Anyone spent a lot of time in the Southern Caribbean?

[Scuba]

We really want to get out of So CA next winter and spend several (4-6) months in places where we can comfortably swim, snorkel, SCUBA, and enjoy the beach. For us, that means a minimum water temperature of mid to high 70’s.

Recent posts about traveling for months with no set itinerary are also interesting to us. We are thinking of heading down to Curacao, Bonaire, and Grenada, both to enjoy them for the winter and to consider whether we’d ever want to spend more time there.

Has anyone else done this? If we leave CA in November and get lodging on the fly, will it be easy to find places? It’s their high season but we would prefer apartments so not sure if places that would appeal to us are competing in the tourist market too.

 

[DrRoy]

We were on a cruise last Feb that included Bonaire and went snorkeling there off of a wood sailing boat. The water was pretty good. My BIL used to go to Belize for scuba.

 

[ShokWaveRider]

We spent 3 years of winters sailing from PR down to Grenada in the Eastern Caribbean, but did not go as far as the ABC's. they are a little too close to Venezuela for our comfort zone at the moment. There is a main drug route from Venezuela via Trinidad and Tobago too. The Eastern Caribbean is patrolled and we never felt unsafe. But we were on a 45' Sailboat. Tobago Cays was the furthest we ventured. We stopped off at most of the islands in the chain.

 

[Scuba]

We were on a cruise last Feb that included Bonaire and went snorkeling there off of a wood sailing boat. The water was pretty good. My BIL used to go to Belize for scuba.

We’ve been diving in Bonaire and Belize. Enjoyed the diving in both places, but the mosquitoes in Belize were horrible. We will never go back to Belize, Honduras or anywhere in Central America. Despite wearing insect repellent, the bugs there are just too much for us. We actually chartered a flight to leave Honduras early due to being miserable with the bugs.

 

[Scuba]

We spent 3 years of winters sailing from PR down to Grenada in the Eastern Caribbean, but did not go as far as the ABC's. they are a little too close to Venezuela for our comfort zone at the moment. There is a main drug route from Venezuela via Trinidad and Tobago too. The Eastern Caribbean is patrolled and we never felt unsafe. But we were on a 45' Sailboat. Tobago Cays was the furthest we ventured. We stopped off at most of the islands in the chain.

We spent our honeymoon and 5-year anniversary on PSV. As part of our honeymoon, we sailed around the Grenadines. Loved Tobago Cays! We have also been to Grenada as a cruise ship stop. Rented a car and explored the island. Thought it was very nice.

 

[Cut-Throat]

We’ve been diving in Bonaire and Belize. Enjoyed the diving in both places, but the mosquitoes in Belize were horrible. We will never go back to Belize, Honduras or anywhere in Central America. Despite wearing insect repellent, the bugs there are just too much for us. We actually chartered a flight to leave Honduras early due to being miserable with the bugs.

Strange! --- I've been to Bonaire, Belize, Honduras and Costa Rica and never had a bug problem.... But I was there during the winter (Jan Feb) ---



The island off Honduras - Guanaja has the best snorkeling I have ever seen.

 

[Splash]

We spent a week in Bonaire in mid-February 5 years ago. Water and air temperatures were warm. It is quite breezy there which helped keep the bugs away. We rented a condo on the ocean several months in advance. Availability was decent and pricing was moderate. We loved the many snorkeling options from shore. Most people speak English. Buying groceries was an adventure as all labels were in Dutch. Thank goodness for pictures. We found the locals to be the least friendly of the many Caribbean islands we have visited.

 

[Diver]

Bonaire is our favorite Caribbean dive place hands down. We spent 2 months there last year (Jan-Feb) in a small condo with water view. It is high season, but you should find availability if you book early.

The biggest draw for us is the fantastic shore diving, just the two of us where and when we want. The water will be high 70s low 80s, and Dive Friends has 5 locations on the island to pick up & drop off tanks as you drive around. No need for boats, schedules or dealing with other divers. It truly is a diver's paradise.

