Has anyone heard any news about Air Jamaica's plans to first cut service to Bonaire to only Saturdays, and then to cut service altogether to Bonaire by September??

Yes..I just got off the phone with AJ...Effective 8/27 AJ will NO LONGER SERVICE BONAIRE!!!!!

I wish AA would start flying from Miami to Bonaire at less once a week.

Oh, that's terrible. It will cost us twice as much and take twice as long to get down there. I'm glad they gave plenty of notice though.

Did you find out when they are cutting to only Saturdays by chance?

Where did you find this info about AJ? Should I be worried about my Thursday tickets in June (9-23 June)?

Vince's post began

---

quote:

Yes..I just got off the phone with AJ...

---

For those with reservations on A.J., I suggest you call them direct. Their reservations & information in North America & the Caribbean is: 800-523-5585.

Do call them-I just got off the phone; my reservations are fine (so far). They even asked for a phone number to contact us in case of a change. The agent was very nice and reassured me this wasn't happening until the end of August.

When you get to the menu, dial "0". I tried the automoated service a couple of times, and was disconnected.

I called AJ today. The agent did not confirm the "rumor," although she too was very nice and helpful. If you want to cancel your tickets, they will give you a full refund minus $75 per ticket. I'm not sure what to do at this point. American is a hassle and flies through Aruba late... gets you to Bonaire at 8:30 PM. I'm going to look into my other options.

They assured me that they would give me "notice." But then again, there are only so many other options to get to Bonaire. I dont know if I want to take the chance.

Just talked to AJ..... June 27th to Saturaday only and Aug 27th AJ will no longer service Bonaire....... :-( Ron

Mary, no. The agent at AJ did NOT confirm this to be a fact. I got a call from my travel agent today who shared this with me.

OH GREAT! I have tickets for Aug 11- 21. August 11 is a thursday. The agent did NOT share this with me. Ron, who did you talk to ???

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

AIR JAMAICA SUSPENDS SERVICE TO/FROM BONAIRE

MIAMI ¨C (May 12, 2005) ¨C Air Jamaica announced today that it will suspend service to/from Flamingo International Airport (BON) in Bonaire, Netherlands Antilles effective August 28, 2005. The latest move in the company¡¯s ongoing corporate restructuring program, the suspension of Air Jamaica¡¯s Bonaire service will be carried out in two phases:

¡ö Phase I ¨C JM flights 66/67 operating Wed., Thurs., and Sun. suspended as of June 27, 2005.

¡ö Phase II ¨C All JM service to/from Bonaire suspended as of August 28, 2005.

Air Jamaica customer service representatives are contacting passengers holding reservations to/from Bonaire during the affected periods to accommodate their air travel needs.

Air Jamaica¡¯s Bonaire service began in June 1999. The carrier will continue to serve the Netherlands Antilles with service to/from Curacao.

Launched in December 2004, Air Jamaica¡¯s restructuring program is designed to improve efficiency and reduce operating costs to sustain viability in the face of record-high fuel prices and increased competition.

About Air Jamaica
Air Jamaica is a service-oriented passenger airline offering travelers low prices, plus a heightened level of comfort, convenience and amenities not commonly found in air travel today. The carrier boasts a completely unblemished safety record over its 36 years in operation, and has received numerous honors

Bonnie, Annie is a travel agent (I think) and has up to date info. Pay attention to the statement she released. I didn't even ask the rep; she volunteered the information. If you get someone evasive on the line, DEMAND to speak to a manager!

Yes, I am a travel agent. I see it is a press release so is not private information. I am very very concerned.

I decided not to wait around for the dust to settle. We have flown AA to Bonaire before and it is not pleasant but as we were ticketed for the Christmas - New Year's period on AJ, I just blew all my frequent flier miles on 3 round trip tickets on AA. 60,000 miles each but the ticket price would have been about $850 each. On the plus side we will be going a day earlier.
Anyway AA apparently still has seats for the holiday period, for those in the same situation as us.

Well it's confirmed confirmed. AJ is not servicing Bonaire on W, Th or Sun as of June 27th. They are offering full, complete refunds if you are already booked during this time (which I was).

Now I have to start from scratch (again) to book a flight. American to San Juan is the way for me to go from Newark. The only stinker is that there is a 5 hour lay over in San Juan which means we dont get into Bonaire until 8 PM. Lonnnnnnnnnnng travel days ahead. (sigh)

Bonnie,

How about AA to Miami to Curacao & then DiviDivi into Bonaire. You will land in Curacao around 2:30pm. The return flight leaves at 4pm. Seems like you will get in a bit earlier and not have to get up before dawn.

