Captain Don's Habitat Bonaire Reviews & Specials - Bluewater Dive Travel

Captain Don's Habitat

4.25
(5 REVIEWS)
An aerial view of Captain Don's Habitat dive resort in Bonaire
The pool at Captain Don's Habitat dive resort in Bonaire
The jetty at Captain Don's Habitat dive resort in Bonaire
One of the buildings at Captain Don's Habitat dive resort
The dive center at Captain Don's Habitat dive resort in Bonaire
Two queen beds in a Deluxe Ocean View Room at Captain Don's Habitat in Bonaire
A chair and desk in a Deluxe Ocean View room at Captain Don's Habitat
Interior of a bathroom in a Deluxe Ocean View room at Captain Don's Habitat
A sofa and bed in a Deluxe Junior Suite at Captain Don's Habitat in Bonaire
Deluxe Junior Suite balcony offers a sea view
The interior of a Deluxe Junior Suite at Captain Don's Habitat, Bonaire
A covered outdoor patio with a table set with wine
A bedroom in a bungalow at Captain Don's Habitat, Bonaire
A kitchen and living area in a 1 bedroom bungalow at Captain Don's Habitat dive resort
A bedroom in a 2 bedroom bungalow at Captain Don's Habitat dive resort in Bonaire
A covered patio furnished with a table, chairs, and hammock at Captain Don's Habitat, Bonairee
A kitchen opens onto a covered patio in a 2 bedroom bungalow at Captain Don's Habitat dive resort
A bedroom in a 2 bed bungalow at Captain Don's Habitat, Bonaire
Exterior of a 3 bedroom bungalow at Captain Don's Habitat dive resort in Bonaire
Outdoor gear washing/drying area at a bungalow in Captain Don's Habitat dive resort in Bonaire
A living area in a 3 bedroom bungalow at Captain Don's Habitat dive resort in Bonaire
Bedroom and ensuite in a 3 bed bungalow at Captain Don's Habitat dive resort in Bonaire
A bedroom in a 3 bed bungalow at Captain Don's Habitat dive resort in Bonaire
Dining area in an ocean front villa at Captain Don's Habitat dive resort in Bonaire
Outdoor dining area in an ocean front villa at Captain Don's Habitat dive resort in Bonaire
Kitchen in an ocean front villa at Captain Don's Habitat dive resort in Bonaire
Bedroom in an ocean front villa at Captain Don's Habitat dive resort in Bonaire
Pool at Captain Don's Habitat dive resort in Bonaire
Beach volleyball at Captain Don's Habitat dive resort in Bonaire
Outdoor dining at Captain Don's Habitat dive resort in Bonaire
BBQ Night at Captain Don's Habitat dive resort in Bonaire
Outdoor seaside dining area at Captain Don's Habitat dive resort in Bonaire
A man makes pizza at Captain Don's Habitat dive resort in Bonaire
A salad on a plate at Captain Don's Habitat dive resort in Bonaire
Seared fish against a seaside backdrop
A cocktail at Captain Don's Habitat dive resort in Bonaire
Two massage tables under a thatch roof next to the sea at Captain Don's Habitat dive resort in Bonaire
The conference room at Captain Don's Habitat dive resort in Bonaire
A scuba diver does a giant stride to enter the water at Captain Don's Habitat dive resort in Bonaire
A small dive building on the jetty at Captain Don's Habitat dive resort in Bonaire

Destination: Bonaire

103 Kaya Gob. N. Debrot, Kralendijk, Caribbean Netherlands | Full-board + 2 dives from $266/ppn

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Captain Don's Habitat Quick Pitch

An idyllic location with great shore diving and a wide range of accommodations. Captain Don's was one of the original Bonaire dive operators and is still offering genuine hospitality and quality customer service today.

