Bonaire is a great little island with what used to be the best snorkeling in the Caribbean. They had some damage to their coral from a storm surge from Lenny and I haven't been able to find out how bad it was. I tried to check with the Bonaire newsgroup yesterday but there appears to be a problem with the site.

Their beaches are for the most part small and the sand is coarse. You can snorkel from shore almost anywhere on the island. Pink Beach is probably your best bet for a longer stretch of decent sand. Some hotels do not have a beach and some are very small.

There are a number of good restaurants and limited shopping.

We rented a car and rode all over the island and there were interesting things to see. The Marine Park, Slagbaai National Park, wild burros, parrots, flamingos, slave huts and a gorgeous lighthouse.

They have been getting a lot of bad press lately because of cars being broken into. Other than that I didn't notice there being a lot of crime on the island. The local people are very nice.

Anything else, email and I'll help if I can.

Cheri - if you do happen to come up with any info on the condition of the coral as far as snorkeling is concerned could you please let me know at my e-mail address? As for the Bonaire newsgroup, I was receiving all their newsletters but they recently reported they were disbanding.

That's too bad. If the newsgroup disbands we'll never get any information! I tried to access it the other day and the page was there, but the messages were gone.

Check out this website - click on newsgroup. Let me warn you - the "crime" issue is discussed ad-nauseum! There is lots of snorkelling info - recent reports look good. After the VERY active hurricane season, I wonder if any place was left unscathed!http://www.interknowledge.com/bonaire/index.html

Thanks Pam. I know what you mean, how many times can you say people break into cars? That's one of the reasons I quit visiting the other board.

Glad to hear things are recovering. Unfortunately it will take 1000 years for some of that coral to grow back.

Hi. Also considering Bonaire. We really like the beach aspect of a vacation but also really value peace & quiet. What do y'all think? Kal.

Other than Pink Beach, the beaches in Bonaire are small with coarse sand. The Plaza has one of the largest hotel beaches and it isn't that big!

If a long gorgeous strand of white sand is something you can't live without, don't go to Bonaire. If you want to compromise and trade that beach for the best snorkeling you have ever experienced, then by all means go for it!

It seemed like a pretty quiet island to me. The first week we were there we hit a Bonaire/Venezuelan holiday and it was pretty crowded at our beach and there were a lot of rowdy kids, but they left and the second week was peaceful.

Until recently, I would have recommended Bonaire without hesitation to anyone who wanted a quiet getaway on a desert island with clear turquoise water, starkly beautiful arid landscapes and probably the best shore-access diving/snorkeling in the world. We treasure the memories from our 1997 visit of driving up and down the coast road, stopping as we pleased at the many marked dive/snorkel sites, and swimming out a few dozen yards to snorkel in undescribably gorgeous reefs teeming with fish and invertebrates. Not much in the way of white sand beaches, gambling, shopping, or exotic nightlife on Bonaire, but who cared when a few strokes of your flippers would transport you to a magical world of color, form, light, and mysterious beauty?

Unfortunately, the Bonaire we so fondly remember may no longer exist. Recent posts on several Bonaire forums (www.bonaire.org; www.infobonaire.com) note that Bonaire sustained rather severe damage from a storm surge from Hurricane Lenny in November 1999. Some rather horrifying "before and after" photos of Bonaire marinas, docks, and restaurants (www.mindspring.com/~charlieroberts/lenny.htm) prove that these damage reports are not exaggerated. Full repairs will take many months.

Much more disturbing are the posts describing extensive damage to the reefs at many (though not all) sites. I haven't seen any underwater photos, so I can't confirm the extent of reef damage. But I tend to believe that anything that caused that much destruction of large shore-side buildings must have been devastating to the coral forests in the shallow waters nearby.

Many posts also mentioned an apparent epidemic of petty crime on Bonaire, primarily theft of and break-ins into cars parked on secluded, often deserted beaches while people dived or snorkelled. (We never even considered the possibility of this type of thing in 1997, much less had an actual problem with it. It just wasn't an issue three short years ago). Again, I can't confirm if this crime increase is real, but it does give pause for thought.

I suggest that you carefully research the current conditions on Bonaire (above and below water) before planning a trip, taking into account that government and tourist bureau-sponsored sites are probably going to minimze the damage and maximize the speed of reovery.

