Dive Review of Buddy Dive Resort in
Bonaire

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Buddy Dive Resort: "Bonaire CCR Trek With East Coast Divers, 2021", Nov, 2021, by Matthew Glass, MA, US ( 2 reports). Report 11757.
No photos available at this time
Ratings and Overall Comments 1 (worst) - 5 (best):
Accommodations		Food
Service and Attitude		Environmental Sensitivity
Dive Operation		Shore Diving
Snorkeling	N/A
Overall Rating
Value for $$
Beginners
Advanced
Comments	In early November of 2021, East Coast Divers (ECD) of Brookline, MA sponsored a weeklong dive trip to Bonaire for a group of closed-circuit rebreather divers. This was a unique opportunity as almost all of the members of the trip team were newly certified on the units (Hollis Prism2). So we would all be learning to pilot our rebreathers without the strict supervision of our instructor Alex Dulavitz for the first time, together. We did have Nick Fazah of ECD as our trip leader. Nick is also an instructor on the Prism2, so it was great to have a pro with us to ensure we got our kit sorted, our weighting and trim dialed in, and our first experiences diving without bubbles executed with ease. The trip was an absolutely fantastic time! Bonaire - Bon Bini! For those of you who have been, you know that Bonaire has easily earned its semi-official title of “Diver’s Paradise” (it says so right on the license plates). Many years ago, the local government realized that diving was a substantial source of tourism and revenue. So, with the strong urging of a few of the local dive operations like Captain Don, they set about to create large protected reef habitats to ensure amazingly great conditions for their visiting dive friends. Nearly all of the “named” dive sites have a mooring affixed to the ocean floor for dive boats to tie up, and dropping anchor is strictly forbidden. This has helped maintain damage-free reefs for all to enjoy. Bonaire has a Dutch history, and there are many influences in the local culture. But it is without question, a Caribbean island, with all the pleasures and pitfalls that accompany such status. The pleasures are; warm air and water (90F air and 84F water, when we were there), amazingly clear viz up to 80 feet, tasty fruity tropical beverages available at most restaurants, and a local economy largely geared toward tourism. The pitfalls; well, for me, there was just one. Bonaire (like many islands) bills itself as a place of “unhurried pace”. Any traveller (especially us fast-paced Northeasterners) to the Caribbean is aware of the slower, “island time” speed at which things happen, and Bonaire seems to take that concept to a professional level. Pro-Tip: don’t let yourself get too hungry by the end of the day, as dinner was often a lengthy affair, with order-to-appetizer taking an hour or more. I believe some of this was due to staffing and being in a late-stage pandemic situation. But that was truly my only complaint. Getting there: At the writing of this article, Bonaire considers the US a “High Risk” country, and has somewhat s ... Subscribe to get the full story. Active subscribers continue reading here
Websites	Buddy Dive Resort [Hamlet Oasis
Reporter and Travel
Dive Experience	251-500 dives
Where else diving	I've dived all over South Florida, New England, The Great Barrier Reef and parts of the Caribbean.
Closest Airport	BON	Getting There	Boston, Through Atlanta to Bonaire.
Dive Conditions
Weather	sunny	Seas	calm
Water Temp	80-84°F / 27-29°C	Wetsuit Thickness	3
Water Visibility	50-80 Ft/ 15-24 M
Dive Policy
Dive own profile	yes
Enforced diving restrictions	[Unspecified]
Liveaboard?	no	Nitrox Available?	yes
What I Saw
Sharks	None	Mantas	None
Dolphins	None	Whale Sharks	None
Turtles	> 2	Whales	None
Ratings 1(worst) - 5 (best):
Corals		Tropical Fish
Small Critters		Large Fish
Large Pelagics
Underwater Photography 1 (worst) - 5 (best):
Subject Matter		Boat Facilities	N/A
Overall rating for UWP's		Shore Facilities
UW Photo Comments	[None] ... Subscribe to get the full story. Active subscribers continue reading here

Subscriber's Comments

By Christopher Watt in NH, US at Nov 23, 2021 09:59 EST

Nice review Matt!

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Dive Review of Buddy Dive Resort in Bonaire

Buddy Dive Resort: "Bonaire CCR Trek With East Coast Divers, 2021", Nov, 2021,

Ratings and Overall Comments 1 (worst) - 5 (best):

Overall Rating

Reporter and Travel

Dive Conditions

Dive Policy

What I Saw

Ratings 1(worst) - 5 (best):

Underwater Photography 1 (worst) - 5 (best):

Subscriber's Comments

Dive Review of Buddy Dive Resort in
Bonaire