Trip Report Bonaire: Den Laman and Dive Friends, Sept 28-Oct 12, 2019

Please register or login

Welcome to ScubaBoard, the world's largest scuba diving community. Registration is not required to read the forums, but we encourage you to join. Joining has its benefits and enables you to participate in the discussions.

Benefits of registering include

  • Ability to post and comment on topics and discussions.
  • A Free photo gallery to share your dive photos with the world.
  • You can make this box go away

Joining is quick and easy. Log in or Register now!

scubadada

Diver
Staff member
ScubaBoard Supporter
Messages
19,586
Reaction score
18,413
Location
Philadelphia and Boynton Beach
# of dives
1000 - 2499
This was my wife’s and my fourth trip to Bonaire in the last two years and seventh overall. We have stayed at Den Laman and dived with Dive Friends the last four visits. We stayed at Sand Dollar and dived with Bonaire Dive & Adventure during our three visits 2004-2008.

Reservations:
There has been a major change in the management of Den Laman. Previously, it was centrally managed by Carib Mall. They rented out all 16 apartments, had an office on site, and made car rental reservations through Avis and dive reservations with Dive Friends. For reasons that are not clear, other than owners wanted it, the apartments are no longer centrally managed. There are now 4 realty companies renting out the 16 apartments at Den Laman. On the Den Laman website, you must now communicate directly with the company renting out the room you want rather than having a choice of the entire inventory. We started the reservation process during the transition period. As we were interested in renting one of the two ocean front one bedrooms we had previously been in, we were referred out to Sunwise Bonaire, who rented these two apartments. It turned out that neither was available for the entire 2 weeks we wanted, so we switched to a 2 bedroom ocean front, Grouper, and decided to invite our children to spend some of the time with us (see more about the Grouper below, in Accommodations). There is no longer a rental office on site, we were met at the apartment by a representative of Sunwise. I can’t speak for the 3 other rental companies, but Sunwise does not directly make car or dive reservations. This trip, we rented with AB Car Rental. They were fine and we had a good truck, but they are off site and they supplied pick up at the airport and drop off at the end of the stay. We found pick up and drop off at the airport with Avis to me more convenient. We made our own reservations with Dive Friends, which was not a problem, as they know us quite well by now. We made our airline reservations directly with American Airlines.

Travel: So, this is the third time we’ve taken the American Airlines flight from Miami to Bonaire, a great improvement over taking local flights from Aruba to Bonaire. Arrival in mid-afternoon made check in to Den Laman, check in with Dive Friends, and grocery shopping all very easy. The flight back doesn’t get us home until the early AM hours.

Accommodations, etc.: On our last three visits, we stayed in the 2nd floor, one bedroom, ocean front Parrotfish and its mirror image next door, Yellowtail Snapper. We had also seen 2 of the two bedroom ocean fronts, Tuna and Dolphin. When neither of the one bedrooms were available, we did not hesitate to take the 2 bedroom Grouper, rented by Sunwise. Unfortunately, we were in for a surprise. Grouper is of considerable different construction than the rooms we were familiar with. The unit had no windows, only screens and metal louvres. The only way to get natural light was to open the metal louvres. It was very hot when we arrived and the rooms were at least as hot. The construction next door at the Chogogo resort generated a lot of dust that wafted into the apartment. Though there were A/C units in the common area and master bedroom, they did not do much against the brutal heat and the darkened apartment was depressing. The one night we spent there was in the back bedroom, which, at least could be closed off with A/C. This was a good thing as the noise from Coco Beach and the Spice Club was quite loud on a Saturday night through the screens. Luckily, we were able to switch over to the Wahoo 2 bedroom. We lost ocean front but gained windows, temperature control, no dust, and quiet. There are split air conditioners in the bedrooms and living/dining room that worked perfectly. We upgraded housekeeping to every other day from the standard twice per week. Our daughter was able to join us for six days, as was her brother. They overlapped a couple of days and it was the 1st time the four of have dived together since 2004, priceless. My son’s wife also was able to join us for a few days, first time she snorkeled with proper gear. She had a great time and saw a turtle at Bari Reef! We prepared most of our meals in the apartment but went out a few times with our kids. Between Two Buns, Breezes n’ Bites, and Eddy’s did just fine. Zhung Kong is finishing up on some extensive renovations, including expanding into the restaurant/bar that used to be next door. When we went grocery shopping on the 1st day, we initially missed it because it looks so different and there is no signage. Though they were not finished fully stocking it yet, a big improvement and very convenient to Den Laman.

