Aruba...expensive but worth it!
Written: May 05 '05
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Product Rating:
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Pros: beautiful beaches, people are friendly, lots to do
Cons: phone service, restaurants can be expensive
The Bottom Line: Go to Aruba, you will love it!
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| slynners's Full Review: Aruba |
I recently (june/july 2004) went to Aruba for my honeymoon.
I have very little criticism for this beautiful island.
We stayed at the Marriott Ocean Club, which is a timeshare located at the end of Palm Beach, where all of the high rise hotels are located. Because it is at the end, the beach is slightly less crowded. The Ocean Club itself is a beautiful complex, with a wonderful pool with waterfalls, a jacuzzi surrounded by rocks, and plenty of lounge chairs.
Our condo was nicely decorated, very clean, nothing to complain about. They are going to be redecorating soon, they had the swatches of the new fabrics/colors displayed in the lobby. The employees are really friendly, they always had smiles and greetings for you. Some asked how we were enjoying our time on the island.
The beach was beautiful. You have to get up rather early to reserve a palapa, but we were up anyway, so no big deal. We usually got first row palapas, although our last day there, people who had just arrived plopped down directly in front of us. We were just a little peeved. I guess they didn't know the unwritten rule of not sitting in front of someone's palapa. The palapas came in handy, as there is a little shelf to set things on, and hooks to hang towels, rafts, etc.
Every morning, we got up, reserved a hut, ate breakfast, and went down to the beach. There are employees waiting to set up your lounge chair for you so your towel doesn't fly away,as it is very windy there. We bypassed the workers, who expect a tip for something that is quite easy to do, and just did it ourselves. The beach does get hot, so we would go in the water quite frequently. The seawater is very warm and clear. There is some seaweed in certain areas. It is a little slimy and clouds the water, but you can easily avoid it. Just staring at the turquoise water was my favorite thing to do!
We wanted to explore the island, so we did a Jeep Tour with ABC. I highly recommend this tour. The tour guide was hilarious! We only did a half day tour, that is plenty of time. We saw several sites, such as an ostrich farm, where we fed them, ruins from a gold mine, the rugged side of island (beautiful scenery, definitely bring your camera!)
and the Natural Pool, which is a small body of seawater that is surrounded by rocks. You can snorkel there, although it is a small area. The rocks are sharp, and you are not permitted to wear aqua shoes. We enjoyed this trip thoroughly. Our jeep was all honeymooners.
We also did a snorkel tour with Jolly Pirates. It is a very fun tour with a party atmosphere. It includes all the beverages you can drink, and a small lunch. There is a rope swing that you can use, too. We visited 3 different sites. Two are in shallow(7-8 ft.) water. The third is in deep, choppy water. Everyone wore life jackets for that one. I thought it was well worth the money, and it seemed like everyone enjoyed themselves.
We also went horseback riding with Rancho Notorious. I would HIGHLY recommend this particular company, as everyone speaks fluent English, unlike some of the other tours. We did the 2 hour tour along the countryside and beach. The horses are very gentle and respond to your commands. I had never gone horseback riding before, and it took me awhile to figure out how to sit without feeling like I was going to fall off. Once you do, it is so much fun!
Restaurants:
Highly recommended: The Pirate's Nest at Bucuti Beach Resort. We did the sunset dinner. It is $75 for a 5 course meal out in the sand with your own waiter. It also includes a bottle of wine. That's a great deal for Aruba. Everything was excellent and our waitress was so sweet. It was very romantic, dining while the sun set. We have some great pictures from that night.
Many of the restaurants in Aruba are pricy, it's just the nature of the island, since many things are imported. You can find cheaper restaurants if you really need to. We ate a pizza place one night (Tomato Charlie's), the pizza was decent, although the service was terrible (too slow).
My only real complaint about Aruba is it's phone service. Whatever you do, do not call from the hotel phone, it is ridiculously expensive. If you use the public phones that advertise int'l calling, they charge you $14/minute. We bought a phone card from a kiosk down the street, they only work in certain phones, of which the closest was at the Holiday Inn (next to Marriott). We went there, stood in line, and then figured out that we bought the wrong kind of card, according to the person next in line. I was not happy... luckily we found a very inexpensive cyber/phone cafe in Oranjestad thatwas 50 cents a minute or something like that. Too bad we didn't know about it until the next to the last day we were there!
We really enjoyed the main city of Oranjestad. There are many clubs, restaurants, etc. You feel very safe there, even at night. There were a couple of "pharmacists" who sat on street corners and said "Ganja?" as we walked by. We ignored them and they left us alone.
I cannot say enough great things about this island. I can't wait to go again to visit restaurants and other places that we didn't get a chance to visit this time.
Recommended:
Yes
Best Suited For: Couples
Best Time to Travel Here: Anytime
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Epinions.com ID:
slynners
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Location: PA
Reviews written: 24
Trusted by: 0 members
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