Rythmmaker
Contributor
Photos for this trip found here:
Bonaire 2010 - robisonpics' Photos
My 18 year-old son and I decided to make our first trip to Bonaire to celebrate his high school graduation. I did a lot of on-line research looking for the best value proposition I could find quality and price were both important. Since Bonaire is the capital of shore diving, and almost every package deal you will find for divers on the island includes a rental vehicle equipped with a rack for scuba tanks, I considered the proposition that a location directly on the waterfront, while appealing, was not a critical element for enjoying the spectacular diving that Bonaire offers. This was a point that I spent quite bit of time pondering: should I stay at one of the well-known and famous dive resorts, or look for a better deal someplace even if it wasn't directly on the water?
The most common argument for staying at one of the waterfront resorts is that they typically have their own house reef, which offers convenience, especially when night diving. After our experience on the island, I can say that there are plenty of great places to dive - day or night - that are very easily accessible to anyone. After being there, I can say with conviction that you will not be disapointed if for any reason you choose accomodations set back from the water.
I considered a lot of different dive resorts and compared the deals they offered, and eventually found Tropical Divers, run by Klaus Harry Neuman, to have the best deal on the island for the week that we were staying. They have their own small lodging facility Tropical Inn directly adjacent to the dive shop, and Harry also owns the recently-opened Sense restaurant which is also immediately next door to the compound. The location is not directly on the waterfront, but across J.A. Abraham Blvd from the Plaza Resort, and guests from Tropical Inn have access to shore diving from the beach at the Plaza. The map and dive guide we were given with our rental truck lists the dive site as Eighteenth Palm.
Tropical Inn and Tropical Divers seem to cater largely to German, Swiss and Austrian tourists and is very convenient to the airport; it is one of the closest resorts to Flamingo Airport, probably less than a kilometer, but with so little air traffic there was never a problem with noise. Tropical Divers is less well known to Americans, and having fewer reviews and recommendations from American guests, I was just a bit concerned about what to expect, so I am happy to report that we had a really wonderful stay and were extremely pleased with every aspect of our stay.
We took the direct flight from Atlanta on Delta, which was extremely late arriving due to mechanical problems before departure, but upon arriving in Kralendijk, after clearing customs and immigration we were met by our driver who had a sign with our names on it. He drove the 2 minutes to our destination and as he unloaded our bags, he told us that the reception desk in the dive shop was closed, but told us where to find the key and which unit was ours. I was a bit surprised, since when making the reservation directly by phone, I was asked for a credit card, but not required to pay a deposit. At the time of our arrival, we were given access to our 1 bedroom apartment for the first night without having paid a dime. This was my first clue that I was in for a different kind of experience, and one that was a refreshing change from what I was used to.
Guests at the Tropical Inn have a choice of accommodations: either a hotel room or an apartment. There are only a few of each, but all are spotless and comfortable.
Our apartment was immediately next door to the dive shop through a small gate and courtyard. The large front porch area had a seating area and also a separate small dining table and chairs. On entering we found a spacious kitchen / living area with a television (satellite TV) a small stove, large kitchen counter, refrigerator, microwave, etc. The single bedroom had twin beds (as we had requested) a closet with a safe, and there was also a very comfortable connected ensuite bathroom with shower. The wall mounted A/C unit had been turned off and was located in the bedroom, so the apartment was stifling hot when we arrived. We turned on the air, closed the bedroom door and set about looking for a place to eat dinner. We walked a few blocks around the corner (past Sense, which was open), and decided to enjoy the waterfront seating at Richards Restaurant. The food was OK at best, with very limited and basic selection on the menu, but the view of the sunset was excellent from the seating area directly on the water. When we returned we found our bedroom very cool and comfortable. We later found that leaving the air on during the day, and the door to the bedroom open, would make the entire apartment very comfortable. There is a security guard on-duty during the night and evening hours after the dive shop closes, and we felt very safe and secure. Since the property is relatively small it is easy for the security guard to keep an eye on things.
