Category: Boating Life

A Night Off The Boat

We love our life on board Sava, but a 46 foot sailboat is not the most comfortable home. So for my birthday we checked in to a night of luxury! After a year of only sleeping on board, we spent a night off the boat in a boutique hotel in Bonaire. It was even better than we hoped it would be.

Bamboo Bali Bonaire

Brian’s birthday dinner at Chef’s Bonaire turned into a present for both of us when the owner gifted us a free night at the attached hotel. Bamboo Bali is one of the top rated places to stay on the island, for regular people, not just to grubby cruisers like us.

The resort is located north of Kralendijk, within walking distance of several restaurants, beach clubs, and a supermarket. Our accommodation had a front patio, bedroom, bathroom and kitchens and private outside spaces with seating and an outdoor shower.

All guests at Bamboo Bali have access to a pool, hot tub, free wifi, and a gas grill with outdoor dining. In our one night stay, we used all of these amenities! We don’t get a night off the boat often, so we took advantage. It was wonderful.

Pool at Bamboo Bali resort
The pool at Bamboo Bali
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Bonaire for Hurricane Season

Modern day sailors want to avoid hurricanes more than almost anything including wearing shoes and giving up drinking. We came to Bonaire for hurricane season and are happy we made the choice. Here are all the reasons we are happy to be in Bonaire for hurricane season.

Bonaire is Safe

Located in the southwestern part of the Caribbean, Bonaire is south of the hurricane belt. This makes Bonaire one of the best Caribbean islands to visit during hurricane season, safe from storms and with lots of fun activities.

Safety on Bonaire extends to crime. In some Caribbean islands, theft and worse crimes are common. In Martinique, we got our gas tank stolen out of our dinghy while it was locked to our boat, and in other islands, dinghies and more are stolen if you’re not careful. While we remain diligent about locking our dinghy, these crimes are rare in Bonaire, another good reason to stay.

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Our First week in Bonaire

It’s been one week of freedom for us and we are savoring every moment. Here’s how we’ve kept busy and entertained in our first week in Bonaire.

Checking In

Checking in to a new county is more complicated during Covid-19. Instead of just heading right to the customs and immigrations offices, Bonaire has a few more steps we had to complete, after 2 weeks quarantine, of course. On our last day of quarantine, we had to call the health department, tell them we finished quarantine and don’t have any symptoms, and within 24 hours they provided a letter of health for us to bring to customs and immigration.

We walked from the marina to the government offices on Thursday morning. While it was hot outside, we didn’t mind at all because we were off the boat! It was our first walk in 2 and a half weeks so it was the most exciting experience for us! Kralendjik is a charming town, with colorfully painted buildings and vibrant street art, so we enjoyed the hot walk to customs.

Flamingo Statue Bonaire
Flamingo sculpture Bonaire
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