My partner and I are planning our second trip to Bonaire this coming February. We were there about 3 years ago and we stayed at a rental property and did a lot of shore dives. This time, we are looking for a place to stay that has a boat, because we were not fond of climbing over rocks and stepping on sea urchins. I just found this message board while I was searching for accomodations, and I was wondering if you could provide me with some advice. I am looking for a somewhat romantic place to stay, preferably without many kids. A boat is a necessity, and we would prefer to do 2 or 3 tanks on each boat trip. I have visited the websites for Captain Don's, Buddy Dive, and Divi Flamingo. I have read mixed reviews about all of these places here on Bonaire Talk. Any other places that might suit our needs that I haven't found on the internet? Your feedback will be greatly appreciated!

- Dick

Hi Dick,

Try this one: http://www.deepblueview.com/ I have read some very nice things about this place and I know some folks have gone there for their honeymoon, so probably fits the bill for romantic too.

Hi,

I may be wrong, but I think only Divi does multiple tank boat trips, and as far as I know, it's 2-tanks for the morning only - the dive sites just aren't that far away. A decent boat will get you to any divesite in anywhere from 5 to maybe 15 minutes. I think the main reason there aren't many multiple tank boat trips may be that the time between dive sites just isn't long enough for off-gassing.

At Captain Don's, there are 2 morning boat trips and then an afternoon trip. There may be 2 or 3 boats for each time, and they'll go to different sites (they have to - it's a Marine Park rule that only one boat ties up at a mooring at a time).

The mornings are I believe 8:30 and 11, then I think 1 or 1:30 in the afternoon. You'll have pretty much as long as you want under water (though if you stay under much more than a little over an hour there may be a few divers who don't stay down as long frying on the boat and wishing you'd just drown, already ) and the boat will still get back in time to unload the used tanks and replace them with new.

A lot of times we'll leave our stuff on the boat in between dives, if we're on that boat for the next trip out. Sometimes you will have to move your stuff if you signed up for a different dive site than the one that boat is scheduled to visit next.

I think Toucan Diving at the Plaza Resort still has two tank boats in the morning. Diving the Wildside with Larry was also two tanks. I have never found a three tank on Bonaire and the two tanks are very limited.

Bruce Bowker's Carib Inn looks small and romantic. We're using him for our boat diving in February too. He gets rave reviews as do most of the dive ops on Bonaire. www.caribinn.com

Because most dive sites are so close, most ops run single tank trips. I think this works very well as you can off gas over lunch, by the pool, etc. I normally stay at the Carib Inn and their schedule is, I think, 8:30am and 1:00 or 1:30 pm. (Long bottom times: more than an hour is typical).

Another thing to consider is hotels that have a decent house dive that you get to via a ladder/dock arrangement. No rocks or urchins. Capts Dons, Divi (which almost has stairs), Carib, etc.

No single place on the island is perfect for every traveller. Upscale cost is no object/concern -- Harbour Village. If that is not your scene, there are many other choices. It sounds like you want to be seaside with boat dives. Still lots of choices there...

hey dick, our first time going will be in late Jan 07 and we are staying at the Divi Flamingo. We have an ocean front room and we are doing mainly boat dives. Divi has a new program where there are several options to choose from to set your dive package. We usually go to Coz so are looking very forward to our first trip to Bonaire. Like you, My partner and myself like the boat dive option. Of course we also picked Divi for the "house reef" and we've heard the food is very good. We are meeting several friends there and it should be a great time.. Have fun and make sure you let us know how your trip was and where you stayed. Scott ps. they also have free wi/fi now.

Richard (er, Dick) --
I'm surprised that no one has commented thus far on your username!

Scott,

I have heard all of the jokes about my name back in elementary school. I'm sure my students snicker about it as well. My last name is actually pronounced so that it rhymes with "steed". I am named after my father and grandfather. Perhaps luckily for them, I do not have any children to pass this name on to. But it is my REAL name and I am proud of it.

Everyone else,

Thank you for your input thus far. The Divi Flamingo right now is at the top of our list, but we are still researching. In another topic, someone said that the Divi Flamingo's rooms are roach-infested? Has anyone else had this experience? I cannot stand those gigantic cockroaches that they have in Florida, I believe they call them "Palmetto Bugs". Do these exist in Bonaire?

Richard, oh yes, there are large cockroaches in Bonaire but we stayed at Divi and they did a fine job of keeping them under control. This time around I was actually very impressed with the bug control, it has not always been so good in the past. It's hot and humid, lots of creepy creatures just love it there as much as we do! Don't let it ruin your vacation though, you kind of get used to it. We did bring our children with us and Divi is more kid friendly then some places so you may want to keep that in mind when booking. I will say there were very few children, not tons running around screaming and disturbing everyone. Wherever you decide to stay have a wonderful vacation!

