Aruba

i went here when i was young, but i remember it. it was beautiful. i want to visit again now that i can really enjoy it and explore and really make an experience out of it.

We went here on our honeymoon in July 2005 and it was beautiful, relaxing, and all around just wonderful!

I’m going on my honeymoon here! Hope I like it. I’ve never been one for sand and sun.

beuuuuuuutiful

Nice beaches, good snorkeling, the people are nice, and very good overall facilities for an island destination. Since it’s a colony of Holland, it’s overall well developed, but not too much that it interferes with a seriously relaxing vacation.

I absolutely LOVE Aruba! To me there is no better place on earth! I have been going yearly since 1999, and I feel like I’m returning ‘home’ every time. The beaches, people, food, the local tap water!, weather are all amazing! I can’t wait until my next trip!

We stayed at the Divi all-inclusive on the beach. It was great! You can hit the buffet for meals, or relax at the pizza bar for a snack, there are bars at both ends with all kinds of drink specials. The desk can hook you up with all kinds of adventures or rent a car for a DIY day. We drove from the lighthouse up North all the way to Arikok National Park to enjoy this bizarre seaside desert with volcanic rock and caves. There are snazzy lizards running around everywhere (but they never bother you or come too close). The beaches are great. We snorkelled at Baby Beach for around 3 hours until we were too beat to see anymore. Did the dives at Malmok Reef, Pedernales Wreck and Antilla Wreck – super cool! We also wandered around various parts of the islands checking out the local sites. Downtown Oranjestad has an Indian restaurant called Taj Mahal that we become rather fond of. Riding the bus was cheap and easy. You will never need a cab here. Twice, people saw us walking and were kind enough to pick us up and let us ride along to our destination. There are also little golf cart-like shuttles that run around to various places. Most expeditions will come pick you up from your hotel for free and return you.

The catamaran cruises looked like fun, full of happy people getting off, but we aren’t boat people.

Baby Beach is a must-do for snorkellers. Kids can swim there in the powder soft sand lined shallow waters.

Arikok National Park is HOT. Bring tons of water, a good hat, sunblock, and rent an A/C car for sure. There is a decent eatery on the coast inside the park where you can pick up more water and a good hot or cold meal.

I love Aruba. I almost cried when we had to leave. I hope to return here someday, maybe for Carnival!

Tip: Even though the prices here rival buying things in the states, the amazing friendly locals working hard to keep you happy there are not being paid exorbitant salaries, so tip well! They deserve it!

Tip2: Drink lots of Belashi, the local beer. It’s good!

I had fun for the most part. I learned a new game while scuba-diving, it was called “let’s swallow the ocean”. Obviously that wasn’t the fun part, but the rest of the trip was great.

Bonus points if you speak Dutch as most of the locals do too.

This is a beautiful island, but the reason why I said it is not worth visiting is because it is so windy here. As far as I understand, it is like this all the time.

but that’s okay. It was beautiful in the weirdest way. I went on a 7 1/2 hour off road adventure in an open-top Jeep and it was amazing. I never imagined Aruba to be so rugged. The ocean was rough and the sands rockier than sandy. If you get the opportunity, go on the off-road adventure and visit the fort along the way and also try and see all of the natural bridges.