Curacao and Bonaire Dive sites

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clbrewton

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Hi,

I need some information and am hoping someone out there can provide me with it. I am a dive instructor working on a private yacht and we plan to anchor at Porto Marie for a night and then dive the next day and then head up to either Santa Martha, Santa Cruz, Knipbaii or West Punt and then dive for a few days. Would you be able to provide me the way points of places to drop anchor and for some good dive sites. I just started working on this boat and would like to be able to provide my boss with some exciting dives. I know his passion is diving although I am not sure of his ability.

I will be heading to Bonaire after this and would like to find some great sites and get the way points.

Thank you so much in advance for your help.

Christa L. Brewton
PADI 198527
 
Hi Christa,

The west side of Bonaire is full of great sites, and everyone has their opinion on which is better. Get a copy of Bonaire Shore Diving Made Easy (BSDME) at Bonaire Talk - The place to discuss everything and anything about Bonaire!. My personal favorite is the Bari reef system just north of town. It has the greatest diversity of fish in the hemisphere. On the other hand, I have always been disappointed with the sites on Klein Bonaire. Another great resource is the database at Reef Environmental Education Foundation (REEF) | Diving That Counts.
 
Welcome to the board.
Not sure about Curacao but basically you can't anchor on Bonaire. You can moor to a bouy in the harbor and maybe some other docks but dropping an anchor is a sure way to get a big fine from the park...and trust me anyone suffering from PBD will call the marine park police in a second. There are dive mooring buoys...not sure about private boats using them.
If you are talking about the same Porta Maria I dove at, it's not likely you can anchor there either. It is a private beach.
The best suggestion I have is to dock in the harbor, rent a truck, buy Susans book and shore dive.
 
Not sure, but I think the same general rules about anchoring that are present in Bonaire also apply to the Curacao coast or, at least, parts of it. Our diving was from Sunset Waters with Sunset Divers. All the boat dives were from fixed moorings. In our experience, the diving was as good on Curacao as on Bonaire.
 

The correct website for Bonaire Shore Diving Made Easy is Bonaire Shore Diving Made Easy, BSDME, Author Susan Porter. This is the author's website and gives you all the info you need to order. The site quoted, while full of info, is the site "Bonaire Talk".

In Bonaire you will need to purchase Marine Park tags for diving and attend a Marine Park orientation. Many folks who arrive by private yacht use their dinghies to dive from after mooring their yachts in the "mooring field" or docking in the marina... be sure to check out the rules for the dive site moorings when using your dinghy.
 
Curacao: Dive the Superior Producer for sure. You should find a large buoy near the mega pier that marks the Producer. It was there when I last dove it in 2006. There is also a tugboat wreck , but I can't remember the beach. No it is not the "tugboat" that is only in 15' of water. This one is 145' down to the bow (shallow end). I don't have access to my pictures or I could look it up for you, since I'm deployed right now to "sandy area". There is a good website out there on dive locations for Curacao, plus you can try and contact some of the local shops. We always used "Silent Immersion" when we were there. Didn't care for the diving at Porto Marie. I thought it was pretty boring. LIke I said at the beginning, try the Producer if at all possible. Its a must see. I have a few pictures on my website at seekerdiveservice.com
 
STINAPA - Bonaire National Marine Park - Moorings has details about where you can moor on Bonaire. I think it's a huge fine if you drop an anchor as the Marine Park encompasses the whole island. And the Rangers do check, we were boarded on a diveboat to verify that everyone had their Marine Park tags.
 
Hi Christa,

If you are mooring close to Santa Cruz in Curacao the Mushroom Forest is a must-dive. It's my favourite Curacao dive and one of the 'world's top 10' according to a dive mag... Someone on this forum wrote recently that it's no longer a great dive, but I disagree. I'm in Curacao every year, do it at least once every trip and it's always a fun, relaxing a beautiful dive. Not too deep [30 - 50 feet], with lots of fish and wonderful coral formations.

The Mushroom Forest is just east off of Santa Cruz beach. If you want a guide to the site, Captain Goodlife is a hilarious character who operates a water taxi service that ferries people to the site. He also runs a small restaurant right on the water where you can have freshly grilled fish and the best home-made french fries you'll ever eat.

Have a great trip!

Johanna
Hi,

I need some information and am hoping someone out there can provide me with it. I am a dive instructor working on a private yacht and we plan to anchor at Porto Marie for a night and then dive the next day and then head up to either Santa Martha, Santa Cruz, Knipbaii or West Punt and then dive for a few days. Would you be able to provide me the way points of places to drop anchor and for some good dive sites. I just started working on this boat and would like to be able to provide my boss with some exciting dives. I know his passion is diving although I am not sure of his ability.

I will be heading to Bonaire after this and would like to find some great sites and get the way points.

Thank you so much in advance for your help.

Christa L. Brewton
PADI 198527
 
https://www.shearwater.com/products/perdix-ai/

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