Diving
Nassau enjoys the excellent visibility and warm waters that one would expect from tropical diving - a common misconception places the Bahamas in the Caribbean, while in fact it is in the Atlantic. The major diving attractions include an abundance of wrecks and vertical walls. Other major attractions are the multitude of underwater movie sets that have been used in popular movies from Never Say Never Again to Cocoon.
Diving conditions are quite pleasant. I measured a consistent temperature of 89 degrees at the surface and 84 degrees at 60fsw. After one dive in a 3mm wetsuit, my wife and I discarded them in favor of our dive skins, while others seemed quite content in swimsuits. Visibility ranged anywhere from 60ft to 100ft+, in spite of the numerous tropical downpours that would have impaired visibility in many other locations.
However, it must be said that too much of a good thing can be bad. Whether due to pollution, global warming, or the careless fins of a multitude of divers, the coral around the island is in very bad shape. Lackluster coral formations and limited marine life tend to detract from what otherwise would be an excellent dive destination.
Dive Ops
Unfortunately, the diversity of dive operations has dwindled significantly this year. Competition, government regulation and a drop in diver interest has forced several dive ops out of business this year. Unless you can afford a private charter, you have two options:
Stuart Cove
This operation is the 900lbs. gorilla of diving in Nassau. They operated ten dive boats that support 8 to 40 divers. They seem to devote their three large boats to diving, while reserving the others for snorkellers and personal submarine adventures. The small boats are used for private charters only. My wife terms them a dive vending machine due to the nature of their setup.
They are a very efficient operation. They keep a tight schedule of two morning dives and two afternoon dives. They have several buses, which pick people up at their hotels and bring you to their shop on the other end of the island. Its about a 45 minute ride. Upon arrival everyone is signed in and gear is issued. People are assigned to boats in what appears to be a random fashion. We dove with them over six days with the lowest amount of divers being fourteen and the largest twenty.
The dive masters performed complete briefings before every dive. They limited the dives to thirty minutes with a maximum of 80fsw or 100fsw, if diving with a computer. After a few dives, they began to let us dive our own profiles. In one case when we hit one of the walls, we allowed the wall of divers to go one way, while we headed in the opposite direction. That turned out to be the best dive of the trip.
Their staff in general is friendly, but in the turn and burn nature of the operation, the service is not very personable. However, I would like to point out a few individuals who stood out. Of the dive masters, I was very impressed with Dylan and Dave. They were both very friendly, attentive and more attuned to the desires of more advanced divers, than the rest. As for captains, we thoroughly enjoyed being with Irvin Moss aboard the White Bungi. He was by far the friendliest of the captains. His boat was spacious enough to comfortably accommodate twenty divers and included a head. I would also like to add a special thank you to Cpt. Davito, who fixed my wifes fin strap buckle.
As for their specialty dives, I highly recommend the Shark dive. The video and pictures that they take are top notch and worth the price. The DPV wall flying was a bit of a disappointment. The DPVs were in bad shape and malfunctioned a lot. At one point, while we were doing the wall flying, Dave, the poor DM had to just swim ahead of us during the dive.
Bahama Divers
This shop is located along the main drag in Nassau, just east of the bridges to Paradise Island. It has a full service dive shop and dive boats that service the North side of the Island. Unfortunately, we discovered it too late to go out on a dive with them. However, I did get the impression that they are more accommodating of experienced divers.
Accommodations
Take note that this is an expensive area to visit. We had an opportunity to visit three different resort/hotels.
British Colonial Hilton
Located on the main drag in downtown Nassau, this hotel is situated within walking distance of most of the major attractions. Its rooms are small, but elegant furnished. The service is friendly and has that distinctive high polish atmosphere that would be expected from a high class hotel. Rooms started at around $200 a night.
Club Landor
This resort is located in the middle of Paradise Island and within walking distance from the Atlantis. Its décor is decidedly influenced by Bahamian tastes and liberally uses pink throughout its rooms and hallways. Unfortunately, the quality of the rooms were more akin to Motel 6, than a posh resort. We got this one through a time share swap, so I can not attest to the price.
Atlantis
A trip to Nassau is not complete without a visit to Atlantis. The aquariums are truly top notch and the Atlantis theme is carried to the hilt with tour guides ruins. The tours are free for guest and $29 a piece for visitors. However, as with everything in the Bahamas it is extremely expensive. The cheapest room starts around $300 and from talking to several guests, not entirely worth it. My advice is to stay somewhere else, but spend one day visiting.
Restaurants
Not to belabor the point, but everything is expensive here. The food tends to be decent, but very highly priced. There are fast food restaurants, including KFC, Subway, and Burger King. An Outback Steak House is situated along the main drag across from the Bridge coming from Paradise Island.
Twin Brothers
If you want to experience true Bahamian food, this is the restaurant that the locals frequent. The food is excellent, the prices are reasonable, and the portions are ample
Things to Do (non-diving)
There is a great tourist newspaper that is available at the airport and all the hotels. This includes a list of 100 things to do in Nassau. I highly recommend picking it up and perusing for after dive activities. However, I do recommend a visit to the Pirates of Nassau Museum and Fort Charlotte.
