayworks etc), and St. George (Somer's Wharf and on Water Street). Visit
Shopping in Bermuda to know what to buy and the best stores.
Nightlife
Bermuda's nightlife is essentially about bars and pubs, and a few nightclubs where mostly the young crowd would dance away to the wee hours to DJs or live music, and of course with drinks. However during summer (May through October), the island hosts several nighttime festivals and entertainment programs. One of the most popular being the Harbor Nights held at Hamilton City where the whole of Front Street gets busy with festive mood with local music and dance, and large number of vendors of all kinds including food sellers. Go through
Bermuda's Nightlife for full info.
Whether you are a cruise or an air passenger, you will surely like to have a taste of Bermuda's food. Actually food is a major business in Bermuda and large number of restaurants of all types offer all kinds of food including authentic Bermudian, Caribbean, Western, Italian, Indian, Japanese, Mexican, Mediterranean... and more.
If you are looking for cheap restaurants and eateries, they come in various categories including sit and dine eateries, cafes, deli type food from super markets and large grocery stores, as well as hot food like jerk chicken, burgers and wraps offered from mobile vans or trucks. Visit
Top Cheap Restaurants in Bermuda to know the best options.
However if you are looking to dine in a restaurant that has earned its own name and created a brand for itself through long term service excellence and quality of food, and the ones which islanders and tourists have loved consistently, then check out
Top Bermuda Restaurants. This includes a range of restaurants of different cuisine and categories.
Bermudian food itself is quite interesting. Do you know that Bermuda fish chowder which is a thick soup gets prepared from the fish head and is one of the delicacies of Bermuda cuisine. Check out
Bermuda Local Food and Drinks to know about many local Bermudian dishes that are popular and the best places to try them out.
Your experience in Bermuda won't be complete unless you take a traditional codfish breakfast with potatoes or a Sunday brunch which is an age-old tradition that Bermudians follow. Visit
Breakfast places in Bermuda to know about best places in Bermuda serving traditional breakfast and brunch, and what you can expect to eat.
Another old tradition is the
Afternoon Tea, traditional British tea served on pot with cookies, tea sandwiches, sweets and many other goodies. You will find almost all Bermudians virtually addicted to this.
If you are planning an apartment rental in the island and looking to cook yourself, then you need to know about the grocery stores and supermarkets in Bermuda. Here you go:
Bermuda Grocery Stores
Bermuda also has its own produce of alcoholic beverages. Some concoctions like Rum Swizzle, Dark n' Stormy are signature drinks of the island. Check out
Bermuda Wine and Alcohol to know about Bermuda's own wine and spirits.
Great hotels of different categories
You will find links to almost all types of hotels and lodgings in this section. Starting from the best budget hotels, BnBs, guesthouses, apartments, cottages to beachfront and luxury hotels, I have listed and reviewed them all in details with pictures, main amenities, shortcomings, location and contact details.
4)
Vacation Rentals if you like to stay in a home away from home as cook your own food.
6)
All-inclusive Resorts when you want the hotel to offer you an all inclusive package including transfers, room, food and drinks, sightseeing and activities etc.
7)
Best beachfront hotels: Hotels that not only offer great view of the ocean, but also have their own beach and great on-beach amenities and activities.
Getting To and Around Bermuda
When you plan a trip to Bermuda, the first thing is to ensure that you have all your travel documents in place. Unless all your required travel documents are in order, you won't be allowed entry into the island once you reach a cruise port or the international airport in Bermuda, and that's the worst situation you want to be in. The required travel documentation varies depending on one's nationality.
Although just a valid passport works for citizens of US, UK and Canada visiting as tourists, but others require more documentation including multi re-entry transit visa as well as ensuring a minimum validity of passport to visit Bermuda as tourist. Check out
Passport and Visa Requirements to get all the details about travel documents required by tourists and others to visit Bermuda.
Are you planning an air travel to Bermuda and like to know about flights, Bermuda's Airport, arrival and departure facilities and formalities, health insurance etc? Then check out this link:
Bermuda Air Travel
Well if you are planning a cruise travel, you need to know which are the best cruises to Bermuda and what do they offer? Over 350,000 visitors take cruises to Bermuda every year. Here is my full review of
Bermuda Cruises currently calling ports in the island and the
Current Cruise Schedule.
