Hi all! I'm a long-time diver, but planning a first-time trip to Bonaire at the end of May this year. This discussion group is fantastic and has really helped me narrow down my choices in accommodation! I am seriously leaning towards the Plaza because many people have said wonderful things about it, and they have what appears to be a fantastic deal called the 3-D - Drive, Dive, Deluxe. It includes a truck rental, CDW, insurance, and taxes, along with a 1 bedroom villa rental for 7 days and unlimited shore diving for 6 days for $999 per person at the time we want to go. I think breakfast might be included, too. I wanted to know if anybody has done this special with them already. From other reports I was reading about renting cars/trucks on the island, it seems like a week will run $250-$300, so if that is already included in the Plaza's package, it's a nice savings. Thanks for your help!

Oops, just re-read the brochure, and there is no breakfast included, which is still fine by me.

We've done the package for the last 3 or 4 years during Oct. 2 Bedroom villa with 4 people @ around $614.00 each. It's a package I really like because it includes unlimited tanks and a truck. The rooms are big, the beach is good and the dive op is outstanding. My wife and her sister, however, have some issues with the cleanliness of the rooms (i.e. cobwebs). Personally, I've always felt the rooms were clean enough, although the last one we stayed in was showing some wear, but my brother-in-law and I have decided to go along and get along by agreeing to try the Belmar next time. If I had it my way we would stay at the Plaza every trip. My advice is to contact AB on the truck once it is reserved by the Plaza in an attempt to push them in the direction of picking for you one of the better trucks. The one they gave my brother-in-law in Oct as part the Plaza's package left much to be desired. It was usable but the tailgate was broken and it was significantly older than the one I had reserved for myself. Don't get me wrong, AB is great but someone has to get the older vehicles and I speculate that they tend to attach them to package deals. I could be wrong. Have a great dive!

Lisa, we live in Houston also. We have stayed at the Plaza 7 times and have enjoyed it each time. If you could get another couple to go along, I believe you could save over $200 each. Since Air Jamaica will have stopped service from Houston, how are getting there? Gary

Marcus,
I don't think your speculation is correct - we've always gotten what would essentially be "rent-a-beaters" from AB, and I've always booked directly. The last one had the seat rusted in place, had little or no shocks, and looked and sounded like it was on its last legs. It also was missing a license plate and the one on it was hand made. It was not the worst we've ever gotten, either.

I have to assume all our sadly beatup trucks have been luck-of-the-draw...

Gary, my boyfriend has a bunch of unused reward miles on Continental, so we've got non-stop service from Houston to Aruba (4 1/2 hour flight). Then, I'm going to book us on BonairExel to Bonaire. Seems like the easiest way to go, and much cheaper because of those miles!

Susan: You very well could be right. I've done okay in the past by talking directly to Marc, who as I understand it, is no longer at AB. I try to tip the odds in my favor by contacting the truck rental prior to arrival - of course, this doesn't guarentee anything.

Marcus, thanks so much for the good info! Cobwebs will not bother me in the slightest! In fact, when I was diving in Sipadan, I had to share a room with rats every night. Didn't mind it a bit because the diving was so fantastic! I will take your advice about the rental car and try confirming with AB directly. Even if it does turn out to be "Rent a Wreck" I will be OK with that knowing upfront what to expect. As long as I don't miss out on any prime dive time from it breaking down!

Lisa,
That's a great attitude! I'm not sure if great diving could have made up for rats in my mind... )

I agree - as long as you don't have high expectations about the truck, it's not a huge deal.

Something you might consider if you have an American Express card is skipping getting the truck through the Plaza and rent it on your own using your Amex Card (and purchasing the extra 19.95 insurance from them). This is 19.95 for the entire trip, and means you can safely decline CDW and AB's extra insurance. It brings the tally down considerably.

I think you just need to call Amex and tell them you want the insurance, and what the dates are.

Lisa: Your welcome.

Susan, Thanks for the tips on the truck and insurance, but since it's included free with the Plaza deal, including full insurance, I think we'll be ok. But to be on the safe side, I think we will pay for the reservation with AMEX, and I will confirm the insurance details with both AB and AMEX.

PS In Sipidan, as long as we left out our soap for the rats, that's right, soap, they stayed only in the bathroom area! That's what they wanted to eat every night, and we almost didn't have enough soap left to bathe by the end of the trip!

Lisa,

Rats like soap. I'll have to remember that if I ever go to Sipidan (and bring lots!)

