Marsh Harbour is located on the Big Island of The Abacos. It is the third largest town in The Bahamas and a major commercial hub. Among its many amenities are grocery stores, shops, cafes, hardware stores, full-service marinas, restaurants, and resorts. It also hosts the larger of two international airports on the island.
Marsh Harbour Bay is huge with plenty of room for boaters to both anchor and tie up to a mooring ball. There is good protection here from all but a westerly wind. It can get really crowded in the harbor as it’s a main provisioning stop and a good place to ride out a storm, but we found there was plenty of room for us to tuck in amidst the other boats. There is a free dinghy dock with a place to dump trash and get to land. I highly recommend locking your dinghy when you leave, but we never had any issues.
There was a lot of rebuilding going on when we were there. Parts of the town were new and modern, and parts were very third-world. Sadly, Hurricane Dorian contributed to the demise. For those who do not know, this hurricane wreaked havoc in the Abaco Cays on Labor Day weekend of 2019 with peak wind gusts up to 220mph and a 20-foot storm surge. It was a Category 5 hurricane which obliterated 90% of the islands.
Photo by Kris Grogan, CBP
You would think this would discourage the locals still living among the rubble; but, from what we saw, most have such a strong faith in God that they trust Him in the good and the bad, in the hard times and the easy, and have a heart of gratitude for the simple things in life. We saw so much joy in the local people as they were singing hymns while working, proclaiming the love of Christ on the streets, and sharing their testimonies of faith as they interacted with us. It was an inspiration!
We stopped at Marsh Harbour mainly to re-provision. There are two large grocery stores in town, Maxwell’s and Abaco Groceries. I highly recommend them both for various reasons. Abaco Groceries is like a mini Costco or Sam’s Club, with products that come directly from those US stores. If you’re looking to buy in bulk, this is the place. Maxwell’s is also great. It is a regular sized grocery store with meat, milk cheese, produce, frozen food, canned food, condiments, bread, grains, and most things you would find in the United States. Keep in mind that the prices for fresh food are almost double what you would get in the stores, while canned and frozen food prices were fairly comparable. Of note, we weren’t always guaranteed to get what we wanted. One time we visited Maxwell’s, the bananas were plentiful and green; another time, they were sparse and overripe. As a cruiser, we’ve had to get used to choosing whatever fresh fruit and vegetables are available, and planning meals accordingly.
Since the stores were a little too far for us to ride our bikes, and it’s not practical to load a lot of provisions in our bike baskets, we rented taxis whenever we visited Marsh Harbour. Taxis are readily available at the airports, ferry docks, and marinas. We tied up our dinghy at the Conch Inn & Marina near the Navigare main office and were able to hail a taxi easily from there. The taxi drivers were also willing to wait for us while we shopped and were very accommodating. We did rent a car on one occasion to do some sightseeing, get boat parts, and stock up on food and supplies, but we mostly used taxis when in town since it was super easy to do and not too expensive (about $20 dollars each way).
We enjoyed two meals out while at Marsh Harbour, Snappa’s Grill & Chill, and Colors by the Sea. Both had excellent food. Snapper’s is a little newer and more modern, located at the Conch Inn & Marina, while Colors by the Sea is colorful and lively, with large portions and great seafood.
On one of our visits to Marsh Harbour, we picked up Kory’s friend, Paul, at the Leonard M. Thompson International Airport. Then we all waited out a storm and worked on inside boat projects for a couple of days before heading off to sail and snorkel at Sandy Cay.
All in all, Marsh Harbour is a great place to stop to stock up on supplies and enjoy some good local cuisine. The people are super friendly, and they take pride in their Bahamian culture and their faith in God.