After a flight of over 9 hours, the plane descends towards Flamingo Airport, Bon Bini na Boneiru! In other words, welcome to Bonaire!
The airport is small, so long waiting for your luggage is not an issue here and large groups of travelers are not easily found here. Your suitcase passes by on the belt and your dive bag has also arrived. YES, the holiday can really start now! In no time you will be in your own pick-up truck, on your way to your own apartment. Own rental car? Hell yes! Almost everyone on Bonaire has their own rental car. On this Caribbean island you decide where and when you go diving. Is it too busy on a dive site? Don't worry, drive a little further and splash into the water at another spot. Bonaire has more than 80 dive sites, of which no less than 50 can be reached from the shore. In short, enough cuttings to make fantastic dives!
On the way to your apartment you will pass a supermarket, where you can quickly get groceries for breakfast and possibly lunch for the next day. Once you have arrived at your apartment, you can quickly check in and enjoy a refreshing drink on your own terrace or balcony. Go to bed on time, because tomorrow is a fantastic first day of diving just around the corner!
In the morning you wake up in your own apartment and you can choose to bake an egg in your own kitchen, but of course you can also sit in the open-air restaurant for a complete breakfast. You check in at the diving school, where they can tell you in detail which dive sites you should absolutely not miss.
Do you start your diving day with a relaxing dive on the house reef or do you load your pickup truck with a number of tanks and take your lunch box to the fantastic spots of Slagbaai National Park? Because on Bonaire you choose when you dive, where you dive and how much you dive. This is also the reason that this Caribbean gem is known as “Divers Paradise”. Between your dives you can relax on a paradise deserted beach while enjoying your lunch or a refreshing drink and dream away at the phenomenal view… Or are you already thinking about your next dive?
A moment when you don't want to dive for a while? Bonaire has more than just entertainment, even above water! Discover the enchanting mangrove forest in your kayak, which also serves as the nursery of the ocean. The island also has miles of mountain bike trails, suitable for all levels! There is little traffic and you can reach hidden places by mountain bike, where you have the best view of Bonaire. While walking you can discover various caves full of stalagmites and stalactites and you can fully use your energy during a surf lesson. Because Bonaire is one of the best destinations for that too, surfing! Both wind and kite surfers are completely at home. Besides the fact that Lac Bay is known as a dream place with great views, this is the number 1 place for surfers. The azure blue bay surrounded by green mangrove forests and the relaxed surfer atmosphere, make this place one of the most beautiful spots on the island. Just nothing at all? Then relax with a book on one of the beds around the pool, because on Bonaire you do what you want, at any time….
Anyone who thinks that the island has no other history or culture to offer, is completely wrong! Scattered across the island you will find various historic buildings, churches, but also many monuments. The world famous slave houses near the Pekelmeer are one of the most characteristic places in terms of the history of Bonaire. A special and unique place to take a break. The town of Rincon is the oldest city on Bonaire and was founded in 1500, between the hills, by the Spaniards. While you're in Rincon, stop by da Cadushy Distellery, the only place in the world where cacti are made into liqueur. Time left? Then be sure to visit the Donkey Sanctaury. A location where no less than 600 donkeys are taken care of. More than 500 years ago the donkeys came to Bonaire with the Spaniards. These animals are therefore absolutely typical of the history of the island.
The huge advantage of Bonaire is that the island is small-scale, in between your dives you will pass the most beautiful locations and you definitely have time to visit them. At your own pace. After all, you are not bound by fixed dive times or locations. Nature, culture and diving can therefore be perfectly combined here.
Enough about the possibilities above water, after all you are here to dive! On to 1000 steps, here your fitness will be put to the test. Not so much during the dive, but before your dive. Can you handle it to descend via the “1000 Steps” to this top dive site, with all your diving gear on your back ?! Going down is often not the problem, after your dive you have to do the “1000 Steps” again! Don't worry, there are really not 1000 of them, but after a dive these 64 steps feel like 1000 steps…. You get a lot in return, a beautiful deserted beach, a pristine reef and keep an eye in the blue during your dive ... Who knows, a manta will float by!
Barí Reef is the number 1 dive site in the Caribbean when it comes to the most diversity, because with more than 300 different fish and coral species, this is a place that you should absolutely not miss! Dive site Forest owes its name to its enormous gorgonians and large colonies of feather-like black corals. A home to various green moray eels, turtles and sometimes even nurse sharks!
The Salt Pier is known for its pillars overgrown with sponges and coral species, and is also one of the favorite places of large schools of fish, making it also for divers. At the end of the one-way road along the coast you will find Karpata, the place for a phenomenal panoramic view, but also the place to spot turtles! Guaranteed that you will have an extra buddy, the turtles will happily cruise with you during your dive! Lover of wrecks? Then your heart will beat faster when you see the name Hilma Hooker! The ship sank in 1984 and is nowadays a location where beautiful corals develop and various tropical fish species hide. Are you curious about one of the hidden dive sites around Klein Bonaire? Board one of your diving school's boats and discover pristine reefs that are inaccessible from shore.
The end of the day is approaching and the sun is setting on Bonaire. Time for the changing of the guard in the ocean! Most of the reef fish are hidden away and make room for the cleaners. Lobsters, crabs, shrimps… A completely different underwater world. Huge tarpons hunt their prey at night. Don't be alarmed if they just come from behind you, because they use the light of your dive light! The most beautiful corals that you do not see during the day come to life when it is dark, and partly because of your dive light the smallest fish shine, so that they act like the starry sky of the ocean. A night dive on Bonaire is an adventurous experience that should definitely not be missing in your logbook.
For your dinner you can go to various restaurants for a takeaway meal which you can enjoy on your own terrace, you have the option to become a true chef in your own fully equipped kitchen or join one of the top restaurants for an extensive 5-course dinner, including wine pairing! In short, also in the culinary field no one is short of anything on Bonaire!
Bonaire has plenty of space, so the 1.5 meter rule can be perfectly observed here. With your own rental car you discover the beautiful island, because this is the safest way to discover your holiday destination, especially at this time. Tour at your own pace to that one deserted beach, away from the crowd! You also mainly live outside on Bonaire. Restaurants mainly have outside areas or terraces. Your apartment often has its own terrace or balcony and with 365 sunny days, you don't want to sit inside, do you ?! Diving schools, apartments and landlords all apply strict hygiene measures to offer you a safe, corona proof, but above all unforgettable holiday!
What are you waiting for? With the corona refund policy, guarantees and securities from the ANVR, SGR and the calamity fund, you can book your corona proof diving holiday sure at Diving World! http://www.divingworld.nl