Marine Park "Nature Fee" increases to $40 effective January 1, 2019

[agd]

Take a look at the "park/port" fees charged by Honduras (110), Belize(125), Ecuador(120), et. al. .

gbf

Is Honduras now charging a $110 diving fee? I recall a few years back when Roatan added a $10 fee and Utila started collecting a daily couple of bucks in about 2010. But $110, that must be killing the Utila backpacker dive businesses!

Andy

 

[gbf]

gbf

Is Honduras now charging a $110 diving fee? I recall a few years back when Roatan added a $10 fee and Utila started collecting a daily couple of bucks in about 2010. But $110, that must be killing the Utila backpacker dive businesses!

Andy

Aggressor trip. $110 "port/park" fee. A actually paid $158 for a 10 day trip.

 

[Diver-6873]

You got my blessing! We already decided we are not going back there again after our last trip in 2014. Fewer turtles and morays, groupers and large parrotfish species wiped out, corals in bad shape, often covered with red slimy algae, etc. There is not much left there to see. If they want to turn themselves into another Aruba (and Curacao is already heading this way), this is their choice, but we do not want to watch or God forbid, pay for the transition.

Not sure where you dove but certainly not Bonaire. Yes, there are times when some amounts of red algae will be seen, several weeks later it will also be gone. As for “...Fewer turtles and morays, groupers and large parrotfish species wiped out ... There is not much left there to see...” — not true by a long shot.

 

[Diver-6873]

I love Bonaire style diving, don't care about the politics. Extra $15 is nothing, stay somewhere on island cheaper and save hundreds.
But... what is the fee for?
Thought it was for protecting the marine park area.
Was really shocked at all the fishing going on during last Septembers vacation.
A huge net was out at Toris Reef, there were 1000s of fish in this thing and it was out for at least a week, was told STINAPA allows it once year, local custom thing. They were selling the fish out of ice chest on the side of the road by the inlet to salt pans. The guy with the stringer was at Salt Pier and someone on the pier was also fishing. Came out of Oil Slick one evening and a guy was fishing, and from Carib Inn looking south someone was casting from shore one evening. Also a lot of vehicles with fishing poles in the back.


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They are netting Big Eyed Scad (the same ones we frequently see baitballs of while under and are allowed to under specific regulations and guidelines. We see them out every couple of months.

 

[drrich2]

I wonder if Bonaire looked over at Aruba and Curacao and got jealous. From what I've seen posted before I got the impression Bonaire is somewhat 'economically limited,' the locals not particularly prosperous, so perhaps clamoring for more income was inevitable.

That said, Bonaire lacks lush tropical jungle, and while you can create a big sand box along the shoreline, but that's a far cry from a gently sloping sand bank leading well out into the water.

Put another way, if you didn't dive, what would lead you to go to Bonaire over Curacao?

The cruise market is another animal; adding yet another island multi-cruisers haven't been to yet is sort of its own point, and it's not so much a 'you have to be better' thing. They can expand cruising income.

Richard.

 

[dmaziuk]

I wonder if Bonaire looked over at Aruba and Curacao and got jealous.

In April Curacao didn't look all that great with Venezuelan embargo and no cruise ship in the harbor on the day we went to visit the city. Otrabanda looked like a dead town. Gotta wonder what it is they're jealous of.

And like you said: what would that 20K 4-star visitors actually do? No beaches to speak of, ~hour pretty drive with flamingoes in the distance, a bunch of donkeys, and picturesque goats on the roadside. Divers, windsurfers, and kiters are niche populations that can only be milked so much before they go elsewhere.

PS. we paid "voluntary" $25 to SWS on Roatan, the money goes to teaching local kids to dive and paying the fishermen to stay off the reef and shoo off those who don't. Obviously Bonaire has far less demand for boathands so as a source of employment, diving isn't as great here... still, show of hands: how many local kids did you see working around dive shops?

 

[wwguy]

@wwguy related question. I got a new tag this February. I know I am good through the end of December. Would it be good for the first week of January too? I was assuming I would need a new on on New Years Day. Maybe I don't! Divi made me buy one in February even though I had bought one in December 2017. I didn't believe Serge when he was telling me I had to but did it anyway.

Your 2018 tag should be good for your entire trip. They typically start selling next year's tags in mid-December and don't seem to start enforcing for new tags until mid-January. I asked DFB about this once and they were adamant that I didn't need to purchase tags for both years to cover Christmas and New Years weeks on either side of Jan 1. Last year I bought a 2018 tag on 12/17/2017. This trip I plan to use that same tag for the last 2 weeks in December and first week in January.

