Can You Still Swim With The Pigs In The Bahamas?

Yes, you can still swim with the pigs in the Bahamas. The country's official tourism site still presents the swimming pigs as a live, bookable experience, with day trips described from both Nassau and the Exumas. Tour operators across the roster here are actively selling and running pig beach trips. No 2025 or 2026 official closure, ban, or change was found, though absence of evidence is not the same as a guarantee, and wildlife always stays wildlife. Before you book, it helps to read what official sources actually say about the swimming pig deaths, since the animals' welfare depends heavily on the operator you choose.

That is the direct answer, and it is worth being direct about it because the question itself carries a worried undertone. People ask "still" because they have seen an old headline, heard a rumor about the pigs being gone, or worried the whole thing shut down after some bad press. The reality on the ground, is a healthy, active tourism operation on two separate tracks: the famous wild colony at Big Major Cay in the Exumas, and the closer, easier colony on Rose Island just off Nassau.

The official Bahamas tourism page on the swimming pigs describes Big Major Cay as the official home of the experience, notes that about 20 pigs and piglets live on the uninhabited island, and states that day trips can be booked from Nassau or from the Exumas, including boat tours through the Exuma Cays with stops at Thunderball Grotto, Compass Cay, and more. That page being live and current is the strongest single signal that the experience has not been withdrawn.

On the commercial side, the evidence is even more concrete. Multiple operators are selling pig swim tours right now: a Rose Island beach club escape from $129 with a 4.7 rating from 1,680 reviews, an Exuma island hopping day from $438.90 with a 4.8 rating from 688 reviews, and a budget Rose Island water taxi trip from $89 per person carrying a 4.5 from 656 reviews. Operators do not list and price tours for an attraction that no longer exists.

Which Pig Beaches Are Still Open To Visitors?

Two separate pig beach experiences are still operating: the wild colony at Big Major Cay in the Exuma Cays, reached by full day boat or plane tours from Nassau, and the Rose Island colony a reported 20 to 30 minutes by boat from Nassau, served by half day beach club trips. Neither shows any sign of closing. These are different animals in different places, run by different operators, and a traveler comparing them is really choosing between a big commitment and a quick half day. Before you pick, our guide to how far each pig beach is from Nassau compares boat and flight times so you can match a tour to your schedule.

Big Major Cay is the one from the photographs. It sits roughly 82 to 86 miles southeast of Nassau by most reported figures, which is why every trip there is a full day affair: the speedboat run alone is reported at one to three hours each way depending on conditions and who you ask. The official tourism page confirms the pigs there, about 20 of them, and confirms that day trips run to them.

Rose Island is the pragmatic version. Operators report a 20 to 30 minute boat ride each way, which turns the whole thing into a two to six hour outing depending on the listing. The Rose Island pigs are a separate colony from the Big Major Cay animals, a distinction the official tourism page implicitly makes by naming Big Major Cay as the official home. For a cruise passenger with five hours in port, or a family with small kids, Rose Island is usually the realistic choice, and the Rose Island pig beach tours guide breaks down every listing on that route.

Both beaches are embedded in live, bookable products. On the Rose Island side alone there are 13 active listings on this site's roster, from a $75 per person resort day to a $258 six hour Sandy Toes beach day. That kind of commercial density does not survive an attraction closing.

Is Big Major Cay Still The Official Pig Beach?

Yes. The Bahamas Ministry of Tourism's own experience page still names Big Major Cay in the Exuma Cays as the official home of the swimming pigs, describes it as uninhabited, and says about 20 pigs and piglets live there with daily visits from tour boats. The page also lists the surrounding stops that Exuma day trips combine with the pigs: Thunderball Grotto, the Compass Cay nurse sharks, Stocking Island, Blow Hole Cay, the Bitter Guana Cay rock iguanas, and lunch at Staniel Cay. Nothing about that list suggests a scaled back or restricted operation.

The page adds context that matters for the "still" in the question. The pigs are not native to the island, and how they arrived is not known for sure: the commonly told stories say sailors left them there, or that they swam ashore from a shipwreck. The Ministry of Tourism repeats those stories as stories, not settled history, which is the honest framing. For the fuller version of that history, the why are there pigs in the Bahamas guide walks through what is known and what is legend.

What the official page does not do is promise you a pig encounter. No official source does, and no honest tour listing should. Wildlife, weather, and daily operations vary, and the pigs decide their own swim schedule. The right mental model is a very high probability of an encounter on a running tour, not a guarantee, and the is swimming with the pigs safe guide covers the realistic caveats, including that pigs can nip when food is present.