 

Quick Information 

  • No of Rooms: 56
  • Dive Center: On-site
  • Amenities: AC, pool, bar, activity coordinator, spa
  • WiFi: Yes, free
  • Nearest International Airport: Flamingo International Airport
  • Airport shuttle: Yes ($32 USD per person round trip)

 

How to Get There

Captain Don’s Habitat is located at Kaya Gobernador Debrot 103 - just 1.8 miles from downtown Kralendijk and about 6 miles from the Flamingo International Airport. The resort offers airport transportation.  

 

Dive Overview

Bonaire hosts healthy reefs with abundant marine life. Its warm waters and range of dive sites make this area an ideal location for all levels of divers.
 

 

 

Accommodations

Types of Rooms, Amenities and Photos

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Deluxe Ocean View

All rooms are fully air-conditioned rooms with a lovely view of the freshwater pool and the Caribbean Sea. Each room offers 2 queen beds, desk, cable TV, refrigerator, coffee maker, hairdryer, laptop safe, full bath w/tub, telephone and secluded balcony or patio with comfortable furniture.
 

Captain Don's Habitat Captain Don's Habitat

 

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Deluxe Junior Suite

These new Deluxe Junior Suites are located right on the waterfront and have one king size bed and one queen sleeper sofa, each with a pillow top mattress. The units also have a granite top wet bar with sink, microwave, coffee maker and small refrigerator.
 

Captain Don's Habitat Captain Don's Habitat

 

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1 Bedroom / 1 Bathroom Bungalow

1 Bedroom / 1 Bathroom Bungalows are fully air-conditioned rooms with a lovely garden view. Each bungalow offers a spacious dining/living room, full kitchen, 1 large bedroom, 1 large bathroom, telephone, wireless internet, cable TV and covered patio with comfortable furniture.
 

Captain Don's Habitat Captain Don's Habitat

 

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2 Bedroom / 2 Bathroom Bungalow

The 2 Bedroom / 2 Bathroom Bungalows sleep 4 people comfortably. They are complemented with tropical furniture in the air-conditioned living room, fully equipped kitchen, in-room telephones, cable TV, large covered patio area (great for relaxing and entertaining friends).
 

Captain Don's Habitat Captain Don's Habitat

 

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3 Bedroom / 4 Bathroom Bungalow

This cottage has been completely remodeled and is loaded with features like all new furniture, brand new bathrooms and a full-size kitchen, a fully gated private entry with plenty of convenient parking, a huge master suite with en suite bathroom, hairdryer, rainfall showerhead, king bed and flat-screen TV, two additional bedrooms with twin beds, flat-screen TV’s, and en suite bathrooms with hairdryers, a huge living room that is open to the dining area and full-size kitchen with an additional full bathroom, AND a private patio area with a covered dining area complete with sockets, WiFi, a full-size rinse tank and gear drying area to make after dive cleanup a breeze.
 

Captain Don's Habitat Captain Don's Habitat

 

3-bedroom Ocean Front Villa

These fully air-conditioned 3 -Bedroom ocean view Villas come complete with a full kitchen, living room, separate bedroom, bathroom, covered patio with a great view of the Caribbean Sea, and Klein Bonaire on the ground floor and either 2 or 3 bedrooms, each with its own bathroom upstairs.
 

Captain Don's Habitat Captain Don's Habitat

 

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Resort Facilities

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Captain Don's Habitat Captain Don's Habitat

Captain Don's Habitat Captain Don's Habitat

 

Captain Don's Habitat Features 

  • Pool
  • Bar and lounge
  • Restaurant
  • Spa
  • Meeting facilities
  • Activities coordinator
  • Car rentals
  • Babysitting
  • Dry cleaning/laundry service
  • 24-hour front desk
  • Multilingual staff
  • Safe-deposit boxes

 

