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Destination Spotlight: Bonaire

Just 50 miles north of Venezuela and about 38 miles east of Curacao, lies a 24-mile long island with some of most beautiful and well protected dive sites in the world. We’re talking about Bonaire, of course. And if you haven’t experienced it for yourself just yet, this post might be the nudge you’ve been waiting for!

We’ve got the skinny on real 24/7 diving (we knew you’d love that), exquisitely preserved marine life, attractions and activities and some history for all you yesteryear junkies.

It just would have been wrong to keep this all to ourselves, so here it is, your virtual trip to beautiful Bonaire.

Diving Bonaire

As a result of submarine volcanic eruptions (millions of years ago, don’t worry!), Bonaire is the peak of a submerged mountain with sloping fringing reefs that are very close to shore. In addition, the dives are considered to be some of the best in the world. Bonaire has more #1 rankings from divers in the Caribbean including best shore diving for 20 years, best advanced/beginner and best macro/underwater photography.

Why?

We’ll tell ya!

Visibility is AMAZING: the underwater visibility is over 100 feet year-round and most of Bonaire’s 86 marked dive sites can either be accessed from the shore or are no more than 15 minutes away via boat. Since almost every dive is from a moored dive site, Bonaire’s appeal is from the newest to most experienced diver. So get your fins and cameras ready!

Over 360 different fish species: tons to see + clear waters, seriously what more could a diver ask for? From seahorses to turtles, nurse sharks, eels, angelfish, damselfish, peacock flounder and the not so occasional pelagic, the fish life is extensive. There are also tons of extensive colorful coral, sponges, crabs, mollusks and invertebrates. You’ll just have to see for yourself.

Truly unlimited diving: one of the best things about Bonaire is that you can pretty much get into a car and drive to one of about twenty dive sites and dive in. But most dive resorts (and there are many) allow you to dive when you want. Whether it’s 3am or noon, you can grab a tank and in one giant stride (or take the less climactic ladder) you’re moments away from the beautiful reefs and diving freedom. Want more? Then explore 80 dive sites from their custom dive boats.

Some popular dives include:

  • Forest (Klein Bonaire)
  • Invisibles
  • Margate Bay
  • Hilma Hooker
  • Hands Off (Klein Bonaire)

Oh! And for all our certified Nitrox divers, the resorts on the island offer Nitrox.

Green Life

Bonaire takes pride in being one of the world’s most beautiful treasures, which is why it’sdetermined to protect its natural resources. All of the waters surrounding Bonaire and the uninhabited Klein Bonaire or “Little Bonaire” have been named Marine Parks since 1979. To maintain and preserve the natural environment spearfishing and reef anchoring are strictly prohibited. Collecting seashells, sea fans, sand and any type of coral are also against the law.

Underwater environmentalist Captain Don Stewart (Captain Don’s Habitat’s founder) was also at the forefront of environmentally sound developments and reflected this love in his resort. This continues today from the low impact construction methods, to the use of solar water heaters and energy saving devices, as well as a state of the art wastewater treatment system, every detail has been designed to have the least possible impact on the local environment.

Topside

Bonaire is rich in beautiful fauna and flora, so it’s perfectly okay to want to spend some time outside the water too. So what can you do around an island that does not have a single traffic light?

Here are some awesome topside activities:

Windsurfing at Lac Bay: the peaceful, protected lagoon at Lac Bay is the perfect spot for windsurfing with clear, waist-deep water at a constant 15-25 knots per hour winds.

Flamingo Watching at the Salt Flats: THE place to watch flamingos, there are thousands, is at the salt ponds in the National Park at Goto Meer or at the southern end of the island at the solar salt works. Every day at sunset, the entire flock flies back to Venezuela for feeding. A beautiful not-to-be-missed sight.

Washington Slagbaai National Park: A truly natural and dramatic terrain which offers excellent snorkeling and subtle discoveries but don’t feed the Iguanas!

Kralendijk: The Capital City: Bonaire’s capital is a quite town of colorful, well preserved buildings. Only a few blocks in size, you can sightsee the island’s highlights such as: Fort Organje, Queen Wilhemina Park, Government House and the mini Greek temple-style fruit and veggie market. The city also offers a variety of bars and restaurants that offer authentic dishes that blend the best of European and the Americas cuisine and drinks.

Come visit the most diver rewarded destination in the Caribbean and you will discover why Bonaire has the highest percentage of diver repeat visitors.

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Destination Spotlight: Roatan, Honduras

As you know, we just love a good dive, no matter where it is. And nothing perks our fins up like hearing “the second largest barrier reef in the world.” But to make sure we’ve got your attention we’re also going to mention cage-free shark dives, open water dolphin dives, wrecks, and glorious marine life.

