Cheap Nassau Shore Excursions with a toddler

Traveling with a toddler does have its ups and downs, but cruising with a toddler makes it easier. We created an article about cruising with toddlers, and we also explained why a cruise with your toddler is a great way to travel. This article talks about cheap Nassau shore excursions you can do with a toddler, should your ship have a Nassau port of call.

Since there was a deal on a cruise from Jacksonville, FL to the Bahamas on Carnival Elation, we booked a 5 night cruise with stops in Princess Cays and Nassau. If you are on a budget, here’s some shore excursions in Nassau you can DIY with your toddler instead of booking with the cruise company or a third party. 

This post is a part of our travel with a family series. You can read more here: 

• How to Travel with a Baby
• Weekend in Gainesville Florida with a toddler
• Daytona Beach Weekend Getaway (with a toddler)
• How to travel to Columbus OH for cheap
• Things to do in Helen Georgia

Walk to Fort Fincastle (a cheap Nassau Shore Excursion)

Address: Greenwich Street, Nassau, Bahamas (can also put Fort Fincastle directly on Google Maps) 

From the cruise ship port, it’s only a quick 20-minute walk to Fort Fincastle. Once off the port, head straight then turn left on Bay Street. You’ll pass by the Parliament building on your right. These pink-colored buildings are government buildings and have nice squares where you can also let your kid run around and take photos. The street is really busy so take extra care when crossing the street. 

Turn right on Elizabeth Ave where you’ll pass by a hospital on your left. The end of Elizabeth Ave is the Queen’s Staircase. You can also opt to go through some windy roads to avoid the stairs. It just depends if your toddler is up to the challenge of the stairs or not! Note that some of the sidewalks are a bit narrow, so take extra care when walking and crossing the street. 

There is an entrance fee for the fort, which is around $4 per person, toddlers are free entrance. A guide will tell you more about the history inside, but they will ask for a tip. There are signs as well that you can read to learn more about the history of the fort and the different rooms. 

Expect to stay less than an hour exploring the fort. It is small with only a few rooms and only two levels to check. The view is pretty nice, you can see the cruise port on a great day. From there, you can also see the Fincastle water tower, which is a short walk away. 

Climb up or go down the Queen’s Steps (or both)

Address: Elizabeth Ave, Nassau, Bahamas

Once you’re done with Fort Fincastle, the Queen’s Steps (also known as the 66 Steps) is within a 5-minute walk. It is easier to climb down the steps than up, but you’re more than welcome to go both ways if you have the energy. This attraction is free of charge. The Queen’s Steps are hand carved from limestone rock and created an escape route from Fort Fincastle to the city of Nassau. The steps were made by former slaves in commemoration of Queen Victoria’s emancipation of the enslaved in the British Empire. 

The Queen’s Steps are doable if you have an active toddler who can walk or go up and down the steps. Our two-year-old son climbed down while holding on to the railing and on to dad. The railing can be dirty, so bring wipes to help your kids and the parents clean their hands after climbing up and down.

As expected on port days, the steps can be pretty busy, especially with tour groups. They are easy to go around since not many people block the steps to take photos as a courtesy to others.  

Swim in the water or play in the sand at Junkanoo Beach

Address: West Bay Street, Nassau 

If you turn right and walk almost 20 minutes from the port of Nassau, you’ll eventually come across a public beach. It is free of charge, but there is extra pay in case you want to rent umbrellas and chairs. Bring beach toys for your toddler, with lots of snacks and water since it may be hot. You’ll pass Christ Church cathedral and the Pirate museum on your way there, which you can also include as stops on your DIY trip. 

You could also purchase a day pass at some of the beaches near the cruise port to get to use their pool and beach. Some of them include consumable food or drink items from the cost of the day pass. However, we would strongly recommend just going to the public beach instead of availing of the day pass. The beaches are not really that nice on that side, so it’s essentially the same sand and water as the public beach. 

Christ Church Anglican Cathedral and the Pirates of Nassau

Tucked just a block from the shopping area is Christ Church cathedral. You may not be able to see inside since they operate only on certain days/hours. It is still a wonderful site to see since I never expected a cathedral within a few minutes walk from the cruise port. 

Just across the street from Christ Church cathedral are Pirates of Nassau. This is an extra pay activity, where you can learn more about the notorious pirates of the Caribbean (the Bahamas, mostly). If your child likes pirates, this could be an interesting stop for them and is an easy walking distance from the cruise port. 

In front of Pirates of Nassau is a pedestrian street that your toddler can use to run around. There are also restaurants and other stores in the area to stop in. 

Walking around Nassau’s Port to shops and Pompey Square 

There are many shops around Nassau’s port, and a lot of them can be found in your shopping guide. You can even make a full day in Nassau by going through the different stores on your shopping guide and getting the freebie charms they offer. However, we would not recommend that activity to a toddler. We tried to go shopping with our toddler but he got bored after 10 minutes and wanted to do something else. 

You can walk to Pompey Square which is a big park with a waterfront walkway that leads to the cruise port. You can see some cruise or cargo ships pass by if you’re lucky, and you’ll see how large they are up close. The park has foliage and a gazebo and is easily accessible to the cruise port.  