 

[Scuba]

Strange! --- I've been to Bonaire, Belize, Honduras and Costa Rica and never had a bug problem.... But I was there during the winter (Jan Feb) ---



The island off Honduras - Guanaja has the best snorkeling I have ever seen.

Interesting. We spent 2 weeks in Belize in Nov., and cut short our June Honduras trip due to bugs. Went to Costa Rica in Nov. and had zero issues with bugs.

 

[Scuba]

Bonaire is our favorite Caribbean dive place hands down. We spent 2 months there last year (Jan-Feb) in a small condo with water view. It is high season, but you should find availability if you book early.

The biggest draw for us is the fantastic shore diving, just the two of us where and when we want. The water will be high 70s low 80s, and Dive Friends has 5 locations on the island to pick up & drop off tanks as you drive around. No need for boats, schedules or dealing with other divers. It truly is a diver's paradise.

Thanks Diver. So it sounds like doing a trip where we try to book accommodations on the fly during high season may not be feasible? Did you do any diving in Curaçao and if so, how was that?

 

[Bamaman]

Aruba, Bonaire and Curacao are diving havens famous for their clear waters. We have been to Aruba and Curacao but did no diving. Their society looked to be pretty much banana republics.
The Caymans are probably the best diving anywhere due to the incredible cliffs that are just a few yards from the beach. The Caymans is a very civilized place.
I have dived off the coast of Cozumel a few times, and needless to say it's another great dive location. Cozumel's a small, quiet island, but its an easy place to get to from the U.S.
We have been to virtually every island in the Caribbean and a few in the Bahamas. They all have their plus' and minus'. Many islands are lacking in society and just not that nice--unless they're very expensive. My favorite island is St. Lucia of all.

 

[Diver]

Scuba, we did do a bit of shore diving in Curacao and it was decent. The island is more developed than Bonaire, but still has some pretty beaches with a livelier downtown. The shore diving in Bonaire was superior, but we did no boat diving in Curacao, which might be good. Note that if beaches are important you, Curacao has them, and Bonaire not so much. Bonaire has a mainly hard coral coastline. Flights are quick, easy and cheap between the two isands, so you could go and check them both out in one winter trip.

Lots of Europeans there in winter, esp Dutch. KLM has a daily jumbo jet to Bonaire direct from Amsterdam, and Bonaire is considered a Dutch municipality, so Dutch can live and work there no problem. Similar in Curacao, but they also have an oil industry there and a big port.

 

[Scuba]

Scuba, we did do a bit of shore diving in Curacao and it was decent. The island is more developed than Bonaire, but still has some pretty beaches with a livelier downtown. The shore diving in Bonaire was superior, but we did no boat diving in Curacao, which might be good. Note that if beaches are important you, Curacao has them, and Bonaire not so much. Bonaire has a mainly hard coral coastline. Flights are quick, easy and cheap between the two isands, so you could go and check them both out in one winter trip.

Lots of Europeans there in winter, esp Dutch. KLM has a daily jumbo jet to Bonaire direct from Amsterdam, and Bonaire is considered a Dutch municipality, so Dutch can live and work there no problem. Similar in Curacao, but they also have an oil industry there and a big port.

Thanks. We decided to spend 4 weeks in Bonaire, 6 in Curacao, and 2.5 in Aruba. We’ve been to Bonaire before so starting off there for some great diving. Splitting our time in Curacao between the city and Southern beaches (2 weeks) and the Northwestern beaches (4 weeks). Then just relaxing on Aruba, away from the main tourist district. May not dive in Aruba at all, just enjoy the beautiful beaches.

Really glad we will be away from So CA during the coldest months!

 

[Sunset]

....

Really glad we will be away from So CA during the coldest months!

