Featured article on CNN, here. It even has a link to InfoBonaire. The place is going to be overrun now.

Forget it.. i want to remember BON how it was 12 years ago.. Time to look around Fiji i guess.. start saving.

Very cool. The woman in the article is the owner of the Woodwind. Who is also doing the sunset cruise for BTers in March. I'll have to send her a note about the article.

Cecil, Thanks for sharing the link! It is a great article.

Boy, if CNN has discovered it...waaa....Great article though...

Oh my gosh! Jake on the t.v. last night, now this on CNN, if you were thinking of buying property there you had better do it soon, before the prices skyrocket:-{)}

I'm not sure if this is good news or bad....I liked the "quiet side of Bonaire.."

Great article, though, you gotta admit!

Yes, it is a great article indeed! It certainly put a smile on my face as I reminisce about all the familiar things mentioned in the article. Too bad the rest of the world has to find out about our secret getaway! But, you must admit, it is hard for some to keep a good thing down!

Darn, I'm disappointed that I missed the "Jake" episode on TV!

I would not be that concerned. The article emphasized that Bonaire is not known for the "wild" night life that has destroyed the charm of many caribbean spots. ALL divers know about Bonaire, and divers are probably the ones who will keep visiting the Island. Those looking for the "All-inclusive" type of thing, with a swim-up bar, drinks being brought to them at the sandy beaches will be terribly dissapointed. That's fine... Let them go to Aruba. Bonaire is more for Nature Lovers and those seeking a quiet, different retreat. Of my 40+ co-workers, about 30 went to several caribbean destinations (including myself) this month. Only two were scuba diving (again myself included)I'm the only one who came to Bonaire. The other diver wanted a party scene at nights. The rest went to the caribbean to be trapped in an all inclusive resort, have drinks with breakfast, sleep it off at the beach, have drinks with lunch, sleep it off at the beach, have drinks at the pool in the afternoon, drink more and party all night, repeat the day after... As I stated before, I would not worry much... The unruly mobs won't come the island Coach Izzy

And as soon as folks figure out that it's multiple plane hops, and only on occasional days of the week -- no problems with crowding!

Faith

I am not worried that Bonaire will all of a sudden become overrun. It will definately spark interest. Many people might say, 'hey let's go there!' and never do. I know I want to go to Bonaire one day also because of the peace and quiet. I liked the article though!

And the total number of air seats each week from the States is still a limiting factor. Hopefully not another Paradise totally Lost.

Note that the article was actually an Associated Press (AP) article. Yes, someone at CNN.com picked it up for online display, but since it was on the AP wire, it means there's a chance it was published in many other places too.

I think Glen is right about the air seats being the limiting factor, though I guess I wouldn't be too heartbroken if one of the US-based carriers had a direct flight from somewhere stateside daily. A bit more competition among airlines would be a good thing.

Yes, it was published today in our local paper here in the FAR northwestern Chicago area; the Northwest Herald.

Heck, I'd settle for a direct flight from NYC once a week!

You wouldn't like it to be a popular as the Red sea as they are killing the Golden Goose

Regards
Keith

Kieth said it best.. You can already see the changes over the last 20 years of photos.. None for the better.. But Coach Izzy has a way of easing any fears as well..Natural Progression I guess.

As Daniel pointed out, it was an AP story and was repeated in my local Sunday paper also. Lots of coverage but as Couch Izzy said I don't expect there to be much increase without a beach and all inclusive resorts.

On the other hand, if that golf course goes in.

I do have a two short rants on island vacations, golf is one. I do not understand why anyone would want to golf on an island. The golfing is generally lousy, expensive and crowded. Now I like to golf but on vacation I want to do things I can not do at home, at home the golfing is better, cheaper and less crowded and I'm not burning my very valuable vacation time doing something I can do at home.

The other rant is small children, I do not understand why parents insist on bringing children to an island. It costs them an arm and a leg to bring them and the children could care less. We were talking to a couple at the Plaza and they had a 10 year old with them, he told us he had been in the pool since early morning. I thought to myself take the kid to the local Y, the fact that this pool was on Bonaire meant nothing to him. All he wanted was a pool. We took the teenager to St Martin a couple of years ago, he was 19 at the time and bored stiff. They just seem incapable of appreciating an island so why waste the money, send them to the grandparents, save a bunch of money and really enjoy your vacation.

YMMV

Cool story. Wish I were there now.

And Cecil, I agree with the golf thing, but my soon to be 7 year old has been to Bonaire twice and absolutley loves it. He was snorkeling at 4 years old. Even night snorkeling. He chases "Charlie" at night with his light in hand. He would rather be in the ocean any day than in a pool.

Maybe he is different than most, but he definitely appreciates the trips. He even thanks us for taking him. (Which assures his return) We would not dream of leaving him behind, nor would we dream of allowing him to hang at a pool all day.

Wish I were in Bonaire, Dave

The article was also in the Lowell Sun Newspaper, too. It seems to have really gotten around.

I don't know if this was shown before -
This was a link off of BostonChannel.com:

http://cheapcaribbean.com/hurricanes.htm

Go about 3/4 of the way down to the map of Bonaire. If you click on the various buttons, a popup with a panorama of that location on Bonaire comes up.

One thing that is odd: they identify Karel's Beach Bar correctly, but Rum Runners/Captain Don's is identified as "Restaurant and Diving Centre", as if it's the only one.

Actually, there are a bunch of inaccuracies, but it's still a cool link.