Routes

Private Jet to Bahamas: Cost, Customs, Best Airports

Runway, fuel and customs reality for every Bahamian airport worth

A private jet to Bahamas destinations is one of the shortest international trips in business aviation. Fort Lauderdale to Nassau covers roughly 180 nautical miles. In a light jet that is about 45 minutes in the air.

The flying is easy. The paperwork and the airport choice are what separate this trip from a domestic hop.

Two decisions drive your cost and your day. Which island you land on, and where you clear customs. Pick the “closer” strip without checking its status and you can add a leg, an hour, and a few thousand dollars.

Choosing an airport for your private jet to the Bahamas

Only a handful of Bahamian airports can both take a jet and clear you into the country. Runway length, fuel, and airport-of-entry status are three separate questions. An airport can pass one and fail the others.

The table below uses the airport directory published by the Bahamas Ministry of Tourism. Runway figures are length by width in feet.

Harbour Island has no airport of its own. You land at North Eleuthera and take a short taxi and water-taxi ride across. Most Andros resorts work the same way, with San Andros or Congo Town feeding a road transfer.

Treat published runway length as a starting point, not a clearance. Heat, a wet surface, and a full fuel load all shorten what your aircraft can actually use. Your operator runs the real performance numbers.

The out-island math that catches people out

The closest airstrip to your villa is often the most expensive way to arrive. Staniel Cay is the clearest example on the whole route.

Staniel Cay sits in the middle of the Exuma chain at 3,030 feet of runway, with no fuel and no customs post. A jet cannot use it at all. Even in a King Air 350 you must first land at a port of entry, clear in, then fly a second leg back out to the cay.

That second leg is not free. You pay another 30 to 40 minutes of billable time, a second landing fee, and a second handling charge. The “closer” airport has now cost more than Exuma International, which is 8,000 feet of runway with jet fuel and customs on the field.

Here is the position we will defend: for most Exuma and Abaco cay trips, clearing at Nassau or George Town and finishing by boat beats putting the aircraft on the small strip. Boat transfers in the Exumas run on schedule, cost a few hundred dollars, and do not consume aircraft time at $5,000 an hour.

Customs and immigration for a private jet to the Bahamas

Four filings sit between you and the beach. Two go to the United States, two go to the Bahamas. Your operator or broker files most of them, but the responsibility is the pilot in command’s.

Before you leave the US

US Customs and Border Protection requires an eAPIS manifest for every general aviation departure from and arrival into the United States. It must be submitted no later than 60 minutes before departure. The notice of departure goes in the same transmission as the manifest.

You also need an international flight plan. The Federal Aviation Administration requires a DVFR or IFR flight plan and a discrete transponder code to cross the ADIZ southbound.

Clearing into the Bahamas

You must land at an airport of entry first. Every passenger needs a passport, and the Bahamas Department of Immigration lists a return or onward ticket and evidence of funds as things officers may ask for. US citizens do not need a visa for stays up to eight months.

Customs clearance runs on Form C7A, the inward declaration and cruising permit. The Bahamas Customs and Excise Department accepts it through the Click2Clear Pleasure Aircraft Module, or on paper in triplicate with a C9 passenger manifest. Nassau, Freeport and West End accept two paper copies. An officer must stamp and sign it, and you keep a stamped copy for island hopping.

Each passenger also completes a Bahamas immigration card. The country began piloting a digital arrival card in 2026, but the paper card remains standard, so ask your handler which one applies on your arrival date.

Bahamas Customs publishes an inbound processing fee of $150 for a private charter with more than four seats, and $75 for four seats or fewer. Departure tax is $29 per passenger. The Ministry of Tourism’s pilot page lists a lower $50 aircraft processing fee for private flights where the pilot declares no payment was received, so which figure applies depends on whether your flight is a charter.

Hours matter more here than anywhere else. Ministry of Tourism guidance puts normal customs hours at 9:00am to 5:30pm, and states that only Nassau and Freeport have instrument approaches for arrivals after sunset. Out-island offices keep shorter hours than that, so confirm staffing for your exact date with the handler and the Bahamas Civil Aviation Authority.

Returning to the US

You file eAPIS again, at least 60 minutes before wheels up. You then phone the CBP port of arrival directly and get permission to land from the officer on duty. That call is not optional and no broker can make it disappear.

Your return airport must be one where CBP actually clears general aviation. Aircraft 30 feet or longer also need a current annual user fee decal, bought through CBP’s DTOPS portal, listed at $36.94 for 2026. Check the decal is current before the trip, not on the ramp.

What a private jet to the Bahamas costs

Charter is billed on total aircraft time, not on your time in the seat. That single fact explains why a 45-minute hop is never a 45-minute invoice.

Day trip, Fort Lauderdale to Nassau, light jet, four passengers. The aircraft is based in Naples, so it flies 35 minutes to pick you up and 35 minutes home afterward. Add 45 minutes each way for the ocean crossing. Total billable time is 2 hours 40 minutes. At an hourly rate of $4,800 for an Embraer Phenom 300, that is about $12,800 of aircraft time for 90 minutes of flying.

