Exumas Diving — Bahamas

The Exumas chain stretches 365 cays across impossibly turquoise water, with the Land and Sea Park acting as a no-take zone where marine life flourishes. Nurse sharks beg for scraps at Compass Cay, swimming pigs greet boats at Big Major Cay, and the walls drop into indigo blue. Expensive but visually unmatched.

Score
72.3 / 100
Country
Bahamas
Region
Central America & Caribbean
Area
Exuma Cays
Nearest airport
Exuma (GGT) or Nassau (NAS) then boat
Visibility
20–45 m
Water temperature
24–29 °C
Max depth
35 m
Current strength
mild
Dive types
reef, wall, cave, shark diving
Best months
November, December, January, February, March, April, May
Minimum certification
Open Water
Access type
boat
Average 2-tank dive cost
$160 USD
Budget tier
luxury
Key species
nurse shark, Caribbean reef shark, hawksbill turtle, Nassau grouper, swimming pigs
Google rating
4.7 (320 reviews)
Top operators
Dive Exuma, Exuma Cays Adventures
Nearest hyperbaric chamber
Princess Margaret Hospital Chamber, Nassau (~120 km)
Back to directory
World Class
Beginner Friendly
Exumas
BahamasCentral America & Caribbean
72.3

SCORE

23.6200°N

-75.8700°E

The Exumas chain stretches 365 cays across impossibly turquoise water, with the Land and Sea Park acting as a no-take zone where marine life flourishes. Nurse sharks beg for scraps at Compass Cay, swimming pigs greet boats at Big Major Cay, and the walls drop into indigo blue. Expensive but visually unmatched.

Bahamas' Turquoise Playground

Visibility20–45 m
Temperature24–29°C
Max Depth35 m
Currentmild
2-Tank Dive$160
Best MonthsNovember, December, January, February
CertificationOpen WaterBeginner Friendly

Score Breakdown

Click any score to see a detailed breakdown

ML75.0CH72.0VIS88.0SV72.0TMP85.0DA65.0OP78.0TS78.0GT62.0VAL42.0CRD72.0SP78.0

Marine Life

75.0

Species diversity, megafauna encounters, reef fish abundance, macro life, and endemic species.

Species Diversity
72
Megafauna Encounters
72
Reef Fish Abundance
78
Macro Life
55
Endemic Species
58
Marine Life Diversity
75.0
Coral & Reef Health
72.0
Visibility & Conditions
88.0
Dive Site Variety
72.0
Water Temperature
85.0
Depth & Access
65.0
Operator Quality
78.0
Topside Experience
78.0
Getting There
62.0
Value & Cost
42.0
Crowding
72.0
Social Proof
78.0

Key Species

nurse sharkCaribbean reef sharkhawksbill turtleNassau grouperswimming pigs

Dive Types

reefwallcaveshark diving

Traveling with Non-Divers?

Your non-diving travel companions will find plenty to enjoy topside while you're underwater. Here are some activities to consider.

Activities for Non-Divers

swimming pigs at Big Major CayThunderball Grotto snorkelingCompass Cay nurse sharksprivate island hopping

Nearby Cultural Sites

  • Exuma Cays Land and Sea Park

Non-Diver Partner Score

10/10

Excellent for non-divers — they'll love it here.

Family FriendlyYes
Restaurants & Nightlifebasic

Safety & Emergency

Dive Insurance

Dive insurance is essential. Standard travel insurance often excludes scuba diving. We recommend DAN (Divers Alert Network) for comprehensive dive accident coverage.

Learn More at DAN.org
Hyperbaric Chamber120 km — Princess Margaret Hospital Chamber, Nassau
Nearest Hospital5 km

Small clinic on Great Exuma; flights to Nassau for hospital and chamber

Skill LevelBeginner Friendly
Current Strengthmild

Top Operators

Dive Exuma

PADI

4.7
210 reviewsNITROX

Exuma Cays Adventures

SSI

4.6
150 reviewsNITROX
Compare This Dive Site
Honest reality check

What your dive shop won't tell you

The minimum certification printed on a brochure is the legal floor, not the honest recommendation. Here's what we actually think you should bring to this site.

