Hello,
I'll be in Bonaire the week after Thanksgiving and am staying at Buddy Dive resort. We booked the trip through PADI and the guy called yesterday and asked if we want to get in on a deal at Buddy. The offer is for 3 two tank or 6 one tank boat dives. I thought we'd do a couple boat dives and the rest all from shore during the week. The reason I'm writing this is the price. It's only $103.00 per person! What I'm wondering is, is the diving off the island as good as the boats? Thanks.
Brian

That is a great deal....There are some boat dives that aren't accessible by shore. All the dives on Klein are by boat. Book em dano!

Hi Brian and welcome to the board. I can safely say it's all a matter of preference. We were there in Sept and did one 2 tank boat dive. It would be a shame to miss out on Klien and that's the only way to get there. All of the other diving was from shore. I booked our trip with a couple of ladies who own a place called Coco Palm Gardens. A nice little apartment setup and they put together a dive package with Photo Tours that was perfect. It included unlimited air and a truck. You can't beat it. When you want to dive you just get in the truck and go to just about whatever site you want, any time of the day. No waiting for the boat or planning your day around it. So much freedom that way. I do know other people who dislike shore diving saying it's too much work walking 50 ft to the water, or they don't like getting sand on their gear. That price is pretty much what you'll find everywhere else anyway. Personally I would play it by ear but that's just my way of relaxing. Get there first, do a day of shore diving and take it from there. BTW, for the most part the boat's tie off at the shore dive buoy's so there is no difference in diving only a difference in access.

Awesome Deal! Go for it! Klein Bonaire is done from boats and is a MUST do. I personally would go for the two tank. Have fun! Coach Izzy

Deal?? Not really, that's only a few dollars($14)off the normal 6 dive package. They don't usually do 2 tank dives but other than that, it's no real deal. Don't get me wrong, I love BD and their staff but it's not a "deal". We usually drop off the normal 6 dives that are included in the standard BD package, put the $100 on Nitrox and just add a boat dive or 2 for $25 each. The standard BD package includes 6 dives so is this 6 additional dives (12 total)or is did PADI drop the standard, usually included boat dives to lower the cost and now trying to add them back?

Brian:

A hard call for anyone but you to make. I love shore diving -- the schedule freedom, no groups/crowds. I always get to go where and when I want to go. I would not do six boat dives a week. That is me.

OTOH, I know many who love the ease of boat diving (assistance on/off the boat, a guide if you want one, no swim out, etc.) and really enjoy Klein and/or Rappel (those sites are boat only). Those folks do two boat dives every day. And then there are those in the middle..

Most shore dives can be done by boat (except for places like lighthouse, BOPEC and a few sites w/o moorings). Most boat dives can be done by shore (except for all of Klein and a few sites such as Rappel).

In terms of price, it is hard to know without knowing what package you already have. If you have unlimited shore dive (which I always have), Buddys will charge you $24 for a single tank boat dive. So, if you do 4 dives, you are about $7 in the hole. If you do 5 or six you are ahead. If this is not an add on to unlimited shore diving then you really are getting a deal! See: http://www.buddydive.com/diverates.html

Enjoy your trip!
Dave

Hello,

Thanks for ALL the replies. I was surprised by the number of responses. I think we're going to wait until we get there and then book a few boat dives. We'll definitely go to Klein and do at least 2 dives there. That's what we had planned originally anyway. We have unlimited shore diving and a truck rented, so we'll do most diving from shore. Thanks again for all the replies.
Brian

You're very welcome, replies are what this board is all about. Watch out though, next thing you know, you'll be a BT junkie. Enjoy your trip..............Well, that's an understatement! How can anybody not enjoy Bonaire?

Oh, in case no one mentioned it to you, if you're thinking of doing any of the pier dives some night, plan ahead. They require advanced booking and a guide. That's the only problem with my laid back approach to planning things, I didn't and I missed out on some good night diving ( though I made up for it one night on the Hilma Hooker).