Diving:
We used Dive Friends at Sand Dollar/Den Laman and had access to the nice gear storage unit and to the private pier, with tanks and direct access to Bari Reef. On this visit, the gear storage room was closed on our 2nd week, for renovation. They were replacing the cement floor and drainage system, installing new gear hooks… It was a nuisance using the small storage cage next to the dive office, but, the renovated gear storage room will be a nice improvement for our next visit. My wife and I had our marine park tags from our April visit so did not have to purchase them. We bought tags for my daughter and son from the DF office. We also purchased a snorkeling tag for my son’s wife there. As usual, tank fills were good and all had 31-32% nitrox. Dive Friends boats leave for 2 tank trips to Klein Bonaire or northern sites not accessible from shore, every morning. They also offer 1 tank trips some afternoons. We dived exclusively off the Dushi Diver this trip, a 33 foot, twin outboard, taking a maximum of 10 divers. Their Island Hopper, the Pelican, was still out of commission on this trip, said to be in dry dock, getting a new engine

The water temperature on this trip was much warmer than on our April visit. Most water temperatures were 84-5 degrees, with several in the lower 80s, 81-3 degrees. We dived in our 3 mm full suits and were always comfortable. As you can imagine, many divers were using less exposure protection. There was little current on most of our dives. Visibility was generally about 80 feet, varying from about 60-100 feet.

On this visit, I did 44 dives, 22 boat dives and 22 shore dives, over 12 days of diving. We took the last full day off to tour the island with my son and his wife. It’s been several visits since we have taken any time off from diving, it was very relaxing. Highlights of this visit included two seahorses at Bon Bini Na Cas, two seahorses at Carl’s Hill, a Whitenose Pipefish, a Harlequin Pipefish, two great octopi and the best Eagle Ray encounter I have ever had, right at the top of Bari Reef. There were significantly more turtles and large Tiger Grouper than on our April visit. Spotted and Goldentail Morays were numerous, there were more Green Morays than on any of our other recent visits. Sharptail Eels were everywhere, out hunting with their followers. There were many Porcupinefish and a few Balloonfish. We saw quite a few Yellowhead Jawfish, some with eggs, juvenile Smooth Trunkfish, Slender Filefish, Flamingo Tongues, and Lettuce Slugs. Of course, all the usual reef fish were there in numbers. Much of the reef and corals are in very good condition. Unfortunately, there is also more red algae on the reef than we have seen on other recent visits. Some sites seemed nearly unaffected, whereas others were rather seriously affected. We can only hope that this is cyclic, and regresses. I saw nothing that looked like stony coral tissue loss disease.

So, this trip had a few hiccoughs, but nothing that could not be fixed or tolerated. Now that I know how the new Den Laman works, I could easily deal with it for a future trip and would pass on staying in Grouper. Dive Friends continues to be solid for us, the diving was wonderful. Having the opportunity to dive with my wife and both children was absolutely fantastic. We’ll be back, likely sometime early next year. I’m hoping that my fears regarding the Chogogo resort are not borne out.

upload_2020-2-14_20-53-19.png


upload_2020-2-14_20-54-1.png


upload_2020-2-14_20-54-55.png


upload_2020-2-14_20-55-46.png


upload_2020-2-14_20-56-45.png


upload_2020-2-14_20-57-11.png


upload_2020-2-14_20-57-55.png


upload_2020-2-14_20-58-54.png


upload_2020-2-14_21-0-2.png


upload_2020-2-14_21-0-37.png
 
There is no longer a rental office on site, we were met at the apartment by a representative of Sunwise. I can’t speak for the 3 other rental companies, but Sunwise does not directly make car or dive reservations.

It was good to meet you on-island. The lack of a rental office onsite I take it means just dropping by to talk with the 'front desk' about issues may not be as practical, or is that still doable?

If different companies are handling different rooms, are there one site package prices for Den Laman condo.s/dive packages? A quick look at their website suggests not. And if you don't include option for truck rental, then they're not offering a quick, simple 'turn key' option for potential customers. Seems like booking with them involves more digging than some competitor options.

I suspect others who find this thread while researching their options for a Bonaire trip may ask the question 'Why Den Laman?' Any thoughts on what advantages it offers over Sand Dollar Condo.s, etc...?

Richard.
 
This was my wife’s and my fourth trip to Bonaire in the last year two years and seventh overall. We have stayed at Den Laman and dived with Dive Friends the last four visits. We stayed at Sand Dollar and dived with Bonaire Dive & Adventure during our three visits 2004-2008.

