Scuba diving holidays in Grand Bahama

The beautiful islands and cays of the Bahamas offer some of the best and most unique diving opportunities in the world. One of the most popular resorts in the archipelago is Grand Bahama, the fifth largest island, which is located only 55 miles from Florida. Aside from being one of the most popular tourist destinations due to its glorious white sandy beaches and varied nightlife, the island boasts world-class scuba diving facilities.

There are some excellent dive centres in Grand Bahama, providing fully-trained staff who can teach divers of all levels. So whether you are a novice looking for your first underwater adventure or an experienced diver looking for your next thrill, you will be professionally guided all the way.

Dive sites around Grand Bahama are plentiful and varied, ranging from shallow reefs close to the shore to deep caverns, wrecks and walls further afield, so there is a site to satisfy every diver's requirements. Lucayan National Park is a popular place to explore as it is home to one of the oldest and largest underwater cave systems in the world. Ben's Cave, a beautiful sinkhole adorned with stalactites and stalagmites and penetrated by sunlight, is one dive site not to be missed here.

Some of the most popular diving excursions depart from Freeport, the island's capital city, so this is a good place to start if you are decide to take a diving holiday in Grand Bahama. Experienced wreck divers won't want to miss Theo's Wreck, a 280-foot freighter which rests in 100 feet of water and is full of beautiful corals and sponges, but there are many other wreck dives for novices and intermediate levels dotted around the coast. If you are brave enough to come face to face with sharks, Tiger Beach is the best place for a close encounter with tiger sharks, or visit Shark Alley to spot Caribbean reef sharks. If you would prefer to see dolphins, White Sand Ridge, a calving area for Atlantic spotted dolphins, is one of the best places to visit.

Other interesting dive sites around Grand Bahama include Treasure Reef, where real gold and silver treasure was found in the remains of an old Spanish galleon in the late 1960s, and Moray Manor, a great reef given its name due to the large number of moray eels which reside there. This is a great reef/wreck combination dive because La Rose tug boat, sunk in 2006, can also now be explored close by. Gail's Grotto, Littlehale's Lair, and Pygmy Caves are popular deep reef dives. This is just a handful of the wide choice of accessible dive sites in Grand Bahama.

Marine life is abundant around Grand Bahama and there are some exquisite coral gardens and reefs around the south coast to explore. You are likely to spot hundreds of tropical fish species amongst the caves, wrecks, walls and reefs, as well as loggerhead turtles, groupers, octopus, eagle and manta rays, moray eels, spiny lobsters, reef sharks, dolphins and many more sea creatures besides. This majestic underwater world is truly breathtaking.