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Dive Review of Toucan Divers/Plaza Resort in
Bonaire

Toucan Divers/Plaza Resort, Apr, 2006,

by Mary Johnson, CA, USA . Report 2478.

No photos available at this time

Ratings and Overall Comments 1 (worst) - 5 (best):

Accommodations 4 stars Food 3 stars
Service and Attitude 4 stars Environmental Sensitivity N/A
Dive Operation 3 stars Shore Diving 3 stars
Snorkeling N/A
Value for $$ N/A
Beginners 5 stars
Advanced 4 stars
Comments I wish I had known that the whole Island "shut down" due to holidays for 3 days! Sat., Sun., Mon, making purchasing any food etc., except at resort restauants impractical! Restaurants were fair to middling. Had I not brought trail bars and dried fruit from home, I would have been hard pressed to make the early call for diving (8:15) with sufficient nourishment! The Plaza is a beautiful resort, beautiful grounds, extensive property, with dive shop as an "add on". Shop is run well, but my personal experience was rough as a single older female diver, due to having to shlep my gear from the lockers to the boat, set it up, change it myself if two tanks, and haul it back off the boat to rinse tanks and lockers.
Not even a mask de-fogger was offered on the boat.
The diving on Bonaire is uniformly beautiful, without stressful water conditions such as currents, cool water, limited visibility etc. with which to contend. The most disappointing was the apparent disengagement of the dive masters, who were civil, but did not seem
eager to share the beauty of this region. A snorkel trip aboard a catamaran highlighted the difference. The guide found something "exciting" every few yards!
If I return to the Island, I will definitely book at a different facility.

Reporter and Travel

Dive Experience 251-500 dives
Where else diving Cozumel, Tahiti, Big Island, Monterey CA., Cayman Islands
Closest Airport Getting There

Dive Conditions

Weather sunny Seas calm
Water Temp 78-80°F / 26-27°C Wetsuit Thickness 0
Water Visibility 70-100 Ft/ 21-30 M

Dive Policy

Dive own profile yes
Enforced diving restrictions 1500 PSI Dive Turnaround
Liveaboard? no Nitrox Available? N/A

What I Saw

Sharks None Mantas None
Dolphins None Whale Sharks None
Turtles 1 or 2 Whales None
Corals 3 stars Tropical Fish 3 stars
Small Critters 3 stars Large Fish 1 stars
Large Pelagics 1 stars

Underwater Photography 1 (worst) - 5 (best):

Subject Matter 3 stars Boat Facilities 3 stars
Overall rating for UWP's 4 stars Shore Facilities N/A
UW Photo Comments Just "kitchen bucket" for rinse tank. Dive Masters not interested in finding or pointing out
any sea life. It was swim, swim swim and turn around - until I hooked up with 6 other photographers on this trip who emphasized to the dive master that we wanted to "poke and round, stop, look, and take pictures." As a relatively new underwater photographer getting some nice shots speaks well for the wealth of options given the limited accomodation for photography.
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Note: The information here was reported by the author above, but has NOT been reviewed nor edited by Undercurrent prior to posting on our website. Please report any major problems by writing to us and referencing the report number above.

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