Reservations:
There has been a major change in the management of Den Laman. Previously, it was centrally managed by Carib Mall. They rented out all 16 apartments, had an office on site, and made car rental reservations through Avis and dive reservations with Dive Friends. For reasons that are not clear, other than owners wanted it, the apartments are no longer centrally managed. There are now 4 realty companies renting out the 16 apartments at Den Laman. On the Den Laman website, you must now communicate directly with the company renting out the room you want rather than having a choice of the entire inventory. We started the reservation process during the transition period. As we were interested in renting one of the two ocean front one bedrooms we had previously been in, we were referred out to Sunwise Bonaire, who rented these two apartments. It turned out that neither was available for the entire 2 weeks we wanted, so we switched to a 2 bedroom ocean front, Grouper, and decided to invite our children to spend some of the time with us (see more about the Grouper below, in Accommodations). There is no longer a rental office on site, we were met at the apartment by a representative of Sunwise. I can’t speak for the 3 other rental companies, but Sunwise does not directly make car or dive reservations. This trip, we rented with AB Car Rental. They were fine and we had a good truck, but they are off site and they supplied pick up at the airport and drop off at the end of the stay. We found pick up and drop off at the airport with Avis to me more convenient. We made our own reservations with Dive Friends, which was not a problem, as they know us quite well by now. We made our airline reservations directly with American Airlines.

Travel: So, this is the third time we’ve taken the American Airlines flight from Miami to Bonaire, a great improvement over taking local flights from Aruba to Bonaire. Arrival in mid-afternoon made check in to Den Laman, check in with Dive Friends, and grocery shopping all very easy. The flight back doesn’t get us home until the early AM hours.

Accommodations, etc.: On our last three visits, we stayed in the 2nd floor, one bedroom, ocean front Parrotfish and its mirror image next door, Yellowtail Snapper. We had also seen 2 of the two bedroom ocean fronts, Tuna and Dolphin. When neither of the one bedrooms were available, we did not hesitate to take the 2 bedroom Grouper, rented by Sunwise. Unfortunately, we were in for a surprise. Grouper is of considerable different construction than the rooms we were familiar with. The unit had no windows, only screens and metal louvres. The only way to get natural light was to open the metal louvres. It was very hot when we arrived and the rooms were at least as hot. The construction next door at the Chogogo resort generated a lot of dust that wafted into the apartment. Though there were A/C units in the common area and master bedroom, they did not do much against the brutal heat and the darkened apartment was depressing. The one night we spent there was in the back bedroom, which, at least could be closed off with A/C. This was a good thing as the noise from Coco Beach and the Spice Club was quite loud on a Saturday night through the screens. Luckily, we were able to switch over to the Wahoo 2 bedroom. We lost ocean front but gained windows, temperature control, no dust, and quiet. There are split air conditioners in the bedrooms and living/dining room that worked perfectly. We upgraded housekeeping to every other day from the standard twice per week. Our daughter was able to join us for six days, as was her brother. They overlapped a couple of days and it was the 1st time the four of have dived together since 2004, priceless. My son’s wife also was able to join us for a few days, first time she snorkeled with proper gear. She had a great time and saw a turtle at Bari Reef! We prepared most of our meals in the apartment but went out a few times with our kids. Between Two Buns, Breezes n’ Bites, and Eddy’s did just fine. Zhung Kong is finishing up on some extensive renovations, including expanding into the restaurant/bar that used to be next door. When we went grocery shopping on the 1st day, we initially missed it because it looks so different and there is no signage. Though they were not finished fully stocking it yet, a big improvement and very convenient to Den Laman.

Diving:
We used Dive Friends at Sand Dollar/Den Laman and had access to the nice gear storage unit and to the private pier, with tanks and direct access to Bari Reef. On this visit, the gear storage room was closed on our 2nd week, for renovation. They were replacing the cement floor and drainage system, installing new gear hooks… It was a nuisance using the small storage cage next to the dive office, but, the renovated gear storage room will be a nice improvement for our next visit. My wife and I had our marine park tags from our April visit so did not have to purchase them. We bought tags for my daughter and son from the DF office. We also purchased a snorkeling tag for my son’s wife there. As usual, tank fills were good and all had 31-32% nitrox. Dive Friends boats leave for 2 tank trips to Klein Bonaire or northern sites not accessible from shore, every morning. They also offer 1 tank trips some afternoons. We dived exclusively off the Dushi Diver this trip, a 33 foot, twin outboard, taking a maximum of 10 divers. Their Island Hopper, the Pelican, was still out of commission on this trip, said to be in dry dock, getting a new engine

The water temperature on this trip was much warmer than on our April visit. Most water temperatures were 84-5 degrees, with several in the lower 80s, 81-3 degrees. We dived in our 3 mm full suits and were always comfortable. As you can imagine, many divers were using less exposure protection. There was little current on most of our dives. Visibility was generally about 80 feet, varying from about 60-100 feet.

