Southern Fancy

Southern Fancy is a quaint retreat in a perfect location - in town and on the beach. So not only do you have the best views (and an amazing breeze), but you can easily walk to any location in town. As one of the last "original" Hope Town houses it truly is a special place to stay. It has everything you need to enjoy a peaceful vacation and I highly recommend anyone who has the chance to stay here to do so!

Our family has visited Hope Town every summer for over 25 years, an amazing island with the kindest people, this is such a special place. We have enjoyed staying at Southern Fancy for many years! The location is perfect - overlooks beautiful Atlantic ocean with very private beach area, perfect swimming and snorkeling. Short walk to restaurants, grocery, island shopping. We absolutely love the breezeway just off the main house for relaxing morning coffee/breakfast and fantastic fun for happy hour cocktails with family and friends. This is a lovely Bahamian cottage, not a home with flashy features, if you’re looking for a quaint beach house with amazing views, fantastic location, and responsive property managers, don't hesitate to stay at Southern Fancy. We will be back soon!

Such a great spot! As the photos suggest, literal steps away from the beach. The water is great, can walk right out to snorkel the reef, or fish from the point of rocks. The house is "classic" ie older but is wood, with lots of light. It has a soul. One big, sunny living room that you can walk out to the breezeway to read, nap, eat, stare at the waves. Three minute walk up from the ferry dock, and a nice short stroll into town. It's right at the edge of town where golf carts are allowed, but you can go the whole time without needing one, if you want. You can walk to everything you need, rent a golf cart if you want to explore the island. You can also catch a water taxi from the harbor to go across the lighthouse for a tour. Great place!

This is a long post due to my history with Sothern Fancy. So to start, it is a 5 star location and the house is wonderful. SF is a 150 year old traditional Bahamian island house, so do not expect frills and the Ritz. This is a place to escape from the craziness of the world and take time to recharge and relax. Its location could not be more perfect, right on the end a the 2 mile beach (almost private with as few people trapsing on this end of the beach) snorkeling and coralheads just off the beach, views of the harbor and lighthouse just out the window or off the breezeway. Rustic, quaint and wonderful. If this is the kind of place that calls to you, definitely stay here.Now for my history: my family has been coming to the Bahamas for 60 years. Fist for 25 years at Chub Cay in the Berry Island, then in 1985 to Hopetown. Quite a different vibe between the 2. We stayed at the Butterfly house and became good friends with the owners of Southern Fancy(SF). September 2019 changed all of that. Dorian took away the lodge and the Butterfly house along with many buildings, boats etc. I late 2019 I contacted the owners of SF to inquire the status of the house. It was still standing although significantly damaged. 4 feet of sand in the main room after the large seaside window was blown out. The front of the house was off its foundation and the guest room walls were split from ceiling to floor. I asked if knowing all of this would it be possible for me to "camp out" in the house. They agreed making sure I knew that there was no electricity or running water. I contacted a friend and explained all of this and asked if they would like to join me. We loaded up 1 ton of equipment, tools, generator, camping gear, and induction hot plate and my dog and off we flew to Hopetown for 2 months. We spent the time doing disaster relief construction. New roof for Vernon's grocery and bakery, gutter replacement, shutters, handrails clean cisterns, refurbish the museum, you name it.Having to get back to my real life, I returned in March 2021 with my fiancé. I had explained about the lack of running water and no electricity. No problem. We had a wonderful time entertaining friends, serving dinners off of a single hotplate. Finally at the end of our stay, Vernon married us on the bluff at Southern Fancy. We had a wonderful reception right there on a table of clapboards off of the house set on sawhorses. Could not have asked for a better place to be married.We returned for our anniversary (April 1st) in 2022. By now the house had a wonderful makeover, new roof, electricity, running water, doors that opened and closed, fans that cooled us at night.So you can now understand my attachment to Hopetown and Southern Fancy. Yes, it is not the Ritz, or anything close to it. It is rustic and homey. But: the location can not be beat. On the back street with very little cart traffic, the best views on the island, right on the beach, a hop skip and a jump from the harbor, Jack's, Vernon's (hot bread and incredible pies if this is your first visit). This is everything that you need to get away from it all. Our hope is that if you stay here, you will leave loving it as much as we do.