The Bahamas is a magical experience for yachts offering near-endless entertainment, excitement, and adventure for visitors. However, part of what makes The Bahamas such an expansive holiday destination for yachting is its famous shallow blue waters. The shallow waters can make superyacht voyages to The Bahamas challenging with far fewer available docking options. So where do the largest yachts dock in the Bahamas?
Hurricane Hole Superyacht Marina on Paradise Island is a newly designed marina that can house superyachts comfortably thanks to the deep-water design and a massive turning basin combined with docks that can accommodate the largest of yachts.
The new deep-water marina at Paradise Landing offers you a safe haven between voyages and is equipped with luxuries and amenities that make Paradise Landing a must-see destination by itself.
Hurricane Hole Expansion
The marina expansion has made the deep-water dock in The Bahamas the best place to dock a superyacht. The focus of the improvements made was to modernize the iconic Hurricane Hole Superyacht Marina.
Some of the new features at the superyacht marina include:
Approved port of entry with on-site check-ins and customs
Both fixed concrete and floating docks
Electrical points every 50 ft
3-phase and single-phase power
50 amps to 400 amps amperage range at each electrical point
Hi-speed wifi with direct fiber connectivity
Maximum low-tide depth of 14.5 ft
Docks can accommodate vessels of up to 420 ft
Turning basin of 240 ft
70 ft bridge clearance
The expansion of the Hurricane Hole Superyacht Marina makes it a world-class marina that can house some of the largest yachts that visit The Bahamas.
Is Hurricane Hole Welcoming New Superyachts?
Superyachts are welcomed with the new design of the marina at Hurricane Hole on Paradise Island. With the significant turning basin and the docks supporting 420 ft superyachts, the new Hurricane Hole Superyacht Marina is one of the best deep-water marinas in the Bahamas.
Amenities and Services for Superyachts at Hurricane Hole
Luxury amenities and services are in no short supply at the new resort marina. The Hurricane Hole Superyacht Marina is a holiday destination by itself; guests can enjoy not only the services and amenities that the marina offers but also Paradise Landing itself, which has the exclusive Residences of Paradise Landing – which is coming soon.
Some of the most notable services and amenities offered to guests and members of the marina include:
Luggage delivery
Daily trash pickup
High-speed wireless internet
Pump-out services
On-site concierge which can assist with anything that you need around Paradise Island such as bookings, transport, and spa services
In-slip fueling
On-deck delivery of gourmet groceries and supplies for any voyage you may have planned
Fine dining including a poolside bar and grill and other restaurants opening soon
Luxury swimming pools
Exclusive beach club and golf memberships
Gourmet grocery store opening soon
Fitness center
Easy access to shopping at the world-renowned Atlantis Resort & Casino
24-hour security
Experience The New Hurricane Hole at Paradise Island
Don’t miss out on your opportunity to experience the new Hurricane Hole Superyacht Marina on Paradise Island, Bahamas. Where do the largest yachts dock in the Bahamas? Contact us for more information on slip ownership for real estate owners. Investing in The Residences of Paradise Landing will provide you with exclusive memberships and access to the various luxury amenities and slip ownership available at the marina.
Call 242-603-1950 today to learn about our slip rentals or discover more information on slip ownership through real estate investment at the prestigious Paradise Landing in The Bahamas.
Frequently Asked Questions
The largest superyachts and gigayachts visiting The Bahamas dock primarily at Hurricane Hole Superyacht Marina on Paradise Island, which is specifically engineered for vessels of this scale with slips to 420 feet, a 14.5-foot mean low tide depth, a 240-foot turning basin, and 70-foot bridge clearance at the Paradise Island bridges. Nassau and Paradise Island are the primary large-vessel hub in The Bahamas given their infrastructure, customs clearance capability, provisioning resources, and deep-water approach. The Exumas and other Family Islands are accessible for anchoring but lack comparable marina infrastructure for vessels above approximately 100 feet.
Hurricane Hole Superyacht Marina accommodates vessels up to 420 feet in length, placing it among the most capable superyacht facilities in the Western hemisphere. The 420-foot maximum is supported by the marina's 240-foot turning basin which provides adequate maneuvering room, the dredged 14.5-foot basin depth, and the 70-foot bridge clearance at the Paradise Island bridges for vessels transiting from the western harbour approach. Vessels exceeding 70 feet in air draft can approach from the eastern Nassau Harbour entrance, which bypasses the bridges but requires confirmation of approach depths. Captains of vessels near these limits should contact the marina directly at 242-603-1950 to confirm specific berth suitability.
