Colourful buildings
On the waterfront.
Boris Kasimov from Toronto, Canada — CC BY 2.0 · Matt Kieffer — CC BY-SA 2.0 · Austin Neill arstyy — CC0 · DanielleJWiki — CC BY-SA 4.0
Kralendijk is the capital and main port of Bonaire, on the island's west coast, home to about ten thousand people. Its name comes from a Dutch word meaning «coral dike», and locals call it «Playa», the beach, in Papiamentu. Fort Oranje was built in 1639 to guard the island's main harbour, a small settlement grew beside it, and the Dutch named it Kralendijk in 1830. The present town formed from the merger of several small villages and today looks out over a calm bay facing Klein Bonaire. Yellow and orange houses and buildings line the waterfront, along with cafés and restaurants on the water, and sailing boats moor in the harbour. The water off the town is so clear that dive sites start right from the shore, and from the wooden piers people watch the sun set over the sea. Walking around town is free. The town is small enough to explore on foot, it gets busy when cruise ships are in, and sunset is the best time on the waterfront.
On the waterfront.
Sailing boats.
From the piers.
Kralendijk, Bonaire
Yes, sites start right from the shore.
Yes, easy to explore on foot.