Harbour Island water taxis
 

I'm planning a vacation to Harbour Island in May, and it's my family's first trip there. We've booked the flights to Nassau, but are trying to figure out the best way to get to Harbour Island. I think it would be best to fly Bahamasair from Nassau to North Eleuthera and then to take the water taxi to Harbour Island.

My concern is: how early and how often do water taxis run from Harbour Island to North Eleuthera? The flight back from North Eleuthera to Nassau is at 7:40 a.m. In other words, can I take a water taxi to North Eleuthera early that morning, or do I have to stay in North Eleuthera the night before?

Thanks in advance for any advice you can provide!

The water taxis will run as early and as late as the flights come and go. You will have no problem. They are there for the taking.

You can also look into the fast ferries (instead of bahamasair) to and from harbour island/Nassau
www.bahamasferries.com

Taxis are always available at the airport to take you to the dock and there will be water taxis waiting to take you over to the island and a taxi waiting for you to take you to your hotel. Just let Reggie (cab driver) know when you are leaving and he or Jenna (Reggie's wife) will come pick you up and take you back to the dock.

Also all the taxis and water taxis and hotels have CB radios so they are always available when needed.

Have a GREAT time and please let us know if you have any other questions.

For the trip back and forth, you might want to take a flight over (for the breathtaking views of the water) and take the ferry back, (for the wonderful ride). The cost is just about the same round trip.

Hi,

My husband and I just did exactly this. We flew from Nassau to North Eleuthera (almost the same price as the ferry, but a heck of a lot cheaper, albeit less scenic). We had a 7:40 am flight out of North Eleuthera to Nassau to catch our flight home. I asked the receptionist to have the water taxi meet us at our hotel at 6:30am and we arrived with plenty of time to catch our plane.

You will probably be flying Bahamas air if you go from North Eleuthera to Nassau. Just to let you know, apparently the flight time was changed from 7:40 to 7:20 while we were on the island. Our tickets clearly stated 7:40. We arrived at the airport at 6:50 to check in, which was apparently just in the nick of time, because a group of 3 women also holding 7:40 am flight times were not allowed to boarding passes when they arrived at 7:00 to check in, as they didn't meet the 30 minute cut off for check in prior to boarding. The plane didn't arrive until 7:45 anyway. It was all very strange, but just double check your return flight if you do indeed fly Bahamas air the day before your reservation.
-Melissa

Thank you so much for all of the helpful replies. You are wonderful resources. I'll definitely return to this board to ask more questions about Harbour Island!

What I meant to say was the planes were a heck of a lot faster than the ferries....too much sun on vacation.

Good luck with your planning,
Melissa

Be prepared to spend hours waiting in the Nassau airport for delayed flights to eleuthera, or any island. Bahamasair is notorious for that. There are other flight services with better prices. The planes can be very small (8 passenger). Check with the hotel/house owner for recommendations. You can also expect some delays at the Eleuthera airport, but there is a souvenir/snack shop across the street, which kept our kids entertained while we waited.
I've gone to Harbour Island by plane and by ferry and prefer the ferry.
Unfortunately the ferry schedules are not in sync with flights out of Nassau to the U.S., so you'll have to spend the night in Nassau each way if you want to take the ferry. The ferry return from Harbour Island to Nassau (4 p.m. or so) is too late in the day to catch a flight home. There used to be an earlier arrival time once a week around 1, and USAir had a 3:30 flight to Charlotte, but that has changed. The ferry is the least aggravating way, because it pulls right up to the dock at Harbour Island. Be prepared when you land in Eleuthera to tip lots of people. From the airport you will have to take a taxi van to the boat dock (tip at the airport and at the dock) , then board a small boat for a ride to Harbour Island, (tip again) then catch a taxi to your hotel. If you don't want to tip, do you own loading, but be prepared. It's a huge hassle to get there, but worth it. I just wish the ferry schedule would work out for U.S. passengers. It's a nice way to get there. Have a great time!