For once we agree. I totally agree a perspective traveler to Bonaire or any other destinations for that matter should become informed about the real conditions at the place they intend to visit. In the case of Bonaire, find out the real risk to life and property are based on actual experience. Also take into consideration that a bad experience is more likely to result in many more postings than an enjoyable but uneventful experience. Many are heartfelt, real and unfortunate but just like any other activity in life; the odds of it happening have to be taken into consideration. For those who are unfortunate enough to be the victim of an incident be it crime or any other misfortune the event is horrendous no doubt and their perception of the odds of it happening are high but when judging the risk for yourself, the event needs to be taken in the proper context. We all face similar risk every day and on every dive trip. The plane may crash, we may get DCS, we may get hit by boats; all are real accidents that happen to people all the time, we just need to look at the odds for ourselves and determine if the risk is real, what measures can we take to minimize the risk and then determine to what level do we find the risk acceptable given the possible rewards, understanding that someone has to be that 1 in 1 million (or whatever the risk is) that has the misfortunate event. As a starting point for determining how much stock to place in an internet post, look to see how much actual experience the poster has with the activity in question, be it traveling to a specific location or doing deco diving- I would not take advice on deco diving from an OW diver. Take into account that those who have economic interest or other reasons to gain or profit from you visiting may wish to hide or obscure the truth, as well as those who may have some unspecified agenda to promote something other than an accurate representation of the real conditions. Instead, look to those who travel to the destination or participate regularly in the activity in question to determine for yourself how much credibility to place or not place in the poster. In this case those who post about travel to Bonaire. I personally judge the value of the information posted by an individual based on the actual amount of time, experience and training in the subject at hand. In dive travel, how much actual time at the destination in question do they have or are they basing their post and opinions on hearsay, second and third hand information from sources such as internet boards or friend of friends.
And in case anyone is wondering, as to my Bonaire experience, I have 14 trips for a total of 15 weeks since 1999. The groups I have been with or lead (13 of the 14) range in number from 2 to 24 and I am on Bonaire now working on trip 15. So far I have accrued around 500 person days (including myself and those in my group) with no issues at all. No gas stole, no gear taken, no tires stole and no trucks searched. I have no economic interest in the island. I do not own property and all of my trips are done for my enjoyment and the enjoyment of others. I do all the leg work but make NOTHING off the trips and rebate any discounts or comps to the group. I do most of the work and pay what everyone else in the group pays.
