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Trip Reports: First trip to Bonaire (May 3-10) - Divi Flamingo
Bonaire Talk: Trip Reports: Archives: Archives 2006-2008: Archives - 2008-03-01 to 2008-07-31: First trip to Bonaire (May 3-10) - Divi Flamingo
Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By April (Experienced BonaireTalker - Post #229) on Tuesday, June 24, 2008 - 7:44 pm:     Edit PostPrint Post

First Trip To Bonaire
May 3-10
Divi Flamingo

Flights:
Delta (through Atlanta) – no problems encountered.

Car Rental:
We rented a pickup truck from Poppy at Telerin and were very pleased. Poppy and her staff were standing outside the baggage area, exactly where they said they would be. Renting was a breeze, as most of the paperwork was done ahead of time. Poppy's customer service is outstanding and she treats you like a friend. I like how she met us inside the airport and we only needed to walk to the parking lot to pick up the truck, very simple. While the truck itself was far from new, it was perfect for what we needed it to do. It ran well all week, giving us no problems. The air conditioning worked well, too. Returning the truck was just as easy, just park it in the airport lot and Poppy was right there in the airport to meet us and exchange final paper work. I would rent from Poppy again if we are fortunate enough to return to Bonaire.

Meals:
Breakfast consisted of packaged foods brought from home, as well as a pound cake bought at Warehouse.
Lunch was always eaten at Chibi Chibi (at the Divi).
Dinner: La Luna, KFC, Subway, Pasa Bon Pizza, Chibi Chibi (3 nights)

Horseback Riding:
What a great experience. The ranch is so easy to find. Marion’s horses are so well cared for. And the guide was great. I had a very nice time on the ride to Lac Bay, swimming with the horses at Lac Bay, and then the ride back to the ranch. Two lessons learned though … wear a hat to prevent a sunburned head and bring more towels to sit on (to prevent a very sore behind).

Snorkeling with Renee:
I highly recommend Renee, especially for those lacking snorkel confidence. Renee is very helpful, patient, knowledgeable and fun. I enjoyed my time with her and wished I could have spent more time with her.

Night Snorkel on the Sea Cow:
Kirsten, her helper (forget her name), and Kirsten’s young son were all very welcoming and made us feel at home on their boat. They fully explained how the experience would work. And they were very patient and helpful with those (like me) who have some swimming fear. While we did not see many fish that night, it was still an incredible experience. After snorkeling, they serve drinks and homemade soup for the boat ride back to the marina. And they provided van transportation to/from our resort.

Bonaire Animal Shelter:
My husband and I were so glad to learn about the shelter before we arrived on Bonaire. We were able to pack a few specific things the shelter needed, as well as some extra dog/cat items for them to either use or sell. Jane Madden was very welcoming and so appreciative of our visit. For me, it was a major highlight of our trip to Bonaire. I enjoyed seeing how a small shelter like that can use what limited resources they have and actually be a very successful shelter. I was amazed at how well run that place is. If only more animal shelters back home would care as much as the Bonaire Animal Shelter does.

Washington Slagbaii Park:
We took the short route, which proved to be more than enough. While the views were beautiful, we had enough about halfway through the short route. :-)

Divi:
We had room 108, oceanfront deluxe. The room was quite adequate, with plenty of clothes storage and a nice size bathroom. The bed was comfortabl enough. And asking for extra pillows solved the "pillows flat as a pancake problem". The view from our balcony was spectacular, just being a few feet from the ocean. We were on ground level, so enjoyed watching the crabs crawling on the rocks all day. Honestly, the only thing that could have made our room better would have been a microwave placed on top of the refrigerator and there was plenty of room to do so.

The service at Divi was outstanding … from the front desk, dive shop, housekeeping, activiities office, and at the restaurant (Chibi Chibi).

The resort itself was perfect, offering so much. The beach was much bigger than I was expecting. The snorkeling right off the beach was wonderful. And the grounds were so clean, inviting, and relaxing.

We would definitely like to return to Bonaire.

 

Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Tribs, Live From Bonaire (Supreme BonaireTalker - Post #6289) on Tuesday, June 24, 2008 - 9:56 pm:     Edit PostPrint Post

Thanks for the report April. But I have to warn you that PBD (post-Bonaire Depression) might set in soon, so be prepared. :-)

 

Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Cecil (Supreme BonaireTalker - Post #6548) on Wednesday, June 25, 2008 - 7:23 am:     Edit PostPrint Post

Excellent report April, thanks for taking the time to share. It sounds like a great first trip, although I noticed you did not try many of the other great restaurants on Bonaire. Something for future visits. You made it to the animal shelter on your first trip, I did not find it till my fifth.

 

Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Ron Gould*** (Extraordinary BonaireTalker - Post #1633) on Wednesday, June 25, 2008 - 8:51 am:     Edit PostPrint Post

Thanks for the report April. To bad we didn't get to meet, maybe next time... Ron

 

Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By T-Shirt Divers John and Sue (Experienced BonaireTalker - Post #685) on Wednesday, June 25, 2008 - 2:58 pm:     Edit PostPrint Post

April, Glad you had a good time. The ocean front rooms @ the Divi are nice.

 

Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Scott D Jarrell (BonaireTalker - Post #51) on Wednesday, June 25, 2008 - 7:42 pm:     Edit PostPrint Post

Great Report, glad you had a wonderful time!

Scott

 

Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By April (Experienced BonaireTalker - Post #232) on Wednesday, June 25, 2008 - 9:44 pm:     Edit PostPrint Post

Tribs, already have a little bit of PBD. Think it would be much worse if we didn't have stuff to keep us occupied, like the boat. I think the PBD will be worse come wintertime here. My question is, am I the only person to have this happen ... while I enjoyed Bonaire, I was extremely homesick the whole time there. Guess I don't travel enough. Mainly, I missed my 3 cats back home.

Cecil, I think we got scared of restaurants after eating at La Luna on our first night on Bonaire. It was very expensive and we didn't enjoy the food all that much. Although the service was excellent, great people. We just are not very adventurous when it comes to fancy meals and spending a lot on food.

I never would have known about the shelter had it not been for the talk about it here on BT.

Ron, I too was sorry we were not able to meet up. I am glad you still had company that night for dinner, though.

A big thank you to everyone on BT for all the advice prior to our trip. Everyone was so helpful and I really appreciate it.

 

Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By R J (BonaireTalker - Post #77) on Wednesday, June 25, 2008 - 10:19 pm:     Edit PostPrint Post

Thanks for your report and hope you get to return.

 

Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Kimo (Experienced BonaireTalker - Post #192) on Thursday, June 26, 2008 - 9:40 am:     Edit PostPrint Post

April, good report even if it did take you a couple of weeks to post it.. I'm kidding of course.. sounds like you guys had a great time. We were in room 208 at Divi and have to agree the view was awesome.

 

Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By April (Experienced BonaireTalker - Post #233) on Thursday, June 26, 2008 - 5:40 pm:     Edit PostPrint Post

I'm a little backed up on paperwork since returning from vacation. :-)

Kimo, was your balcony railing solid or was it more like bars? We had a solid one, so had to stand up to get a better view ... but still spectacular.

 

Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Kimo (Experienced BonaireTalker - Post #194) on Sunday, June 29, 2008 - 9:57 am:     Edit PostPrint Post

April, ours was rails so we had a great view of the rocks and water.. Can't tell you how many crabs we counted on the rocks and needlefish in the shallows.

 


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