AdivingBel
Diver
My wife and I just spent a week in Bonaire at Beachcomber Villas. https://bonairebeachcombervillas.com/
We’ve been to Bonaire on multiple trips and have stayed at BCV multiple times. For those that don’t know BCV, it has two upstairs apartments with full kitchens and a large, shared balcony. The owners/hosts reside on the first floor. It's located on the water in Hamlet Oasis. Checkout their website. The descriptions and pics accurately describe the facility. We find it to be a nice niche between dive resorts like Buddy’s and the “go it alone” approach i.e. strictly VRBO, HomeAway, AirBNB, etc.. It’s more private than the former yet still has the comradery and added value of a local host.
Beachcomber Villas changed hands last year. It was passed on from the former, well thought of owners, to new hosts that are working hard to continue the helpful, diver friendly reputation it has garnered over the years. Beyond a fresh coat of paint, Walther & Nicole have made several improvements. They’ve added sun sails and new, built-in planters to the apartment’s balcony that overlooks the ocean and large garden area. This adds shade from the tropical sun making morning coffee on the veranda more enjoyable, helps keep the apartments cooler during the day, and adds additional privacy to the already large, shared balcony. They’ve also upgraded the balcony and “sunset garden” area furnishings to more comfortable and fashionable lounge seating areas. This is particularly enjoyable given the nightly ritual of drinks and pleasant conversation while basking in the Bonaire sunsets.
All of the aforementioned upgrades are noteworthy, but from a diver’s perspective, the addition of a setup bench, built-in rinse tank, and partially enclosed, tiled rinse shower located next to the outdoor gear drying area are substantial improvements. This area is secured behind a locked gate and within easy distance from the secure, indoor gear room. Prior to these upgrades we preferred to handle gear rinsing at the end of the day at the Hamlet Dive Friends located a few hundred yards away. Now it’s not only much easier to finish the day at the Villa, but it makes diving “the Cliff” right out the front gate much more enjoyable.
BCV offers discounted vouchers with Dive Friends and they have relationships with several truck rental companies allowing them to provide “drive & dive” packages for their guests. There is also access to the Hamlet pool located directly behind the Villas.
I don’t mean to cheerlead or write a promotional brochure, but Walther & Nicole are good folks and lovely hosts who have worked hard to add to an already pleasant property and make a place for themselves in their little piece of paradise. It’s worth checking out whether you’re new to the island, want to try something a little different, or know BCV from past visits.
As far as the rest of the trip, lol, we hit many of the usual dive sites with our favs being Margate Bay, Tolo, and Karpata. For eats, we ate at the apartment for most meals, but we did enjoy a doner brood from The Fresh Market, tuna wraps from the Kite City food truck, and an evening at Julian’s on the waterfront for a good, inexpensive, prix fixe, meal.
We rented our truck from Poppy @ Telerin. We’re repeat customers. Good, solid, Nissan truck. Easy pickup and drop off in airport short term parking. Leave the keys and parking stub in the truck and go catch your flight. Easy peasy. Takes AMEX and we use the upgraded AMEX insurance.
Concerning security on the island, we had no issues at the dive sites (N=1). We left the truck windows down, doors unlocked, and anything of value went in the water with us. “Thems the Bonaire rules.” BCV has security doors on the first floor entrance, at your apartment entrance, also at the gear room, along with gated access to the front garden, and the owners living on the first floor. For us that was plenty.
All in all another fun Bonaire adventure. Gotta luv “dive freedom.”
BTW, this was our second trip using our PVC dive canes. https://www.scubaboard.com/community/threads/dodging-aches-and-pains.558121/page-2#post-8232791 Best thing since “sliced bread” for easy entry & exits. It’s amazing how much more we enjoy our dives without the worry of bruises, broken bones, and other assorted lacerations. Lots of folks asked us about them. Since you tend to run into the same divers at different sites, we became the “people with sticks.” I guess that could make us feel old, but Walther and I chuckled about it while drinking the “good” rum during sunset reverie. I left one of the canes and rigging with him for his guest’s use, if anyone wants to try one out.