Richard, welcome to Bonaire Talk. do you want to be on the water? Are you looking for a place that has a restaurant on site? Do you want a kitchen? If the place you were staying had a dock and a fabulous house reef to dive off of, but if you had to drive to another place to do your boat dives (thinking Belmar, Bellefonte, and Black Durgon here) would you mind? Deep Blue View has gotten wonderful reviews, it's not on the water but it is smaller, and probably pretty kid free too.

Buddy's, Cap Don's, and Divi are all fairly large resorts, so there may be more kids there. Just thinking of some smaller places that have docks, but you have to go to their other shop to do the boat dives.

(Message edited by cyndelee on September 3, 2006)

Richard - We stayed at Buddy's in March and my impression of the boat dives was that they were not as nice as the shore dives. It seemed that everyone always wanted to goto Klein, and IMHO the sites their were inferior compared to the sites on Bonaire.

From your post it's obvious that you want to do boat dives but if you want my vote:

Try somewhere other than Buddy's (it seems you have figured this out on your own, BTW nothing against Buddy's we are staying there again this year)

Think about stumbling over the rocks again. I probably still have a sea urchin spine lodged in my elbow.

Richard, stayed at the Deep Blue View in July and consider it one of the best "unknown" places on Bonaire. The owners, Menno and Esther are both certified divers, Menno is a DM and they have their own boat. Though I am a snorkeler, I went on the boat with the divers and observed real individual attention to each diver's desires and needs. The place is not only clean, it's really nice with a great view and pool. While great for honeymooners, it also accommodates singles and long term/short term couples. I am single and had a wonderful time there. Check out their web site. If anything, it's understated!! Esther also makes a fabulous breakfast every morning - made to order! Anyway, I couldn't have asked for a nicer place, fellow guests and better host and hostess.

Richard,

Menno (Deep Blue View) also does multiple tank dives. It is a romantic place and no kids around.

BTW, Menno is an instructor, so if you need a course, no problem.

I stayed at DBV three times, and will be back in future.

PC.

Richard, The Den Laman is great. No bugs. No pool though. Studio, one & two bedrooms. Only 15 units. Nice restaurant. A bit pricey. Quiet and right on the water and has a good dive operation. We stayed in unit L. View is awesome and has a state of the art CD player with good sound. Only 1 tank dive per boat dive. Dives are at 9, 11 & 2. Works out ok though because dives are usually around 5 to 10 minutes away. Your time coming back is your above water time. Then just stay on the boat and go out again. House reef (Bari) is a great reef. I really envy you, you will be blown away. Since we've gotten back, I can't stop thinking about Bonaire and how much I'ld like to own a property there. You'll have a great time. I'm just sitting here waiting for my dive buddy to give me a time that he is willing to go back. Then I get to start planning and getting excited again instead of putzing around in this post Bonaire state.

i'd vote for carib inn. we stayed there exclusively until we bought our place. we still dive thru them. bruce runs a first rate dive operation and has a great dive shop.

that being said, you would have a hard time finding a bad operation on bonaire.

Wow, I am so overwhelmed! To answer some of your questions: We would like a place with a restaurant on site, for breakfast before our dives. We would prefer to stay somewhere on the water, but we don't need a pool. However, a small beach with chairs would be nice for laying out. A kitchen is not a necessity; neither of us like to cook on vacation. We don't mind having to drive somewhere else to catch a boat, but if the boat was at the resort it would be ideal.

It sounds like there are more excellent choices that I had thought. Thanks so much for all of your comments and suggestions

-Dick

I'll cast my vote for Deep Blue View as well. My wife and I stayed there last year and are returning next month. They have some great packages and the place is wonderfully peaceful and relaxing. Menno and Esther are always seem ready to do things at your pace. I recommend giving them serious consideration.

Divi Flamingo has it all. Great staff, Great Dive Masters and Great Food. Just finished my sixth year there and no regrets.

Rich
I vote for the Divi-have been there 8 times and love the dive operations and resort. They do a 2 tank dive in the am and a 1 tank dive in the pm.
My wife and I had a great 2weeks in July 06.
Ralph

If money is not a concern the Plaza Resort would have my vote, mostly because I like Toucan Diving. Have dived with them 3 times and have never felt crowded, and unless they have changed since 2004 they have a one and a two tank boat dive in the mornings. They have 3-4 boats that they use all the time and a pontoon boat that they use for overflow and snorkeling trips. You will get lots of information about different resorts and dive operations to help you make your choice.