About Bonaire Seaside
Bonaire Seaside's location: The properties waterfront condos are less than 8 km/5M north of the airport and about 3 km/2M north of the capital town of Kralendijk. Walking to town is enjoyable from your Caribbean vacation rental along the paved waterfront walk that begins just south of us, and takes less than 15 minutes. View our Google Map.
On Property: Bonaire Seaside villas and apartments were completed in 2005, so everything about the property is still quite new! Bonaire Seaside offers 3 Oceanfront Studios, 7 One Bedroom Oceanfront apartments, 1 Two Bedroom Deluxe Oceanfront apartment and 3 Three Bedroom Oceanfront Villas.
Bath Amenities: We’ll provide you with soap, but if you use a hair dryer please bring one with you. Towels and Linens are provided with the exception of wash cloths/face cloths which are not customarily used by Europeans.
Room Amenities: Your apartment has a safety deposit box, and TV with DVD player. There are direct dial phones in all of the apartments and pre-paid phone can be purchased at the front desk. Calls to the US average only .40 cents a minute. Wireless Internet access is also available for a nominal fee and usage cards can be purchased at the front desk.
Kitchen Amenities: Your self catering Caribbean rental has a modern kitchen which is fully equipped with a stainless steel refrigerator, microwave, dishwasher, stove, coffeemaker, toaster and complete cooking supplies and utensils.
Electricity: Voltage is 127 volts, 50 cycles, slightly different from the US. Most U.S. appliances will work, however they may run a bit hotter.
Food Service: Bonaire Seaside Apartments does not have a restaurant on property but is easily within walking distance of the downtown restaurants. It Rain's Fishes, just a 5 minute walk along the seaside, serves breakfast from 8:00-11:00 daily as well as a great lunch and dinner. There are several restaurants within a 5 minute drive north of the resort as well, a favorite of which is the Sunset Bar and Grill located at Den Laman, just off the traffic rotary.
Diving & Activities
Bonaire Marine Park Orientation: Dive Registration, Orientation & Marine Park Fee: Dive Friends Bonaire/Yellow Submarine, which is located next door on the north side of the property, opens at 8:00 am. Divers must register at the dive center, and bring their (1) dive certification card, (2) diving vouchers, (3) credit card for a security deposit, and (4) US$25 cash for the required purchase of a Bonaire Marine Park Tag. The Bonaire Marine Park requires all visiting divers to participate in a short orientation session on their first morning of diving. At Dive Friends Bonaire, this orientation is held at any time that is convenient for you during normal business hours of 8:00 am - 5:00 pm. After the orientation, divers must do a self-guided familiarization dive in front of the dive shop before leaving for off property shore diving or boat diving. The purpose of the dive is to recheck buoyancy and to check your dive equipment while still within safe distance of the dive staff and facilities.
Boat departures: The boats leave the dock (located directly across from Bonaire Seaside) at 9:00 a.m. for the 1 or 2 tank boat dive, 1:00 p.m. for the 1 tank boat dive (minimum of 4 persons). All divers need to be ready and on the dock at least 10 minutes prior to departure please!
Gear Storage & Gear Considerations: Gear storage is available free of charge in dive shop. Gear room is not accessible after hours. If you want to night dive or early morning dive, please take tanks and gear with you in advance. Booties and open heel fins are necessary for off property shore diving along the iron coast. Full foot fins are adequate for boat diving & diving on property.
Nitrox: Dive Friends Bonaire/Yellow Submarine offers Bonaire Seaside guests a FREE day of Nitrox (max 3 tanks) with every six-consecutive Nitrox dive package purchased.
On Wearing Wet Suits: Whether you choose or need to wear a wet suit is a personal decision that needs to be based on your You can expect the water to reach the high 70's in the winter and the mid to low 80's in the summer. Most people will find that they are comfortable in a 3mm full to 2mm shortie, depending own your own "internal thermometer." Others might be perfectly happy in skins! Dive Friends rents 3 mm shorties and full wet suits.
Non-Diver Use of the Marine Park All non-divers who use the waters of the Bonaire Marine Park including snorkelers, windsurfers, kayakers, sport fishermen, kite boarders, etc., will be charged a Nature Fee of $10.00 per year. All persons who pay the Nature Fee (both divers and other user(s) and show their tag along with their printed receipt will receive complimentary admission to Washington-Slagbaai National Park throughout the year their tag is valid.
