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Aruba? Jamaica? Bermuda? Yes, that’s a passage from a popular 80’s song. But no, this time we will take you (PRETTY DIVERS) to the diving paradise of the Bahamas. Come along as we show you the best scuba liveaboard trips in the Bahamas.
Your playground involves 700 islands and cays scattered over an 805 kilometer (500 mile) stretch in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean. Aside from crystal clear waters and pristine reefs, your diving adventures in the Bahamas will usually involve an amazing shark interaction as this Atlantic diving destination has a healthy population of these apex predators. Name it, Bahamas has it: whitetip reef sharks, blacktip sharks, bull sharks, lemon sharks, and tiger sharks. The Bahamas even has a dive site named after Tiger sharks. And for you to maximize your Bahamian diving adventure, we highly suggest you book with a liveaboard vessel that will take you to the top diving spots of the Bahamas.
The Best Liveaboard Trips in the Bahamas: At a Glance
| Liveaboard | # of Rooms | Nitrox | Wifi | Length | Cost | PADI Travel | Liveaboard | DiveBooker |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aqua Cat | 11 | Yes | No | 31m | $$ | Check | Check | Check |
| Bahamas Aggressor | 6 | Yes | No | 30m | $$ | Check | Check | Check |
| Phoenix | 4 | No | No | 15m | $$ | Check | Check | Check |
| Cat Ppalu | 6 | No | No | 20m | $$ | Check | Check | Check |
| Blackbeard's Sea Explorer | 3 | No | No | 20m | $ | Check | Check | NA |
| Bahamas Master | 8 | Yes | No | 35m | $$ | Check | Check | Check |
| Blackbeard's Morning Star | 9 | No | No | 20m | $ | Check | Check | NA |
The Best Liveaboard Trips in the Bahamas: Reviewed
1. AQUA CAT
Year of Commission: 2001 (renovated 2017)
Capacity: 30 guests
Dive Destination: Grand Bahama and Exuma Cays
The Aqua Cat is a 31 meter (102 feet) long luxury catamaran that specializes in dive safari tours to Exuma Cays. This vessel has been rated #1 by the readers of Scuba Diving magazine for Best Crew and is the preferred liveaboard when you go diving in the Bahamas. It has 11 cabins that can accommodate up to 30 guests where your room choices includes the Twin Share Cabins, Double Cabins and the King Cabin. It has onboard amenities like air-conditioned saloon, a sun deck and a dining area that serves mouth-watering meals.
The itinerary of the Aqua Cat involves an 8-day voyage towards the top diving spots of Grand Bahama and Exuma Cays. While you will be diving and interacting with sharks like hammerhead sharks, bull sharks and blacktip reef sharks, the highlight of your trip with the Aqua Cat is when you arrive at the west coast of Grand Bahama in a site called Tiger Beach. This popular dive site is named after an apex predator where Tiger sharks are known to thrive. And if it’s your lucky day, you may see up to 12 tiger sharks in just a single dive. When you book with Aqua Cat from October to November, you will have the chance to see the simultaneous marching of spiny lobsters as they crawl out of their hiding places to spawn.
Check prices and trip dates: PADI Travel | Liveaboard | DiveBooker
2. BAHAMAS AGGRESSOR
Year of Commission: 2012 (renovated 2014)
Capacity: 14 guests
Dive Destination: Exuma Cays and Eleuthera
The Bahamas Aggressor is a 30 meter (98 feet) long luxury liveaboard vessel that specializes in sailing the waters of the Exuma Cays. It has 6 cabins that can accommodate up to 14 guests where your room choices includes the Quad Staterooms and the Deluxe Staterooms. Its onboard amenities includes the air-conditioned saloon, a shaded wet bar, a sun deck and a dining area that serves International and American cuisine.
The itinerary of the Bahamas Aggressor involves an 8-day journey towards Exuma Cays and the southwest areas of Eleuthera. Each day, you will be doing 1 night dive and 4 day dives in healthy coral reef areas with vertical ledges and filled with reef sharks. You can even go wreck diving in crystal clear waters and explore the remains of a steamer ship – SS Sapona.
Check prices and trip dates: PADI Travel | Liveaboard | DiveBooker
3. PHOENIX
Year of Commission: 2012
Capacity: 8 guests
Dive Destination: Exuma Cays
The Phoenix is a 15 meter (49 feet) long sailing catamaran that offers liveaboard diving for small groups to the Exuma Cays. It has 4 cabins that can accommodate up to 8 guests where all their rooms are classified as Double Cabins. Despite being small, it still has onboard amenities like an air-conditioned saloon that is fitted with a full audio/video entertainment system, a sun deck and a dining area at the stern that serves freshly cooked foods.
