Things to Do in Bonaire
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Book these experiences for a close-up look at Bonaire.
Points of Interest & Landmarks
Points of Interest & Landmarks • Reefs
Shopping Malls
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Points of Interest & Landmarks • Nature & Wildlife Areas
Popular Cities in Bonaire
*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.
What travelers are saying
- Stefan GWashington DC, DC1,062 contributionsGreat way to see the mangroves, and more importantly, to learn about them! The proprietor/owner and his Staff and dedicated to teaching you about the mangroves and taking care of them. Schedule the mangrove kayaking tour. Arrive a little early, hit the restroom, tour starts and spend 10 minutes or so learning about mangroves, then get to your kayaks and kayak through the mangroves, stopping frequently for more educational tidbits about mangroves.
It was super hot when we did the tour in August. Very few shaded areas during the approximately 1hr15min tour. In some areas where you stop, if you're smart, you can position yourself under a mangrove tree. No matter what, bring sun block and a hat. I also had on a thin, long-sleeved shirt, which I eventually took off because it was so hot and put it over my legs and feet so they wouldn't sunburn.
You have to drive to get there. I purposefully drove along the entire length of the southern portion of the island in the morning to get to the visitor center; doing this allowed me to take in the sites and feel a bit adventurous.
Recommended!Written October 22, 2023This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews. - Robin KWashington DC, District of Columbia14 contributionsThis was one of our cruise port stops so we had limited time. We rented golf carts from Bonaire Cruisers - excellent service and a fair price. We only had enough time to take the south loop on the island but the scenery was absolutely breathtaking! It was VERY windy so make sure your hat is secured. There were plenty of places where you could stop and get into the water if you'd like to take a swim or go snorkeling. There were areas for kite-surfing, wind surfing, etc. I could see it would be a destination for people who love water sports. Really no bathrooms or places to stop until we got to the far side of the island. Then we found a great stop over by Lac Bay - Sorobon Resort. They had a nice waterfront bar and restaurant as well as bathrooms. Everyone was stopping there though. We arrived there around 10:30 in the morning when they opened. By the time we left it was packed. I'm looking forward to going back to see the north loop but I might opt for renting an SUV just so we can get around faster and we have plenty of time for stops.Written April 14, 2023This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.
- Diane K89 contributionsThis is our 4th time to the donkey sanctuary. We paid less than 10 dollar admission fee and had so many laughs and such a nice time. The staff are so genuine and caring about the donkeys.
The service to help the donkeys is so necessary here in Bonaire. One young donkey had been hit by a car and had a cast on their little leg. One adult female with a baby had a “run in “ with a horrible human being and is under going treatment for intentional injuries.
I would recommend this visit to everyone. The donkeys are such sweet beings and your admission to enter the facility is $ well spent to continue this important work.
The donkeys were here well before us tourists. Cheers.Written November 16, 2023This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews. - Mark MHouston, TX152 contributionsBooked the water taxi to Klein Bonaire through Celebrity cruise shore excursions. This is the way to go in my opinion, for many reasons.
1. Boat picked us up at the cruise pier.
2. They offered to rent mask & snorkel for $5 (we brought our own)
3. Barely got our feet wet geting off at the beach due to the nice ramp at the bow of the pontoon boat.
4. They had staff unload at the beach and they stayed with us until the boat returned a few hours later.
5. They set up under one of the two tiny "huts" at the beach and provided a "Rum Punch" after our swim.
6. Returned us to the cruise pier.
We had taken our fins but they're probably not really needed unless you want to swim against the mild current. Best to walk up the beach, enter the water at the yellow post that marks a break in the reef and then just drift back to the drop off area. Some of the clearest water I've ever seen. Good amount of fish and even watched a sea turtle for a while.