Captain Don's Habitat Food & Drinks 

  • Rum Runners Restaurant - The experienced chefs and waiters in this idyllic setting ensure that all meals are a true pleasure. The restaurant offers an international menu, daily local specials, and the Pizza Temple with authentic Italian thin crust pizza and a wide assortment of specialty pizzas and toppings.
  • Pizza Temple - Authentic Italian thin crust pizza baked to perfection in a traditional stone oven. Choose from a wide assortment of toppings, create your own or try one of the chef’s creation. Great for that in between dive craving or take away for the perfect midnight snack.
  • Deco Stop Bar - Whether watching your favorite football team, divers coming and going from the boats or one of our beautiful sunsets…the Deco Stop Bar is a perfect place to review the days events or plan tomorrows… all the while enjoying the company of your fellow vacationers and the wonderful drinks our friendly bartenders have come up with for that day. The Deco Stop Bar is a favorite watering hole for guests and locals alike. Happy Hour daily from 5:30 pm to 6:30 pm.

 Captain Don's Habitat Captain Don's Habitat

 

Captain Don's Habitat Activities 

  • Diving
  • Bird watching
  • Fishing
  • Sailing
  • Snorkeling
  • Various other activities with Bonaire Tours & Vacations

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Package & Rates

Captain Don's Habitat 2023 Rates

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Room Rates

Rates are in US Dollars and are inclusive of all fees; Service Charge, Energy Surcharge, Bonhata Till, Green Fee. Meals, transfers, and diving are not included. Extra Person Rate may be used with any room category. Maximum of 2 children sharing a room with 2 paying adults. Tourist tax ($75.00), payable by the visitor at the airport or via the government link.

Option

Period

Period

Period

 Mar 23, 2024 - Dec 6, 2024

Dec 7, 2024 - Mar 21, 2025

Mar 22, 2025 - Dec 5, 2025

Summer

Winter

Summer

Habitat 1/1 Bungalow (sngl. occ.)

$163

$240

$183

Habitat 1/1 Bungalow (dbl. occ.)

$210

$307

$235

Habitat 2/2 Bungalow (dbl. occ.)

$279

$375

$312

Habitat 2/2 Bungalow (trpl. occ.)

$303

$402

$339

Habitat 2/2 Bungalow (quad. occ.)

$324

$429

$363

Deluxe Garden view 1 king (sngl.occ)

$194

$211

$194

Deluxe Garden view 1 king (dbl.occ)

$222

$279

$222

Deluxe Garden View 2 queens (sngl. occ)

$194

$211

$194

Deluxe Garden View 2 queens (dbl. occ)

$222

$279

$222

Deluxe Garden View 1 bedroom Suites (sngl.occ)

$205

$222

$205

Deluxe Garden View 1 bedroom Suites (dbl.occ)

$232

$290

$232

Ocean Front Villa (4 pax)

$419

$538

$469

Ocean Front Villa (5 pax)

$491

$629

$550

Ocean Front Villa (6 pax)

$565

$721

$633

Deluxe Ocean View (sngl. occ.)

$148$216$170

Deluxe Ocean View (dbl. occ.)

$193$282$222

Deluxe Junior Suite (sngl. occ.)

$200

$242

$224

Deluxe Junior Suite (dbl. occ.)

$227

$319

$254

Extra Person

$72

$92

$81

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Meal Plans 2024

All rates are per person per night in USD. Lunches & dinners will be a 2-course meal consisting of an appetizer & main course or main course & dessert.

Meal Plan

Adults

Children 0-5 years of age

Children 7-12 years of age

FB - Full Buffet Breakfast

$18.60 

-

$12.50

MAP - Buffet Breakfast & Dinner

$71.65

$54.50

$63.50

FAP - Buffet Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner

$124.80

$102.00

$116.00

 

Meal Plan Rates 2025

All rates are per person per night in USD. Lunches & dinners will be a 2-course meal consisting of an appetizer & main course or main course & dessert. Valid from January 1 - December 31, 2025.

