Eating and Drinking in Bonaire

For such a small island, Bonaire has more dining options than you would expect. Once we were free from quarantine and could roam the island, we satisfied our cravings for barbecue, sandwiches, seafood, satays, cheese and chocolate! We did have 3 months, after all! With all that experience, here are my recommendations for eating and drinking in Bonaire.

About Eating and Drinking in Bonaire

Though we were there during the pandemic, most restaurants served take-out, and many had dine-in options with social distancing and other restrictions. Many times, we provided names and emails for contact tracing. Prices are in US dollars, and costs are comparable to what you would pay in the U.S. or Canada, but some items are less expensive. Most places are in or near downtown Kralendjik, but a few are further afield. This map lays out all the places mentioned in the post.

map Eating and Drinking in Bonaire
Eating and Drinking in Bonaire map

Gio’s and Luciano Ice Cream

Ice cream is a luxury to most cruisers! Many cruisers don’t even have space for it on board. We are lucky to have a full freezer but we don’t often have ice cream in it because markets are rarely close to transport ice cream from bus to dinghy to boat fast enough to keep it from melting. So when there’s a gelato shop – or two – on land – we sample the flavors.

gelato eating and drinking in Bonaire
Some of the gelato choices in Bonaire

Eating and drinking in Bonaire should include at least one stop for ice cream. When we were in downtown Kralendjik, we bopped back and forth between two main spots but the tiny town has multiple places for ice cream, way more than we ever saw on the entire island of Antigua.

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Favorite Antigua Beaches

Who else is dreaming about relaxing on a beautiful beach? Or how about listening to the crashing waves while lounging in soft sand with a beer in hand? While I can’t give you that, I can tell you about some of my favorite Antigua beaches for when you can get there.

If you’re headed to Antigua and want some non-beach ideas, read about my favorite things to do in Antigua and Barbuda.

Antigua Beaches

Antigua has 365 beaches: one for every day of the year. And for any beach day you prefer. Like much of the Caribbean, all beaches are open to the public. You may only be allowed one route to and from the beach when there is private property like a resort fronting the beach. But you are still allowed on the beach and in the water.

A word of advice: decide what you want to do before choosing a beach. Do you want to body surf or relax? Drink and party or have a nice meal or hike and explore with your kids? There’s a beach for each of those, but none that offers everything.

As a Caribbean island known for its beaches, Antigua is a top wedding destination. It’s a great place for any beach lover!

We haven’t been here long enough – yet – to explore all the beaches. But we have visited and enjoyed several, so here are some amazing Antigua beaches for whatever you like to do, arranged geographically. The east coast of the island is the windward side and has fewer beaches so I focused on the Caribbean side of Antigua where the beaches are plentiful and the water is calmer.

For your reference, here’s a map of my favorite Antigua beaches.

Map of Favorite Antigua Beaches
Favorite Antigua beaches

Dark Wood Beach

A medium walk or quicker drive from Jolly Harbor on Antigua’s west coast, Dark Wood Beach is a fun social spot. As the first beach we visited with friends on our latest visit to the island, Dark Wood is a sentimental favorite. We didn’t, but you can even get a massage on a table in the shade.

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Martinique Musts

After two visits to Martinique, first for a week and again for a month, we have seen and done a lot in this French Caribbean paradise! Here are my top things to do when you visit, my Martinique musts.

Why We Love Martinique

The food, the scenery, the culture, the water, the variety: all are reasons to fall in love with Martinique. You can spend a day eating delicious French food, swimming with starfish and turtles in clear Caribbean water, and end it sampling rum while listening to reggae music. It’s a pretty good life on a boat in Martinique and it could be easy to sleep and repeat day after day. Some may have less time than we did and I know what you don’t want to miss so on to my list of Martinique musts.

The Southern Beaches

Do you like long swathes of soft sand? Beach bars with great food, drinks and lively company? Both are on offer at the southern strip of Martinique, south of the lovely Sainte Anne anchorage. 

Martinique Must Saline Beach
Clear blue water and soft sand at Saline Beach, Martinique
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