The term gigayacht is an informal designation for vessels exceeding approximately 300 feet in length, representing the very upper tier of privately owned yachts. The more commonly used category of superyacht typically refers to vessels over 24 meters (79 feet), with mega yacht sometimes applied to vessels over 60 meters (197 feet). The distinctions are not formally standardized in maritime regulation but are widely used in the industry to describe scale. Hurricane Hole's 420-foot slip capacity extends well into the gigayacht range, accommodating the largest privately owned vessels currently in operation.
As part of the comprehensive redesign completed in late 2022, Hurricane Hole Superyacht Marina commissioned a major dredging program to deepen the marina basin to 14.5 feet at mean low tide. Prior to this work, the basin was shallower in many areas, limiting the draft of vessels that could safely maneuver throughout the marina. The dredging, combined with the installation of Bellingham Marine floating docks, the 240-foot turning basin, and the rebuilt electrical infrastructure, transformed Hurricane Hole from a dated facility into one capable of hosting the world's largest operational superyachts. The 14.5-foot depth makes Hurricane Hole one of the deepest marinas in The Bahamas and the Caribbean.
The turning basin is a specific area of open water within the marina footprint that provides sufficient space for large vessels to rotate in place or execute tight maneuvers without external tug assistance. Hurricane Hole's 240-foot turning basin is specifically designed to accommodate the beam and maneuver radius of vessels up to the marina's 420-foot maximum length. Without an adequate turning basin, extremely large vessels cannot safely enter or exit their berths independently, making tug assistance mandatory and adding cost and logistical complexity to every arrival and departure.
The two Paradise Island bridges impose a fixed air draft limit of 70 feet for vessels approaching Nassau Harbour from the western entrance. Vessels with masts, satellite domes, or radar arrays extending above this height cannot safely pass under the bridges and must use the eastern approach to Nassau Harbour, which bypasses both bridges. This approach is less well-dredged in some sections and requires local knowledge and attention to tidal timing. Captains with vessels near the 70-foot air draft threshold should confirm current bridge clearance information and approach options with Hurricane Hole's team before arrival.
Modern superyachts are designed with deeper keels than earlier generations, often incorporating fin stabilizers, bow thrusters, and other underwater appendages that increase effective draft. Very large displacement motor yachts with full-load operating drafts of 12 to 14 feet require marina basins dredged to at least 14 to 16 feet for safe navigation at all tidal stages. Hurricane Hole's 14.5-foot mean low tide depth accommodates most current superyachts comfortably. Vessels with drafts approaching this figure should confirm current sounding data at the time of reservation as dredging maintenance schedules affect actual available depth.
The 2022 redesign of Hurricane Hole added the following to the existing facility: Bellingham Marine floating concrete dock system (the only one in Nassau/Paradise Island), the rebuilt multi-phase power infrastructure with pedestals every 50 feet, a dredged basin to 14.5 feet mean low tide, the in-slip fueling system (the first in The Bahamas), 24-hour AI-assisted camera security with facial recognition, and the Captain's Lounge and Crew Gym facility. Concurrently, the Paradise Landing commercial development around the marina began adding provisioning, dining, pharmacy, wellness, and medical amenities that collectively transformed the marina into a complete destination community.
Vessels approaching Hurricane Hole from the west navigate to coordinates N 25 04.700, W 077 19.180, which positions the vessel at the standard western entrance to Nassau Harbour. From this waypoint the approach passes the white lighthouse at the tip of Paradise Island to port and the Silver Cay breakwater to starboard. Before entering the breakwater, vessels call Nassau Harbour Control on VHF channel 16 to receive clearance to enter. After clearing under both bridges (70-foot height clearance), Hurricane Hole is immediately to port with the fuel dock visible between the bridges. The marina monitors VHF channels 16 and 11.
Nassau's position as the primary large-vessel hub in The Bahamas results from the convergence of deep-water approaches through the Providence Channel, the presence of Hurricane Hole's superyacht infrastructure, Port of Entry customs and immigration clearance capability, proximity to Lynden Pindling International Airport for crew changes and guest embarkation, comprehensive provisioning at Paradise Landing, and the concentration of marine services providers on New Providence. No other Bahamian island combines these operational prerequisites at comparable scale, making Nassau and its associated Paradise Island marina infrastructure the natural anchor point for any Bahamian superyacht program.
