Resort vs. renting for solo traveler?

[AdivingBel]

For me it's less about price and more about lifestyle. Yes, I can rent a condo with discounts for a truck and dive package and come in a hundred or so less than Buddy Dive etc.. The real difference is no thundering herd past my door, no crowds at the dive dock, no check-in/check-out, no waking to tanks banging and crews staging boats etc.. Don't get me wrong, those aren't all bad things, just not what I come to Bonaire (and Curacao) for. I like resorts. I dive them all over and they are fun, but Bonaire/Curacao offer something unique. It's like living there rather than vacationing. More privacy, my own schedule, fully tricked out kitchens, a grill all my own with a place to use it, smaller crowds around the pool, and one on one relationships with the owners (the one I use most is local). Again, I don't mean to be negative about the very nice, convenient resorts. For first timers and those that just want a nice dive vacation, they are great, but I can get resorts other places with honestly, IMHO, better diving (I love Bonaire diving ). I can't get the Bonaire/ Curacao lifestyle other places. It's unique and wonderful and why I come back. All IMHO, YMMV.

 

[diver0008]

Yes, I was looking at AirBNB, which has some great pricing. Traveling solo for sure. Diving solo, we'll see.

The safety consideration is valid, good point.

If you want to find dive buddies, being at a resort may make it easier.

Other than that, renting a truck on your own is easy, and most will do pick up/drop off anywhere.

Renting tanks and weights is easy too; the island is small so getting to and from tank depots is quick, and in most cases, you'll do a pick up/drop off just once a day.

 

[diver0008]

For me it's less about price and more about lifestyle. Yes, I can rent a condo with discounts for a truck and dive package and come in a hundred or so less than Buddy Dive etc.. The real difference is no thundering herd past my door, no crowds at the dive dock, no check-in/check-out, no waking to tanks banging and crews staging boats etc.. Don't get me wrong, those aren't all bad things, just not what I come to Bonaire (and Curacao) for. I like resorts. I dive them all over and they are fun, but Bonaire/Curacao offer something unique. It's like living there rather than vacationing. More privacy, my own schedule, fully tricked out kitchens, a grill all my own with a place to use it, smaller crowds around the pool, and one on one relationships with the owners (the one I use most is local). Again, I don't mean to be negative about the very nice, convenient resorts. For first timers and those that just want a nice dive vacation, hey are great, but I can get resorts other places with honestly, IMHO, better diving (I love Bonaire diving ). I can't get the Bonaire/ Curacao lifestyle other places. It's unique and wonderful and why I come back. All IMHO, YMMV.

Yes. Exactly this!

 

[JDelage]

Thank you everyone!

 

[drrich2]

An oceanfront resort like Buddy Dive Resort makes doing house reef dives very convenient. For me, I found that made adding a night dive after supper on top of the day dives I'd done earlier convenient enough I did more dives on the trip. Would you likely do that?

The question of whether to stay on-the-water or back off it (e.g.: Dive Hut - my old trip report) is different than resort vs. small private renter.

With BDR, I had a shuttle to/from the airport, and onsite truck rental at the resort. That was convenient.

I'd been to Bonaire before, and rode through the park up north, the donkey sanctuary, around and across the island, ate at various places...so last time I was just there to do. BDR's onsite restaurant was fine for my needs. You don't have to have a resort for that; just stay somewhere with a restaurant you like really close by.

As KathyV mentioned, I've seen on the forum the crime-related threads there seems to be a conventional wisdom that resort customers are less likely to have their quarters burglarized that single-residence rentals, where 'by the street' access is easier & potential thieves can see that tourists are staying there. I don't know any hard numbers/relative crime statistics, but I've seen that idea put forth.

I care nothing about a swimming pool, but if you do, a resort may have one.

If you want to rent privately, then book dive services with an op., I've read that Dive Friends Bonaire is both popular and has a number of locations, so I'd check their offerings.

Richard.

 

[KeithG]

No, the cost of piecemealing it is lower by a few $ hundreds.

And pricing always depends upon who you buy it from. For Bonaire we always use a travel agent (squba holidays) since they can get us better prices than we can at the Divi. Their price for room and 2 boat tanks a day with unlimited shore diving is cheaper than what we can source for 1 boat dive daily. So we buy the 2 tank package and just do 1 tank per day on the boat.

 

[Trailboss123]

I think everyone else has given outstanding feedback on the topic, so far. I'd just reinforce one other thing that @drrich2 referenced. For me personally, I don't think I'd ever go to Bonaire and not stay at a waterfront location with a decent house reef that would allow me to have convenient walk in or giant stride access for night and dawn dives. That would be a very difficult thing to achieve inexpensively as a solo person via Air BNB or VRBO-- I think. If you know of a place, let me know, as I'd be very interested for the future. Staying with a group of friends in a waterfront villa via Air BNB or VRBO and outsourcing the dive package and car rental -- below or at resort package prices is very doable and I am doing it next month.

 

[JDelage]

It turns out the prices I was looking at are for double occupancy, so this changes my calculations quite a bit....

 

[KathyV]

It turns out the prices I was looking at are for double occupancy, so this changes my calculations quite a bit....

That is a very important factor! Many places base their pricing on double occupancy and charge a big single supplement for individuals traveling alone. If you can find an economical rental unit (with good security!) it may be your best option.

 

[JDelage]

Den Laman seems to be listing its prices per room...