Looking for everything in Bonaire

[waynel]

I'm trying to plan a 10 day trip to Bonaire in June and I'm looking for the "perfect" scenario. Here's my dillema:

I will shore dive, boat dive, night dive, everthing except penetration dives. My wife also dives but she is very thin (5'8", 125"). A beautiful woman but not real strong so she doesn't like shore diving. She'll deep dive, etc. from a boat but will not want to dive more than 3 or 4 days. So I need a "high quality" resort with boat diving and storage lockers.

When she's through diving she will want...to drink coffee from the balcony of our room overlooking the ocean and then walk the shortest distance possible to a beach like you see in the Corona commercials. Now, for the icing...it wouldn't hurt if in the evenings we can sit on our balcony and watch a sunset.

It's not that she is high maintenance, she drives an old jeep. We both have very busy careers and this will be our only trip anywhere this year. So we are trying to get the "perfect romantic vacation" with some great diving.

I know this all sounds impossible, but we have just become "empty nesters" and we're looking for that ultimate Carribbean trip we've always talked about. Until the kids left it was either Key Largo or Cozumel. Any help with the "perfect" resort in Bonaire?

 

[reefdiva]

Wayne ... a couple thoughts on your post. Bonaire is not known for its long, sandy beaches (like in the Corona commercials!). There are a few small, sandy beaches but if she is looking for long walks on the sand then Bonaire might be a disappointment. Even where there are small sand patches the entries are often "rough on the feet." Many resorts take advantage of "sunning piers". Resorts with "Bonaire style" beaches include Plaza, Harbor Village and Eden Beach. Check out www.infobonaire.com and www.bonairetalk.com for more on resorts If your wife wants to do some shore diving there are many easy entries. You can find information on them at www.bsdme.info.

 

[txdano]

I would highly recommend the Bel Mar, we have stayed there three times. Very nice balconies overlooking the ocean, Buddy Dive picks up at their dock for boat dives a couple times a week. They have storage lockers as well. The house reef is nice and very easy to dive since they have a stairway into the water right off of the dock. www.belmar-bonaire.com

 

[ScubaJW]

Looks like you rather to do boat diving than shore diving, because of your wife. Then Bonaire is not the right location for you all - it's all about shore diving (mostly). There are some boat diving but not as famous as shore diving. It will be better if you consider other location such as Utila, Honduras or etc...

 

[Desert_Diver]

I'm trying to plan a 10 day trip to Bonaire in June and I'm looking for the "perfect" scenario. Here's my dillema:

I will shore dive, boat dive, night dive, everthing except penetration dives. My wife also dives but she is very thin (5'8", 125"). A beautiful woman but not real strong so she doesn't like shore diving. She'll deep dive, etc. from a boat but will not want to dive more than 3 or 4 days. So I need a "high quality" resort with boat diving and storage lockers.

When she's through diving she will want...to drink coffee from the balcony of our room overlooking the ocean and then walk the shortest distance possible to a beach like you see in the Corona commercials. Now, for the icing...it wouldn't hurt if in the evenings we can sit on our balcony and watch a sunset.

It's not that she is high maintenance, she drives an old jeep. We both have very busy careers and this will be our only trip anywhere this year. So we are trying to get the "perfect romantic vacation" with some great diving.

I know this all sounds impossible, but we have just become "empty nesters" and we're looking for that ultimate Carribbean trip we've always talked about. Until the kids left it was either Key Largo or Cozumel. Any help with the "perfect" resort in Bonaire?

I just returned from Bonaire Sunday. We stayed at Divi Flamingo. They offer both boat dives (I recommend Lutty and Rommel as captain/divemaster combo) and unlimited shore diving. They have both air and nitrox. There is a beach, but it somewhat small. If your wife wants to just sunbathe, there are several jetties out into the water with shelters and beach chairs/loungers. The dive shop has it's own pier where you board the dive boats. Lockers are at the ocean end of the pier. (Bring your own combo lock). The "back" gate at Divi opens into town and you are about five blocks (approx) away from "downtown". My room, number 103, had it's balcony hanging out over the water. Balcony faces west as you requested.

Romantic vacation? You're talking to the wrong person. I can't afford a wife/girl friend and diving both. <sigh>

Art

 

[waynel]

No, my wife doesn't need or want long walks along the beach. When she hits the beach it's to lay out and not move. Rough entry isn't a problem, she'll just do it to cool off. So, these posts look encouraging except for ScubaJW's post that Bonaire isn't right for boat diving. Is that because there are no deep dive sites there, or nothing worth seeing at 90 ft.?

Another question on shore dives. How's navigating those house reefs or shore dive entries away from the resorts? Are there reference points from the entries (rope to the reef, markers, etc.) Do you have to pull a diver down marker with you, heavy boat traffic over those reefs. etc. Any sites where I can an idea?

DesertDiver...You're thinking about the wife/girlfriend thing all wrong. You GET a girlfriend or wife who is hooked on diving like us then you have TWO incomes to pay for it. That's why I have so many requirements for this trip. I get to dive everday and the wife gets some of what she wants. It's only because she's certified (AOW at that) at all that I can limit all our vacations to dive destinations.

Great tips guys on resorts! Hoping to get more first hand accounts of staying and diving. Thanks.

 

[Scubagal]

We stayed at the Divi Flamingo in January and the boat diving setup was very convenient. The dive lockers are located at the end of the dock, so you just grab your stuff and toss it on the boat. The oceanfront rooms, while basic, have wonderful views. The Divi is a short walk into town for shopping, etc. I wrote a mini trip report with some pictures if you're interested: Bonaire Trip Report

 

[highlandfarmwv]

I agree, Divi Flamingo very convenient. they also have rope swings to watch the sunset from (as well as lounges) Easy to navigate the house reef.

 

[reefdiva]

Waynel ... boat dives are great on Bonaire for getting to the spots that you can't access from the shore -- such as off the island of Klein Bonaire. As for deep -- you can do deep from shore or boat. My typical shore profile is to go to around 125 feet and then work my way back up the reef with most of my time spent in 40fsw or less because there is so much to see. You do not have to tow a diver down flag for shore diving. At some sites in town you need to be aware of possible boat traffic and at some of the southern sites you need to be aware of kitesurfers but otherwise no problem. Marine Park sites have markers that are great for navigation -- you can swim to the marker, take a compass heading, drop down, note the depth and then use that for your return mark. I like to stay submerged all the way to the shore line! I know that I mentioned Bonaire Shore Diving Made Easy in an earlier post. If you go to the website you can see a sample page and get an idea of what to expect. The site is www.bsdme.info.

 

[txdano]

Navigation is very easy, there are some more tips here: http://www.scubaboard.com/showthread.php?t=172540