Nassau is the busy, sun-bleached capital of the Bahamas, a low island city of pastel colonial buildings, straw markets and duty-free shops that has been a cruise port for as long as ships have crossed from Florida. It sits on New Providence, a short hop from the American coast, and on any given day its harbour fills with some of the largest cruise ships afloat, moored along Prince George Wharf right at the foot of Bay Street. Above the town rise the old forts and the famous Queen’s Staircase, cut by hand through the limestone; across the harbour sprawls Paradise Island, dominated by the pink towers and water parks of the Atlantis resort. It is loud, commercial and easy, a place designed for a day ashore.
The single best thing about Nassau as a port is how simple it is to get off and into town. This is a docked port, not a tender port: the redeveloped Nassau Cruise Port reopened in 2023 with room for several big ships alongside, and you walk straight off the gangway into the centre of the capital. Bay Street, the Straw Market and the free Junkanoo Beach are all within a short walk, so even a half-day call gives you shopping, a beach and the historic sights on foot, with only Paradise Island and Atlantis needing a taxi or a water taxi across the harbour.
This guide covers a Nassau day ashore: the walk into town from Prince George Wharf, the free beach and the Straw Market, the Queen’s Staircase, Fort Fincastle and the downtown museums and rum distillery, the trip across to Atlantis on Paradise Island, and the practical detail of the currency, the taxis, the hurricane season and how to make the most of a short, easy call.
Port Overview
| Category | Details |
|---|---|
| Port Type | Docked port. Ships berth alongside at Prince George Wharf, the redeveloped Nassau Cruise Port, which reopened in 2023 with six berths and can take several large ships at once. There is no tendering: you walk straight off the ship into the centre of town. Not a tender port. |
| Distance to Town | The wharf sits in the middle of downtown Nassau, so Bay Street, the Straw Market and the shops are on the doorstep, and the free Junkanoo Beach is a short walk west. |
| Currency | The Bahamian dollar, pegged to the US dollar at 1 to 1 since 1966, so the two are interchangeable. US dollars are accepted everywhere at face value, and change may come back as a mix of Bahamian and US notes. English is spoken throughout. |
| Language | English |
| Best Known For | A busy, walkable Bahamian capital: the shops and Straw Market of Bay Street, the free sand of Junkanoo Beach, the Queen's Staircase and Fort Fincastle above town, and the vast Atlantis resort on Paradise Island across the harbour. |
- Nassau Cruise Port , The redeveloped Prince George Wharf, where ships dock in the centre of town
- Junkanoo Beach , The free public beach a short walk west of the port along Bay Street
- Straw Market , The large downtown craft and souvenir market on Bay Street
- Queen's Staircase , The limestone staircase of 65 steps leading up to Fort Fincastle
- Fort Fincastle , The hilltop fort above the Queen's Staircase, with harbour views
- Pirates of Nassau , The interactive pirate history museum in downtown Nassau
- John Watling's Distillery , Free rum tours on the historic Buena Vista Estate
- Atlantis, Paradise Island , The mega-resort and Aquaventure water park across the harbour
Nassau Cruise Port, Prince George Wharf · View larger map
Getting From the Port to Town
Walking: The Best Option
Free- Walk time: Straight into downtown
- Nassau is one of the easiest ports in the Caribbean to walk from, because the redeveloped wharf opens directly into the middle of the capital. Bay Street, the Straw Market, the shops and the historic centre are all at the gate, and the Queen's Staircase and Fort Fincastle are a short, if uphill, walk inland. The nearest beach, Junkanoo Beach, is a free public strand about a 10 minute walk west along the waterfront, at most 15 minutes, so you can be on the sand without booking a thing. Only Paradise Island and the outlying beaches need transport.
Local Bus
Low flat fare on the public jitney buses- Nassau has a network of privately run jitney minibuses that charge a low flat fare in cash, and they are the cheap local way to reach the beaches strung out west of the capital, such as Cable Beach. They are used mainly by residents, run set routes rather than a tourist loop, and can be slow and crowded, so many cruise passengers stick to the walkable centre or take a taxi for anything further. Have small US notes ready, as change can be awkward.
Taxi
Fixed government rates; agree the fare first- Bahamian taxis run to fixed government rates rather than a meter, usually quoted per car for two passengers with a small charge for each extra person, so agree the fare and the currency before you set off. A taxi is the simplest way to reach Paradise Island and Atlantis, crossing the toll bridge from downtown, or to run out to Cable Beach and the western hotels. For Paradise Island you can also take a water taxi across the harbour instead, a crossing of about 10 minutes when it is running.