Now add the international layer: roughly $900 for international handling and permits, $150 for the Bahamas customs entry fee, $116 in departure tax for four passengers, and about $150 in landing and parking. Call it $14,100 all in.

Three-day trip, Teterboro to Exuma, super-midsize, six passengers. Flight time is about 2 hours 45 minutes each way, so 5.5 hours flown. Most operators apply a two-hour daily minimum, which over three days is six hours. You pay for six. At $8,500 an hour in a Challenger 350, that is $51,000, plus around $1,200 in handling, two crew overnights near $1,400, and roughly $1,000 in fees. Call it $54,600.

The daily minimumThe minimum number of flight hours an operator bills per day regardless of how long you actually fly. Commonly two hours, which makes short hops expensive per mile. is the line most quotes bury. On a short international trip it can add a full hour of billing that you never flew.

The tax rule that works differently here

The 7.5% federal excise tax on charter does not apply the way it does domestically. Flights that begin or end in the United States pay a per-person international facilities tax instead. The IRS Form 720 instructions set that at $23.40 per person for 2026, and the NBAA tracks the annual adjustment. Positioning legs flown entirely inside the US can still be taxed separately, so ask your operator to show the tax lines on the quote rather than a single bundled total. For the wider picture see our private jet charter cost breakdown.

Realistic flight times from US cities

These are estimates for a direct routing with no weather deviation. Aircraft category changes them by 15 to 30 minutes.

• Miami or Fort Lauderdale to Nassau: 45 minutes, light jet
• Palm Beach to Nassau: 50 minutes, light jet
• Atlanta to Nassau: 1 hour 50 minutes, midsize
• Charlotte to Nassau: 2 hours, midsize
• New York area to Nassau: 2 hours 30 minutes, midsize
• Dallas to Nassau: 3 hours 15 minutes, super-midsize
• Miami to Exuma (MYEF): 1 hour 15 minutes, light jet

Which airport is right for your trip

Season, storms, and booking lead time

December through April is peak season, and availability tightens hard around Christmas, New Year and Easter. Two to three weeks of lead time is comfortable in winter. Inside a week you are taking whatever tail is left.

Hurricane season runs from June to November, with the highest risk in August through October. Rates soften, but trip insurance and a flexible cancellation policy matter more than the saving. Operators will not launch into a named storm track.

Shoulder months, especially May and early June, are the value window. Weather is settled and the Florida repositioning traffic that feeds this route is still heavy.

Booking a private jet to the Bahamas: the verdict

Book the airport that clears you, not the airport that is closest. Nassau or Exuma plus a boat almost always beats a second flight leg onto a short strip. If you are new to chartering, our guide to chartering a private jet covers the quote process end to end.

Ask three questions before you sign. What is the total billable time including positioning, what is the daily minimum, and are the Bahamas entry fees and taxes inside the quote or outside it. Compare other warm-weather options in our route guides, or look at what a private island rental adds on arrival.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do you need a passport to fly private to the Bahamas?

Yes. The Bahamas Department of Immigration requires a passport from every person entering the country, and CBP requires one to re-enter the United States by air. Officers may also ask for a return or onward ticket and evidence that you can support yourself during the stay. US citizens do not need a visa for visits of up to eight months.

Which Bahamian airports can a private jet actually land at?

Nassau (MYNN) and Freeport (MYGF) take any business jet on 11,000-foot runways, and Governor's Harbour (MYEM) and Exuma (MYEF) handle large-cabin aircraft on 8,000 feet or more. Treasure Cay and North Eleuthera suit light and midsize jets. Marsh Harbour at 5,000 feet is realistically turboprop and light jet territory, and small cays like Staniel Cay are turboprop only.

How much does a private jet to the Bahamas cost from Florida?

Plan on roughly $12,000 to $16,000 for a light jet day trip from South Florida to Nassau, including handling and entry fees. The flying is 45 minutes each way, but the positioning legs to and from the aircraft's home base are billable, which pushes a day trip to about 2.5 to 3 hours of aircraft time.

Can you fly into a small Bahamian island without clearing customs first?

No. You must land at a designated airport of entry and clear customs and immigration before flying on to any other field. Staniel Cay, Norman's Cay and most private strips are not ports of entry, so reaching them means clearing at Nassau or Exuma and then flying a second leg.

What paperwork does the operator file for a Bahamas trip?

The core filings are an eAPIS manifest to CBP within 60 minutes of departure in both directions, an international flight plan, the Bahamas C7A inward declaration and cruising permit through Click2Clear, and an immigration card per passenger. The pilot must also phone the CBP port of arrival for permission to land on the way home. Confirm all of this is inside your quote rather than billed later.

We update this guide as aircraft, program, and route pricing changes. Spotted something out of date? Tell us and we'll check it.