January 27 - February 3, 2024

Join us to enjoy some of the best diving in the Caribbean when the club goes to Bonaire with its rich marine life & perfect temps. While this is the prime high season to relish the sunshine with little rain & few winds in Bonaire, we've been able to snag a great deal making this a perfect time to visit while still being a cost-conscious trip. If you've ever wanted to visit Bonaire or have been dying to go back, now's the time!

A group of 20 lucky divers can snag the INCREDIBLE SAVINGS we secured for this group trip perfect for either beginners or advanced divers.

The Diving - 12 Boat Dives & Unlimited Shore Dives Included

With 60 dive sites on Bonaire & another 20 dive sites on the Klein Bonaire islet, this truly is a divers paradise.

The sea is remarkably calm & conditions are superb with visibility exceeding 100 feet & an average water temperature of 80 degrees. The fringing reef begins close to the shore making Bonaire world-renowned for its ease of shore diving which you'll be able to take advantage of with unlimited shore dives in addition to the 12 boat dives included. 

Bonaire offers something special for divers of all levels. Those newer to diving will relish the shallow, calm waters & tons of marine life to appreciate while working on buoyancy skills. More advanced divers can enjoy deeper dives & potentially some more challenging sites. There's even support for technical & CCR divers at the resort we chose with O2, sorb, rebreather bottles, & doubles available for rent if you want to venture out to the few deep wrecks or spend a long time on recreational sites.


No Buddy? No Problem!

Beth McCrea (Club President) & Mike Rothschild (Executive Board Member) are co-hosting this trip. Beth will help connect you up with other divers including setting you up in a double occupancy room if you'd like. Beth will also be hosting a little pre-get together at the club happy hour in January so you can get to know your fellow travelers. Mike is a wonderful photographer so it’s highly likely we’ll also end up with excellent photos to remember this club trip & maybe even a video shot by drone too!


The Resort & Island

Laying off Venezuela’s coast in the southern Caribbean, Bonaire's reef-lined coast is protected by a national marine park. Beyond its rich marine life, the island shelters lizards, donkeys, & tropical birds within its immense Washington Slagbaai National Park.

We'll be staying at Captain Don's Habitat, one of the most famous & beloved resorts on the island which also showcases a great house reef perfect for night dives. The resort's founder was the legendary Captain Don Stewart, pioneer of Bonaire marine conservation, & the resort has earned a 3-star Blue Destination certification which makes sustainable use of ocean resources for growth, well-being, & jobs while protecting the health of the ocean ecosystem.


Shore Diving/Truck Rental

We’ve reserved trucks with AB Car Rental which offers pick up/drop off as well as full insurance with zero deductible & free roadside assistance. We’ve been able to secure a 10% discount for our group & to keep costs down even further, we’ll have a number of divers in each truck. If you are interested in the unlimited shore diving around the island (which we highly recommend!) as opposed to the boat diving or the shore diving at the resort, a truck will be necessary. There’s an additional cost for the truck, but it’s very reasonable since we’ll divide up the costs. Assuming 4 divers in each truck, it will only be $117 for the week per person including the discount.


A Typical Day in Bonaire 

• Oceanfront breakfast buffet at the resort which includes a wide selection of fresh tropical fruits, pancakes, waffles, bacon, sausage, omelets, breads, & cereal. (Breakfast is included for an additional $122.50 for the week. If you want to opt out, let us know.)
• The two morning boat dives are single tank dives where the boat comes back to shore in between. 
• Lunch is usually a quick affair so you can make the afternoon boat dive. Since there's a fridge & a microwave in each room, it's easy enough to bring in some groceries & enjoy a cheap, fast meal.
• Afternoons & early evenings is where being with a group can be a lot of fun as you can jump into a truck with a few other divers & explore different shore dive sites. (Truck add-on ~$117 for the week.)
• Folks often get together to relax with a drink & watch the sunset oceanfront at the resort.
• Dinner can then be enjoyed there at Rum Runner’s (vegetarian & GF options available) or you can venture out to one of the 23 restaurants all within 3/4 of a mile of the resort featuring seafood, steak, Mexican, Jamaican, Italian, Japanese, & more.
• If you haven't gotten enough diving in yet, you can then enjoy a nice swim onto the house reef for some night diving.

Flights:

There are different options for flights, but if you want a nonstop flight, you only have one choice: United out of Newark leaving at 8:45AM. There currently are seats available, but you should book quickly. Economy with a checked & overhead bag is $610.93.


The Fine Print

• The pricing is based upon double occupancy rooms with 2 queen-sized beds. If you’re signing up with someone, you can room together (& a king-sized bed may also be possible based upon availability.) But you don’t need to know someone to sign up. We can pair you up. 
• As with all international trips, we recommend you purchase trip cancellation & trip interruption insurance as well as DAN dive insurance.
• No refunds unless the trip is canceled, however, we’ll help you to re-sell your spot, there are 300-400 members in our club, & this trip is popular.
• We do not vet divers. We're not in a position to decide about the suitability of any dive for any diver. It’s your responsibility to decide whether you have the training & experience for any particular dive.
• Additional details will be provided & waivers/documentation will be required. If you’d like to see these materials before signing up, just let us know.

 
To Reserve Your Spot

These group trips always sell out fast. To sign up, email Beth at bethgmccrea@gmail.com noting you'd like to reserve a spot making sure to note:

• Interest in a day of advanced diving on the rougher East Coast of the island.
• Interest in the group truck rental.
• Whether you need equipment aside from a tank/weights
• She'll confirm availability & you'll then have 24 hours to send in a $500 deposit. The remaining balance will be due by December 10th.

Questions?

Feel free to reach out to me via bethgmccrea@gmail.com or phone/text 973-886-0114.