Just thought i would add this. Some people may not like this but here go's.

Next March will be our 3rd trip from the UK to Bon.

I always do a fair amount of research and unless you want to stay at a big name place ( and pay accordinaly, which is a fair cop) I have found 2 things. Discover that if you have a pool right by your accomodation and not round the corner eg: where excatly is the pool located and B do you have "hot" water as its not always the norm to have hot water. If anyone disagrees well it was what I was told.

We come to Bonaire from the UK which lets be honest is not cheap. Red Sea is half the price (from UK) and viz is better. However, there are not many places that offer the diving freedom that Bonaire does. Viz in Bonaire is still pretty damn good although you dont get the colours of the coral that the Red Sea offers , BUT what you do get is the freedom and still a pretty good diverse sea life.

I was very worried about the level of crime inflicted on tourists vehicles but if you dont leave anything someone else may want in a vehicle you have no probs( same as home).

Eating out (compared to UK) is much more expensive, but remember you are on an island and generally the food is of a very good quality in most restaurants and even the service which some people say is slow, we have never had a problem with apart from 1 restaurant (which was abysmal) in the last trips we have had.

Bonaire is a great place and people are generally so friendly. Its really nice to try all the different places to eat.

We hope to return to Bonaire again after our next trip in March but with KLM being the main airline from the UK we will have to see. Really looking forward to returning tho. We love the Island.

I hope I have not offended anyone.

No offence taken here , as a matter of fact you have pretty much nailed it.

Accommodation's are not always as they appear on web photos , Hot water is a luxury for the most part.

The crime is a non issue for me . Mosquito's carrying Dengue is much more threatening.

Diving is very good but is showing stress due to the environment overall.

The diving freedom of throwing your gear in a truck and going when , where you want , priceless

An honest opinion is never offensive. I may not agree but I'll not be offended.
In your case, I do agree.

Rose.

It's always nice to hear non-biased opinion.

I too am from the UK and have enjoyed Bonaire as a tourist and a resident and most of what you say is true.

Not being a diver, I can't comment on dive related issues but I have vacationed in Red Sea resorts and many similar places. While it is true that these places are cheaper, they do not offer the uniqueness of Bonaire.

Egypt (& Sinai) are very much geared up for tourists and as a result, it is impossible to walk the streets without being hassled. I have been fortunate enough to have visited many places, some, more esthetically pleasing than Bonaire but none (The Maldives apart) have afforded me the opportunity to walk or relax anywhere without being hassled relentlessly.

It is expensive to visit Bonaire from the UK but I personally would rather stay at home and save the extra money that holiday in Egypt, Cancun or similar.

You know, that is something I didn't even realize about Bonaire. Not one single time was I approached by a pan-handler or shoe shine kid or some other type of beggar. I give my fair share to charity and don't mind the occasional hand-out seeker, but in a lot of places it is really over the top annoying.

On hot water, can we get some people to list places that are cold water only? Having only stayed at the Sand Dollar where the water is dangerously hot if you're not careful, I was surprised to hear that there are places that do not have hot water.

e.

In the summer we turn off the water heater as the water pipe to the house lays across the top of the coral chippings and we get unintentional solar heating to hot hot temperatures for the first couple of minutes LOL

Rose..I can't imagine why anyone could possibly be offended by your post.

Rose - I am also English but live in Spain. You mention the cost of the KLM flight. Just out of interest I fly to London and then book the KLM flight from there, via Amsterdam to Bonaire as the return flight from London - Bonaire is less than the Amsterdam - Bonaire return. Crazy but that is the case. My trip last October was that route and the one in March is booked the same.

The pricing of KLM seems to have gone berserk. We travel twice a year from the UK (London - Amsterdam - Bonaire) and have just booked our July trip. Last year we paid 900 Euros and this year ? 1200 Euros. And less flights.

We travelled back Bon - AMS New Years Eve and we got a free cup of Champagne so maybe KLM are having to get the money to pay for it.....

My daughter travelled LHR - Bonaire in November and paid something less than £800. In March she is paying less than £900. For me to go from Malaga to Bonaire is crazy money if I go with KLM all the way. To go Malaga - Amsterdam with Transavia is cheaper but still not as good as BA to London then KLM from there.

What I do when travelling from AMS to BON is flying AMS-CUR on KLM (much cheaper as the direct flight from AMS to BON) and take the CUR-BON with Divi. I safe a lot of € this way. Just a thought...

