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Club Med Columbus - Bahamas

San Salvador, Bahamas

4.5(932 reviews)

FamilyClub Med

Club Med Columbus is a dive resort first and everything else second, spread over 89 acres of San Salvador, an Out Island with under a thousand residents, one gas station and no traffic lights. The walls offshore drop from shallow reef into open ocean, the dive centre is Only Blue Diving operating out of the resort with a hyperbaric chamber on the premises and a dive doctor always on duty, and Club Med calls the island one of the 20 best dive sites in the world. Less than a fifth of the site is built on, so the painted Creole-style bungalows string along the sand rather than stacking up. One thing to be clear about before anything else: despite the family billing, there is no children's club here. Junior Club Med operates in July and August only and takes ages 11 to 17. Outside those two months there is no supervised programming for children at all, and Club Med's own FAQ sells the place to couples and adults first.

Traveler Insights

Pros

+The dive centre is Only Blue Diving, built into the resort itself, and the safety kit is what sets it apart from a boat operator you meet at a dock: a hyperbaric chamber on the Club Med premises, a dive doctor on site at all times, and boats carrying oxygen and trauma kits
+San Salvador's walls fall away from shallow reef straight into open ocean, with swim-throughs, sharks and rays, and Club Med pitches the island as one of the 20 best dive spots in the world
+Boat snorkeling runs twice a day and is included in the rate, so the reef is not gated behind the dive bill the way the scuba is
+26 activities come with the stay, covering sailing school, wingfoil and wingsurf, stand-up paddle, kayak, tennis school, cardio training, fitness and Yoga by Jonah Kest, with another 30 available on demand
+The airport sits five minutes from reception, and because Club Med sells this village only as an air-inclusive package the transfer is already paid for. Arrival day barely exists here, which is rare for a remote island
+89 acres with under 20 percent of it built on, so the brightly painted Creole-style bungalows spread along the sand instead of stacking into blocks
+Guests writing in August 2026 name the water sports team person by person and say the sailboats are kept in good shape, with rarely more than a five minute wait to get on the water
+Club Med Spa by Sothys, a Wellness night once a week, and food that August 2026 guests repeatedly call excellent, with the gourmet lounge La Pinta the venue people remember by name

Cons

−There is no children's club. Junior Club Med runs in July and August only and takes ages 11 to 17, so anyone travelling with a younger child, or travelling in any of the other ten months, gets no supervised programming whatsoever. Club Med's own FAQ pitches the resort at couples and adults first and calls its family options merely 'some'
−Club Med's terms set a seven night minimum at this village specifically, where the rest of the chain is one night, and state that stays here can only be booked with air-inclusive packages. The US charter leaves Miami on Saturdays, so what you are actually buying is a fixed Saturday to Saturday week with no flexibility at either end
−Scuba is not in the all-inclusive, which blindsides people at a resort sold on diving. Only Blue publishes a price list for the October 2025 to August 2026 season on which technical and certification courses alone run from about $550 to $1,800, and a straightforward week of recreational diving adds a few hundred dollars per person on top of your rate
−Two restaurants across a compulsory seven nights gets repetitive, and August 2026 guests asked specifically for more variation in the daily menu
−Wine and bar drinks are the soft spot, flagged by guests in August 2026 even inside otherwise glowing reviews
−One pool, and it is plainly not the point of the place next to the beach and the dive dock
−Club Med membership fees of $60 per adult and $30 per child sit on top of the package price, and the minimum age is 2, so there is nothing here for babies or toddlers
−Charters from Montreal, Toronto and Paris bring a large francophone contingent, so group activities, dining and entertainment often run bilingual or French-led. Staff accommodate English speakers, but the social centre of gravity is not North American

The other thing to settle before you fall in love with it is that you cannot just book a long weekend. Club Med's terms carry a seven night minimum for this village alone, and say stays here can only be bought as air-inclusive packages. The US charter flies Saturdays from Miami, which makes a stay a fixed Saturday to Saturday week; Canadian departures run from Montreal and Toronto, and flying commercially through Nassau on a small turboprop is possible but fights the whole model. The upside of the package rule is that transfers are bundled and the airport is five minutes away. Diving is the one headline activity that is not included, and Only Blue's price list for the October 2025 to August 2026 season puts technical and certification courses between about $550 and $1,800. What is included is generous: 26 activities, among them sailing school, wingfoil, paddleboard, kayak, tennis school and Yoga by Jonah Kest, plus twice-daily boat snorkeling and the Club Med Spa by Sothys. Guests in August 2026 praised the food and singled out the sailing and entertainment staff by name, while asking for more day-to-day menu variety and better wine. Two restaurants over seven nights is the structural limit, and the single pool is an afterthought.

This is the right resort for certified divers who want a supported base in serious water, for sailors and windsurfers who will use the included fleet daily, and for couples who want a quiet, French-inflected island week with no nightlife to speak of. It is the wrong resort for a family with young children in any month but July or August, and the wrong one for anyone who needs to travel on dates of their choosing. Expect to pay around $950 a night for two before the dive bill, which puts it well above a mainstream Caribbean all-inclusive and roughly in line with other remote dive-and-stay properties. Off the resort there is Landfall Park with the whitewashed cross marking Columbus's believed 1492 landing spot, Father Schreiner's grave, and boat trips around the island, but the island itself is the attraction and the reef is the reason to come.

