Short answer: with 7 days, spend three nights in Nassau and on Paradise Island, then fly about 45 minutes to George Town for four nights in the Exumas, with a full-day boat trip to the swimming pigs and Thunderball Grotto. With 10 days, add Harbour Island and its pink-sand beach by fast ferry from Nassau. With 14 days, slow the pace and add Eleuthera’s Glass Window Bridge and a few nights on Staniel Cay, in the heart of the Exuma Cays. Almost every connection between islands runs through Nassau, so build the route around it.
This guide turns the sample trips on our Bahamas travel guide into day-by-day plans, with ferry and flight times, the best area to sleep and what to book ahead. December to April brings the driest weather, and March to May is best for boat days in the Exumas; our best time to visit the Bahamas guide goes month by month, and our top 10 places to visit in the Bahamas explains each island. For a plan built around your dates and interests, use our AI trip planner. Everything here was checked as of October 2026.
The three routes at a glance
| Route | Days | Stops | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nassau and the Exumas | 7 | Nassau or Paradise Island (3 nights), George Town, Great Exuma (4 nights) | First trip, beaches plus one big boat day |
| Nassau, Harbour Island and the Exumas | 10 | Nassau or Paradise Island (3), Harbour Island (3), George Town (3) | Pink sand, island hopping, couples |
| Island hopping, slow | 14 | Nassau (3), Harbour Island and Eleuthera (4), George Town (3), Staniel Cay (3) | Snorkelers, sailors, people who want the quiet Out Islands |
Most international flights land at Lynden Pindling International Airport (NAS) in Nassau, which has US preclearance for flights home. Exuma International Airport (GGT) near George Town also has direct flights from several US cities, including Miami and Fort Lauderdale, so you can fly into Nassau and home from Exuma without backtracking.
Travel times between the main stops
These are the legs used in the plans below. The Harbour Island ferry times come from Bahamas Ferries’ published schedule and the taxi fares and airport details from the airport operator; flight and boat times are labelled approximate.
| Leg | How | Time | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nassau airport – downtown Nassau | Taxi (fixed fare $36 for two) | about 30–40 min | Airport operator (fare); time approximate |
| Nassau airport – Paradise Island | Taxi ($45 for two plus $2 bridge toll) | about 35–45 min | Airport operator (fare); time approximate |
| Downtown Nassau – Paradise Island | Water taxi or taxi over the bridge | about 10–15 min by water taxi | Approximate |
| Nassau – Spanish Wells | Bahamas Ferries fast ferry (Wed, Fri, Sat) | 2 h 10 min (08:00 → 10:10) | Bahamas Ferries |
| Nassau – Harbour Island | Same ferry, via Spanish Wells | 3 h 10 min (08:00 → 11:10); return 15:40 → 18:30 | Bahamas Ferries |
| Nassau – George Town (Exuma) | Bahamasair flight | about 45 min (approximate) | Flight schedules |
| Exuma airport – George Town | Taxi or hire car | about 10 miles (16 km) | General reference |
| Nassau – Rose Island or Blue Lagoon Island | Day-trip boat | about 20–45 min | Tour operators (approximate) |
| Nassau – Exuma Cays | Speedboat day tour or small plane | several hours each way by boat (approximate) | Tour operators |
Ferries run “weather permitting”, and holidays can change the schedule. Interisland flights are few and almost all connect in Nassau, so book them as soon as your dates are firm and leave a spare night before an international flight home.
7 days: Nassau, Paradise Island and the Exumas
The classic first trip: a few days of town, beach and resort life, then the clear, shallow water of the Exumas. Fly into Nassau and, if you can, home from Exuma.
- Day 1, Nassau: Arrive and take a fixed-fare taxi to your hotel. Evening at the Fish Fry at Arawak Cay for conch salad and fried snapper. Sleep: Cable Beach, downtown Nassau or Paradise Island (3 nights).
- Day 2, downtown Nassau: Parliament Square and the pink government buildings, the Queen’s Staircase (cut in 1794) and Fort Fincastle above it, the Straw Market and Bay Street. Go early on days when several cruise ships are in port. Afternoon on Cable Beach or Junkanoo Beach.
