After many years of booking clients into the Bellafonte Chateau de la Mer, seeing management changes, making regular inspections and listening to feedback, we felt it was time to become more intimately acquainted. That only happens when you actually stay at a particular property long enough to formulate “here is what we experienced and what others might expect”.
So when Robbert Eriks, manager of Bellafonte, suggested we stay in one of the 2 bedroom oceanfront Grand Suites on our recent visit, my only hesitation was if it would work for a family with two young children (ours are nine and seven). Being that our kids are not the unruly types, we figured we could pass muster for the quiet elegance of Bellafonte.
It doesn’t take long for the relaxing ambiance of this place to seduce you – even with excited young ones hurriedly exploring and peering over the balcony to the beckoning Caribbean. Robbert got us oriented with our spacious apartment, which by design opens fully to take advantage of the cooling trade winds. We were never hot using the natural ventilation during the day and only used the AC in bedrooms at night when we were sleeping.
Soothing neutral colors are offset by both dark East Indies hardwood and contemporary furniture – producing a simple sophistication that we found durable and cozy. The bedrooms (with memory-foam type mattresses), and bathrooms (with Gilchrist and Soames toiletries) were large in size and wife-pleasing, while Bellafonte’s wireless internet signal, the TV’s Disney Channel and the ample number of outlets for charging Nintendos, satisfied our technical team.
We made quick work of our simple grocery needs, as the Cultimara and Warehouse stores are less than ten minutes drive away. Bellafonte’s kitchens are well equipped and good looking with stainless steel appliances and mahogany accents. It proved more than adequate for our daily breakfast and lunch drills. For those wanting to cook in (and out), there’s an electric Hibachi style grill for use on the teak-furnished balconies and patios.
It is the balcony that served as our ultimate living space, stretching across the entire width of the living area and master bedroom, with wide-opening doors from both rooms giving way to stunning views of the sea. We anchored our Bonaire map on the table with hurricane candles, adjusted seating throughout the day for sun or shade, ate meals, plotted adventures, and celebrated sunsets from our second floor perch.
Although there were other guests on property (with even more well mannered children in the family below us), we found Bellafonte to be one of the most serene places on the island. Excitement is generated by pods of dolphins and turtles ambling just beyond the pier or by the landing-bound aircraft that fly past.
Bellafonte’s location near the approach path to Flamingo Airport, less than a couple of miles away, is more of a treat than a nuisance, although I did wake from the brief roar of takeoff in the wee hours, courtesy of KLM’s MD-11 to Ecuador. Our kids, in the bedroom closest to the airport, heard nothing.
As snorkeling was the twice daily activity for introducing our offspring to the underwater realm, Bellafonte became an ideal place for our last call for adventure. It’s entry via their long pier, with its wide stair ladder, was appreciated most by our tentative daughter (in contrast to her older brother’s kowabunga giant stride off the end).
There are plenty of fish to see around the dock pilings and sandy shallows found in this section of Bonaire’s coastline. But my son and I were constantly swimming out to the drop-off, some 20 yards beyond, and free-diving down to the dense coral that marks the reef’s descent – both of us, I think, anticipating exploration together when he becomes certified for scuba.
We lolled around the garden level terrace following each afternoon’s last snorkel, rinsing gear, showering off the days’ salt, hot-tubing and gazing through binoculars at Klein Bonaire and Kralendijk’s harbor front.
Once back upstairs, we traded wet suits for dry shorts and enjoyed the magic hour as the sun slipped down, watching the evening colors wash brilliantly over the scene. Then we hopped into town or beyond for another wonderful dinner.
It’s a pace (and peace) that could never get old while staying at Bellafonte.
Call us at 800-748-8733 0r 817-416-2580 or email me at rep@bonairepros.com … this place is awesome!
Andy
