The Travel Maven: A Tropical Paradise That’s Easier to Get to Than the Hamptons
Bermuda is 160 minutes and 650 miles from New York. After work you can catch a taxi to JFK Airport, get on a flight and you can be there for dinner in a romantic beachfront restaurant by 9 p.m. That’s less time then it takes to drive out to the Hamptons on a summer Friday night.
In two hours, you can be on this tranquil, tropical island paradise brimming with British tradition and calypso overtones. An island decorated with pastel-colored houses and old-world colonial architecture. It’s more sophisticated than any Caribbean island.
Bermuda is a tranquil, stress-free vacation spot attracting sophisticated travelers. The weather is balmy and spring-like year-round. It’s like London without the rain, fog and traffic. You’re surrounded by swaying palm trees, gorgeous pink beaches, balmy weather, soaring cliffs and glistening blue water.
My favorite way to enjoy Bermuda is to rent a scooter and venture out and explore this picturesque island. Stumble upon one of its many secluded beaches with even more secluded coves and spend a very romantic afternoon. Rent bikes and explore the Railway Trail, which traverses the island, an adventure that’s a safe, easy ride. Stop for traditional Bermudian high tea and mini cucumber sandwiches, baked apricot and fig scones with kumquat jam and fresh Devonshire clotted cream at Heritage Court at the Fairmont Hamilton Princess. Stop by Bermuda’s famous watering hole, the Swizzle Inn or the popular North Rock Brewing Co. and kick back and relax.
For a heart-warming experience head over to Dolphin Quest in Royal Naval Dockyard and swim with amazingly affectionate dolphins. Visit Gibbs Hill Lighthouse, one of the world’s first made cast iron and shipped here from England in 1840. Climb to the top for OMG! views.
Get close to sharks and zillions of tropical fish at the Bermuda Aquarium with its 140,000-gallon tank. For Bermuda’s best shopping, head over to Hamilton for fashionable duty-free shops. If tennis is your passion, Bermuda has one court for every six residents, more than any country.
There are super-luxury hotels, mid-priced boutique hotels and charming guest cottages. My favorite is the spectacular beachfront Cambridge Beaches Hotel & Spa. It contains all the super-luxurious amenities you could ever wish for, even a holistic healing center.
The Fairmont Southampton has Bermuda’s finest golf course. If your husband is a golfer spoil him, and while he’s playing head over to their spa and spoil yourself.
The reason beaches appear to have pink sand is the fine white sand has magically blended over hundreds of years with the crushed red coral and millions of crustaceans creating a stunning pink hue to the sand. Locals say the sand is pink because the island is so beautiful, because the “beach is blushing.”
For snorkeling, go to Church Bay Beach, where only 100 yards out you’ll feast your eyes on blue angelfish, parrotfish and Manta rays. Go diving and you’ll see many old wrecks thanks to the Bermuda Triangle.
Bermuda has outstanding restaurants featuring fish caught that day. My favorites are Port O Call on Front Street in Hamilton or Mickey’s Beach Bistro at the Elbow Beach Resort. At local restaurants try the popular local dish of salt cod and potatoes and wash it down with a local beer. For dinner and dancing your meal off afterwards, visit the Café Cairo with its authentic Middle Eastern cuisine.
What I love best about Bermuda is you can spontaneously escape for a last-minute, long weekend and turn off your engines. When you go, be sure to bring back an authentic pair of dashing Bermuda shorts to remember your trip.
Hastings-on-Hudson resident Richard Levy is a former advertising “Mad Man” creative director and now prolific travel writer. He’s also an inventor of innovative new products and is writing and illustrating a new children’s book. You can contact him at RichardLevyTravelWriter@gmail.com.
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