Vacation Divers Looking for Resort with best "Beach Diving", Pref All Inclusive

[TechGuise]

Hi Folks, I'm new to forum. Hoping to get some advice (and or opinions) on possible destinations.

The wife and I get to go diving every year or so on vacation, have for last 12-13 years.

We've mostly done the SANDALS thing..... Get on the boat, ride for 30 minutes, jump in the water, stay with the group, etc....

What we'd like to try is a resort that has some pretty good diving from the beach. We don't necessarily need "THE BEST REEF EVER", or "THE MOST AWESOM SEALIFE".... we really just like being underwater together and exploring the surroundings.
Of course the more cool things there are under the surface the better, but it's not the main draw for us.

We mainly go on the vacations to relax and be alone. We want to put out as little effort as possible to get in the water.

So with that in mind, does anyone have any recommendations on a resort that meets the following criteria. I'll list them in order of importance.

Nothing in Mexico
Nice Accomadations (All Inclusive is preferred)
Beach diving (hopefully with either a service to bring tanks to us, or dive shop close to the dive spot)

Thanks for any help.
J

 

[KeithG]

Bonaire should fit. Look at captn dons, buddy dive or divi flamingo. All provide both boat and shore (dock) dives.

They all will provide a better dive experience than the cattle boat operations you have been subjected to so far.

For minimum effort I like the dock dives from the divi. Gear is stored in lockers out at the end of the dock. Along with the tanks.

To maximize your minimum effort, consider a live aboard. You do not even have to break down your gear after each dive.

The easiest way to "be alone" is to only do buddy dives together. There is no requirement to do group dives. Ooh... Did you want to be alone above or below the water?

 

[divers bonaire]

Hi ,


Looking for a vacation to relax and be alone please visit us “Our Home Away From Home - Your Perfect Getaway.


You want to put out as little effort as possible to get in the water please visit us. Our ground floor studio at Sand Dollar, one of the closest units to the dive shop and pier, is just steps away from some of Bonaire's finest diving and snorkeling. Bari Reef, rated #1 for variety of fish in the Caribbean by Scuba Diving Magazine is your front yard and available to you 24 hours a day to enjoy. We are also within walking distance to some of Bonaire's best bars, restaurants and shopping.


Hope to be able to accommodate your perfect vacation getaway. Good luck finding your vaction.


Divers Bonaire


QUOTE=TechGuise;6645379]Hi Folks, I'm new to forum. Hoping to get some advice (and or opinions) on possible destinations.

The wife and I get to go diving every year or so on vacation, have for last 12-13 years.

We've mostly done the SANDALS thing..... Get on the boat, ride for 30 minutes, jump in the water, stay with the group, etc....

What we'd like to try is a resort that has some pretty good diving from the beach. We don't necessarily need "THE BEST REEF EVER", or "THE MOST AWESOM SEALIFE".... we really just like being underwater together and exploring the surroundings.
Of course the more cool things there are under the surface the better, but it's not the main draw for us.

We mainly go on the vacations to relax and be alone. We want to put out as little effort as possible to get in the water.

So with that in mind, does anyone have any recommendations on a resort that meets the following criteria. I'll list them in order of importance.

Nothing in Mexico
Nice Accomadations (All Inclusive is preferred)
Beach diving (hopefully with either a service to bring tanks to us, or dive shop close to the dive spot)

Thanks for any help.
J[/QUOTE]

 

[diversteve]

Best Beach? or best Shore diving. Because none of the above suggestions are the best beach, Don's, Buddy and Sand Dollar are on the ironshore. Buddy has a strip of sand poolside but it takes a ladder to get to the water. The nicer beaches are at Harbor Village, the Plaza Resort or Eden Beach. The Divi has a small beach also, it looked to me to be man-made. Also Plaza's shore dive is a good walk from the villas. There is a lot of waterfront at the Plaza but only some of it is beachfront. And the best part of the beach has the bar, water toys and volleyball court so it tends to be more crowded - Plaza is a good-sized resort.

Some of the Villas at Harbor Village have that walk out the door onto the beach setup and they have the nicest one on Bonaire. Not the best dive there though, there is a little sailboat wreck - there's less reef since the beach is so nice and flat.

 

[chauncy19]

could be wrong but the plaza might be only choice of an all inclusive on Bonaire. there is a trip there sponsored by this board you might be interested in this summer.
anyway just an idea.

 

[diversteve]

could be wrong but the plaza might be only choice of an all inclusive on Bonaire.

Good point, you're right. Buddy's includes breakfast but everything else is extra. All the others named are not AI. At Divi you can add a meal plan - it's $85/day. From there, you can walk to many good restaurants downtown also - probably the only place that's easily possible.

Another nicer option might be a couple of places on Curacao.

Lodge Kura Hulanda in Westpunt is on a great shore dive, it's one of the Leading Small Hotels of the World and is very nice - I've been there. Their beach is only fair, it's mostly a strip of sand between ironshore cliffs and there's reef out in the water off most of it. There's a good aerial shot in the header on their webpage that shows it. The dock next to it with the boat is the dive dock so it doesn't get much easier. They also have lockers/showers since the resort is actually slightly uphill from there. http://www.kurahulanda.com/en/lodge

They have a full AI option but that doesn't include diving afaik. Go West Diving is on-site and it's on the Playa Kalki/Alice in Wonderland dive site - one of the best on the island. It's also fairly reasonable in the summer. Downside? is it's very quiet in Westpunt, there's not much else there except a few local restaurants and it's a 45min. drive back to town/airport etc.