The itinerary of the Phoenix involves a 7-day journey towards the top diving spots of Exuma Cays where you can go wreck diving, wall diving, night diving, diving with sharks and their signature high-speed drift diving.
Check prices and trip dates: PADI Travel | Liveaboard | DiveBooker
4. CAT PPALU
Year of Commission: 1984 (renovated 2018)
Capacity: 12 guests
Dive Destination: Nassau and Exuma Cays
The Cat Ppalu is a 20 meter (66 feet) long sailing catamaran that specializes in liveaboard dive safari to Nassau and Exuma Cays. It has 6 cabins that can accommodate up to 12 guests where your room choices includes the Twin Bed Cabins and the Double Cabins. It has onboard amenities that includes an indoor saloon, an open bar, a trampoline at the bow that also serves as a sun deck and a dining area that serves freshly-cooked meals.
The itinerary of the Cat Ppalu involves a 7-day journey towards Nassau and Exuma Cays where the dive sites that you will be exploring allows you to go deep diving, wall diving, drift diving and diving with reef sharks. The highlight of your diving adventures with the Cat Ppalu is their signature dive with oceanic whitetip sharks out in the open water. On top of scuba diving, you can also enjoy windsurfing, standup paddleboarding and bird watching in the remote islands of Exuma.
Check prices and trip dates: PADI Travel | Liveaboard | DiveBooker
5. BLACKBEARD’S SEA EXPLORER
Year of Commission: 1984 (renovated 2016)
Capacity: 18 guests
Dive Destination: Exuma Cays
The Blackbeard’s Sea Explorer is a 20 meter (66 feet) long sailboat that specializes in sailing the waters of Exuma Cays. It has 3 dormitory-type cabins that can accommodate up to 18 guests. Its onboard amenities includes the air-conditioned saloon that is fitted with audio/video entertainment system and an outdoor dining area that serves Western and local dishes all served in buffet style.
The itinerary of the Blackbeard’s Sea Explorer involves a 7-day trip towards Exuma Cays. What is really interesting about the cruise plan of the Sea Explorer is that it has no permanent itinerary details. This is due to the fact that the Captain wants to take their guests to areas with the calmest conditions. But regardless of where the vessel sets course, you have 250 moored dive sites to choose from where you can go deep diving in a blue hole, reef diving in Periwinkle and their signature shark-feeding dives.
Check prices and trip dates: PADI Travel | Liveaboard
6. BAHAMAS MASTER
Year of Commission: 2017)
Capacity: 16 guests
Dive Destination: Grand Bahama
The Bahamas Master is a 35 meter (115 feet) long luxury liveaboard that specializes in sailing the waters of Grand Bahama. It has 8 cabins that can accommodate up to 16 guests where your room choices include the Standard Twin Share Cabins, the Classic Twin Share Cabins, and the Premium Double Cabins. It has onboard amenities like the air-conditioned saloon fitted with an audio/video entertainment system, a library, a bar and the indoor air-conditioned dining area that serves International and Local cuisine.
The itinerary of the Bahamas Master involves a 7 or 15-day voyage towards the best diving spots of Grand Bahama. You can choose between 2 packages: the “Ultimate Bahamas Experience” which is a 15-day trip and includes over 40 dives or the “Hammerhead and Tiger Shark Experience” which is a 7-day trip and includes over 20 dives.
Check prices and trip dates: PADI Travel | Liveaboard | DiveBooker
7. BLACKBEARD’S MORNING STAR
Year of Commission: 1984 (renovated 2016)
Capacity: 24 guests
Dive Destination: Exuma Cays
The Blackbeard’s Morning Star is a 20 meter (66 feet) sailing yacht that offers budget-friendly liveaboard dive safari to the Exuma Cays. It has 9 air-conditioned sleeperette cabins presented in a dormitory-style where your choices include the double and single bed bunks. Its onboard amenities include an air-conditioned saloon fitted with a large television, a sun deck and a dining hall that serves American food served in buffet style.
Similar to the itinerary of its sister ship (Blackbeard’s Sea Explorer), the Morning Star has no fixed itinerary details since the Boat Captain’s priority is to take their guests to the dive sites with the calmest conditions. Nevertheless, you can choose over 250 dive sites that are all known for adrenaline-loaded shark interaction, perfect vertical walls, stunning blue holes and super-fast drift dives like the Cuts of the Cays.
Check prices and trip dates: PADI Travel | Liveaboard
Check out more liveaboard trips around the world
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