All Star Liveaboards Logo

A World of Diving Adventures

Call us today! 954.734.7111 or 800.327.9600

Best trip our troop has ever taken. Well organized, great crew, amazing food, awesome adventures, highly recommended.

Wendy White
BSA Troop 10, Limerick, PA

Scuba Diving Scouts

Scouts Dive Experience

For more than 40 years, Blackbeard’s Cruises has been taking high adventure scouting troops to dive sites in the Bahamas. The trips are life-changing – from the first breath underwater to the feeling of zero gravity and from the discovery of marine life to earning the Scuba Merit badge. It’s our pleasure to introduce scouts to a skill they can carry with them throughout their lives … besides it’s fun, too!

Your scout troop will have plenty to do besides diving on this 6-night excursion. We offer daily eco-adventures and shore excursions so you can experience the wonder of the uninhabited and remote cays – fishing, hiking, flora and fauna trails, deserted beaches, bonfires and more.

These dive adventures take place on one of Blackbeard’s two 65′ sailboats – Morning Star or Sea Explorer. The scouts will be assigned responsibilities during the week as we make our way through the Exuma Cays. Activities such as doing dishes, tidying the ship, washing the deck and cleaning will be on the list and they can also participate in wheel watches, raising sails, helping in the galley or watching the fishing lines.

Highlights

Scuba Diving Scout Group Rate
2024 – $1,095.00 per person including gratuity plus port fees of $205.00

2025 – $1,145.00 per person including gratuity plus port fees of $205.00

  • Affordable and within easy reach of scouting groups
  • 18 bunks in air conditioned living quarters that accommodate up to 24 total passengers
  • The most amazing diving in crystal clear Bahamas waters 
  • Surviving at sea skills like fishing for dinner
  • Learning how to sail, snorkel and more
  • A trip without electronic devices; face-to-face socializing
  • Time for old-fashioned fun, play and stargazing

Get Ready to Walk the Plank for Adventure

Just like scouting, the philosophy behind SCUBA encourages the quest and challenge for adventure, knowledge development and personal growth. 

Scouts time will be spent:

  • Doing safe ocean dives – walls, reefs, a wreck, a blue hole and a high-speed drift
  • All dives conducted with maximum depth of 40- 60-feet (dependent on scout’s age)
  • Marine life education
  • Valuing and protecting our environment
  • Learning opportunities disguised as fun
  • Trying out the halyard swing
  • Hanging in the horseshoe
  • Fishing for dinner
  • Exploring the islands and cays
  • Stargazing under a clear night sky
  • Getting 40 winks in your bunk

Sailing with Blackbeard’s is like scout camp but on water. Consider it your sea base for the week. No one cares that you’ve worn the same tee-shirt for 5 days straight. We won’t tell your mom you brushed your teeth every other day or that your swimming trunks are hanging off the side of the boat drying. This trip isn’t about stuff. It’s about diving, connecting with your mates, telling stories, hanging out and being a kid (scout leaders included).

“… staff pointed out electroluminescent plankton activity – which I have also never seen before … “

Dive Sites

Wave goodbye and we’re off to explore a pristine and protected area without cruise ships or city lights.

  • Daytime  and nighttime dives
  • Swim with groupers and stingrays
  • Optional passive shark feeding dive (parental approval required)

Marine life:

  • Varied species of fish
  • Octopus and garden eels
  • Large and small coral and sponges
  • Lobster, crabs and cleaner shrimp
  • Turtles – 5 of the 7 species are found in the Bahamas

Blackbeard's Divers Swim with Sharks

To dive and interact with sharks is often ranked highly on a divers must-do list. There is no better destination in the world to see these wonderful animals where they are protected. A generous population of these apex predators frequent the reefs and walls of the Bahamas. 

Visiting the Exuma Cays on a Blackbeard’s Scout trip give young divers the chance to experience viewing sharks in their natural habitat.

Caribbean reef sharks and nurse sharks are the most common types seen but if you are lucky you may also see hammerheads, lemon sharks, bull sharks, whale sharks and possibly a tiger shark.