Meal PlanAdultsChildren 0-5 years of age
Children 7-12 years of age
FB - Full Buffet Breakfast
$20.60-$14.50
MAP - Buffet Breakfast & Dinner
$78.40$59.25$70.25
FAP - Buffet Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner
$136.50$111.25$127.25

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dive rates

All rates are in US and include 6% Government Tax.

Item | Rack Rate ($)Aug 1, 2024 - Dec 6, 2024Dec 7, 2024 - Dec 5, 2025
Unl. Shore Diving Daily (incl. tanks/weights) - daily rate$37.00 pp/day$37.00 pp/day
6 Unl. Shore Diving Daily (incl. tanks/weights/free nitrox) - weekly package$190.00 pp/pw$190.00 pp/pw
1 Boat dive & unl. Shore diving daily (incl. Tanks/weights) - daily rate$68.00 pp/day$75.00 pp/day
6 Boat dive & unl. Shore diving daily (incl. Tanks/weights/free nitrox) - weekly package$380.00 pp/pw$420.00 pp/pw
2 Boat dive & unl. Shore diving daily (incl. Tanks/weights) - daily rate$89.00 pp/day$98.00 pp/day
12 Boat dives & unl. Shore diving daily (incl. Tanks/weights/free nitrox) - weekly package$499.00 pp/pw$549.00 pp/pw
Nitrox Upgrade - Daily ala carte Rate Unlimited Use 32% mix (add to daily diving rates)$12.00-
Nitrox Elearn Certification SDI incl 6 days Nitrox upgrade on any 6 day Package$141.00$141.00
Scuba Discovery Course (1 shore dive and all equipment) 1/2 day$99.00$99.00
Refresher Course (Incl. 1 shore dive w/instructor- incl. equipment)$99.00$99.00
PADI E-learn** + OW Certification on Property** incl tanks, Equip is not included 2.5 days$375.00$375.00
SDI On-Line Open Water Course - includes all equipment and dive computer 2 days- confined and open water dives ***$375.00$375.00
PADI, SSI, SDI Open Water Referral Course**** (incl. Instruction/tanks/weights/wt.belts for 4 dives)$349.00$349.00
PADI Advanced Open Water Course, includes 1 Boat Dive and 2 Days of Shore Diving, Books not incl.$349.00$349.00
PADI Rescue Diver Course (Instruction ONLY - does not include EFR, CPROX or CPROX1st)$425.00-

 

Can't find the information you need?

Drop us an email at bookings@bluewaterdivetravel.com or call us at 310-915-6677 and we will gladly help you plan your dream dive vacation!  

 

Dive Information

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Bonaire National Marine Park 

All the beautiful waters around Bonaire are designated as a Marine Park. The fact that anchoring, spearfishing, touching the corals, and removing anything from the reef is prohibited helps keep the reefs healthy for all to enjoy. 

A $25 fee allows guest to access to the Marine Park for the calendar year as well as entrance to the Washington-Slagbaai National Park (you must show tag, paper receipt and photo I.D. at the entrance to the Park).

The Bonaire National Marine Park requires Bonaire Dive Operators to provide a brief orientation to anyone who has not been to Bonaire within the same calendar year before you are allowed to dive.

A shore warm-up dive on the house reef is also required by the Bonaire National Marine Park prior to any other diving. Habitat conducts this orientation at 9:00 AM daily.

No diving is permitted without first attending this orientation. If you arrive early in the afternoon, staffing permitting, an orientation will be provided for you so that you may dive that afternoon. Packages do not include diving on day of arrival.


 
 

Dive Center Information

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Captain Don's Habitat Captain Don's Habitat

 

Captain Don's Habitat Dive Center Overview 

Captain Don’s Habitat Dive Operation is a PADI Resort and an SDI 5 Star Professional Development Center. Habitat is neither pretentious nor regimented. The multilingual, multicultural, professional staff are there to teach, assist, or advise in a relaxed and friendly manner.

