Hello everyone! This will be our first trip to Bonaire and I can hardly wait! We will be arriving April 30th (Rincon Day) and cant wait to check out the festivities. Just wondering if anyone has any advice or information on about this holiday? Is it easy to catch a taxi to Rincon or is there some other sort of transportation? Thanks!

Hi Jenny & Welcome to BT

You'll thoroughly enjoy yourselves in Rincon! We were there 2 years ago on Rincon Day and had a great time. Big parade, lots & lots of good local food and wonderful people. It's easy enough to rent a vehicle and is easy to get to. Also, a very pretty ride with lots to see along the way.

Hi Jenny.

It may be better to get a cab. Negotiate with the driver first to set a price & get his number so that you can contact him for your return.
There are a lot of people around on Rincon day & theft of vehicles & property is not unheard of. Theft is not usually common in Rincon but opportunists come from other parts of the island & take advantage.

It is a great day that has a feel of how Bonaire really is away from the Cruise Ships & tourist shops.

One piece of advice. Rincon is in a valley and it gets incredibly hot. Make sure that you have plenty of sunblock & take in lots of fluids.

We also were able to attend Rincon Day on our first visit to Bonaire, and it was a highlight of our trip. We loved hearing the music, watching the parade and getting to see the traditional dress. We ate lots of great food. If I remember correctly, it was also a good chance to pick up some fun souvenirs.

We drove our rental truck there and had no difficulties, but it was about 5 years back, and I don't feel qualified to evaluate that risk.

You can tell we had a great trip because we are about to return to Bonaire for the third time (which isn't much compared to some on this site, but considering how much of the world we'd still like to explore, tells you something about the delightful pull Bonaire has on us). Have a great time.

Antony makes some valid points, however, I wouldn't count on a taxi that day (maybe a ride to Rincon, but back, eh...no). Also, you cannot count on the cell phones working that day--the island's system gets overloaded, and many calls do not connect. Just drive, park where you can, and walk in to where the island's biggest street festival takes place. NOTE- drive the "back" road to Rincon, the straight one that runs along the backside of the island, so to speak. DO NOT take the tourist road along the coast, unless you know the back streets of Rincon really well, because the main streets in Rincon will be closed to traffic. Take small bills ($1's & $5's) so you can buy beer easily. It's a great day-don't miss it.

Good shout Ruth about the Taxi, not many Bonairians will be sober by the end of Rincon Day.

Jenny, as Ruth say's, don't miss it. I love Rincon & spent a lot of time there. Maybe I should go the whole hog & buy a house there too.

And....you may be having a blast, then realize you made an APPOINTMENT (argh-no appointments on island vacations-instant buzz-kill!) to leave, just when things are getting good. Or maybe it starts to pour & you wanna go earlier... No, you really need the flexibility of your own ride. Besides, it's less than 10 miles to Rincon.

Rincon Day is THE PARTY DAY for the Bonairians ...do not expect anything that day except fun .. appointments? taxi's? i think not ..everyone is partying... arrange a vehicle now .. the island is packed with returning Bonairians for THE SPECIAL DAY.. rentals will be at a premium and inter island air travel impossible ...it is such a big event that it starts with an all night street party in Rincon on Rincon Day eve ...

I've been there in 2008. Where I was born. It was coooool. Really.

Wow sounds like even more fun than I imagined! I think we will just rent a truck for the whole week, seems a lot easier that way. Thank you all for the great information. I am soooo glad I found this site! Oh one more question, has anyone ridden horses on Bonaire? I'm a avid equestrian and would love to go for ride on the the island while I'm there. I looked at one of the stables on the island and it was a little pricey any ideas?

My wife and daughters have been riding there.
They are used to "idiots" who claim te be experienced, which means they ride very careful.
Just step and trot. No canter.
The horses were well looked after.

Swimming with the horses in Lac Bay was a great experience. The ride up and down is for an avid equestrian "boring".
And yes, it's pricey. But everything has to be brought to the island.

We had the same experience in Tanzania this summer. Horseback riding there was very expensive too.

They are complaining for years about swimming with the horses in Lac Bay while people are swimming. The newspaper http://www.extrabon.com/edishon/edishon2007/extra2007-12-15.pdf published this dissatisfaction.

Of course you have to use common sense. You should not go swimming with your horse close to other people.

But Lac is a big bay.
When we were there, nobody else was swimming.
The pictures in èxtra did not show many swimmers either :-)

Yeah, just attending, Bob. I don't know the local situation.

At least you have a great memory that you were able to link to an article of èxtra.
Nice song "esta dushi".

Pasa bon nochi, cu dios ke

Thanks for the compliment. I am working now on another traditional song. To make it broad accessible. A very nice one, with beautiful orchestration and hopely a nice choir too.

A couple of weeks ago they (Stinapa, I think) published a list of what is allowed and where. That's why I can remember it.

Te majan.

My husband and I went horseback riding on Bonaire on our first trip to the island a few years ago. I thought the horses were well above the level of many trail ride operations in the United States.
The guides did not keep us at a trot; in fact, they were concerned that we make better time heading back to the stables because apparently we had spent more time than expected at the ocean, and they were concerned the horses would be spooked by a motor bike group scheduled to head our way. Being in the ocean with the horses was fun and unusual, though the horses' coats became so slick in the water that few folks were able to actually ride in the water. But that was not risky, as folks just slid gently in the water. I recommend speaking with the operators about the type of riding you'd enjoy and whether they can offer that. I wouldn't be surprised if it depends on the experience of the other riders that day, unless there is a way to arrange for a smaller group ride.

if you have not arranged for a truck yet .. DO IT NOW .. usually there are NO rentals available during the Rincon Days week celebration...

Jenny - as Jan said the horses were well above the level of many trail ride operations in the US - very true! My daughter rode there a couple of years back & had a great time! They are not your typical "hack" horses and will give you a really good ride. The ride left early in the AM and, I believe, lasted almost 4 hours but a good 45 mts. of that is at the beach swimming and cooling out the horses in the shade. We followed them in our truck for most of the ride & thoroughly enjoyed watching them. They did walk, trot, canter & a hand gallop It was expensive but justified when we found out what they were paying for hay & grain.
The name of the place is The Riding Academy Club
e-mail: info@horsebackridingbonaire.com
www.horsebackridingbonaire.com

I have pics somewhere - will try to find them & post