Bonaire, Mar 14 - 21. Questions

[stuartv]

Howdy,

I'm heading to Bonaire next week with a group from my shop. I think only one of us has been before, and she hasn't been in years. We arrive March 14 and leave March 21. Staying at Eden Beach Resort. At least 5 of us are bringing rebreathers and will be using Buddy Dive for CCR support every day. The remaining 10-ish divers will be diving single tank OC, using tanks from the place we're staying.

I have watched a bunch of the Grogan's videos on YouTube, and I got the Reef Smart Bonaire guide. I have a few questions.

- The Reef Smart book says the electrical outlets will accept US plugs, but the electricity is 117 V and 55 Hz, and I should consider a power conditioner or adapter, for sensitive electronics. My laptop is only a couple of years old - a Dell XPS 15. Will it be okay plugged in directly? Or do I need to source some kind of power adapter/conditioner for it? I'm also wondering about my battery chargers for charging my camera/strobe batteries, but I'm guessing if my laptop is okay, the chargers will be okay, too?

- Money? How much of the time will I be able to use a credit card there? How much cash do I need to carry around? Are US dollars normal for use, or do I need to plan on exchanging for local currency?

- Trekking poles? The Grogan's videos really push having a trekking pole for easing shore entry and exits. Is that really necessary? I'm 6'1", with reasonably decent strength and balance. I have shore dived in Hawaii without aids and without falling down. Am I going to regret it if I don't have a trekking pole for Bonaire?

Thank you!

 

[drrich2]

Hi, Stuart. I just got back from Bonaire last Wednesday. It's been many years since I stayed at Eden Beach Resort (under prior management, and they've renovated), so I can't answer all your questions, but maybe I can help with a few.

1.) Seems like most people use a surge protector but otherwise plug their stuff in. The power supplies on at least some notebook computers can accept a range input.

2.) I just posted a trip report this morning, and it gets into my thoughts on the trekking poles. I'm a fan! Most of the time, it's possible to get in and out without one, but 'most of the time' isn't 'all of the time.' Years back at the Angel City site, I stepped down from the shallow shelf to the bottom going in, and my foot landed on a piece of loose dead coral rubble rock about the size and shape of a newspaper. It rolled, I dropped, and then (while atop my camera housing) was humiliatingly rolled back and forth into the rocky shelf in front of me for awhile, nearly lost my fins...if that never happens again it'll be too soon.

It can be ridiculously hard to stand up in a foot or two of water at times, due to waves/surge.

3.) The U.S. dollar is the official currency of Bonaire (unlike Curacao). It's fine. Some places are cash-only, like the southern food trucks (e.g.: Stoked, Kite City, Cactus Blue and King Kong). Gio's Gelateria only took cash when I stopped in. You can look at the menu's online, I think, but a double cheeseburger and chips or fries tended to run around $18-20 or so, no drink or tip, at food trucks. Their burger patties are not thin, so it's not like a McDonald's double quarter pounder where you may feel the need to get a double to get a big burger. I could've unhinged a jaw trying to wrap my mouth around one of those.

The Bonaco gas station accepted my VISA credit card. Back in 2019, another gas station to the north of town wouldn't; they took cash and whatever the local credit cards were. I don't know whether that's changed, but gas is expensive.

4.) Back when I stayed there, we were told if boats moored right off shore are perpendicular to shore, fine to dive. If parallel, there's significant current (the sea is 'pinched' between Bonaire and Klein Bonaire here). Eden's Rubble at first doesn't seem much of a dive site, but tube anemones at night are neat, and I liked the wreck of the Bakanal (though I doubt it's in decent shape by now). For a more interesting dive, heading to the far north end of the property, going in and heading north (Front Porch) was the way to go.

5.) At night, that rocky shelf at sea's edge has waves washing over it a bit. Chain morays hunted in the crevices. Worth a walk out to explore with your dive light at night, and see if they're still around.

 

[tursiops]

I'll be at Buddy Dive Mar 16-30. I'll look for you.

