Trip report May 17-24th

[drrich2]

Another vote for Bas Tol for shore diving the east coast.

I was in Bonaire the same week you were, but stayed at Buddy Dive. I drove past the Plaza; if I recall correctly the grounds looked nice from the road? I didn't take a picture and don't remember just how it looked, just a positive impression. Coincidentally, it was my 8th Bonaire trip, too.

I'm starting to pay a little more attention to where some of these places are; saw Divi Beach Resort's location after a Dutch snorkeler found a metal I.D. tag I lost and turned it in at their front desk after e-mailing me about it (my name, address and e-mail were on the tag). Seems to me the Plaza and Divi would be especially good for people wanting to be a little closer to the southern dive sites, at the expense of the northern ones. I dove both, so wouldn't have been an issue for me either way.

The box jellyfish issue affected me one night doing a night dive at Buddy Dive Resort; I've got a separate thread on it.

Richard.

 

[wwguy]

I drove past the Plaza; if I recall correctly the grounds looked nice from the road? I didn't take a picture and don't remember just how it looked, just a positive impression. Coincidentally, it was my 8th Bonaire trip, too.

IMHO you can't see much of the Plaza grounds from the public street. On your next trip you should try a shore dive at 18th Palm. You'll have to park in the Plaza parking lot and walk through the gate and across their beach. We were pleasantly surprised the first time we did.

 

[drrich2]

Never dove there, but would probably enjoy it. Maybe one of these days I can try the Plaza. Although my Buddy Dive stay wasn't AI, I had breakfast and supper there every time this trip, so it almost might as well have been. When I've gone with other people in the past, we 'restaurant hopped' night to night, but traveling solo, I realized I almost always get 'Catch of the Day' or a similar fish dish wherever I go on Bonaire.

Richard.

 

[mbs]

MBS - I have another question about staying at the Plaza. We just arrived tonight and are unpacking in our room right now. When you stayed here how did you handle tipping? Did you leave tips after each meal? And what about drinks at the beach bar? Is it expected you will tip each time you order drinks? Sometimes I am not sure how all-inclusive an all-inclusive actually is. And while I am on the topic, what about the boat dives. How much did you tip for each boat dive (per tank or per trip)?

If anyone has any questions about the Plaza while we are here this week, let me know and I will do my best to get you an answer. We will be here until June 14.

I am already jealous! Only been home a few weeks and am already planning next trip (probably lcbr this fall)! At the Tipsy Seagull there is a tip jar at the bar. We tossed a $20 in there every so often during the week. I did not see anyone tipping every meal. We had just enough time to clean up after our last shore dive and rush to meet the others at dinner so we didn't make it to the beach bar all week. If I were to spend time there I personally would leave a buck or 2, but I've spent a lot of time at bars so that may be just me. Look around, I expect you will see some tipping some not.
As for boat diving. There is a mailbox at the dive shop desk with envelopes. Tip before you leave for the week. We keep track of which dm's we dove with each day and start with $5 per tank and round up and toss more on for those that went above and beyond. I have to say just about all of them qualified this past trip! Herman took an extra interest in my wife/buddy's foot heavy issue and loaned her a 1.5lb ankle weight to put on her tank valve. Now I must say he may have just taken an interest in her long legs But either way at the end of the week he told her that he found the weight and that she should just keep it. That kind of behavior warrants a hefty tip in my opinion and he got it. Enjoy your week!!!

 

[mchiapetto]

Thanks for the info. It tracks with what I was thinking. We have enjoyed diving today (once at 18th Palm as the mandatory checkout dive and one boat trip to Klein). Tonight we are planning a night dive at 18th Palm. Wish you were here but if it is any comfort we will look at some of the fish on your behalf and think happy thoughts about you.