Top Excursions
Nassau Island Highlights Sightseeing Tour
Explore Nassau on this 2-1/2 hour historical tour. Visit some of the cities most famous attractions like the Queen's Staircase, John Watling's Distillery and the beauties of paradise island Your local guide will show you around and give you interesting details of the island's history and culture.
Check AvailabilityNassau Swimming Pigs and Private Beach Club Escape
Get ready for an unforgettable island escape from Nassau with the world-famous swimming pigs of the Bahamas. Your half-day adventure takes you to stunning Rose Island, where clear waters, soft white sand, and friendly pigs create pure paradise. After a scenic 30-minute boat ride, step ashore at our
Check AvailabilitySandy Toes The Original Rose Island and Swimming Pigs Tour
Experience a true taste of The Bahamas, with a day at Sandy Toes. Sandy Toes is home to a sanctuary of protected wildlife including our Royal Peacocks, curly tail lizards, ocean reef life and our beloved “farm–saved” beach-going, swimming pigs! These big guys and some little guys are vet checked and
Check AvailabilityRum Tasting and Food Walking Tour in Nassau Bahamas
Venture into town where your trusted local guide will give you the uncensored story of Nassau. From pirates to bootleggers – we leave behind the sandy beaches of the pastel-colored resort to share the scandalous stories you were never meant to hear. The Unspoken Truth Not all visitors to The Bahamas
Check AvailabilityMore Experiences in Nassau
Nassau Swimming Pigs: Snorkeling, Lunch & Private Beach Club
Choose our four hour tour blends thrill and excitement, featuring our world-famous Swimming Pigs—a must-do for groups with diverse interests OR our 2.5 hour highlight version! We ensure an unforgettable experience for everyone. Relax on our private beach; enjoy fun, games and comfortable amenities,
Nassau’s #1 Atv Tour with Beach Stop Largest Fleet Driver 21yr+DL
This 3-4 hour guided ATV Tour on a Can-Am Outlander or Kawasaki Brute Force ATV, takes you to our Island most popular sights and monuments in Grand Vacation Style. Comfortably cruise along our beautiful coastline taking in the sights with the cool Island breeze blowing on your face. Splash around on
Rose Island Adventure Snorkel Sea Turtles and Private Beach
Our powerboat and snorkeling experience has went to another level for 2025 with the addition of our very own private and exclusive location on Rose Island, Bahamas! While our first stop still remains an amazing snorkeling experience at Rose Island Reef, second stop observing turtles at the sanctuary
Nassau Food and History Bus Tour
Sip, sample and see on this 3.5-hour culinary experience seasoned with history and a dash of culture. Experience the taste the Islands while you sample the local exotic cuisine and sip on locally blended spirits and brews. On this bus tour you'll be immersed in the Bahamian culture and you will get
The best excursions in Nassau fill up ahead of peak sailings. Compare options and book before you leave port.
Things to Do in Nassau
Because you dock in the heart of the capital, a Nassau day starts on foot. The classic shape is a wander down Bay Street and through the Straw Market, a walk up to the Queen’s Staircase and Fort Fincastle for the view, and a morning on the free sand at Junkanoo Beach, with the downtown museums and the rum distillery to fill any gaps. None of that costs much, and none of it needs a taxi.
The bigger day out is across the harbour to Paradise Island and Atlantis, whose Aquaventure water park is the single most popular paid attraction in Nassau, though it takes time and money to do properly. Beyond that lie the quieter western beaches such as Cable Beach, reachable by taxi or the local jitney, and boat trips out to private islands like Blue Lagoon. Lead with the walkable town and beach, and treat Atlantis as the one big decision of the day.
- Bay Street and the Straw Market. The heart of a Nassau call is Bay Street, the main downtown thoroughfare that runs right past the cruise wharf, lined with duty-free shops, jewellers, bars and colonial-era buildings. Its centrepiece is the Straw Market, a large covered hall of stalls selling woven bags, hats, wood carvings and souvenirs, where haggling is expected. It is all within a few minutes of the ship, costs nothing to browse, and is the natural first stop for anyone who simply wants to stretch their legs, shop and soak up the noise of the capital.
- Junkanoo Beach. Junkanoo Beach is the closest beach to the port and it is free, a public strand of soft sand and turquoise water about a 10 minute walk west of the wharf along the waterfront, at most 15 minutes. There are bars, loungers for hire and watersports touts, and you can see the docked ships from the sand. It is not the most pristine beach on the island, but for a cheap, easy swim within walking distance of the gangway it is hard to beat, and it is the reason Nassau works so well for a short call.
