Bonaire East Coast Diving

Bonaire East Coast Diving

Bonaire East Coast Diving
5
About
Bonaire East Coast Diving is a specialized dive operation on the famous east side of Bonaire and we’ll be happy to share it with you. We’ll take you out for a different – better! – dive experience. Expect to see the most exciting creatures Bonaire has to offer, which you can hardly find on the leeward side of the island. Spotted eagle rays, stingrays, sharks, green moray eels, and lots of turtles are no exception on the east coast!
Kralendijk, Bonaire
Meets animal welfare guidelines

Awards
Travelers' Choice
2024

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Most Recent: Reviews ordered by most recent publish date in descending order.

Detailed Reviews: Reviews ordered by recency and descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as wait time, length of visit, general tips, and location information.

Popular mentions

5.0
5.0 of 5 bubbles781 reviews
Excellent
745
Very good
30
Average
3
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Peter S
Kralendijk, Bonaire7 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Oct 2024 • Friends
My German diving buddy Silke and me had booked an afternoon diving trip with East Coast Diving on october 2nd. Due to the exceptionally calm weather, the dive guide was able to do TWO dive spots on one dive, White Hole and Turtle City. At the White Hole we saw a conch shell walking on the seabed, with loads of tarpons hanging alongside the wall. We then crossed a plain with an enormous field of fan coral, and then arrived at Turtle City. My buddy told me later she was amazed at seeing such a huge amount of turtles, and so big! After 55 minutes, we ended this truly magnificent dive.
A big thank you to our diving guide who kept a keen eye on all of the divers, and special thanks to Captain Amber for giving me her 'Cinderella Treatment'!
Written October 6, 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

MKW
Lyons, CO44 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Oct 2023 • Couples
We had a great time on a 2-tank morning dive with East Coast diving. Their dive boat is really well equipped for choppier seas and it has a really easy exit/entry process (they can remove one section of the tube . . . pretty snazzy). Turtle City is incredible and we saw some awesome larger marine life on both dives. Reserve as early as you can! They open their calendar up two years in advance and are often sold out.
Written November 7, 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Jay B
9 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Dec 2024 • Family
Yesterday, my wife and I went on our second 2-tank dive with Bonaire East Coast Diving. Once again we had an incredible experience. Our crew, Amber and Julian, were fun, helpful, professional, and safe. They knew exactly how to ensure all divers, regardless of skill level, had a first class experience. I highly recommend diving with East Coast while in Bonaire if you want to see lots of turtles, rays, eels, and colorful fish not seen on the west side of Bonaire. Thank you!
Written December 11, 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Hilbert D
Valencia, Spain52 contributions
3.0 of 5 bubbles
Feb 2024 • Solo
Full of expectations, given the reviews and the site, we booked a double morning dive. Unfortunately, my buddy got sick a day before the dive and I went alone. Great reception, beautiful boat, more about that later. Full boat = 10 divers, 1 guide on board. Not much, but it was enough. Excellent briefing. Once ready for the dive we sailed into the open sea. The east side is known for rough seas, but this was rough. Waves of 2-3 meters. After a few minutes of sailing, everyone had to disembark with the familiar roll backwards. Now this new boat has a wide aluminum edge on top of the side of the Rib, and wide benches in the middle. Very comfortable when sailing. When the time comes, you have to get off the couch and go to the edge of the boat. The space between the bench and the boat is very tight, with the result that my leg got caught on the bench when I rolled back. Half in the water, one leg still on board, I shot loose and grazed the sharp aluminum edge with my hind leg. Result: broken knee ligaments and torn calf muscle. Of course Eastcoast Diving cannot do anything about that, but in my opinion this was not a responsible dive given the circumstances. I did finish the dive. I found that quite disappointing. Turtles of course, but otherwise poor visibility and little other life seen. A ray somewhere in the distance. Also the fact that the dive did not go deeper than about 10 meters, with this swell, made things not really pleasant. Obviously I had to skip the second dive. I could barely walk. They were very helpful with unloading the stuff, the guide went to get ice. I can't say anything bad about that. But all in all, spending $300 for 1 dive and a major injury wasn't worth it. I sent an email with my feedback on the boat and the dive, but unfortunately I received no response. No longer interested, feel free to go diving with them, but be careful when rolling overboard! It's very tight!
Google
Written February 19, 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Anneke S
Aalsmeer, The Netherlands9 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Nov 2023 • Friends
We just came home in the Netherlands after an amazing week on the island of Bonaire. We booked with East Coast Diving twice in this week. If you experience diving with East Coast Diving once, you will be spoiled and you will come back. And that's what we did after our dives last year with East Coast Diving. We did 2 2-tank morning dives last monday (nov 27) and friday (dec 1st). And we enjoyed it to the fullest. The underwaterlife at the East coast is absolutely amazing. It is so full of murray eals, rays (eagle ray, sting ray and last monday even the rare Manta ray), lots of turtles (swiming, sleeping and sometimes curiously coming to see what these diving humans are doing). We saw many lobsters, trigger fishes, lots of tarpons resting in the white hole. And many many more big and small fishes, like seabass and a sea horse and other marine life.

