The Tribune

SCUBA Diving Magazine’s Annual Reader Rated Survey has awarded the Bahamas in nine categories for best diving.

The country has made the list for the last two decades.

According to the magazine, the Bahamas is the number one diving destination for encounters with big animals.

The islands of Bimini, Grand Bahama and New Providence were all on the list for epic animal encounters.

Shark Arena in New Providence was rated number two for animal encounters.

Stuart Cove’s, also in New Providence, got number three for best dive operator.

Black Hole in Andros was awarded number four in the region for unusual dives.

The Bahamas also listed in the top four destinations for live boards and made the top five listing for best visibility.

Sugar Wreck in Grand Bahama was awarded number six for best night dives and Tongue of the Ocean made the top 10 list for wall dives.

Bahamas Ministry of Tourism Dive Marketing Committee member William Cline said he was pleased with the news.

“We continue to rank exceedingly well in the Caribbean Basin with our dive products and yet again for almost 25 years ranked number one for the best diving destination for big animal encounters in the entire region,” he said.

“This is an amazing accomplishment for our destination.”