The old Sunset Beach was the first and finest on Bonaire and was extremely popular with the old movie star crowd. It had a huge ballroom and was one classy resort in it's heyday back in the Big Band Era. I stayed there six times between 1995 and 1998 before the horrible Hurricane Lenny, which destroyed the place because it was at sea level. We loved it because we could walk from our room (directly behind the beachside dive shop) to the water in less than 1 minute. We suited up to dive and walked right in beside the dock. At the 90 foot level was an old iron tugboat with a 12 Foot plus, green moray eel named "Lisa". She was what horror movies were made from. Her tail was at one end and her head at the other. It was a 12 foot tugboat and if you went in the cargo door and looked down in, you could see her body was curled in the middle. She was 10-12 inches high from the top of her head to under her chin. She was beautiful and we loved her. Deeper down in the hold was the largest lobster I've ever seen in my life. At the 105 ft level was a 5-6 foot green moray eel in a old rusty 55 gallon drum with rusty holes on it. We put out arms through the holes and petted this moray who loved us; probably thought we were big cleaner fish! We've got pictures of my hand over her face and more. This resort was our very favorite because we could get in 5 dives per day easily. One year I dove 30 times in six days. Did it ever reopen? I'll be back in Bonaire October 17 and would love to drive over to the beach and look for the tugboat and look for Lisa! Is she still there and did the resort reopen?

Gail, Sunset Beach is no more. In fact it was bulldozed and I have heard that the Divi corporation is building an all inclusive resort at the site of the old Sunset. You can still dive the area in front of the old Sunset by going in at Eden Beach which is right next door.
Others will chime in and give you more information.

Hi Gail. I was able to dive the site last May/June by following the entrance to Bongos and instead of turning left to park by the fence, turning right and pulling into a little parking lot area right in front of the beach. Not sure if that will still be available since they are doing construction now, but it was a great easy sandy entrance. I saw a juvenile Queen Angel fish on the drum and repeatedly saw turtles there. I did not see the eel, but I also was not looking for it. This is a nice dive if you are not looking to see coral.

Hi Gail,
We just got back, and right now it's just a big unoccupied space, with some palms, divi trees, etc. scattered about. Much better than the bombed out shell, then rubble of our previous trips, but it didn't look like construction had actually started, yet.

One question: "Big Band Era"? That would be the 1940s - 1950s. I didn't realize ANYONE came to Bonaire back then - except the prisoners of war during WWII.


(Message edited by susanf on September 25, 2006)

About 10 years ago, Sunset used to host "big band" era nights and invite groups to play. Hugo Gerharts was the owner at that time and we all enjoyed the old sounds of Goodman,Dorsey, Ross et al.

Another point of entry is at Bonaire Dive & Adventure, on the north side of the area by Sand Dollar Condos. Maybe a longer swim than from the Eden side (I haven't compared the two distances) but there.

(Message edited by glenr on September 25, 2006)

Some time ago, there was a thread on which someone posted pics from Bonaire when he was a kid, I think. It had some Sunset Beach pis that were really fun to look at. Where the heck was that?

here they are Barbara
Old Bonaire

Gosh, Freddie, that was fast! Thanks!

you happen to catch me lurking!!! evil laugh!!!

Freddie, I would love to see those pics but when I click on the link, it says URL Not Found - ???? Thanks, Blue

Thanks Blue lets see if this one works..
http://www.oldbonairetalk.com/newsgroup/messages/27/258043.html

That worked perfectly, thank you Freddie! How interesting to see those and would love to see more...Guess I'm lurking too, LOL! Now back to work!

Gail,
The tugboat is still there, however I have not seen Lisa in a few years now. Everytime I dive that area I check under and inside the tugboat hoping that Lisa has returned. She was a beauty, I have a couple of pictures of her on one of the walls at our place in Bonaire.

I seriously doubt that Lisa is still alive after all these years. I first met her? on my first dive on my first trip on January 1 over 20 years ago. I was on my check out dive with Ibo. I have heard, however, that her? progeny still inhabit the wreck.

This could certainely be a progeny, taken 1/2 mile south (in the Willie wreck), last August.

I sometimes dive from south of Eden Beach and the Harbor and drift North to Bari Reef . There are 3 small wrecks there. One is a tug . Not sure if that is the one you are referring to. Never saw Lisa or her progeny, though. About Sunset: there at the beach is a good place to find that lovely frosty looking beach glass and sometimes a bit of a tea cup or dish. Often it is that blue and white pattern. I call it Queen Wilhelminas Tea cup......

Boy, those old pics are fun. Why wasn't I there in 76? I was having fun elsewhere, but I could have been there!

Just got back from Bonaire and a special side trip to the old Sunset beach, now leveled to the ground but no new construction. We took a dive from the old site down to the old tugboat. The reef itself is total destruction, looking like a dead coral graveyard. Nothing there but the tugboat and that had been moved by Hurricane Lenny from 95 foot to 75 foot and closer to Eaden Beach. It was the saddest sight I have ever encountered diving and I doubt there will ever be a resort there because it will take decades, maybe centuries for the reef to regrow. Any new resort on that property would have to have boat diving only.

Gail...that is where they are building the new Divi, which is why it was leveled when you got there. They leveled it this year to make way for the new hotel. I'm sorry the dive was so depressing for you. I saw my first juvenile queen angel there last May. She was a beauty.

(Sorry for the redundancy. I just noticed that I already told you about the angel fish in my earlier post.)

(Message edited by jeanineclark on October 30, 2006)