First trip to bonaire need plenty of advise...
- Thread starter katydiver
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Rythmmaker
Contributor
I just posted a trip review from my first trip to Bonaire. There are a few things that you should note:
1. Mosquitoes nearly drove me crazy - not during the day, but dining outdoors at night it was a problem. Take DEET and use it. Some Sting Eeze, calmine lotion and benadryl would be good to pack too, just in case.
2. The comment posted about thick-soled boots is spot-on. You will be entering and exiting the water in areas that are comprised of rocks, broken coral and the odd sea urchin. This was one of the best tips anyone gave me before we left.
3. If you like to make your own sandwiches for lunch and save some money - buy lunch meat before you leave, freeze it and carry it on the plane in a small soft-side cooler. You will have fresh lunchmeat (it's hard to find quality deli-style meats at any price on Bonaire) - and then go to Cultimara grocery for the best bakery on the island. You can get wonderful fresh baked breads and pastries. We also packed a lot of snacks - gorp, protein bars, etc. The little cooler came in handy for keeping drinks cooler in the truck - we didn't care if the cooler was stolen, and it wasn't.
4. Buy a 2 liter bottle of water to use for rinse and stash it under the seat, keep a couple of 1 liter bottles in the freezer overnight, then take them in your soft cooler when you go diving - you will have a cold drink when you return from your dive. You can refill them from the tap in your room and recycle them. Please crush them and pack them home from Bonaire when you are done - there is no environmentally safe way to dispose of them on Bonaire.
5. We went looking for cheap sunglasses at Walmart before we left. The cheapest we found were about $10 in the "sunglass" section. We checked the sporting goods section and found great polarized glasses for fishing for $5. We bought 2 pairs each - they were comfortable and we didn't care if they were stolen. They weren't - theives ignored the cooler, the sunglasses and beach towels - they stole our $20 Nike logo Dry-Fit ball caps, though. I guess they have discriminating taste.
You will have a blast! The other suggestions you got are excellent.
1. Mosquitoes nearly drove me crazy - not during the day, but dining outdoors at night it was a problem. Take DEET and use it. Some Sting Eeze, calmine lotion and benadryl would be good to pack too, just in case.
2. The comment posted about thick-soled boots is spot-on. You will be entering and exiting the water in areas that are comprised of rocks, broken coral and the odd sea urchin. This was one of the best tips anyone gave me before we left.
3. If you like to make your own sandwiches for lunch and save some money - buy lunch meat before you leave, freeze it and carry it on the plane in a small soft-side cooler. You will have fresh lunchmeat (it's hard to find quality deli-style meats at any price on Bonaire) - and then go to Cultimara grocery for the best bakery on the island. You can get wonderful fresh baked breads and pastries. We also packed a lot of snacks - gorp, protein bars, etc. The little cooler came in handy for keeping drinks cooler in the truck - we didn't care if the cooler was stolen, and it wasn't.
4. Buy a 2 liter bottle of water to use for rinse and stash it under the seat, keep a couple of 1 liter bottles in the freezer overnight, then take them in your soft cooler when you go diving - you will have a cold drink when you return from your dive. You can refill them from the tap in your room and recycle them. Please crush them and pack them home from Bonaire when you are done - there is no environmentally safe way to dispose of them on Bonaire.
5. We went looking for cheap sunglasses at Walmart before we left. The cheapest we found were about $10 in the "sunglass" section. We checked the sporting goods section and found great polarized glasses for fishing for $5. We bought 2 pairs each - they were comfortable and we didn't care if they were stolen. They weren't - theives ignored the cooler, the sunglasses and beach towels - they stole our $20 Nike logo Dry-Fit ball caps, though. I guess they have discriminating taste.
You will have a blast! The other suggestions you got are excellent.
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