We flew with Continental on the redeye out of Newark and arrived about ½ hour early. Used Delta frequent flyer miles for free tickets. We were met by a representative of the bungalow we rented and were driven to the Plaza to pick up our car from AB and then followed her to the bungalow.
Car – We had some car problems which were reported earlier (rusted out hinge, cut fuel line on first car and dead battery on second) but AB handled the returns efficiently. We didn’t have a problem with car number 3. Since our return flight was at 6 am we returned the car to the rental center across from the airport and left the keys in the drop box. I was a bit leery about leaving the island before the car had been inspected but we had no problem in the end and received an email from AB acknowledging that the car was returned in good condition.
Lodging – We used Bonaire Village Villas. There were some pros and cons with the unit.
Pros:
Price – A two bed, two bath bungalow for two weeks for $946 including all taxes and service charges. This included an early (as in 6:30 am) check-in without extra charge. Use of the safe and wireless internet access were included in the price. Can’t beat the price! They will pick you up and return you to the airport.
Features –Clean, fully tiled unit with A/C in both bedrooms, kitchen with stovetop (no oven), microwave, fridge and toaster. All cooking utensils, pans, dishes etc. are included. Ceiling fans in kitchen, LR and bedrooms. There is a front porch with table where you can eat and enjoy the breeze.
Cons:
Features - No screen on back door which limited the available cross breeze (there were lots of mosquitoes). There is no hot water but it wasn’t so cold that it was a problem when showering but I normally take cool showers.
Furniture – There was not enough outdoor furniture. We had to move two wicker chairs from the bedroom to the front porch. There was a nice back yard which would have benefitted from some chaise lounges or even a few chairs. There is a cement table in front and in back with cement stools but these are not comfortable. The bed in the main BR was very low and somewhat hard.
Security – The bungalows are located one block west of Nikiboko Zuid and 1 block north of Kaya Industria (an easy walk to China Nobo) on the edge of a local residential neighborhood. There is a security fence along the entire front porch and it is equipped with a large lock. There are bars on all the windows and on the back door. I presume all of this is there for a reason. We believe that the incident we had with the car gas line being cut occurred during the night while the car was parked outside the bungalow. After that incident we parked inside the locked gate and had no further problems.
Noise – There were some dogs that barked most of the night and on the last Sunday there was a local party still in progress as we left for the airport at 4 am. However, once we went to bed in the evening the noise was not an issue since the fan on the A/C unit covered the sounds.
If you are looking for a reasonable accommodations with lots of room at a great price then this could work for you.
Diving – Great as usual. We used Dive Friends and they are very convenient with Nitrox now available at all 4 of their locations (the Dive Inn location still needs some work to bring it up to par with their other sites). The visibility was noticeably worse that it had been during our visits in the previous two years. For most of our two weeks it was around 40 - 50 feet with some improvement in the last two days to 50 - 60 ft. We saw 5 turtles including a sleeping one with a 42” long shell. We also saw several groups of squid at various locations and one spotted eagle ray at Margate Bay. This was a happy accident because, due to the visibility, he was only visible for about one minute and I just happened to look out to the deep at the right time. We saw several new (to us) creatures including three chain morays. My favorite dive was Soft Coral Garden – great soft coral starting in 20 feet of water. We also loved doing a 2 hour long very shallow dive at Tori’s Reef including about 1 ¼ hour in the channel looking at all the juvenile fish in less than three feet of water.
The night diving was rather unspectacular this year. One lobster , one tarpon and one grouper. In the past we’ve seen lots of crabs, octopi, many tarpon, tons of brittle stars, cardinal fish etc. Just luck of the draw I guess. We did night dives at Plaza, Den Laaman and Buddy’s and a dusk dive at Lake.
Dining – We ate in a few nights and visited the following restaurants. Relative pricing shown.
Casablanca – $$ Once for the mixed grill (which gave us enough leftovers for an extra dinner and lunch) and once for ribeye and filet mignon. Great meat and lots of it.
El Fogon Latino – $ Very good food at a great price. Dorado and chicken with pasta in a tomato cream sauce. Very good
China Nobo – $ Take out of Java reijstafel, wonton soup and 2 polars for $39.
Bobi Jans – $ Good ribs and fries with cold beer
Wils Tropical Cafe – $$$$ Very tasty mango coladas. Baracuda over a cold Middle Eastern salad and pork loin. Very good
Bambu –$$$$ Very good
Plazita Limena – $$ Steak was excellent, fish only ok.
Garden cafe - $ Good Mediterranean food. Will be closing Aug 20th
Le Flamboyant - $$$ Escargot and rack of lamb in a great garden setting. Very good. We'll be back.
City Cafe – $$ Very busy that night and service was slow. Ribs were dry . Has been good in the past.
(Message edited by sirto on August 12, 2008) |
By Ed Melo (Experienced BonaireTalker - Post #191) on Tuesday, August 12, 2008 - 12:32 am: 
