Blue Hole Watersports or Flying Cloud for snorkeling?

[cici30]

My husband & I will be in Nassau from 12:00 PM until 11:59 PM in July. We really want to do the snorkeling trip with Stuart Cove, but we can't because they pick up at 12:15. Therefore, we are trying to find another company for a snorkeling excursion. We are considering Blue Hole Watersports & Flying Cloud. Blue Hole is cheaper and more convenient, but Flying Cloud has better reviews. Does anyone have any experience with either company? Thanks so much!

[cici30]

Has anyone been on the snorkeling excursion with either company?

[PhinsAndGills]

THANKS for posting this. Sadly, I can't help you out at all as I'm researching the same things you are. Hopefully someone has been on these and can help *us* out!

[WillieD13]

I have not used either of them, but I will say, for what it's worth, that we took a snorkeling excursion with Seahorse, and it was worth every penny we paid.

[scubagirrl]

My husband & I will be in Nassau from 12:00 PM until 11:59 PM in July. We really want to do the snorkeling trip with Stuart Cove, but we can't because they pick up at 12:15. Therefore, we are trying to find another company for a snorkeling excursion. We are considering Blue Hole Watersports & Flying Cloud. Blue Hole is cheaper and more convenient, but Flying Cloud has better reviews. Does anyone have any experience with either company? Thanks so much!

 

We've done both and both are terrific.

 

Blue Hole is a smaller, more personalized service. it will likely be just your group, maybe another couple of people. Staff will talk to you about water conditions and where they are heading for the day based on weather, conditions, visibility etc. It's a fun day. Great staff. They use skiffs for transport.

 

Flying cloud is a bigger, more sociable outfit. Likely 35-50 people onboard, or more depending on the season.

They go to a reef off of Rose Island.. for those who want a beach day, or a shore experience, they will drop you at the nearby beach then anchor off the beach for the others to use the reef further out.. then come back to get those on the beach.

 

If you want the beach experience and mingle with others.. this is the trip. Its fun. Knowledgable crew. Rose Island is gorgeous.

 

The Flying cloud is a sailing catamaran, so if the wind is right, they may just hoist the sails for a little while on the way back.

[cici30]

Thanks so much for the responses! I think we are going to go with Blue Hole. The small group & personalized service is exactly what we are looking for!

[PhinsAndGills]

We also just booked Blue Hole. THANKS for posting everyone!

[Ant...]

I had the same questions about the snorkeling, came to the Bahamas port site and all my questions were already answered! I also just put in for Blue Hole.

[PhinsAndGills]

Blue Hole treated us GREAT! Oscar was our guide and he was awesome! I would book them again in a heartbeat.

[cici30]

Blue Hole treated us GREAT! Oscar was our guide and he was awesome! I would book them again in a heartbeat.

 

 

Thanks so much for the update! I made a reservation with Blue Hole and received a confirmation email, but it didn't address payment info. Did you just pay when you got there?

[miasail]

How much is Blue Hole and how long is the excursion?

[PhinsAndGills]

Thanks so much for the update! I made a reservation with Blue Hole and received a confirmation email, but it didn't address payment info. Did you just pay when you got there?

 

Wow - I didn't see your post until NOW! Holy Thread Revival Batman! We did pay when we got there. It was just my family (6 of us - grandparents, aunt/uncle, nieces) and one other couple. GREAT time. It was perfect for the 8 and 10 year old. MUCH better than an uber-crowded ship-trip.

[tropicbird]

While I can't recommend getting your hopes up too much.. it IS possible to make Stuart Coves' 1/2 day afternoon. We were on Monarch recently (noon arrival time) and the ship cleared quickly enough to make the shuttle bus at the foot of the pier. We enjoyed the snorkeling and the sharks and then returned to the ship for the evening.

 

The only issue is that if your ship is running a bit behind, you won't make it. But if it is on time (which is a little before noon in most cases) then you have a shot at Stuart Cove's, which is IMO the BEST snorkeling tour on NPI.

 

Note that SC will NOT make reservations for you since they can't guarantee the shuttle bus will still be there. You have to sign on as a "walk up".

[RBKL]

While I can't recommend getting your hopes up too much.. it IS possible to make Stuart Coves' 1/2 day afternoon. We were on Monarch recently (noon arrival time) and the ship cleared quickly enough to make the shuttle bus at the foot of the pier. We enjoyed the snorkeling and the sharks and then returned to the ship for the evening.

 

The only issue is that if your ship is running a bit behind, you won't make it. But if it is on time (which is a little before noon in most cases) then you have a shot at Stuart Cove's, which is IMO the BEST snorkeling tour on NPI.

 

Note that SC will NOT make reservations for you since they can't guarantee the shuttle bus will still be there. You have to sign on as a "walk up".

 

Where do you go to sign up as a "walk up"?

 

We arrive at 8 and like you they won't sign us up in advance since it's possible we wouldn't make the 8:15 shuttle bus. It might be worth a try if I knew where they would be. Risk is that we might not have a back up booked but might be worth the risk.

[mikeyd]

We used Blue Hole during Spring Break 12' and did not have a super experience with them. it was by no means horrible, but we did not get Basil as I had requested. We got a younger guy (18 or 19 years old). He was nice and friendly but too quiet to give a good experience. We even paid the extra $10?? per person for the side tour and did not get this - perhaps he forgot.

 

Also, the boat we got was decent - but not horrible. It was a flat bottom Boston Whaler which has a harsh ride and we did get a decent amount of spray. They did have another boat getting serviced that was like a traditional bow rider. The smaller boat also took a long time to get around. It was a good 30-40 minute ride to the first spot, but the scenery was great

 

With that said the snorkeling was VERY good. MUCH better than I had expected. We stopped at two places. The first was just a little ways down from a wrecked sailboat on the shore and it was decent, maybe 15' deep and nice.

 

The next spot was near an old abandoned resort Island - actually kinda weird -with many brightly painted cabins and pavilions. Kind of a ghost island. This spot was incredible! Very active fish population. We saw lots of sea urchins, many colorful fish and good coral formations.

 

So here is the breakdown on Blue Hole:

 

Pros:

**Affordable

**Very private. It was just our family of 4 and the captain.

**Good locations for snorkeling & decent gear

 

Cons:

** Less than entertaining host if you don't get Basil

** Smaller, flat-bottom boat was not ideal

 

Hope this helps!