Most divers know that Bonaire is a top scuba diving destination, thanks to its calm seas, incredible biodiversity, and easy shore access to dozens of fantastic sites. But there is so much more to this charming Caribbean island than just underwater exploration, which is excellent news for travelers who don’t fancy diving! Visitors are spoiled for choice here, with dozens of activities on offer every day, both above and below the waves.
Explore Bonaire on foot, meet some of its most famous residents (wild donkeys and flamingos), swim and snorkel, and dine on succulent seafood. Travelers won’t be treated to the beautiful beaches found on neighboring islands like Aruba; instead, the island boasts a fascinating landscape of cliffs, a semi-arid desert, salt flats, and a rocky coast. This rugged mix is entirely unique and ideal for adventure. Keep reading to discover ten can’t-miss activities that make the most of it!
10 Enjoy Fossil Finding On Bonaire
Washington Slagbaai National Park is home to several geological formations, including the terraced cliffs of Seru Grandi. This towering rock formation was thrust upwards by the earth’s shifting crust, bringing ancient artifacts and fossils to light. Visitors can peer into the cracks and crevices of these cliffs to find specimens from 210,000 to over a million years old.
These aren’t the only fossils found on Bonaire or in the national park. Head to Boka Kokolishi to explore a secluded cove surrounded by cliffs studded with fossilized conch shells, coral, and ancient sea creatures. Photography of all kinds is allowed, but removing shells and fossils from the park is not.
-
Best for:
Natural history lovers and intrepid travelers -
Know before you go:
Collecting the fossils that you find is strictly prohibited here
9 Go Flamingo Watching In Bonaire
Few sights on Bonaire are stranger than that of hundreds of hot pink flamingos flying high overhead in massive aerial formations. But on any given day, visitors can look up and spot them flocking en masse. While the island is home to a specified flamingo sanctuary, these birds go anywhere and everywhere that they want, sometimes turning up in unexpected places.
Flamingos get their brilliant color from a beta-carotene-rich diet of plankton, tiny crustaceans, and algae. This strange color scheme also pays off big time in camouflage, helping them blend perfectly into a backdrop of pink-hued salt pans.
-
Best for:
Wildlife watching -
Know before you go:
Bring a pair of binoculars – these birds won’t let you come super close
Take care when approaching flamingos in their natural habitat. This bird lays its eggs on the ground in tall grass, and careless tourists could easily crush them by accident.
8 Savor Delicious Dining And Drinking On Bonaire
Bonaire’s cuisine is diverse due to its complex history of indigenous peoples, imported slave labor, and Dutch colonization. These varying tastes come together in an array of dishes, including scarcely seen specialties seen in few other places. Be sure to sample the goat stew, piska (grilled fish), iguana soup, and funchi (cornmeal similar to polenta).
In addition to traditional and popular Caribbean food and flavors, Bonaire is home to a number of truly outstanding restaurants, many of which are found right on the water. Seafood is at the heart of most menus, with a wide variety of grilled and fried offerings from the sea. Contemporary takes on traditional island dishes are also popular, putting a modern twist on Creole classics.
-
Best for:
Foodies and finicky eaters alike -
Know before you go:
Bonaire is famous for its delicious, freshly caught seafood, while most other meat is imported to the island
7 Climb The Highest Peak In Bonaire
Washington Slagbaai National Park is home to dozens of hiking trails ranging from mild to wild, with a bit of something for every type of traveler. The most strenuous and rewarding trek found here is the Subi Branderas route, which summits the highest point on Bonaire.
Most visitors complete this adventure in around two hours, walking, hiking, and scrambling their way to the top – and then back down again. But the views from the top make it all worthwhile. This perch offers a bird’s eye view of the entire national park and much of Bonaire, and on a clear day, it’s possible to see all the way to the neighboring island of Curaçao, one of the Caribbean’s most beautiful and popular vacation destinations.
-
Best for:
Active adventurers who don’t mind a hard day’s hike or heights -
Know before you go:
Wear comfortable hiking shoes and pack plenty of water
6 Learn About Bonaire’s Colonial And Salt Flats History
Once a Dutch colony financed by its lucrative salt mine, Bonaire relied on slave labor for its primary export. This sad history can be seen today with numerous slave huts still standing all around the island, serving as a reminder of the island’s dark past. Pay a visit to these tiny dwellings and tour the island museum to learn more about what slave life was like.