- The Reef Smart book says the electrical outlets will accept US plugs, but the electricity is 117 V and 55 Hz, and I should consider a power conditioner or adapter, for sensitive electronics.

It is actually 127V, 50Hz. Most adapters for your laptop, chargers, etc are fine with that. The 50Hz may make some appliances (like hair dryers) run more slowly, and thus hotter. Outside of Buddy dive (which has its own diesel generators for its on-site electricity) you can probably use a surge protector to advantage.

Money? How much of the time will I be able to use a credit card there? How much cash do I need to carry around? Are US dollars normal for use, or do I need to plan on exchanging for local currency?

USD are the local currency. CC (not AMEX) are widely accepted, but not at food trucks.

Trekking poles?

They are OK, but STINAPA asks that you stow tem after entry and not use them in any way while doing yoru dive. There are a few easy-entry sites, a number of forget-it sites, and a lot in-between.

The little book, Bonaire Shore Diving Made Easy (called BSDME), 7th edition, by Susan Porter, is probably the best guide for shore diving, entries, logistics, etc.

Use Travel Tips for general FAQs.

Please take a few boat dives. There are inaccessible-to-shore-diving sites on Klein and to the north that are fabulous.

Have fun!

 

[stuartv]

@drrich2 Thank you for the info and for the awesome trip report you posted in that other thread! Very helpful! You answered one of the questions in my mind, that I didn't ask, too - what AT&T coverage is like. I am very glad to hear that they have coverage on their usual international day pass deal. I'm fine with $10/day for that, used as needed. Do you happen to know what kind of Internet speeds you were able to get via your phone? Or did you notice if they have 4G or 5G coverage?

I ordered a $30 pair of trekking poles - @USC8791's recommended set. I'll take one. Thanks to both of you for the tip.

@tursiops Awesome! I had to move to SC and then fly to Bonaire to finally meet you! LOL! That will be great!

John (owner of my shop) did setup a boat diving package as part of our deal. I believe the package is for 6 boat dives, so 1 every day. Sounds like it could possibly actually be more boat dives than we'll end up wanting, but that's okay. That package price was still very reasonable.

Question that will probably sound stupid to Bonaire regulars: I see that Klein is 1/2 a mile away, directly across from Eden Beach. I was considering to rent a scooter maybe for a day or two. Is it feasible to scooter across the channel there and get over to Klein that way? How deep does it get in that channel?

Probably really a moot question. My first time in Bonaire, I will probably stick to the "normal" dives and dive sites - other than hoping to get in mostly long (2 - 3 hours?) dives, since I'll be on my CCR.

Maybe get in, swim 30 - 45 minutes one way, turn around and swim 60 - 90 minutes back the other way, then turn around again and swim 30-45 minutes to get back to where I started? Or, just swim 60-90 minutes one way, then turn around and swim back? I don't know. I guess I'll figure that out when I get there and talk to the local dive operators we're working with.

 

[drrich2]

Do you happen to know what kind of Internet speeds you were able to get via your phone? Or did you notice if they have 4G or 5G coverage?

I was so horrified at the prospect of paying roaming charges I went back to airplane mode once I didn't need it. I'm a cheap-o. In Aqua Viva Suites wifi worked fine for the basics; I didn't watch much video, and the one I did watch had some pauses at times. I don't know the upload/download speed ratings.

Maybe get in, swim 30 - 45 minutes one way, turn around and swim 60 - 90 minutes back the other way, then turn around again and swim 30-45 minutes to get back to where I started? Or, just swim 60-90 minutes one way, then turn around and swim back?

You can usually do either way. Some of the northern dive sites (hello, Oil Slick Leap) are a more limited exit opportunity, so I prefer to aim for a 'loop' (such as 10 minutes south at maybe 35 feet deep, 25 minutes north at around 60 feet deep, then head back shallow and slow, maybe 30+ feet deep, give or take?) so as to not get all that far away. I have no rebreather experience, and was aiming for roughly 1 hour dives.

It does pay when you're back finning out to make a conscious effort to study the shore line so you can figure out where your exit needs to be. Sometimes it's obvious, sometimes it's not.