Bonaire has quite an amazing selection of very good restaurants, and with the exception of the meal we had our first night, we were very pleasantly surprised at how well we ate and the wide range of excellent choices.
The next morning the dive shop opened at 8am, and we walked the few steps next door. We checked in and I signed my son up for a level one Nitrox class. While he spent the next 2 hours in class, I went across the street to the car rental office inside the Plaza Resort facility and presented my voucher for the vehicle. It was very basic a 4-door Mazda pickup with a manual transmission and air conditioning and a wooden rack in the back for SCUBA tanks.
I have heard that some other resorts impose a mandatory briefing for all newly arrived guests, at times that might impose a delay in diving after arrival. At Tropical Divers Harrys policy is to provide a guide for the first dive his clients make to familiarize them with the logistics of finding the dive sites, entering and exiting the water on shore dives, making sure we understood the rules imposed by STINPAA, the conservation authority on Bonaire, and to assess the skills of the divers to insure safety and competence of the divers before turning them lose to dive when and where they like. After I returned with the rental truck, we loaded our gear and tanks, drove to the first dive site - and we were in the water by 10 AM. Our guide was Juerg; originally from Switzerland, and one of Harrys most experienced divemasters. Juerg was extremely friendly, very competent and helpful. Always ready to lend a hand, whenever I had any question I soon came to know that the answer was going to be prefaced with That will be no problem!
Our package included a week stay in a one bedroom apartment (very new, clean, roomy and functional), the rental vehicle, and unlimited air or nitrox. The initial guide service was also included. The shop has its own boat and dock just a quick drive around the corner and across the street and they run boat dives to Klein Bonaire twice a week. For $40 you get two-tank boat dives and lunch and a stop at No Name beach to swim, snorkel and enjoy the gorgeous beach and soft, white sand.
Tropical Divers is a full-service SSI dive training facility with its own deep freshwater pool. The rental equipment is high-quality - mostly Aqualung Titan regs, and SeaQuest weight-integrated BCs. My son rented a nitrox-compatible dive computer also, which turned out to be a Suunto Gekko. He had never used a computer before and found that it was intuitive and completely adequate. You can tell that everything from the air filling equipment, to the steel tanks and rental equipment is all meticulously clean and well-cared-for.
There are always plenty of tanks filled and ready and there was never any deviation from the EAN32 provided it became almost boring to see the analyzer consistently come up to precisely 32% on every single tank. It was extremely easy to drive up and swap tanks you can pull up directly to the facility and swap tanks in a matter of only a couple of minutes. They ask that you only take two tanks per person at a time, but when I asked if it was possible to take a couple of extra tanks for a night dive I got the standard answer It will be no problem! Just make sure you analyze the tanks and sign them out and make sure we know which ones you have out and when you expect to be back.
There is a computer in the shop that is available for guests to use during normal business hours at no charge to check email. I decided not to bring a laptop computer on this trip, and I didnt want to pay for international cell phone service. I have Skype on my iPhone, and a web browser, too, so I asked Harry if it was possible to get access to WiFi using the dive shops wireless network. In short order he provided a wireless LAN connection that enabled me to use my phone (in the airplane mode so that I didnt get charged for international wireless phone or data service by my wireless carrier) but I was then able to make free VOIP phone calls and access my email and social networking sites using the web browser built into my phone. I wasnt charged for internet access by the dive shop, and did not use commercial wireless or local cell phone service providers on the island at all. The WiFi signal was strong in our apartment (immediate proximity to the dive shop) so I had access to the internet and to VOIP phone service any time we were at our home base. This worked out extremely well.