- Day 3, Paradise Island or a cay: Cabbage Beach and the Atlantis marina, or a boat day to Rose Island for snorkeling. Swim at Cabbage Beach only when the sea is calm: it faces the Atlantic and can have rip currents.
- Day 4, to Exuma: Morning Bahamasair flight to George Town (about 45 minutes). Pick up a hire car at the airport and settle in by Elizabeth Harbour. Sleep: George Town or nearby on Great Exuma (4 nights).
- Day 5, the Exuma Cays by boat: The essential Exuma day: a full-day boat tour north to the swimming pigs of Big Major Cay, Thunderball Grotto (best at slack low tide), the sandbars and Compass Cay. Follow the guide’s rules with the pigs: no feeding on the sand, no alcohol.
- Day 6, Stocking Island: A water taxi across Elizabeth Harbour to Stocking Island’s long, empty beaches and the beach bar at Volleyball Beach.
- Day 7, Great and Little Exuma, then home: Drive south across the bridge to Little Exuma and Tropic of Cancer Beach, then fly home from Exuma International Airport, direct to the US or via Nassau.
Swap it: rather stay in one place? Keep all six nights in Nassau or on Paradise Island and visit the Exumas on a full-day speedboat or air tour. It is a long, expensive day, but it shows you the pigs and the cays. Details for each stop are in our Nassau, Paradise Island and Exuma guides.
10 days: Nassau, Harbour Island and the Exumas
Ten days adds Harbour Island, a small island off northern Eleuthera with pink sand and the colonial cottages of Dunmore Town. The fast ferry from Nassau sails on Wednesdays, Fridays and Saturdays (as of October 2026), so fix that day first and plan around it; on other days, fly to North Eleuthera and take a short water taxi across.
- Day 1, Nassau: Arrive; evening at the Fish Fry. Sleep: Cable Beach, downtown or Paradise Island (3 nights).
- Day 2, downtown Nassau: Parliament Square, the Queen’s Staircase, Fort Fincastle, Bay Street.
- Day 3, Paradise Island: Cabbage Beach, the Atlantis marina, and a water taxi back for dinner in town.
- Day 4, ferry to Harbour Island: Check in at Potter’s Cay Dock from 06:45; the 08:00 ferry calls at Spanish Wells and reaches Harbour Island at 11:10. Afternoon on Pink Sands Beach. Sleep: Harbour Island (3 nights).
- Day 5, Harbour Island: Rent a golf cart, the island’s main transport, and explore Dunmore Town’s harbor front and the beaches.
- Day 6, north Eleuthera: Water taxi to the mainland and a driver or hire car to the Glass Window Bridge, where the deep-blue Atlantic meets the turquoise Bight of Eleuthera, and the Queen’s Bath rock pools about a mile south, best at low tide.
- Day 7, to Exuma: Water taxi to North Eleuthera airport and a flight via Nassau to George Town. Flights connect in Nassau and schedules are limited, so this is a full travel day. Sleep: George Town (3 nights).
- Day 8, the Exuma Cays by boat: The full-day tour to the swimming pigs, Thunderball Grotto and the sandbars.
- Day 9, Stocking Island and Little Exuma: Morning on Stocking Island, afternoon drive to Tropic of Cancer Beach.
- Day 10, home: Fly home from Exuma, direct to the US or via Nassau.
Swap it: if the ferry days don’t fit, reverse the order: Exuma first, then Nassau, and the Saturday ferry to Harbour Island at the end, returning on the 15:40 ferry (arriving in Nassau at 18:30) the day before your flight home.
14 days: island hopping to Eleuthera, George Town and Staniel Cay
Two weeks lets you see the quiet Out Islands properly: more time on Eleuthera, and a few nights on Staniel Cay, in the middle of the Exuma Cays, close to the pigs, Thunderball Grotto and the Exuma Cays Land and Sea Park. Expect simpler, pricier hotels and a cash-friendly economy on the smaller islands.