Continental also flies Newark - Aruba.

In re-reading the press release, it is interesting to note that AJ is continuing service to Curaco, for those who can get from Curaco to Bonaire (Divi Divi?) Don't know if the times coordinate, but it might be something to check out if you still want to deal with AJ.

We leave tomorrow for Atlanta, fly out AJ on Sunday. Keep your fingers crossed...

Thanks, Tom. I just found a great flight on Continental. I guess my options are Bonaire Express or the Divi Divi. Anyone has experience on either to cast a vote??


(Good luck, Mary!!!)

Bonnie, my dive buddy John a.k.a. "Smack" and I have had pleasant experiences with B.E.. We plan to use them for travel between Aruba and Bonaire in October.

Thanks Tom. Bonaire Express has their flight fees listed in "ANG." What is the exchange rate? For ex., the rountrip cost Aruba-Bonaire is listed as 298.00 ANG. Any idea how much that is in dollars?

Bonnie,
The exchange rate is about 1.75 ANG/$, that would make the flights about $170.

This is a good opportunity to click over to the US Airways site and lobby them for service to Bonaire. I can't believe the AJ is dropping service due to low passenger numbers. The flights were always packed when I used them. Share your experiences with US Air and maybe we can convince them to offer a non-stop out of Charlotte or Phily. See the US Air thread posted a few days ago.

well there goes my aj flight in september. spoke to my travel agent,working on that lousy aa flight through Puerto Rico. I hate losing that day in Bonaire to sit in the airport in Puerto Rico.

Karen,If you can get to Miami by 10:15. Try AA from Miami to Curacao.

James,
I just sent an email to USAir. Your directions were very helpful. I think this is an excellent time to speak up and be heard by other airlines who may be interested in picking up a new destination.

Yes I agree with James if AJ is dropping service I would think (and hope) that another airline would jump at the business opportunity. And, hopefully adjust their schedule to the more desirable times that AJ had. You would think the Bonaire Govmt, hotels, dive operations, etc would be calling and writing airlines to correct the gap left by the AJ pull out.

Thank God I waited to book. I had permission from the boss lady to go with AJ in August. We are looking at a Saturday flight but I'll be damned if I book on an airline that if I miss my connection I miss my vacation. Looks like a GWV charter from BOS to Aruba and BE from there. It is the cheapest option.

Hopefully, American Eagle will see this as a profitable opportunity.

USAirways is really no guarantee either. I dont think that airline is going be in it for the long haul, but it's worth a try for now.

FYI- AJ gave me a full refund. Well, they SAID they were refunding me for my ticket. I'll be happy when their check arrives AND clears. There is no way you want to take a chance with a one week vacation.

It's going to cost me the flight to and from Aruba now which is way more than I was orginally paying. Oh well. That's the price to get to paradise. :-)

I am going from LAX to BON next week on AJ for a week of diving. So this will be my second trip to BON, my only trip on AJ and probably my last trip to BON.
Its to costly and very time consuming to get to and stay at BON. I can get a week on a live aboard, with food, for what Im now paying to get to and stay at BON.
I enjoy the easy diving and people of the island and if an airline steps in and makes it easy I will go back to BON.
LAX to AMS to BON is to expensive but would be a great trip.

Ok, I need positive karma about our flights on Sunday on AJ from JFK. Keeping these fingers crossed!
I'll let you know how it went.

Lorraine, I think you'll be ok. From other postings, AJ seems to be running just fine now. The key word being "now." Have fun!

if one arrives in Curacao via Miami on AA between 2:30/3pm, what is the earliest DiviDivi flight that one can reasonable make? Can someone describe the procedure (getting back, checking in, walking, etc) in the Curacao airport?

If you get in at 1:53pm or so (as I will be next Friday), you can catch the 3:30pm Divi Divi. Any much later, and you need to shoot for the 5pm (usually what it's not daylight savings time in the U.S.)

Procedure:

- Deplane in Curacao.
- Go through Immigration and explain you're in transit to Bonaire on Divi Divi
- Get luggage from luggage claim
- Wander through customs and tell them you're in transit to Bonaire
- Wander over to the departure hall
- Check in with Divi Divi
- Go through security and immigration, and again, explain you're in transit (and show them your AA boarding pass so they know you don't have to pay tax - although I think Curacao is now charging some paltry transit tax too - haven't been through there lately)
- Wait to get on Divi Divi
- Board when told
- Fly to Bonaire
- Deplane
- Go through immigration
- Claim luggage
- Breathe a sigh of relief after going through Customs in Bonaire - you're finally there.

