Bonaire - question on condos

[DiverVince]

Gangrel.. Been reading this thread & I've been going back & forth to Bonaire for the last 20 years & have been inside Den laman several times, & also stayed several times at Sand dollar, Belmar, Plaza & Divi.
If it's between D.L. & S.D. as Cyndee says I'd chose D.L. hands down. The caveat to this is to make sure that you have an oceanfront room at D.L. Otherwise you could be stuck in the back or side with really no view at all. Not what I'd want.
The common areas are comparable between DL & SD since they are right next to each other. As you realize DL has the restaurant on the ground floor. It's EZ to walk back & forth between the 2 properties.

As to you recent question, there is public access to the beach at the Plaza but you may have to pay a small charge for a recliner (I think about $5). Also public access to the small beach at Divi.

Having said the above, my choice giving the aforementioned would be Belmar..
ALL the units are oceanfront. You'll find it's quieter in the south. If you want to get to town, it's a 5 min drive. The diving right off the dock is fine & you have great access to all the southern dive sites.

But no matter which resort you chose, be sure to personally visit the others so you can see first hand what you like for your return trip!

 

[gangrel441]

Gangrel.. Been reading this thread & I've been going back & forth to Bonaire for the last 20 years & have been inside Den laman several times, & also stayed several times at Sand dollar, Belmar, Plaza & Divi.
If it's between D.L. & S.D. as Cyndee says I'd chose D.L. hands down. The caveat to this is to make sure that you have an oceanfront room at D.L. Otherwise you could be stuck in the back or side with really no view at all. Not what I'd want.
The common areas are comparable between DL & SD since they are right next to each other. As you realize DL has the restaurant on the ground floor. It's EZ to walk back & forth between the 2 properties.

As to you recent question, there is public access to the beach at the Plaza but you may have to pay a small charge for a recliner (I think about $5). Also public access to the small beach at Divi.

Having said the above, my choice giving the aforementioned would be Belmar..
ALL the units are oceanfront. You'll find it's quieter in the south. If you want to get to town, it's a 5 min drive. The diving right off the dock is fine & you have great access to all the southern dive sites.

But no matter which resort you chose, be sure to personally visit the others so you can see first hand what you like for your return trip!

Thank you Vince. The one that is leaning me towards DL and away from BelMar is that DL has a free upgrade to Nitrox. For the amount of diving we will be doing there, I would want to make every dive on EAN, which would further raise the cost on a stay at BelMar, making it over $220 more per person than a stay at DL.

I already know about the oceanfront vs. ocean view rooms, and have already included that in my planning.

One other thought...we will most likely be making lunch and eating out for dinner the whole week, but we hoped to use breakfast as an opportunity to meet other divers at our resort or others in the vicinity. If we are at DL, Sand Dollar would most likely be our spot for breakfast. Do you guys know how much SD charges for their breakfast buffet for non-guests?

 

[MN Lakeman]

One point I'd like to make regarding Nitrox: Since your best diving is 60 to 40 ft, w/ terrific longer 20ft safety stops ('cause there is so much to see!) - I found (diving air) I was never any higher than 1 dot before the "yellow" for Ni loading on my DC, even after 4 dives in a day (& we rarely got out of the water under an hour).

 

[gangrel441]

Well...if I throw out the Nitrox and throw BelMar back into the equation, then the same question applies as above. Where are the local eats around there for breakfast?

 

[DiverVince]

Gangrell.. Honestly most people at Belmar have breakfast on their private seaside terrace. We shop at Cultimara or the Warehouse & have for breakfast & lunch.
Frankly I prefer not talking much in the morning & quietly sipping coffee while munching on cereal, gouda cheese, fresh fruit & some nice cold cuts while planning where we will dive!
"local Eats" would really have to be in town. Although they do serve breakfast across the street at Great Escape.
As far as meeting others, from my point of view this is really done in late afternoon & early evening as the sun sets & everyone is gathered outside to watch the show. A great time to talk with other divers who hang out by the pool & on the seaside terrace while sipping an adult beverage...

 

[gangrel441]

Thanks Vince. I know the culture among divers is different at different destinations. Getting a feel for how it works in Bonaire is one of my goals in starting this thread. Thanks, that was a big help!

 

[MN Lakeman]

Belmar: If you choose to come back "home" @ lunchtime, try the Black Bean soup across the street @ Great Escape- its amazing. We too, hit the local grocery stores (very interesting experience in itself) & stocked the 'fridge & shelves w/ breakfast & lunch items. Best morning memories were sitting out on the peaceful patio area, munchin' down granola, & planning the day or reflecting on the previous ones. I better stop, major PBD is setting in...

 

[blawler1]

Just to make sure that everyone is aware, BDA started out just offering the free nitrox upgrade to Sand Dollar and Den Laman (DL) guests, but they expanded the offer to all divers who dive with them. We stayed at Yachtclub just a week ago and only paid the $20 a day unlimited nitrox special price for only the days we chose to dive, the best deal in the Caribbean hands down. So don't feel limited to just DL in order to get the cheap nitrox; however, it is a very nice place to stay.

As was mentioned earlier, unless you want to be in the back of the building looking out over the parking lot, then you want to get at least the 1 bedroom suite. Also,as was mentioned earlier, they did not have the wireless service up at DL when we were there so we had to go over to Chat & Browse for email (he is very proud of his wireless network, I think we paid $20 for a day or two).