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Wide panorama of a shallow coral reef off Klein Bonaire with schooling snappers, sea fans and brain coral

Bonaire · Caribbean Netherlands · Reef

Playa Funchi

A national park beach with plantation ruins and jacks offshore

Area photo: Michal Strzelecki, Wojtek Strzelecki & Jerzy Strzelecki · CC BY 3.0

Playa Funchi is a beach inside Washington Slagbaai National Park, at the far north of Bonaire, where the reef is reached by a swim out from the sand. The remains of an old plantation foundation are still recognisable at the site, and horse-eye jacks work the blue water off the reef. Currents here can be strong.

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Where it is and how deep

Depth profile of Playa Funchi: typical dive 5–30 m (15–100 ft) 18 m · Open Water30 m · Advanced40 m · Recreational limit5 m30 mtypical dive
Depths on a shared scale to 40 m (130 ft); dashed lines mark common certification limits.

12.2825° N, 68.4146° WPublished position for this site.

The dive

Check the water before committing, because Playa Funchi can run strong currents and the entry is a long way from anywhere on the island. From the beach it is a bit of a swim out to the reef, and on the way you can pick out the remains of the foundation of an old plantation, which is the one piece of the site that is not made of coral.

Once on the reef, work along it in the direction the current allows and let it decide the shape of the dive rather than fighting to cover ground. Horse-eye jacks come through in the blue water off the reef, so give the open side of the dive regular attention. Turn early enough that the swim back to the beach is comfortable, and finish shallow over the reef top near the plantation remains.

Marine life and season

  • Trevally & jacks
Month-by-month season rating for Playa Funchi
JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
GoodGoodGoodGoodGoodGoodGoodGoodGoodGoodGoodGood

Season follows Bonaire: The sea stays diveable all year; the water is at its coolest in late December and January.

Know before you go

  • The current at Playa Funchi can be strong, and the reef is a swim offshore from the beach — plan the return before you leave the sand.

Questions divers ask

Is there current at Playa Funchi?+

There can be. Playa Funchi is a reef where currents can run strong, which sets it apart from most of Bonaire's calm leeward sites and is worth checking from the beach before you swim out.

Sources

  1. Playa Funchi dive site — Bonaire Island
  2. Playa Funchi (3) — Scubago

More dive sites in Bonaire

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1000 Steps

A staircase entry onto a reef that tips over at 9 metres

to 40 madvanced

Reef

Andrea I

Plate coral on a shallow slope you can walk into

6–30 mintermediate

Reef

Andrea II

A big, quiet shore reef with parking right by the entry

6–30 mintermediate

Reef

Angel City

Two parallel reefs reached from one beach entry

4.5–18 m · max 30 mbeginner

Reef

Bachelor’s Beach

Easy shore entry onto a sloping reef often dived at night

6–27 mintermediate

Reef

Bari's Reef

Over 300 fish species recorded, the most in the Caribbean

9–30 mintermediate

Wall

Carl’s Hill

Elkhorn and pillar coral on a bank above a deep reef drop

9–40 madvanced

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Isabella Reef

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Tarpon and jack schools over a drop-off at 25 m

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