The Exumas stretch for more than two hundred kilometres south-east of Nassau, a chain of cays so numerous that the islanders count one for every day of the year. The water between them, shallow over white sand, is a range of blues that photographs never quite manage. Days here are spent moving from cay to cay by boat, and a woman's wardrobe for the Exumas has to move easily between a sandbar, a dock and a dinner table.

The season that matters runs from December to April. The air is dry and warm, typically in the mid twenties Celsius, the sea is calm and the hurricane months are long past. Evenings can be breezy on the water, and air-conditioned dining rooms are cooler still.

Great Exuma and George Town. Most journeys begin at the airport on Great Exuma, near George Town, the chain's small capital on Elizabeth Harbour. Opposite the town, Stocking Island holds a long beach and a bar that has been a gathering place for sailors for decades. For the arrival and a first afternoon, the HER Laos Linen Shirt in Blue over white trousers is enough. The women's shirts are in the women's linen collection.

Staniel Cay and the boat days. In the central Exumas, Staniel Cay is the hub of the classic boat day. Thunderball Grotto, the hollow island where scenes of a 1960s spy film were shot, is snorkelled at slack tide; nearby, on Big Major Cay, the famous swimming pigs paddle out to meet boats. The day is spent in swimwear, with a light shirt for sun on the boat: the HER Male Linen Shirt in White, worn open, belongs here. The ladies linen set waits on dry land. In the evening, the Staniel Cay Yacht Club's dining room is relaxed, with a dock outside where nurse sharks gather in the shallows.

The sandbars. At low tide, sandbars rise out of the water in several parts of the chain, and a picnic on one is an Exuma ritual. A simple linen layer over a swimsuit is all that is wanted; the HER Cuba Linen Shirt in Lemon Yellow, knotted at the waist, has the right ease for wading back to the boat.

Private cays and the resorts. Several cays in the chain are private islands or small resorts where dinner is a little more dressed. Here the Amelia linen dress shirt becomes the evening garment, worn as a dress, thigh length, with flat sandals. In Coral Orange, certified Belgian linen, it carries the warmth of the Caribbean evening; in Blue, natural linen, it is quieter. The fullest description of the piece is in the Amelia linen dress shirt guide.

The days ashore. For walks along the beaches, lunch at a beach shack or an afternoon at a villa, the ladies linen set in Mint Green is the piece that works hardest on the trip. Its shorts carry corozo buttons, a natural material made from a palm nut. For the cooler evenings on the water, a light knit or wrap is wise.

The Exumas have a general guide in the Journal, what to wear in the Exumas, and a page on linen in the Exumas. For another women's wardrobe in the Bahamas, pink sand and all, see what to wear on Harbour Island for women.

The nearest boutique carrying the PP collection in the region is at Four Seasons Resort and Residences, Río Grande, Puerto Rico, further south-east in the Caribbean.

The Exuma Cays Land and Sea Park, established in 1958, was the first of its kind in the Caribbean, and fishing is banned within its boundaries. Its waters are why the reefs of the central cays are still so full of life.

Read more: What to Wear in the Bahamas  ·  The PP Linen Blouse Guide