Now you are just bragging

 

[Diver]

Thanks. We decided to spend 4 weeks in Bonaire, 6 in Curacao, and 2.5 in Aruba. We’ve been to Bonaire before so starting off there for some great diving. Splitting our time in Curacao between the city and Southern beaches (2 weeks) and the Northwestern beaches (4 weeks). Then just relaxing on Aruba, away from the main tourist district. May not dive in Aruba at all, just enjoy the beautiful beaches.

Really glad we will be away from So CA during the coldest months!

Scuba,
Now that sounds like a perfect winter!

 

[erkevin]

Scuba,
Now that sounds like a perfect winter!

Correction: Dive in the morning, golf in the afternoons. Perfect winter!

 

[Vacation4us]

Wow sounds great. We have been to Aruba twice for 2 weeks each. Really enjoyed our time. We were just there last August locals were complaining about Venezuela immigrants but we saw no signs of trouble.

Care to share the costs of lodging for your 12.5 week trip?

Enjoy your trip, sounds lovely

 

[audreyh1]

How to you handle security of your stuff when shore diving in Bonaire?

 

[Scuba]

Now you are just bragging

Ha ha, I guess it seems so to some. This past winter, while mild compared to many areas, seemed way too cold and way too long for us. Tomorrow is June 1 and we are still wearing jackets everywhere! We are wimps, I admit.

 

[Scuba]

Scuba,
Now that sounds like a perfect winter!

[emoji41]

 

[Scuba]

Correction: Dive in the morning, golf in the afternoons. Perfect winter!

No golf for us, but either more diving, snorkeling, or sunning on the beach with a good book is how we will spend our afternoons. Can’t wait!

 

[Scuba]

Wow sounds great. We have been to Aruba twice for 2 weeks each. Really enjoyed our time. We were just there last August locals were complaining about Venezuela immigrants but we saw no signs of trouble.

Care to share the costs of lodging for your 12.5 week trip?

Enjoy your trip, sounds lovely

Thanks. We are staying at Airbnb’s and VRBO’s. Total lodging cost around $11-$12K. The places we selected are not beachfront. At first we were drawn to those but then we realized we were thinking like tourists on a two-week vacation vs travelers exploring an entire island. We chose places with our own private apartment with a full kitchen, but on a property owned or managed by a local who will be on site to answer questions and make suggestions. Most places we are staying have pools and all have hot showers and a BBQ grill in addition to the full kitchen. A couple of the places have no oven, just a fridge, stove, toaster oven and microwave. With a grill, we are fine with that. The hot water is something that many properties don’t offer but we consider non-negotiable.

Had we booked oceanfront villas with pools and several bedrooms, our lodging costs for 3 months would have been 2-3x what we’re paying.

We are renting cars on all islands as we read that is essential to really see the island. Apparently public transportation is quite limited.

 

[Scuba]

How to you handle security of your stuff when shore diving in Bonaire?

Good question. We will rely on suggestions from our local host but a few thoughts are:
- We purposely chose to rent an older truck vs a newer, nicer SUV. Won’t look as much like tourists that way.
- We will minimize things of value that we leave behind in the truck. We can take cash and a credit card diving. Wont bring any jewelry. Maybe just beach towels, flip flops and sunscreen and a cooler with water.
- We have read that it’s best not to lock the car. At least the thieves won’t damage it breaking in.

Any suggestions are appreciated! I’ve read this is a big issue.

 

[Splash]

How to you handle security of your stuff when shore diving in Bonaire?

Rental car company in Bonaire advised us to leave all car doors unlocked and windows rolled down. We do that but lock drivers license and a small amount of cash in the glove compartment. We have never had an incident. Some people use waterproof bags or containers to take bare essentials with them in the water.

 

[Scuba]

Rental car company in Bonaire advised us to leave all car doors unlocked and windows rolled down. We do that but lock drivers license and a small amount of cash in the glove compartment. We have never had an incident. Some people use waterproof bags or containers to take bare essentials with them in the water.

Thanks for this info. I was thinking of taking the credit card and cash with us diving in a waterproof bag, and leaving the car unlocked as suggested.