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ABC IslandsAruba, Bonaire and Curaçao make up these wonderful islands just north of South America. A wonderful climate accompanied with some wonderful diving make these a "must visit" for everyone.
We just returned yesterday from a week in Bonaire and is our second trip there. We booked somewhat at the last minute and had found Coral Paradise Resort had availability but did not know anything about it other than looking at their website (Coral Paradise Resort, Bonaire, Dutch Caribbean) since our last visit to Bonaire was back in 2005.
After our stay, we can honestly say that we would highly recommend the Coral Paradise Resort to anyone going to Bonaire!!! It is a new resort (couple months old) and Kenny & Margaret are great hosts and make you feel like family rather than just another guest. The rates were great and it was nice staying in something brand new.
The rooms are very nice and each have a large patio. The pool is also great to relax in after a day of diving. Kenny & Margaret have tried to think of everything you need for your stay and have done a great job in getting their resort up and running and having all of the items you need for your stay.
They have an arrangement with Captain Don's for the dive tanks and breakfasts if you include that in your package. It is a very short walk (few hundred feet from your patio) to Captain Don’s to get your dive gear or you can leave it hanging on the line on your patio as well. They plan on putting some lockers on their own property as well but the walk is not bad and you can drive your vehicle in via the Hamlet entrance right next to Coral Paradise entrance to get your tanks (same spot as people staying at Captain Don’s have to use).
I stayed there in April and have been trying to pass it along on the board as well. Kenny and Margaret are great folks and I hope to get back there soon. Capt Don's was also great to work with on the dive side of things. Don't think I would have changed a thing. Did a couple of dives this weekend in 60ish water temp., can't wait to get back to 82* and 100' vis.
We just got back from Coral Paradise and it was fantastic. Kenny and Margaret have a beautiful resort. We went on the advice of a friend who goes to Bonaire about twice per year and he was right. -- It's brand new and I love staying in new buildings. I'd give it a 9.5 out of 10.
The vibe im getting off of Trip Advisor is the owners or managers are doing all of these reviews themselves. Most of the reviews the person signed up for ther account and left only 1 review and this resort was it.
We are planning a trip down to Bonaire this November and we are probably leaning toward Buddy but this place popped up. I dont like the idea of having to leave all my gear at another resort altogether however.
We stay at Coral Paradise 4-09. Dove thru Capt Dons. Had a truck for shore diving. Coral Paradise was great, primarily because of Kenny and Margaret. Just like you said, like having family around - that you like. Hope to go back 4-10 and will stay at
CP. When we planned our trip we thought we would be shore diving all around the island. As it turned out the diving from shore at Capt. Dons, with four reefs out front was great. Between boat dives and shore diving from Capt Dons, we did not drive and dive all that much. Oil Slick though was a great drive and dive shore dive. TK
I can tell you that the review we posted on Trip advisor was ours not the owners. Fell free to contact me if you want to know more. Gear storage was not an issue. At CP, you are just as close to the waterside gear lockers at Capt Don's as some of the Capt. Don units. Capt Don has a nice set up with outdoor showers, gear lockers, rinse tanks, a nice divers dock with two wide ladder/steps and underwater rope leading you out from the dock to the reef. But hey, you got go with what feels right. TK
To be honest - I would just as soon not tell anyone else about Coral Paradise so that I could somehow keep it to myself so I wouldn't have any problems with availabulity when I get to go down there next. The problem with this is with only my business they wouldn't still be there when I do get to go back.
As for gear, we brought our gear back to CP after every dive. We dove both north and south and wanted to be able to just throw it in the truck and go. The dive lockers are really very close and you can just grab your gear when you pickup your tanks. Capt. Don's has a drive up loop that is right behind CP and you could just as easily grab everything at the same time.
Like tkaelin said, stay where you'd like, but Kenny and Margaret are such great folks that you will be missing out if you don't stay there. I'm planning on going back to Bonaire this next spring for two weeks, and I know where we'll be staying!
The vibe im getting off of Trip Advisor is the owners or managers are doing all of these reviews themselves. Most of the reviews the person signed up for ther account and left only 1 review and this resort was it.
We are planning a trip down to Bonaire this November and we are probably leaning toward Buddy but this place popped up. I dont like the idea of having to leave all my gear at another resort altogether however.
Don't know how you came to this conclusion but I don't believe it. Is it because it has not recieved any bad reviews and you just assume it has to be "false"? Ususally if something is too good to be true, it is. In the case of Coral Paradise Resort it really is too good but is true. Kenny & Margaret are very special people that treat all their guests just as special. It is like being with family without all the drama. We stayed in March and had a wonderful time and if we ever get back to Bonaire we will be staying with them again. Everything is convienent. They have a van to pick you up at the airport so there is no standing in line at the car rental agency. Your truck is already at Coral Paradise waiting for you. As was said earlier, your gear is very accessible at Capt Don's and is as close if not closer than if you were staying with Capt Don's. You also have the option of keeping your gear at your room if you wish with rinse buckets provided at Coral Paradise.
If you decide to stay at Coral Paradise please take Margaret some Progresso Italian Bread Crumbs and Kenny some Sun Chips. You will make their day!!!
Heh- conspiracy theorists on Scubaboard. -- You can go read my review (same user name) and PM me at either place. I'll call you from the states.
FYI (making my living as an internet geek) places like Tripadvisor, Craigslist etc use geo-iplookup to avoid spam. That means that if someone registers and claims they are from New York, the IP address better be from New York. -- For the owners to write their own reviews, they would have to do a lot of traveling.
Besides, if you don't like Tripadvisor, got to Bonaire Talk and read the reviews there. They have great reviews all over the net. Why? No conspiracy... It's just a great place run by great people.
Coral Paradise Resort (Bonaire)
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