On this visit, I did 44 dives, 22 boat dives and 22 shore dives, over 12 days of diving. We took the last full day off to tour the island with my son and his wife. It’s been several visits since we have taken any time off from diving, it was very relaxing. Highlights of this visit included two seahorses at Bon Bini Na Cas, two seahorses at Carl’s Hill, a Whitenose Pipefish, a Harlequin Pipefish, two great octopi and the best Eagle Ray encounter I have ever had, right at the top of Bari Reef. There were significantly more turtles and large Tiger Grouper than on our April visit. Spotted and Goldentail Morays were numerous, there were more Green Morays than on any of our other recent visits. Sharptail Eels were everywhere, out hunting with their followers. There were many Porcupinefish and a few Balloonfish. We saw quite a few Yellowhead Jawfish, some with eggs, juvenile Smooth Trunkfish, Slender Filefish, Flamingo Tongues, and Lettuce Slugs. Of course, all the usual reef fish were there in numbers. Much of the reef and corals are in very good condition. Unfortunately, there is also more red algae on the reef than we have seen on other recent visits. Some sites seemed nearly unaffected, whereas others were rather seriously affected. We can only hope that this is cyclic, and regresses. I saw nothing that looked like stony coral tissue loss disease.

So, this trip had a few hiccoughs, but nothing that could not be fixed or tolerated. Now that I know how the new Den Laman works, I could easily deal with it for a future trip and would pass on staying in Grouper. Dive Friends continues to be solid for us, the diving was wonderful. Having the opportunity to dive with my wife and both children was absolutely fantastic. We’ll be back, likely sometime early next year. I’m hoping that my fears regarding the Chogogo resort are not borne out.

View attachment 568049

View attachment 568050

View attachment 568051

View attachment 568052

View attachment 568054

View attachment 568055

View attachment 568056

View attachment 568057

View attachment 568059

View attachment 568060
Great report; Thank you; glad you had a great time.
 
It was good to meet you on-island. The lack of a rental office onsite I take it means just dropping by to talk with the 'front desk' about issues may not be as practical, or is that still doable?

If different companies are handling different rooms, are there one site package prices for Den Laman condo.s/dive packages? A quick look at their website suggests not. And if you don't include option for truck rental, then they're not offering a quick, simple 'turn key' option for potential customers. Seems like booking with them involves more digging than some competitor options.

I suspect others who find this thread while researching their options for a Bonaire trip may ask the question 'Why Den Laman?' Any thoughts on what advantages it offers over Sand Dollar Condo.s, etc...?

Richard.
Hi Richard,

It was great having the opportunity to meet in person at Breezes n' Bites on our last visit to Bonaire. I hope we have the chance to meet again someday.

Your questions are good ones. I prefer the old central management system, but have had to adapt to the current system.

See: Den Laman condos with new management? and Den Laman Pre-Trip Questions

Simon and Cecile, from Sunwise were available to us 24/7 by phone, text, or email. The few times we needed them, they were extremely quickly responsive. Almost as good as a front desk during business hours, probably better after hours. Sunwise has 10 of the 16 units at Den Laman and you can check availability and reserve a room directly online. I don't know about the other 3 management companies.
upload_2020-2-15_9-12-32.png


Though Sunwise does not make your car and dive reservations directly, they connect you to AB Car Rental and Dive Friends and you receive emails from both to finish your reservations. Almost as easy as one stop shopping.

We stayed at Sand Dollar in 2004, 5, and 8. This when we learned to appreciate Bari Reef, the pier, the storage building, and the boat location. Even then, our three different rooms at Sand Dollar were quite dated. I understand that some/many of the rooms at Sand Dollar have been renovated and remodeled. An updated room at Sand Dollar might very well be as good as the rooms at Den Laman. Den Laman was opened around 2006 and we briefly visited it during our stay in 2008. When we decided to return to Bonaire in 2017, Den Laman was an easy choice. We prepare the majority of our own meals and appreciate the nice kitchen and spacious living room/dining room. We are entirely spoiled by the fabulous balconies of the one bedroom oceanfront condos. The sunsets are to die for, what a great place to sip a beer after a long day of diving. I included a few photos in my review from August, 2018 Den Laman & Dive Friends, August 11-25, 2018

Choice of accommodations is a personal, Den Laman is perfect for us. We will be returning to the Parrotfish condo for the first two weeks of April.

Now, if only I could do my trip reviews in as timely a way as you do :)

Very best, Craig
 
https://www.shearwater.com/products/peregrine/

Back
Top Bottom