Eco-Activities: Whether your preference is boat or shore diving, kayaking, mountain biking, bird watching, cave exploration or snorkeling, our programs offer visitors the opportunity and mean to explore the highlights of our island's multifaceted natural treasures. Check out our Eco-Activities!
General Interest
Bon-WHERE?: Bonaire is located just off the
coast of Venezuela in the southern Caribbean, part of the "ABC" island
chain that includes the more developed Aruba and Curacao.
We are please to be well outside the hurricane belt.
Latitude/longitude (GPS): 12°10' N 68°17' W
Island Environment: Bonaire is a small (111 square mile) island, only 3 to 7 miles wide and approximately 24 miles long. With the exception of Mount Branderis and the north western areas near Washington Slagbaai National Park, the island is primarily flat. It is also quite arid, averaging only slightly more than 20 inches of rainfall annually, most of which falls autumn through January. Easterly trade winds wash over the island year round, helping to dissipate the heat, with average land/air temperatures ranging in the low 80's Fahrenheit.
Getting Here: There are several different options for getting to Bonaire Seaside on international carriers that offer one-stop service via San Juan, Puerto Rico, Aruba and Curaçao. Non-stop service is also available once weekly on Continental Airlines from Houston, Texas and Newark New Jersey and from Atlanta on Delta. Non-stop flights are also offered from Amsterdam, Netherlands, as well as from Ecuador and Peru on KLM. Ferry service is not available between Bonaire and Aruba, Curacao or Venezuela.
Entry/Exit Requirements: All visitors to Bonaire are required to have a valid passport. No Visas are required for U.S. and Canadian citizens. It is the customer’s responsibility to ensure his or her own visa requirements, and no refunds will be awarded for customers denied access for lack of proper Visa. There is a departure tax of approximately U.S. $36.00 per person that must be paid in cash at the airport upon departure.
Traveling with Children: Children 12 and under are exempt from paying government room tax. Please be sure you have notified us if you will be traveling with an infant and need a Pack-n-Play reserved for a one time $10 fee.
Transportation and transfers: If you have reserved a rental vehicle with your package, the majority of the rental agencies are located a short distance from the airport terminal, with shuttle service provided. You will need to present them with your Rental Car voucher upon arrival. The Optional $10.50 per day vehicle insurance is highly recommended as most credit card insurance coverage does not cover truck rentals. Charges may be accessed for additional drivers. There is no requirement to purchase a local license. Taxi rides will run approximately $11 from the Airport to the Hotel.
Driving on Bonaire: We encourage all visitors to Bonaire to rent a truck to explore the island, and for that reason have included one, at very competitive rates, in all of our packages. They are great for touring, getting you to your shore dive sites and taking you around town to sample the local cuisine. You do not need to obtain a local drivers license or permit to be able to drive on Bonaire, though you do need to be 23 years old to rent a vehicle.
Time Zone: Bonaire operates on Atlantic Standard Time, but not daylight savings (no summer time change).
Currency: The Netherlands Antilles Guilder (NAFL) is fixed at the exchange rate of 1.77 to the dollar for cash and 1.78 for traveler’s cheques. Most stores and business however exchange it at 1.75. You can spend dollars everywhere, but you will likely receive your cash in guilders. Traveler’s checks and credit cards are widely accepted but be sure to have your passport or photo ID available. There is a bank with a 24-hour ATM within walking distance which can dispense guilders or dollars.
Grocery shopping: Ask our staff at the front desk for recommendations on where to shop, as the stores most easily found are not always the ones with the best selection for foreign visitors. But our local staff stands ready to point you in the right direction!
Beaches: Because Bonaire has a fringing reef and iron shore, there are few natural beaches on the island. Although we do not have a beach per se, you can enter the water for swimming or snorkeling via the ladder on the dive dock, where you enter into no more than 3 feet of water. There are two lovely combination coral/sand beaches (Pink Beach and Windsock Beach) heading south, as well as a lovely smooth sand area great for small children out at the protected lagoon of Lac Bay.
Emergencies: Bonaire has a hospital no more than 10 minutes away from the Resort and an adjacent hyperbaric recompression chamber that is run by highly trained staff, admittance via the emergency room at the hospital.