WE LOVE BONAIRE! Trip report and video – November, 2014

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choiahoy

Contributor
Messages
246
Reaction score
171
Location
New York City
# of dives
200 - 499
Amazing fourteen days!


- ACCOMODATIONS / TRAVEL / CAR RENTAL
We rented a studio at Bridanda Apartments. It’s in a secluded complex across from Sand Dollar. Nice hosts, though we will probably stay elsewhere on future trips. We need more of a kitchen than a kitchenette as we tend to cook a lot.
We flew on the new Friday Delta flight from NYC. All went smoothly, and we were able to get our check dive in the day we arrived.
Our truck was from AB Car Rental. We actually went through three different trucks (battery then air conditioning problems) but their customer service was awesome and swapping trucks was easy and fast. We recommend getting the full insurance--last year I had a small bender and thought my credit card covered it, but most cards don’t include trucks or sports cars in their coverage. We’ll definitely use AB again.

- DIVING
We used Wannadive again this year, and they were fantastic. Ample tanks, 24 hour access, and a wonderful, friendly staff. My wife and I got our AOW here specifically so we could be instructed by Linda. She kicks serious ass. I highly recommend her to anyone looking to certify on Bonaire. She’s fun, and you’ll learn a lot at the same time.

Our favorite dive this trip was the drift dive from Candyland to Taylor Made. It was initially described to us as “Karpata on steroids.” There are so many more fish than anywhere else on the island. Immediately upon descending, we saw a huge school of barracuda, a swarm of baby midnight parrotfish, tons of black durgons, as well as stingrays and turtles. Other diving highlights were Salt Pier, Karpata, and Vista Blue.

We did most of our night dives at Front Porch (Eden Beach)--an underrated dive spot, I think; we'd park to the far right of Spice and enter there, turning right to hit the reef. After our tanks were down to half, we'd turn around and hit the oil tank
at about 30’ where there were always interesting things to see. But our favorite part of the dive was looking around the ledge near the ladder at about 6’, where there were all kinds of critters out and about. Lots of tarpon hunting using your lights--some will even bump you out of their way to get a fish.

The worst (and most expensive) dive we did, by far, was a guided shore dive at Cai. Though no fault of our guide, the visibility was mud and few critters were out. It was very disappointing as we were so looking forward to the dive. Hoping for better luck on the next trip, and we’ll likely try it via boat.


- SEA LIFE
The highlight was a HUGE manta ray spotting on Front Porch! My wife and I were doing our navigation dive for our AOW when it right swam past us (no camera, of course). I was so surprised that I nearly spit my regulator out of my mouth.

We saw lots of turtles, stingrays, flamenco tongues, spotted drums, and most of the usual suspects. But we saw only one eagle ray and one octopus. No sea horses or frogfish. We saw lots of lionfish on some sites and none on others, so it seems like the culling efforts are working well in places.


- DINING

The food was significantly better on this trip than last year. We tried to be much smarter and avoided eating at the resort restaurants. Most nights, we grilled meat and veggies from Van den Tweel.

Some dining highlights -

- Between 2 Buns – great for breakfast or lunch. My wife had an obsession with The Godfather sandwich and their lattes. For me, it was the steak and cheese and the sandwich that has melted brie and honey.

- Mi Banana – delicious Columbian food. We ate there twice. The owners don’t speak English, but they were very kind and helpful, and communication wasn’t a problem. I had the Creole wahoo and my wife had the chicken. Both were great and the beer was cold.

- Kite City – this might be our favorite lunch of the trip. Every morning on Facebook, they’ll list what fresh fish they’re serving. Everything we had was great. The barracuda burger was fantastic--very flavorful and with a perfect crispy skin. You really just have to try it to understand.

- China Nobu – the take out lunch specials aren’t advertised in the restaurant but ask for the lunch special menu or find it on their webpage. For $5, we got a huge container of delicious lo mein that was enough for two people.

- Kip Tukkie Smoked Chicken truck – he’s parked outside the Warehouse and Van den Tweel grocery stores; check his Facebook page for his hours. Delicious smoked chicken - $13 for a whole bird / $7 for half.

- Van den Tweel – good selection of food. Before, you needed to weigh your produce before paying; that’s not true anymore, which makes shopping much easier. Bring a quarter for the cart and save and re-use your shopping bags, or you’ll have to pay for them each time.


- SECURITY / CRIME
Luckily, we didn’t have any problems, but generally, the only things we leave in the car are bottles of water and spare contact lenses.

We did notice much more of a police presence on the island, which was reassuring, after reading about all the recent armed robberies. Last year, the police were like frogfish--you knew they existed but never saw any.


We love this island and can’t wait to return soon for trip number three. Enjoy the video!

 
Thank you so much for taking the time to post. I also love 'The Godfather' at Between 2 Buns. Too bad about the poor vis on the East side. I hope you get a chance to try it again. Congrats on the manta sighting!
 
The worst (and most expensive) dive we did, by far, was a guided shore dive at Cai. Though no fault of our guide, the visibility was mud and few critters were out. It was very disappointing as we were so looking forward to the dive. Hoping for better luck on the next trip, and we’ll likely try it via boat.

Sorry to hear that! Viz. was fine when I did it, but of course, that changes over time.

Richard.
 
Will be there in a week and a half- this is very helpful. :) Thanks for such a great report.
 
Thank you so much for the superb video. Great vis and it totally captures Bonaire. I ache right now. My last two trips (neither to Bonaire) were 1) a disaster and 2) somewhat less than desired, respectively. This video is something I'll be watching repeatedly till I can get back (and probably even after - my video is awful compared to your's).
 
What great video... Can I cross off your names and call it Fran and Jim ... It would save me a lot of time editing with my gopro... LOL

Jim
 
Great video! Cant' wait to go!
 
Great report thanks so much for sharing....I also love my little S110 and my husband and I have a little Cavalier King Charles Spaniel !
 
https://www.shearwater.com/products/teric/

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