Yes, the Bahamas is easy to travel independently, since English is the official language and it is very safe outside a few Nassau neighborhoods at night, but it is expensive and has almost no hostel scene.
Budget for US$100 to 200 a night for a basic guesthouse room in
Nassau or on
Harbour Island; the Bahamian dollar is pegged 1:1 to the US dollar and both are accepted everywhere. Inter-island travel means fast ferries (Nassau to Harbour Island in about 3 hours, roughly US$130 to 140 one way, and not every day), slower mail boats, or short flights. Book Out Island rooms ahead in the December to April high season.
Five to seven days lets you see Nassau and one Out Island in the Bahamas without rushing, while ten to fourteen days covers three island groups.
Give
Nassau and Paradise Island 2 days, then 3 to 4 days on
Exuma or
Harbour Island with Eleuthera. Flights from Nassau to George Town take about 40 minutes and cost roughly US$90 to 200 one way, and the fast ferry to Harbour Island takes about 3 hours. With two weeks, add
Andros for the barrier reef and blue holes or the
Abacos for sailing. A 2-day trip works only if you stay on New Providence.
You can get around the Bahamas without a car in Nassau and on Harbour Island, but on most Out Islands, including Great Exuma and Eleuthera, you will need taxis or a rental.
In
Nassau, jitney buses cost about US$1.25 to 1.50 a ride and cover downtown, Cable Beach and the west, while a water taxi crosses to Paradise Island for roughly US$4 to 6. On
Harbour Island, walk or rent a golf cart for US$50 to 70 a day. On
Great Exuma there are no public buses; car rental runs about US$70 to 90 a day, and a taxi from the airport to George Town costs around US$30.
The must-visits in the Bahamas are Nassau for history and culture, Exuma for the clearest water and the Swimming Pigs, and Harbour Island for Pink Sands Beach.
In
Nassau, plan a day for the Queen’s Staircase, the National Art Gallery and Clifton Heritage National Park, plus a swim at
Cabbage Beach. From
George Town on Great Exuma, a full-day boat tour (about US$250 to 350) reaches Staniel Cay, the pigs and the
Exuma Cays Land and Sea Park.
Pink Sands Beach is about 3 hours from Nassau by fast ferry. Divers should add the
Andros Barrier Reef.
If time is short in the Bahamas, skip Freeport and Grand Bahama, the casinos and mega-resort strip of Paradise Island, and remote niche stops like Rum Cay or Bimini Road.
Freeport needs its own flight and offers resort sprawl that Nassau already covers; Lucayan National Park is good but not essential on a first trip.
Bimini Road is a line of underwater limestone blocks that only rewards divers with a keen interest, and
Rum Cay has few flights and little infrastructure. On a 3 to 5 day trip, put that time into one Out Island such as
Exuma or
Harbour Island instead.
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