Reef Smart Guides Bonaire: Scuba Dive. Snorkel. Surf. (Best Diving Spots in The Netherlands' Bonaire)

I was hesitant to purchase this since I already had a copy of Bonaire Shore Diving Made Easy published by a local... but wow! While the other book has great info the pictures and detail in the Reef Smart guide (this book) exceeds my wildest expectations.There's actual overhead images and pictures of dive entrances and exits as well as diagrams with all the info you need to plan your dive(s)! Really beats the heck out of text-only descriptions I've found elsewhere.There's plenty of content in this book to keep me busy while I wait for my trip this summer!

This will and should replace Lonely Planet’s Guide to diving and snorkeling Bonaire. BUY THIS BOOK!!! Everything you want to plan your dive from entry and exit points, currents, fish ID, suggested route, depths, cautions about wild life and you should buy the waterproof dive cards that the author has put out for easy reference to 6 of the most popular dive sites. The author also gives a fantastic description of the island’s history, the people, restaurants, rentals, dive operations, the National Park, the distillery, Kite Surfing, Wind Boarding, Turtle and Coral Conservatioin, the Mangroves, etc. If you go to Bonaire and JUST dive after reading this book...you’ll be missing out on a lot. But even if you are just diving...THIS is the book want. I purchased it in an ebook format and I’m very pleased. This is the MOST up to date book out there.

Your browser does not support HTML5 video.  If you are diving in Bonaire this is essential SCUBA kit in my opinion. I have been a huge fan of the dive maps that Peter, Ian and Otto have been making but THIS book has changed how I explore ALL the sites of Bonaire. I am on island right now and there is a well worn copy that lives in our truck. I have now been to new (for me) sites that I just would not have tried to figure out (like how to get to some of them). As an instructor who spends time here with different levels of divers and snorkelers, it is so useful to research a site before we go and share information with everyone. Giving visual orientation is stress reducer and super helpful to helping people prep for sites they have never been to. This is the kind of quality product that I am very happy to pay for.

We have been diving Bonaire for years and bumped into the plastic Reef Smart dive site maps in a store. They are excellent, even if you are familiar with the dive sites, but pricey and only the most popular sites are available. When I was searching for them to buy online, I bumped into the full Reef Smart book with description of every dive site in Bonaire and more. You can find websites that describe the dive sites, but the descriptions in this book go much deeper and blow every other book out of the water. What I really like is the pictures telling you exactly where to enter the water since this can be tricky. We dove mostly “new” sites on our last trip thanks to this book and loved it.

I bought this book prior to a trip to Bonaire, where we planned on doing a lot of snorkeling. What a asset it was to us on the trip! The book detailed all the dive and snorkel sites on the island and was so helpful throughout the trip. Not only were the sites marked on a map of the island, there were very specific directions on how to get to each location (by car/truck) and the approximate time from the main city of Kralendijk. Additionally, there were clear instructions on where and how to enter the water from the beach to avoid coral, rocks, etc. The book also indicated levels of difficulty of the current and water depths. Suggested routes for diving and sometimes snorkeling were included. The authors also highlighted what you are likely to see in each location. Most of the sites also had aerial photos or color renderings of the shore and/or reef areas so you could see what the site was like. If you're going to Bonaire to dive or snorkel, I highly recommend this book. It was very well-used during our stay on the island.

We just returned from Bonaire, and between this book and the internet, we were perfectly equipped to know exactly where to snorkel, best entry points, location of huge stag and elk coral, etc. The star rating is was perfectly accurate such as reef and fauna getting the highest ratings at Tolo vs the easier more shallow Andrea 2. Everything you need to know to optimize your dives and snorkels as vacation time is precious and you want to choose wisely. Also good to know the difficulty rating as we were traveling with our 75 year old mother. A must reference book.

This is a must have to go diving in Bonaire! It was recommended from her PADI certification teachers Scott and Anita Smith in Gray, Tennessee! Also, from Ski Scuba Center in Knoxville, Tennessee where we had our Nitrox classes! It tells you exactly where to go and exactly what kind of area that you will have to swim to to get to the dive, the yellow rock descriptions are absolutely phenomenal you get in your little rent a jeep from your vacation rental place and go diving to the most beautiful diving in the world! YOU NEED THIS GUIDE! Make your trip so much better,

We were very fortunate to have purchased this right before our trip to Bonaire. The book provides very detailed information about each of the dive sites, including ratings, visuals representations of many of the dive profiles, descriptions for moorings, depth guides, entry and exits, key identifiers during the dive (i.e. sand channels and drop-offs), and information about which fish and fauna are most likely to be seen on the site. Other helpful tips and important information are scattered throughout the book. This book helped us plan out our days and select dives that were most appropriate for our group. We would have struggled without this book.

So we pre ordered this book back in January but wanted to wait till we were in Bonaire to review it.This book is outstanding, it just blows all the other Bonaire guides out of the water. The attention to detail is great, trying to find tricky sites has been so easy, then it has like a drone image of the site and it tells you the best way to enter the dive site, it then has a 3D like image of the site and where to find things.I showed this book to two Dive Managers here in Bonaire and they were really impressed with everything, and again agreed with all my comments.I've only found it in the supermarket here, so I suggest you order it before you leave, you wont be disappointed.

Love this book so much detail.

Sehr guter Tauchführer, sehr hilfsreich wenn man ohne Tauchguide taucht. Die Tauchplätze sind gut beschrieben, die Unterwasserkarten sehr gut gemacht.Das Buch vereinfacht die Auswahl der Tauchplätze abhängig von Einfahrt, Weg ins Wasser, Strömung, Flora und Fauna.Am Ende des Buches ist ein kleines Fisch-Guide mit den Spezies die im Karibic zu finden sind.Wir sind begeistert.

Accurate descriptions of dive site access & parking areas. Made my Bonaire shore & boat diving adventures surprise-free. I was originally skeptical, then, happily surprised with its accuracy. Made my shore diving experiences super! It’s like bringing along your own personal local dive-buddy!

We had been to Bonaire before, but having this book made us even more confident in our dive planning! The underwater maps and descriptions of the dive sites helped us to choose dives appropriate for us. Loved it!!