The practical takeaway: the flagship experience is intact, officially endorsed, and commercially active. If your question is whether the Big Major Cay pigs still exist and still receive visitors, the answer from the country's own tourism ministry is yes.

Where Do The Tours Still Run From?

Nearly all of the swimming pig tours that still run depart from Nassau or Paradise Island, with options split between Rose Island half day trips leaving from downtown waterfront meeting points and Exuma full day trips that head out by speedboat or small plane. Cruise passengers land at the same docks, at Prince George Wharf, and join the same departures. The departure map has not changed.

On the Rose Island side, meeting points cluster around the downtown waterfront: Señor Frog's on Woodes Rodgers Walk for the Tour Daddy water taxi and group beach day listings, Lukka Kairi Waterfront Bar and Grill for the featured beach club escape, and Paradise Island Ferry Terminal for the Sandy Toes and Pearl Island departures. One listing, the beach club trip with lunch and hotel pickup, lists 16 pickup options spanning hotels and the cruise port.

The Exuma departures are longer commitments. The Born Free Charters island hopping day, from $438.90 with a 4.8 rating from 688 reviews, departs from Carnivale Bahamas and runs 8 hours. The Aqua Shores powerboat day, from $439 with a 4.8 from 536 reviews, leaves from the Paradise Island Ferry Terminal. Plane-based options compress the transit: the Exuma Elite Escape, from $850 with a 4.8 from 580 reviews, includes a roundtrip flight plus hotel pickup, replacing the long boat run with a reported 30 to 45 minute flight each way.

For anyone weighing boat versus plane for the Exumas specifically, the Nassau to Exuma by plane or speedboat guide compares the two on time, cost, and comfort. The short version: the plane costs more and gives you more island time, the boat gives you the open-water run and a lower price.

The Sandy Toes six hour Rose Island day deserves a mention here too, because it shows how much variety exists on the short route: from $258, a 4.7 rating from 1,282 reviews, full Bahamian lunch, standard alcoholic drinks, and snorkel gear with a refundable $10 deposit, departing the Paradise Island Ferry Terminal. That is a genuine competitor to several Exuma days at nearly half the price.

How Do You Book A Trip That Actually Runs?

Pick a listing with free cancellation listed, book early in your stay rather than waiting until the last day, and know that Exuma boat trips are the ones most often rescheduled for rough seas. If that happens, operators typically respond by rebooking you or issuing a refund. Every listing on this site's roster currently shows free cancellation listed. The bigger risk to your pig swim is not the pigs vanishing, it is wind.

Weather is the honest answer to "does the tour actually happen." Operators and traveler reports describe Exuma speedboat runs getting choppy when winds climb, with steep short period waves on the open crossing, and cancellations for rough seas being routine rather than rare. Operators typically reschedule or refund. Rose Island trips, with a 20 to 30 minute protected ride, are far less exposed and run in conditions that would scrub an Exuma day. The weather and cancellations on pig tours guide covers this in depth.

Timing advice that follows from the reports: December through April is reported as the calmer, drier window for the Exuma run, with the trade off that it is also the busiest. Hurricane season runs June 1 to November 30, per NOAA's official Atlantic season definition, and a summer or fall booking should carry more schedule slack. If your trip allows, leave yourself a backup day.

Booking mechanics are simple. Each listing here links to the operator's live listing, where the current price, departure time, and availability calendar live. Check the listing for the meeting point and for anything the roster does not state, such as minimum ages or group size caps, because those vary by operator and are only authoritative on the listing itself.

One more running option worth naming: the turtle snorkel and pig combo from Delfincharters, from $150 with a 4.8 rating from 1,068 reviews, which strings together the pigs, a turtle sighting spot, and kayaks on Rose Island in 3 hours 30 minutes. It is a good illustration that the multi stop snorkel combos are alive and well, not just the classic beach club days.

What Does A Pig Swim Trip Cost Now?

Swimming with pigs in the Bahamas now costs between $75 and $258 per person for Rose Island group trips, depending on length and inclusions. Exuma speedboat days cluster between $378 and $439, plane-based Exuma days start at $850, and private charters begin at $775 per group. Every figure below comes from a live listing on this site's roster, and the spread is wide enough that the real question is not whether you can afford a pig swim, it is which format you want. Once you have settled on a format, the full rundown of every pig beach in the Bahamas covers the confirmed herds and which islands you can actually reach from Nassau on a day tour.

