Bonaire - rent here, there, or buy?

[SpiderSense]

My wife and I will be heading to Bonaire (Capt Dons) at the end of Oct. We'll be doing out certification dives there with out instructor from here (Washington DC area). We bought fins/mask/booties/snorkel/bag, but will need to rent or buy BC, Reg, 3mm suits, dive computer.

i'd rather not rent up here and pack/lug them down there.

1. when you rent down there, do you keep all the gear for the week? or do you get new BC/Regs each day?
2. is the rental equipment in Bonaire ok quality/condition-wise? or should i rent them at my LDS?
3. if i rent a Regulator in Bonaire, and i purchased an air integrated computer here, is it a problem to ADD the wireless transmitter to the rented regs? would they normally have 2 HP ports?

anything else we need to pickup? i'd really like to have Seacure or Jax mouthpieces, but its probably only useful if we own our regs (size issues).

same ole questions.. which to buy, which to rent, etc. since i'm a gadget freak, i really want a computer (VT3).

thanks for any info!

G.

 

[Damselfish]

1) If you rent for the week you will keep the gear for the week.
2) I'd expect decent equipment in Bonaire. There's too much competition for anyone to get away with crap.
3) Not sure, wouldn't think it's a problem. But if you couldn't use that feature it's not the end of the world... I'm sure you could email them and find out.

You might consider getting small but bright lights that will make good backup lights later. Lights tend to be relatively expensive to rent, probably because of the cost of batteries. I imagine you won't go so far as trying a night dive yet since you're just doing your OW dives there (never know) - but a light is also handy during the day for peeking in holes and such and you will probably want one sooner or later.

Another thing you could consider is the little things that you don't usually rent, like a safety sausage (though unlikley to need one in Bonaire.) I remember seeing a thread that discussed this very subject maybe someone will dig it up.

Often rental gear does not come with a way to clip up a console or octo, have something to use so you won't have these dragging.

 

[Cecil]

Rent there. I've never heard anyone complain about Captain Don's rental equipment. Normally I would strongly advise that you get a dive computer but you are newbies and will run out of air before you hit deco. Still stay shallow and don't stay down long you should be fine with table diving.

Have a dive circus, Bonaire is a blast.

 

[SpiderSense]

We can't wait to go. Since we're going with our instructor and his group, we'll be doing our certification dives down there and also the Advanced OW by the time we're done. Our package includes 2 boat dives/day and hopefully a bunch of shore dives.

i only want the computer because i 'want' it. i'm a gadget guy. haha. i just want to map my dive profile to the PC. heck, i've learned more about diving by researching which computer to get than the OW class! j/k.

assuming all our dives will be 'guided' by our instructor and his group, i think we'll do some night dives too. the instructor says he dives 5am to 9pm.

 

[TheRedHead]

If you rent, you'll probably get guages on the regulator. You would have to remove the gauge and screw in the transmitter. It's really no hassle traveling with your gear as you get 2 50 lb bags per person.

 

[stu_in_fl]

if you want to download the dive info - then i'd buy the computer even if you rent everthing else (and read the manual on how it works before you go! and take the manual with you in case you forget!!!) - most computers do allow downloading to PC but often the interface is a little expensive....so you you should factor that into the cost when making your shortlist of the ones you want!
....there are pros and cons of air integrated computers - discussed in various threads on the board (opionins vary widely), wrist mount vs console seems to be more of personal preference as well - you can also discuss with your instructor and get his opinions on these subjects.

.....a weekly rental on BC and reg shouldn't be too expensive - you'll find on an average dive vacation in the tropics you don't need many clothes (so pack lightly) so actually there should be plenty of space to carry a full set of gear if you decided to buy before going...or just rent in bonaire as you said (not in the US).

If you do buy - I would leave the computer, regs, mask and swimsuit in my hand carry and check in everything else...

...one other thing (apart from the things the people posed n the previous couple of answers) - in the last few months when travelling abroad, i have noticed the airlines being a lot more picky about the weight of you check-in bags - they will charge an excess if you are over (whereas before 9 times out of 10 they would let it slide)

...enjoy the trip

 

[diversteve]

Habitat is pleased to be a partner with Scubapro and offers the finest Scuba Pro and UWATEC rental equipment exclusively. Our equipment is replaced approximately every 18 months.

$33/day for Reg/BC/Computer. ($11/$11/$11)

http://www.habitatdiveresorts.com/bonaire/dive-gear-scuba-rental.html

I agree with Cecil though, as new divers you should be focused on completing your check-out skills, not playing with tech toys. It's good to know the tables should your computer fail.

If you don't have treaded boots get them b4 you go. Shore entries are mostly over coral rubble or ironshore and slippery. If you buy a light, do Bonaire a favor and recycle your used batteries here, they have limited landfill space and no way to deal with corrosives cleanly.

 

[skynscuba]

You may well be the first person ever to buy a multi-gas computer before taking basic scuba lessons. Got some tech diving to do?

I'd say rent everything from your LDS, if they have reasonable gear and prices. An exception for me would be the wetsuit, which I would buy before going. At my LDS, I can rent a regulator, computer, and BCD for $40 per week. When I went on a shop-sponsored trip to Fiji, they only charged for one week, even though I had the gear out for 12 days.

I hope you got some booties with stiff soles, as appropriate for Bonaire rock and coral. I had tried to tell my girlfriend to do so when she was getting her rating -- now she bought another pair with less than 10 days on her first pair.

 

[Bigcape]

I agree with Cecil though, as new divers you should be focused on completing your check-out skills, not playing with tech toys. It's good to know the tables should your computer fail.

You gotta play with toys at some point. Even though a new diver, shallows are a great place to get comfortable and use these toys!

If there was ever any piece of dive equipment that I would not rent it would be my REG SET.

If I was told I could only own one peice of dive gear and had to rent the rest it would be my REG SET.


I can deal with fins to big, a BC that doesn't fit perfect, a mask that leaks some, a wet suit someone else peed in. BUT MY FIRST AND SECOND STAGE IS ME LIFE MON!

Buy the BEST it will last you for 20+ years if maintained, and you KNOW what you have and how it was treated.

Besides it only weighs less than a pair of boots

 

[SpiderSense]

i asked about if most regs have 2 HP ports so that i can ADD the wireless air computer, not replace the analog console. i already have the mindset of not fussing with a gadget so soon, but i figured we have 2 boat dives daily, with shore dives (all with instructor), that after a few days, i'll be comfortable and actually use the computer (compare with analog, document temperatures, and learn from viewing historical captured data).

renting the BC/Reg is a little more than $100/week down there. renting at my LDS is about $180/week. but if i'm paying $50-90/week for a reg that i can buy for $200, i'd rather buy. hence the quality of rental equipment question.

we plan on making another trip to Ft Lauderdale area this year if we get comfortable enough after 12 boat dives and unlimited shore diving in Bonaire. that would double our rental $ for this year.

wetsuit we'll buy. just trying to decide on 3 or 5 mm suits. (Bonaire and SE FL). i think we'll need 5mm suits for FL, and i'm hoping its not uncomfortable for Bonaire.

and of course, i've already read the manuals of the computers i'm considering. too bad the VT3's demo isn't available yet.