- The Queen’s Staircase and Fort Fincastle. A short walk inland and uphill from Bay Street brings you to the Queen’s Staircase, a set of 65 steps cut by hand from solid limestone between 1793 and 1794 and later named for Queen Victoria, rising through a cool, fern-hung gorge. At the top sits Fort Fincastle, an 18th-century fort on the highest hill in town, from which there are wide views over Nassau harbour and the cruise ships below. Together they are the city’s best free historic sight and an easy hour on foot from the port.
- Pirates of Nassau and the downtown museums. Nassau leans hard into its buccaneering past, and the Pirates of Nassau museum in the centre of town brings the Golden Age of Piracy to life with a walk-through recreated ship, sound and set pieces. Admission is about US$14 for adults and US$7 for children aged 4 to 17, and it is a reliable rainy-hour or with-children option a few minutes from the wharf. The compact downtown also holds the pastel government buildings and the National Art Gallery for anyone wanting more than shops and sand.
- John Watling’s Distillery. For a free and grown-up hour ashore, John Watling’s Distillery makes small-batch Bahamian rum on the historic Buena Vista Estate, a colonial great house and gardens in downtown Nassau. Guided tours of the estate and the bottling rooms are free, they end with a tasting, and you can sit on the veranda with a cocktail overlooking the town. It is an easy, atmospheric walk from Bay Street, and one of the more characterful things to do in Nassau that does not involve a queue or a ticket.
- Atlantis and Paradise Island. Across the harbour on Paradise Island stands Atlantis, the vast pink resort whose Aquaventure water park, marine habitat and beaches draw many cruise passengers over on a day pass. It is reached by a short taxi ride across the toll bridge or by water taxi across the harbour in about 10 minutes. The day pass is a paid, seasonally priced ticket that must be booked ahead, and on a short call it can absorb most of your time and budget, so it is a deliberate choice rather than a casual add-on. Weigh it against a free beach and the town before you decide.
Unlike many Caribbean islands, Nassau is a docked port that lands you in the middle of the capital, and its nearest beach costs nothing. Junkanoo Beach is a free public strand about a 10 minute walk west of the wharf along the waterfront, with soft sand, turquoise water and a view back to the ships. You can be swimming within twenty minutes of stepping off, without booking an excursion or paying for a beach club, which makes Nassau one of the easier and cheaper Caribbean calls for a simple beach morning.
Eating Near the Cruise Port
- Docks in town centre
- Straight into town
- BSD; USD accepted
What to eat in Nassau
Conch is the whole story here and it comes three ways. Conch salad is the one to have: raw conch chopped to order, dressed with lime, sour orange, onion and goat pepper, made while you wait. Cracked conch is the same meat tenderised, battered and fried, and it’s the national dish. Conch fritters are the starter version. Guava duff is the pudding, guava rolled into a boiled sponge and served under a rum sauce.
What to drink
Kalik is the beer of the Bahamas and it’s named after the sound of cowbells at Junkanoo. Sands is the other local brewery and locals argue about which is better. Rum punch and the Bahama Mama are on every tourist menu near the port. Sky juice, gin with coconut water and condensed milk, is the local morning drink and it’s stronger than it sounds.
Where to find it
The berth puts you straight into downtown Nassau, so Bay Street is right there and it’s duty-free shops and cruise-facing bars. The place to go is Arawak Cay, the Fish Fry, about half an hour on foot west along the front or a short taxi. It’s a row of brightly painted shacks and it’s where Bahamians eat conch. That trip is the difference between a decent lunch and a memorable one.
Good for a short port call
Bay Street is instant but it’s the tourist version. The Fish Fry needs about half an hour each way, so it works on anything but the shortest call.
Getting Around
Atlantis, the huge resort on Paradise Island, sells an Aquaventure day pass that lets non-guests use its water park, pools, beaches and marine habitat. Prices vary by date and season and are not cheap, and passes must be bought ahead rather than at the gate on the day. Paradise Island is a short taxi ride across the toll bridge or a water taxi across the harbour, so factor in the travel each way. On a short call it can eat most of your day, so decide before you sail whether the water park or a free beach and the town suits you better.
Essential Travel Tips
The Bahamian dollar is pegged to the US dollar at 1 to 1 and the two circulate side by side, so US dollars are accepted everywhere at face value and there is no need to change money. Your change may come back as a mix of Bahamian and US notes, both worth the same; Bahamian notes are harder to spend once you leave, so keep US notes small and spend any Bahamian change before you reboard. Cards are widely taken in the shops and larger venues.
