Grand Bahama & Tiger Beach – Bahamas

Grand Bahama, on the Little Bahama Bank, pairs three very different kinds of diving: reefs, wrecks and shark encounters off Freeport and Lucaya (including Theo's Wreck, sunk in 1982 as the first purpose-sunk ship in the Bahamas, and the Sea Star II), the world-famous Tiger Beach shallow sand bank about 30–40 km off the west end where divers share the sand with tiger, lemon and reef sharks without a cage, and the freshwater cave system under Lucayan National Park (Ben's Cavern, inland, cavern/cave certification and Bahamas National Trust permission required). Water is 24–29 °C all year; tiger sharks are more numerous October–May and great hammerheads come December–March.

Facts

• Best season: Year-round diving; tiger sharks more numerous Oct–May, great hammerheads Dec–Mar; hurricane season Jun–Nov
• Water temperature: About 24 °C (Feb–Mar) to 29 °C (Jul–Sep)
• Visibility: 20–30 m
• Shark-diving rules: Shark fishing is banned in the Bahamas, so the sharks are protected. I found no official Bahamian permit scheme for shark-diving or feeding: each operator sets its own rules (certified divers; some require logged dives), and a 2024 Tribune commentary calls for stricter government rules and operator permits
• Cave diving permit: Lucayan National Park (Ben's Cavern): Bahamas National Trust permission, cavern/cave certification, guide, four divers at a time
• Getting there: Grand Bahama International Airport (FPO) in Freeport; Tiger Beach day trips leave from West End / Old Bahama Bay (about 1.5–2 h by boat)

Season

• Best months: Oct, Nov, Dec, Jan, Feb, Mar, Apr, May
• Acceptable: Jun, Jul, Aug, Sep
• Water temperature: 24–29 °C

Diving all year. Tiger sharks are more numerous from October to May and great hammerheads come December–March; some operators only run Tiger Beach trips in part of the year. Hurricane season is June–November.

Dive sites (15)

Lucayan National Park caves (inland, freshwater)

• Ben's Cavern (Lucayan National Park) – FRESHWATER / INLAND CAVE – 0–15 m, advanced

Freeport / Lucaya reefs & wrecks

• Eden Banks – 12–18 m, beginner
• El Capitan – 13–27 m, intermediate
• Fish Farm – 3–6 m, beginner
• Littlehale's Lair – 18–24 m, intermediate
• Moray Manor – 18–24 m, beginner
• Pygmy Caves – 17–24 m, intermediate
• Sea Star II Wreck – 18–27 m, intermediate
• Shark Junction (Shark Encounter / Shark Alley) – 14–23 m, intermediate
• Silver Point Reef – 5–6 m, beginner
• Theo's Wreck – 18–31 m, advanced

Tiger Beach & Little Bahama Bank

• Hogfish Reef – 10–15 m, beginner
• Mount Olympus – 18–28 m, advanced
• Sugar Wreck – 3–6 m, beginner
• Tiger Beach – 6–20 m, intermediate

Operators (4)

• Sunn Odyssey Divers – dive centre, 30 Beachway Drive, Freeport
• UNEXSO (Sanctuary Bay) – dive centre, Sanctuary Bay, Sterling Circle, Freeport
• Epic Diving (Tiger Beach) – dive centre, Day and multi-day Tiger Beach trips from West End, Grand Bahama
• Neal Watson's Bimini Scuba Center (Tiger Beach expedition) – dive centre, Departs from Old Bahama Bay Resort & Marina, West End

Routes (1)

• Tiger Beach expedition (Neal Watson's)

Only Theo's Wreck has a published position (Wikipedia); other positions are estimated from operator descriptions and are for orientation only, never for navigation. Depths differ by source. Sites at Tiger Beach and in the Freeport area are run by private operators under their own rules. Ben's Cavern is an INLAND freshwater cave: dive only with cave training, BNT permission and a guide.