The pattern in the table is stable across the whole roster. The cheap seats are Rose Island no meal listings, the mid range is Rose Island and combo days with lunch and drinks, and the premium tier is anything that crosses to the Exumas. Inclusions matter as much as the sticker: the water taxi at $89 per person covers the beach entry fee and a guide and nothing else, while the $129 beach club escape lists a Bahamian lunch, a soft drink, snorkel gear, paddle boards, chairs, and all fees and taxes. For the full accounting, including what private charters buy you, the how much does swimming with pigs cost guide does the line by line comparison.

Are The Pigs Still There Year Round?

Yes, both colonies are permanent resident animals, not seasonal visitors: the Big Major Cay pigs live on the island full time, about 20 of them per the official page, and the Rose Island pigs are kept animals at a private beach operation near Nassau. There is no migration, no off season, and no month when the pigs are somewhere else. What changes through the year is the weather around them, not the animals themselves.

Sea conditions do shift. Approximate sea temperatures around Nassau and the Exumas run 23 to 26 degrees Celsius in January through March and 29 to 31 degrees in July through September, so the water is swimmable in every month, just warmer or cooler. The official hurricane season window, June 1 to November 30, is when cancellation risk on the Exuma crossing is highest. December through April is reported as the calmer seas window and therefore the most reliable booking period for the long run.

The question people sometimes really mean is whether the population recovered and stayed healthy. The honest, sourced answer: the official tourism page currently states about 20 pigs and piglets live at Big Major Cay. What can be said is that daily visits remain the norm and the official page describes a functioning attraction, which would not be the case with a collapsed colony.

Can Cruise Passengers Still Do A Pig Swim?

Yes, cruise passengers can still do a pig swim, and the Rose Island format fits a standard port day. Trips run 2 to 6 hours and leave from downtown meeting points just minutes from Prince George Wharf, where all Nassau cruise ships dock, so the timing and location both work for a day ashore. The Exuma boat days are the tight ones, with reported returns around 4:30 to 5:30 PM against typical all aboard times of 30 to 90 minutes before sailing, a squeeze that makes them risky on a short call.

The port logistics are favorable. Prince George Wharf sits at the edge of downtown Nassau, and the main Rose Island meeting points, Woodes Rodgers Walk and the Paradise Island Ferry Terminal, are short rides away. Reported guidance suggests keeping a buffer of roughly 45 minutes or more to get back to the pier. Whether a named cruise line offers its own pig excursion varies by line and sailing, so treat the independent listings as the dependable path and check your ship's all aboard time against the tour's stated return.

For the full decision, the swimming pigs on a Nassau cruise day guide and the Rose Island or Exuma from the cruise port guide walk the timing math. The featured beach club escape, 4 hours with lunch and drinks from $129, is a common cruise day choice, and Swim With Pigs Nassau lists it with its full inclusions. If you are still deciding whether the whole outing justifies the port effort, is it worth getting off the ship in Nassau makes the honest case.

Common Questions About Swimming Pigs In The Bahamas

Can You Still Swim With The Pigs In The Bahamas?

Yes. The official tourism page still describes the pigs and bookable day trips from Nassau and the Exumas, operators are actively running Rose Island and Exuma tours, and no 2025 or 2026 closure was found.

Are The Swimming Pigs Still On Big Major Cay?

Yes, per the official Bahamas tourism page, which currently describes about 20 pigs and piglets living on the island with daily tour visits.

Is Rose Island The Same As The Exuma Pig Beach?

No. The Rose Island pigs are a separate colony near Nassau, about 20 to 30 minutes away by boat. Big Major Cay in the Exumas is the official home of the famous swimming pigs, roughly 82 to 86 miles from Nassau by reported figures.

Did The Pig Tours Shut Down?

No shutdown was found. The roster of bookable tours is large and active, spanning budget water taxi runs, beach club days, Exuma speedboat trips, and private charters.

What Is The Cheapest Way To Swim With The Pigs Now?

On this site's roster, the lowest firm price is the Sand Dollar Resort day at from $75 per person, followed by the Rose Island water taxi at from $89 per person. Both are no meal listings.

Is There A Bad Time Of Year To Book?

Hurricane season, June 1 to November 30, carries higher cancellation risk on the Exuma crossing. December through April is reported as the calmer window. Rose Island trips are less weather exposed either way.