Staniel Cay Yacht Club is the Happiest Place on Earth

Staniel Cay Yacht Club – The Bahamas

Big all-inclusive Caribbean resorts have never really been our thing…Neither have cruises. If we are going to escape to the Caribbean or other tropical beach destinations, we want to be able to truly relax, and the last thing in the world we want is to deal with overwhelming crowds of other tourists. The other thing we generally try to avoid are organized tours. Being able to explore a new location on our own terms is always preferable to adhering to someone else’s rigid schedule. For these reasons, Staniel Cay Yacht Club in the Bahamas was the ideal destination for us. It was the perfect balance of relaxation and adventure in an incredibly beautiful setting…It also happens to be the de facto gateway to the world-famous Pig Beach.

Map

With a population of less than 100 full-time residents and a total land area of less than two square miles, Staniel Cay is as quiet and laid back an island as you’ll find. Since it is one of the only nearby islands with an airstrip, it is a common entry point for visitors seeking to explore the Exumas. You can fly to Staniel Cay on a small, single-engine Cessna plane from either Ft. Lauderdale or Nassau.

Read More: How to get to Pig Beach

Around Staniel Cay Yacht Club

The Yacht Club, which has been operating since 1956, consists of an 18-slip marina, 14 bungalows, a restaurant, a bar, and a swimming pool. Even though this place is almost always fully-booked (oftentimes the bungalows book several months to a year in advance), the fact that there are only 14 bungalows and 18 slips at the marina means it’s never too crowded, allowing for the perfect laid back island vibe.

The charming waterfront bungalows come in a variety of sizes ranging from single-story 1-bedroom cottages to multi-story suites perfect for families. We stayed in the Yellow Waterfront Bungalow, which is the smallest on the property, but since it was just the two of us, it was sufficiently spacious. While most of the other bungalows have decks over the water, ours was unique in that it had sliding back door with direct access to the small beach from which to launch a boat, kayak, or paddle board.

Biking past one of the larger bungalows

The water is insanely clear

The bar and restaurant at the marina is the hub of activity at Staniel Cay Yacht Club. Jimmy Buffett named this one of his top 10 favorite beach bars, and we can confirm that he has excellent taste (he was, after all, present the night we got engaged).  The piña coladas were second to none and the food at the restaurant was outstanding. We enjoyed hanging out on the sunset deck by the marina watching the boats come and go and chatting with people about their epic sailing adventures throughout the Caribbean. Also, there were always nurse sharks swimming around the marina, sometimes in large groups. You’re allowed to get in the water with the sharks, but if you put your fingers near their mouths and get bit, that’s on you.

The bar

There are always nurse sharks at the marina

Island Hopping

Finally we’ve come to the best part of Staniel Cay Yacht Club – the feature that sets this place apart from any other beach destination we’ve visited. If you book a “package plan” (which we would strongly recommend), all of your meals are included, but more importantly, you are provided with your own personal skiff with which to explore the neighboring islands. Not to mention the fuel is included in the package rate. It really doesn’t get any better than this. There’s no need to book organized tours, and you can come and go exactly as you please.

Most of the larger bungalows include a 17-foot skiff; however, since we were in a smaller (and less expensive) bungalow, our package included a 13-foot Boston Whaler. Since the water was especially choppy during our stay, we ended up paying extra to upgrade to a 17-footer and it was some of the best money we’ve ever spent. The large boats are much more comfortable for navigating choppy water and made it easier to travel farther distances in a shorter amount of time. We would highly recommend upgrading to one of the larger boats if there are any available.

After a hearty breakfast each day, the staff provided us with a cooler with a surprisingly tasty packed lunch, and we set off in our boat on an island hopping adventure. They give you a couple of well-labeled maps so you know which islands have public beaches, which areas are good for snorkeling, and which beaches are home to unique attractions like swimming pigs.

The water in the Exumas is outrageously clear – easily some of the most stunning water in the Bahamas and that is not at all an exaggeration. It’s hard to envision a better way to spend a day than cruising around crystal clear water in your own personal skiff and stopping at completely uninhabited islands for a beach picnic before moving on to the next island. It was amazing. We would see a small island with a pristine, completely vacant beach, and anchor the boat for an hour or so before deciding to move along. If there were two other people on a beach, we considered it crowded.

One of the maps we used to navigate the surrounding islands by boat

Our own private beach

Swimming Pigs

Easily the most popular attraction in this part of the Exumas is Pig Beach. It is definitely not the nicest beach in the area, but it is certainly the most unique. This uninhabited island that the world-famous swimming pigs call home is right next to Staniel Cay and it only takes about five minutes to get there by boat. We visited these guys every day as part of our island hopping excursions…sometimes multiple times per day.

Swimming with Nurse Sharks

The island of Compass Cay is about five miles north of Staniel Cay which is the farthest we travelled in our skiff. While Staniel Cay Yacht Club is home to plenty of its own nurse sharks, the marina at Compass Cay provides a more supervised setting for swimming with the sharks. You can anchor your skiff on the nearby beach and you only have to pay a $10/person landing fee to partake.

Snorkeling at Thunderball Grotto

If you’re looking for a place to snorkel close by, Thunderball Grotto is the place to go. Thunderball Grotto, named after the 1965 James Bond movie that was filmed here, is practically a stone’s throw from the marina at Staniel Cay Yacht Club. Just make sure to go at low tide when the entrance to the grotto is not fully submerged.

Other Nearby Sites and Activities

If you have the time, here are some of the other nearby sites and activities that can easily be accessed from Staniel Cay Yacht Club:

• World-class bone fishing
• An island full of iguanas
• Two underwater plane crash sites for snorkeling
• Multiple beautiful beaches on Staniel Cay

Conclusion

It’s tough (maybe impossible) to beat Staniel Cay Yacht Club when it comes to a Caribbean/Bahamian getaway. In terms of sheer natural beauty, this part of the Exumas is already a cut above most other beach-oriented destinations, but having access to your own personal boat in an areas where each surrounding island offers something new and unique (pigs, sharks, iguanas) puts Staniel Cay Yacht Club in a league of its own.