A note about Sense - the on-premises restaurant we skipped it the first night, since we werent sure what to expect for quality of food. Even though it is visually very appealing, I had researched restaurants on-line before arriving, and it wasnt listed, being so new. When we finally did decide to give it a try, we were VERY impressed. It wasnt cheap eats but the quality of the food and the menu was outstanding. I ordered a sesame-encrusted tuna steak served with wasabi and soy, and my son ordered a pasta dish with a mustard-based sauce and topped with smoked salmon. I think it was the best meal we had the entire week. Absolutely wonderful. We dined al-fresco, and they had engaged a local jazz band that was superlative. I am a musician and former professional recording engineer, and I live in a major metropolitan area I know good jazz and great musicianship these guys were phenomenal. It was amazing. I strongly recommend visiting Sense whether you are staying there or not even if you have to drive its worth it! The other notable restaurants we tried: Bistro de Paris (excellent!), Casablanca (the mixed grill for two is a carnivores dream and great value for the money), and the Rib Factory, where we found good American-style food at a great price.
The only negative I can add and this is something I was not aware of at all even after substantial research before going to Bonaire was that I had a problem with mosquitoes.
The local variety are small, fast and caused me a fair amount of discomfort. I dont normally have issues with them, but the bites on my lower legs and ankles were extremely uncomfortable and raised itchy welts that lasted for more than a week. My dive buddy never had a problem with them. I would strongly recommend that no matter where you stay on the island, that you be prepared with a DEET-based repellent. I was also chewed on pretty hard by the bugs in Roatan last year, so maybe I just have a sweeter disposition than most other people.
Bottom Line: Tropical Inn / Tropical Divers strikes what seems to me to be the perfect balance of hands off freedom vs. personal attention: we were free to come and go as we pleased, but there was always someone immediately available to answer a question or to fulfill a request. From the guest lockers for equipment storage to rinse tanks and rental gear these folks run a tight ship and offer a great value for your money. Highly recommended.
Here are a few tips that I found really helpful:
1. Spend a few bucks before you go and get some booties with hard rugged soles. Regular, soft-soled booties are not adequate for the crushed coral that is normal for almost all the shore entries on Bonaire. Your feet will thank you.
2. The grocery store Cultimara in Kralendijk has a fantastic bakery with many types of fresh bread and pastries. Don't miss it.
3. We went to our local grocery store in Atlanta the night before departure and bought 2 pounds of fresh sliced deli meat. I froze it overnight and packed it in a small soft-sided cooler and took it with us as a carry on. We had fresh lunchmeat all week and returned to our aparment each afternoon to rest, have lunch and get fresh tanks before heading back out.
4. We also kept 2 liter bottles of fresh water (refilled from the sink in our room) for rinsing off when we got out of the ocean. We kept 1 liter bottles frozen in the freezer and refilled and swapped them out morning and afternoon. The frozen bottles would thaw and be cold to drink and we would refill and refreeze them when we got fresh ones from the freezer for our afternoon dives. Water on Bonaire is good to drink out of the tap - it comes from a desalination plant and tastes good.
5. Pay attention to the warnings about leaving valuables in your vehicle. Bonaire is not unsafe, but petty crime is a rampant problem. We had things stolen from our vehicle on two separate occasions in a single week. Luckily, we lost nothing of significant importance, but you should not leave anything behind that you would be upset to lose.
6. Be prepared to be personally and totally responsible for your own dive plan and safety. It is easy when diving from a commercial dive boat to depend on the dive planning and dive briefing they provide. It is easy to fall into a false sense of security. On Bonaire, you are normally on your own. You plan and execute your own dive. You are responsible for your own navigation and your own safety. This is how it is supposed to be, and it has the potential to make you a far more confident and capable diver - or it can get you in big trouble. Make sure you have the skill set to back up your sense of confidence, or otherwise hire a guide or get some fresh training before you go.
7. Pay attention to the small stuff - there are some wonderful creatures here to discover, but many of them (frogfish and seahorses, for example) are hard to spot. Get a local to show you where and how to spot them, and slow down and enjoy the view. The diving is truly spectacular.