Hooked?

Knew you’d be, and we’ve only just breached the surface. So let’s get into it!

Diving Roatan

Diving in Roatan is something every diver must experience, at least once though we know a large percentage go back since it’s difficult to dive all the must-dos in a single trip. It’s home to the second largest barrier reef, how could you pass that up?

There’s so much to see from wrecks to walls to sloping canyons and beautiful corals, sponges and marine life. Divers who visit Roatan  return impressed by the relative health of the reef and the variety of soft coral. They also note that the diving was fairly relaxed with little in the way of currents or swells and the visibility was great, (perfect for spotting critters and sea life at a distance).

You can expect to find turtles, moray eels, stingrays, groupers, snappers, reef sharks, a large variety of reef fish (95% of all Caribbean species), invertebrates, colorful healthy reefs and, if you’re lucky, you might even spot a large pelagic or a giant whale shark! There are over 170 dive sites that exist all around the island so no matter where you stay, there is only a modest boat ride before you get wet.

The accommodations on Roatan will appeal to just about any dive travelers budget from the availability of upscale condos, resort style and clean modest rooms. Their are professional certified dive operators with newer rental equipment and customized dive boats at most resorts.

Roatan has a clinic with a hyperbaric chamber that originally was created to aid local lobster men with decompression sickness. the clinic has evolved and has helped hundreds of locals and tourists for over 25 years. As divers, we’re all over this since it’s nice to know we can dive worry-free and if anything does happen, we’re covered, right on the island.

But back to diving – we haven’t even gotten into two of our favorite dives yet: Shark and Dolphin dives.

Shark Dive

Although this might scare-off a normal tourist, we’re divers and we couldn’t wait to sign up for this. A shark dive is a must on most diver lists. So, when you’ve got a destination that offers that how can you say no?

Seventy feet below the sea you can find 5-8 foot Caribbean reef sharks circling the floor and waiting to be fed by specialized divers who hand-feed these magnificent creatures. And for the next 30 minutes you can free swim or kneel as the sharks do their thing and divers are treated to this awe-inspiring scene when man and shark share the ocean in harmony.

Dolphin Dive

Roatan is also known for its free swim Dolphin dives as well as its Shark dives.

The Roatan Institute of Marine Sciences offers dolphin dives and snorkeling. You will be taken to Bailey’s Key for a  topside orientation and Q&A session to learn about diving/snorkeling etiquette with the dolphins. Then, you’re just a short boat ride to a beautiful reef wall where two to three naturally curious dolphins arrive and are free to interact with you. And for the next 45 minutes you can observe, photograph and play with bottlenose dolphins in their natural environment.

Topside at Roatan

Roatan isn’t just a diver’s dream, but it’s also pretty great for land-lovers.

If you decide to take the day off from diving, you can hit up the beach and relax under a palm tree and soak up the rays or grab a kayak and paddle and explore (guess that’s not really for land-lovers, is it?) but you can go horseback riding, off-road in a 4-wheel sand/dune buggy and then some.

You can also check out the Roatan Museum and Roatan Institute of Marine Sciences, where guests can participate in educational programs and encounters with marine mammals. More inquisitive guests can join trained naturalists across the lagoon on Bailey’s Key to interact with playful dolphins and observe some of the island’s indigenous plants and animals along the key’s nature trail. If you love beaches, then visits to Tabyana,West Bay or Maya Key is a must.

One of the must-dos for Roatan is the zip line tour that’s combined with a visit to Gumbalimba Park, which boasts a botanical garden and small nature preserve complete with colorful parrots and a variety of monkeys. The zip line portion has about a dozen lines starting from the top of a mountain down to sea level and it’s quite a rush to zip through the scenery.

Photo Courtesy of Gumbalimba Park

Another thing you’ve got to try at Roatan, a is their Monkeylala; a local drink and visitors favorite that consists of Kahlua, Vodka, Coconut Cream and Cream.

Roatan is also known for it’s welcoming locals and their tempting visitors with delicious Honduran eats. For breakfast, you must have a typical Honduran breakfast at least once. The dish contains: eggs, ripe plantains, Honduran cheese, refried beans, tortillas and a variety of tropical fruits, definitely something you won’t find easily back home. Other favorites are Churrasco Steak, Island Stew Chicken, Conch Soup, Coconut Sea Bass and Habanero Shrimp Kebab.

Roatan is one of the Bay Islands of Honduras and can easily be explored at 36 miles long and a maximum of 5 miles wide. But wherever you go or dive, you will applaud your decision to travel to this dive destination and enjoy the memories of your experiences.

 

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