If the troop chooses to participate (parental approval required in advance), a highlight of our trip is a passive feed, where scouts can observe sharks and their behaviors. Afterward, finding a shark tooth is great fun and makes an excellent souvenir to bring home along with all of your shark stories.

Fuel for the Fun: You'll Eat Well with Us

Our galley is small but it’s big on prepping food that gives our scouts energy to power through the day.

You’ll get three solid meals a day – breakfast, lunch and dinner plus snacks. A fruit hammock hangs in the salon so you can dig into it any time. You’ll enjoy coffee and juice in the morning and have water, lemonade and Gatorade-type beverages available throughout the day to keep you hydrated. No alcohol or sodas available on scout trips. Sodas can be added for an additional fee.

We’ll have the scouts throw the lines out when we can and if the fish are biting – wahoo, dolphin (not porpoise!) and tuna are most common catches – we’ll gladly cook it up for everyone to taste. … It’s better than trying to take it home in your luggage.

If you have special dietary needs, note it on the Trip Application. With advanced notice, chef can prepare special foods, such as vegan, vegetarian or gluten-free, etc.

Dive Equipment Rental

Blackbeard’s is a pretty efficient operation. Take a look at our dive deck. This is where equipment is stored throughout your trip. Nothing fancy but we get the job done.

Provided:

  • Dive tanks – 80s, 100s (available upon request) and 63s (limited supply) and weightbelts

Available for rent:

  • Regulator – $50.00 per week
  • Dive computer – $50.00 per week
  • Dive light (torch) – $30.00 per week
  • Wetsuit – full – 3mm – $35.00 per week
  • Buoyancy compensator – $50.00 per week


How it works: 
Complete the Scout Rental Equipment form. Payment will be made on board. 

Dive Instruction

Our dive crew is here to help you. You can complete your certification course on board or take a Discover Scuba Diving course with our instructor.

Available courses:

  • Open Water Checkouts – $100.00 
  • Discover Scuba – $125.00

Ask the instructor upon boarding if they have any other specialty courses they can offer you.  

How it works:
Let us know if any instruction is needed by completing the dive instruction area on the Trip Application. Payment is made while onboard the boat.

Trip Info

2024 Rates

$1,095.00 per person including gratuity

PORT FEES
$205.00 per person (includes the Bahamas taxes and fees)

2025 Rates

$1145.00 per person including gratuity

PORT FEES
$205.00 per person (includes the Bahamas taxes and fees)

Departs from

Nassau, Bahamas (NAS)
Boarding:  Saturday, 12:00pm
We can assist with Ground Transfers.

Returns to

Nassau, Bahamas (NAS). Thursday afternoon
Disembark:  Friday, 9:00am

Included

  • Dormitory-style accommodations
  • All meals and snacks
  • Beverages (coffee, tea, milk, juice at breakfast) water and flavored drink mix the rest of the day
  • Up to 13 dives
  • Tanks and weight belts
  • Crew gratuity

Not Included

  • Airfare to Nassau
  • Ground transfers to and from the airport
  • Dive and snorkel gear
  • Spending money on port night (Thursday)
  • Pre or post hotel stays
  • Fees and taxes

Deposits/Payments

                  Groups of 18+*                       

On Booking                $1,000.00           
By November 1           $3,000.00 
By January 15             $3,000.00                        
4 Months Prior    Balance Due in Full

*To guarantee the vessel for your troop exclusively, you must commit to paying for 18 passengers. (There are 18 berths on board). You can bring more if you have kids or adults sharing a double berth. If you have fewer participants, we have the right to put other scouts on your boat.

Method of Payment
To keep the cost of the trip low, all payments must be made by check or wire transfer. There will be a 5% fee for any payments made by credit card.

Cancellation Policy

There is no refund for cancellations after Nov 15 unless space is filled, in which case there will be a full refund less a 5% cancellation fee. We will waive this penalty if you communicate with us and allow us time to book other scouts into your unfilled space.