For the most accurate up to date information, check out the Bonaire board that is mentioned in the above post. There are messages from people that have been there since the storm surge and their info is much better being as it is first hand.

On our fourth trip to Bonaire, we were saddened and very disappointed. The damage to the reef except at Klein Bonaire is moderate to severe. We were especially sad to see the condition of the reef in the marine park. Additionally, the crime rate has soared. Their unemployment rate is over 20% which has created rampant crime. We met folks that had all of their tires stolen, and heard many more horror stories. I guess if you have never been there, you might enjoy the colorful fish and it is nice to be below the hurricane belt, but sadly, we won't be going back and it isn't fair to recommend it as a diver's paradise. If you want additional information about where to stay or where to eat, I'd be glad to give you my ideas

I for one will never go back to Bonaire.
Everything that I hear & read tells me the crime is increasing (even breaking into rooms) and the police do nothing about it. Lenny destroyed the reefs from 0 to 30 feet and snorkeling will never be the same. don't expect too much honesty from the die hard divers as they continue to act like these conditions do not exist. Daniel

I would like to suggest that for first hand reports from people who have recently visited Bonaire to check www.bonaire.org or www.infobonaire.com.

Attached are excerpts from a trip report I posted on the Bonaire newsgroup. First of all, we are not "die hard divers" - we are snorkelers. There must have been a lot of them, though - we went in the off season & just about every dive resort was packed full. Brian, I am not sure when you actually last snorkeled Bonaire - we went a month ago & found it to be great. We have been to the Keys, BVIS, Barbados & Bonaire wins hands down. Except for Klein, everything is shore accessible, so unlike many other places, you do not have to pay boat fees. As to crime - I will not insult the victims by saying it is not an issue. But it is not rampant, either. Compared to other places in the world, Bonaire felt very safe.
We were in Bonaire from 6/19-6/27, which was too short a time. I highly recommend the island for its friendly people, relaxed atmosphere & wide variety of outdoor activities. If families love hiking, spelunking, mountain biking, wind surfing, kayaking, scuba, fishing, sailing and/or snorkeling this is where you want to be. Stay in a place with a kitchen, take advantage of the wonders below the sea as a snorkeler and you will have a very low cost & memorable vacation.
Snorkeling - yes, Lenny took out a lot of coral & there is a lot of rubble, but we still found the snorkeling to be excellent. Our favorite was the drift snorkel off Klein Bonaire - we did it twice with the Sea Cow water taxi - they even took us out on their day off! The coral here is lovely & we saw a number of turtles. I saw the biggest parrot fish I have ever seen in my life - he had to have been at least 3 feet long! We also did a night snorkel here with the Sea Cow & that was fantastic! Our next favorite spot was Webers Joy and then Margate - good hard & soft corals in relatively shallow water & lots of fish. Although most of the coral is gone at 18th Palm & Toris, there are lots of fish at both spots & water access is great for kids. Water in both these places (Toris & 18th Palm) was a little cloudy, but we saw many schools of fish. Windsock was good & also has a nice little stretch of beach. The Andreas were excellent - you can drift from II down to I. We hugged the shore coral down & swam back over the drop-off area. Lots of good corals & fish. We also enjoyed 1000 Steps, Ol' Blue & Karpata - most of the coral & life is rather deep in these spots. Of course we went to Washington Slagbaii park - what a fantastic place - saw all kinds of lizards & birds. We snorkeled Playa Funchi & Wayaca - Wayaca was our favorite here. We went to every place at least twice & found current conditions, chop & visibility differed day to day. Spotted huge stoplight parrot fish, blue parrot fish, midnights, french angels, lovely octopuses & an enormous eel among scores of others. Our son was thrilled with all the turtles he sited. On our next trip we will try the guided mangrove snorkel & cave snorkel.
Crime - we were not victims & did not hear of any incidents while we were there. We did as suggested - kept car doors unlocked & windows rolled down. As it was an open jeep it would have been pointless not to. We left our gear in the car if it was within view of snorkeling site, or on the beach. All the areas we were at had a constant flow of people ( mostly scuba divers) in & out of the parking lot & at the sites. Nothing was ever disturbed. We left items on our porch at night - towels, t-shirts - again, nothing was disturbed. We packed nothing of value - our towels & clothes that went to the sites were all old items. We kept our money & cameras with us in the water. We never left anything in the car in town, but I wouldn't do that anywhere on this earth anyway!