- Days 1–3, Nassau and Paradise Island: As in the 10-day plan, with a boat day to Rose Island or a dive off the south-west coast if you have time. Sleep: Cable Beach, downtown or Paradise Island (3 nights).
- Day 4, ferry to Harbour Island: The 08:00 fast ferry (Wednesday, Friday or Saturday). Sleep: Harbour Island or north Eleuthera (4 nights).
- Days 5–7, Harbour Island and Eleuthera: Pink Sands Beach and Dunmore Town; the Glass Window Bridge and the Queen’s Bath; a day drive south down Eleuthera’s long, narrow spine towards Governor’s Harbour for empty Atlantic and Caribbean-side beaches.
- Day 8, to Exuma: Fly from North Eleuthera via Nassau to George Town. Sleep: George Town (3 nights).
- Days 9–10, Great Exuma: Stocking Island by water taxi, a drive to Little Exuma and Tropic of Cancer Beach, a bonefishing morning or a kayak trip.
- Day 11, to Staniel Cay: A boat transfer or small-plane flight to Staniel Cay, arranged with your hotel. Golf carts are the way to get around. Sleep: Staniel Cay (3 nights).
- Day 12, the pigs and the grotto: A short boat ride to Big Major Cay and Thunderball Grotto at slack low tide, with time for the nurse sharks at the Staniel Cay Yacht Club dock.
- Day 13, the Land and Sea Park: A boat day north into the Exuma Cays Land and Sea Park, the first marine park in the Bahamas and the wider Caribbean, founded in 1958. It is a complete no-take zone: no fishing, shelling or conching.
- Day 14, home: Small plane to Nassau or Florida and onward. Leave a spare night in Nassau if you have a tight connection.
Swap it: sailors can replace Staniel Cay with a crewed or bareboat sailing charter through the Exuma Cays, popular in winter and spring. For a different second island, Abaco suits sailing and the lighthouse village of Hope Town on Elbow Cay, and Andros suits divers, with its long barrier reef and blue holes; both are reached by flights from Nassau.
Where to sleep, by stop
| Stop | Best area for a short stay | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Nassau | Cable Beach for the beach; downtown for history and food | Cable Beach has big resorts on a calm beach, about 15–20 min from the airport; downtown is walkable but busy on cruise days |
| Paradise Island | Around Atlantis or along Cabbage Beach | Resort life and the island’s best beach; water taxi or bridge to Nassau |
| Harbour Island | Dunmore Town or near Pink Sands Beach | Everything by golf cart or on foot; the ferry dock is in town |
| Eleuthera | North Eleuthera or Governor’s Harbour | Cheaper than Harbour Island, with a car for the island’s beaches |
| Great Exuma | George Town and Elizabeth Harbour | Shops, restaurants, boat tours and the water taxi to Stocking Island |
| Staniel Cay | Near the yacht club and marina | In the middle of the cays, a short boat ride from the pigs and the grotto |
Compare total prices when you book: the Bahamas charges 10% VAT, and many resorts add mandatory gratuities and resort fees on top of the room rate. Every traveler aged 6 and over also pays a BS$15 departure tax when leaving the country. More on costs is in our Bahamas guide.
Alternatives by interest
Beach lovers
Spend fewer nights in Nassau and more on the Out Islands: Pink Sands Beach on Harbour Island, the long beaches of Stocking Island and Tropic of Cancer Beach on Little Exuma. On New Providence, Cable Beach is the calm, easy choice, and Cabbage Beach on Paradise Island is the most beautiful but has stronger waves. Beaches are public up to the high-water mark, though resort facilities are for guests.
Divers and snorkelers
Base yourself on New Providence’s south-west coast for the reefs, wrecks and the wall at the edge of the Tongue of the Ocean, then add Andros for its barrier reef and blue holes, or Staniel Cay for Thunderball Grotto and the Land and Sea Park. May to August has the calmest, warmest sea. Don’t touch coral, and take boat trips with established operators.
Families
Keep it to two bases. Paradise Island has Atlantis’s water park and marine habitat and calm lagoon beaches inside the resort; then a few nights on Great Exuma, where a boat day to the pigs is the highlight for most children. Keep small children close to the pigs, which are big and can nip. Most beaches have no lifeguards.
