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Looking for info on Blue Bay beach esp diving


JMCruiser111
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Hi,

 

Will be in Curacao in Aug 2017 - group of 4 with 2 divers, 2 non divers. Trying to find a beach for both to do- and Blue bay came up in my research. Does anyone have any experiences, tips, comments regarding Blue bay? How hard is it to get a taxi going back? Is it a good beach for nondivers? Also if anyone has actually done a shore dive your input would be great!

We are planning to stay at beach from 9 am - 1 or 2 pm then back to ship, then tour Curacao in PM, will be in port from 8AM-8PM.

 

Thanks in advance! posted this on scuba boards too but no response yet.

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  • 2 weeks later...

If you do end up diving at Blue Bay please return here to let me know how it is. We're on the Equinox end of October and DH is planning to dive there as well while I laze on the beach. I've been in contact with the dive co there and they seem quite prompt in their communication and the cost for a two tank dive is very reasonable. I've read it's a 20minute drive from the pier...prob depends on traffic and time of day but it's not that far.

Cathy

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Is your transportation through the resort or the dive co? I'll wait to hear how it goes for you guys before we commit to the transportation aspect. Did you pay for your dives upfront or just reserve spots? Also, we're in port 7-4 and originally the dive co said they had two tank dives at 8:30 as well as 10:30 and that they last three hours so I'm thinking we'll do the 10:30 one since it might be tight getting to the dive site for the earlier one if we don't get off on time. What's your port times and which dive time are you planning? Thanks for all the info and we'll look forward to your review of both the ship and the dive!

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  • 2 weeks later...

A couple of years ago we went to Blue Bay. Taxi ride from Mega pier was about 15 minutes. Once you enter the "estates" the beach area is through the development (the cab will take you right up to the entrance of the beach area). Ask the cab to pick you up at your designated return time.....this beach is in a private estate (Blue Bay estates) which is purely a residential/ timeshare kind of estate and does not have many taxis waiting.

 

Entrance fee was $8 pp then and that included lounge chairs. There is a small "spa" (one hut with a massage table) at the beach. The masseuse is a very nice lady and I had a long conversation with her. Mani Pedi is also on the spa menu. Very rustic.

 

Restrooms are available at the cafe/restaurant. I had a gouda baguette which was yumm. DH had a salad. I remember it not being very expensive. I did not see any waiter coming around for drinks and I do not recall a beach bar like other beaches. I think the only bar was in the restaurant/cafe. This is not the Barbados Boatyard kind of place or the Mambo Beach on the other side of Curacao.

 

Nice and quiet vibe to the place. Many local families, perhaps residents of Blue Bay. I also recall it being quite windy. Water was gorgeous. We walked along the estate and saw a couple of sad looking flamingos on the golf course.

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Thanks Arzeena for that info. I've been in touch with the dive company there and have booked DH for a 2 tank. According to the resort there (the timeshare you were referring to?) only I will have to pay the entrance/lounge fee since he's diving and they've apparently updated the restrooms which is nice. I don't need a busy beach or bar facilities for that matter...to be honest, a lounger and some shade with my book will be perfect!! Good advice about having the cab driver return for us...We'll prob head back to the ship for lunch once the dives are complete. We stayed for a land vacation previously at the Sunscape which borders Mambo so I know how busy it can be there.

Cathy

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We were pleased with the amenities at Bue Bay. There is quite a bit of coral

on the beach, but this is true of many Curacao beaches.

 

Glad to hear you enjoyed Blue Bay. Did you snorkel or dive? Is there shade other than renting umbrellas or palapas?

Cathy

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Pirate bay which is right next to Blue bay has diving shop, bar and facilities for non-divers.

 

Would love more info on Pirate Bay. I looked at their web site and couldn't find entrance & lounger fees. Also what currency is their bar menu in? Would there be any problem getting a taxi to come and transport us back to the cruise port?

 

We are just looking for a low key beach experience to get off of the cruise ship for a couple of hours.

 

Thanks.

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Would love more info on Pirate Bay. I looked at their web site and couldn't find entrance & lounger fees. Also what currency is their bar menu in? Would there be any problem getting a taxi to come and transport us back to the cruise port?

 

We are just looking for a low key beach experience to get off of the cruise ship for a couple of hours.

 

Thanks.

Entrance fee $5 per person including lounger. Bar menu in both US and NAFI. Just ask bartender to call for a cab, it's close to pier and cab will show up quickly.

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  • 1 month later...

Just an update after our cruise:

Overall great experience with Blue Bay. Excellent communication pre-trip, I even emailed 1 night prior to finalize requests and they replied even though it was close to midnight!

We arranged transportation through them- 50% cheaper than taxi. Paid 30$ for round trip pick up for 4. However, they used seemingly a private pick up truck so if more than 4 may not be possible. They met us outside pier, at 10 am then left the resort at 3 PM.

Dive shop was good, equipment fair, and dive masters very good and friendly. They worked around 2 of us being certified and one missing just the checkout dives, so technically discover, but able to come on same dive (with his own dm).

beach/resort was great too for nondivers. nice beach but coral- need aqua shoes really. There is $8 fee for lounger for non divers. the only hitch to this trip was the annoying woman collecting said fee- per dive shop, no need for divers to pay this (we were not spending any time lounging anyway)- but they argued with the woman for a while because she would not back off and compromised to pay $12 for all 4 of us (3 divers, 1 nondiver). did not make sense to me but wanted it to be settled. Did not end up buying anything but there was restaurant on site. cannot comment on pricing. Get there early, all the loungers under palm trees are taken quickly. very few umbrellas, so hard to find shade if coming late.

Lastly, we dove in 2 sites- coral garden and the wall. Coming from Bonaire, this was a slight let down both in the abundance of fish and coral - a lot more dead coral here. But still found a lot of interesting things, including a large moray eel as you begin the descent to coral garden. Few lion fish, some bigger fish deeper but could not make out - tarpon? Overall still enjoyed a lot.

 

Let me know if any questions.

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  • 2 weeks later...

Thanks for this info. My DH has a two tank booked for the morning and I was going to go along and relax on the beach. I'm hoping since we'll be there by 8:30 I won't have a problem getting a lounger with shade? Do you know if the non diver with your group was able to find restrooms available close by? Im hoping we don't encounter the same issue with paying for a lounger for my dh who won't need one since he's diving.

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