Bahamas Scuba Diving So Many Islands ... So Little Time
We looked at each other underwater, amazed. Ah, another Bahamas scuba diving trip.
The visibility was fantastic. The site pristine. No other divers around.
The joy of diving in the Out Islands of the Bahamas.
We love the Bahamas. Especially the Out Islands. They are some of the most beautiful in the Caribbean. We have made many trips to the Bahamas ... and hope to make many more.
(We have reviews of our dive trips to Nassau, Cat Island, Bimini, San Salvador and will soon be adding our reviews of our trips to Crooked Island, Eleuthera and Exuma. So come back and see what's new or subscribe to our blog and/or newsletter so you know when new info is added.)
The Islands of the Bahamas
There are over 700 islands in the Bahamas. One nicer than the other. The islands stretch over 750 miles and cover over 100,000 square miles of water.
As you can imagine, with this much water, there are a ton of diving opportunities. You can find almost any type of diving in the Bahamas:
Wreck diving
Wall diving
Blue hole diving
Cave diving
Drift diving
Shark diving
The list is pretty much endless. Whatever type of diving you want to do, it's almost guaranteed you can find it in the Bahamas.
The visibility is excellent throughout the chain of islands. Visibility of 100+ feet is not uncommon. The islands are primarily limestone and absorb most of the rainwater.
So how to choose where to do your Bahamas scuba diving?
Well, it depends on what you like.
Developed or Not?
The two most developed islands are New Providence and Grand Bahama Island.
New Providence is home to Nassau (you can read about our Nassau scuba diving here) while Freeport is located on Grand Bahama Island.
(Chances are you've probably heard of the Atlantis Resort. With all the publicity they get, it's hard to imagine someone who hasn't heard of them. In case you're wondering, Atlantis is located on Paradise Island, which is connected to Nassau by a bridge.)
Both Nassau and Freeport have casinos, nightlife, restaurants and everything else to keep you busy topside. These two islands get the vast majority of visitors to the Bahamas. While they aren't our favorite Bahamian islands, they do offer something for everyone. We just prefer the quieter islands.
I would choose these islands if action after your day of Bahamas scuba diving is what you want. Just be warned, though, this will probably mean more crowded dive boats. So choose your operator carefully. You might want to ask the max amount of people they take on their boat.
I know one thing I can't stand is a cattle boat operation. For me, it takes some of the joy out of diving.
The Out Islands
The other "developed" islands of the Bahamas are considered the Out Islands of the Bahamas, or the "Family Islands". They are pretty much the opposite of Nassau and Freeport.
Quiet. Peaceful. Small hotels and inns. No huge boatloads of cruise ship passengers (yet).
We have done almost all our Bahamas scuba diving in the Out Islands.
Our first trip to the Out Islands was to Bimini. Since it is only 50 miles off the coast of Florida, it is understandably popular (you can check out our map of Bimini here.) Like many visitors, we went over in a private boat. In this case, my brother in law's boat.
Since we had all our own equipment, we dove off of his boat and had some great dives.
We can't wait to go back there again.
We also have had some wonderful dives off of Crooked Island. The visibility was probably the best we ever had. And that is saying quite a bit.
Another Out Island that holds a special place in our memories is Cat Island. We went there on our honeymoon. And we even managed to get in some more Bahamas scuba diving! (click here for a map of Cat Island)
While we only did one (very unusual) dive there, we both enjoyed the weeks we spent on Eleuthera. I guess we'll just have to go back to do more diving. It'll be tough!
The Boat Broke
For one diving vacation to the Out Islands, we booked a liveaboard, the Nekton Pilot. We were scheduled to leave from Exuma and then cruise the Bahamas for a week.
Well I was at work one day daydreaming about the trip and browsing through scuba forums (shh!).
What do I see on the boards? The Nekton Pilot had an accident crossing over from Florida to the Bahamas. The dive platform was damaged. No trips for a few weeks.
I called the company and they confirmed the worst. Our trip was canceled.
What to do now? We already had our tickets. We had planned to go a few days early to enjoy Exuma before we boarded the boat. Time to scramble and rearrange.
Well to make a long story short, we ended up going to Exuma for a few days as originally scheduled.
Then, instead of the liveaboard, we flew to San Salvador Bahamas for a week of diving. There are not alot of hotels in San Salvador but what is there is great for a dive vacation.
Turned out to be another wonderful Bahamas scuba diving vacation! So all's well that ends well.
You Can't Go Wrong
So, IMHO, no matter where you choose to do your Bahamas scuba diving, you can't go wrong. The islands are beautiful. The people friendly. The diving spectacular.
So go and have fun. It's a short hop from the U.S., yet a world away.
You might want to check out these books to help plan your Bahamas vacation:
