Bonaire 

Bonaire, part of the Lesser Antilles in the Western Caribbean, is one of the six Dutch countries of the Caribbean.  The islands of Aruba, Bonaire and Curaçao are all quite close together off the coast of Venezuela, and are commonly called the ABC islands.  The official language of all three islands is Dutch, with English and Spanish also spoken, as well as the local dialect Papiamento. Bonaire has been described as "the shy little sister" of the three islands.

It is an island with bright coral reefs and colourful exotic fish cherished worldwide by divers, who also appreciate the wonderful visibility.  It is also a land still full of its original beauty. Hikers appreciate the nature reserves,  mangrove forests, sandy lagoons and colourful salt beds of this varied landscape inhabited by beautiful and graceful flamingos (of which there are approximately 11,000!). It is also an ideal destination for sun-worshippers as it hardly ever rains, and is well off the hurricane zone.  Enduring colonial charm lingers over the capital, Kralendijk. "No news, no shoes and no dressing for dinner!"

Statistics
39 kilometers (24m) long, between 5 and 11 kilometres wide, 290 square kilometres
Location: 80 km north of Venezuela, 48 km east of Curacao and 138 km east of Aruba.
Inhabitants: 15.000
Capital is Kralendijk, which is also a sailing port.
Official language is Dutch but English and Spanish are widely spoken.
Time Zone : GMT-4
Driving is on the right , with 30mph speed limit.

National holiday
6th of September (Bonaire Day)

Festivals
International Sailing Regatta (October), International Diving Festival (June), Mountain Bike Race (October)

Tourist office on the island
Tourism Corporation Bonaire
Kaya Grandi'2
Kralendijk, Bonaire
Netherlands Antilles
Tel. 005997-17-8322
Fax 005997-17-8408

www.infobonaire.com

Tourism office in Europe
Basis Communicatie
Postbus 472
2000 AL Haarlem, The Netherlands
Tel. 0031-70-3 95 44 44
Fax 0031-70-3 36 83 33

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