Bonaire Where To Stay?

[KennyD]

The wife and I are going to Bonaire in Feb. 7-14 2009. We have looked online at several places. Alot of people told us "Buddy Dive" but they have very BAD reviews online...We are wanting a Dive & Drive Package. Don't really care about anything other than diving. Don't need a pool if we have the Ocean... Any and all info would be appreciated!
Thanks in Advance! KennyD

[Defman]

Dunno where you saw the bad reviews about Buddy Dive, I've usually seen good ones. And I was there in April & had a great time, wouldn't hesitate to go back.

[Diver Kat]

Check out Deep Blue View B&B .... we've stayed with Esther & Menno twice, and it's like having your own home on the island. One look at the pictures sold me before our first trip, and it lived up to and exceeded all expectations. The package prices were very reasonable. And talk personal service, Menno met us at the airport when our plane arrived - around 4:30 AM! And to top it all off, Esther cooks the wonderful breakfasts to order!

I would say the only downside also turned out to be a plus. It's not on the water, but up the hill. You get spectacular views, and no mosquito problem.


Deep Blue View, intimate resort. Dive Bonaire in the Dutch Caribbean

[bubbletrubble]

Be sure to price out the "Dive and Drive" packages. Buddy Dive is very convenient with a tank drive-through and nice pier on the grounds that you can dive off of. I've done 3 night dives there...and all were quite nice. They also do boat trips. I've heard good things about their operation. I can confirm that their bar is in good working order. :-)

Once you price out the packages, you'll find that Buddy Dive is probably more expensive than piecing together your own accommodations + diving + car rental. I've been to Bonaire twice, the most recent trip being right before Christmas 2007. Unlimited shore diving (incl. free 32% nitrox upgrade) with Dive Friends Bonaire was $110 per person for the week. Truck rental with Budget was about $300/wk. Add in your accommodations and see how it all compares with the Buddy Dive package.

Whatever you do, don't get a boat dive package. You'll find that there are plenty of shore dives to do there. Add boat dives a la carte if you're curious about Klein Bonaire.

[chinacat46]

I've been twice but haven't been since 2004 so things have probably changed. Both times I stayed at Buddy's and had a great time. Only ate breakfast there and an occasional lunch. The diving included 6 boat dives as well as unlimited shore diving.

[Zenagirl]

We were on Bonaire for our first trip in July for 2 weeks this year. We looked at Sand Dollar, Capt. Don's, Buddy Dive, and Den Laman. We chose Den Laman because it's a smaller place (16 units), right on the ocean, easy access to dive op and photo shop, and cheaper by far than the others for a dive, drive, stay package.

We found that we were literally about 25 steps from the gear locker, another 50 steps to the water, and 30 steps from gear locker to the tank locker and our truck. After eating at Capt. Don's and Buddy and being able to check out the layout of those places, we were glad for the smallness of Den Laman.

I'd really recommend that you not buy boat dives as part of your package and simply add them ala carte if you want them. We found the boat diving to take too much time and be so restrictive that we only did one.

We also took a few food items and shopped on Bonaire to eat breakfast and lunch in our condo, which saved both time and money. Since we aren't big breakfast eaters, not having breakfast as part of our package (like the other places do) was a money saver instead of an inconvenience.

[scubarobin]

Originally Posted by KennyD

The wife and I are going to Bonaire in Feb. 7-14 2009. We have looked online at several places. Alot of people told us "Buddy Dive" but they have very BAD reviews online...We are wanting a Dive & Drive Package. Don't really care about anything other than diving. Don't need a pool if we have the Ocean... Any and all info would be appreciated!
Thanks in Advance! KennyD

The only bad reviews I have ever seen for Buddy's were complaining about some of the rooms. We were there last year and loved it. Our room was great - bottom floor, big patio to dry gear out on if we didn't want to leave it in the gear room, steps from the water and the free breakfast buffet, right across from parking lot and our vehicle..... And Buddy's shore diving is fantastic!

A couple of websites to check out: Info Bonaire - The Bonaire Information Site - The Most Current and Up-To-Date Information and The Bonaire WebCams - Welcome!
There are cheaper places to stay, but for our first trip to Bonaire (we will definitely go back) we thought Buddy's was perfect. Check out my videos, link is in my signature.

[gthomas]

We stayed at CarrbInn in Aug. Loved it. Rented are truck someplace else, can't think of the name right now. We were just a few steps from the water and it was great just to put on gear and get in. We brought food and ate out, no breaksfast included, but you had a kitchen and that was great. Do a search on Bonaire I'm sure you'll fine a lot of info about traveling there.

[Seniordiver]

A group of 4 of us stayed at Captain Don's a year ago. We had a truck as part of the package from the airport and it also included 6 boat dives, unlimited shore diving, and breakfast. Contrary to some notes above, we found that the boat dives covered some sites that were hard to access from the shore, obviouly including Klina Bonaire but also other sites.
Accomadation was very nice-two bedrooms with ensuite bathrooms and a large living room/dining room/kitchen. We found the accomodations and facilities to be excellent, and access to the "home reef" excellent. The food was very good, and we often had lunch and dinner there as well as b'fast.

[TRACI]

We stayed at the Carib Inn in August. They do not offer a dive/drive package, but they have several diving packages to choose from. They are very reasonably priced and located right on the water. They also have a excellent house reef. We rented our truck with Poppy at Telerin Rental. She is great! Met us at the airport, very limited paperwork to fill out, and returning the truck at the airport was just as simple. Bonaire Talk is a great site to get alot of info.