Within Pompey Square, you’ll also see a building with murals. This is the Pompey Museum, which focuses on slavery in a former slave market. This may be a bit too much for a toddler to comprehend, so you can come back and visit when your child is older and can understand more. 

Find the perfect handmade souvenir at The Straw Market 

If your child has the patience to go through shops, go ahead and visit the straw market. It is the oldest straw market in the Bahamas and is a big tourist draw. I wouldn’t really recommend buying regular souvenirs from here except for the straw items (purses, dolls, baskets, plates, and the like). It’s still a good stop since the building’s architecture looks nice from the outside.

Is the Straw Market in Nassau worth it? 

A lot of stores in the straw market sell the same touristy items. The straw market came about as a market where sellers can sell their handmade straw wares. Some legit straw weavers and sellers still sell in the market but are few and far between. The baskets they sell are not cheap, but they definitely are unique. You’ll have to walk around the aisles to find unusual items to bring home though, and it is not that big a place to navigate. 

This post is part of our cruising series. Read more cruising articles here: 

• Why book a Virgin Voyages Cruise
• Virgin Voyages Restaurants Guide – what restaurants are there and where to eat onboard
• The ultimate guide to Virgin Voyages activities on the ship/What to expect during Scarlet Night
• Port Guide and shore excursions in Costa Maya 
• Port guide and shore excursions in Bimini/What to expect at the Beach Club at Bimini
• Virgin Voyages Shopping Options
• Rhapsody of the Seas (Royal Caribbean Cruise Review)
• Holland America Alaska Cruise Review (MS Noordam)

Shopping in Nassau with a toddler 

We just went to the two or three shops with the toddler until he got restless and wanted to go back to the ship. If you are traveling with a partner, we did a divide-and-conquer approach. When the kid wanted to go back to the boat, one parent took the kid back while the other was still browsing around. After a set amount of time (say, an hour), the parent will go back to the ship and the other parent can go to the shops if there’s enough time left ashore. 

On our trip, it is usually me (the mom), who would go out of the ship to peruse the stores and I will text my husband with my finds and ask if he wants to buy or not. You may also opt to leave your kids in the kids club so you and your partner can have shopping time together. However, our child did not like the kids club and refused to go back after his second day there. 

Our phone plan allows us to text and use data internationally without any additional fees. If you’re interested, you can give Google Fi a try (affiliate link). This is a plus since we are in constant communication with each other. I can go back to the ship in case our toddler is having a fit, or I can show him photos if anything interesting catches my eye while he is out looking after the toddler.  

Should I keep my child’s schedule while on an excursion? 

We mostly stuck to our child’s schedule when he was with us instead of the kids club but we made generous changes every now and again. If your child usually eats at 11:30 in daycare, we usually give him a snack or two around that time and have a proper lunch after. 

Lunch is also more convenient to eat on the ship than ashore in Nassau. If you have a child who is a picky eater, the buffet usually has something that our toddler loves to eat and try. This is one reason why we prefer a DIY shore excursion: the ability to control our time. We did go on an organized shore excursion in Freeport but made sure we had enough snacks and the time spent ashore won’t be too long so we can be back for lunch. 

After lunch, our child’s schedule in daycare is usually to have a nap. If your child is still stimulated and loves the changes in the surroundings, let them sleep a bit later than usual. Because there are so many activities onboard and plenty of spots to run around, our toddler napped every single day of the cruise. These naps were long – between 2 to 4 hours! So, adapt and let your child still do his regular schedule but make adjustments as necessary.  

Should I leave my child at the kid’s club while I go on a shore excursion?

Up to your preference altogether, but cruise ship kids clubs are usually open even on port days. They are free of charge on Carnival and Royal Caribbean as long as your child is aged 2+ and it’s before a set cutoff time, say 9:00 pm. If you want to go snorkeling, such as an excursion we did in Nassau pre-kids, you can leave your kids at the kids club while you go to the shore excursion. However, that all depends if your kids like the kids club. 

When we were putting our toddler to the kids club for the first time, we were notified that they usually don’t provide meals for the children. It is up to us to give the children breakfast, lunch, snacks, and dinner. They generally have water if the toddlers get thirsty, but for our 2-year-old, we just couldn’t leave him there for a long period of time. 

Why we chose to bring our toddler on our cheap Nassau shore excursion

Moms and dads would know that some toddlers are always hungry. Ours gets hungry every 2 hours and needs a snack or a meal to tide him throughout the day. This means that we can only leave him at the kids club for around 2 to 3 hours before he has his meltdown and starts asking for food. There’s a catch though: at the time of his first cruise, he was a picky eater. 

We did a DIY shore excursion with our toddler to ensure our child gets to see the cities we were visiting and we would all make memories as a family. He may be too young to remember, but we, the parents, will. Plus all the photos we ended up with are worth it. 

Nassau Shore Excursions with a toddler

Traveling with toddlers has its challenges, but we definitely would not let that stop us from exploring the world as a family. Hopefully, this post helps you plan a Nassau shore excursion with a toddler. It can also help with your budgeting as well since a lot of these suggestions do not involve expensive cruise shore excursion packages. 

Nassau is really doable to explore on your own. Unless you want to do Atlantis or other snorkeling tours, then this will be your best bet to explore the city without spending too much money. 

Enjoy your DIY shore excursion of Nassau!