Warning!! The walk up the beach is very painful if you don't have water shoes. I should have worn mine and just tied them on after putting on my fins! My neoprene boots didn't cut it.Written October 6, 2023This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews. - Stephanie SMontpelier, VA5 contributionsThe distillery was a stop on our van tour of Bonaire. It was a great experience from start to finish. For starters very clean bathrooms! The distillery itself is lovely and there were quite a few beautiful trees and birds about. The staff was great very friendly and not pushy for you to buy their goods. I purchased their house whiskey to bring home to my husband and he says he likes it very much. They also had nice ice cold soda and water available for purchase - a real God send on a 99 degree day!!Written November 15, 2023This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.
- BoleslavColorado1,878 contributionsLac Bay is one, yet there is Lac Bay for the windsurfers and there is Lac Bay for snorkelers.
The snorkelers have to walk for a bit to get to the deeper part, but if you catch the right conditions, the current is not that strong, you will be rewarded by the best underwater life.
We went there 3 times and the conditions were not favorable on the last trip, the current was very strong, we ended up fighting it instead of enjoying the corral and the fish,
However on the second trip there, we kept swimming and exploring the healthy and beautiful corrals with large variety of fish, all very near the surface, one feels like swimming in the aquarium.
It was our favorite place in all of Bonaire for the snorkeling.Written July 21, 2023This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews. - pizzamaynardLouisville, KY27 contributionsI was there with my 4 teenagers and my wife. It’s pretty amazing because you can snorkel right off the beach and see a ton of tropical fish just 20 foot from the shore. I do caution you though to have some type of flotation devices. I looked
Up at one point and my kids had went further than I was comfortable with . A few had life jackets etc. (I know, I know,). Anyhow, when we had been floating around you didn’t realize how hard it was to swim BACK to shore. I went to get them bc they couldn’t hear me. The current wasn’t what I had experienced before where it was pulling us out, but it really wore us out getting back in. I have my daughter my float and told her to get away. I barely made it back to a place I was able to stand up. I definitely wouldn’t have made it another 20’. We were on a cruise and the next day I met a guy from Illinois that had the same exact thing happen to him and his family. Yes, we should’ve been better prepared but there were no warning signs so I am just hoping to keep this from happening to anyone else. On the positive side, it was definitely a spot worth stopping and seeing. Just be cautious and safe.Written April 9, 2023This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews. - Nikki MGuelph, Canada10 contributionsGreat snorkelling location! Be prepared to walk back up the stairs! Seashells all over the beach but the rocky entrance into the water is not terrible. We saw tons of fish and a couple sea turtles.Written August 15, 2023This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.
- Vicki11 contributionsRight by our hotel Chogogo Bonaire, we were able to see an incredible variety of different fish species while snorkeling!Written June 8, 2023This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.
- Christina W8 contributionsA clean, well stocked store with a great (island) selection of produce.
However…if you’re American, do NOT overlook the other grocery stores right down the road. There are many more American brands/products for a good price.Written June 23, 2023This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews. - AHotalingChelsea, MI70 contributionsI’d long known about Bonaire’s flamingo sanctuary and was finally excited to see it in person. I let my husband know to bring his mega camera lens, and I brought binoculars in order to see the birds. These are crucial for viewing the flamingos because the sanctuary waterway where they gather is set well back from the road and, with just the human eye alone, you’ll be lucky to see pink. A short path, bordered by chunks of coral, sets the limits for human approach. It’s illegal to bother, approach, or harass these amazing birds, and there is signage posted — sparsely — on the road indicating this. Pekelmeer is a Ramsar site — a wetland site designated of international importance under the Ramsar Convention, an intergovernmental environmental treaty established in 1971 by UNESCO. With more than 100,000 flamingos here by the salt flats (the northern section of Lac Bay is also a RAMSAR site), it’s completely understandable why this area is protected.
Still, there will be clueless tourists who either are ignorant of the local laws or simply could care less. While we stood in that short pathway, well back from the birds, a family of Venezuelans marched right towards the flamingos, becoming quite vocally dismayed that these shy, skittish birds moved far back upon their approach. My husband and I were glad we’d managed to get a few photos before these people’s arrival, since they completely disturbed the birds. Don’t be like these tourists! Bring a telephoto lens, bring binoculars, and observe these beauties quietly from a distance.
