My boyfriend and I took a vacation to the Pelican Bay for 4 nights. Amazing time! Very nice, comfortable, intimate hotel. If you are looking for the big resort style hotels then you can go across the street. The beach at the Westin/Sheraton is great, but we loved Taino Beach and they have a free water taxi on the hour for hotel guests. Not being directly on the beach was not a problem because just being on the water was amazing. The hotel restaurant is expensive, but the drinks are the best we found and very reasonable compared to the marketplace. The marketplace is so much fun! We ate most our meals there and is very convenient.

We also were upgraded upon arrival. Becareful only with the phone calls in the hotel if you make any reservations for snorkeling/diving tours...they charge you for any calls incoming or outgoing!!

Would recommend to anyone!!

We also enjoyed our stay at Pelican Bay. The place is beautiful, friendly and convenient. We found that we got a much better rate by going directly to their website than going through other online booking agencies (expedia, etc) They offer many discount rates and we ended up paying less for a superior room than for a standard room booked through someone else.

They are adding a conference center to the grounds, so there is some construction, but we had no trouble with noise at all

We traveled to Grand Bahama Island on the Discovery Cruise ship and selected Pelican Bay based on reviews from this website and our personal preferences. We are not the type of people who enjoy huge sprawling hotels, even if it means not being in a beachfront hotel with a lot of amenities. Pelican Bay Hotel has 186 rooms, compared to 511 at the Sheraton and 749 at the Westin, and all 3 hotels are equal walking distance to the Lucaya Marketplace, where we ate all but one of our meals. Even with 186 rooms, the unique and beautiful architetcural design and layout make Pelican Bay feel much more intimate than one would expect. If we ever return to Grand Bahama Island, this hotel would be our first choice again.

We were told that we could use the beach at the larger hotels if we wanted to, but there was a water taxi (free for Pelican Bay guests), that departed hourly from behind Pelican Bay and took us on a 10 minute ride to Tiana Beach. At Tiana, there is a huge pool with a slide and a swim up bar, a small beach with comfortable cushions on the lounge chairs, a tennis court, restaurant, and more. Remember to get beach towels from the Pelican Bay lobby before taking the water taxi to the beach.

Pelican Bay also has a swim up bar, but I only visited it for the free continental breakfast, which was fantastic. In addition to juice, fresh fruit, cereal, breads and pastry, they also had hot hard boiled eggs, a hot omelet or other breakfast dish that changed daily, and a selection of cold cuts, similar to what you'd find in Europe.

When we first arrived at Pelican Bay, we were greeted by a very pleasant clerk at the front desk. When we found out that we were booked for a room with 2 double beds, we asked for a room with a king sized bed. The clerk changed our room, and because the room was not ready, she gave us tickets so we could have a free local drink at the hotel bar while we waited. Stanley, the porter, stored our bags until the room was ready. We were in room 205, which is just a couple of feet from the stairs and elevator. The room had a nice view, everything inside looked and smelled clean and the room was quiet and comfortable. There was a table that had a built-in sink and a mini-fridge, with a coffee machine on top. The A/C worked well. There was a working iron and ironing board. In the bathroom, we found a blow dryer, large, fluffy towels, cosmetics that were of good quality, and soft toilet paper. Speaking of which, the toilet became sluggish the day we left, and somebody was sent to repair it as we were leaving.

There is a map in the hotel room showing the layout at the Lucaya Market, which is about a 5 minute stroll away. Peek down as you walk over to see the beautiful tropical fish in the water along the way. We bought water, soft drinks and snacks from the Oasis Pharmacy. We later found out that a much smaller pharmacy at the far side of the Lucaya Market had cheaper pharmacy products (nail clippers), but the food items cost the same at both pharmacies. That night, we had lobster with delicious peas and rice at Pisces restaurant, which also has great pizza. The next day, we had wonderfully spiced jerk pork at the Irish Pub, and flavorful tzaziki as a snack at Zorba's. A local man recommended that we try the grouper and peas and rice from the Giovanni's take-out lunch window, but we missed it. The place is owned by an Italian man who is married to a Bahamian woman, so the food is reputedly spiced well, as opposed to most hotel food, which is bland.

On Wednesdays, a taxi van comes to the hotel at 6:30 to take interested hotel guests to Smith's Point beach for the local fish fry. The taxi fare is about $5 per person, depending on how many people from the hotel go along for the ride. At Smith's Point, there's a sit-down restaurant at one end of the block and a shack selling food on the other end of the block, directly on the beach, which is where the locals eat and where we ate. Expect to wait in line for about 20 minutes, but if you buy a drink from the bar next door and focus on the local music, the wait doesn't seem very long. They have fish filets (with the head on), lobster tails, and chicken. The lobster was fantastic. Make sure you add some hot sauce to the peas and rice. If you don't mind spicy food, the sauce is very flavorful. Stay away from the Sweet Potato pie for dessert. The taxi that takes you to the beach will return to pick you up whenever you're ready. Enjoy!

I use Expedia to book and Tripadvisor to double check my choice. This was one of the best finds. Expect a European hotel experience; solid breakfast on the water, simple rooms, simple staffing, lots of quiet during the day and on the weekends it can sometimes become a club.

You are within walking distance to the MarketPlace - a hub of shopping, restaurants, bars, piers for boating experiences and a center stage for live entertainment. The hotel has a pier; our boating tour by Capt Anthony Conyers ([----]) was over the top and exceptionally priced. He made the trip outstanding with a fishing trip and a cat boat trip of snorling and lunch.

The hotel has a relationship with the Ritz Hotel (verynice); a free 3 minute ferry ride from the hotel pier and you have access to a pool complex with a swim up bar, 2 story slide into a pool with several pool sections. We shared time by the pool and the beach; palm tree umbrellas, a restaurant, jet skis, water and sand this Philly girl only dreams of. Best Pics of the vacation were on this beach.

Everything on the island is shipped in; a case of local beer for $40 ...buy your water by the gallon in the market place. So expect that. Yeah, it's not Mexico.

We traveled with a 5yr, 17yr, 18yr and husband and I. This place is focused more on honeymooners....empty nesters...and 20+...depending upon the time of year. I would travel here every Feb. Was perfect for us all.