If you are sailing to Bermuda by a private yacht, visit
Sailing to Bermuda for information about preparation, safety and provisions, ocean voyage, approaching the harbor, customs clearance and more.
What can you bring to the island as a visitor or a returning resident? Is there any duty free allowance? Which items attract customs duty in Bermuda and how much? Check out
Bermuda Customs Duty for details.
How to get around Bermuda? Ride bus, ferry, taxi, minibus, or rent a scooter, cycle? Are they good, safe, affordable, comfortable? What about car rental? Check out
Bermuda Transports to know all about public transports in Bermuda.
Bus and ferry are the two most popular public transports in Bermuda. You can buy tickets, tokens or passes to travel in a public bus or ferry in Bermuda, or pay in cash (exact change in local or US currency). Passes are available for one day or multiple days, and they offer unlimited access to both buses and ferries. Visit
Bermuda Passes and Tickets for detailed information about where to get them, fares, what may be best for you etc.
Visitors Service Centers
These centers are available in three places 1) Dockyard where most cruise ships dock 2) Hamilton City next to the ferry terminal, and 3) St. George. For tourists, these centers are extremely useful. You can collect free Handy Reference Map (of tourism department) which gives details of all landmarks and attractions of the island, bus routes and timings, local tour information etc. Some of these centers also sell public bus/ferry passes and tokens.
Internet, Phones, Currency, ATMs, Post Offices
There are quite a few internet cafes and wi-fi access points in Bermuda. The whole of Hamilton City and Dockyard are wi-fi enabled. Although several restaurants and of course hotels offer wi-fi to their guests who avail their services, there are very few places where wi-fi is free. Visit
Bermuda Internet Access to get full info including location, rates etc.
Tele Communication infrastructure in Bermuda is hihgly advanced and all options including roaming, calling cards, mobile rentals, public telephone booths etc are available. Visit
Cell Phones and Calling Cards to find out how to best avail such options, where to find them, as well as indicative cost and other information.
Bermuda currency is treated at par with US currency. US currency can be freely used every where in the island in lieu of Bermuda currency. However the ATMs dispense only Bermuda notes. Also note that buses and ferries will take cash in either currency but only in exact change. Check out
Bermuda Currency and ATMs to get full information about Bermuda's currency and location of ATMs in the island.
While use of post offices are in the decline, they are very useful when it comes to buying booklet of tickets for buses and ferries. Other than few places like Hamilton ferry and bust terminals, post offices are authorized to sell booklet of 15 tickets. However from tourism perspective the historic Perot's Post Office located in Hamilton is quite significant as it was run by Perot, Bermuda's first Post Master General appointed in 1821. Check out
Bermuda Post Offices to know about all the post offices in Bermuda, their location, offerings, timings etc.
Bermuda Maps
The map provided by the Visitors Information Centers can be quite overwhelming with all the details packed into it. It can take hours for you to decipher the map unless you are aware of how the island is laid out. I have therefore created several separate maps to simplify the matter. The overall map shows the major landmarks across the island including relative location of the parishes, the Parish Map shows location of the nine parishes and links there take you to detailed map of each parish, the Beach Map shows locations of all the great beaches and links take you to detailed description of each of those beaches, the Dining Map shows location of the great restaurants and links take you to offers and review of each restaurant, and so on. You will find all those maps under
Bermuda Maps
However the tourism department's handy reference map (which is a foldable pocket size map) can be quite useful if you can get them in advance before your trip and take time to go through it in details. Fortunately there is a way to order that along with a set of brochures, and it's all free! You can order the map and brochures from the following link (copy and paste the link address below on your browser's address bar and hit 'Enter' button):
www.gotobermuda.com/get-here/maps-and-brochures/
Events and Festivals
Lots of events and festivals including cultural programs, live musical and dance performances, shows, art and food festival, social and sporting events keep taking place in Bermuda throughout the year. It's a great way to meet with the locals and understand their culture and traditions. To know about the events and festivals coinciding with your Bermuda visit or to plan a visit to experience a festival or event, check
Bermuda Festivals and Events.