Sailors and anglers
Charter a boat in the Exumas or Abaco instead of hotel hopping, or base yourself in George Town for bonefishing on the flats (visiting anglers need a fishing license). In late April, the National Family Island Regatta fills Elizabeth Harbour in George Town with traditional wooden sloops; book rooms early for regatta week.
Tips for planning your route
- Pick the season to match the trip. December to April is driest and busiest; March to May is best for Exuma boat days; May and early June are good value. September and October are the cheapest months but the peak of the hurricane season, and some Out Island hotels and restaurants close then. See our best time to visit the Bahamas guide.
- Fix the ferry day first. The Nassau–Harbour Island fast ferry runs on Wednesdays, Fridays and Saturdays, weather permitting, and holidays change the schedule. Book on the Bahamas Ferries site.
- Book interisland flights early. Flights are few, small and usually connect in Nassau. Leave a buffer night before your international flight, especially in hurricane season.
- Bring cash for the Out Islands. US dollars are accepted everywhere at par with the Bahamian dollar, but ATMs are scarce on the smaller islands.
- Drive on the left. Hire cars are useful on Great Exuma and Eleuthera; golf carts rule on Harbour Island and Staniel Cay; your own license is valid for three months.
- Leave time at Nassau airport. Flights to the US clear US immigration and customs in Nassau before departure, so arrive early. Direct flights from Exuma to the US clear border control on arrival in the US.
- Check your passport. The Bahamas asks for a passport valid for at least six months on arrival; passport cards are not accepted.
Bahamas itinerary FAQ
Is 7 days enough for the Bahamas?
Yes for two islands: Nassau with Paradise Island, and Great Exuma with a boat day through the cays. Adding a third island, such as Harbour Island, works better with 10 days or more.
Should I start in Nassau or the Exumas?
Start in Nassau, where most flights land, and finish in the Exumas so you end on the quieter islands. Exuma International Airport has direct flights to several US cities, so you don’t need to go back through Nassau.
How do I get from Nassau to Harbour Island?
By Bahamas Ferries’ fast ferry from Potter’s Cay Dock: it leaves at 08:00 on Wednesdays, Fridays and Saturdays and reaches Harbour Island at 11:10, via Spanish Wells (schedule as of October 2026). On other days, fly to North Eleuthera and take a short water taxi.
Can I see the swimming pigs on a day trip from Nassau?
Yes, on a full-day speedboat or air tour to the Exuma Cays. The boat ride takes several hours each way, so if you can, spend a few nights in George Town or on Staniel Cay instead.
Do I need a car in the Bahamas?
Not in Nassau or on Paradise Island, where taxis, jitney buses and water taxis cover the main sights. A hire car helps on Great Exuma and Eleuthera; on Harbour Island and Staniel Cay, people use golf carts. Driving is on the left.
Can I island hop in the Bahamas without going through Nassau?
Rarely. Almost all scheduled flights and ferries between the islands connect in Nassau, so plan your route as a hub-and-spoke, or charter a small plane or boat for a direct hop.
What is the best month for a Bahamas island-hopping trip?
April and May: mostly dry, calm seas for boat days and fewer crowds after spring break. December to March is also dry but brings occasional cold fronts and choppier crossings.
Sources
Researched and last reviewed by TravelerCenter on 8 October 2026. The Nassau–Spanish Wells–Harbour Island ferry schedule comes from Bahamas Ferries; airport taxi fares from the Nassau Airport Development Company; preclearance from US Customs and Border Protection; the departure tax and VAT rate from the Government of The Bahamas; entry rules from the Department of Immigration; islands, sights and the Exuma Cays Land and Sea Park from the Bahamas Ministry of Tourism and the Bahamas National Trust; seasons from WMO climate normals for Nassau and our best-time guide. The Nassau–George Town flight time and boat and transfer times come from flight-schedule sites and general references and are approximate. Schedules, fares and rules change, so check with the operator before you travel.
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