Bonaire 2010 - robisonpics' Photos
My 18 year-old son and I decided to make our first trip to Bonaire to celebrate his high school graduation. I did a lot of on-line research looking for the best value proposition I could find quality and price were both important. Since Bonaire is the capital of shore diving, and almost every package deal you will find for divers on the island includes a rental vehicle equipped with a rack for scuba tanks, I considered the proposition that a location directly on the waterfront, while appealing, was not a critical element for enjoying the spectacular diving that Bonaire offers. This was a point that I spent quite bit of time pondering: should I stay at one of the well-known and famous dive resorts, or look for a better deal someplace even if it wasn't directly on the water?
The most common argument for staying at one of the waterfront resorts is that they typically have their own house reef, which offers convenience, especially when night diving. After our experience on the island, I can say that there are plenty of great places to dive - day or night - that are very easily accessible to anyone. After being there, I can say with conviction that you will not be disapointed if for any reason you choose accomodations set back from the water.
I considered a lot of different dive resorts and compared the deals they offered, and eventually found Tropical Divers, run by Klaus Harry Neuman, to have the best deal on the island for the week that we were staying. They have their own small lodging facility Tropical Inn directly adjacent to the dive shop, and Harry also owns the recently-opened Sense restaurant which is also immediately next door to the compound. The location is not directly on the waterfront, but across J.A. Abraham Blvd from the Plaza Resort, and guests from Tropical Inn have access to shore diving from the beach at the Plaza. The map and dive guide we were given with our rental truck lists the dive site as Eighteenth Palm.
Tropical Inn and Tropical Divers seem to cater largely to German, Swiss and Austrian tourists and is very convenient to the airport; it is one of the closest resorts to Flamingo Airport, probably less than a kilometer, but with so little air traffic there was never a problem with noise. Tropical Divers is less well known to Americans, and having fewer reviews and recommendations from American guests, I was just a bit concerned about what to expect, so I am happy to report that we had a really wonderful stay and were extremely pleased with every aspect of our stay.
We took the direct flight from Atlanta on Delta, which was extremely late arriving due to mechanical problems before departure, but upon arriving in Kralendijk, after clearing customs and immigration we were met by our driver who had a sign with our names on it. He drove the 2 minutes to our destination and as he unloaded our bags, he told us that the reception desk in the dive shop was closed, but told us where to find the key and which unit was ours. I was a bit surprised, since when making the reservation directly by phone, I was asked for a credit card, but not required to pay a deposit. At the time of our arrival, we were given access to our 1 bedroom apartment for the first night without having paid a dime. This was my first clue that I was in for a different kind of experience, and one that was a refreshing change from what I was used to.
Guests at the Tropical Inn have a choice of accommodations: either a hotel room or an apartment. There are only a few of each, but all are spotless and comfortable.
Our apartment was immediately next door to the dive shop through a small gate and courtyard. The large front porch area had a seating area and also a separate small dining table and chairs. On entering we found a spacious kitchen / living area with a television (satellite TV) a small stove, large kitchen counter, refrigerator, microwave, etc. The single bedroom had twin beds (as we had requested) a closet with a safe, and there was also a very comfortable connected ensuite bathroom with shower. The wall mounted A/C unit had been turned off and was located in the bedroom, so the apartment was stifling hot when we arrived. We turned on the air, closed the bedroom door and set about looking for a place to eat dinner. We walked a few blocks around the corner (past Sense, which was open), and decided to enjoy the waterfront seating at Richards Restaurant. The food was OK at best, with very limited and basic selection on the menu, but the view of the sunset was excellent from the seating area directly on the water. When we returned we found our bedroom very cool and comfortable. We later found that leaving the air on during the day, and the door to the bedroom open, would make the entire apartment very comfortable. There is a security guard on-duty during the night and evening hours after the dive shop closes, and we felt very safe and secure. Since the property is relatively small it is easy for the security guard to keep an eye on things.
