Hi to all,

My (soon to be!) wife and I will be visiting Bonaire for our honeymoon in about 3 weeks (sooo can't wait!), but just wanted a little advice if possible please.

I know it is a bit of a "how long is a piece of string" question, but roughly how much should I expect to pay per person on the island for breakfast, lunch and dinner? I have budgeted around $10 per person for breakfast, $15 for lunch and $35 for dinner. Is this about right?

Any advice gladly received.

Thanks!

Andrew

Andrew

Prices vary from place to place, but it looks about right to me. Here is a link to a sample menu with prices. http://www.habitatdiveresorts.com/bonaire/rumrunners-restaurant-menu.html

Congratulations and good luck with the wedding.

Please don't drink all the Amstel Bright's I will need some in September.

Thanks Brian, and as a special favour I'll stay off the Amstel for you!

Andrew

It's a difficult balance, we need people to drink Brights to keep the stocks fresh.

Seriously try the Amstel Brights they are addictive and keep you going back to Bonaire. Shame that they are not available here in the UK.

Where are you staying in BON?

I'll see what I can do, going to have to try a couple now for sure!

Will be staying at Harbour Village, can't wait now. Have never been to Bonaire but judging by people's comments on here, it sounds just like my sort of place!

Anything else we should think about before we come out?

You will like Harbour Village, I have had a good look around the property and it is very nice. Nick Davies is the Hotel manager and another Brit well welsh actually; he is very helpful nickdavies@harbourvillage.com make sure he knows it is a special trip.

If you have plenty of time at Schipol you can put your hand baggage in a locker and get the train into Amsterdam, it is about 30 minutes away. There are some very good Thai and Indonesian places to eat.

Take some mosquito spray in a pump action unit they can be a nuisance in the evenings. We always nuke the room with fly spray when we go to dinner (spray should already be in the room)and this way we do not get bitten in the night. Your switch and credit cards will work in the ATMs and take plenty of small denomination dollar notes for tips. Your phone won't work even for a Tri-band device. Pick up a copy of the Bonaire Reporter it should be in most Hotel receptions, it comes out weekly, look around at some of the other hotels especially on the managers party nights. I think the best tip is to put a pair of shorts, tee shirt and swim suit in the hand baggage. KLM are much much better now; but on the rare occassion luggage can get delayed. Just down the road from you outside Sand dollar there is Buddys Grocery store and you can stock on essentials such as beer and food, next door is Lovers Ice Cream which is really good then Michaels Chat and Browse for internet access, cigars, gifts and phone (or sim) rental then the bank. Also don't miss the Park or the Donkey Sanctuary. It is a really friendly island and HV is a very secure place to stay. Read the other suggestions that you find on this board.

Have really great time, we are off to Indonesia in ten days time, have a look at http://www.kungkungan.com/ I hope it is as good as it looks. But we will be back in Bonaire in September.

Say Hi to Nick from Sue and me when you see him.

Wow, thanks for all the advice, seriously appreciated. One of the reasons I can't wait to get to Bonaire is just how nice everyone who likes going there/lives there appears to be!

Think we only have about an hour at Schipol on the way out but may have a bit more time on the way back, will have to see how it (and the jet-lag!)works out...

Had a look at that place in Indonesia and it looks sweet, hope you have a fantastic time, sure you will.

Cheers,

Andrew

Andrew,

Your budget looks more than enough. My family of 4 spends less per day on average than your budget. My preference is to eat breakfast in my condo and get out to dive as soon as possible. I also don't like to dive with too much in my stomach, so a small roll with jelly or a bowl of cereal works just fine.

Sue

Just a note on the phone: I have a tri-band Nokia (unlocked) that came from the UK, and it worked fine in Bonaire -- I got a SIM card for it with a local number. You can get them from Telbo or in a pinch Michael at Chat N Browse might have one. The 50 NAF card came with 20NAF credit, and you can just get additional cards for more usage.

Have a wonderful honeymoon trip!!

Josie

My point was more that your phone number won't work in Bonaire. Expectations are that a modern tri-band phone should work anywhere in the world without changing the SIM. I think things may be starting to change as my phone with a UK SIM card could get a signal for the first time when we were in Bonaire at Christmas, however it could not pickup any identified network.

Thank you all for your kind messages, can't wait to be there now...three weeks and counting!

Unfortunately I don't think we have any cooking facilities or fridge in our room at HV so having breakfast in our room may be tough (it is always my favourite option when on holiday) which is why I wanted to check prices to make sure I had budgeted enough.

Andrew -

Congratulations on your upcoming marriage! What a place to start your new life!

A couple of other notes that we wished we had known when we were first-timers to Bonaire: you need significant sun protection (lotion and clothes) and you need some type of shoe, sandal, or dive boot to get in the water most places.

I think you already understand that Bonaire is a desert island, not a lush "tropical" island, and that there are very few sand beaches. The island is quiet, no large, all-inclusive resorts nor frequent cruise ship landings. Night life is minimal, but an adventuring spirit will be surprised at the number of things to do and see, above and below the water.

And I think you already understand that there are a large number of folks, myself included, that think Bonaire is one of the prime destinations for relaxation, diving and snorkeling to be found anywhere. It is certainly not the perfect holiday for everyone, but I have a feeling that since you have researched the island so thoroughly and are still interested, you are not going to have many unpleasant surprises and that, in fact, you are going to be counting the days until y'all can return.

Bon bini na Bonaire.

Charles Poteet
Dallas

Hi, Charles ! I always love your posts. They certainly echo the aura you project... laid back, friendly, and relaxed.

Congratulations Andrew on beginning your married life on Bonaire, you'll love watching the sunset with your new bride.

As for breakfast, never underestimate the power of a few pringles and a Pepsi, no kitchen needed. ;)

ANDREW, if it starts to get a little tight on the budget, my wife and i love cazolli's pizza, may not be spelled right, but it's across from karel's bar, may not be spelled right either, great pizza, fun to watch the locals, especially on friday night, seems they gather there a lot, about same price as pizza at home

Sorry to say, but Cozzoli's closed back in March.

Oh poo! Any idea why Ruth? They had good coffee...

Thank you all for your kind congratulations and comments, what a bunch of lovely people! This is why I can't wait to come to Bonaire!

Good coffee ain't gonna make enough to pay the rent....

DANGNABIT......really liked their pizza.....guess i'll have to observe the locals from the other side of the street amongst the temptations of an amstel brite

Tell that to Starbucks Ruth. I just didn't know if they didn't get enough business, or if there were other reasons, like they moved.

Ruth, was Cozzoli's the place where they squeezed huge fresh fruit juices? The place with mosaic tables on the terrace? If that's Cozzoli's, I'm heartbroken, because by special request they used to make the most fabulous fruit salads for me every lunch - delicious papayas, mangoes and other tropical fruit, and it wasn't even on the menu. What am I gonna do on my next visit?

Sounds like it-Cozzoli's was opposite KFC. If it's any consolation, we sell green salads. You might be able to get fruit salads at ZeeZicht (north side of Cozzoli's) or down further at City Cafe or the Crepe place, assuming you want to stay sea-side.

Seb, Starbucks is quite a phenomenom, isn't it? No other place makes me want to spend $15 on a mug. My husband just came back from Fla...complained he couldn't sleep at night...then said he went to Starbucks every night-sometimes having triple shots....it dawned on him, as he was telling me this, that that's why he couldn't fall asleep! Duh-uh.

Thanks Ruth. No wonder they went out of business, they only charged something like three dollars for my massive, chunky fruit salad. Thanks for the suggestions. I'll give them a try them on my next trip to Bon.