Nassau day trip to the Exumas: boat and plane tours compared

“A day trip to Exuma” can mean a boat, a plane or a mix of both. The tours below are the ones with a price and a schedule on the operator’s own page. The getting there hub covers every other way to reach the islands.

Day tours from Nassau compared

Prices are the adult prices each operator lists. Operators add tax and sometimes card fees, so read the total at checkout.

Operator	Boat or plane	Adult price	Timing	Included	Source
Original Powerboat Adventures	Boat all day	$299 + 10% tax; child (2-12) $190	Hotel pick-up 8:00 to 8:30 AM, boat leaves Paradise Island Ferry Terminal about 9:30 AM, back about 5 PM	Lunch, conch salad show, open bar	1,2
Bahamas Air Tours	Flight, then boat at Staniel Cay	$750 from Aug 1 to Nov 14; $800 from Nov 15 to Feb 28; $850 from Mar 1 to Jul 31	Hotel pick-up 6:00 to 7:30 AM, flight out 8:00 to 8:30 AM, hotel drop-off 5:00 to 5:30 PM	Flights, boat excursion, lunch, Nassau hotel transfers, entrance fees, taxes	3
Staniel Cay Adventures, Swimming Pigs Excursion from Nassau	Flight, then boat	$700; children 9 and under pay the flight only, $265	Airport check-in by 7 AM, 8:00 AM departure	Pigs, Compass Cay sharks, iguanas, Thunderball Grotto, sandbar swim, lunch stop at Staniel Cay Yacht Club	7

Staniel Cay Adventures prices exclude 10% VAT and a 5% credit card processing fee⁴. Powerboat Adventures prices exclude 10% government VAT². Its terms quote prices in Bahamian dollars while its pages show $299, so confirm the currency when you book⁸. Bahamas Air Tours prices are in US dollars and include taxes, but not gratuities³.

Powerboat Adventures shows 4.8 from 502 reviews on its homepage¹, and Staniel Cay Adventures has 4.9 stars from 102 reviews on Google Maps¹¹. A AAA TripCanvas reseller listing for an 8-hour powerboat tour starts from $439¹⁴.

Boat or plane

The boat is the cheapest way to see pigs and sharks in a day: $299 plus tax against $700 to $850 for the flight tours^1,3,7. The cost of the boat is time and sea conditions. Bahamas Air Tours describes the boat trip from Nassau as a 3-hour ride and says powerboat days are prone to cancellation from sea conditions or wind³.

The plane buys back the transit. The flight takes 30 to 40 minutes³, and Staniel Cay is about 75 miles southeast of Nassau⁵. Once on the ground, Bahamas Air Tours runs a 3 to 4 hour boat tour with stops of about 20 to 30 minutes each³.

If your day is mostly about the water, the boat is the better value. If seas or a long ride worry you, pick a flight tour. For flights to Great Exuma rather than a tour, see fly to Great Exuma.

What a Powerboat Adventures day includes

The boat leaves daily from the Paradise Island Ferry Terminal around 9:30 AM and returns to Nassau around 5 PM, with hotel shuttle back². The price covers a cooked lunch, a conch salad show and an open bar¹. Stops include the operator’s own private island with swimming pigs, plus shark and stingray experiences¹. That island, Ship Channel Cay, is two miles long and half a mile wide⁹.

Two things to know before booking. The operator does not offer snorkeling trips, seating is not assigned, and the boat is decided on the day from confirmed numbers². The trip is not suitable for children under 2, or for guests with back injuries, broken bones, pregnancy, heart conditions or other conditions affected by a high-speed boat ride².

What a flight day includes

A Bahamas Air Tours day starts with hotel pick-up between 6:00 and 7:30 AM, confirmed the evening before, then airport check-in at 7:45 to 8:30 and a flight at 8:00 to 8:30³. The boat tour starts about 9:30 AM, and the flight back leaves between 2:45 and 3:30 PM³. Stops are Pig Beach, Compass Cay sharks, Bitter Guana iguanas, Thunderball Grotto, the Pipe Creek sandbars and lunch at Staniel Cay³. The underwater plane wreck is about 5 minutes of sightseeing, and snorkeling it is guaranteed only on a private boat upgrade³.

Staniel Cay Adventures lists seven stops on its Swimming Pigs Excursion: pigs at Big Major Cay, nurse sharks at Compass Cay, iguanas on Bitter Guana Cay, Thunderball Grotto, Staniel Cay Yacht Club, the sandbars and a sunken plane⁴. Its Nassau excursion page asks guests to check in at the Nassau airport by 7 AM⁷. The operator asks guests to bring cash for lunch and tips, plus $10 per person to swim with the pet sharks¹⁰.

Read more about the stops themselves in Big Major Cay and the swimming pigs and Thunderball Grotto.

Cruise ship guests

Cruise passengers need a schedule check before they pay. Powerboat Adventures asks guests arriving by ship to check ship times against its boat times, and with ground transport between ship and boat the day runs 8 AM to 6 PM². Bahamas Air Tours can take cruise guests with a Nassau stopover only on a private day trip, with a 6:30 AM pick-up and a return to the airport about 5:30 PM³. Its regular group tour has no time for them³.

Kids, health and who each tour suits

Operator	Children	Health notes	Source
Powerboat Adventures	Not suitable under 2	No pregnancy, heart or back conditions affected by a high-speed boat ride	2
Bahamas Air Tours	Infants under 2 fly free on a lap; age 2 and over need their own seat at full rate	Government photo ID is required at check-in, including for children	3
Staniel Cay Adventures	Children 9 and under pay the flight only, $265	Not recommended for pregnant women, respiratory, heart or back problems; not wheelchair accessible	4,7,10
Exuma Water Sports (Great Exuma)	Half-day children 3 to 12 pay $95	Pregnant guests welcome	12,13

Cancellations and weather

Operator	If you cancel	If weather stops the tour	Source
Powerboat Adventures	More than 72 hours before: 50% refund. Within 72 hours or a no-show: 100% charged	The operator offers a full refund or an alternative date	8
Bahamas Air Tours	More than 48 hours before: 50% refund. Within 48 hours or a no-show: no refund	Reschedule, credit or refund; tours run rain or shine, and weather cancellation is very rare	3

Staniel Cay Adventures goes out as long as weather permits¹⁰. If you fly in for the day, Exuma Water Sports advises Nassau day visitors to book refundable flights because it is not responsible if weather stops it from operating¹³.

Great Exuma instead of Nassau

Exuma Water Sports is a Great Exuma operator, and its FAQ says guests flying in from Nassau for the day should book the half-day tour¹³. That tour runs 4 hours to White Bay Cay and costs $199 per adult and $135 for teens 13 to 17¹². It includes round-trip transfers within its pick-up zone, drinks and a bathroom on board¹².

What park fees mean for a tour

The Bahamas National Trust’s ParkPay page lists a landing fee for charter day-tour boats at Warderick Wells with a guided tour of $14, which is $12.73 before 10% VAT¹⁵. Charter vessels also pay $14.00 per person per day on top of mooring or anchoring, a figure that already includes VAT¹⁵. Other marine and park fees carry 10% Bahamas VAT at checkout¹⁵. Ask each operator whether park fees are in your ticket price. The full tables are in Exuma Park boat fees.

If you want more than a day

For a longer stay, Staniel Cay to the park covers tours and guides that start from the island. The mail boat and ferry guide covers the Nassau to Exuma run, which the Mailboat Company lists as cargo only⁶. Fees change: check the Trust’s ParkPay page before you pay for anything park related.