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Best way to get to Nassau

ack04c

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I'm planning a family vacation after my sister's college graduation next Spring. We will be traveling from Tallahassee and we have been considering driving to Miami and then taking a plane to Nassau or travel directly from Tallahassee to Nassau, although this last one is a lot more expensive ($600 vs $200 per person). We have a timeshare in Nassau, so finding a hotel is not an issue. My mom suggested to find out if there's a cheaper way to get to Nassau (from Miami) by boat. I've kind of googled that up but the only thing I'm finding is to rent a yatch ($2k approx) which ends up more expensive and it takes also longer than obviously taking a plane.

It's not a must to depart from Miami, if its cheaper to depart from say Ft. Lauderdale, that would be awesome too. I've never been in Nassau and my friends that have been there have gotten there by a cruise. So as you see I have no clue whatsoever in what would be best considering that the whole family is traveling and moreover I'm not sure if its even possible to get to Nassau by boat.

Thanks before hand!
 

gretel

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The national carrier is Bahamasair (tel 242/377-5505 or 1-800/222-4262), which offers several daily flights to Nassau and Freeport from Miami, Orlando and Fort Lauderdale.

From mainland North America , several American and Canadian carriers fly to Nassau or Freeport from hub cities, or connect to the islands through Miami. Continental-Gulfstream (tel 1-800/525 0280), Delta and US Airways offer flights to Nassau. American Airlines' regional carrier American Eagle serves Nassau from Miami with regular daily flights, while smaller carriers typically fly a Florida-to-Bahamas route and include Pan Am Air Bridges, Lynx Air International, Twin Air and Chalks International .

Excerpted from the Bahamas Travel site.
 

x3 skier

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Bahamasair look to be the cheapest on Orbitz. I just checked for MCO (Orlando) to Nassau in Dec and they were around $100 vs $500 up for the majors. They do fly turbo props which is no big deal to me but some prefer pure jets. Pick several departure cities and see what you get.

Try Orbitz and see what you get for your travel dates.

Cheers
 

laxmom

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You are better off flying if Nassau is the reason for your trip. If you cruise, you will only get 1 day in port. One time we went thru Ft. Lauderdale, the other Atlanta. Yet another, direct from Cinci.
 

lprstn

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Discovery Cruise is a ferry that goes to Bahamas...

Its reasonably inexpensive, but is not the quality of a cruise ship. Its basically a ferry that takes you to the Bahamas so don't have high expectations. However its an option as it leaves from FL.
 

calgarygary

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You could consider tying 2 vacations into 1. We are doing a cruise where the last port is Nassau and are disembarking there for our Harborside stay rather than returning to Miami. When we compare that to the cost of hotel, food, attractions - the cost came out cheaper for us. If you are just looking at the fastest/cheapest way to Nassau, then flying with Bahamasair may be your best option.
 

Sandy VDH

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Spirit Air flies FLL to Nassau. I am not sure about where else in FL they fly from.

You might look into Spirit air.

http://www.spiritair.com/
 

ack04c

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Thank you all for your insights!..

So, I tried to take a look at the Discovery Cruise which is $99.99 per person (approximately) but they don't have spots left for may 2009!!!!!!!! it's completely booked. Any idea on other ferry to the Bahamas?

I know flying seems reasonable but I'm trying to consider all cards since at least that Discovery Cruise/Ferry would have been nice since they include food and we would have only used it for transportation.

THANKS.
 
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renee

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I have been looking into this myself as air is showing much more lately than in the past for when I am going.
Discovery cruise lines doesn't go into Nassau. They only go to Grand Bahama island (Freeport).
This is the boat that goes to Nassau. http://www.imperialmajesty.com/
It is pricey to use them for transportation, at least when I need to be there. I was quoted 748.00 one way for 5 people. You do spend one night on board, so therefore must have a cabin.
There is a 3 night cruise that leaves Port Canaveral on Thursdays and gets into Nassau on Saturday. In the past, you could book 2 cruises, one for the way over and then get off and then one for the way back. I don't know if that is still allowed. They have been running specials for 199.00 per person for inside cabin. I was thinking about going that way and taking the extra 3nights to spend on the ship. Maybe that would work for you.
I will keep looking around and will post if I find any other options. I'm Probably just going to go with flying, though.
 
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