Bonaire has quite an amazing selection of very good restaurants, and with the exception of the meal we had our first night, we were very pleasantly surprised at how well we ate and the wide range of excellent choices.
The next morning the dive shop opened at 8am, and we walked the few steps next door. We checked in and I signed my son up for a level one Nitrox class. While he spent the next 2 hours in class, I went across the street to the car rental office inside the Plaza Resort facility and presented my voucher for the vehicle. It was very basic a 4-door Mazda pickup with a manual transmission and air conditioning and a wooden rack in the back for SCUBA tanks.
I have heard that some other resorts impose a mandatory briefing for all newly arrived guests, at times that might impose a delay in diving after arrival. At Tropical Divers Harrys policy is to provide a guide for the first dive his clients make to familiarize them with the logistics of finding the dive sites, entering and exiting the water on shore dives, making sure we understood the rules imposed by STINPAA, the conservation authority on Bonaire, and to assess the skills of the divers to insure safety and competence of the divers before turning them lose to dive when and where they like. After I returned with the rental truck, we loaded our gear and tanks, drove to the first dive site - and we were in the water by 10 AM. Our guide was Juerg; originally from Switzerland, and one of Harrys most experienced divemasters. Juerg was extremely friendly, very competent and helpful. Always ready to lend a hand, whenever I had any question I soon came to know that the answer was going to be prefaced with That will be no problem!
Our package included a week stay in a one bedroom apartment (very new, clean, roomy and functional), the rental vehicle, and unlimited air or nitrox. The initial guide service was also included. The shop has its own boat and dock just a quick drive around the corner and across the street and they run boat dives to Klein Bonaire twice a week. For $40 you get two-tank boat dives and lunch and a stop at No Name beach to swim, snorkel and enjoy the gorgeous beach and soft, white sand.
Tropical Divers is a full-service SSI dive training facility with its own deep freshwater pool. The rental equipment is high-quality - mostly Aqualung Titan regs, and SeaQuest weight-integrated BCs. My son rented a nitrox-compatible dive computer also, which turned out to be a Suunto Gekko. He had never used a computer before and found that it was intuitive and completely adequate. You can tell that everything from the air filling equipment, to the steel tanks and rental equipment is all meticulously clean and well-cared-for.
There are always plenty of tanks filled and ready and there was never any deviation from the EAN32 provided it became almost boring to see the analyzer consistently come up to precisely 32% on every single tank. It was extremely easy to drive up and swap tanks you can pull up directly to the facility and swap tanks in a matter of only a couple of minutes. They ask that you only take two tanks per person at a time, but when I asked if it was possible to take a couple of extra tanks for a night dive I got the standard answer It will be no problem! Just make sure you analyze the tanks and sign them out and make sure we know which ones you have out and when you expect to be back.
There is a computer in the shop that is available for guests to use during normal business hours at no charge to check email. I decided not to bring a laptop computer on this trip, and I didnt want to pay for international cell phone service. I have Skype on my iPhone, and a web browser, too, so I asked Harry if it was possible to get access to WiFi using the dive shops wireless network. In short order he provided a wireless LAN connection that enabled me to use my phone (in the airplane mode so that I didnt get charged for international wireless phone or data service by my wireless carrier) but I was then able to make free VOIP phone calls and access my email and social networking sites using the web browser built into my phone. I wasnt charged for internet access by the dive shop, and did not use commercial wireless or local cell phone service providers on the island at all. The WiFi signal was strong in our apartment (immediate proximity to the dive shop) so I had access to the internet and to VOIP phone service any time we were at our home base. This worked out extremely well.