Technically the tags are good for a calendar year, so I see why your February scenario didn't work.

I love Bonaire style diving, don't care about the politics. Extra $15 is nothing, stay somewhere on island cheaper and save hundreds.
But... what is the fee for?
Thought it was for protecting the marine park area.
Was really shocked at all the fishing going on during last Septembers vacation.
A huge net was out at Toris Reef, there were 1000s of fish in this thing and it was out for at least a week, was told STINAPA allows it once year, local custom thing. They were selling the fish out of ice chest on the side of the road by the inlet to salt pans.

Great observation and a very valid point. This is a point of contention for a lot of the local divers and dive operators too. They feel STINAPA is increasing rates to pay for services they aren't delivering and are unfairly making the divers pay for it.

The dive operations manager for Captain Don's Habitat posted this statement on his Facebook page a couple of days ago, which I've pasted below. Then in the comments he followed up with photos of a fisherman in a boat along the dropoff in front of Habita's dock, and then later with a video of a STINAPA ranger zooming by in his boat.

"Stinapa, The Fake Protector of our nature.. 1.4 Mljn Dollar is taken in annual. Spend on high Paychecks, a brand new Ford Ranger car fleet, new boats and Engines and a huge fuel bill for useless driving around the island.. Their only task is to maintain the roads in the National park, and maintain the Mooring system. And even that has seen complete fails where dive vessels got severe damage by a lack of maintenance or inspection.. Pretending to protect the underwater environment where a no-take fishing zone is a used propaganda but as a matter of fact a daily abused area by fisher man and hobby fishers. A fake Shark sanctuary is created out of a $280.000 dollar donation for maybe 10 sharks that roam the Bonaire waters and often fished out..

Where Cruise ship tourist pay nothing to nature fee the ****** up Marine Park has decided to raise the Diver fee from $25 to $45. And Snorkel or other watersport activity Tag is from $10 to $25.. Creating an extra 1 miljn income to cover what they say is their grown expenses in maintaining the Park.

Divers all stand up against this **** happening here.. Not even a $5 increase would be justified. Maybe their intend is to next year order some F450 super duty 100K trucks and order some Intrepid quad Seven engine patrol boats . Because there is plenty money to waste...

Bonaire Stinapa YOU ARE USELESS AND FAKE.

And Clark Abraham don't call me to remove this post if your friend Arjen Wolf director of Stinapa does not tolerate my post. Every one needs to know the truth."

So there's obviously some strong sentiment locally too, LOL.

The guy with the stringer was at Salt Pier and someone on the pier was also fishing. Came out of Oil Slick one evening and a guy was fishing, and from Carib Inn looking south someone was casting from shore one evening. Also a lot of vehicles with fishing poles in the back.

It is legal to fish from shore or boat with pole or handline, with the exception of a few restricted areas. The area around Habitat mentioned above is in the middle of one of those restricted areas.

 

[wwguy]

EDIT: The fee will increase from $25 to $45, not $40 as I incorrectly posted originally. So an 80% increase. My original source was incorrect.

Any moderators reading this are welcome to update my thread title and initial info in my original post. (It's now locked for me.)

 

[tkaelin]

While this is all very concerning the bigger problem for the ABCs IMHO is their proximity to Venezuela, a deteriorating desperate country run by a dictator who is welcoming one despot, dictator or communist country after another. Cuba, China, Russia, Turkey and Iran all have sought to become more involved with the country. Latest story of Iran planning to send warships to the country. None of this can be good for the three small islands just off its coast.

 

[scubafanatic]

While this is all very concerning the bigger problem for the ABCs IMHO is their proximity to Venezuela, a deteriorating desperate country run by a dictator who is welcoming one despot, dictator or communist country after another. Cuba, China, Russia, Turkey and Iran all have sought to become more involved with the country. Latest story of Iran planning to send warships to the country. None of this can be good for the three small islands just off its coast.

Absolutely spot on! Moreover, as it (Venezuela) decays into another 'failed state', it's becoming a huge illegal drug transport hub, and a home base for drug gangs and assorted leftist guerrilla terrorist groups, a huge wave of desperate, starved, disease-ridden refugees is coming when civil war breaks out and Venezuela breaks up like the 'former Yugoslavia'. The 'ABC's' are as close to the front lines as you can get! I'm doubting the cruise ships and other assorted tourist related industries will be interested in Bonaire once this happens!