How is Divers Paradise or Eden Beach?

[andrethediver]

First trip to Bonaire. From reading this forum and Trip advisor I gathered Sandy $$, Buddy Dive, Captain Dons and Den Laman are peoples favorites. Waiting for email quote from Coral Paradise and most others (Buddy D) are out of our price range.

We would prefer to stay by the water or at least within walking distance to the drop point. Use of lockers nearby would also be great.

It seems Eden Beach is right next door but reviews on TA are scary. So we are looking at Divers Paradise. Nice reviews on TA but no hits on this forum. It seems they work with Dive Friends - any chance we can use Sandy $ lockers is we deal with them? Any comments on that place?

Of course Dive Hut and Caribbean and occasional VRBO place are other options. Given that we will need a truck anyway, distance does not rally matter- if we have to drive... Any information is appreciated.

 

[htatton]

I had a great stay at Eden Beach 6 months ago. We stayed in one of the two bedroom condos. It was newly refurbished, clean and delightful. The air conditioners were the best we have ever experienced in our travels. Each room has it's own AC control and they were quiet and effective.

I really liked the room. The stairs were a little steep for my old knees but that was my only complaint.

I dove with Wannadive and they were GREAT. I am 71 years old and have some special needs. They accommodated my needs and gave me a delightful experience. They gave the help I needed while allowing me the freedom to enjoy my dives. Their assistance was completely professional. I am looking to go back to dive with them again.

Hyrum

 

[andrethediver]

Thanks for information, are they in the process of refurbishing studios as well? How far was it to the main reef? Based on the reviews and prices i think we would prefer Dive Friends at Sandy Dollar if we stayed there - is that a walkable distance?

 

[jimw]

If you are diving via truck, do Dive Friends or Buddy as it is easiest to drop off/pick up tanks. If your diving from a boat and shore diving out front, do Capt Don's--where one just picks up a tank where the gear is stored just above water level. Or, if you want the least expensive place, try Dive Hut in the middle of town or maybe Black Durgon Inn to the north.

 

[darook]

The dive at Eden Beach starts with sand and as you head to the North you encounter the reef known at this point as Front Porch. The reef continues the rest of the way to the end of the island through Bari, Buddy's, Capt. Don's etc. We used Wannadive which is based at Eden Beach on our last trip and though that is really their only location I really liked them. Great fills and easy in and out. Not a dive mill. I believe Coral Paradise is located next to the Hamlet Oasis. The house reef is Cliff and is a wonderful dive. No pier there but the dive more than makes up for wading out between the coral a bit. We were not using Dive Friends but the folks at that location were super nice and I would not hesitate to use them.

 

[andrethediver]

Thanks for your suggestions. So it sounds like Eden Beach is not in front of the Bari Reef even though its next to Buddy Dive and Sand Dollar? Coral Paradise quoted us some insane number (perhaps not by Bonaire standards?) for their 'package'. We are definitely trying to find a decent budget accommodation ($100 per night range) which will allow us to access Bari Reef and quickly switch tanks - and Dive Friends should be able with that with their multiple locations. We would have stayed at Eden Beach (where we can walk straight into the water rather than driving/parking) if it was not for the horrible reviews on TA.

 

[jimw]

Thanks for your suggestions. So it sounds like Eden Beach is not in front of the Bari Reef even though its next to Buddy Dive and Sand Dollar? Coral Paradise quoted us some insane number (perhaps not by Bonaire standards?) for their 'package'. We are definitely trying to find a decent budget accommodation ($100 per night range) which will allow us to access Bari Reef and quickly switch tanks - and Dive Friends should be able with that with their multiple locations. We would have stayed at Eden Beach (where we can walk straight into the water rather than driving/parking) if it was not for the horrible reviews on TA.

If it's Bari you seek, stay at Sand Dollar or Den Laman. Sand Dollar units vary a bunch depending on the owner. Some units there are marketed separate from the resort, so google Sand Dollar vacation rental or somesuch. Maybe ask on BonaireTalk.com as some of the unit owners may be on that site.

 

[andrethediver]

Thanks, I'll check VRBO as well. We can still dive Bari Reef even we don't stay at either one of these three properties - is that correct? Or do they restrict access to the site some way?

 

[wwguy]

A few thoughts:

1) You're not going to find accommodations with walk-in access to Bari or any other popular "house reef" for $100 night. You'll either need to change your expectations or your budget.

2) You should expect to carry your gear to wherever you're staying. I'm not aware of any dive operators that offer oceanfront storage lockers for guests not staying at their resort.

