T.C.
Contributor
Debbbb1, I'm jealous, wish I could go to Bonaire this weekend. I think you'll love all the snorkeling there, I took my family there a year ago, and while my sister and I dove, my parents snorkeled and loved it.
My advice would be to go to sites north of the harbor, from the Buddy's Dive/Captain Don's area north. To the south, the reefs are a bit deeper, and further out...but not by much. You will have a short swim out to the reef, but even the sand can be worth exploring. My parents saw Morays, Turtles, and many, many fishes while snorkeling. Karpata, 1000 Steps, Something Special, and Bari's Reef are all great, and you can snorkel the house reefs of some of the resorts too. However, I wouldn't want to try to snorkel the Hilma Hooker. It is a deeper wreck, from about 50' to 100'. You should be able to see it from the surface, though, and it's well marked with three buoys.
You are correct, gloves are not allowed. However, there is not much firecorals there.
You'll love the kayak, just watch the rough shores, and I'd carry a bigger patch kit than normal since it's inflatable. If you're hardcore, you'll have no problem reaching Klein Bonaire, it's only a mile away. Bring a lunch and make a day of it! I saw many kayakers row to Klein Bonaire. There shouldn't be an issue with weather, but the channel is well-traveled, so if you got in trouble, you'd be able to be picked up quickly. Currents and wind in the channel are usually negligible.
Maps are free and widely available. You can pick up a paper copy of this map for free anywhere in Bonaire, but just to whet your appetite, here's a good map that we used:
Bonaire Dive Guide | diving | bonaire | guide | shore | shorediving | boat | boatdiving | fishes | fish | coral
You can click on any dive site to read more about it, and look for the ones with the blue "snorkeling" icon to help plan.
Have fun! I am so jealous of you!
Make sure to give us all a good trip report when you're back!
My advice would be to go to sites north of the harbor, from the Buddy's Dive/Captain Don's area north. To the south, the reefs are a bit deeper, and further out...but not by much. You will have a short swim out to the reef, but even the sand can be worth exploring. My parents saw Morays, Turtles, and many, many fishes while snorkeling. Karpata, 1000 Steps, Something Special, and Bari's Reef are all great, and you can snorkel the house reefs of some of the resorts too. However, I wouldn't want to try to snorkel the Hilma Hooker. It is a deeper wreck, from about 50' to 100'. You should be able to see it from the surface, though, and it's well marked with three buoys.
You are correct, gloves are not allowed. However, there is not much firecorals there.
You'll love the kayak, just watch the rough shores, and I'd carry a bigger patch kit than normal since it's inflatable. If you're hardcore, you'll have no problem reaching Klein Bonaire, it's only a mile away. Bring a lunch and make a day of it! I saw many kayakers row to Klein Bonaire. There shouldn't be an issue with weather, but the channel is well-traveled, so if you got in trouble, you'd be able to be picked up quickly. Currents and wind in the channel are usually negligible.
Maps are free and widely available. You can pick up a paper copy of this map for free anywhere in Bonaire, but just to whet your appetite, here's a good map that we used:
Bonaire Dive Guide | diving | bonaire | guide | shore | shorediving | boat | boatdiving | fishes | fish | coral
You can click on any dive site to read more about it, and look for the ones with the blue "snorkeling" icon to help plan.
Have fun! I am so jealous of you!
Make sure to give us all a good trip report when you're back!
) and with your experience, I doubt you'd have a problem getting to Klein Bonaire. 
