Experience the best of Kralendijk

Kralendijk lies on the sheltered western coast of Bonaire, a flat, dry island off the coast of Venezuela that belongs to the Netherlands. Pastel-coloured buildings line the waterfront, and Fort Oranje stands at the harbour. Just offshore lies the uninhabited islet of Klein Bonaire, and the reef around both is protected as a marine park, set up in 1979, which has made the island a centre of shore diving.

In the south, shallow salt pans turn pink and white, and coloured obelisks mark where ships once loaded salt, beside tiny stone huts that housed enslaved workers. Flamingos feed in the nearby lagoons. The north is wilder, with cactus-covered hills in Washington Slagbaai National Park, while at Lac Bay windsurfers and kayakers use the shallow, mangrove-edged water.

Bonaire cooks goat stew, grilled fish and fried plantain, along with pastechi, pastries filled with cheese or meat. Papiamentu and Dutch are the island's main languages. It lies south of the usual hurricane track and gets little rain, with steady trade winds, so the weather stays warm and dry through most of the year.