Chris Kjelgaard, our man in New York, reports on one of the world”s top insurance industry centresConsidering the important role shipwrecks have played in shaping the history of Bermuda and all the mystery associated with the Bermuda Triangle, it”s fitting that this tiny, isolated archipelago of completely interconnected islands nearly 600 miles off the coast of North Carolina has become one of the world”s top insurance industry centres.
Traditionally known as a lush paradise for tourism and a tax haven for the rich, the self-governing British Overseas Territory is now home to the headquarters of many of the world”s top insurance companies - all located in Bermuda”s bustling little capital city Hamilton, as is the headquarters of Bacardi. The commercial success means Bermuda is becoming very built-up, with new condominium developments, houses and apartment buildings springing up all over its 21 square miles of land area.
But although the insurance and financial services industries have become Bermuda”s biggest economic mainstays, Bermuda”s natural advantages still make it desirable to tourists. The fact Bermuda lies in the path of the warm Gulf Stream gives it a climate that is semi-tropical in summer and benevolently mild in winter despite its relatively northerly, mid-Atlantic location. The coral reefs surrounding the island are dangerous to ships, but they also have given it miles of pink-sand beaches that rank with the best on Earth.
Bermuda was named after its discoverer, the Spanish explorer Juan de Bermudez, but it was the British who colonised the island, with what is now the tiny and utterly charming town of St George, the capital. This makes St George the oldest English-speaking community in the New World.
Hamilton became Bermuda”s seat of government capital over a century ago. Rapidly filling up with unsightly office blocks - none of which, fortunately, are allowed to be higher than Hamilton”s impressive cathedral, which dominates the skyline from its hilltop site - the city is losing its once-considerable charm. Despite the government”s policy of restricting driving licences to residents - all tourists and visitors must use scooters, taxis or Bermuda”s frequent and cheap buses if they want to travel by road - Bermuda”s roads (and Hamilton”s in particular) are becoming very clogged with cars and scooters.
Nevertheless, Hamilton is still a pretty port city with a beautiful, sheltered harbour. Smaller cruise liners dock right next to Front Street, the city”s main shopping and restaurant thoroughfare. Hamilton offers good duty-free shopping and high-quality general retail (including an excellent Marks & Spencer”s) and dining. But be warned: most of Bermuda”s shops and nearly all its restaurants are quite expensive.
Nearby, ferries fast and slow leave from the bustling little ferry terminal every few minutes for the 15-minute trip west through the Great Sound to the tourist shopping and entertainment mecca at the former Royal Naval Dockyard on Bermuda”s northwest tip. There are few nicer - and cheaper - pleasures in Bermuda than taking trips on its ferries, which ply Hamilton Harbour and the Great Sound and provide wonderful views of many of Bermuda”s islands and sumptuous homes.
After calling at Dockyard ” which dates back to Nelson”s time and is the only dock in Bermuda deep enough to take the biggest cruise ships -- some ferries make the pleasant, hour-long tour through open sea along Bermuda”s north coast to St George. Ferries usually arrive at St George from the east, through the narrow Town Cut passage.
Though Bermuda has suffered a slow decline in tourism (the result of high prices and sometimes indifferent service), its hotel industry is now revitalising due to the island”s growing status as a financial centre and because of the new Premier”s pro-tourism policies. Voted by the majority PLP party in November to replace the previous incumbent Sir Alex Scott, Dr Ewart Brown (a US-trained medical doctor) was previously Bermuda”s Tourism and Transport Minister. During his tenure, Brown attracted new air service to Bermuda from carriers such as JetBlue, American, United, Northwest and USA 3000. Brown is retaining his tourism portfolio and plans to attract low-cost airlines such as AirTran and Spirit to further Bermuda”s air service development.
Bermuda”s three main business hotels are the elegant and storied Fairmont Hamilton Princess, on the water at the western edge of Hamilton; the Fairmont Southampton across the Great Sound to the southwest, with its own 18-hole golf course and full conference facilities; and the Elbow Beach Hotel, a Mandarin property about a 15 minutes” drive out of Hamilton in Paget Parish on Bermuda”s south coast. Further east, near the airport, the recently and beautifully refurbished Grotto Bay Beach Resort with its Raffles-like colonial bar and terrific Sunday roast buffet lunch. The Reefs Hotel and the Wyndham Bermuda Resort & Spa have glorious beach-side locations and good food.
There is a great deal to see and do in Bermuda. For the marine-minded, there is scuba diving, sailing and boating at every turn. For the less energetic, Bermuda”s stunning beaches, Aquarium, Underwater Exploration Institute, beautiful Crystal and Fantasy Caves, gorgeous Botanical Gardens (in the grounds of which is Camden, the official residence of Bermuda”s Premier, open to the public daily) and ferries all provide excellent diversion.
Bermuda also hosts a number of festivals. The annual Rugby World Classic seven-a-side tournament for senior men”s and women”s international teams (such greats as Andy Hayden, Gavin Hastings and JPR Williams have all appeared) is already known worldwide. The reputations of the Bermuda Music Festival (held at the Dockyard each October) and the Bermuda Gourmet Food Festival, centred on the Hamilton Princess, are growing.
British Airways flies to Bermuda from Gatwick daily in summer and five days a week (not Mondays or Fridays) in winter. Visitors can also reach Bermuda daily from New York JFK, Newark, Boston, Atlanta, Washington DC and Baltimore; and several days a week from Toronto, Miami, Chicago and Detroit. All in all, Bermuda certainly isn't the cheapest place in the world to take a holiday, but for travellers willing to go a bit up-market it is well worth visiting.