You follow a path north from Casino Drive, the resort noise fades behind the trees, and then the sand opens out in front of you with the open Atlantic beyond it. Cabbage Beach is the long north-shore strand of Paradise Island, the one you see in photographs with a line of walkers at the water’s edge and parasails drifting offshore. It suits a day of walking, sunbathing and watching the water, with Atlantis close at one end.
Is visiting Cabbage Beach worth it?
Yes, if you want a long, open stretch of sand for walking, lying out and getting in the water, and especially if you are already staying on or near Paradise Island. It is described as one of the more beautiful beaches on Nassau and Paradise Island, and it is the kind of place where you can spend a whole day without needing a plan. It is less a sight to tick off than a place to settle into.
What sets it apart from other Nassau beaches is its shape and its setting. It runs about 1.3 miles east from Atlantis along the island’s north shore, so you get room to stroll rather than a small cove to sit in. The resort world sits at one end, with its towers and its crowds of guests, and the far stretches feel looser.
Bahamian law makes every beach on Paradise Island public property, so you do not need to be a hotel guest to be here. Water sports add another layer: water-skiing, snorkeling and parasailing are all part of what visitors enjoy on this shore. Pair it with a Junkanoo Rush in the evening and one stretch of the island gives you sand by day and drums at night.
What to see at Cabbage Beach
The beach is the attraction, and it rewards walking its full length more than staying at a single spot. Along the way you pass resort frontage, open sand and the horizon of the Atlantic, and what you notice changes with every stretch. Around it, Paradise Island has a few small sights that make a good half-day with the beach.
The long north shore
The main pleasure is the walk itself. The sand runs east from Atlantis for about a mile and a quarter beyond the resort edge, and the shore is described as ideal for beach walking, swimming or sunbathing.
Early on you pass the loungers and umbrellas of the resort end, where there is the most activity. Further along the scene thins out, and the beach becomes a ribbon of pale sand with the sea on one side and greenery on the other.
Walk it once in each direction, because the view changes. Heading east, you look toward open water. Heading back, the Atlantis towers rise at the end of the beach and give you a landmark to walk toward. Shells and small bits of driftwood collect at the waterline, and it is a pleasant place to simply sit and watch the water.
The Atlantis end
At the western end, Cabbage Beach meets the grounds of Atlantis, the resort Paradise Island is best known for, with its water park rides, pools, restaurants, a walk-in aquarium and casinos. Even if you never step inside, the towers frame the beach and set its mood. This is where you feel the buzz of a big resort: guests drifting down to the sand, music in the air, a sense of a holiday in full swing.
If you want a break from the sun, the resort offers things the beach does not. At the aquarium you can walk with the sharks for ten minutes on the floor of the tank beneath the Leap of Faith slide. It is a very different kind of outing from a day on the sand, and it gives the beach a counterpoint if you want both in one trip.
Water sports off the beach
Cabbage Beach is a place where the sea is part of the entertainment. Visitors here can try water-skiing, snorkeling and parasailing, and from the sand you can watch the parasails climb above the shoreline while boats pull skiers along the water. It gives the beach a lively, active feel on a busy day, in contrast to the quiet of a lone sunbather at the far end.
Even if you have no plan to go up in a parasail, it is fun to watch from a towel. The coloring of the sea against the sky makes it one of the more photogenic parts of the shore. Snorkelers add another layer, drifting at the surface while the walkers pass along the sand behind them.
Versailles Gardens and the Marina Village evenings
A short stroll from Atlantis, about a 15-minute walk, the Versailles Gardens and French Cloister are part of the One and Only Ocean Club, but they don’t mind visitors. Terraced lawns, statues and stone steps give you a formal, shaded contrast to the open beach, a quiet place to wander once you have had enough sun. They show another side of Paradise Island, calmer and more European in feeling than the resort scene.
In the evening, Marina Village comes alive on Friday and Saturday with a Junkanoo Rush, the drum, cowbell and costume tradition of the Bahamas. It makes a lively end to a day that began on the sand, and it gives you a taste of Bahamian culture within easy reach of the beach. Paradise Island also served as a film location, with parts of Thunderball in 1965 and Casino Royale in 2006 shot here.
Hours, tickets and rules
Cabbage Beach has no gate and no ticket. By Bahamian law, every beach on Paradise Island is public property, so you can walk onto the sand as a visitor whether or not you are staying at a resort. The places around it work differently, and the table sets out how each is reached or scheduled.
| Site | Access or schedule |
|---|---|
| Cabbage Beach | Public by law, reached by a path running north from Casino Drive along the east side of the RIU resort |
| Versailles Gardens and French Cloister | Part of the One and Only Ocean Club, open to visitors |
| Junkanoo Rush at Marina Village | Friday and Saturday evenings |
| Walk with the sharks at Atlantis | Ten minutes on the floor of the tank where the Leap of Faith slide is located |
The one firm rule is about the lawns. The beach is public, but expect to get hassled if you go as much as one step onto the private manicured lawns of the resorts that line the shore. Stay on the sand and use the public path, and the day goes smoothly.
