5 GREAT reasons to dive Curacao this Christmas and New Years

If you haven't decided where to spend your Christmas and / or New Years dive vacation yet? 

 

Here are a bunch of reasons why Curacao should be at the top of your list:

Reason #1: 

It'll be at least 85 degrees of sun, sun and more sun in Curacao. So you could be shoveling ice into your cocktail on the beach, instead of shoveling snow off of your driveway.

Reason #2:

At a balmy 80(ish) degrees, Curacao’s ocean temperature will be warmer than your air temperature back home.

Reason #3: 

:

Instead of freezing your butt off at home, you could be chilling out at one of Curacao's many, many beach-bars. 

After another day of fabulous shore diving. 

Before heading out for dinner in one of Curacao's many many awesome restaurants, like this one:

 

Reason #4:

This year's Curacao Christmas festivities begin on 16 November with the arrival of "Sinterklaas" and his band of "Black Piets", by boat, in downtown Willemstad:

 

They’ll be making surprise appearances all around the island, entertaining and collecting / handing out bucket loads of candy and speculaas cookies, before setting sail again on 6 December.

More fun Curacao Christmas events and festivities not to miss include:

• the lighting of the Christmas tree…
• Christmas Parade
• Christmas Village
  

Reason #5:

For a New Years Eve (or "Old Year's Eve" as the Dutch call it) you'll never forget, spend it in Curacao. 

It's a spectacular, erm, spectacle, with the island's night sky exploding spectacularly. For hours and hours and hours.

Conveniently for divers and dive instructors who can't manage to stay awake until midnight, celebrations begin at 5pm on 31 December, coinciding with midnight in Holland and beer o’clock at The Dive Bus.

While we chill out with a cold beer or 2, Curacao home and business owners set off gigantic chains of “pagaras”, to banish evil spirits and clear the way for good one (and deafen bystanders). Like the annual Pietermaai pagara, the biggest on the island:

 
 

Made from red, biodegradable paper, the exploding pagaras sound like rapid machine gunfire: deafeningly loud. We can hear the Pietermaai pagara from the dive center, 2 miles away.

Then, as soon dusk begins to fall, hotels, bars and restaurants up, down, across and around the island unleash their incredible firework displays to the skies.

The intensity, frequency and grandeur of the fireworks increase as midnight draws closer and there's absolutely NO possibility of missing or sleeping though the New Year without serious pharmaceutical assistance. Even residents of Bonaire can see and hear Curacao’s fireworks, too.

You can be certain there'll be no bad spirits still hanging around in Curacao by 1 January. Only the pagaras’ red ‘petals’ lining the streets until they dissolve - and maybe a few bad heads...

Reason #6:

Because diving in Curacao OFFICIALLY rocks.

That's why Curacao made it to the top 10 in several categories in the Scuba Diving magazine's 2020 Reader Choice Awards

AND

Both Curacao and The Dive Bus reached the final 25 in this year's DIVE Travel Awards  - for the 2nd year in a row!

TOP TIP:

If you're hoping or planning to be in Curacao for your Christmas and / or New Years dive vacation, book early! 

And if you're hoping or planning on diving with us at The Dive Bus - and especially on a DRIVE + DIVE Package - you might want to get in touch asap. Vehicle availability is always limited at this busy time of year and our opening hours / days change over the holidays... 

Here for info about flights to Curacao.    

Not quite in the festive planning mood yet?
This fun blast-from-the-past may help:

  

  

Wherever you spend Christmas and New Years,
we hope it's your best EVER
and hope to see you soon!  

#curacaochristmas #caribbeanchristmas #christmasdivevacation #thedivebus #divecuracao #divebuscuracao #@newyear #divevacation #rightnowincuracao #curacao #CHATA #PADI #driveanddive #seriouslyfundiving