The Bahamas lies within the Atlantic hurricane belt, and the season runs from June to November, with the greatest risk from August to October. A hurricane rarely spoils a specific cruise call, as ships route around storms, but itineraries can be changed at short notice in late summer and early autumn. The dry season from December to April is the calmer, drier and more reliable time to sail here. If you cruise in the hurricane months, sensible travel insurance and a flexible frame of mind are worth having.
The redeveloped Nassau Cruise Port opens onto Bay Street, a short walk from downtown and the Straw Market, so the All-aboard time is easy unless you have crossed to Paradise Island. The packing list is beach standard, and Junkanoo Beach is the closest, ten to fifteen minutes on foot and free.
Paradise Island is a short taxi over the toll bridge or a water taxi across, and Junkanoo Beach is a walk, so independent travel covers most of what people want from Nassau without a booking.
Nassau taxis work to a fixed-rate tariff rather than a meter, so agree the rate first and your onboard spending behaves predictably, which is not always true of a Bahamas day.
Nassau is often the busiest port of a Bahamas week, with several ships in at once. That makes somewhere quiet to return to worth more than usual, so the cabin you chose earns its keep in the afternoon.
Frequently Asked Questions
They dock. Nassau is a docked port: ships berth alongside at Prince George Wharf, the redeveloped Nassau Cruise Port that reopened in 2023 with six berths and can take several large ships at once. There is no tendering, so you walk straight off the ship into the middle of the capital. This is one of the port’s great advantages, as even a short call gives you easy time ashore on foot.
Very. The wharf opens directly onto Bay Street in the heart of downtown Nassau, so the shops, the Straw Market and the historic centre are all at the gate. The Queen’s Staircase and Fort Fincastle are a short, uphill walk inland, and the free Junkanoo Beach is about a 10 minute walk west along the waterfront. Only Paradise Island, Atlantis and the outlying beaches need a taxi or a water taxi.
The Bahamian dollar, which has been pegged to the US dollar at 1 to 1 since 1966, so the two are interchangeable. US dollars are accepted everywhere at face value and there is no need to change money before you go. Your change may come back as a mix of Bahamian and US notes, both worth the same, so keep US notes small and spend any Bahamian change before you reboard. Cards are widely accepted.
Paradise Island lies just across the harbour from downtown Nassau. The simplest way is a short taxi ride across the toll bridge, at a fixed government rate agreed before you set off, or a water taxi across the harbour when it is running, a crossing of about 10 minutes. Atlantis sells an Aquaventure day pass for non-guests that must be booked ahead; it is not cheap, and on a short call the travel and the park together can take up most of your day.
It depends on your time and budget. Atlantis is a genuinely impressive resort, and its Aquaventure water park, slides, pools and marine habitat are a hit with families, but the day pass is a paid, seasonally priced ticket that must be booked ahead, and getting across to Paradise Island and back eats into a short call. If you have a full day and want a big water park, it can be worth it; if you have only a few hours, a free beach and the town may give you more for less.
A surprising amount. Junkanoo Beach, the nearest beach to the port, is free and about a 10 minute walk away. The Queen’s Staircase and the views from Fort Fincastle cost nothing, browsing Bay Street and the Straw Market is free, and John Watling’s Distillery gives free guided rum tours and a tasting on a historic estate. Between them they make an easy, low-cost day ashore without booking a single excursion.
Yes, the Bahamas lies within the Atlantic hurricane belt, and the season runs from June to November, with the greatest risk from August to October. Ships route around storms, so a call is rarely cancelled outright, but late-summer itineraries can change at short notice. The dry season from December to April is the calmer, drier and most reliable time to cruise here, and the pleasantest ashore.
Almost always by fly-cruise. Nassau is dominated by ships sailing from Florida, so most passengers fly to a homeport such as Miami, Fort Lauderdale or Port Canaveral near Orlando and join a short Bahamas cruise there; a few reach it on a transatlantic or repositioning voyage. Mainstream British-market lines base their Caribbean seasons mostly in Barbados and the Eastern Caribbean, so Nassau is usually part of an American-style short cruise rather than a no-fly sailing from Southampton.
Ready to Explore Nassau?
Nassau is one of the easiest calls in the Caribbean, and the reason is simple: you dock right in the middle of the capital and walk straight into it. Between the shops and Straw Market of Bay Street, the free sand of Junkanoo Beach, the Queen’s Staircase and the old forts, and the free rum tour at John Watling’s, you can fill an enjoyable day ashore on foot without spending much at all. The one big decision is Atlantis on Paradise Island, a paid day out that rewards a full call but can swallow a short one, so weigh it before you sail. Keep an eye on the season, since the Bahamas sits inside the hurricane belt, and take US dollars in small notes, which work everywhere at par.
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