We’ve been to Bonaire on multiple trips and have stayed at BCV multiple times. For those that don’t know BCV, it has two upstairs apartments with full kitchens and a large, shared balcony. The owners/hosts reside on the first floor. It's located on the water in Hamlet Oasis. Checkout their website. The descriptions and pics accurately describe the facility. We find it to be a nice niche between dive resorts like Buddy’s and the “go it alone” approach i.e. strictly VRBO, HomeAway, AirBNB, etc.. It’s more private than the former yet still has the comradery and added value of a local host.
Beachcomber Villas changed hands last year. It was passed on from the former, well thought of owners, to new hosts that are working hard to continue the helpful, diver friendly reputation it has garnered over the years. Beyond a fresh coat of paint, Walther & Nicole have made several improvements. They’ve added sun sails and new, built-in planters to the apartment’s balcony that overlooks the ocean and large garden area. This adds shade from the tropical sun making morning coffee on the veranda more enjoyable, helps keep the apartments cooler during the day, and adds additional privacy to the already large, shared balcony. They’ve also upgraded the balcony and “sunset garden” area furnishings to more comfortable and fashionable lounge seating areas. This is particularly enjoyable given the nightly ritual of drinks and pleasant conversation while basking in the Bonaire sunsets.
All of the aforementioned upgrades are noteworthy, but from a diver’s perspective, the addition of a setup bench, built-in rinse tank, and partially enclosed, tiled rinse shower located next to the outdoor gear drying area are substantial improvements. This area is secured behind a locked gate and within easy distance from the secure, indoor gear room. Prior to these upgrades we preferred to handle gear rinsing at the end of the day at the Hamlet Dive Friends located a few hundred yards away. Now it’s not only much easier to finish the day at the Villa, but it makes diving “the Cliff” right out the front gate much more enjoyable.
BCV offers discounted vouchers with Dive Friends and they have relationships with several truck rental companies allowing them to provide “drive & dive” packages for their guests. There is also access to the Hamlet pool located directly behind the Villas.
I don’t mean to cheerlead or write a promotional brochure, but Walther & Nicole are good folks and lovely hosts who have worked hard to add to an already pleasant property and make a place for themselves in their little piece of paradise. It’s worth checking out whether you’re new to the island, want to try something a little different, or know BCV from past visits.
As far as the rest of the trip, lol, we hit many of the usual dive sites with our favs being Margate Bay, Tolo, and Karpata. For eats, we ate at the apartment for most meals, but we did enjoy a doner brood from The Fresh Market, tuna wraps from the Kite City food truck, and an evening at Julian’s on the waterfront for a good, inexpensive, prix fixe, meal.
We rented our truck from Poppy @ Telerin. We’re repeat customers. Good, solid, Nissan truck. Easy pickup and drop off in airport short term parking. Leave the keys and parking stub in the truck and go catch your flight. Easy peasy. Takes AMEX and we use the upgraded AMEX insurance.
Concerning security on the island, we had no issues at the dive sites (N=1). We left the truck windows down, doors unlocked, and anything of value went in the water with us. “Thems the Bonaire rules.” BCV has security doors on the first floor entrance, at your apartment entrance, also at the gear room, along with gated access to the front garden, and the owners living on the first floor. For us that was plenty.
All in all another fun Bonaire adventure. Gotta luv “dive freedom.”
BTW, this was our second trip using our PVC dive canes. https://www.scubaboard.com/community/threads/dodging-aches-and-pains.558121/page-2#post-8232791 Best thing since “sliced bread” for easy entry & exits. It’s amazing how much more we enjoy our dives without the worry of bruises, broken bones, and other assorted lacerations. Lots of folks asked us about them. Since you tend to run into the same divers at different sites, we became the “people with sticks.” I guess that could make us feel old, but Walther and I chuckled about it while drinking the “good” rum during sunset reverie. I left one of the canes and rigging with him for his guest’s use, if anyone wants to try one out.
