This horseshoe-shaped bay, with its wide crescent of soft pink sand, is arguably Bermuda's most beautiful beach. Not surprisingly, it can get quite packed with locals and tourists on a hot summer's day. The Beach House here offers water sports rentals, snacks and a changing facility.

This 1923 Spanish liner, which ran aground 13km (8 mi) north of Bermuda in 1936, is the largest ship ever to wash up in Bermudian waters and makes a fine wreck dive site. The cruise ship ran aground on a reef rather than sinking and became an easy target for pilferers. However, much of the ship's contents - including chandeliers and plumbing fixtures - were salvaged and auctioned off in 1941.

During WWII, the US military used the Cristobal Colon as a target ship and blew it in two: one half settled on either side of the reef. This was probably a wise move since a Norwegian cargo ship had, in 1937, lethally gashed its hull when it mistakenly assumed the Cristobal Colon to be sailing through the reef and followed her course. Both boats now sit in about 50 feet of water. The Norwegian cargo ship still has a fire truck it was about to deliver to Bermuda sitting on its forward deck.

When the British were no longer able to use ports in their former American colonies, they chose this site as their 'Gibraltar of the West'. In addition to the Bermuda Maritime Museum, you can pass a pleasant hour or two strolling about the Dockyard grounds, stop in at the pub, the movie theatre, the craft market or the Bermuda Snorkel Park.

The Keep, the sprawling fortress on the edge of the dockyard, was built of limestone blocks in Georgian style and was first used by the British navy as a base to launch their raid on Washington, DC, in 1814. It later served as a North Atlantic base during both World Wars but was abandoned as a costly outpost in 1951. Since then the buildings - including eight historic buildings, old munitions warehouses and the gorgeous Commissioner's House - have been renovated and given a second life as shops and museums.