 

[USC8791]

@stuartv you’ve been given good advice so I’ll just ditto @drrich2 and @tursiops. I’l add one thing, and that’s that the gas station north of K-Town on Kaya Korona accepted my Visa card several times this past October. The one on Kaya Neerlandia has accepted cards in the past, but I haven’t filled up there in years so not sure if that’s still the case. I find these stations to be less busy than Bonaco on Saturdays if you’re filling up prior to a weekend flight. Of course I’d recommend filling up the day before your flight out if possible. And you know my stance on the walking sticks

 

[stuartv]

I was so horrified at the prospect of paying roaming charges I went back to airplane mode once I didn't need it. I'm a cheap-o. In Aqua Viva Suites wifi worked fine for the basics; I didn't watch much video, and the one I did watch had some pauses at times. I don't know the upload/download speed ratings.

You can usually do either way. Some of the northern dive sites (hello, Oil Slick Leap) are a more limited exit opportunity, so I prefer to aim for a 'loop' (such as 10 minutes south at maybe 35 feet deep, 25 minutes north at around 60 feet deep, then head back shallow and slow, maybe 30+ feet deep, give or take?) so as to not get all that far away. I have no rebreather experience, and was aiming for roughly 1 hour dives.

It does pay when you're back finning out to make a conscious effort to study the shore line so you can figure out where your exit needs to be. Sometimes it's obvious, sometimes it's not.

LOL! On trips like this, I usually leave my phone off and connect my iPad or laptop to WiFi. But, when I want to actually use my phone, I'll turn it on and pay for the $10 for the day. So, I don't spend $70 for the week on IDP, but I might spend $20 or 30. I especially prefer to have my phone on and working as normal on arrival and on departure.

You used the term "back finning" there and in your trip report. I have finally figured out that you do not mean back finning as I use the term. You do NOT mean being in normal, horizontal (belly down) trim, and using your fins to go in reverse. You mean, being on the surface, laying back and flutter kicking, yes? I.e. facing the thing you are swimming AWAY from (i.e. finning while on your back). LOL That one took me a couple of minutes.

Doing the route of swimming one direction for 30-45, then back for 60-90, then back again for 30-45 was (in my mind) a way to never get TOO far from my entry point. But, swimming 60-90 in one direction first would maybe be a way to see things that divers don't normally get to?

When you start your dives, you swim on your back away from shore because...? To save gas and not burn it while swimming out across shallow sand? I was thinking that I would normally submerge as soon as it's deep enough and then swim out on the bottom (as gas is not really a concern when I'm on CCR). But, I can see how knowing what my exit looks like, from a distance, could be very handy...

 

[stuartv]

@stuartv you’ve been given good advice so I’ll just ditto @drrich2 and @tursiops. I’l add one thing, and that’s that the gas station north of K-Town on Kaya Korona accepted my Visa card several times this past October. The one on Kaya Neerlandia has accepted cards in the past, but I haven’t filled up there in years so not sure if that’s still the case. I find these stations to be less busy than Bonaco on Saturdays if you’re filling up prior to a weekend flight. Of course I’d recommend filling up the day before your flight out if possible. And you know my stance on the walking sticks

Thanks, Kevin! We fly out on Monday afternoon. Hopefully, no real trouble getting filled up during the day, before we go to the airport.

 

[arew+4]

Since you have open circuit folks with you, you could maybe go in together at dive one, continue in the same direction and meet up with them further down island.

Go in for dive 1 at Bachelor's Beach, meet up with them at Hilma Hooker on their dive 2.

Same thing Angel City to Salt Pier, I use these because there would be a large obvious landmark at the end location for the RB group.

Of course that's going to cost you many beers, maybe some diners too.

 

[gbf]

I usually swim out on the bottom - take a compass heading, to the buoy if there is one, then swim out on the heading. Then find me an exit marker at a predetermined depth.

There are often really cool things in the sand. On CCR I certainly wouldn't miss the sandy areas. I've also done the surface swim if the plan involved stuff like going to the outer reef and I thought we might need the gas.