Bonaire for Non-Divers
 

My husband and I sometimes vacation with another couple. The Men are scuba divers, I snorkle, and the other woman does a little snorkeling. My impression is that Bonaire is wonderful for divers. What is there to do on this island for non-divers? <BR>Are the beaches nice? Any input will be appreciated.

We were in Bonaire this spring and loved it. We aren't divers, but avid snorkelers. The snorkeling was like none we have ever experienced before. <BR> <BR>There are a few sights to see if you have a car. Driving around the island is interesting as is the short route thru Washington Slagbaai Nat'l Park. <BR> <BR>There is not a lot of shopping downtown but you can manage to kill an hour or two there. We also hit the dive shops and gift shops at the other hotels looking for tshirts and stuff. <BR> <BR>There are some nice properties but most of the beaches are small. Sand Dollar Condo didn't have one. Some of them appear to be man made and most are hard to walk on. If you have reef shoes or booties for your fins you'll do fine. <BR> <BR>We thought the best restaurant on the island was Richards. The food at the Plaza was the pits. Anything else, email me and I'll try to help or maybe send some pictures.

We're returning to CAPTAIN DON'S HABITAT in BONAIR for the 3rd Fed. in a row. Almost everyone in our group dives except us. My husband says he going to take the course. He went down for a 1/2 hour last Feb. and loved it The snorkeling is FABULOUS! There's a little sand beach right at the resort with the BEST SHORE SNORKELING. You've heard that there's not much else to do. It's true but a DRIVE AROUND THE ISLAND takes a long afternoon and it's hard to get lost. Lizards, flamingos, cactus fences, there's a rock formation (somewhere) with indian paintings. Be sure to see the WINDWARD SIDE of the island; moonscape shore, crashing waves - wild beauty. Richard's is a fine place to eat, especially if you can get a waterside table at sunset. Watch for the GREEN FLASH. I've seen it and I don't drink (much). Keep your SUNBLOCK handy. Take your favorite baseball style HAT with you. BEST BUY souvenier is the parous(sp), 5'x3' batik wraps for US$10-15, infinite variety.

While Sand Dollar Condos has no beach, it does have a nice concrete area with beach chairs, some shaded areas where you can read and still see the water and BEST OF ALL a couple of ladders going into the water where you can snorkel and see some huge parrot fish, coral and other reef fish. You can swim back and forth in front of the resort and see quite a bit. We went out on the dive boats that were going to Klein Bonair, and the snorkelers swam toward the shore while the divers went out deeper. It worked <BR>out quite well at many of the dive locations.

My husband and I have been to Bonaire once about three years ago. We did a few dives but also spent time driving and hiking around the island. There is a beautiful preserved park, many, many flamingos in the salt flats and wonderful areas to explore by kayak. Also if you don't dive but snorkel the snorkeling right from the beach is superb. It was a wonderful trip. The only blemish on our trip was the place we stayed, Buddy's Dive. We had a "noise" problem with the room, the management was terribly rude (cold) & would not help us. Unfortunately we paid a travel agent in advance for the room so we were stuck. We are actually thinking to return to Bonaire this winter & would like a recommendation on accomodations.

Janet? Did you see my note above? We have always stayed in one of the villas and will everytime. Don's is reputedly the best. I can't imagine better. The villas are extremely pleasant, and not 100 feet from the water. Almost every Thursday night the Kunuku Band plays at the Tiki bar. The Kunuku Band is great, everybody loves them. We bought one of their CDs for winter in VA. It really helps. The staff and the food are excellent. Hube de Groot (we, being American, call him Hube the Great) runs the restaurant, he's a hoot. If Reana is running the Tiki bar and you're up for something rude ask her what "star" is slang for in Dutch. Most of the housekeepers left fresh flowers in our rooms everyday. There are alot of wonderful reasons to stay at Don's. I hope it never changes. I can't say enough. Can you tell I love it there?

Check out www.bonaire.org and if you are interested in a list of 51 activities to do on Bonaire, send me an email. <BR>

Check this website out you will find lots to do! I'm thinking of going in Feb 1998! http://www.infobonaire.com/ <BR>