Bonaire literally translates as 'good air'. This might give you some indication as to just how salubrious Bonaire is. The second-largest island in the Dutch Antilles teems with contrasts, its desert-like terrain offset by its inviting turquoise waters. On parts of the island, giant salt lakes loom on the horizon. Beneath the water's surface, rainbow-hued fish drift in between coral.

Indeed, Bonaire is paradise for watersports lovers. The translucency of the sea beckons you in to go diving and snorkeling. Some argue it is the best to be found in the Caribbean, since Bonaire's relative lack of tourism has meant that much of its coral has gone undisturbed. For those seeking sailing or windsurfing, those characteristic divi divi trees, with their windswept postures, convey that Bonaire's climate – warm, dry and breezy – is ideal for these sorts of activities.

Scattered amidst such delights are eerie remnants of Bonaire's connection to the slave trade, such as its glaring white slave huts. When the Dutch had settled in Bonaire in 1634 and later consolidated their position as colonial rulers, the Dutch West Indies Company introduced economic development schemes for which they imported hundreds of slave workers. The abolition of slavery and the end of the plantations which depended on slave labor heralded a long period of economic depression, but as an indigenous economy began to emerge in the 1950s, Bonaire entered its current phase of comparative prosperity. Bonaire is justly proud of its leap out of depression, but there is a noticeable keenness on the island to not buffer its economic situation by expanding tourism to the island.

In fact, Bonaire is the least developed of all the ABC Islands (together with Aruba and Curacao). Instead, the island is highly eco-friendly and keen not to impair the fragile infrastructure of the coral, nor unsettle Bonaire's serenity with heavy development and glitzy nightlife. The Marine Park set up by Bonaire in 1979 enforces a strict maintenance policy for these very reasons. Consequently, Bonaire's beautiful beaches and safe waters have remained intact. Flamingos still wander the landscape of multi-hued salt plains; some even say that they outnumber Bonaire's human population. Multitudes of birds seek sanctuary in Bonaire, and any visitor to the island should be as alert to the sky as to the sea.

Don't come to Bonaire if you are seeking razzmatazz and revelry – but if you want to celebrate a bit of nature at its loveliest, then this is the place to come.

Geography
Bonaire is the second-largest island in the Netherlands Antilles and is located 80km (50 miles) north of Venezuela and 48km (30 miles) east of Curaçao. The landscape is flat and rocky and, owing to low annual rainfall, Bonaire has a fairly barren desert climate. The island has small beautiful beaches and safe waters.