Bonaire in June

[Hemlon]

My sweetie and I are considering a week-long trip to Bonaire in June. Neither of us have been there before so we have LOTS of questions.

1. I have seen that June is considered their "windy season". How windy does it get? (Exclusing tropical storms)

2. I have read that theft is a SERIOUS problem especially theft of belongings from rental cars. If one does not leave ANY personal belongings in the rental car ANY leaves the doors unlocked, are there any other tips to help discourage theft?

3. How expensive is it to eat in Bonaire? Is it similar to Cozumel in that you can find a wide range of prices? Or is it more like Grand Cayman where just about everything is expensive?

4. Are there any restrictions on solo shore diving?

D.

 

[robint]

My sweetie and I are considering a week-long trip to Bonaire in June. Neither of us have been there before so we have LOTS of questions.

1. I have seen that June is considered their "windy season". How windy does it get? (Exclusing tropical storms)

2. I have read that theft is a SERIOUS problem especially theft of belongings from rental cars. If one does not leave ANY personal belongings in the rental car ANY leaves the doors unlocked, are there any other tips to help discourage theft?

3. How expensive is it to eat in Bonaire? Is it similar to Cozumel in that you can find a wide range of prices? Or is it more like Grand Cayman where just about everything is expensive?

4. Are there any restrictions on solo shore diving?

D.

1. We were there last June and it was starting to get windy every day, vis was down a bit (60-80' probably on most sites). We had a very very rocky boat over to Klein one day.

2. No theft isn't really a huge problem, but it does exist. We left our windows down and nothing in site other than flipflops, sunscreen, and towels. Nothing taken.

3. Food is much more expensive than on Cozumel. There aren't any cheap eateries at all. Expect moderate - expensive for dinner. Restaurants are also very slow, expect to take an hour or two for meals. We stayed at Buddy's so breakfast buffet was free and lunch a poolside cafe was 1/2 price each day. We bought some bread, meat and cheese at grocery store downtown along with sodas and beer for our fridge in the room. We also brought several boxes of granola bars, snacks, etc. That helped save money.

4. No scuba police in Bonaire. Only thing really controlled is that you can't do Town Pier or Salt Pier without a registered Bonaire DM. Lots of gov't forms to fill out and fees paid (they say it because of terrorists).

Have a great time. Bonaire is amazing!

robin
RnR Scuba

 

[Hemlon]

Excellent info!

Thanks, Robin!

 

[dvrliz1]

My sweetie and I are considering a week-long trip to Bonaire in June. Neither of us have been there before so we have LOTS of questions.

1. I have seen that June is considered their "windy season". How windy does it get? (Exclusing tropical storms)

2. I have read that theft is a SERIOUS problem especially theft of belongings from rental cars. If one does not leave ANY personal belongings in the rental car ANY leaves the doors unlocked, are there any other tips to help discourage theft?

3. How expensive is it to eat in Bonaire? Is it similar to Cozumel in that you can find a wide range of prices? Or is it more like Grand Cayman where just about everything is expensive?

4. Are there any restrictions on solo shore diving? D.

Hi Hemlon!

Bonaire has a constant trade wind and can vary anywhere from 5 mph - 35 mph, but it is wonderful and can also be something as it can "trick" you into thinking that the sun is not as strong as it is! Normally, in Sept/Oct and sometimes beginning of November timeframe, we usually loose our trade winds and it gets REALLY hot.

Please do not take this personally, but I am SOOOOOOOOO tired of hearing there is a SERIOUS problem of theft on Bonaire. My recommendation to our guests is this, leave the windows down, truck unlocked, a "raggy" towel, pair of old sun glasses is fine to leave in the truck. In fact, Ed and I have been diving here for over 20 years, living here for 5 full time. We always leave a plastic billfold with 20 bucks in it under the seat, and an old soda bottle of water...never had any problems as long as we leave the windows down and doors unlocked.

Food prices vary on Bonaire, but all in all are very reasonable. You can get a breakfast for $8.00 bucks, lunch for $7.50 each and a good dinner for about $20.00 each....

There only rule I am aware of on Bonaire as far as diving goes is that you cannot dive north of Karpata in the restricted marine park area. Otherwise.....dive away!

Liz

Liz

 

[Hemlon]

Thanks, Liz!

 

[herman]

Looks like you have already gotten your answers. I agree with them. I really don't find the food on Bonaire expensive, at least not compaired to here in Raleigh. I expect to spend $15-20 per person on a nice dinner, about what I pay here. As for the restaurants being slow, guess that is true but there is a reason. Meals are cooked to order, not precooked like most US restaurants so it does take longer to get your meal.
Petty crime does exist but I don't consider it serious. In 10 trips with groups ranging from 2 to 24 no one in any of my groups have experienced any problems. Zero problems. I do leave my windows down and don't leave anything of value..old shoes, t-shirts and water.

 

[Rynomar]

I have been to Bonaire twice, once in late November and once in late May. The visibility in late may was not as good as later in the year but I found visibility to improve towards the northwestern side of island (from Andrea I up to Karparta). Shore entries were a little more sporty on all of the sites but we went with my folks, who are in their mid-50's and as along as we took our time, the entries and exits were not too big a problem.

I thought that the prices for meals were similar to Grand Cayman. An easy way to save some money is to go by one of the supermarkets and pick up food for some of the meals. We did the breakfast deal at Buddy Dive, made our own lunches, and ate out for dinner and it balanced out pretty well.

As far a theft goes, we were told to keep the vehicles unlocked with the windows down and avoid leaving anything in the vehicle. We had no problems and did not hear of any problems during either trip.

Also, I am pretty sure that you can dive north of Karpata but you have to drive on the one-way road through the park and it takes some time. I have seen divers diving in the park but never done it myself.

Enjoy the trip.