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Bonaire Vacation

The Dutch are not known for being secretive, but visitors to the Dutch island of Bonaire vacation in relative obscurity in what seasoned travelers speak of as 'a best-kept secret'. Bonaire's own Tourist Office simply says it's "unhurried, unspoiled, unforgettable". With only two population centers, Kralendijk (pronounced 'Crawl-en-dike' but locally called "Playa", meaning "beach")--and Rincon, plus five small villages, only about 5% of Bonaire's land area is developed. Bonaire is located in the Netherland Antilles, not far from the Venezuelan coast, and its more famous--and hurried--island neighbors, Aruba and Curacao, the remaining two of the 'ABC Islands'. Outside the so-called Hurricane Belt and enjoying year-round tropical weather with an average annual temperature of 82 degrees and only 22 inches of rain, Bonaire draws visitors who look for the Caribbean's charm in hidden corners.

The island is not a secret to everyone. For some, Bonaire vacation plans include just the right mix of fine accomodations, weather, activities, and friendly people. Over 30% of Bonaire's visitors return. For scuba and diving enthusiasts, the waters surrounding the island of Bonaire are particularly enticing. Strong environmental protection laws enacted since 1979 have preserved all the waters surrounding the island from zero to -200 feet forming the Bonaire National Marine Park. Well over 80 top diving and snorkeling sites are found off the coasts of Bonaire and Klein Bonaire, the small island tucked in southwest of Bonaire's crescent-shaped shore. Scuba Diving Magazine's 2005 Readers’ Choice Awards named Bonaire the Top Caribbean Dive Destination for the third year in a row in addition to Top Marine Life, Top Shore Diving, Top Snorkeling, Top Destination for Underwater Photography and Top Beginner Diving. Bonaire is no secret to scuba divers worldwide. Their Bonaire vacation plans are as much a pilgrimage as a vacation.

Viewing Bonaire's wildlife is a naturalist's dream whether in the sea or on land. Hawksbill turtles, stingrays, peacock flounders, seahorses, angelfish slalom, and groves of elkhorn and staghorn coral are favorites of divers and snorkelers, but Bonaire is known for its birdlife, as well, particularly flamingoes which number in the tens of thousands and can be viewed at Lake Goto Meer in Washington Slagbaai National Park in the north and Pekelmeer Sanctuary in the south, preferably at sunset. Depending on season and migratory patterns during your Bonaire vacation, over 170 species of birds including heron, osprey, frigate birds, cormorants, and other marine birds can be seen on Bonaire. And because the island is fairly flat--the highest point, Brandaris Hill, is only 240 meters in elevation--cycling is an excellent way to enjoy the peace and quiet while viewing wildlife and touring the island. Bicycles can be rented locally as can motorbikes.

Bonaire is about 24 miles long and 3-7 miles wide, however, so motorized transportation is more suitable for day-touring the sights. Kralendijk is the island's capital where boutiques, art galleries, diving shops, and restaurants and bars line the main street. Nestled on the southwest coast, it provides beautiful views of the Caribbean and Klein Bonaire, just offshore. Rincon, the other town on the island, is situated inland in the north and is not far from Lakes Goto Meer and Salina Slagbaai, salt ponds in Washington-Slagbaai National Park and home to preening flamingoes who eat the shrimp brine found there to acquire their pinkish hue. And if you'd like to take on a pinkish hue yourself during your Bonaire vacation, there is always Sorobon Beach, Bonaire's naturalist resort (clothing optional) just south of Lac Bay, one of the Caribbean's premier windsurfing locations. Rental cars, taxis, and tour buses are all readily available making travel to all these sites, and every other corner of the island, convenient.

Bonaire may be small, but its residents draw from a cosmopolitan history under the Spanish and Dutch and from the traditions of West Africa from which many of the island's slaves first came in the 17th and 18th centuries. Most of the people of Bonaire speak Spanish, Dutch and Papiamentu, the lingua franca of the first slaves thought to be related to the Portuguese Creole still spoken on the West African coast.

Harbour Village Beach Club on Bonaire combines the best of Bonaire's comfortable life-style with modern convenience. With quiet grace, Harbour Village is a welcome sight to sailing vessels entering the Harbour Village Marina and is convenient to the airport, minutes away. Accomodations include Club Rooms and Suites as well as Premier Villas with oversized tubs and double patios. A long list of amenities, complimentary services and facilities, and optional services help guests of the Club quickly downshift into the languorous and charming pace of the island.

Bonaire's inviting style of living is most certainly due to the devotion of its people toward their island's future, and it makes a Bonaire vacation at the Harbour Village Beach Club a quiet pleasure. That's a secret that can not be kept.

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