Bonaire Resort?

[Buc Chick]

OOOPS, posted twice! I'm not trying to pad my post numbers, Larry, I swear!

[CaribbeanDiver]

I have spent the past week almost working full time trying to find a dive site for my son and I. We plan on a Jan, 2008 dive vacation. I looked at Costa Maya, destroyed by Hurricane Dean, too bad too because Marco Martin at Dreamtime Diving is a great guy with a great resort with some great diving for a very reasonable cost.
Then I looked at Utila, cant get the UtilaDiveCenter to respond to my emails and ruled them out for that reason. Besides, I am going to Roatan in the end of October and I kinda have a yen for something different.
Then I looked at Thailand, well, I looked at Thailand first but have concluded if I do a Thailand trip, I would have to eliminate 2 other trips because Thailand costs a bunch. I think I would rather do 3 or 4 dive trips a year to the Caribbean, Bahamas and such instead of one big deal trip sooooooo, Thailand is out.
Did Coz twice last year, think I will wait a while before going back. I have a 5 dive trip to Coz paid for because I was a "winner" with the DAN auction last year but still think I will pass on Coz and just forego the money as a donation to DAN
And, after a few brief searches at other locations I have now narrowed my choice to,,,,,drum rolll,,,, Bonaire.
Now, I have to ask, why would staying at a Resort like Sand Dollar, Divi Famingo or any other be a better idea than staying at one of the rental condos?
I priced the Resorts at about $1100 to 1500 per person for the week whereas I can get a 2 bedroom condo for around $1000 for the week - not per person, but a flat $1000. ok, I have to now add in a dive package and rental truck but big deal, those are really kinda cheap. I can save literally a $1000 or more by booking with the condo.
So, I am asking, what is the catch? What is it I am missing?
Can anyone tell me?

[Zenagirl]

The resorts aren't always cheaper, but they are convenient. If you can do it for cheaper ala carte, go for it.

[dallasdivergirl]

I will be staying at Belmar in early October. I hope to have a good report when I get back.

[TexasFreddy]

My wife & I have been twice stayed @ Happy Holiday Homes and dove w/ Dive Friends both times, if or when we go back I could not see us using any one else. HHH is close to the southern sites and close to Dive Friends shop @ Port of Bonaire. I would suggest booking through Bonairepros we have compared w/ others and bonairepro has always been the cheapest & easiest, you can look @ different packages book the whole thing through them.......PS check out prices for leaving from different cities, we live in Dallas but drove to & flew out of Atlanta Georgia, saved $650 on airfair per person.

[Suther2136]

I look at it too until I saw how long the plane ride was....you can get to a lot cooler places in that kinda time.

[debbieb]

Hi all, check out my website at www.bonairevilla.com It is loaded with all kinds of info on Bonaire for all you first timers and please feel free to privately email me with any questions you might have about Bonaire. Been going to Bonaire since the late 80's and finally bought my own piece of paradise at LBR>

[CaribbeanDiver]

Originally Posted by debbieb

Hi all, check out my website at www.bonairevilla.com It is loaded with all kinds of info on Bonaire for all you first timers and please feel free to privately email me with any questions you might have about Bonaire. Been going to Bonaire since the late 80's and finally bought my own piece of paradise at LBR>

Really? I just rented LBR # 7 through Bonairepartners.com. Maybe I rented your place,,what a small world.
Going Jan 4 through Jan 12. I cant wait.

[bversteegh]

I stayed once at the Plaza (2005), thought it was pretty nice. Can't remember who I booked through, but my daughter and I stayed there for 5 nights with a truck and unlimited shore diving for 650 a person.

We also stayed at a Condo just North of Buddy Dive we found through the internet (now out of business) - that trip was fun because the owner of the Condo lived downstairs, and his nephew (from Holland) was staying the summer. So we had a personal dive guide for the week (although my daughter was 19 at the time, and the nephew was 20; so Dad had to keep eyes open). One of the neat things we did that trip was snorkel some of the inland caves

[BobArnold8265]

Just a couple of things to add to this discussion. My Wife and I have stayed at both Buddy's and Captain Don's. Both are very nice and have great dive staffs. I would highly recommend both. We are heading to Bonaire the week after next and found a really good deal at the Port Bonaire Resort that we couldn't refuse. I'll give everyone a full report on that when I return.

As for the condos, I don't have any direct experience with any of them but be sure to include the cost of diving if you are comparing them to a resort. Sometimes a package deal at a resort is cheaper than you will find with a condo.

Most of the resorts do offer morning and afternoon boat dives but there standard package is generally for only 1 or 2 boat dives per day. If you want additional boat dives you can pay a little more and get up to 4 per day at many of the resorts. Most people don't though since most dive sites can be accessed from the shore. I do recommend going on a few boat dives though. It's easier to reach the Hilma Hooker via boat than from the shore and also excursions to Klein Bonaire are always excellent dives.

Finally, check the website for BonairePros ( www.bonairepros.com ). They are travel agents that specialize in trips to Bonaire. They often run specials and can also get some very good prices on airfare to Bonaire. I have used them three times now and think they do an excellent job.