Our air fare tickets were £750 pp LHR - AM- BON and booked last August.( then accomodation,food,diving,car costs to go on top of that) We can go to the Red Sea at the Hilton for less than £600 each and that includes all food and drink, but not diving costs and you get no freedom of diving. Just a comparison in cost.

Its a shame another airline dosnt cover the same route from the UK Even if it was only a few times a week.Then maybe KLM would have some competition.

I have to say that being hassled from the streets in Egypt isnt a problem for us. We have been so many times IF we go into town we just totally Ignore them. We go for the diving rather than anything else. I actually like the Eqyptians in the area we visit (never done Cairo!!!) Bonaire is completely different but if you want to dive and get good diving Egypt is a good contender.

We do love Bonaire and would certainly love to visit more often, but we also love diving so we have to balance it out a bit so we can afford to dive more often.

Heres to March and being back on Bonaire!!!

Martin, you pay? lol (JK)

Prices on Delta have sky rocketed the last couple of months...a reservation booked in December for the spring was 1200+ from the Left coast of the US.

Rose, it's never taken me LESS than 24 hours to get to Bonaire. Now with Delta, from the Left coast of the US it takes 2 days to get there, 2 days to get back. I have to overnight in ATL both ways. I could do the CO redeye, but been there done that...so I don't mind the overnight (where I can use my AMEX points)

Oh, and not offended at all by your post Enjoy your trip in March.

Trevor, LMAO on your hot water statement...since Bonaire is 3 feet from the sun, the pipes get hot just BEING there...

Eric, it's hit or miss on the hot water. Often it is the smaller places that turn off the heater. Ask, they will tell you. In the really hot months, the cold water isn't cold, it's "warm."

Hi yeah its takes us about 20 hours or so door to door (but so worth it). We always do the red eye cos thats the cheapest and we both work shifts so used to strange hours.
Re: hot water. We were told that the cold water was hot enough as the pipes ran close to the surface. It definately wasnt in March when we was there. Ok for hubby, but I do love a HOT shower. We boiled a kettle, I soaped up and hubby thru the bucket over me lol!! Wouldnt like to do that long term but it worked for our hol.

I had real trouble with the shower taps in the summer. I could not decide which was hot and which was cold. I left one running for several minutes and it was still hot so I tried the other one and left it running for several minutes and it was hotter. (WRONG. It was the cold one hehehe) I ended up swapping the tap heads so that red and blue were on the correct pipes ! The cold water was in fact hotter than the heated water for a while.........
:-))

Rose,
generally agree with what you say but as a yank who travels frequently to UK can't buy into its more expensive on Bonaire to Eat. Maybe you know the local spots to eat but I eat much cheaper on Bonaire than I ever eat in the UK unless I am eating at my cousin's :-)

There is Arkefly and Martinaire as cheaper options AMS to BON or CUR and then buying cheap LHR/LGW to AMS? I think the KLM that stops in SXM/Sint Maarten is also cheaper than the non stop to BON?

Hi Bob,

I know a few places in the UK where you can get a huge roast for about £7 and two courses for a £5 midweek, Otherwise average £15 for 2 courses. Of course compared to Bonaire we are not on a tiny island.

Think, nowadays, yes... :'(

Gosh all this talk......sitting here surrounded by snow makes me long for Bonaire even more!

We have the luxury of a huge modern kitchen and it is possible to shop "local" for meat (carniceria Latina)(sp ?) and for veg (La Portuguesa) and Warehouse etc for the rest and we managed to feed a house full (6 persons) over the Christmas period for UKL 10.00 per head per day including rather a lot of rum and beer so it pays to shop and cook if possible. And for that amount it was steak, goat, mahi mahi, tuna, rainbow runner, tilapia, meat sausages, chicken etc rather than burgers and pasta. (oh and of course large quantities of garlic !)

Thats pretty good. We do our own lunch and then eat out in the evening.....after all we are on holiday tho if there was a large group it wouldnt be so bad cooking in the evening but if theres only two of you cant be a***d.

Try eating at Mi Banana, Fogon Latino, Rose Inn, one of the many chinese restaurants, one of the many snacks, Bobbejans. They serve diner for prices starting as low as 7 USD.......who said Bonaire is expensive on dining out?

Mi Banana was very good both in food and value when we were there.

Rose
We have been to Bonaire several times also. No offense expected. Pretty much the truth. Bonaire is not perfect, but IMHO it is still paradise with world class diving.

skipc

Need honest feedback. My husband and I are torn between Roatan or Bonaire this year. We have done Roatan several times and think it is near perfection. Coming from the West Coast, so hear getting to Bonaire isn't fun. We are not into the tourist thing- want to dive until we can't see straight. Would like to hear from folks who have done both so can compare

Hi Kristie,

Havent been to Roatan but one thing 200% if you want to dive till you cant see straight then Bonaire will give you that.

