with all sorts of activities— blow-karting, jungle biking, kayaking, and of course, learning the fundamentals of scuba diving. In the after- noons, we’d reunite as a family, often ending the day with drinks on the beach, watching a hoard of kids diving and splashing in the crystal blue water.There was something magical about seeing them put down their iPads and phones, engage with other kids, and genu- inely appreciate paradise. SO MANY KSC VACATIONS Bonaire is not just about diving.We visited the Donkey Sanctuary, which cares for over 700 rescued donkeys, including a nurs- ery. Kinds Sea Camps visits contribute to keeping the facility open and providing food, water, and medical care to the island population.The kids are loaded into trucks and armed with bread and carrots to feed the curi- ous donkeys. Nothing is funnier than watching one of your kids get a full face lick by a donkey, or better yet, losing a flip-flop to an over-ambitious creature. We also enjoyed sailing on a sunset cruise aboard an authentic pirate ship, with rum punches in our hands and plenty of jumping off the blank upon our return.
agers. He completed a night adventure dive, Peak Perfor- mance Buoyancy adventure dive, boat adventure dive, photo dive, and shore dive to earn his PADI certification. Lucy finally became a PADI Junior open-water diver earlier in the week, so we had plenty of time to dive together as a family and with her new dive buddies.As a mother, watching your 11-year-old confidently descend to 40 feet is a heart- warming experience. Even more so is witnessing your 16-year-old diving comfortably and easily in 80 feet of water. In addition to diving, donkeys, and dock diving, Bonaire is also known for its kite and windsurfing.The kids even got to pilot land-based blowkarts and cruise around a tire-lined track. Kids Sea Camp offers a full week of engaging activities with plenty of time together and apart. In my opinion, there’s nothing better than Caribbean sunsets, salty ocean breezes, and night skies brimming with stars. We’re blessed to be able to share our love of the ocean with our children and take them on underwater safaris to undersea fantasy worlds. Between the scuba diving, fam- ily karaoke contests, and sandy, exhausted kids, I couldn’t ask for a better family vacation than Kids Sea Camp provides us each year.
received free SCUBAPRO dive gear, including BCD, fins, masks, and snorkels! We loved the safety, quality, and ease of traveling with Kids Sea Camp so much that we also took our family to Grand Cayman. One of the highlights was Sting- ray City, a nature preserve in 10 feet of shallow, clear water where we swam with stingrays. Grand Cayman is also home to a turtle sanctuary with over 2,000 turtles. Lucy got to interact with baby turtles in a shallow pool. In June, we returned to beautiful Bonaire. This time, we were able to dive together as a family—a long-awaited dream come true! Lucas joined the PADI Advanced Open Water program with other teen-
OH MY THE PHILIPPINES Our family continues to choose Kids Sea Camp as our #1 choice for family vaca- tions. Lucy completed her PADI Advanced Open Water course in the Philippines with her KSC instructor, Olivia.The whale sharks were a wow! We dove as a family in Oslob, coming face-to-face with whale sharks in calm, clear water.And how do you possibly top that? Palau for our very first Kids Sea Camp liveaboard trip! Out - standing! M anta, sharks, wild dolphins, and Rock Islands.We’ve created memories with Kids Sea Camp to last a lifetimeand continue each year.
We also ventured to Kids Sea Camp Roatan, Honduras.We enjoyed an- other incredible week of diving, zip-lined through the jungle, and visited Gum- balimba Park.We interacted with iguanas, macaws, and white-faced monkeys in this privately owned eco-adventure park. Lucas did his first-night dive and even got to dive with reef sharks, all with private instructors and experienced kid-friendly staff. Lucy, at 8, transitioned to the PADI SEAL program, the next step to becoming a junior open water diver, which pre- pares kids with basic skills and buoyancy through fun Aqua missions.The kids even
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