All year round offers great scuba diving at the Great Barrier Reef but the best visibility, the least rain and wind, is from August to December. Manta rays and hammerheads visit the Coral Sea from April to September. Minke whales make an appearance during June and July. Coral spawning occurs in November or December.

• The Ribbon Reefs are located about 110-190 km from Cairns. The area stretches over 100 km and consists of 10 large reefs. With great year round visibility and 20m to 50m depths, Ribbon Reefs offer excellent diving and snorkelling for all experience levels. Here you find the famous Cod Hole where you can dive with friendly, man-sized fish. This area offer the biggest variety of marine species and coral.
• Osprey Reef is 120 km beyond the Great Barrier Reef and many trips take in both Ribbon Reefs and the Coral Sea. Here you can experience 1,000m walls in strong currents with large packs of grey-, and white tip reef sharks and hammerhead sharks at certain times of the year. These diving trips are not great for snorkellers or absolute beginners who lack confidence in strong currents. If you have a few dives under your belt and are reasonably confident then you will find Ribbon Reefs and the Coral Sea much more rewarding than the Outer Barrier Reef.
• The Cairns Barrier Reef is the name given to a section of reefs which start just 50 km off shore fom Cairns. Here you can find walls, swim-throughs and fields of coral. There is a diverse range of marine life from turtles to dolphins. These sites are suitable for beginners to intermediate divers and great for snorkellers. Also if you are short on time and you want to do more than the beginner level Cairns day tours, then the Cairns Outer Barrier Reef is a great option.

Yes there has been a lot of coverage of scientific studies that are rather alarming. While it is a concern that the sections tested have, like many other places in the world, indeed suffered recent damage, a liveaboard on the Barrier Reef will have no trouble bringing you site after site where the corals and marine life are in great health. One must remember that the Great Barrier Reef covers an enormous area, some 2,575 km in length and 335,000 sq km! For further information on the marine park, visit our dedicated page: The Great Barrier Reef Marine Park.

The practice of divemastering in Australia varies from boat to boat so please check with us if this is an issue of particular concern to you. On some of our Australian liveaboards there will be a member of staff in the water who acts more in a safety capacity than as a guide or leader for the dive. You may need to pay extra if you would like an in-water guide. Some Great Barrier Reef tour boats have an open deck policy so you can dive for as long as you want and even during meal times.

The Ribbon Reefs are the best place in the world for prolonged dwarf minke whale encounters. They are present from May to August but during June and July you are almost guaranteed to see one.

Strangely, the coral of the Great Barrier Reef spawns simultaneously. Timed with the full-moon of November, eggs and sperm are released in a mass coral orgy. With all this floating fish food around you can also expect some great marine action.

USA citizens are generally required to present a valid USA passport when traveling to The Bahamas, as well as proof of anticipated departure. Canadians can stay for up to 8 months without a visa. Latin Americans can stay for up to 3 months without a visa provided that thy have an onward travel ticket and proof of hotel reservation. There is also a visa waiver program in place for citizens of the Schengen community and the UK that allow stays of up to 90 days. You can check all the latest entry requirements on the Official Site of the Bahamas.

The Bahamas is an island nation and a popular vacation destination, especially for North Americans. Much of what the country offers in terms of tourism has been developed with this in mind.

Since the country has a sizeable wealthy expat population it should come as no surprise that boating is extremely popular. Whether you’re planning a quick getaway to Bimini, or a cruise along the island chains of the Abacos or the Exumas, the luxury yachting options in the Bahamas will not disappoint. But there is a plethora of other water based activities such as kayaking, surfing, snorkeling, paddle boarding, kite boarding, parasailing and water skiing.

If you prefer to enjoy the sea at a more sedate pace, there is a range of fantastic beaches… truly the Bahamas have more than their fair share of gorgeous beaches. Cabbage Beach in the nation’s capital is one of the most famous. Here you can enjoy many water sports or attend one of the private beach clubs. Treasure Cay Beach in the Abacos is said to be one of the very best in the whole of the Caribbean. Eleuthera is home to several gorgeous pink sand beaches, including the appropriately-named Pink Sands Beach. The Exumas is a great place to go beach hopping, with Stocking Island having many picture-perfect stretches of sand. Cat Island, Great Harbour Cay… the list is a long one.

There are national parks and areas of aesthetic beauty which include a sea turtle research facility and a 250-acre wetland area that is home to more than 100 birds species. There are several 'blue holes' at Long Island and at Andros, and the Lucayan National Park in Grand Bahama has one of the world's longest underwater cave systems.

