Kralendijk, Bonaire: The Town in Front of the Dive Sites
One low waterfront street, a view of Klein Bonaire, and tanks in every pickup truck.
Why Go
Kralendijk is a small, bright, extremely relaxed capital that exists mostly to service the diving. One waterfront road, one main shopping street a block behind it, a fort, a square, and a line of restaurants looking west at Klein Bonaire and some of the best sunsets in the Dutch Caribbean. Everything on Bonaire is close to here, which is the argument for basing yourself in town rather than in a resort — you can walk to dinner, and the shore dives start at the roadside markers a few minutes out of it in either direction.
The Experience
The town is tiny and everything faces the water. Kaya Grandi is the shopping street, Wilhelmina Square and the small ochre Fort Oranje are the historic centre, and the waterfront is where the restaurants are, most of them with tables looking straight out to sea. There are no high-rises, very little traffic and almost no hurry; the busiest it gets is when a cruise ship ties up at the town pier and the middle of the day fills for a few hours. The traffic that defines the place is pickup trucks with dive tanks in the back, which is not a cliché — the whole island is a marine park and the shore-dive sites are marked with painted yellow stones along the coast road, so people load up in town and drive to a number. Evenings are quiet and pleasant, with dinner on the water and not a great deal after it.
What to Try
Eat on the waterfront and watch the light go: At Sea Restaurant Bonaire and Pier Dos put you over the water, The Bucket Bonaire and Restaurant Sonrisa are the reliable evenings, and Don Julio Italian Grill covers the Italian end. Bagel & Bloom is the morning before a dive and The Fat Dog is the cheap late one. Daily Catch Fisherman's Market Bonaire is where the fish comes in. For the sea, AB-Dive Bonaire runs the diving, Sailing Bonaire and Salty Tours Bonaire do the trips out to Klein Bonaire, Paddleboarding Bonaire covers the mangroves and Bonaire Big Game Fishing and Mako Tours Bonaire handle the offshore. On land, Warehouse Bonaire and Nature's Discount are where you actually shop, City Shop and the Bonaire Arts and Crafts Cruise Market cover the souvenirs, and Roadrunner-Bonaire is the one to call about a truck, because a pickup is the correct rental car on this island.
Insider Tip
Rent a pickup, not a car. Every dive site on Bonaire is reached by driving to a painted yellow stone at the roadside with your own tanks in the back, and a saloon car makes the island's central activity awkward for no saving. Buy the STINAPA nature tag before you get in the water — it is compulsory, it funds the marine park that is the reason you came, and it is checked.
The Practical Stuff
Flamingo Airport is about five minutes from the centre, which is among the shortest airport runs in the Caribbean. The town is entirely walkable and flat; you still want a vehicle, because the shore-dive sites, the salt pans and flamingos in the south, Rincon inland and Washington Slagbaai in the north are all a drive away. Bonaire is a special municipality of the Netherlands but uses the US dollar; Dutch and Papiamentu are the local languages and English is spoken everywhere. Driving is on the right. Shops keep ordinary hours and close on Sundays, and the town is quiet in the evening even in high season. Bonaire sits outside the main hurricane belt, so conditions are unusually consistent year-round, and the west coast where the town sits is the sheltered side.
Common Questions
Should you stay in Kralendijk or at a dive resort?
Kralendijk if you want to walk to dinner and be in a town; a resort if you want tanks, a house reef and a boat at your door. The island is small enough that the difference is about ten minutes of driving, not access.
Is Kralendijk walkable?
Completely — the waterfront, Kaya Grandi and the square are a few flat minutes apart. You will still want a vehicle for the dive sites along the coast and the national park in the north.
Do you need a car in Bonaire?
Yes, and ideally a pickup truck. Shore diving here means driving your own tanks to a numbered yellow stone at the roadside, and a saloon car makes that harder for no real saving.
What currency does Bonaire use?
The US dollar. Bonaire is a special municipality of the Netherlands but does not use the euro, so American visitors need no conversion at all.
How far is Kralendijk from the airport?
About five minutes. Flamingo Airport is effectively on the edge of town, which makes arrival and departure days unusually painless.
Is there nightlife in Kralendijk?
Very little, and nobody comes for it. The waterfront restaurants and bars carry the evening and the town is quiet afterwards, which suits an island where people are in the water by eight in the morning.
Pair It With
- AB-Dive Bonaire — Tanks and guidance for the island's whole point.
- At Sea Restaurant Bonaire — The sunset dinner on the waterfront.
- Sailing Bonaire — Klein Bonaire, which is best reached under sail.
