Dive Review of Divi Flamingo in
Bonaire

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Divi Flamingo: "An enjoyable week of diving", Dec, 2023, by Richard Schifreen, WI, US ( Reviewer 6 reports with 2 Helpful votes). Report 12849 has 1 Helpful vote.
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
Overall Rating
Value for $$
Beginners
Advanced
Comments	This was my third trip to Dive Flamingo Bonaire, and the first since Covid. I was pleased to see a divemaster who I remembered from my two prior trips. I'll summarize the good and the bad: The Good: (1) easy air connections and a very efficient entry process at the airport, (2) very nice rooms and friendly, helpful staff, (3) the food at the resort was very good and reasonably priced, (4) lots of options for eating, snacking, and groceries a short walk away in Kralendijk, (5) well run dive operation, (6) comfortable dive boats, (7) unlimited tanks for shore dives or diving on the house reef (8) newly purchased rental gear, (9) knowledgeable and helpful dive staff, (10) excellent breakfast buffet. The Bad: (1) the reef and marine life were clearly impacted by warm water temperatures and stony coral tissue loss disease (2) restrictions determined by the national marine park including equipment decontamination, limits on dive sites and prohibition on the use of reef sticks, (3) the main dive dock was being reconstructed so a smaller dock is in use that has limited services and is not as convenient, (4) no night boat dives but divers can dive on the house reef at night. What else do you need to know: (1) you can bring packaged food from home through customs, (2) you need to make reservations to eat at any of the nicer restaurants on the resort or in Krelendijk, (3) there are places to visit on Bonaire where you will need a vehicle (including shore diving), (4) weather in the "rainy season" is variable. ABOUT DIVING: Divers are expected to carry their own equipment on and off the boat following the disinfection protocols. Tanks are placed on the boat by the dive staff. Divers analyze and log their own nitrox. Divers assemble and disassemble their own gear and are responsible for buddy checks. In the water divers are responsible for following the instructions in the briefing, keeping the divemaster in sight, and monitoring their own air. Divers are responsible for taking off their fins and climbing the ladder back onto the boat. The divemasters do assist with cameras. The divemasters do check gear and keep an eye on divers in the water. A divemaster aborted one of our dives because of an unexpected nasty current - a decision every one of us supported. THIS IS NOT VALET DIVING. If you want an experience where the divemaster cleans and carries your gear, assembles your equipment, deeps close control of the group, checks your air while diving and takes off your fins and/or takes your tank/bcd to get back on the boat -- this is NOT where you want to go. Overall, I enjoyed the resort and my week of diving; accepting the limitations related to the condition of the reef.
Websites	Divi Flamingo
Reporter and Travel
Dive Experience	251-500 dives
Where else diving	My dive travel was substantially reduced due to COVID, but I have visited multiple sites in the Caribbean and Pacific.
Closest Airport	BON	Getting There	There is convenient commercial airline service from the U.S.
Dive Conditions
Weather	sunny, windy, rainy, cloudy, dry	Seas	calm, choppy, surge, currents, no currents
Water Temp	82-83°F / 28-28°C	Wetsuit Thickness	1
Water Visibility	50-100 Ft/ 15-30 M
Dive Policy
Dive own profile	?
Enforced diving restrictions	[Unspecified] I did all boat dives where the group followed the divemaster. Buddy teams could deviate within limits. There was also unlimited shore diving available with no restrictions.
Liveaboard?	no	Nitrox Available?	yes
What I Saw
Sharks	None	Mantas	None
Dolphins	1 or 2	Whale Sharks	None
Turtles	1 or 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
Overall rating for UWP's		Shore Facilities
UW Photo Comments	The dive boats each had two fresh water tanks to be used only for cameras. Divers were advised not to use these tanks for masks, but to remove water from the tank to rinse defog. There was a dedicated camera tank on the dock with special disinfectant for after the dive. There was not a dedicated camera room, but there were plenty of outlets in the room for charging. The only limit to photography were subjects to photograph reflecting the damage to the reef from high water temperatures and stony coral tissue loss disease.

Report currently has 1 Helpful vote

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Dive Review of Divi Flamingo in Bonaire

Divi Flamingo: "An enjoyable week of diving", Dec, 2023,

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):

Dive Review of Divi Flamingo in
Bonaire