I might have had a little talk with the grandmother of the family, who stayed in the car, parked behind our own. She seemed surprised that it was illegal to approach the birds and laughed about her family’s frustrated efforts (no apology on their behalf for ruining our viewing). The four stars instead of five results from the lack of signage. Visitors will tend to park by the lighthouse, where there is space, then cross the street to view the birds. There is no signage at all here. There is one sign further down the road, and one closer to the salt flats, and that’s it. More signage regarding the sanctuary’s laws is needed, especially near the lighthouse, and in multiple languages: not just English but Spanish and Dutch as well, since there are so many visitors from nearby Venezuela and from the Netherlands.
Definitely worth renting a car for the day to visit the flamingos, the lighthouse, and the Cargill salt flats!Written March 13, 2023This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews. - Robert6 contributionsWe experienced a lovely tour at Aletta's Goat Farm. After a warm welcome and an introduction story we went to the lovely goats. The goats were fed and if wanted we were allowed to milk them. We all did! After that all goats were released to search for food themselves at the farm area. We finished the tour with drinking some goatmilk and a cup of coffee/tea. Thank you Aletta!Written December 7, 2023This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.
- B KAustin, TX1 contributionPart of Bonaire's diving history, Hilma Hooker is well within recreational depth. No part of this artificial reef is deeper than 100' You can see most of the wreck at the 60'-70' depth. Interesting to dive for the coral and sponges that grow on the wreck and for the larger fish (tarpon, jacks) that frequent the site. To see the double reef and the Hilam Hooker, enter at Angel City and follow the gap between the double reef system north to the Hilma Hooker. Do a leisurely "safety swim" in the shallows, then exit at the Hilma Hooker site. The Hilam Hooker is also a great night-dive.Written December 30, 2022This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.
- Melinda B2 contributionsThis, to me, was an experience not to missed. To get into the park you need to be able to show the ranger your ID and STINAPA pass, but after the initial ranger station there were not many people in the park. It is full of wild beauty, and I took what seemed like a lot of pictures, and wish I had taken even more. The tour guide, Don, was very knowledgeable about the many sites in the park, and spoke very good English. There are beautiful views around every turn in the road, and nature of every kind to see. The roads are rough, as many have pointed out, but the driver handled it all with ease. There was an opportunity to go snorkeling, but I chose not to go on this day - a personal decision and not a failing of the tour. Lunch was chicken salad sandwiches, which were quite good, and a variety of drinks was offered through the day. This tour will take most of a day, but the time passed quickly. I asked about a million questions about everything we saw and about the culture and living on Bonaire, and Don was game to talk about all of it, whether it was history of the area, the species of birds we saw, the plants, whatever. I learned an incredibly large amount and saw just about everything that could have possibly been included on the tour. There's no way I could have possibly been more satisfied than I was with this tour company, the tour guide, or the tour.Written October 15, 2023This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.
- Stefan A1 contributionSuch a wonderful surfstation, very kind persons, very familiar, the spot and the atmosphere there is just great, really a lot of equiptment for every type of surfWritten December 1, 2023This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.
Frequently Asked Questions about Bonaire
- The top attractions to visit in Bonaire are:
- Mangrove Information Center
- Klein Bonaire
- Bonaire National Marine Park
- Donkey Sanctuary Bonaire
- Lac Bay
- The best outdoor activities in Bonaire according to Tripadvisor travelers are: See all outdoor activities in Bonaire on Tripadvisor
- The best day trips from Bonaire according to Tripadvisor travelers are:
- Washington Slagbaai National Park Tour in Bonaire
- Washington Park Tour with Local Guide on Bonaire
- Bonaire Private Catamaran Charter
- Private Photography Tour
- Photography tour Washington Slagbaai National Park
- The most popular things to do in Bonaire with kids according to Tripadvisor travelers are: See all kid friendly things to do in Bonaire on Tripadvisor
Bonaire Attractions Information
Attractions | 343 |
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Attraction Reviews | 35,515 |
Attraction Photos | 25,209 |
Local Time | Sunday 3:53 PM |