I wouldnt really class Bonaire as touristy because there are so many dive sites you generally dont see too many people ( ok you see a few more cars at the most popular sites). You will see more people at the big touristy places to stay Harbour Village, Divi etc and when you eat out.

Kristie.Welcome to BT..We've done both; Roatan once & Bonaire many many many times. Bonaire wins, hands down!

Kristie,

Well thats a high recomendation from Vince esp as he's been to both and I know from his posts he knows Bonaire very well so reckon Bonaire would be a good choice for you.

Not a real expert on Roatan was also there once but it does seem like a third world country. Bonaire does not. Certainly the Caribbean but english widely spoken and poverty not widespread.Bonaire for me just doesn't seem that different (like the Netherlands sort of), Roatan definitely is a foreign culture. Not sure this is a good example but Roatan is a Malaria risk, Bonaire not. Maybe that speaks to something else but it keeps me from going back. I am an active blood donor so its a factor for me. You can dive all you want in either place. Bonaire is truly a divers paradise, just not the only one.

If you go to www.scubaboard.com and poke around for a post called Bonaire vs. Roatan, I posted it a couple weeks ago for a friend trying to make the same decision. I've never been to Roatan so hard to give my honest opinion but my dive shop has been both places many times and while they like certain things about Roatan, recommends Bonaire hands down.

Hope this helps.

e.

I did two weeks at Fantasy Island on Roatan in 2000. Have not been back and probably never will return . The shore dive from the resort was ok . If you wanted a good reef it was a boat ride . No large fish what so ever .
Bonaire beats Roatan hands down in my opinion . All things being equal .

You can't lose either way, do Bonaire in Oct and Roatan in June.

Thank you all for the comments about Roatan vs Bonaire. Good stuff! Seems like we can't lose either way. Think we will try Bonaire and hit CoCo View next year. For those of you who haven't done CoCo View in Roatan- you need to do it. Its pure heaven!

Kristie,
I am sure its just me but the only time I was in Roatan was at CoCo View. "pure heaven" to me is a bit of hyperbole. Thought it was a nice place but NOT that nice. Hey enjoy but to each there own hyperbole. Bonaire would be alot closer to Heaven for me :-)

About the only 2 plusses Roatan has is some big fish and its cheaper. Otherwise Bonaire is hands down winner.

Been to Roatan 3 times, once for over 3 weeks (I only returned home because I ran out of money and there were no ATM's on the island)and would still pick Bonaire hands down. The ease of shore diving and diving till you can't see straight - got it. Plus, unlike Roatan, I haven't seen anyone walking around with what appeared to be AK47's either. Plus if you want to walk around Bonaire there are some wonderful main drags. The only walking around I was particularly comfortable doing while in Roatan was on the West End where they have the dirt road along the beach front/water front area. But someone did try to follow me back to my hotel after a night dive so that kind of creeped me out. Anywho - Bon vs. Roatan - Bonaire has won out 13 times so far.

quote [Its pure heaven!]

Kristie.. You're in for a treat on Bonaire if that's what you think about Roatan. I could tell you stories about the parasite Giardia (which I suspect came from the drinking water) that was contracted on Roatan, but it would just bring up bad memories. Go and enjoy a real diver's paradise...BONAIRE.

Rose, I agree with your report. We have traveled to Bonaire the last 8 years in a row and have experienced many things on this beautiful island. If you want a real treat, stay at Eden Beach and dive with Wanna Dive. I'm only a tourist and want everyone to know that Eden Beach & Wanna Dive are by far our #1 choice.

It's true that it is much cheaper to dive Egypt from the UK... but doing so reminded me exactly why I prefer to pay over the odds and fly to Bonaire.

I'd forgotten the true horror of a cattle boat with 25 divers and DMs who think they have a direct line to the almighty, all for a trip to see some mostly dead coral and a free for all with divers from several other boats. No thanks!

Couldnt agree more!!!!! We stay in Egypt where we can shore dive whenever we want by ourselves. Lots of different brightly coloured coral. No other people, no waiting for boats. OK its the same area but theres something different every dive. Straight in off the pontoon, very easy. A nice alternative. Theres no way on gods earth I would go on one of those boats to queue up whilst diving to look at wrecks!!!