ABs "Full Insurance" is different (and extra) from CDW - CDW is limited and there's a higher deductible. ABs Full Insurance is another $8 a day (I believe). So for a week, that's $56 more
If you decline CDW and don't get the Full Insurance, your savings are considerable - about half of what the rental would be otherwise. That might make enough of a difference to make getting the "18 Palms" plan a better value for you.

But... I'm a Yankee (even if I'm only 2nd generation born here... ) and always looking to save a few bucks... On the other hand, the All-In plan is simple, and sometimes simplicity has good value too!

Regarding the trucks from AB, their basic truck is a 4-door Toyota, bench-type vinyl-covered seats with standard shift and no power steering, no radio and no air conditioning (unless you consider driving at 50 km/hr with the windows open as "air conditioning"). These trucks tend to be older and more abused.

Their upgraded (i.e., slightly more expensive) truck is a much newer Mazda, with cloth-covered front bucket seats, bench rear seat, power steering, air conditioning and a radio. It too is standard shift. These trucks tend to be newer and much less abused.

I suggest you go to AB's website to see the differences. You might also want to inquire about whether you can even get the better truck for a slight increase in cost, and what that additional cost would be. My wife and I feel the difference is worth it.

Lisa,
I'm right down the road from you in Victoria and we've done two trips to Bonaire in the last couple of years. I think your idea of the all-in deal is a great idea for the first visit. You don't want to spend too much time outta the water looking for stuff you need. We rented houses both trips and had a mucho better time the second trip coz we knew where everything was. You are going to find out when you're there that there are a ton of options for lodging, vehicles, dive ops and restaurants and very few of them would not get a recommendation from someone on this board....or be generally and totally roasted if someone here had had issues with them.

As another Texas, I'm kinda trying to put together a BT trip to Flower Gardens in late July.....interested?

cheeseit (a long story)
joe

Hi Lisa, you will love Bonaire even with old pickup trucks. The diving will make up for any problems. Just don't expect large fish. There are always a huge amount of fish but rarely anything larger than grouper or barracuda. Small beaches are some of the resorts, Plaza being one of them. The color above and below are wonderful. The people are beautiful and friendly. While you are on island you can check out other resorts and options for accommodations for your next visit. Have a good time.
Andy

Lisa: Dr. Director is correct in his post above. I have requested the Mazda pickup from AB for the last couple of years and have received 2 trucks that had less than 1500 miles on them. I agree with him that the difference between the Toyota and Mazda is worth it - just food for thought. Have a great trip!!

Wow, fantastic info about the newer Mazda trucks. Thanks so much! It certainly won't hurt to ask. I appreciate everyone's input!

Andy, thanks for the info about the island itself and the type of fish to expect. I'm actually quite the critter-hunter, and seahorses are my favorite! Here's another question...is there a place to rent cameras on the island? I used to own a Sea & Sea MX-10, but flooded it about 5 years ago and never replaced it. It took decent pictures, and since I'm already familiar with how to use it, that is what I would prefer. Or, perhaps I should look into getting mine fixed before we go? I can hear the peals of laughter from everybody now!

Lisa: You can rent an MX 10 from Toucan Diving which is the shop affiliated with the Plaza. I rented an MX 10 from them one time when the strobe quit working with my MX 10. If memory serves it was around $30.00 a day (don't quote me on that). You can get an MX 10 at Leisure Pro for $240.00. I'd almost be tempted to by a new one versus fixing an old one. I suppose it would depend on how much it would cost to fix the old one. Once again, have a great trip!

Follow up note.....Just to let you all know, I ended up getting all the same things I was going to with the Plaza 3-D special, but found a slightly better deal by booking it all a la carte. The Plaza is running a couple of other deals right now, including pay for 6 nights, get the 7th free in a 1 bed. villa, as well as one diver pays, the other dives free. So we are actually getting both of those deals, plus a 1 tank boat dive for 6 days, and renting the car ourselves through AB, and altogether including taxes and everything, it works out to be a few dollars cheaper than the 3-D special. The bonus is the boat dives, because those weren't included in the 3-D special. Also, we'll be taking everyone's advice on the AMEX for insurance at $19.95--what a deal! Last but not least, (this is starting to sound like a trip report and I haven't even been there yet!) I e-mailed AB about getting one of the newer Mazda trucks, and Simone responded saying that was a Group 2 rental, as opposed to the older trucks without AC, which were a Group 1 rental. I think it costs about $35 more per week for Group 2, which we felt was worth it, so that's what we have reserved. Thanks for everybody's input to help us with these decisions!