Common Questions

Is there a kids club at Club Med Columbus Isle?

No. The only supervised programming is Junior Club Med, which runs in July and August and takes ages 11 to 17, split into 11 to 13 and 14 to 17 groups. There is nothing for younger children in those months and nothing for any age in the other ten, and Club Med's own FAQ describes the resort as especially suited to couples and adults. If you need a kids club, a different Club Med village is the answer.

Do I really have to stay seven nights, and how do I get there?

In practice yes. Club Med's terms and conditions set a seven night minimum for Columbus Isle specifically, against one night across the rest of the chain, and state that stays here can only be booked with air-inclusive packages. The US charter departs Miami on Saturdays, which locks the week to Saturday to Saturday; Canadian guests fly from Montreal or Toronto. You could connect through Nassau on a small turboprop on your own dates, but you would be paying the land rate without the package the resort is built around.

Is scuba diving included in the all-inclusive?

No, and this is the most common unpleasant surprise here. Every dive, from a first discovery dive to a multi-day certified package, is charged by Only Blue Diving on top of your rate. On Only Blue's published price list for the October 2025 to August 2026 season, technical and certification courses run from roughly $550 to $1,800, and a week of recreational diving adds a few hundred dollars per person. Boat snorkeling twice a day is included at no charge, so budget diving as a separate line from the start.

What is actually included in the rate?

Accommodation, all meals and drinks including alcohol, and 26 activities: sailing school, wingfoil and wingsurf, stand-up paddle, kayak, snorkeling, tennis school, team sports, fitness and cardio training, Yoga by Jonah Kest, pool activities and nightly entertainment. Club Med Spa by Sothys treatments and a weekly Wellness night sit in the wellness programme, and another 30 activities are available on demand. Transfers come with the air package, but Club Med membership fees of $60 per adult and $30 per child are extra.

Is it worth going if you do not dive?

It can be, if you will use the water. The included sailing, wingfoil, paddleboard and kayak fleet is genuinely well run, August 2026 guests reported waiting under five minutes for a sailboat, and boat snorkeling goes out twice daily. What you will not find is variety on land: two restaurants, one pool, no nightlife beyond the resort's own entertainment, and an island with fewer than a thousand residents. Non-divers who mainly want to lie on a beach can get the same for much less money closer to home.

What are the rooms and the food like?

Rooms are brightly coloured bungalows in a heritage Creole style, in Superior and Deluxe categories, and they are comfortable and well kept rather than luxurious; August 2026 guests called them nice and clean and the property well maintained. Food draws consistent praise, with the gourmet lounge La Pinta the venue guests name, though the same reviews ask for more day-to-day menu variety across a seven night stay and rate the wine and bar drinks as the weakest part of the offer.

Restaurants (2)

Type	Restaurants
Buffet	The Christopher's
Mediterranean & Spanish	La Pinta Beach Lounge Restaurant

From the resort's own dining pages. Only restaurants the resort lists are shown. All are covered by the all-inclusive rate, per the resort.

What's nearby

Landfall Park (Columbus Monument)
12 min drive · 4.5 mi
Dixon Hill Lighthouse
30 min drive · 9.9 mi
Grotto Beach
30 min drive · 11 mi

More things to do (10)

Bonefish Bay Beach · beach6 min drive · 1.9 mi
Riding Rock Marina · marina4 min drive · 1.1 mi
Wall dive and snorkel trip · excursion4 min drive · 1.1 mi
Deep-sea fishing charter · excursion4 min drive · 1.1 mi
Cockburn Town · town6 min drive · 1.9 mi
Watling's Castle Ruins · historic site30 min drive · 9.8 mi
French Bay Beach · beach30 min drive · 11 mi
Sandy Point Beach · beach30 min drive · 11 mi
East Beach · beach35 min drive · 14 mi
Snow Bay Beach · beach55 min drive · 18 mi

Amenities

Known for Great Food

Teen Club

Teen Lounge

Windsurfing

Bicycle Rentals

Nightclub

Diving

Tennis

Show 7 more amenities

Snorkeling

Water Sports Rentals

Nightly Entertainment

Buffet Dining

Spa

Gym

Beach

Style & Rooms

Atmosphere

QuietFamily

Room upgrades

Family Suite

Seaweed & sargassum

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Google Reviews★ 4.5 · 932 reviews

Eric L.

a month ago

“We absolutely loved our stay at Club Med Columbus in the Bahamas. The beach is simply breathtaking, with an idyllic turquoise blue that looks straight out of a postcard. This resort has a relaxed atmosphere and is mainly focused on water sports — ca...”

Moshik G.

3 months ago

“I’ve been here for two weeks. I never saw such an amazing coastline. This club is now my favourite 😍The food was great. The GO’s were amazing. You can play tennis or all kinds of water sports go to yoga class diving around the island or snorkelling...”

Paul V.

8 months ago

“One of the best hotels in the Bahamas! Fantastic stay! We stayed here a few years back with my wife, we really enjoyed our stay, and I have some memorable souvenirs of the food. Generally speaking the buffet time is not something to look for but not...”