Which is better: Freeport or Nassau?

[susanNjay]

My husband and I are going to the Bahamas on a cruise. We have a dive scheduled for Key West, and then we will dock in Freeport and Nassau...we want to leave one day open for sightseeing, as we have never been to the Bahamas. So, if you could only dive in one place, which would you choose and why? One problem I have already encountered is that the few operators I have found through searching online cannot accomodate cruise passengers. Any suggestions?
Thanks, Susan in Louisiana

 

[diversteve]

Nassau is definitely more interesting from a non-dive perspective, there's the Atlantis Resort/Casino on Paradise Island complex, the old fort, shopping downtown. We let ourselves get talked into a van tour - it was better than expected. We went to the fort, saw some of the better areas of town, a waterfall and were let off in the market just a few blocks from the ship. Good way to get your bearings. Although Stuart Cove's should be able to schedule dives from your ship if you're in port all day. Stuart Cove's Aqua Adventures - Cruise Ships They're also going to shuttle you about 45mins across the island to their facility.

Freeport didn't really impress me. It's more of an industrial port. And a long cab ride to the casino, int'l market, etc. There's really not a lot there for a 1-day stop. It seemed like we spent more time driving across the island in a cab than anything else. UNEXSO in nearby (short cab ride) Port Lucaya has options for cruise divers. Maybe do the dolphin dive with them if it works with your schedule. UNEXSO - Dolphin & Scuba Diving Activities & More!

 

[donfey]

My son and I have dived on five previous trips with Fred Riger at Grand Bahamas SCUBA - Grand Bahamas Scuba - Meet Fred Riger - and are doing so again in about four weeks. We take a cab from the port to his dive shop, and make arrangements with the cabby to pick us up again after the dives. There are several interesting wrecks to dive - with Fred as guide if you like. There are also some pretty neat shark encounter areas, interesting coral, etc. Check out his web site for more info, and you can email him from there, too. Nice people.

 

[oceanbound]

I will "second" to Grand Bahamas. Fred & Melissa are wonderful! I have dove with them several times while in Freeport. I've dove once in Nassau. Not impressed.

 

[moneysavr]

First,Freeport is the main city on Grand Bahama land bound on Grand Bahama and not on the water ,
so Lucaya would be my choice on Island,with main resort in Freeport closed years back it is mostly depressed area and offers no tourist atractions,
Lucya offers many dive opps, with wreck sites, sharks,dolphins, marine life to see,Nassau is the capital mostly old and some spots run down & dirty,with Shark tours being the main fad.

 

[Bryan Cunningham]

I used to work as a SCUBA instructor in Nassau for 5 years. The only good diving is a long bus ride and you will be taken to the less impressive close sites to keep with cruise ships schedules. I would recomend site seeing in Nassau and diving Freeport. If you want more detailed information on Nassau diving email me on bentdiver@live.com