Bonaire question

[lawhorns04]

How many sites require a guide? I've found that two of the ones that people have recommended require a guide and are limited in the number of groups that can go. Any thoughts and can we reserve now?

[diversteve]

Both Salt and Town Pier require a DM escort due to Port Regulations.

Town Pier is also only done at night due to boat/cruise ship traffic.

Either is arranged through the dive operator affiliated with your resort.

Every other site is unregulated.

[Zenagirl]

And Salt Pier can only be done when a ship isn't being loaded. There's also a bunch of paperwork and security you have to go through to dive both, and at least on Town Pier, the DMs are limited to 4 divers max. I've been told that both are "must" dives if you can, so plan to do both next summer when we're on Bonaire (for the first time!).

I've never heard of any other sites requiring a guide.

[WV Diver]

Originally Posted by Zenagirl

I've never heard of any other sites requiring a guide.

Agree, I know of no other. I loved the Town Pier night dive. I don't remember any "special" paper work and I was there last in Nov 06.

[lawhorns04]

Thanks for the help yall. I'm contacting our agent to see if we can arrange it now, or if we have to wait until we get there. I'm counting the days!!

[Dabaras]

Most every Dive Op can schedule the trips for you for the Piers. I missed out. Was waiting for the end, and then twisted my ankle and had to quit diving, so go early.

[Darth Fishhead]

Second that on the diving early. A cruise ship showed up halfway through the trip (apparently full of Scientologists)
Unless you're brining your own boat, I suppose you'd need a guide to get to Klein Bonaire. Technically.

[lmorin]

Haven't done Town Pier (would like to), but found Salt Pier fairly uninteresting. If you like steel diving, then perhaps it's for you. For me, it has been, by far, the least interesting of all the dives I've done on Bonaire, or anywhere, for that matter. Done as a dusk/night dive.

[BobArnold8265]

I dove the town pier a few years back. The night we dove, there were several groups there and it was too crowded to enjoy. There were some interesting critters on that dive (a seahorse and a frogfish) but personally, I didn't think it was worth the money. All of the shore diving on Bonaire is excellent and you don't have to pay any extra !!!!

[msprzeor]

Originally Posted by BobArnold8265

I dove the town pier a few years back. The night we dove, there were several groups there and it was too crowded to enjoy. There were some interesting critters on that dive (a seahorse and a frogfish) but personally, I didn't think it was worth the money. All of the shore diving on Bonaire is excellent and you don't have to pay any extra !!!!

Good to know! Our first trip is in the spring and maybe we'll skip those sites this time around and if we feel we really missed something special we'll plan another trip and try to dive the piers.