Jake

Is Divi Divi available to fly from Aruba to Bonaire? I sent them an email and have not heard back.

I arrive at 1:28 and would like to get to Bonaire as soon as possible. Bonaire Express or Excel has a 5:00 (1700) flight. Is there any way to get over to Bonaire sooner?

thanks Jake! I knew you were our DiviDivi frequent flyer & would have the answer!

How much time do you allow in Curacao to connect to the AA flight to Miami? Any tips on that connection?

Sue

American in Curacao will deny boarding if you show up to check in less than about 45 minutes before departure. I usually try to give myself about 1.5 to 2 hours in Curacao.

Mind you, the hassles of lugging luggage, going through immigration twice, etc., is why I generally try to avoid flying through Curacao at almost any cost. Some of you may wince, but I much prefer flying through San Juan (having an Admiral's Club membership helps a lot with that, of course).

The only reason I'm flying through Curacao next Friday is that I have to be back home on Friday to make it to a wedding on Saturday, but I need to spend all day Thursday in L.A. on business. That makes my only flight option home a red-eye.

I don't want to spend an extra 4 hours waiting around in Miami or San Juan to catch the AE flight home from San Juan since my red-eye gets me to Miami in the morning.

I'd normally try to overnight somewhere along my itinerary to avoid a red-eye connection if possible.

Jake

Once again, this board has saved us untold hassles. Has anyone been informed directly of this change yet by AJ?? If we had waited to hear from them to re-book our air during the Christmas holiday period we'd probably be spending our vacation in sunny New Jersey!

Thanks to all.

-David

Sunny??!! LOL. We're not too far from you, David! (Morris County). Sunny??? I guess we lucked out today and did get some sun on the weekend...a treat for us in NJ lately! LOL.

Good luck on your trip to Bonaire. It will be worth it. We will be there very shortly relaxing in the gorgeous waters of Bonaire....can't wait! Carole

I LOVE this board! What a great find! I'm glad that it was able to helo you, David. My travel agent called me immediately. Even when I first called AJ, they didnt confirm the problem. I had to insist that I heard about a press release and FINALLY they confirmed it.

My husband works in Morristown. Small world. And today was as glorious as it gets. The only thing better than being under water on a day like today is on top of a horse cantering away....

See you all in sunny Bonaire someday!

Hi, Bonnie...that's where we live and I work in downtown Morristown, too! Morristown is only two square miles in size so we have probably crossed paths at one time or another (or cars in our heavy local traffic! LOL) ....small world indeed!

Last year we "discovered" that another BT'er's significant other works where I work and we did not even know it! Now we talk about Bonaire when we see each other. Small, small world!!

Hope you get to Bonaire soon, Bonnie...you will LOVE it. Carole

So why don't y'all do a New Jersey BT Gathering? :-)

Jake

Carole- I know I will love Bonaire. Right now I'm just not loving the problem with getting there. I'm all set through to Aruba. Once I have a confirmed seat on the 5:00 out of Aruba to Bonaire I will be much happier.

My husband works in the office building just next to Jersey Boy Bagels on South Street. That's where he gets his breakfast every morning. He's the one next to me in my picture ;-)

Jake- Let me get to Bonaire first. Until then, I feel completely unofficial as a BTer! LOL

I think an NJ BT BBQ this summer would be a great idea. I'll do the ribs. Anyone else? I'll re-post this under "Everything Else Bonaire" as this seems a bit off topic...

-David

Way to go, Jake. I scrolled down to post the same thing.

Bonnie, your hubby is just down the street from me....I'm in the County Administration building!

I hope you do get your connection from Aruba into Bonaire....it will all work out and then you can relax on Bonaire...the best place in the world to do just that!

Jake...NJ law states Joe and I cannot grill as we live in an attached apartment! We have soooo many laws in NJ it's not funny. Not joking, either. Can't have a BBQ here because of it. Carole

I seem to recall that it was New Jersey that had a law against extreme intimacy on a kitchen table too :-)

What Greta did in Texas was set up a BT Gathering at a restaurant. Just a thought (although I suspect our moderators would prefer that this discussion be continued in a new thread dedicated to this purpose, as it has nothing to do with AJ's shunning Bonaire).

Jake

Oops - just saw David's new thread - way ahead of me

Jake