Recommended logged dives
55+

Below this we'd send you somewhere easier first.

Recommended certification
Cavern Diver minimum. Full Cave certification for anything past the daylight zone.
“Accessible to most certified divers with basic open water skills.”

What will challenge you

  • →Recreational limit of 40 m is reachable here (max depth 35 m). Gas planning and NDL tracking matter.
  • →Overhead environment. Standard recreational training does not cover you past the entrance. People die here doing what they'd do on an open reef.
  • →Variable visibility
  • →Deep profiles

What will surprise you

  • →Thermoclines can drop water temp by 5°C between the surface and depth. Your wetsuit choice should match the minimum, not the average.
  • →Exumas has more marine life variety than most divers expect
  • →Local operators know spots the guidebooks miss
Time of day

When to dive it

Every dive shop gives you this briefing at 7am. We just wrote it down. Tidal dependency: slight. Optimal window: First light to 11am for best visibility..

Morning
  • Viz
    peak
  • Current
    mild
  • Crowd
    light
  • reef exploration
  • photography

Best light and calmest conditions before afternoon wind picks up.

Afternoon
  • Viz
    moderate
  • Current
    mild
  • Crowd
    moderate
  • drift diving
  • second tank

Wind chop can reduce viz. Still diveable but morning is better.

Month-by-month

Dive forecast

Realistic conditions by month. Viz ranges are what you should actually expect, not best-case marketing numbers. Confidence % is the share of days that match this profile historically.

Month Viz (m) Temp (°C) CurrentSea RainConfidenceHighlights
Jan20–3324MildModLight70%reef fish active, peak season crowds
Feb20–3324MildModLight70%reef fish active, peak season crowds
Mar20–3324MildModLight70%reef fish active, peak season crowds
Apr20–3324MildModLight70%reef fish active
May39–4529MildCalmDry70%reef fish active
Jun39–4529MildCalmDry70%reef fish active
Jul39–4529MildCalmDry70%reef fish active
Aug39–4529MildCalmDry70%reef fish active
Sep39–4529MildCalmDry70%reef fish active
Oct20–3324MildModLight70%reef fish active
Nov20–3324MildModLight70%reef fish active
Dec20–3324MildModLight70%reef fish active
Shoot here

Photography brief

Subjects are only half the shot. A perfect macro site is useless in a three-knot drift, and a wide-angle dream is useless at 35 m with a murky ceiling. These are the conditions, not the hype.

Macro subjects60
Wide angle77
Viz stability82
Hover friendliness100
Natural light9

Recommended kit

  • →Wide-angle or fisheye (8-15mm range), dual strobes for close-focus wide angle
  • →Two independent light sources minimum; video lights beat strobes in caverns
Level up here

What this site will teach you

The dives that made you a better diver are the ones that made you uncomfortable for the right reasons. Here's what this site will quietly train you for.

What it costsEstimates — calibration pending

7-day trip, per person

Rough ranges anchored to existing regional data — not booking quotes. Land-based trip, standard breakdown.

Budget
$2,650–$3,750

Hostels, shore diving, cheap eats

Flights (RT from US)
$720–$880
Accommodation / day
$100–$180
Diving / day
$140–$160
Food / day
$25–$50
Transfers + misc
$50–$150
Mid-range
$4,250–$6,550

3-star hotels, standard boat ops, mix of restaurants

Flights (RT from US)
$1,150–$1,450
Accommodation / day
$220–$400
Diving / day
$160–$210
Food / day
$55–$100
Transfers + misc
$50–$150
Splurge
$7,600–$12,800

Top resorts or liveaboards, premium operators

Flights (RT from US)
$1,800–$2,200
Accommodation / day
$500–$1,000
Diving / day
$210–$270
Food / day
$110–$220
Transfers + misc
$50–$150

Flights priced round-trip from a major US hub. Figures are per person on a shared room. Solo travelers add ~30% to accommodation.

Pair with

Build a trip around it

Most divers fly across the world for one destination and don't realise another worth-it site is 90 minutes away. Here are the honest pairings.

Best dive types here