Habitat is centrally located within the resort complex for easy access from all rooms. It has three 1-tank boat departures daily: at 8.30 AM, 11 AM and 2 PM. The boat dives go to over 70 moored sights on our custom built dive boats. Each mooring buoy is limited to 1 boat so you’ll have the reef all to yourself.

Total Diving Freedom has always been the concept behind diving at Captain Don’s Habitat. Over 50 world class dives are within a 15-minute boat ride. Diving Freedom means 24 hours a day, 365 days a year with no rush or anxiety.

Photo Services are also available, provided by BonPhoto, who offers guests a full selection of the latest in photo and video equipment for rent or sale, and gives personalized instruction and private photo shoots.

 

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Other Information

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Practical Information 

  • Electricity: 112-127V/50Hz
  • Time zone: UTC-4
  • Languages: Dutch & English
  • Accept Credit Cards?: Yes, Master Card, Visa & American Express

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Got Questions? Ready to Book?

Call us today at 310-915-6677 or email us bookings@bluewaterdivetravel.com

And let us book your dream vacation!

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Underwater Gallery

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Reviews (5)

4
3
4
3

This place is similar to scuba club Cozumel in the fact that it is somewhat basic accommodations. The freedom to dive whenever you want and the nearness of the on site diving is great. The wall dive at the location is well worth spending some time exploring. I would also recommend that you plan some boat dives to other sites, even though you could drive there the boat rides are short and easy.

Visited on 09/2000 - Submitted on 03/11/2021
  • Top Reviewer
Fountain Valley, CA
United States
5
5
5
5

I stayed at Captain Don's and found it to be a perfect resort for divers. Large, clean rooms, great restaurant, fantastic pool, and amazing dive operation. I traveled with my non-diving wife so I did only boat diving, with the exception of one mandatory checkout dive on the amazing house reef. The resort staff, restaurant staff, and dive staff are all the best! My wife enjoyed the resort very much and was able to find many things to do while I was diving. This is also a great place for families. Would stay here again.

Visited on 07/2019 - Submitted on 01/26/2020
4
4
4
4

Good place to dive and a decent place to stay and eat. The diving was excellent for the most part. They have their own reef right out the back of the property and it's pretty decent on it's own. Large tarpon patrol right under the cliff where their restaurant sits. It's fun to watch them while you eat and if you go on night dives out there you can be treated to a show of the tarpon snagging any hapless fish that you happen to spot for them with your dive light. I dove several solo dives, including a solo night dive, at the hotel reef with no problem. I'm not sure about solo dives off the boat trips they had. Never tried it. Plenty of tarpon, midnight parrotfish, groupers and French angelfish.

Visited on 07/2012 - Submitted on 09/15/2014
5
5
4
4

I had a great experience with Captain Don's Habitat in Bonaire. Everything about Bonaire diving is easy and incredibly pleasant. Upon arriving at Captain Don's, we received a dive briefing explaining how diving would work for the week, and then the pool was open. Divers are allowed to do as many shore dives as they want, and the house reef is a gorgeous wall dive that I was happy to do over and over. You can also sign up for boat dives, which are done three times per day. Depending on the package you select at Captain Don's, these boat dives are an additional charge. However, the package that I signed up for included 10 boat dives over the course of the week without extra charge.

The accommodations at Captain Don's were wonderful. My girlfriend and I stayed in a beautiful ocean view room that included more than we needed. It had ample space, a kitchenette, a television, and a nice patio for lounging. On top of that, it was about a 30 second walk to the dive lockers! Not all rooms at Captain Don's are this close to the dive lockers, but all are within a few minute walk at the most.

As I mentioned before, diving is incredibly easy. All divers are given a locker to store their gear. For boat dives, your gear is automatically transferred to the boat. For shore dives, you simply gear up next to your locker, walk down some steps, and you are diving.

The visibility in Bonaire is incredible, making it a great spot for photographers and new divers. At the same time, there is ample marine life to stay excited. Highlights included turtles, flounders, seahorses, tarpon, flamingo tongues, arrow crabs, moray eels, and huge sponges.

