As a well-known destination for a vacation in paradise, the Bahamas is a tropical island chain with beautiful temperatures all year long and plenty for tourists to do. Thriving on tourism, the Bahamas continues to be on the top of the list of dream vacation sites for many people who crave the laidback beach atmosphere and a hint of island life.

The Bahamas was first home to the seafaring Taino people who migrated from Hispaniola and Cuba to the Bahamas in the 7th century. There, they came to be known as the Lucayans, numbering in the thirty thousands by the time Christopher Columbus arrived in 1492. He landed at San Salvador Island and peacefully exchanged goods with the native people. Following visits by Spaniards reduced the population of the islands to nothingness, until Eleutherian Adventurers arrived in the mid 1600s. This marked the beginning of British occupancy of the islands, which would last until 1973, when the islands would become fully independent.

The islands that make up the Bahamas are low and flat, with elevations mostly at sea level. Some ridges rise up about sixty feet, and the highest point on the islands is Mount Alvernia, which rises 210 feet. About seven hundred islands form the archipelago of the Bahamas, all of which feature a climate that is either subtropical or tropical. This means that the summers are warm and the winters are mild, and the temperatures are moderated by the Gulf Stream current. It is also dangerous come hurricane season, which can hit the islands in force.

Since the 1950s, offshore financing and tourism have been the two major pillars of the country’s economy. The latter comprises over two thirds of the Bahamas’ gross domestic product. Tourists come to experience the beautiful, sculpted resorts and the stunning beaches, evoking images of other laidback island communities, like Hawaii. Because of the wealth that comes into the nation from all of the tourism, there are plenty of high society lifestyle activities that visitors can enjoy.