Swimming with Sharks in the Bahamas
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In July of 2021, I took a much-needed vacation to the Bahamas and it was amazing, to say the least. It was my first time visiting the Bahamas, my first solo trip, and the first time I did something out of my comfort zone - swimming with sharks! I chose Great Exuma as my home base for its’ quiet, off-the-beaten-path, island vibes and I completely fell in love. The people were incredible, the water was the most beautiful I have ever seen, and there was endless exploration to be had; I highly recommend it to everyone. Since visiting, I’ve written a complete travel guide to the Exumas which covers all of the activities I did and places I ate, a hotel review of where I stayed on Great Exuma, and even a post about some important things to know before you get to Exuma, but today we’re talking about the one thing I did that got me completely out of my comfort zone… swimming with sharks! Never in a million years did I think that I would actually swim with sharks but hey, when in Rome - or Exuma for that matter.
After purchasing my plane ticket to Exuma, which was a direct flight from Miami to the Georgetown Airport, I began researching things to do, and to be honest, I was having a hard time finding information about Exuma specifically. Most things that came up in the search results for tours were tours from Nassau since it’s the most popular island in the Bahamas, and the most touristy too. Of course, I found many articles about swimming with the pigs, but not a lot about anything else. I knew I wanted to swim with the pigs and eventually found a few tour websites that offered full-day trips from Great Exuma, stopping at 5 to 7 places including Pig Beach. I hadn’t known anyone that had been to Exuma before and the reviews sounded good so I took a chance and booked it. This tour included a stop to swim with the sharks (as optional, of course), and to be quite honest, I had no intentions of getting in that water when I booked the tour but on the day of, I was feeling adventurous and figured why not. I’m so glad I changed my mind at the last minute because it was quite the experience! Below I’ll break down everything you need to know about swimming with the sharks in the Bahamas.
Swimming with Sharks in the Bahamas
For the more adventurous type, you can go shark diving with reef sharks in Grand Bahama - this is not what we’re talking about today. This is the intro to swimming with sharks. At Compass Cay Marina in the Exumas, you can swim with nurse sharks. Getting to Compass Cay Marina is relatively easy to get to if you’re staying on Great Exuma or Little Exuma. If you’re staying in Nassau you’ll most likely have to take a short plane ride over to Staniel Cay for the day or take an intra-island ferry. The private marina itself is rather small but usually stays full. Swimming with sharks at Compass Cay costs $10 per person and other than a small shop with some snacks, there’s not much else at the marina for visitors. As I mentioned before, these are nurse sharks so they’re almost harmless, but not completely. Before getting in the water you’ll hear a few rules like keeping your fingers in a fist so the sharks don’t think your fingers are food, these are for your safety so make sure you pay attention. After that, it’s time to climb the ladder down into the water! Even though they’re just nurse sharks, they’re still a little intimidating so I was a little shaky going down the ladder. The water in this area of the marina isn’t too deep. The tide was in when I visited and it was a little less than five feet deep but I was too nervous to put my feet down for long. However, I’ve seen photos of it being much shallower so it really depends on the time of day you go and the tides. They allow about 15-20 people in the water at a time and try to make sure it doesn’t get too overcrowded. Once in the water, you have about 10-15 minutes to swim with the sharks which is plenty of time. I only lasted about five minutes and that was enough shark action for me! The sharks swim all around you and are not afraid of humans at all. The staff at the marina encourage you to pet the sharks and the sharks actually seem to really enjoy it. Their skin feels rough like sandpaper which I found surprising, and some of the sharks will even flip on their backs so you can pet their bellies!
How to Swim with Sharks in the Bahamas
Compass Cay Marina is private but there are many day tours that make a stop at the marina to swim with the sharks. Since I was staying on Great Exuma, I booked my tour with Exuma Water Tours or Four C’s Adventures (same company). I chose the all-day Exuma Cays Adventure Tour which was $240 per person. This price excludes gratuity, lunch, and the Compass Cay Marina fee for swimming with the sharks. All of the tours I’ve seen have you pay the shark fee directly to Compass Cay Marina so don’t be alarmed if you read that it’s an additional cost to swim with the sharks, that’s normal. My tour was absolutely amazing in every way possible. The crew were so kind and funny and didn’t mind taking my picture (since I was traveling solo). The boat was extremely clean and well maintained and our total group size was about 12 people. If you book this tour, they’ll pick you up directly at your hotel in the morning in a shuttle van and take you out to their boat docks and when the tour is over, they’ll take you right back to your hotel so you don’t have to worry about any transportation at all! Throughout the day we stopped at Pig Beach to swim with the pigs, snorkeled the Thunderball Grotto, saw the sunken plane, visited a gorgeous sand bar, swam with the sharks, and fed the iguanas on Iguana Island. Four C’s also offers tours leaving from Nassau, as well as plane tours for an aerial view of the islands and water. There were seven of us on my tour that were leaving from Great Exuma and then we picked up four more on the way to the grotto that flew in from Nassau. Another option if you’re staying on Nassau is booking a tour that exclusively leaves from Nassau like this one which includes most of the stops mentioned above. If your staying in Bimini or if Bimini is one of your cruise ports, then there is a tour company that lets you swim with reef sharks that you can easily book through your cruise line.
Whether you’re staying on Nassau or staying in the Exumas, you can’t miss out on this unique, once in a lifetime activity in the Bahamas! There’s options out there for everyone and this activity is great for anyone that is a good swimmer and up for the adventure! Would you swim with these sharks? I hope this post gives you a good idea of what it’s like to swim with the sharks in the Bahamas and helps make your trip a little more exciting!
Happy travels!
- Tess
Tess Arnold
Hi! I’m Tess, founder of TravelingTessie.com, and not only do I love to travel, but I love immersing myself in new places and finding off the beaten path experiences wherever I go! I’ve lived in 4 different states & traveled to 13 countries and counting. I believe that tourism is meant to benefit both visitors and locals alike—and I want to bring that idea back into the travel industry by highlighting companies run by locals such as tours, hotels, restaurants, and more. On Traveling Tessie you can find hidden gems in top destinations around the world, travel tips, detailed city guides, and tons of inspiration for your next trip! If you love travel as much as I do, then please join me on this journey! I hope you enjoy my content as much as I enjoy providing it for you!