On the other end of the island - east of downtown Willemstad is Lions Dive & Beach Resort. About 5mins. drive from downtown. It's on Mambo Beach, one of the nicer ones there, Ocean Encounters main location is about 50 yds. down the boardwalk and there's a shore dive there. I've not done it so IDK how good it is. Next door is the SeaQuarium and they do the dolphin dives from there as well. There's 2 restaurants on-site and several others walking distance nearby - most are beachfront. You can make it a full AI by adding the meal plans for +/- $80. http://www.lionsdive.com/en/

That area is a little busier since there are several resorts nearby, also the Dive Bus is there if you wanted to do some effortless shore diving elsewhere. http://www.the-dive-bus.com/

 

[vladimir]

If you take a beachfront suite at Harbour Village Beach Club, you'll be 50 paces from the dive shop and the shore. Your gear will be available 24 hours in a locker there. You can wade in off the lovely beach, or take a boat from the pier at 9:00, 11:00, or 2:00. Boat rides are generally 10 to 15 minutes. Seas are flat. Currents are minimal.

The accommodations are spacious, with a living room, bedroom, kitchenette, anteroom, and nice large bathroom with double vanity, large soaking tub (fits 2), separate shower, separate toilet, etc. The air-conditioning can refrigerate the suite. The suite has a fenced off sitting/lounging area outside, just off the beach.

The restaurant, La Balandra, is on a jetty jutting into the channel between Bonaire and Klein, adjacent to the marina—perhaps the best setting for a restaurant on the island. The food is good.

The reef directly out front is pretty beaten up, but there is decent reef a short swim south, and there is a little wreck out front in ~60' of water. If you're really lazy (and I am), there are juveniles, eels, and octopuses in the shallow water in front that make for a good macro dive as night falls.

It is not all inclusive, but the dive package is pretty reasonable (though the rooms are not cheap).

 

[cardzard]

Join the ScubaBoard Invasion to Bonaire we have it all.
http://www.scubaboard.com/forums/invade-bonaire-2013/437012-invade-bonaire-2013-package-deal.html

 

[Quero]

How about something like Sorido at Raja Ampat. Or Atlantis at Dumaguete? Or anywhere in the Maldives?

 

[Tzetsin]

I can't really recommend any all inclusive stuff, but I can say that if you go to Mactan island in the Philippines you absolutely wont be disappointed. I've got about 70 dives in the area there and I can honestly say the very best dives are right off shore. I can put you in touch with some local DMs that can take care of everything but accommodations for you.

Kontiki house reef is about 20 m offshore for fantastic coral and tropical fish up to 15m after the 20m is a 1000m wall for your enjoyment. Just down the way a bit is Marigondon cave, about 8m across and 10m high, its more like a cavern that you can pop into for a few mins with no real caveing experience. Top of the cave is at 30m, bottom at 40m, so its best to slip in at the top, the cave goes up to about 25m once your inside.

There are a couple sanctuaries a 10 min boat ride from shore too, a shipwreck (more wreck than ship these days though) and a downed plane (at 15m and 18m respectively)

Its best to rent a boat, then dive "offshore" that way you can go up and down the coast and not deal with traffic.

There are all flavors of resorts to stay at along the same coast, but those will run you between 100 and 250usd a night. I'd recommend plantation bay, its reasonably priced and close marigondon cave. best spot for shore dive is kontiki by far though. they do have rooms there, and a restaurant, not 5 star, but fantastic just the same.

There is also dolfin, whale shark, threasher shark and sea turtle diving on the main island if you dont mind traveling by land on a tour to see them all.

Actually this place has the best shore diving i've ever seen on cebu, at about 100 usd a night, you'll feel like you own the place. I know the owner, he's an englishman who's been diving cebu for the last 30 years, he will take great care of you. I believe he has dive equipment there for let as well, I bring my own when I'm there, so i'm not sure. The resort is about a 2 hour drive from the airport though.

I should mention that the international airport is on Mactan, the same island as all the dives i mentioned before. 10/15 mins from the airport to plantation bay.

Take a look at the area, there is a lot of diving there, so you wont have any trouble finding some all inclusive deals.

Cheers and good luck!
Jason

Edit; I just took a look, Kontiki divers has everything you might want right on this website. Dont do the safari thing, you could dive off their doorstep every day for a week and see more than most. Matter of fact, for the last 2 months there has been a huge school of mackerel and sardine fish just off shore of kontiki, and all the preditors that implies (no large fish however.) I can't recommend this place enough. Night diving here is excellent too, if your brave and can find someone willing to take you down, marigondon cave has a large school of flashlight fish which make an amazing lightshow on the walls of the cave at night. If your a skilled and seasoned diver, you can do it on one tank, but it'd have to be fast as 30m deep, night, in cave, in the dark, tends to make most people suck back the air. (all the dive shops use alu80 tanks \ 200 bars) and thats just barely enough for a safe dive in these conditions. You can see flashlight fish on the wall off of kontiki at about 35m too, but there is no lightshow.