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The National Art Gallery of The Bahamas in Villa Doyle

22 of the best · The Bahamas

Museums, Galleries and Heritage in The Bahamas

The National Art Gallery, the pirate years, Loyalist houses, the story of slavery and emancipation, Hope Town’s lighthouse and the back story of the islands.

Our 22 favourites, listed A–Z · Updated October 2026

Insiders' picks

Three of our favourites from this list, vetted by people who know and love The Bahamas.

  1. The pirate era, brought to life

    Pirates of Nassau Museum

    King & George Streets · Nassau·Themed museum

    A themed museum of the pirate era, with recreated battles and the stories of the pirates and the men who fought them.

    King & George Streets, Nassau, New Providence, The BahamasExplore View on map

The full list: Museums & Heritage, A–Z

Show 18 of 22 places on a map
Neighbourhood

In depth 3

The back story.

  1. The back story

    Junkanoo: the heartbeat of a Bahamian Christmas

    Bay Street, Nassau·In depth: festival

    The Boxing Day and New Year’s Day parades on Bay Street, the shacks where the costumes are built, and how to watch or even join in.

    Explore View on map

  2. The back story

    Pirates, Loyalists and pink sand: the Bahamas back story

    The Bahamas·In depth: history

    From the pirate haven of the early 1700s to the Loyalists, a French cloister and a cave named for James Bond: the stories behind the islands.

    Explore View on map

  3. The back story

    The pirate republic of Nassau

    Nassau·In depth: the pirate years

    How Nassau became a haven for Blackbeard, Calico Jack, Anne Bonny and Mary Read, and how Woodes Rogers ended it in 1718.

    Explore View on map

Museums & galleries 9

Art and history.

  1. Bimini’s stories

    Bimini Museum

    Alice Town · North Bimini·Local museum

    A small museum across from the Bimini Craft Center, preserving the island’s history.

    Kings Highway, Alice Town, North Bimini, The BahamasExplore View on map

  2. Junkanoo up close

    Educulture Junkanoo Museum

    West Street · Nassau·Junkanoo museum

    A mini museum and resource centre for Junkanoo, with costume pieces, instruments and the story of the parades.

    31 West Street, Nassau, New Providence, The BahamasExplore View on map

  3. The only bronze foundry in the Bahamas

    Johnston Bronze Art Foundry

    Little Harbour · Abaco·Bronze foundry & gallery

    The family foundry at Little Harbour, casting bronze sculpture by the lost-wax process since 1952.

    Little Harbour Road, Little Harbour, Abaco, The BahamasExplore View on map

  4. The boat-building cay

    Man-O-War Heritage Museum

    Man-O-War Cay · Abaco·Local museum

    A small museum in an 1800s wooden house, telling the story of Man-O-War Cay’s boat builders.

    Pappy Ben Hill, Man-O-War Cay, Abaco, The BahamasExplore View on map

  5. The pirate era, brought to life

    Pirates of Nassau Museum

    King & George Streets · Nassau·Themed museum

    A themed museum of the pirate era, with recreated battles and the stories of the pirates and the men who fought them.

    King & George Streets, Nassau, New Providence, The BahamasExplore View on map

  6. A great private collection

    The D’Aguilar Art Foundation

    Virginia Street · Nassau·Art foundation

    The foundation that preserves Vincent D’Aguilar’s collection, one of the most comprehensive private collections of Bahamian art.

    8A Virginia Street, Nassau, New Providence, The BahamasExplore View on map

Heritage 10

Historic places.

  1. Nassau’s oldest house

    Balcony House Museum

    Market Street · Nassau·Historic house

    An 18th-century wooden Loyalist-style house, believed to be Nassau’s oldest standing residence.

    Market Street off Bay Street, Nassau, New Providence, The BahamasExplore View on map

  2. A cathedral since 1861

    Christ Church Cathedral

    George Street · Nassau·Anglican cathedral

    Nassau’s Anglican cathedral, built in 1841 on the site of the islands’ earliest church and a cathedral since 1861.

    George Street, Nassau, New Providence, The BahamasExplore View on map

  3. Where Columbus came ashore

    Columbus landfall monument, Long Bay

    Long Bay · San Salvador·Monument

    A stone cross on Long Bay marking the spot of Christopher Columbus’s first landfall.

    Long Bay, San Salvador, The BahamasExplore View on map

  4. The candy-striped lighthouse

    Elbow Reef Lighthouse

    Hope Town · Elbow Cay, Abaco·Lighthouse

    The red-and-white lighthouse built by the British Imperial Lighthouse Service in the 1860s.

    Hope Town, Elbow Cay, Abaco, The BahamasExplore View on map

  5. A landmark of old Nassau

    Government House

    Downtown Nassau·Historic landmark

    One of the landmarks of downtown Nassau, beside Graycliff.

    Explore View on map

  6. Views to Cuba

    Great Inagua Lighthouse

    Matthew Town · Great Inagua·Lighthouse

    A working all-white lighthouse from 1870 in Matthew Town; on a clear day you can see Cuba from the top.

    Matthew Town, Great Inagua, The BahamasExplore View on map

  7. Slavery and emancipation

    Pompey Museum of Slavery & Emancipation

    Vendue House · Bay Street, Nassau·History museum

    A museum in historic Vendue House, named after Pompey, an enslaved man on the Rolle plantation in Exuma.

    Vendue House, Bay Street, Nassau, New Providence, The BahamasExplore View on map

  8. Founded by Scottish settlers

    St Andrew’s Presbyterian Kirk

    Princess Street · Nassau·Historic church

    The Kirk founded by 55 Scottish settlers in 1798, the second-oldest church building on New Providence.

    Princess Street, Nassau, New Providence, The BahamasExplore View on map

  9. The highest point in the Bahamas

    The Hermitage, Mount Alvernia

    Cat Island·Hilltop monastery

    Father Jerome’s small stone monastery of 1939 on top of Mount Alvernia, at 206 ft the highest point in the country.

    New Bight, Cat Island, The BahamasExplore View on map

  10. Hope Town’s founding mother

    Wyannie Malone Museum

    Hope Town · Elbow Cay, Abaco·Local museum

    The museum of Hope Town, the settlement co-founded in 1785 by Wyannie Malone, a widow from South Carolina.

    Hope Town, Elbow Cay, Abaco, The BahamasExplore View on map

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