Be careful in Bonaire (Burglaries)

[DiverVince]

I think ROATAN, COZUMEL, big time, and GRAND CAYMAN ARE BETTER THAN BONAIRE ANY DAY OF THE WEEK. THERE ISN'T AS MUCH OF A CRIME PROBLEM ON THOSE ISLANDS AS THERE IS ON BONAIRE. But let's play the compare game, as moss intends.

OK PF I've personally been to all three (plus a helluva lot more)..Roatan was a disaster as my wife contracted Giardia there. Wonderful sanitation on Roatan (didn't you know that). And the diving was lackluster. FYI..We stayed at Fantasy island. Fortunately I got her to an infectious disease expert when we returned to the US.

Coz..That's what you call safe? There are more scams on Coz, more hustlers. Firstly when you go out to eat you have to be EXTREMELY careful as to what you ingest. water, fuhgettaboutit. Salads; right.. Not for nothing do they have the saying " Montezuma's revenge". On top of that for some strange reason I notice many neophyte divers on Coz. Why oh why would a beginning diver chose Coz? Down swells where divers get killed (of course all very hush hush), drift diving along Maracaibo so fast you can't see anything. And on top of that we were scammed by our hotel who refused to let us leave the island (of course the taxi driver was in cahoots) alleging we took drinks out of the stocked fridge in our room. We were not allowed to go to the airport until I paid their ransom demands. Yea, I'll return!

And lets not forget Grand Cayman. I was on the 2nd floor of a condo on 7 mile beach (of course it really isn't 7 miles), when we left at about 7:00 pm. Unbeknownst to the burglar who scaled the outside walls to gain access, we just went across the street to get take out chicken. Walking back in (15 mins after leaving) I caught him in the living room and cursed a storm at him so everyone heard me & basically threw every bloody thing I could get me hands on at him. The jackass jumped off our terrace, smashed his foot on a light, & was lucky that the heavy pot I threw at him missed his head.

So PF, lets not talk about experience in the Carib. I've got more experience on islands than you know.

This is why for the life of me I don't understand your ravings about the relatively tranquil island of Bonaire.

 

[Mike]

Why does anyone feel the need to 'defend' the diving of Bonaire, the people of Bonaire, the beaches, the water, the fish, the restaurants, the sand, the donkeys, the grass, the rocks the trees, the pavement, the paint on the buildings... etc... in a thread that is about crime there?

What exactly is it that you feel you are accomplishing? Do you have some sort of internet score card?

Step back people, take a deep breath and breathe... who cares what somebody thinks about Bonaire being good or bad, what difference does it make? Bonaire's diving is a given, it's common knowledge where it ranks, not by ScubaBoard's rankings which don't exist. It's ranked consistantly in dive publications and surveys. It's diving is not in danger of being diminished. Why would you care? As some fool said, I can't remember who - "more dive slots on the island for me!"

Take a chill pill and get back to the main issue - the crime on Bonaire. What to do about it, what it means, how to protect yourself so your dive vacation isn't negatively effected by it.

 

[Boat Chick]

Roatan was nice but did not compare to Bon,never did see a shotgun toting security guard at a store in Bon,but saw several in Roatan? I much prefer exploring and diving on my own than spending it in at some compound with armed security guards and watchdogs (CCV)

Guns are illegal on Bonaire; so even security guards are not allowed to carry them.

 

[Drewpy]

Ok..point taken!

 

[DennisS]

Why does anyone feel the need to 'defend' the diving of Bonaire, the people of Bonaire, the beaches, the water, the fish, the restaurants, the sand, the donkeys, the grass, the rocks the trees, the pavement, the paint on the buildings... etc... in a thread that is about crime there?

What exactly is it that you feel you are accomplishing? Do you have some sort of internet score card?

Step back people, take a deep breath and breathe... who cares what somebody thinks about Bonaire being good or bad, what difference does it make? Bonaire's diving is a given, it's common knowledge where it ranks, not by ScubaBoard's rankings which don't exist. It's ranked consistantly in dive publications and surveys. It's diving is not in danger of being diminished. Why would you care? As some fool said, I can't remember who - "more dive slots on the island for me!"

Take a chill pill and get back to the main issue - the crime on Bonaire. What to do about it, what it means, how to protect yourself so your dive vacation isn't negatively effected by it.

If you believe the positives outweigh the remote chance of a crime being committed on you-GO. If you believe you will be a victim of crime-Don't GO. Pretty simple!

If people go on vacation anywhere with $5K worth of camera gear and computers, they better keep a constant eye on it. It will walk. Thieves eyes light up when they see those "steal me cases"

 

[Mike]

Is that sort of like the guy from North Carolina that will not shut up about crimes that he has never witnessed, knows nobody who has been impacted and has only been to the island once a long time ago when nothing negative happened? I put my money on the guy who goes to the island year after year.

I'd put my money on the first hand reports :

There were many burglaries in Bonaire last week, including us within the first 5 hours of arriving. They took our passports, laptops, video cameras, digital cameras, housings, dive watches, cell phones, cash, ipods, bags and even some clothes. They used a crowbar to break into the rooms and into the safe. We met 3 other couples on the plane back that were also burglarized and they had met others during the trip.

I have explored just about every single online version of any news source about Bonaire and they all have 1 thing in common, a total scrubbing of any references to criminal activity on the island regarding incidents either in the past or present.

It is almost comical because the handful all seem to have the news release about the 2 extra flights to the island with extremely detailed information and treat it as a big news item.

The only two sources that exist that discuss the reality of crime there are this forum and bonairetalk forum, and I must admit the bonairetalk forum is without a doubt much more base in reality with little sugar coating and much more regret for how it has evolved.

