The fifth Bahamas Culinary & Arts Festival ran at Baha Mar from October 21 to 25, with a lineup of chefs that included Daniel Boulud, Marcus Samuelsson, Scott Conant and Simeon Hall Jr. The resort's next big stretch runs from early December to New Year's Eve. Most of it is priced for people flying in. Poker players pay buy-ins, tennis fans buy resort packages that start at $8,000, and the hotels sell three- and four-night stays.
If you live along West Bay Street, the parts built for you are smaller and easy to miss. The open doors are the free session, the per-person dinner and the single night that's sold one ticket at a time. Most of them are scheduled inside the larger events, so you have to know the dates.
December 10 to 13 is when the two big calendars overlap
WSOP Paradise runs at Baha Mar from December 2 to 17, 2026. WSOP's official series page lists bracelet events starting at $2,750, daily side events from $400, and a $26,000 Super Main Event that starts December 10. Amateurs who want a seat in the WSOP Pro-Am apply and are chosen by a committee, while professionals register on their own. The series is built for players, and WSOP's own pages give no spectator ticket.
The seventh Baha Mar Cup starts the same day the Super Main Event does. Hosted by John McEnroe and Bahamian tennis player Mark Knowles, it runs Thursday, December 10 through Sunday, December 13. So for four days in mid-December, the resort's highest-stakes poker and its celebrity tennis share the same property.
The Cup is sold almost entirely as stays. Here's how Baha Mar's Cup page prices it for 2026:
| Package | Three nights | Four nights |
|---|---|---|
| Grand Hyatt VIP Spectator | $8,000 | $9,000 |
| Rosewood VIP Spectator | $13,000 | $14,000 |
| Grand Hyatt Pro-Am | $13,000 | $14,000 |
| Rosewood Pro-Am | $16,000 | $17,000 |
The Rosewood spectator packages include two VIP seats at the Pro Exhibition and the Celebrity Pro-Am, along with other event access. The page lists no standalone day ticket. A neighbor who wants to watch a set from the stands has no cheaper way in than booking a room down the road.
The Cup's one free session is for local kids
The Cup's last morning is the exception. In its September 9 announcement, Baha Mar describes Sunday, December 13 as the day of "the annual complimentary Kids Clinic, giving local youth the opportunity to receive drills, guidance and inspiration from visiting tennis professionals."
The week runs in this order:
- Thursday, December 10: afternoon clinics, then a welcome reception at Rosewood Baha Mar with the Johnny Smyth Band.
- Friday, December 11: the Pro-Am, Lunch on the Lawn, a pro exhibition of singles and doubles, then Taste of Baha Mar.
- Saturday, December 12: the Celebrity Pro-Am, which pairs eight celebrities with eight pros, then the Johnny Smyth Band at Jon Batiste's Jazz Club and the Baha Mar Foundation Dinner.
- Sunday, December 13: a Live Ball clinic for VIP spectators and the free Kids Clinic.
The packages pay for that Sunday morning. Baha Mar says the 2025 Cup raised more than $300,000 for youth tennis and community programs around The Bahamas. That money helped train primary school teachers to bring tennis into their classrooms and expanded junior programs. The Cup has given free community clinics before. Our News reported one on December 15 during the 2024 edition.
The courts stay open after the celebrities fly home. The John McEnroe Tennis Center at Baha Mar has six professional hard courts, two Har-Tru clay courts, six pickleball courts, two padel courts and a pro shop. It offers private lessons, clinics, drills and court rentals all year for every age and skill level. For someone a short drive away, those courts are open all year, long after the Cup's four days are over.
New Year's Eve is the one headline night sold one ticket at a time
December 31 falls on a Thursday this year, and it's the main December event that anyone can buy into without a room. Baha Mar's New Year's Eve page puts the party on Jasmine Lawns, next to the Convention Center, with a public ticket link. The night has two parts. The second annual Taste of Baha Mar runs from 7 to 10 p.m., with dishes from the resort's signature restaurants and live chef stations. The party with Ludacris, a premium open bar, a live DJ and midnight fireworks runs from 10 p.m. to 1 a.m.