Pubic Holidays in Bermuda
You should carefully plan your vacation in Bermuda keeping its pubic holidays in mind. While some public holidays like Bermuda Day, National Heroes Day etc are celebrated with much fanfare and accompanied with parades, performances, activities etc serving as excellent opportunities for tourists to spend time in typical Bermudian way, but on all holidays most shops, restaurants and commercial establishments remain closed, buses and ferries operate on reduced frequency, and only few public attractions remain open as staffs enjoy their holidays. There are 10 such public holidays celebrated by Bermuda in a year.
Health and Safety
While Bermuda is generally quite safe for tourists, there do exist some risks, dangers and natural hazards. For example jellyfish like creatures called Portuguese Man of War found in the waters of Bermuda can cause painful and poisonous stings, rip currents in the water can be dangerous and must be avoided, and petty thefts do take place at the beaches and other public places.
Weather in Bermuda
One of the most important factors to consider while planning a vacation in Bermuda is its weather. Most tourists come during the summer (May to October) to enjoy the sun and the beaches. Winter can be quite chilly out here but excellent for activities like golf and cultural programs. While summer is the high season, June onwards until November is the hurricane season when strong winds or storms are not uncommon.
Check
Bermuda Weather to know about air and water temperature by month, humidity, rainfall, hurricanes, wind directions and more.
Access for physically challenged
In order to know the beaches, sites, transports that are wheelchair or easily accessible, and also to know about equipment rentals that can help a person with mobility challenges, visit
How to go about with mobility challenges.
Travel Tips
Visit
Bermuda Tourist Information and Travel Tips for a lot of useful information that you should know before you start your Bermuda travel. This includes time zone, population, driving norms, shopping and store hours, taxes on purchased goods, consulate offices in the island, theft and crime, electrical voltage, dress codes, tipping, and lot more...
History, People and Culture
You will surely meet Bermudians on the buses and ferries. Don't be surprised with more than usual friendly behavior. Friendliness and willingness to help is just one part of a typical Bermudian nature. There are lot more to know...
The first settlement in the island started in 1609 when George Somers and his men arrived as their ship wrecked near St. George. They were heading towards James Town to colonize it, instead landed on Bermuda. So Bermuda too became a colony under the British governance and then came the dark days of slavery. So the origins of people of Bermuda, their culture and traditions come from several sources including British, black Africans, Caribbean etc. Influences had come in from Portuguese and North America as well. Visit the following links to explore Bermudians' history and heritage:
Planning a vacation in Bermuda
I can understand that overload of information can be sometimes so overwhelming that many would give up planning a vacation mid way and leave it to a cruise line or tour operator to do that. And the moment you do that, you are one amongst many who will be sold that same old stale canned package. You will be surely missing out on the finer aspects of Bermuda and the hidden secrets. So how do you go about it. Don't worry, I have created a step by step guide to plan a great vacation in Bermuda. Here it is:
Planning a vacation in Bermuda - A step by step guide
But sometimes an ideal vacation may be far fetched, because you are literally on a tight budget. You can't afford to spend much, neither can you afford to miss much. So wondering if Bermuda can be a destination for budget travelers? Well, if you know the ways and means, it won't sink you for sure. Here is another guide:
Bermuda on Budget
But navigation through internet pages of a large site like this can be quite messy and one can't do much about it despite best efforts. You will need to click links to move from one page to the other, digging deeper and eventually finding yourself lost in a jungle of information. Such is the structure of internet.
And therefore there is actually no substitute for books, and now in modern era, eBooks which you can download on your laptop, tab or reader. So I have created several comprehensive eBooks to guide you systematically through all aspects of Bermuda and design a perfect vacation. Take a look at
Bermuda Vacations Guides on eBooks and see how you can design a lovely vacation at your leisure and also use the ebooks as a reference guide while on the island.
Not yet found the answer?
visit
Bermuda Forum to find out what other visitors are asking, and the answers to their questions. There is a wealth of information there. You can also post your own Bermuda related question in the forum.
You can also scan my
Bermuda Blog to find the recent pages that I have published.