Diving with East Coast Diving is expensive, but it is very worth it. The service is fabulous, the dives are very well organised. The diveguides know the area very well and help you with everting. The swell/waves can be a bit rough at the Eastern side of Bonaire. Therefore it is comfortable to go on a boat dive. The diveguides of East Coast Diving will help you getting in and out of the water and will take care of you. So only one advise possible; book at East Coast Diving, and well before arriving on the island, because they are fully booked most of the times.
Written December 3, 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Glon Drack
Fairfax, VA161 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Mar 2023
I go to Bonaire for shore diving but I read about Turtle City and wanted to try it. The only practical way to get there is to go with East Coast Diving. While they say you could take a long walk in from Sorobon, having now done this, I'm not at all sure how that would work and I'm very glad I did not try it.
Bonaire East Coast Diving is a great group of people. Everyone was friendly, experienced, and watchful over their flock. They operate a 10-diver rigid inflatable boat and it is perfectly outfitted for the Turtle City adventure. It is rough out on the East side. The day we went was about average with 8-10ft (2.5-3m) waves and very windy. One of our group is a serious boater and he was impressed with the skill of our driver. The procedures for getting in and our were very well thought through and made it much safer for everyone.
Now, as for the dive...fantastic! I saw the largest turtles I've ever seen, some great rays, eels, and loads of other fish life. The dive is not deep (about 35' (10m) for most of it which means there's some back and forth surf from time to time but it does mean that you will be diving for a full hour. Our guide kept us in sight throughout and made sure everyone was OK. While I'm not usually interested in that, in these conditions I thought it was great.
I'm very glad I dove Turtle City, though I'm not sure yet if I'll do it again. I still like diving with just my three buds and while 10 is not a cattle boat, I've been spoiled by Bonaire.
Written March 21, 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Simon B
Ottawa, Canada29 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Feb 2022
This is a well run operation, easy online booking and waiver process; efficient, no-nonsense setup and boarding at the dock. The boat itself is clean and well maintained and is ideally suited for the sort of diving they offer. Briefings were clear and concise, questions and concerns were handled sensitively. The divemasters lead the dives at a good depth and pace and pointed out smaller creatures of interest. We saw so many turtles, huge green morays, stingrays and eagle rays that there was no need to point them out! This outing makes a nice change from the usual Bonaire shore diving. Our party was a mix of experienced divers and comparative novices and everyone had a great time. The crew were accommodating and patient for divers who had difficulty with back roll entry or using the ladder to get back on board in a swell. Great value for money - if you're diving on Bonaire you really should take a trip with East Coast Divers.
Written March 6, 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Jill G
Alexandria, VA74 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Oct 2023 • Friends
What an outstanding experience!!! We were a bit nervous about the rocky boat ride but both Luc and Martijn were absolutely masterful at navigating the swells and minimizing boat time. They made it so easy and comfortable. And the sites were exceptional - we have never seen so. many. turtles. Seriously. We say rays as well - both Southern and Eagle. Apparently all the Black Durgons were hanging out over here this time of year because they were hard to find on the west coast. This was our 4th time to Bonaire and the first time we did the east coast - now it will ALWAYS be on our list!!! Cannot recommend this highly enough!!
Written October 15, 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Zman
Virginia11 contributions
2.0 of 5 bubbles
Aug 2023
The dive operation has a very good system for getting divers into and out of the water. The dive briefing was extensive and excellent. The system for putting you into the water includes waiting until the captain tells you to back roll off the side. The dive guide, Luke, did not wait for everyone to get into the water before he took off with the early entrants. Consequently, us at the end had to fin like mad for 15 straight minutes to even catch up with the group. Once there, they were done with the first stop and continued to the next stop. More insane finning to get to the second site. I have never burned through air like that since I was a new diver (now at dive #560). Didn't have a second to stop and look at anything. Just fin like you were in a sprint. Once we got to the second dive site, the pace slowed down, but by then I only had about 10 minutes of air left before I had to surface. If your dive guide is Luke, ignore the captain and go in early or you might get left behind and it will be a waste of time, money, and energy. I got the impression that this is a continued problem with Luke, who seems like a very nice guy. But I would not dive with him ever again. I heard several other people use the word "sprint" when we were back in the parking lot getting ready to disperse. We did see several turtles and there was a seahorse that the early entrants saw, but we at the back had no time to stop and enjoy. This was not an enjoyable dive and definitely not one to take if you get winded easily.
Written August 24, 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Marion R
Annapolis, MD43 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Sep 2024 • Family
It's always a bit hard to give up included diving at our resort and pay for East Coast diving but it's so worth it! Julian, Flavia and Alex are true professionals (we missed Fred this time!) and are very fun at the same time. They take your safety seriously, giving a very in depth briefing on how to set up and what to expect. The new boat is FABULOUS with more room to move around and places to hold. And the diving never disappoints. You want spotted eagle rays, green morays and more turtles than you can count among other things? Check it off your list.
Written October 5, 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

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*Likely to sell out: Based on Viator’s booking data and information from the provider from the past 30 days, it seems likely this experience will sell out through Viator, a Tripadvisor company.

Bonaire East Coast Diving - All You Need to Know BEFORE You Go (2025)

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