3) Consider the image below for a Bari Reef primer. The shoreline runs from north (on the left) to south (on the right). Starting on the far north (left) is Sand Dollar with the red tile roofs. Den Laman property is immediately south of Sand Dollar. The pier with dive shop between them is operated by Bonaire Dive and Adventure. BDA is notoriously militant about only allowing their paying divers to use their pier. Immediately south of Den Laman is the public access to Bari Reef via the dirt road off of the roundabout. The entire open beach area there is open to the public for diving and other recreation. The northern portion is Bari Reef, while the southern section is Front Porch. Eden Beach is at the southern end of the lot, followed by Harbour village and then the marina. The entire distance can be walked, driven, or dived in a short period of time.

If you want to save money on accommodations you'll need to drive to Bari Reef, which is pretty easy to do on this tiny island. For the least expensive lodging in this photo I'd look at Yacht Club Apartments, located inland on the main road just south (right) of the marina. For best value for budget accommodations I'd look at Happy Holiday Homes, located south of town and the airport. In either case you'll have to arrange your diving independently. I recommend Dive Friends Bonaire, who has shops north and south for your convenience.



A full-size version of this photo is viewable here.

 

[diversteve]

Bonaire Dive and Adventure - the Den Laman shop, recently had a fuss with Sand Dollar over use of the dock. So now he's anal over keeping it for his guests only. To counter that, Sand Dollar put in some steps at the very south end of their property and built a small tank storage house. You can see all of it here: Bonaire scuba diving, Bonaire dive sites and shore diving under shore diving the SD reef. So down the steps and off the beach you're in the heart of Bari Reef.

The Dive Friends shop is located in a small complex at the entrance to the resort. AFAIK the lockers are also. fwiw, if you're interested in a pool, theirs is behind the resort so the only view is of the buildings/hills across the street.

Several of their condos are on vrbo.com - here's one: Lovely Oceanfront 1 BR Condo at Sand Dollar... - VRBO - the dock you see in the picture is the one you can't use...lol. Unless you rent tanks from Bonaire Dive/Adventure. Factor in the Resort tax also, I believe it's 18?%.

One interesting dive there is the Naturalist Dive. Basically you pay him to guide on Bari Reef and he finds the fish. He carries a waterproof fish book and a slate so you can write them down on the provided REEF fishcount survey. And send it in to be counted. Part of the reason Bari Reef is the #1 reef in the Caribbean for fish species is because they've been doing that for over a decade. I'd stress that the owner, not the staff, are the problem. You can learn an awful lot from Jerry Ligon. I sat in on about 1/2 his BMP orientation and learned things I hadn't in mine a week earlier.

Eden Beach is about 2 blocks south of Den Laman. There used to be another resort there that was trashed in a hurricane and never rebuilt. Up until recently if you made the first right on the dirt road south of Den Laman, you could also access Bari from there - it was just a big field. But they've started creating a beach there so IDK the current status. I really hope it doesn't cloud up Bari...

You know Divers Paradise is about a block in from the water right? And there's houses in front of it. I'm not sure about access there or what the site is, it's too far south of Andrea I and the other way would be the north end of Cliff - but a long way south. I think the previous poster mixed it up with Coral Paradise since that's the one near the Dive Friends shop. Although at that location they have no dock so no boat dives from that location - they'll send you to their Yellow Sub location. Bonaire Dive/Adventure does boat dives off their dock also. From the south condo buildings that wouldn't be too bad of a walk with gear. We parked in the Sand Dollar lot to dive with BD&A once - missed their entrance.

If you rent with Buddy, in addition to the drive-thru you can exchange tanks at their shop at BelMar Apts. south of town. Their tank pickup is literally 20' from the road - we stay there. And possibly Caribbean Club on the northside - the 3rd Buddy affiliated location. Not as convenient though as the CC location is 2mins. inland from the main road.

WannaDive also has a location south at Windsock Beach. It's just a small stand with tank exchange, no shop. Limited hours also IIRC.

Dive Friends is about the best though for tank exchange. Besides the Sand Dollar location they've got the shop near Hamlet Oasis, a shop at the Yellow Sub dive site north of town, another at Dive Inn on the south end of town and a shop at Port Bonaire condos just south of the airport. On the off-chance a cruise ship is in town, the two southern locations are handy if you're diving south of town. The cruisers don't typically stray as far north as Sand Dollar.

Here's a map (gotta love Google Earth) - the first image is Dive Friends south to Eden Beach. I cut-off Dive Paradise by mistake. It's on the second - more of an overview of the whole area. I included Warehouse and Van Den Tweel, the two big markets. There's also a small food store just behind Sand Dollar.





the board software likely shrunk the image so open it a new window and zoom in.