A note about Sense - the on-premises restaurant we skipped it the first night, since we werent sure what to expect for quality of food. Even though it is visually very appealing, I had researched restaurants on-line before arriving, and it wasnt listed, being so new. When we finally did decide to give it a try, we were VERY impressed. It wasnt cheap eats but the quality of the food and the menu was outstanding. I ordered a sesame-encrusted tuna steak served with wasabi and soy, and my son ordered a pasta dish with a mustard-based sauce and topped with smoked salmon. I think it was the best meal we had the entire week. Absolutely wonderful. We dined al-fresco, and they had engaged a local jazz band that was superlative. I am a musician and former professional recording engineer, and I live in a major metropolitan area I know good jazz and great musicianship these guys were phenomenal. It was amazing. I strongly recommend visiting Sense whether you are staying there or not even if you have to drive its worth it! The other notable restaurants we tried: Bistro de Paris (excellent!), Casablanca (the mixed grill for two is a carnivores dream and great value for the money), and the Rib Factory, where we found good American-style food at a great price.
The only negative I can add and this is something I was not aware of at all even after substantial research before going to Bonaire was that I had a problem with mosquitoes.
The local variety are small, fast and caused me a fair amount of discomfort. I dont normally have issues with them, but the bites on my lower legs and ankles were extremely uncomfortable and raised itchy welts that lasted for more than a week. My dive buddy never had a problem with them. I would strongly recommend that no matter where you stay on the island, that you be prepared with a DEET-based repellent. I was also chewed on pretty hard by the bugs in Roatan last year, so maybe I just have a sweeter disposition than most other people.
Bottom Line: Tropical Inn / Tropical Divers strikes what seems to me to be the perfect balance of hands off freedom vs. personal attention: we were free to come and go as we pleased, but there was always someone immediately available to answer a question or to fulfill a request. From the guest lockers for equipment storage to rinse tanks and rental gear these folks run a tight ship and offer a great value for your money. Highly recommended.
Here are a few tips that I found really helpful:
1. Spend a few bucks before you go and get some booties with hard rugged soles. Regular, soft-soled booties are not adequate for the crushed coral that is normal for almost all the shore entries on Bonaire. Your feet will thank you.
2. The grocery store Cultimara in Kralendijk has a fantastic bakery with many types of fresh bread and pastries. Don't miss it.
3. We went to our local grocery store in Atlanta the night before departure and bought 2 pounds of fresh sliced deli meat. I froze it overnight and packed it in a small soft-sided cooler and took it with us as a carry on. We had fresh lunchmeat all week and returned to our aparment each afternoon to rest, have lunch and get fresh tanks before heading back out.
4. We also kept 2 liter bottles of fresh water (refilled from the sink in our room) for rinsing off when we got out of the ocean. We kept 1 liter bottles frozen in the freezer and refilled and swapped them out morning and afternoon. The frozen bottles would thaw and be cold to drink and we would refill and refreeze them when we got fresh ones from the freezer for our afternoon dives. Water on Bonaire is good to drink out of the tap - it comes from a desalination plant and tastes good.
5. Pay attention to the warnings about leaving valuables in your vehicle. Bonaire is not unsafe, but petty crime is a rampant problem. We had things stolen from our vehicle on two separate occasions in a single week. Luckily, we lost nothing of significant importance, but you should not leave anything behind that you would be upset to lose.
6. Be prepared to be personally and totally responsible for your own dive plan and safety. It is easy when diving from a commercial dive boat to depend on the dive planning and dive briefing they provide. It is easy to fall into a false sense of security. On Bonaire, you are normally on your own. You plan and execute your own dive. You are responsible for your own navigation and your own safety. This is how it is supposed to be, and it has the potential to make you a far more confident and capable diver - or it can get you in big trouble. Make sure you have the skill set to back up your sense of confidence, or otherwise hire a guide or get some fresh training before you go.
7. Pay attention to the small stuff - there are some wonderful creatures here to discover, but many of them (frogfish and seahorses, for example) are hard to spot. Get a local to show you where and how to spot them, and slow down and enjoy the view. The diving is truly spectacular.
