I just received word that Frits and Jenny (GM and assistant GM) have decided to leave Divi Flamingo by July. I encourage all who know them to send them an email wishing them the best of luck in their new jobs. They have done a tremendous job at Divi; taking it from a dying resort to a new rising star. I will miss them. Their replacement will have a difficult time meeting the standard that Frits and Jenny established.

send them an email and wish them well (I doubt if begging them to stay will work)

gm@divibonaire.com

That is indeed sad news.I have never met Jenny but they have done an outstanding job at the Divi. Frits always remembered me from year to year which always impressed me. Best wishes in your new endeavors.

I stayed at the Divi timeshare my first visit to Bon in 2002 and I didn't like it. But since Fritz took over and they renovated the time shares it got a lot better. Most awesome gym on the island also!

I just found out a few minutes ago that Hilton Grand Resorts whom I have my timshare through and can trade with RCI (which is how I stay at the Divi and also Lion's Dive) is not accepting searches for Divi because of all the complaints about it. It is now considered a downgraded property. I think they need to know how much better it got there with everything they have done,and I'm going to call Hilton and tell them so.

I am quite disappointed though that I won't be able to use my timeshare there anymore as I was going to use it this coming Dec for at least a week. And last I heard, Buddy Dive, which bought Lion's Dive is not accepting RCI reservations anymore. So now the timeshare I originally bought so I could stay on Bonaire is not accepting anything on Bon anymore! BOO HOO!

I have never been able to do a timeshare trade for the Divi (through Interval) -- it is never available any time I try, and I have been willing to go any time of year if I could do it with my time share. It was why I bought my time share, so I could deposit it and got to Bonaire instead !

Oh, please let this be an ugly rumor!!
We first stayed at the Divi in 1997 and it was less than stellar--more like a dump. But we loved the island and the location, so we bought a timeshare week there anyway. And then a few years later Fritz arrived and absolutely transformed the place. We were thrilled!!!! And he's such a nice guy.
Is he staying with the Divi organization or moving on? He will be greatly missed but sure to be successful wherever he goes. We thank him for all he has accomplished and wish him well.
Linda

We understand Frits is moving on to a non Divi location on St. Lucia. We wish him the best of luck as he has done wonders at the Divi during his stay with us. He will be missed, most certainly. Via con dio, Frits and Jenny!

We welcome in the new manager who will take over the Divi Flamingo, as well.

There is construction in the upper level structure above the Dive shop at present....drilling, sawing, hammering and even some jack hammering, too! I believe they are turning this into a conference/meeting room/Internet room of some sort. Ripping out the old wooden windows/doors and putting in the glass sliders, etc. Noisy but it will be worth it. Work started at around 8:30 a.m. until about 4pm. I was not ready for this at all but got over it quickly....get out of bed, Carole! Get out into the waters!!! Our room was right next to the dive shop so we were more aware of it but it was tolerable, at least to us.

The timeshare rooms now have a full sliding curtain on the back/kitchen door wall, too, which is great!! It now blocks out the outdoor lights and the sun in the morning. They used the same curtains as used on the glass sliding doors...the very heavy sun blocking curtains with the multi stripes colors. It was a great improvement.

Also now have individual wall mounted reading lights over the night table between the two queen beds. Much better than the large lamp which used to be there. The large lamp is still on the dresser top, so don't think they have taken it away! The lights built into the headboard are still there, which is nice.


The kitchen small appliances looked very new in our unit, too. Fridge kept freezing our food and drinks no matter what setting we used but we lived with it and adjusted to "its" desires.
Some new blue plastic drinking glasses (larger, too).

The new sitting area by the dive shop is nice. You can sit out there and eat, drink or just relax at any time at all.

The pool (timeshare side) was much cleaner and they have a new rock formation with a small water spout/fall, too. The jacuzzi looks much nicer, too.

The grounds are immaculate and groomed nicely. More new trees by the pool area but I think they removed a huge hibyscus tree there, as well. Have to look at some older pics to compare.

I miss the big trees where the casino outside patio used to be....there are now penny slots in that spot in the expanded casino (inside).

Casino has lots more slots of different denominations and multi denominations, too. New slot games galore! No craps....black jack and roulette only. Too much smoke inside there for me to stay for any great length of time, tho. Felt like I had puffed a pack on my own by the time we left there.

Some more new thatched "umbrellas" on the tanning pier now, too. Lots and lots of lounges on the beach and on the tanning pier.

The new dive dock and shed is fabulous. New stairs on each side of the dive dock for easy water entry/exit too.

Chibi Chibi is still fun for lunch and dinner. Please don't feed the birds is what they ask of us now...OK to feed the fish, but not the birds. (We shouldn't feed any of them!)

So, good luck Frits and Jenny!! And welcome to the new fella in town!! Ayo. Carole

Hi Carole,
Thanks so much for the very detailed update on all the changes at our favorite Bonaire resort. We owners are interested in any, and all, information. All the news sounds positive. Can't wait for our arrival on July 30.
I sent a note off to Frits today thanking him for all the wonderful changes he has brought about at the Divi. Will he still be there to get it or has he already left? We always stopped by the office to visit with him while we were there--we'll miss that.
Do you know anything about the new manager? Start date?
Thanks,
Linda

Frits and Jenny will be leaving Flamingo Beach on Friday June 17th and Bonaire on Friday July 1st.

As of September 1st they will be at The Jalousie Plantation, www.thejalousieplantation.com.

The new manager for Divi Flamingo Beach Resort & Casino will be Mr. Maarten van Wijk, currently working from the USA

Wow! It looks beautiful!! cb

I ended up talking to a supervisor at Hilton Grand Resorts and they are going ahead with a search for me so I can use my time share at the Divi. Doesn't mean they're going to find an open week, but they're going to at least search for me, even for two weeks if they can find it. I told them that the Divi should be taken off the downgrade list and they're working on it.

Lions/Buddy Dive is still accepting RCI, there just isn't any availablity when I want to go. Had no problem last year with getting it this far in advance.

But made my flight reservations for free..gotta love those frequent flyer miles! See y'all Nov 27-Dec 21!