First: I wanted to say a huge thank you to all the folks on these discussion boards who have shed an incredible light on how to get the most out of a Bonaire Trip.

Second: I have a question about rental gear (BCD's and regulators). This will be our first trip to Bonaire, and I was wondering if anybody has knowledge about why Bonaire Dive And Adventure is so much cheaper than the other rental places for gear...old equipment perhaps? poorly maintained? poor selection of sizes? Or, am I just being overly suspicious to deep discounted prices? Hopefully it's the latter. If not, maybe you could recommend a good place to rent gear from.

Third: we have 2mm shorties, and I was wondering if these will be sufficient if we plan on exploring several places with 3 to 4 dives a day. We will be there 3/30/05. Would 2mm be warm enough, or is it generally recommended to have a thicker suit?

Thanks so much again, and I look forward to sharing on these boards after our trip.

joegee

I rented a wet suit and Mask at BDA. I found the equipment to be in very good condition. I wore a 3 mil shorty and by the end of a dive 60 mins + I was starting to get cold. Last two days I used a dive skin with the shorty and felt ok, so I think the cold was all in my head.

We wear 1mil or .5mil full suits and do not have a problem with being cold. Your 2 mil shorty should be enough or maybe with a dive skin under it for a little added warmth. We usually wear the .5mil in the morning and the 1mil in the afternoon when we have already made 2-3 dives. Can't help you with rental prices as we have all of our own equipment. Have a good time.
Andy

Joe,
I dive year round here in a dive skin and a 2 mil shorty. No problems. Lately the water temperature has been 81 degrees.
Tish

I dive in a 20 year old 3 mil shorty (probably compressed to a 1.5mil by now) But it's nice and tight as I'm 2 decades plumper. I'm 5'9" 195# usually not cold.
Eva dives in a new 3 mil shorty and skins 5'7" 120#, sometimes a little cold but never uncomfortable. We are southerners and are not used to cooler temps.

Thanks everybody for the great advice!

joegee

We rented BCs and regs from Bonaire Dive & Adv. in 2003 (Cressi equipment) and everything was in great shape. I understand that they replaced all the Cressi gear with ScubaPro in 2004. We didn't compare rates and had no idea we were getting such a good deal.

As for the wetsuits, we spent 10 days in dive skins or T-shirts, no wetsuits, 2-4 dives per day. Even on night dives we were comfortable. Water temp never varied from 82-84 degress F. (This was mid-late September.)

Having been left stranded without gear for 4 of 6 days on our last trip to Bonaire, we were rescued by Bonaire Dive & Adventure. We went to them to rent gear and when they heard we had lost luggage, they offered us the rental gear for free. Everything we needed except the booties (which if you stuck your nose in mine you would immediately understand.) The gear was in great shape, a combination of Cressi and Scubapro. The regulators (3 divers) were well serviced and functioned flawlessly. Their personnel were friendly and helpful. Regarding the pricing, I can only assume they are competing in the market trying to regain their position after the original operation was wiped out a few years ago. Hopefully, the operation will continue to flourish and expand, particularly in terms of hours of operation.