Nassau enjoys the excellent visibility and warm waters that one would expect from tropical diving - a common misconception places the Bahamas in the Caribbean, while in fact it is in the Atlantic. The major diving attractions include an abundance of wrecks and vertical walls. Other major attractions are the multitude of underwater movie sets that have been used in popular movies from Never Say Never Again to Cocoon.
Diving conditions are quite pleasant. I measured a consistent temperature of 89 degrees at the surface and 84 degrees at 60fsw. After one dive in a 3mm wetsuit, my wife and I discarded them in favor of our dive skins, while others seemed quite content in swimsuits. Visibility ranged anywhere from 60ft to 100ft+, in spite of the numerous tropical downpours that would have impaired visibility in many other locations.
However, it must be said that too much of a good thing can be bad. Whether due to pollution, global warming, or the careless fins of a multitude of divers, the coral around the island is in very bad shape. Lackluster coral formations and limited marine life tend to detract from what otherwise would be an excellent dive destination.
Dive Ops
Unfortunately, the diversity of dive operations has dwindled significantly this year. Competition, government regulation and a drop in diver interest has forced several dive ops out of business this year. Unless you can afford a private charter, you have two options:
Stuart Cove
This operation is the 900lbs. gorilla of diving in Nassau. They operated ten dive boats that support 8 to 40 divers. They seem to devote their three large boats to diving, while reserving the others for snorkellers and personal submarine adventures. The small boats are used for private charters only. My wife terms them a dive vending machine due to the nature of their setup.
They are a very efficient operation. They keep a tight schedule of two morning dives and two afternoon dives. They have several buses, which pick people up at their hotels and bring you to their shop on the other end of the island. Its about a 45 minute ride. Upon arrival everyone is signed in and gear is issued. People are assigned to boats in what appears to be a random fashion. We dove with them over six days with the lowest amount of divers being fourteen and the largest twenty.
The dive masters performed complete briefings before every dive. They limited the dives to thirty minutes with a maximum of 80fsw or 100fsw, if diving with a computer. After a few dives, they began to let us dive our own profiles. In one case when we hit one of the walls, we allowed the wall of divers to go one way, while we headed in the opposite direction. That turned out to be the best dive of the trip.
Their staff in general is friendly, but in the turn and burn nature of the operation, the service is not very personable. However, I would like to point out a few individuals who stood out. Of the dive masters, I was very impressed with Dylan and Dave. They were both very friendly, attentive and more attuned to the desires of more advanced divers, than the rest. As for captains, we thoroughly enjoyed being with Irvin Moss aboard the White Bungi. He was by far the friendliest of the captains. His boat was spacious enough to comfortably accommodate twenty divers and included a head. I would also like to add a special thank you to Cpt. Davito, who fixed my wifes fin strap buckle.
As for their specialty dives, I highly recommend the Shark dive. The video and pictures that they take are top notch and worth the price. The DPV wall flying was a bit of a disappointment. The DPVs were in bad shape and malfunctioned a lot. At one point, while we were doing the wall flying, Dave, the poor DM had to just swim ahead of us during the dive.
Bahama Divers
This shop is located along the main drag in Nassau, just east of the bridges to Paradise Island. It has a full service dive shop and dive boats that service the North side of the Island. Unfortunately, we discovered it too late to go out on a dive with them. However, I did get the impression that they are more accommodating of experienced divers.
Accommodations
Take note that this is an expensive area to visit. We had an opportunity to visit three different resort/hotels.
British Colonial Hilton
Located on the main drag in downtown Nassau, this hotel is situated within walking distance of most of the major attractions. Its rooms are small, but elegant furnished. The service is friendly and has that distinctive high polish atmosphere that would be expected from a high class hotel. Rooms started at around $200 a night.
Club Landor
This resort is located in the middle of Paradise Island and within walking distance from the Atlantis. Its décor is decidedly influenced by Bahamian tastes and liberally uses pink throughout its rooms and hallways. Unfortunately, the quality of the rooms were more akin to Motel 6, than a posh resort. We got this one through a time share swap, so I can not attest to the price.
Atlantis
A trip to Nassau is not complete without a visit to Atlantis. The aquariums are truly top notch and the Atlantis theme is carried to the hilt with tour guides ruins. The tours are free for guest and $29 a piece for visitors. However, as with everything in the Bahamas it is extremely expensive. The cheapest room starts around $300 and from talking to several guests, not entirely worth it. My advice is to stay somewhere else, but spend one day visiting.
Restaurants
Not to belabor the point, but everything is expensive here. The food tends to be decent, but very highly priced. There are fast food restaurants, including KFC, Subway, and Burger King. An Outback Steak House is situated along the main drag across from the Bridge coming from Paradise Island.
Twin Brothers
If you want to experience true Bahamian food, this is the restaurant that the locals frequent. The food is excellent, the prices are reasonable, and the portions are ample
Things to Do (non-diving)
There is a great tourist newspaper that is available at the airport and all the hotels. This includes a list of 100 things to do in Nassau. I highly recommend picking it up and perusing for after dive activities. However, I do recommend a visit to the Pirates of Nassau Museum and Fort Charlotte.
