Anyone been to Bonaire?

[winniem]

Hi! I just joined this community planning a trip to Bonaire and was looking for any advice on good dive operators or sites from anyone who has been there? General tips welcome!

Thanks!

 

[diversteve]

Moved to the Bonaire forum...

 

[Dirty-Dog]

Buddy dive. We weren't able to stay at Buddy in October, but we dove with them. Awesome shop.

 

[KathyV]

Search the Bonaire forum for loads of information. We like to stay at Den Laman and dive with Bonaire Dive and Adventure; the house reef Bari Reef is the best house reef in Bonaire IMO. We prefer to stay in an apartment or kitchenette to cook some meals because eating out 3 times a day is expensive.

We always rent a car/truck in Bonaire. Even if you are not planning to do a lot of shore diving, I suggest getting a car for at least part of the time. It is an interesting island with lots of things to see like a pink sand beach, historical structures including slave huts, salt flats, desert landscapes, mangrove swamps, a flamingo sanctuary, mountains of salt, piles of conch shells, lots of animal life, a donkey sanctuary, a national park that winds through the jungle and along the seaside, windmill farms and more! Plus there are some nice restaurants and pubs to visit too!

 

[diver 85]

Just scroll down the Bonaire forum------a few have.....

 

[ak470125]

Hi there, husband and I are going to Bonaire this Saturday March 21st. Can't wait. We've never been there before so I can let you know how our trip went when we get back.

 

[gbf]

I did a set of documents several years ago for a first-timer friend, 10-12 pages. I've offered them up to a number of folks, and you can have them too if you want. You'll have to PM me a real email 'cause I can't figure out how/if attachments can be sent via PM.

May be useful to you, may be not, but you're welcome to them.

Just a bunch of "how we do it" and my opinions. Caution: my children say "daddy is easily confused".

 

[drrich2]

When we suggest doing a Search for prior threads, be mindful we enjoy talking about Bonaire and don't mind repeating it, but there's a lot of good, detailed knowledge in older threads. Would be a shame to miss something helpful. A few thoughts:

1.) When shore diving, walk in & out to waste deep water, fins off. You will need open-heel fins, not full-foot fins.

2.) Unless you arrange early & pay extra, the trucks are manual transmission (stick).

3.) Bonaire offers a number of 'one stop shop' 'turn key' solutions - resort, dive op., & sometimes rental truck (in the case of Buddy Dive Resort, even airport transfers when you arrive & leave). Buddy Dive Resort is a good overall choice. Some people like Hamlet Oasis (Dive Friends is the operator), or Sand Dollar Resort (choice of Dive Friends or Bonaire Dive & Adventure; latter has use of onsite pier but you don't need it). Some operators have onsite boat diving, but some of us go a few trips before we even get on a boat. Dive Hut is a budget option (not the only one) not fronting the ocean. Bamboo Bali has been spoken well of but it's distinctive in atmosphere from what I'm told. If you care to rent a place, check out Vinibu (Diver Vince is on this forum). I've not stayed there but it looks really nice. Divi Flamingo is a resort that's near town, if walking there matters.

4.) If you aren't nitrox certified, get it. Nitrox is often a free upgrade.

5.) Plan to pack the back of your truck so when you dive, nothing is left in the truck except scuba tanks. Petty theft from unattended vehicles is a concern; mainstream advice is leave truck doors unlocked & windows down while diving, so nobody breaks a window to 'shop.' Shore diving is such a fixture on Bonaire that people know when divers go in the water the truck is likely abandoned for 45 minutes or so.

6.) Bring bug spray; mosquitos will go after your legs in the evenings when you eat out.

7.) Notice whether your credit card charges foreign transaction fees. They add up.

Richard.

 

[htatton]

We were there 2 weeks ago. I am 71 years old and needed some assistance with heavy gear. The folks at Wannadive were great. They recognized what I needed and provided expert assistance for all my dives. I had a wonderful time. We stayed at Eden Beach and really enjoyed on of their totally refurbished 2 bedroom apts.

 

[hroark2112]

I always try to bring cash and avoid the credit cards.

For the flying teeth, order some mosquit-no bands & dots. My wife swears by them and she's never wrong (trust me!). http://www.mosquitnoband.com

Order a copy of Bonaire Shore Diving Made Easy. Perfect book for your first trip. All the sites are listed.

When people say don't dive the east side without a guide, believe them. However, it's totally worth diving the wild side. Contact Bas Tol at www.basdiving.com

I bring fruit chews for between dives. They don't melt and they're awesome for some energy and getting the salt water taste out of my mouth.