COVID cancellations:  If borders are closed at the time of travel, then a rebooking will be allowed. If a guest tests positive prior to arrival and is not permitted to travel, a rebook will be allowed. A positive test result within 5 days of trip date must be provided. All rebooked trips will be reinvoiced and any difference in fare and fees will be assessed. 

Policy for trip interruption due to a named storm: A future credit will be offered for any missed days with no expiration date for using the credit. We understand your busy schedules and the need to plan. There is no refund for cancellations due to weather.

Travel Protection

It is recommended that all passengers purchase travel protection to help protect you and your trip investment. It is also recommended that all divers have diving accident insurance. You can request a brochure from our office or go to:

Diveassure: For annual combination trip and dive accident insurance.

Travelex: Travel protection for a single trip. You may choose the TRAVEL SELECT policy and select the optional ADVENTURE SPORTS COVERAGE upgrade which waives the policy exclusions for extreme sports such as scuba diving. Purchase of Travelex insurance must be more than 21 days from date of travel.

The Vessel

Vessel layout of Blackbeard's dive liveaboard in the Bahamas. They have 2 sailboats, the Sea Explorer & the Morning Star
  • Dining – picnic-style outdoors in the horseshoe or inside near the kitchen (galley)
  • Bunks – beds come in doubles and singles as uppers or lowers
  • Bathrooms (heads) – small and shared with your mates
  • Showers – hot water and long showers are a luxury- enjoy them before you arrive
  • Kitchen (galley) – yes, a compact space where all your meals are prepped. We’re serious.
  • Dinghies – our transportation to and from islands and dive sites.

Don’t pack tons of clothes. We’d rather have room to store all the food we’ll eat each trip.

Scuba Diving Scouts FAQs

Yes. If you do not have your own equipment, we have “top of the line” dive gear available for rent.

For information and pricing, click here. For night dives the minimum requirement is two light sources: a dive light plus a backup dive light, a non-strobing marker light or a chemical light stick (cyalume). Cyalumes are $3.00* USD each and are sold on board.

Please request these items on your Trip Application.

We do not store our gear at the dock so last minute requests may not be available.

*Subject to change.

Blackbeard’s sailboats dock at the Nassau Harbour Club Marina on East Bay Street, right across from the Starbucks. The ride is approximately 30-40 minutes from the airport to the dock.

If you need transfers to or from the dock while in Nassau, we can assist. Please complete the Scout troop group transfer form, available as an excel file or pdf,  or call our office at least 5 days prior to your departure. Our U.S. Reservations Office can take your call Monday thru Friday 9:00am-5:00pm EST at (U.S. and Canada) 800.327.9600 or (Worldwide) 954.734.7111.

For each pick-up, the cost is $18.00* USD per person one-way and must be prepaid. If you prefer to take a taxi or miss the cut-off date, taxis are readily available at the airport.

*Subject to change

#footable_104636 { font-family: inherit; font-size: 14px; } #footable_104636.ninja_stacked_table > tbody, #footable_104636.ninja_stacked_table { background: transparent !important; }

For flight planning purposes boarding is 12:00pm on Saturday and shove off by 3:00pm. Please be on board by 1:00pm at the latest. The latest we recommend landing is 12:00pm so that you have time to clear Bahamas Customs and Immigration and transfer to the dock. Once on board lunch is served; you will some have time to get settled in and then attend a mandatory safety briefing before we depart Nassau.

Blackbeard’s returns to Nassau on the following Thursday afternoon. Dinner is served on board at the dock and then you can spend the last evening exploring Nassau with your new friends! All passengers must disembark by 9:00am on Friday morning. If you have a flight later in the day, you may leave your luggage in the lobby while you sightsee. Your last dive is complete by early afternoon on Thursday. Plan your flight home according to your “NO FLY” standard from your certifying agency.

X
Your subscription could not be saved. Please try again.
Thanks for subscribing to receive news and updates from All Star Liveaboards

Receive News & Updates from All Star Liveaboards