Vacation accommodations on Bonaire near the best dive locations

18 April 2020 by Sunwise Bonaire - Reading time: 4 minutes

Join Team Sunwise on an unforgettable dive trip to Bonaire’s best dive sites and accommodations. From vacation villas near the sunken cargo ship Hilma Hooker to top-notch apartments near the beautiful coral formations of the Salt Pier.

Actually, almost all shore dive sites near the vacation accommodations on Bonaire are equally beautiful, but we often get the question from our guests what we think are the best dive sites on the island and which vacation rentals are close to them.

So, are you ready to join us in exploring Bonaire’s best dive sites and nearby accommodations? Team Sunwise is about to take you on a scuba journey you’ll probably never forget! From the most stunning coral reefs to shipwrecks with lovely anecdotes, Bonaire has some of the best scuba diving spots and vacation rentals in the world, and we’re about to reveal them to you!

The Hilma Hooker rests at 100 feet

First up, we have the Hilma Hooker, one of the best dive locations! This sunken cargo ship is a popular spot for advanced divers, with depths ranging from 50 to 100 feet. The Hilma Hooker is teeming with marine life, including barracudas, eels, and tarpons. And don’t forget to look for the resident huge green moray eel – he’s been known to make an appearance from time to time.

This dive site is near Punt Vierkant with the most relaxing vacation accommodations on Bonaire. Our Top 5 best-rented accommodations around here:

  1. Villa Aventura
  2. Kas Flamingo
  3. Kas Vis
  4. Nirvana Lodge
  5. Villa Wayaka
Vacation accommodations on Bonaire near the Hilma Hooker

On the dive locations on the east coast everything is bigger

Next on our list are actually two locations: The White/Blue Hole and Turtle City. They are not near any of our vacation accommodations, on the east coast of our island: the wild side! You can only get here on windless days, or for example with Bonaire East Coast Diving, from the lee of Lac Bay. The White Hole is a collapsed cave filled with sand, where on average more than 100 tarpon hang still in the current. This place is also called Blue Hole, because of its color from the air. At Turtle City, our guests are guaranteed to see so many huge turtles together that they will lose count.

This dive site is quite remote, but is relatively close to La Palma Residence and Sabalpalm Villas. The top of the list with our best-rented accommodations around here:

  1. Kas Air
  2. Kas Rolo
  3. Casa Madera
  4. Casa Hummingbird
  5. Villa Nautilus
Tarpons on Bonaire's dive locations on the eastcoast

Salt Pier shows nature finding its way

From Lac Bay, maybe after a cool drink at the Hang Out Beachbar there, across the south point of the island, our guests will eventually come to the Salt Pier. This unique dive site offers a one-of-a-kind experience, as you swim beneath the towering pillars of the pier. The Salt Pier is known for its abundant marine life, including seahorses, frogfish, and even the occasional octopus. And many of our guests have returned from a Salt Pier dive with stories about large barracudas among the pillars!

But wait, there’s more! It’s a bit farther away from our vacation accommodations, but no trip to Bonaire’s dive locations would be complete without a visit to the iconic 1000 Steps! Despite its name, there aren’t actually 1000 steps – but there are quite a few. Once our guests reach the bottom of the stone stairway, they will be rewarded with crystal clear waters and lots of colorful fish. Keep an eye out for the spotted eagle ray – this majestic creature is a sight to behold.

The Salt Pier is also a bit further away from civilization, but relatively speaking, the Belnem neighborhood is the closest. Here are the 5 best-rented accommodations in this neighborhood:

  1. Kas Kaprikornio
  2. Belnem Breeze Tres
  3. Kas Simba
  4. Belnem Breeze Kas Gosa
  5. Villa Mistralea
World famous Scuba Dive Locations: 1000 Steps, close to our El Pueblo vacation accommodations on Bonaire

Bonus tips for the die-hards in our holiday rentals!

Last but not least, we have the beautiful Karpata, a few car minutes beyond 1000 Steps. This dive site is known for its stunning coral formations and abundant marine life. From schools of colorful fish to curious sea turtles, Karpata has it all.

Bonus Material! For the tech divers among our guests, those with special certification to dive deeper than recreational depths, at a depth of 140-180 feet, there is the wreck of the Mairi Bhan, a windjammer that sank in 1912 and now serves as a home to a variety of marine life. Less exciting and perfectly accessible to the recreational diver, is La Dania’s Leap. Sunwise’s hosts can point out this spot upon request, as you won’t find the usual yellow stone here. For this unforgettable drift dive, you have to jump from a 2-meter-high cliff (there is no way back up the shore!) and you can enjoy wonderful corals and other marine life delightfully propelled by the current, until you see the sand tongues of Karpata and complete the dive.

Vacation accommodations on Bonaire near the best dive locations

Tips for guests in our vacation accommodations

So, there you have it: the best dive sites on Bonaire and the best rented accommodations in their surroundings, according to Team Sunwise.
But it’s best to see for yourself, so check-in to your vacation rental on Bonaire, grab your scuba gear and explore our reefs! And when you’re planning your trip, don’t forget that there’s always a few wonderful shore dive sites near one of the Sunwise vacation accommodations.

In summary, these are the 5 best dive sites in Bonaire in our opinion, plus a bonus tip!

  • Hilma Hooker
  • White/Blue Hole + Turtle City
  • Salt Pier
  • 1000 Steps
  • Karpata
  • Bonus: Windjammer Mairi Bahn + La Dania’s Leap
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