How to get to Cabbage Beach
Cabbage Beach is on Paradise Island, which is a separate island from the city of Nassau on New Providence. Two bridges across Nassau Harbour connect the two. The first was built in 1966 by Resorts International, and a second followed in the late 1990s. Any way you reach Paradise Island, you cross one of them.
Once on Paradise Island, the public way to the sand is a path running north from Casino Drive along the east side of the RIU resort. That is the route to look for if you are not staying at a beachfront property. From the resort side, the beach starts at Atlantis and runs east, so guests staying there simply walk down to it.
There is no airport on the island anymore. The Paradise Island airport closed in 1999, and its airfield and runway have been replaced by an 18-hole golf course. Visitors flying in arrive on New Providence and cross the harbour by the bridges to reach the island. The Bahamas Ministry of Tourism can be reached locally at (242) 302-2000 or at [email protected] for more information about the beach.
When to visit Cabbage Beach
Morning is the natural time for a long walk, when the sand is cooler underfoot and the light is soft over the water. Later in the day, the resort end tends to feel livelier as guests come down from the towers, and the far stretches remain the place to go for more room. Late afternoon brings warm, low light that suits photographs of the shoreline.
Paradise Island is warm all year. Winter days reach the high 70s, with a mean daily maximum in January of 77°F, which makes it comfortable for walking and lying out. Even summer nights stay mild, and the mean daily minimum in August is 75°F. Choose the season by what you want from your trip, because the beach is available all year round.
The Atlantic hurricane season runs from June 1 to November 30, so late summer and autumn visits fall within it. Outside those months the beach sits outside the official hurricane season. For the evening, a Friday or Saturday gives you the Junkanoo Rush at Marina Village, which is a good reason to plan a day on the sand around the weekend.
Tips for your visit
Bring what makes a day on open sand comfortable: a hat, sunglasses, a towel, a refillable water bottle and a bag for your shoes. The beach is long and has stretches without any shade of your own, so plan with that in mind. A snorkel and mask are useful, since snorkeling is among the things visitors do here.
Plan a half day at least, because the pleasure of this beach is in the walking and the sitting. A good rhythm is a morning walk along the shore, a break for lunch around Atlantis or Marina Village, and an afternoon back on the sand or in the water. If you want to add a second outing, the Versailles Gardens make a quiet, shaded change of pace.
Combine the beach with the rest of the island. Atlantis offers the walk-in aquarium, pools and restaurants, and Marina Village brings music on Friday and Saturday evenings. On a day when the weather turns, the aquarium and the gardens give you indoor and shaded alternatives.
Families and walkers will find a beach long enough for everyone to spread out, and it is described as ideal for beach walking, swimming and sunbathing. Keep to the sand and the public path, and stay off the private lawns that border it.
Good to know before you go
The U.S. State Department rates the Bahamas Level 2, “Exercise increased caution”, and says most crime occurs in Nassau on New Providence and in Freeport on Grand Bahama.
Cabbage Beach is free to walk onto, so the costs of the day are the ones you choose, such as water sports, meals or an outing at Atlantis. Keep your belongings with you on the sand as you would at any busy beach, and stay on the public path rather than the resort lawns. For questions about the beach, the Bahamas Ministry of Tourism is available at (242) 302-2000 or [email protected].
Sources
- Bahamas Ministry of Tourism, Investments & Aviation (bahamas.com), Cabbage Beach (https://www.bahamas.com/natural-wonders/cabbage-beach), checked October 10, 2026
- Wikipedia, Paradise Island (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paradise_Island), checked October 10, 2026
- Wikivoyage, Paradise Island travel guide (https://en.wikivoyage.org/wiki/Paradise_Island), checked October 10, 2026
- U.S. Department of State, The Bahamas Travel Advisory, Level 2 (https://travel.state.gov/), checked October 10, 2026
- NOAA National Hurricane Center, Climatology (https://www.nhc.noaa.gov/climo/), checked October 10, 2026
To plan your stay
- Best Time to Visit the Bahamas: Weather, Hurricane Season, Sea Temperatures and Junkanoo
- Where to Stay in the Bahamas: Best Islands, Resorts, Boutique Stays and How to Choose
- Getting Around the Bahamas: Flights, Ferries, Mailboats and Taxis in Nassau
- Know Before You Go to the Bahamas: Entry Rules, Money, Getting Around and Local Customs