With 700 islands to explore, The Bahamas is one of the Caribbean’s top travel destinations. To make the most of a trip there, however, you’ll want to sign up for our Bahamas excursions by plane.
Excursions from Nassau and other major Bahamas destinations make it easy to visit top regions like Exuma. But what specific attractions can you expect to see on these Nassau Bahamas excursions?
Keep reading to find out the top sites to see on Bahamas Air Tours excursions to Exuma.
Bahamas Excursions: 7 Amazing Tour Highlights
A short plane ride is all it takes to reach Exuma from Nassau or Miami.
While you can sign up for many different Bahamas excursions from Nassau, Exuma makes for the ultimate travel destination. Home to 365 islands, the Exuma Cays are home to top attractions like the Swimming Pigs, with fewer crowds and a more intimate travel experience. That said, day trips ensure the area remains accessible.
While you can find Nassau day excursions that travel by boat, book Bahamas tours that travel by plane. Flying is much faster, makes for a luxurious and comfortable experience, and showcases unforgettable aerial views.
1. Staniel Cay
The first stop on Nassau day excursions that travel by plane to Exuma is Staniel Cay. Known as the Gateway to Exuma, the island features a small regional airport and is close to the famous Swimming Pigs. Nevertheless, the island is a beautiful destination in its own right that’s worth exploring.
The flight from Nassau to Staniel Cay takes around 30 minutes. Travelers signing up for Bahamas excursions from Miami can expect a journey of around two hours, which includes a stop at Andros Island to clear customs. After landing, you’ll switch over to a powerboat to begin sightseeing.
Later in the afternoon, you’ll return to Staniel Cay to eat lunch. Following that, excursions from Nassau or Miami conclude, and you’ll return to your original destination.
2. Swimming Pigs of Big Major Cay
The Swimming Pigs live on Big Major Cay, Exuma.
One of the major highlights of tours in Nassau Bahamas to Exuma are the Swimming Pigs. Inhabiting the island of Big Major Cay, the Exuma Pigs have resided on their island for decades. Over the years, they’ve become one of the top travel attractions in the country.
Most people believe that farmers transported the pigs to Big Major Cay because nearby residents were unhappy with the smells the pigs were creating. Nevertheless, from shipwreck to a meal that never was, several other origin stories exist.
No matter their true origins, the Exuma Bahamas Pigs are now playful and friendly after years of human interaction. When you visit them on Nassau Bahamas excursions, you’ll have plenty of time to see them and explore their island home.
3. Nurse Sharks at Compass Cay
Nurse sharks live in the waters near Compass Cay.
While the Exuma Bahamas Pigs are a highlight of guided tours in The Bahamas, they’re not the only attraction you see. Compass Cay Sharks is a nearby island home to another unique animal: nurse sharks.
Resembling giant catfish, nurse sharks are one of the most docile species of sharks. That said, getting up close and personal with them remains an exhilarating experience, and at Compass Cay, that’s exactly what you can do.
The owner of the Compass Cay Marina is a shark lover who managed to befriend a school of nurse sharks. They’ve stuck around the waters by the marina ever since, converting the island into one of the top destinations in the world to go swimming with sharks.
Whether you choose to float and swim amongst them or just view the sharks from the docks, you’ll view the experience of visiting Compass Cay as another highlight of tours in Nassau Bahamas.
4. Underwater Caves at James Bond’s Thunderball Grotto
Another can’t-miss destination is Thunderball Grotto, which houses a system of underwater caves near the Exuma Bahamas Pigs. At low tide, the site makes for a fantastic snorkeling destination. You can see coral, tropical fish, and other animals like sea turtles if you’re lucky.
Besides offering natural beauty, Thunderball Grotto also played an important role in Hollywood history. The site was a filming location in the 1965 James Bond film Thunderball.
One of the great parts of visiting Thunderball Grotto is that it’s free of the crowds found at many other Bahamas excursions destinations. When you visit, you’ll likely have the place to yourself, aside from your tour group.
5. Sandbars at Pipe Creek
Pipe Creek features stunning sandbars at low tide.
If there’s one destination you can visit on an Exuma adventure that looks like something out of a postcard, it’s Pipe Creek sandbar. Also located in the vicinity of Pig Island and Staniel Cay, Pipe Creek is home to white sandbars. At low tide, these are traversable and make for the experience of a lifetime.
As you walk around the soft white sand, you’ll find yourself surrounded by an expanse of blue, green, and every color in between. Pipe Creek makes for the ultimate photoshoot, so whether its just the surroundings or the surroundings with you in it, you’ll probably want to snap a bunch of pictures. Have your camera ready!
6. Iguanas at Bitter Guana Cay
Another animal you can expect to see on Bahamas excursions to Nassau is the Bahamian northern rock iguana. Despite being a threatened species, the island of Bitter Guana Cay remains a guaranteed location to spot them.
As your boat approaches Bitter Guana Cay on Nassau day excursions, you’ll see a group of iguanas crawl out from the vegetative undergrowth. While you shouldn’t touch or disturb them, seeing the colorful iguanas on their island home makes for a memorable experience.
Besides appreciating the lizards, there’s a good chance you’ll also fall in love with their island. Bitter Guana Cay, or Iguana Island as it’s nicknamed, is one of the prettiest islands in the Staniel Cay vicinity.
7. An Underwater Plane Wreck
The waters near Staniel Cay feature an underwater plane wreck.
The Bahamas is full of snorkeling destinations, as marine life abounds throughout the archipelago. While many of the top snorkeling destinations are at coral reefs, some are at less conventional destinations. The Staniel Cay plane wreck is one of these locations.
In years past, The Bahamas was a popular stop on drug smuggling runs from Colombia. The islands were close enough to the markets of the United States, but not domestic. This generally put them outside of U.S. jurisdiction. Not all of the smuggling planes completed their voyages, however.
One evening, a smuggling plane missed the Staniel Cay runway and crashed into the warm surrounding waters. Overloaded and unable to recover, the pilots tragically didn’t survive.
Despite these origins, the underwater plane wreck has become a new home for marine life in the years since. Today, the site makes for a great snorkeling destination, as the waters around the plane wreck are shallow. This makes it easy to see fish and coral and to observe the vessel up close.
Bahamas Excursions: Book an Exuma Day Tour
If you’re hoping to see the Swimming Pigs, make sure to book Bahamas excursions to Exuma. After arriving in the picture-perfect region, you’ll be able to visit their home of Pig Island, as well as tour several other top attractions in the area. Sandbars, underwater caves, and more await.
Just ensure the trip you book travels by plane, as flying saves time, prioritizes comfort, and promises incredible views of the archipelago from above.
Few destinations on Earth pack this much wonder into one day. Book an Exuma day tour with Bahamas Air Tours today!
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