Bonaire Country & Tourist Information

Location
Caribbean, 80km (50 miles) north of Venezuela.

Area
290 sq km (112 sq miles).

Population
13,832 (2003).

Population Density
49 per sq km.

Capital
Kralendijk.
Population: 1,800 (2002).

Government
Part of the Netherlands Antilles; dependency of The Netherlands.

Language
Dutch is the official language. Papiamento (a mixture of Portuguese, African, Spanish, Dutch and English) is the commonly used lingua franca. English and Spanish are also widely spoken.

Religion
Predominantly Roman Catholic with a Protestant minority. There are many evangelical churches of different denominations, and a new mosque has also been erected on the island.

Time
GMT - 4.

Electricity
127 volts AC, 50Hz.

Head of Government
Prime Minister Emily de Jongh-Elhage since 2006.

Head of State
Queen Beatrix of the Netherlands, represented locally by Governor Frits Goedgedrag since 2002.

Telephone
Country code: 599. It is cheaper to make international calls from phone booths in the Telbo building than from resorts.

Mobile Telephone
Roaming agreements exist with some international mobile phone companies. Coverage is average.

Internet
ISPs include Bonairelive (website: www.bonairelive.net), which operates an Internet Access Center. There are Internet cafes in Kralendijk and a coin-operated Internet kiosk at the Harborside Mall and also in Kralendijk.

Media
The country enjoys freedom of the press and speech as guaranteed under Dutch law.

Post
Airmail to and from Europe takes four to six days. Surface mail takes up to six weeks.

Press
• The weekly English-language Bonnaire Reporter is an independent publication focusing on news as it relates to the island’s residents and visitors. It is distributed free on the island and publishes online.

Radio
• Voz di Bonaire is popular.
• There are several other radio stations broadcast from the rest of the Netherlands Antilles.

Below are listed Public Holidays for the January 2007-December 2008 period.

2007
1 Jan New Year’s Day.
Jan/Feb (various days) Carnival period.
6-9 Apr Easter.
30 Apr Queen’s Birthday Celebrations and Rincon’s Day.
1 May Labor Day.
17 May Ascension Day.
6 Sep Bonaire Day.
25-26 Dec Christmas.

2008
1 Jan New Year’s Day.
Jan/Feb (various days) Carnival period.
21-24 Mar Easter.
30 Apr Queen’s Birthday Celebrations and Rincon’s Day.
1 May Labor Day.
1 May Ascension Day.
6 Sep Bonaire Day.
25-26 Dec Christmas.

Contact Information:

Diplomatic Representation
Bonaire is part of the Netherlands Antilles represented abroad by Royal Netherlands Embassies – see The Netherlands section.

Office of the Minister Plenipotentiary of the Netherlands Antilles
Antillenhuis, Badhuisweg 173-175, PO Box 90706, 2509 LS The Hague, The Netherlands
Tel: (70) 306 6111.

Tourism Corporation Bonaire in Europe
Basis Communicatie BV, Wagenweg 252, PO Box 472, NL 2000, Al-Haarlem, The Netherlands
Tel: (23) 543 0705.
Website: www.infobonaire.com

Caribbean Tourism Organization in the UK
22 The Quadrant, Richmond, Surrey, TW9 1BP, UK
Tel: (020) 8948 0057.
Website: www.doitcaribbean.com or www.onecaribbean.org

Tourism Corporation Bonaire in the USA
Adams Unlimited Public Relations & Marketing, 80 Broadstreet, 32nd Floor, Suite 3202, New York, NY 10004.
Tel: (212) 956 5912 or 1 800 266 2473.
Website: www.infobonaire.com


Next Page »