There are golf courses, spas, casinos; all the usual facilities you would expect of a popular tourist destination. For details on what to do and see, visit the: The Islands of the Bahamas website.

The Bahamas is just 45 miles off the coast of Florida, and the weather and clothing style are very similar. There are a considerable number retired expats in the islands that prefer to wear tennis shoes, polo shirts and cargo pants, but for the majority of the locals, brightly colored flip-flops, cut-off jeans and T-shirts are de rigueur. Topless sunbathing is illegal, although skimpy bikinis are no problem. Go figure.

In an emergency dial 911 or 919 and ask for an ambulance. Medical treatment is of a very good standard in the Bahamas but can be expensive. Emergency medical facilities are limited on all the Family Islands and serious cases are transferred to Nassau or Freeport. Make sure you take out adequate health insurance and accessible funds to cover the cost of any medical treatment.

Bahamas is a relatively safe place to visit for tourists in terms of the risks associated with diseases, especially for liveaboard divers. The major health risk here is not tropical disease, but rather the risk of food poisoning or diarrhoea form ingesting a bad piece of shellfish, exotic fruit, or too many rum punches. Tap water is treated and safe to drink. It is however, a risk area for zika virus and dengue fever (throughout the whole year). The rate of HIV is also high among Bahamians. Health concerns that you can obtain vaccines for include: rabies (in bats), typhoid, hepatitis A and B, measles.

You should check the latest health advice at least 8 weeks before travel.

The Bahamas ranks very low in the world corruption rankings. This means that there is little corruption when compared to other countries, although its rank has worsened in recent years. The police have been earning a growing reputation for abuse and misconduct, but only among locals, not towards tourists.

It is a relatively conservative country so act modestly to avoid difficult situation and unwanted attention. Nassau is the capital city and where 70% of the population live. It does have a relatively high crime rate. There are pickpockets in downtown Nassau and ATM scams. At night you should be particularly cautious in the suburb of Over The Hill. Avoid unlicensed taxis. Outside of New Providence and Nassau, there is little to be concerned about - unofficial jetski operators and a few underhand tricks from tour guides are the worst you are likely to experience.

The Bahamas experienced its worst hurricane in recorded history in 2019. Officially the hurricane season is from June and November, and you might want to avoid August to October, if possible. Mosquito-borne illnesses such as dengue fever and chikungunya virus are more prevalent in wet weather too.

The Bahamas lie in the Eastern Standard Time (EST): -5 hrs GMT. However, like most states in the USA, daylight-saving is observed between March and November, where the time is shifted forward by 1 hour to -4 hrs GMT.

The standard voltage in the country is 120V / 60 Hz AC. Electrical sockets are normally 2 flat prongs, as in North America, or 2 flat prongs with an extra round grounding prong. This is the type that the liveaboard boats have too. There are power outages, especially in the remote islands. It's a good idea to bring your an adaptor if required.

The internet has improved in service and cost in recent years and is now widely available. You will generally find a bar or restaurant that has free password-protected wifi. You can buy a BTC, Aliv or MyIslandWifi SIM card. Some of these have unlimited usage package plans. Note that there will be no coverage on mobile plans in the more remote regions of the islands.

To make an international telephone call, the international dialling exit code (to make a call from Bahamas) is 011, and the country code is 242 (to make a call to Bahamas).

There are post office branches located throughout the country. They are open Monday through Friday from 9 am to 5 pm. and Saturday from 9 am to 12:30 pm. The post office also offers Express Mail Service (EMS).

Tips are not mandatory in Bahamas but they are expected. Bellboys and porters usually receive $1 per luggage bag, while most other servers (waiters, taxis, etc.) receive 15%. Note that many upmarket hotels and restaurants will include a 15% gratuity automatically (whatever happened to “pay what you thought of the service”?).

Bargaining is not typical in the Bahamas, however price negotiation is the norm in Nassau’s Straw Market and when shopping on Grand Bahama.

The total population of the Bahamas is around 400,000 and most live on the island of New Providence. The culture is a mixture of African, combined with some British and USA influences. The country is deeply religious – Christian – yet the locals manage to remain easy-going and hospitable. English is the official language, the literacy rate exceeds 90%, and there has been a rapid growth in post-graduates and the professional class.

Music is very important to the local culture and there are 3 forms of music and dance that originated in the Bahamas - Junkanoo, Goombay, and Rake n Scrape.

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