The first of 5,700 pilings have been driven into the ground in the Bahamas as construction work at Baha Mar - the largest single-phase resort development in the history of the Caribbean – gets underway.

A ceremony celebrating the occasion included the embedding of a gold commemorative Baha Mar coin as a symbol of good luck for the $3.4 billion resort, gaming and entertainment complex slated to open in late 2014.

“With the start of construction on our core project, Baha Mar continues on its planned timeline to deliver the largest resort development presently under construction in North America,” said Don Robinson, president of Baha Mar

In February, Baha Mar held its groundbreaking ceremony, and in the intervening four months, significant work has been done on both a new Commercial Village and substantial road works surrounding the resort, both of which are slated for completion by November.

In addition, Baha Mar has so far provided employment for almost 900 Bahamians, and has awarded over $90 million in contracts to Bahamian firms.

In addition to securing a number of internationally recognized brands as hotel partners, Baha Mar has appointed China State Construction and Engineering Corporation as its General Contractor, and has secured project financing from the Export Import Bank of China.

With a total value of $3.4 billion, the 1,000-acre resort destination is expected to bring hundreds of thousands of new vacationers and business travellers to The Bahamas each year, with its offerings of six resorts, the Caribbean’s largest casino, a Jack Nicklaus Signature Golf Course and world-class dining, shopping, entertainment and spas.

City.Mobi

Also in the Bahamas today, City.Mobi is celebrating the success of its new guide to Nassau.

City.Mobi offers the most comprehensive mobile travel guides available, with over 800 cities in 200 countries listed. Each is developed by the City.Mobi team to combine into a single global travel directory.

However, each city retains its own mobile identity via a dedicated domain. Already on offer are Brussels.Mobi, Paris.Mobi, Sanfrancisco.Mobi and Sydney.Mobi.

Nassau.Mobi is the latest in this illustrious line up, offering click to call functionality – which means no scribbling down telephone numbers.

Most entries are also linked to websites where users can quickly access more detailed information if needed.

Other key features include information on accommodation, restaurants, attractions, entertainment, nightlife, shopping, and transport.

City.Mobi guides include user reviews and traveller utilities such as a translation guide, currency converter, news and local weather guide.