Although Bonaire is a relatively quiet island, we were able to explore a few of the local restaurants and sites. We didn't leave Captain Don's many times over the course of the week, but when we did we had a lovely time. There were a bunch of cute shops in the main town, some good shopping, and some nice restaurants.

Overall, I am a huge proponent of Bonaire and am excited to go back in the near future.

Visited on 05/2011 - Submitted on 03/25/2014
5
4
5
3

Travel coordination:

We spent a relaxing week in August 2013 at Captain Don’s, as part of a group package for our dive club. This was our second trip to the resort (our first was in 2008). We arrived in Bonaire in the late afternoon, and were greeted at the airport by the resort staff, who helped us with our luggage and shuttled us quickly to the resort. Our arrival formalities were simple: we presented our vouchers at the resort lobby and then headed to the bar, where we enjoyed the view and a complementary welcome drink (rum punch, of course).

At departure, we brought our bags back to the lobby, and were taken by a shuttle bus back to the airport. It would have been a bit easier if the resort had some luggage carts available to help bring our bags from our room to the resort lobby, but everything was otherwise efficient, and very pleasant.

Accommodations:

We stayed in the newer Oceanfront Junior Suites, which I believe opened in 2012. Our rooms were perfectly located, a few steps away from the dive center/lockers and dive piers, making it very quick and easy to go diving anytime we wanted.

Some online reviews have been more negative, stating that the rooms and the grounds need updating, but we did not find this to be case. The rooms at Captain Don’s are not overly luxurious, but the rooms are comfortable, and correctly furnished/appointed for a dive resort. Our rooms were spacious, clean, and very comfortable, with A/C, ceiling fan, a small kitchenette, and a large patio (with 2 chairs, drying rack, and table) overlooking the water. The resort faces west, so we enjoyed a gorgeous sunset view every evening, either from our patio, or at the resort bar, which overlooks the main dive pier.

Resort features

The resort is laid out along a short stretch of Bonaire’s west coast, on 20-foot bluffs facing towards the island of Klein Bonaire. There is a pool, a day spa (where I enjoyed a very good back massage on the last day), a photo studio (BonPhoto – where I took an excellent underwater photography course), the dive center, the bar, and the restaurant (Rum Runners), which sits in the center of the resort.

Restaurant/Bar/Food

Rum Runners is Captain Don’s outdoor restaurant that sits on the bluffs overlooking the sea, facing towards Klein Bonaire. They serve all three meals, and our package included a full breakfast buffet (which includes an omelet station). (Note: there are other full board packages available with all 3 meals at Captain Don’s). Overall, we were happy with Rum Runners, and ate virtually every meal there, because of the outdoor ambience, as well as the convenience, since it is relatively long walk to the restaurants at neighboring resorts. The atmosphere is casual (as you would expect at a dive resort) but the food was good, though not stellar, and the menu was limited, focusing heavily on seafood options (which makes sense given what is locally available). The service was good, very friendly and casual. The bar had great rum drinks (what else of course, it is the Caribbean!). It’s certainly worthwhile to try out restaurants at the neighboring resorts, or to take a short cab ride into town (which I have done on previous trips). The Buddy Dive resort next door has a new, more upscale restaurant next door called “Ingridients” (named after their chef, Ingrid), which was excellent.

Diving:

My husband and I both have a preference for live-aboard dive yachts, BUT, Captain Don’s is exceptionally good when it comes to shore-based dive resorts. Our package included 12 boat dives, plus unlimited shore diving (note: there are different package options available, including car rental to try out Bonaire many shore dive sites). The heart of the resort is the dive center, where they focus on making the diving “easy”. They have been organizing diving for years, and they know how to make it both flexible and efficient for divers.

