Bonaire Money Guide

A Dutch Island That Uses Dollars

The 2010 switch. When the Netherlands Antilles was dissolved on 10 October 2010, Bonaire, together with Saba and Sint Eustatius, became a special municipality of the Netherlands, the "Caribbean Netherlands". Three months later, on 1 January 2011, it dropped the Antillean guilder for the US dollar. The euro was considered and rejected: the island's tourism, imports and economy were already tied to the dollar.

What that means for visitors. For Americans there is nothing to exchange; prices are in dollars, and change comes in American coins. For Dutch visitors it is a surprise: a trip to a Dutch municipality where nothing is priced in euros, the post goes through a separate system and the bank card at home treats it as abroad.

The ABC muddle. Bonaire's neighbours do not match. Aruba uses the Aruban florin, and Curacao the new Caribbean guilder, introduced in 2025. US dollars are accepted on both, but change comes in local money. If you are island-hopping, keep the dollars for Bonaire.

The $75 Visitor Entry Tax

Paid once per visit. Since July 2022, Bonaire has charged a Visitor Entry Tax instead of the old per-night hotel tax. It costs $75 per person aged 13 and over and $10 for children aged 12 and under, and covers one visit of up to a month. Cruise passengers pay a reduced rate, collected by the cruise line.

Card only. Pay online on the government's tourism tax site, which opens seven days before arrival, or at the Entry Tax counter at Flamingo Airport. Both accept credit and debit cards only; cash is not accepted. Paying ahead saves a queue after a long flight.

Who it goes to. The tax is collected by the island government, not by hotels or tour operators, so do not expect to see it on your hotel bill. Keep the confirmation email with your passport.

The $40 STINAPA Nature Fee

A separate charge. Bonaire's reefs are a protected marine park, run by the foundation STINAPA, and almost everyone who comes here goes in the water. The nature fee costs $40 per person and is valid for the calendar year. It is required for diving, snorkelling, swimming, kayaking and windsurfing in the marine park, and for entry to Washington Slagbaai National Park.

How to pay. Buy it online by card before you travel, or at a dive shop on arrival. You receive a tag or a digital proof; rangers check it at dive sites and at the park gate. Children under 13 are generally exempt.

So, a dive trip in fees. A couple diving for a week pays $150 in entry tax and $80 in nature fees before the first tank. Budget for both.

Why Dutch and European Cards Charge a Fee Here

Netherlands, but not the EU. Bonaire is part of the Netherlands but is an overseas territory outside the European Union, and it uses dollars. Dutch and other European banks therefore process a payment or withdrawal in Bonaire as a non-euro transaction: you pay the bank's exchange margin and, depending on the account, a fee for paying or withdrawing outside the eurozone.

For American cards. A dollar purchase from a Bonaire merchant is still a purchase made abroad, and most US issuers apply their foreign transaction fee, often 3 percent, even though no currency changes hands. A card with no foreign transaction fee avoids it.

The dollar-or-euro screen. Some terminals offer European cards the option to pay in euros. Choose dollars: the terminal's rate is worse than your own card's. Our DCC explainer covers the arithmetic.

Cash vs. Card in Bonaire

Cards almost everywhere. Hotels, dive shops, restaurants, the supermarkets and car hire desks take Visa and Mastercard, and contactless is common. Many dive operators add a small card surcharge or offer a cash discount.

Cash for the small things. Carry $40 to $80 for the snack trucks and truki pan food vans, small local restaurants in Rincon, the occasional beach bar, the water taxi to Klein Bonaire, roughly $20 to $30 return, and tips. Small notes help; $50 and $100 bills are unpopular.

The supermarket bill. Almost everything is imported, so groceries cost more than in the US or the Netherlands, and Dutch brands sit next to American ones. Self-catering divers find the large supermarkets on the edge of Kralendijk the cheapest.

Best ATMs to Use in Bonaire

Bonaire's machines dispense US dollars. Expect a fee from the machine's owner, shown on screen, plus whatever your own bank charges. There is no Bank of America Global ATM Alliance partner on the island.

MCB (Maduro & Curiel's Bank)

The largest bank in the former Netherlands Antilles, with the most branches and machines on Bonaire, in Kralendijk and at the larger supermarkets.

Top Pick

RBC Royal Bank

The Canadian bank's Caribbean arm has machines in central Kralendijk. A reliable alternative when an MCB machine is empty.

Recommended

Banco di Caribe

A Curacao-based bank with a Kralendijk branch and machine. Accepts foreign cards; fees can be a little higher.

Recommended

Machines in Kralendijk sometimes run out of cash on busy weekends and cruise-ship days. Rincon, the island's other town, has very few. See our Bonaire airport guide for arrivals.

Pickup Trucks, Shore Diving and Getting Around

A pickup and a tank. Bonaire's reefs start a few metres from the road, and the island's signature is shore diving: hire a pickup truck, collect tanks from your dive shop, and drive to the yellow-painted stones that mark the sites. Truck hire costs roughly $60 to $90 a day, by credit card with a deposit. Dive shops sell unlimited shore-diving packages by the week.

Leave nothing in the truck. Theft from parked cars at dive sites is common enough that locals leave windows down and the cab empty. Take nothing you would mind losing, including cash and cards.

Taxis. There is no public bus for visitors. Taxis charge fixed fares set by the island; the ride from the airport to Kralendijk hotels costs roughly $15 to $25. Confirm the fare before setting off.

Tipping in Bonaire

Check for a service charge. Many restaurants add a service charge of 10 to 15 percent; if they have, a small extra for good service is enough. If not, leave 10 to 15 percent. Dive guides and boat crews are tipped in the American way, a few dollars a dive or $20 to $40 at the end of a week, in cash.

Frequently Asked Questions

Bonaire money toolkit

Deep-dive guides for specific banks, airports, and traveler nationalities in Bonaire. Each one builds on this overview with card-by-card fee math, exact ATM locations, or terminal-by-terminal directions.

Go deeper: Bonaire and the Caribbean Netherlands

Bonaire is the B in the ABC islands, and each of the three uses a different currency. If you are combining them, or arriving through Curacao, the guides below cover the florin and the guilder. Saba and Sint Eustatius, the other two Caribbean Netherlands islands, also use the US dollar.