December?

[Willar]

We are thinking of going to Bonaire in early December. I assume the weather is pretty consistent and will be no problem. If you have been there then, what can we expect for weather, water temp and visibility? Is the island busy, average, or quiet during that time? Thank you for your help!

 

[Doctorfish]

I've had mixed experience in early December. Two trips, one was beautiful with good vis and clear skies. The other was rain 24/7 with bad run off and 20 foot visibility except on the far side of Klein where it was clearer.
Island was average in terms of how busy.

 

[DustyC]

I've had mixed experience in early December. Two trips, one was beautiful with good vis and clear skies. The other was rain 24/7 with bad run off and 20 foot visibility except on the far side of Klein where it was clearer.
Island was average in terms of how busy.

Was the bad year 2016? We had the same experience then. Great in December of 15. Heading back on 12/8

 

[tarponchik]

Did 2 December trips (2007 and 2014), it can be quite rainy. Keep in mind that though the water is still very warm, the day is short. So at say 5:30 pm you'll go for a night dive.

 

[Lorenzoid]

We have done, I think, four trips in late November and early December. We had generally good weather, with much more sun than clouds/drizzle, except one of those trips when we had two or three rainy days in a row.

We just returned from a trip (late July), and it was mostly sunny, with a few cloudy times and what we felt was quite a bit of wind compared with our Nov.-Dec. experiences.

A local said he was of the opinion that the best weather on average is late July through early November, his theory being that the conditions that are conducive to forming hurricanes elsewhere in the Caribbean somehow help to keep Bonaire's weather nice.

I don't think there is any month when I would be hesitant to go.

 

[lmorin]

See this page for monthly averages of numerous measures. Note that, although the amount of rain is by far greatest, on average, during October through December, the amount of daily sunshine varies little across the year.

 

[darook]

There was a large crew of us from the board there last year the first full week of December last year. We had some pretty serious rain showers but lots of sun and heat. Like 90 degree heat a few days. Water temp was about 82-83 IIRC and viz was fine. We didn't have Cozumel clear all week but had lots of really nice dives. The island was pretty quiet which was awesome. Will be back there at the end of December/beginning of January this year. The island will NOT be quiet but it is a great time to not be in Minnesota!

 

[White Chocolate]

I made my first trip to Bonaire the second week of December last year. We had perfect conditions the entire trip. There were a few rain showers and cloudy periods which were actually a nice break from the heat (I'm from the pnw so anything above 75 deg is too hot for us!). Vis was in the 100' + range on every dive. One thing that we got lucky with was a few days with no wind which apparently happens only in the fall. Because of that we had absolutely zero current anywhere during the entire week and all the entries were pretty easy. We also got to dive the lighthouse and a few other southern sites, and my wife (who had never shore dove before the trip and is very much a beginner) was comfortable the entire time! As for crowding, there really wasn't any at all. A few cruise ships came and went which probably made downtown a little crowded during the day, but we were out diving and never noticed.

Lighthouse entry

Princess parking for Invisibles