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I just spent two excellent weeks on Bonaire with my 14-year daughter and 20-year old son. We rented a large, reasonably priced, fully-equipped two-bedroom apartment in a small group of houses south of the airport. I was concerned about reports of theft, so we left nothing in the car, but had no problems whatsoever. People were extremely friendly, waving whenever we passed. We cooked our own food (mostly purchased at Van den Tweel); prices were similar to those of Montreal.
Visibility ranged from 5 to 30 metres, averaging 15 to 20 m. We did about 20 dives along the reefs. Wearing 3 mil full suits, my son and I were cold in the 26 C water, but picked up vests ($150 for two) at Caribbe Inn; that solved the problem. While there are spots of colour, the reefs are mostly brown and beige. Coral quality is OK, but I have seen much better. I have also seen far more sea life in other locations. The best sites were Karpata, the Cliff (Capt Don's) and Bari's Reef (200 m north of Eden Resort). Capt. Don's is the prime venue for a terapon-packed night dive and a close encounter with the huge and famous Charlie. We saw medium-sized turtles on most Karpata dives, along with very friendly (and hungry) iguanas in the parking lot. Some turtles are quite comfortable with divers and their cameras. We saw no sharks, one lobster, a huge (2.1 m) green free-swimming moray, swarms of blue tangs and the usual tropical fish.
Shore entry conditions appeared too difficult (rough rocks and waves) at some of the national park sites, but we did Playa Bengé, which has a nice shallow coral garden before the reef. Slagbaai Nord was not great the day we visited. The park itself--just like Jurassic--is magnificent. The ranger warned us about dealing with the "spiritos" if we failed to exit by the 5:00 p.m. closing.
Karel's bar ($2 happy hour Amstels) is the place to watch the sun set, followed by a Gelato in the three-block town. Capt. Don's is also a great sunset perch.
While the diving was not as extraordinary as I had hoped, it was a much easier living experience than, say Dahab. At the same time of year, Dahab is 40 C with no wind and the sea is 22 C. Bonaire is 30 C with a stiff breeze and 26 C waters. Shore diving and driving to your shore site is much, much easier in Bonaire than Dahab--and probably most other quality dive locations except the Caymans, but accommodations are twice as much there (our 80 m fully furnished flat with many amenities came to $150/night with the tourist tax).
We got our nitrox ($150/6 days) from Eden Resort, with refills and washing facilities there and at Wind Sock, just south of the airport.
Locals say the relatively poor viz is caused by wind, by currents from South America, by whatever. But reports on this Forum and elsewhere show that it has been a growing problem for at least a decade.
Visibility ranged from 5 to 30 metres, averaging 15 to 20 m. We did about 20 dives along the reefs. Wearing 3 mil full suits, my son and I were cold in the 26 C water, but picked up vests ($150 for two) at Caribbe Inn; that solved the problem. While there are spots of colour, the reefs are mostly brown and beige. Coral quality is OK, but I have seen much better. I have also seen far more sea life in other locations. The best sites were Karpata, the Cliff (Capt Don's) and Bari's Reef (200 m north of Eden Resort). Capt. Don's is the prime venue for a terapon-packed night dive and a close encounter with the huge and famous Charlie. We saw medium-sized turtles on most Karpata dives, along with very friendly (and hungry) iguanas in the parking lot. Some turtles are quite comfortable with divers and their cameras. We saw no sharks, one lobster, a huge (2.1 m) green free-swimming moray, swarms of blue tangs and the usual tropical fish.
Shore entry conditions appeared too difficult (rough rocks and waves) at some of the national park sites, but we did Playa Bengé, which has a nice shallow coral garden before the reef. Slagbaai Nord was not great the day we visited. The park itself--just like Jurassic--is magnificent. The ranger warned us about dealing with the "spiritos" if we failed to exit by the 5:00 p.m. closing.
Karel's bar ($2 happy hour Amstels) is the place to watch the sun set, followed by a Gelato in the three-block town. Capt. Don's is also a great sunset perch.
While the diving was not as extraordinary as I had hoped, it was a much easier living experience than, say Dahab. At the same time of year, Dahab is 40 C with no wind and the sea is 22 C. Bonaire is 30 C with a stiff breeze and 26 C waters. Shore diving and driving to your shore site is much, much easier in Bonaire than Dahab--and probably most other quality dive locations except the Caymans, but accommodations are twice as much there (our 80 m fully furnished flat with many amenities came to $150/night with the tourist tax).
We got our nitrox ($150/6 days) from Eden Resort, with refills and washing facilities there and at Wind Sock, just south of the airport.
Locals say the relatively poor viz is caused by wind, by currents from South America, by whatever. But reports on this Forum and elsewhere show that it has been a growing problem for at least a decade.