Here for whatever reason, be it financial interests or just immaturity, the discussion devolves into a pissing match between everyone's favorite dive destination, seemingly Roatan, Cozumel and Bonaire. As if any of them would be better or worse to end up diving at. Arguing about Coz, Bonaire and Roatan makes about as much sense as complaining if you were forced to date the top 3 miss America contestants and being upset cause you got the 2nd runner up.

The issue isn't whether one of the three is better or worse, everybody knows all 3 rock for diving, all three offer a slightly different experience, all 3 are some of the best diving you're going to get to do in the Caribbean.

Now let's get back to the crime...

 

[pilot fish]

I'd put my money on the first hand reports :

As do I. I trust the divers that I've met since my visit there that tell me I was lucky not to ge triped off and that I was wise to stay at a resort, which LESSENS your chance of becomng a vcrime ictim. I just see no reason for any of these divers to lie.

I have explored just about every single online version of any news source about Bonaire and they all have 1 thing in common, a total scrubbing of any references to criminal activity on the island regarding incidents either in the past or present.

It is almost comical because the handful all seem to have the news release about the 2 extra flights to the island with extremely detailed information and treat it as a big news item.

The only two sources that exist that discuss the reality of crime there are this forum and bonairetalk forum, and I must admit the bonairetalk forum is without a doubt much more base in reality with little sugar coating and much more regret for how it has evolved.

Here for whatever reason, be it financial interests or just immaturity, the discussion devolves into a pissing match between everyone's favorite dive destination, seemingly Roatan, Cozumel and Bonaire. As if any of them would be better or worse to end up diving at. Arguing about Coz, Bonaire and Roatan makes about as much sense as complaining if you were forced to date the top 3 miss America contestants and being upset cause you got the 2nd runner up.

The issue isn't whether one of the three is better or worse, everybody knows all 3 rock for diving, all three offer a slightly different experience, all 3 are some of the best diving you're going to get to do in the Caribbean.

Correct, it's about crime, not about what you think is the best place to dive. What does one care if they do good diving but while they are diving all their stuff is robbed from their room?

 

[ScubaSteve]

What the Ani-Bonaire activists seem to fail to realize is that nobody is saying crime does not exist on Bonaire. What we are saying is that the fanatical rantings and ravings of PiFi and a couple others are just comical. I welcome a PiFi free island. Having him anywhere near me would ruin an otherwise great dive vacation because all you would hear is his non-stop whining about crime on Bonaire. Crime exists on Bonaire....is it too much? That is for each and every person to decide. PiFi (and the likes) rambling on like a drunken school kid does nothing to provide useful information for readers to help them decide for themselves. He (and others) asserts that we are trying to hide crime from people. Complete BS and proof he has not read a single post. Crime exists......common sense (and yes this is a valid use of this term IMO) will help a visitor avoid MOST crimes. If you know you are told to leave nothing in your truck......then it is common sense to listen. I have and it worked. Some crimes are simply unavoidable and this happens anywhere in the world. Some crimes come closer to endangering the tourist. Unacceptable but anybody who makes the claim that the police are doing nothing at all to stop crime is just ridiculous OR part of the police department with inside information. If you cannot accept that, stay home because you are chicken little. If you feel it is too much, then simply cite your statistics backed up by sources and move on. If you cannot offer that then move on and let reasonable discussion take place.

I do not care if people do or do not travel to Bonaire, Curacao, Roaton, Toronto, Bali, Thailand....anywhere. I have nothing to gain from anybody's trip anywhere contrary to what some "no-nothing" idiots say. I do believe however that certain members of the board can really ruin an otherwise GOOD Bonaire thread (even if it is about a bad but very real topic) as is witnessed with every thread they join.

 

[pilot fish]

What the Bonaire apologists fail to realize is how serious the crime on Bonaire has become [ room break-ins] and what little is being done about it, verified by its continuance for the last 8 years that I know about. The issue is not about crime elsewhere but crime on Bnaire.Why is that so hard for you to understand?

What the Ani-Bonaire activists seem to fail to realize is that nobody is saying crime does not exist on Bonaire. What we are saying is that the fanatical rantings and ravings of PiFi and a couple others are just comical. I welcome a PiFi free island. Having him anywhere near me would ruin an otherwise great dive vacation because all you would hear is his non-stop whining about crime on Bonaire. Crime exists on Bonaire....is it too much? That is for each and every person to decide. PiFi (and the likes) rambling on like a drunken school kid does nothing to provide useful information for readers to help them decide for themselves. He (and others) asserts that we are trying to hide crime from people. Complete BS and proof he has not read a single post. Crime exists......common sense (and yes this is a valid use of this term IMO) will help a visitor avoid MOST crimes. If you know you are told to leave nothing in your truck......then it is common sense to listen. I have and it worked. Some crimes are simply unavoidable and this happens anywhere in the world. Some crimes come closer to endangering the tourist. Unacceptable but anybody who makes the claim that the police are doing nothing at all to stop crime is just ridiculous OR part of the police department with inside information. If you cannot accept that, stay home because you are chicken little. If you feel it is too much, then simply cite your statistics backed up by sources and move on. If you cannot offer that then move on and let reasonable discussion take place.

I do not care if people do or do not travel to Bonaire, Curacao, Roaton, Toronto, Bali, Thailand....anywhere. I have nothing to gain from anybody's trip anywhere contrary to what some "no-nothing" idiots say. I do believe however that certain members of the board can really ruin an otherwise GOOD Bonaire thread (even if it is about a bad but very real topic) as is witnessed with every thread they join.

 

[Cave Diver]

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A ScubaBoard Staff Message...

Ok, this has been beat to death and most of the arguing is barely related to the original topic. I'll review later to see if there is still anything worth salvaging, but until then this thread is closed.

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