Prices depend on how much of the night you want. Taxes and service, shown as "++," are added on top:
- All-inclusive, Taste plus party: $645++ for adults, $275++ for ages 6 to 17, free for children 5 and under
- Party only: $495++ for adults, $175++ for ages 6 to 17
- Ten-person all-inclusive cabana: $13,500++
- Kids-only party, Convention Center Grand Ballroom, 6:30 p.m. to 1 a.m., ages 3 to 12: $150 plus VAT
Those tiers give families a real choice. Two adults with children aged 8 and 12 would pay $1,840 before charges for all-inclusive tickets for everyone. The same parents could buy party-only tickets and book both children into the ballroom party for $1,290 before charges. That's $550 less, and the children get their own glow painting, carnival games, movies and a dinner buffet a building away. The cheaper version skips Taste of Baha Mar, which is open only to all-inclusive ticket holders.
Rosewood's festive calendar prices everything per person
Outside the tennis week and New Year's Eve, Baha Mar's December offers the most at Rosewood. The hotel's 2026 Festive Season guide lists its events by date with a price per person, not as stays. Here's the season in order:
- November 24 to December 31: festive afternoon tea in The Library, $95 with drinks extra
- Thursday, November 26, Thanksgiving: the In The Kitchen charity meal-packing event from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m., then dinner. Choose a three-course Café Boulud menu at $185, a Costa menu at $95 developed with Villa Torél and Alfredo Villanueva, or a buffet on the Pergola Lawn from 6 to 9 p.m. at $150.
- Friday, November 27: a family reception in Rosewood Garden with local food, cultural demonstrations and a Gratitude Tree
- December 4 to 11: Hanukkah menorah lighting every night at sundown
- Thursday, December 24: Christmas carolers in The Conservatory from 6 to 7:30 p.m. Christmas Eve dinner is $195 at Café Boulud with drinks extra, or $135 family-style at Costa.
- Friday, December 25: a Santa pop-up on Rosewood Beach at 11 a.m.
- Wednesday, December 30: another family reception in Rosewood Garden at 5:30 p.m.
The Thanksgiving charity morning stands out because it's an event you do something at, not just a meal. Seating for the Thursday dinners, the receptions and Christmas Eve fills by reservation. Call Rosewood before you plan around any of them to confirm which events take outside guests.
One locals' rate ends this week
The locals' discount most people on Cable Beach have heard of ends this week. SLS Baha Mar's "Love Our Locals" offer gives 30% off stays plus resort credit to residents of The Bahamas, Florida and Georgia who show proof of residency. Bookings close October 31, 2026, and stays must also fall by October 31. It's not a December offer. The SLS Savor prix-fixe menus at Cleo for $70, Carna for $125 and Katsuya for $70 run through Sunday, November 1.
Down the strip, Margaritaville Beach Resort Nassau advertises a local staycation rate from $199 and a "Friends and Neighbors" rate for residents of The Bahamas and several U.S. states. The listing doesn't show the dates or the fine print, so ask the front desk before you book a holiday weekend.
The construction next door is aimed at visitors too
The holiday events will run beside an active building site. In February, EyeWitness News reported that Baha Mar had started a beachfront expansion on the former Meliá Nassau Beach site. The plan calls for 345 rooms, 77 residences and four restaurants, with completion expected in 2029. Until it opens, the resort's community offerings this season are the Sunday Kids Clinic on December 13, the Thanksgiving charity morning on November 26 and the tennis center's year-round programs.
If you're wondering what life a few minutes from Baha Mar's events looks like through the year, beyond December, the team at My Bahamas Realtor Properties knows Cable Beach's calendar as well as its addresses. Schedule a private consultation, and we'll walk you through the corridor as people who live here see it.