Bonaire is also home to a historic fort, and other colonial structures can be found all around the island, including in the Washington Slagbaai National Park. Amazing salt flats are found worldwide, but few destinations offer the same easy access as this island. Visit during midday for bright, clear light and eye-popping colors, perfect for photography.
-
Best for:
Socially conscious travelers who don’t mind a bit of dark history -
Know before you go:
Entering the salt pans on Bonaire is strictly prohibited
5 Visit The Donkey Sanctuary On Bonaire
Wild donkeys roam freely around Bonaire, occasionally causing major traffic jams, turning up in restaurants, and surprising onlookers with natural behavior ranging from turf wars to courtship rituals. Sadly, however, many of them face major medical issues, suffer from malnutrition, and even wind up injured after accidental collisions with cars.
Thankfully, there’s one place on the island where any donkey can go when in trouble. Bonaire’s donkey sanctuary offers veterinary care, shelter, food and water, and plenty of love from daily visitors. Spend a day learning about their lives and history on the island, hand out a few pets, and instantly become the most popular tourist of the day by bringing a few carrots and apples along.
-
Best for:
Animal lovers and families with children -
Know before you go:
The donkeys are most active during cooler parts of the day, around sunrise and sunset
4 Tour The Cadushy Distillery
Cadushy is the Caribbean’s only cactus liquor, distilled from the prickly green plant seen nearly everywhere on Bonaire. This small batch brew is surprisingly tasty and comes in a variety of flavors using local ingredients like lime, cinnamon, and orange. The distillery also produces rum and vodka.
Visiting the Cadushy Distillery is easy, and no tickets or entrance fee are required. Tour the facility and learn how all the different products are made, stay and sip a craft cocktail, and enjoy some time in the garden, which is home to a variety of plants and wild birds. The distillery is happy to sell products by the bottle and pack them for shipping or air travel.
-
Best for:
Adults-only adventure -
Know before you go:
The distillery is closed on Sundays and never charges an entrance fee
The legal drinking age on Bonaire is 18.
3 Go Snorkeling On Klein Bonaire
Some of the most exciting underwater habitats are found in the first few feet of the ocean, where there is plenty of light and enough nutrients to fuel dense coral growth. In Bonaire’s colorful reef ecosystems, it’s common to see large schools of tropical fish, sea turtles, and even rare underwater animals like seahorses!
Klein Bonaire, a small islet found just off Bonaire’s coast, is home to some of the area’s very best snorkeling sites. Book a guided tour for easy drift snorkeling in several different spots, or take the water taxi over and spend the day exploring without the structure of a group experience. Less confident swimmers should bring a flotation device in addition to their mask and fins.
-
Best for:
Getting up close and personal with ocean wildlife -
Know before you go:
Bring everything essential along for this day trip, as no shopping or dining is available on Klein Bonaire
2 Enjoy Bonaire Mangrove Tours
Mangroves are an essential part of Bonaire’s healthy island ecosystem, helping to prevent coastal erosion and protecting the island from powerful storm surges during hurricane season. They’re also vital to many of the exciting oceanic species found here, serving as a breeding ground and safe haven for juvenile fish, turtles, birds, and more.
The best way to visit the island’s mangroves is by kayak, passing through channels and tunnels for a close-up look at the trees themselves, in addition to the numerous animals that they host. Guided tours led by the Mangrove Info Center educate and entertain visitors while raising funds for local wildlife rehabilitation.
-
Best for:
Nature enthusiasts and environmentally aware tourists -
Know before you go:
Apply sunscreen and insect repellant before this tour, as neither product is allowed inside the mangrove forest
1 Try Some Action-Packed Wind Sports On Bonaire
Bonaire enjoys a semi-arid climate, comfortable, breezy days, and fewer insects than the rest of the Caribbean, thanks to the trade winds that constantly sweep across the island. This same air flow, combined with plenty of protected bays and shallow expanses that stretch far out to sea, creates the ideal conditions for a variety of wind sports.
The island’s protected leeward side is one of the world’s best destinations for kitesurfing. The windward coast, especially the waters of Lac Bay, is a hotspot for windsurfing and hydrofoil surfing. Book a few days of lessons to master the basics before heading out to sea alone.
-
Best for:
Athletic and adventurous travelers -
Know before you go:
Plan to spend a few days with an instructor before venturing out solo – wind sports have a steep learning curve
