Anyone who has been diving or snorkeling in the waters of Bonaire knows they teem not only with large numbers of fish, but also with an unusually high number of fish species. So much so, that in surveys conducted by the Reef Environmental Education Foundation, 7 of the top 10 dive sites in terms of species richness are located on Bonaire. For many years now the voted #1 position has been awarded to Sand Dollar's house reef, Bari Reef, with a total of 391 species, nearly all of which can be found in less than 100 feet of water and well over 100 species within snorkeling depth!
Bonaire also offers visitors shore diving opportunities unlike any found elsewhere in the Caribbean. Of the 90+ named dive sites on Bonaire, approximately 60 are accessible from shore. The fringing reef system is located a short +/- 50 yards/meters offshore, so surface swims are kept to a minimum.
In addition to the many shore dive sites there are also a number of memorable sites on Klein Bonaire as well as a few on the mainland that can only be accessed via boat. For this reason Sand Dollar offers a Ride to the Reef Dive Package that includes boat dive options as well as shore diving only.
Though every dive site on Bonaire has its own unique element, all generally have a fairly standard shallow and narrow terrace that slopes gradually down to a depth of 30ft/10m before dropping at about a 45 degree angle to approximately 130ft/40m. Variations are most notable to the south where several sites are part of a double reef system, and the most northern of sites, which tend toward more vertical drops.
Sand Dollar believes that their guests should have the freedom to dive with any of the many superb dive operators on the island. For your convenience, we will gladly arrange dive packages for you with one of our two Preferred Dive Operators as part of our Ride to the Reef Package. One operator, Dive Friends Bonaire/Yellow Submarine, is located 2 minutes away from the property; the other operator is on the property adjacent to Sand Dollar.
Dive Friends Bonaire is a company that evolved several years ago out of the merger between Photo Tours Divers, Yellow Submarine, and Dive Inn - names that are likely familiar to our repeat Sand Dollar guests. Dive Friends is devoted to bringing you the best diving and services that Bonaire has to offer. With Yellow Submarine, Photo Tours Divers, and Dive Inn, Dive Friends Bonaire brings you four dive locations to make your shore diving as easy as possible. Guests have the option to add on boat dive packages as well for morning two-tank dives and afternoon for one-tank dives. Boats depart from either their Yellow Submarine location (less than 1/2 mile south of Sand Dollar) or from their Port Bonaire location, which is directly across from the airport and a perfect jumping off place for more south shore diving. Although Dive Friends does not have a facility at Sand Dollar, guests who pick up tanks at any one of their four locations can easily dive our house reef - Bari Reef - via a sandy entry area at the south end of the Sand Dollar property. Please view our Google Map to see where they are located on Bonaire!Guests diving with Dive Friends have the benefit of being able to participate in their first day orientation briefing at any time, at any location, during normal business hours. Plus they offer our guests free Nitrox upgrades for certified Nitrox divers. (Maximum of 3 tanks per day.)
Dive Friends is a PADI 5 Star Instructor Development Dive Resort as well as a National Geographic Family Dive Center. Courses from Introductory through Instructor level are taught in English, Dutch, German and Spanish. The owners of Dive Friends Bonaire believe that diving is an activity for the whole family, and as such want to provide families with an opportunity for a shared adventure activity. Options include: SASY (Supplied Air Snorkeling for Youth) for children 5 and older; Bubblemaker, for children 8 and older; Discover Scuba Diving: for children 10 and older; Seal Team: for children 8 and older; Junior Diver or Junior Open Water Diver: for children 10 and older; and Open Water Diver: for those 15 and older.
Sand Dollar offers Ride to the Reef Dive Packages with Dive Friends that include unlimited tanks for shore diving as well as options to add on boat diving, enabling certified divers to make as many dives as they wish each day according to their own safe profiles. We've included a rental truck in the package as well, so all you have to do is load up your gear and tanks, and off you go!
Our Reservation Agents will personally help you choose the best Sand Dollar condominium option and dive package perfectly suited for you.
In addition to purchasing the shore and/or boat diving included in Sand Dollar's Ride to the Reef Package, here are a few add-on dive adventures you may wish to consider:
Fish Eye Photo
Take a photo or video course with Photo Pro Tim Peters, owner and operator of Fish Eye Photo. Fish-Eye Photo is here to help you capture images of Bonaire's tiny wonders. Fish Eye Photo is located on the property adjacent to Sand Dollar. Where are they located? Take a look at our
Google Map.
UV Night Dive:Try an ultraviolet night dive with Bonaire VIP Diving. They provide special equipment that emits a light specifically designed to generate the maximum amount of bio fluorescence that produce colors in a way you have never seen! Night dives are taken in very small groups to ensure personalized service. As VIP Diving says, "You will see things you’ve never seen before and see the things you know and love under a whole different light…literally."
Shore Diving Specialty Certification: If it’s your first time on Bonaire and you’re not familiar with shore diving, you should consider signing up for a Shore Diving Specialty course. Shore diving is quite different from boat diving, so this course teaches you everything that you need to know to safely conduct shore dives. You’ll learn how to pick your dive sites, plan your dives, choose entry and exit points, navigate and problem-solve. At the end of the course you will earn a PADI specialty card and be certified to confidently conduct shore dives with a buddy. Dive Friends Bonaire offers the half day course for $130 per person (including 2 dives, rental equipment & certification fees) or $100 per person for those who have purchased a Ride to the Reef Package including diving.
Technical Diving: For those who wish to push beyond traditional recreational diving limits, Dive Friends Bonaire offers a full range of technical programs including Full Face Mask, Solo Diving, Advanced Nitrox, Decompression Procedures, Extended Range, Trimix and many others. They even offer experience programs for those who want to try something different but aren't sure if they want to commit to a full course. For qualified tech divers, Dive Friends Bonaire offers the possibility to join one of their tech-dive instructors to discover the Windjammer wreck.
