Do any of you know if any of the dive shops in Bonaire offer personal dive guide service for hire?
My wife is a non diver and I consider myself non advanced so I am leary to just tag along with other divers at a site or go out on a boat with divers who do not know me.
Any help would be appreciated.

Ron, Just ask around at any dive shop. Most DM's love to earn extra cash when they are not working. We found Alex at Buddy dive years ago but sadly he is no longer on island.

Ron, when on a boatdive, talk to the D/M and ask him/her if you can tag along. Couple of dives like that will boost your confidence, and it won't cost you a dime!( give a good tip )... Ron

Ron R, take Rin G's advice.

Has anyone here dealt with Bas Noij?

Guess I should have done a search on Bas before asking! 'nuf said

Can anyone tell me what is customary to pay a guide?

We may want to hire one for our first few dives to help us get acclimated, and to make some suggestions.

Thanks!

Linda and Jim

Guyz, as one of the original posters said, you don't have to hire a guide for boat diving... tell the Instructor/DM on the boat of your lack of experience and desire to stick with him...then if you develop a rapport, remember him favorable when checking out... if you work with several then there will be a community tip tank when you can leave you favors..

Shore diving is a different matter.. ask at you dive shop of choice.. there is almost always staff members that will be glad to make a couple bucks... ask charges in advance.

Or if you are diving from the resort, find a couple of divers headed to the water.. if they don't have cameras, tell them you skill level and ask to tag along.. You will find that for the most part a more experienced diver will LOVE to show you their skills and you are on your way.

We were hoping someone could suggest an amount. We would hate to insult any of the local DMs by offering too little, or handicapping ourselves by offering too much. Some places we have been, it's literally a couple of bucks..........others, like $20ea or more, depending on location, other responsibilities and so forth

Kelly, we'll take you up on your suggestion to attempt to meet up with others and maybe "tag along". Maybe we'll see you there!

Linda and Jim - when are you going?

I highly recommend Bas Noij. I just returned (report to follow soon) from a week on Bonaire and diving with Bas was fantastic. I dove with him for the entire week and we had a blast. I learned some great tips while diving and Bas has some great input on where to go while on the island both topside and below.

Several years ago my husband and I hired a guide for private leeside dives through Photo Tours (no longer in business) - the charge was $25 each and the guide drove. Completely reasonable. Prices may have increased since then but it was well worth it because we were new divers and wanted to do La Dania's Leap to Karpata but not on our own. Unfortunately our guide, who was excellent, is no longer available for guided dives.

Bas Tol for Eastside shore diving is the guide you want. He is in the phone book or search on BT for his info. Don't know what he currently charges but whatever it is is certainly worth every penny.

In general dive professionals don't get paid all that well so if you're happy with the service please be as generous as possible and it will very appreciated.

Thank you all for your encouraging responses. We want to do the right thing. I'm sure there will be more comments coming as well.

We'll be there the first of May, and look forward to sampling the delights of Bonaire diving!

Linda and Jim,
Sent you a PM

Just returned home a couple of days ago. I hired Bas Noij to guide for 2 days of diving and had the time of my life, I am so glad that I met him.
I highly recommend him for anyone looking for a guide.