We had our dive briefing on the first morning after our arrival, and began diving immediately thereafter. Captain Don’s runs a couple of boats (usually 2 at a time) off the larger main pier, offering 2 morning dives, and one afternoon dive. The dive center posts a sign up board for the boats on the outside the door. In addition, they have tanks available if you want to rent a car/pickup truck to try out the other shore diving sites around the island, and have tanks available around the clock if you want to dive on the “house reef” (La Machacca), right off the smaller 2nd dive pier (always a good and interesting dive site). There is an open-air locker room, right next to the dive piers, so you can leave your dive gear securely, if you don’t want to drag it back to your room at the end of the dive day. When you combine the boat dives with the shore diving, it is easily possible to do 3-4 dives a day (or even 5 dives a day), which is pretty good for an onshore resort.

Most of the dive sites are on Bonaire’s west side (as the east side has rougher seas), or around the small island of Klein Bonaire (directly facing Captain Don’s and Buddy Dive resorts). On this most recent trip, in August 2013, water temperatures were between 80-82 F, so after the first day I dispensed with the wetsuit and just dove with a rash guard and swimsuit, which was truly liberating. Bonaire is known for easy and pleasant diving, with beautiful reefs that have been well protected by the government, but without much in term of large pelagic species. That said, I ran into a pod of dolphins and photographed them underwater when I was diving off of Klein Bonaire on my previous dive trip (in 2008), but that was a freak occurrence. On this most recent trip, I was doing wide-angle photography and videography, and I found plenty of interesting seascapes, and larger noteworthy creatures to photograph, like eels, turtles, rays, and a colorful schools of all sorts of reef fish. Macro photographers will not be disappointed, as Bonaire’s reefs have plenty of nudibranchs, lobsters and sea horses among many other things. Among the dive sites of note that I tried out this were:

Hilma Hooker: This is a well-known wreck dive, in about 90 feet of water. The boat was a drug smuggling vessel that was abandoned in Bonaire’s main harbor, and “accidently” sunk while being towed away. The rudder is covered with barrel sponges and coral, and tarpon and eels are frequently seen cruising around.

Joanna’s Sunchi/Klein Bonaire: This was a long beautiful dive on a pretty reef, reportedly named for one of Captain Don’s girlfriends. I saw seahorses, cowfish and barracuda.

Bloodlet and Rappel: These were my favorite dive sites of this trip, they are adjacent to each other. They are both beautiful wall dives, covered with a verdant reef, and lots of sponges. I shot a lot of video and photos here, with squid, moray eels and porcupine fish.

The video link below should give you an idea:

https://vimeo.com/73991604

Additionally, Captain Don’s is host to the BonPhoto studio, which is owned and operated by a charming young couple, Zsuzsanna & Leo. Zsuzsanna is a talented photographer and photography/videography instructor, and I took an underwater photography class with her that helped me enormously. Leo, her husband, teaches free diving, and also leads nighttime scuba dives (as a separate company, called Flow), using fluorescent lights and visors over our masks. We went on a fluorescent night dive on Captain Don’s house reef (La Macchaca), and it was the best night dive we have ever done. The fluorescent lights lit up all sorts of creatures that you would not normally see on a night dive with regular lights, like tube worms, and fire worms, and we saw brittle stars hopping around the reef in a mad dash to spawn (it was incredible – who knew they could move so fast?). In addition, we had tarpon and barracuda trailing us to hunt smaller prey lit up by our lights. It was an amazing dive!

Staff:

The staff are polite, laid back, and very experienced. I had a dive computer die at the beginning of the trip, and they correctly diagnosed the problem (sensor failure – confirmed when I returned) and rented me a substitute computer on the spot for the week.

Tipping:

We tipped a standard 15% at the restaurant for our meals that we ate at Captain Don’s (except for breakfast, which was included in our package). As for the diving center staff, we gave a modest tip to one of the boat captains (Neto – he was fantastic), and then left the bulk of our tip (around 10%) in a recycled air tank where staff collect and share tips.

Visited on 08/2013 - Submitted on 02/26/2014

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