Home About the Bahamas

Geography

700 islands

~30 inhabited

Population

~400,000

most on New Providence

Best months

May–June

warm water, low crowds

Water temp

24–29°C

swimmable year-round

Currency

BSD $1 = US$1

USD accepted everywhere

Driving

On the left

right-hand-drive & imports

Did you know

Andros reef

3rd-largest barrier reef on Earth

Deepest

Dean's Blue Hole

202 m straight down

The rhythm of the year

Every month has its trade-off. Spin the year.

Low · warm

JUL

30°C air · 28°C water

July

Value

Crowds Moderate

Nightly prices Middling

Happening now

Independence Day (Jul 10) and summer Junkanoo.

Hot and festive. A brief local-holiday bump, then quiet again.

Nature & wildlife

What lives in that water is half the reason to come.

The swimming pigs

Feral pigs that paddle out to boats off Big Major Cay — the Bahamas' most famous residents. Go early, before the day boats.

Exuma Cays

Blue holes

Deep sink-holes of dark water in the shallows — from snorkel-friendly to world-record free-dive sites like Dean's.

Andros, Long Island

Rock iguanas

Endangered Bahamian rock iguanas bask on protected cays like Allen's and Bitter Guana — a quick boat stop on a pig day.

Allen's Cay

The reef

The Andros Barrier Reef is the third-largest on the planet, dropping into the 6,000-foot Tongue of the Ocean just offshore.

Andros

Bonefish flats

Endless shallow flats make the Bahamas a fly-fishing mecca — stalking bonefish in ankle-deep water on the East End.

East End, Grand Bahama

Culture & texture

The Bahamas is more than a beach. It's a whole culture.

Junkanoo

The national street parade — cowbells, brass, and towering crepe-paper costumes that rush through Nassau on Boxing Day and New Year's. Loud, joyful, and centuries old.

Conch, every way

The islands run on conch — cracked, in a spicy raw salad, or as fritters. Watch it chopped to order at a shack with your feet in the sand.

Rake 'n' scrape

The Bahamas' own roots music — a saw scraped for rhythm over accordion and goatskin drum. Cat Island is its heartland; catch it at a Family Island regatta.

Settlement history

From Lucayan first peoples to Loyalist plantations and freed-African settlements, the Out Island towns wear their history in pastel churches and old stone walls.

Island-hopping

Getting between the islands.

30–40 min 15–30 min 35–45 min Nassau Grand Bahama Eleuthera Exuma

Nassau → Grand Bahama

Several flights daily

30–40 min

by air

Nassau → Eleuthera

Multiple flights daily

15–30 min

by air

Nassau → Exuma

A few flights daily

35–45 min

by air

Small regional carriers connect Nassau to the Out Islands in well under an hour — the fastest way around, with light baggage limits.

Speak the islands

A little Bahamian, before you land.

Cay "key"

A small, low island of sand or coral. The Bahamas has hundreds — Exuma alone counts 365.

Conch "konk"

A large sea snail and national staple — eaten cracked, in a spicy raw salad, or as fritters.

Fish fry

A cluster of casual open-air eateries where locals gather for fried fish, conch, and music. Arawak Cay in Nassau is the famous one.

Junkanoo

The national street parade — cowbells, brass, and towering crepe-paper costumes — held Boxing Day and New Year's.

Kalik

The Bahamian lager, named for the clink of cowbells. Sands is the other local beer.

Out Islands

Everything beyond Nassau and Grand Bahama, also called the Family Islands. Quieter, wilder, slower.

Rake 'n' scrape

Bahamian roots music made with a hand saw, accordion, and goatskin drum. Cat Island is its heartland.

Switcha

Bahamian lemonade, made with local limes or lemons. The islands' everyday thirst-quencher.

Sky juice

A potent street drink of gin, coconut water, and sweet condensed milk. Handle with care.

Blue hole

A deep, water-filled sinkhole in the shallows. Dean's Blue Hole on Long Island is among the deepest on Earth.

Ready to pick a base?

All islands Find your island Trip logistics

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The 30-point list we run before booking any rental — scams to dodge, questions to ask hosts, and the fees that catch people out.

No spam. One email with the checklist, then only the occasional new-island guide.