Bahamas travel guide

Getting there

Most visitors fly into Lynden Pindling International Airport in Nassau or into Freeport on Grand Bahama, with frequent flights from North America. Cruise ships call at Nassau, and ferries link Florida with Bimini and Grand Bahama.

Best time to visit: Dec–Apr – dry, sunny weather outside hurricane season.

Flights: see the cheapest month to fly to Nassau, with live one-way and return fares from your nearest airport.

Tougher months: August–October: the peak of hurricane season, with high humidity, heavy showers and the risk of storms.

Weather by month in Nassau

• 25°J●
• 26°F
• 27°M●
• 28°A●
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• 32°A●●
• 31°S●●●
• 30°O●●
• 28°N●
• 26°D●

Average daytime highs in °C; dots show how rainy the month is (one dot dry, three dots wet).

Time zone: America/Nassau. Compare with your local time.

Visas: in our passport dataset, 122 of 198 other passports can enter Bahamas without arranging a visa first (visa-free or visa on arrival), 76 need an e-visa or electronic authorisation, and 0 need a visa in advance. Check your passport.

Background: Visa policy of the Bahamas (Wikipedia).

Official advisory: Level 2: Exercise Increased Caution (U.S. Department of State, updated 2026-07-28). Read the advisory.

Stay

Most trips to Bahamas are based around Nassau & Paradise Island, Exuma Cays or Harbour Island. Pick a base for your main interest, then add day trips rather than moving hotels every night.

Typical daily budget: about US$120–180 for a backpacker and US$250–450 mid-range, per person.

Connect

Plug types: A, B. Voltage: 120 V. Check your own devices on the plug and currency checker.

Calling code: +1242.

Mobile data: set up a travel eSIM or check your roaming plan before you fly, so data works as soon as you land.

Do

• Nassau & Paradise Island (New Providence · capital): The lively heart of the country with colonial streets, forts, markets and busy beaches like Cable Beach.
• Exuma Cays (Central islands · sailing): A chain of dazzling cays with sandbars, the swimming pigs and the protected Exuma Cays Land and Sea Park.
• Harbour Island (Eleuthera · pink beaches): A tiny, charming island of golf carts, clapboard cottages and a long, soft pink-sand beach.
• Eleuthera (Out Islands · road trip): A long, skinny island ideal for driving between secluded beaches, sea caves and sleepy villages.
• Andros (Largest island · nature): Wild and lightly populated, famed for bonefishing, inland blue holes and its great barrier reef.
• Abaco Islands (North · sailing): A sailing paradise of sheltered waters, historic settlements and offshore reefs.
• Long Island (Southern islands · diving): Dramatic cliffs, quiet beaches and Dean's Blue Hole make this a favourite for freedivers and road-trippers.
• Grand Bahama (North · parks & caves): Close to Florida, with Lucayan National Park's caves, mangroves and the wide sweep of Gold Rock Beach.

Things to do

• Swim with the Exuma pigs. Take a boat to Big Major Cay, where famously friendly pigs paddle out to greet visitors in turquoise shallows.
• Walk on pink sand. Stroll the blush-coloured beach of Harbour Island, tinted by crushed shells of tiny red marine organisms.
• Dive a blue hole. Peer into the inky depths of Dean's Blue Hole on Long Island, one of the deepest known in the world.
• Snorkel the Andros reef. Explore the long barrier reef off Andros, alive with coral, turtles and tropical fish.
• Eat at the Fish Fry. Join locals at Arawak Cay in Nassau for conch salad, fried snapper and Kalik-cold drinks at the colourful shacks.
• Stand on the Glass Window Bridge. Look down on one side at the deep blue Atlantic and on the other at the calm green Bight of Eleuthera.
• Join a Junkanoo rush. Feel the drums in your chest as costumed groups parade through downtown Nassau in the early hours of Boxing Day or New Year's Day.
• Climb the Queen's Staircase. Walk up the 66 limestone steps carved by enslaved labourers to Fort Fincastle above Nassau.

Eat and drink

• Conch salad – fresh conch with lime, peppers and onion
• Cracked conch – tender fried conch strips
• Johnnycake – dense, slightly sweet bread
• Guava duff – rolled guava dessert with a sweet sauce

Money and safety

Currency: Bahamian dollar (BSD). Currency and plug checker.

Tipping: About 15%; a gratuity is often added to bills.

Emergency numbers: 911 or 919 police, fire & ambulance.

• The Bahamian dollar is pegged one-to-one with the US dollar, and US cash is accepted almost everywhere.
• Cards work in Nassau and resorts, but carry cash on the Out Islands where ATMs are few and far between.
• Most crime affecting visitors is in parts of Nassau; avoid isolated areas and walking alone at night away from tourist zones.
• Keep valuables locked away and never leave belongings unattended on beaches.