Aruba schedule

[Amolin]

Our stop in Aruba is from 1 - 11. We have never been there before and planned on an island tour and maybe some shopping. Does anyone know how late stores are open in town? What is there to do in the evening other than going out for dinner? Someone told me that stores in town have been closing down and re-opening in the high rise hotel area - does anyone know anything about this? We are thinking of doing the 4 x 4 trip - has anyone tried it? Is it a very big group?

[Hlitner]

We love Aruba and have spent several week-long vacations on the island as well as having stopped there on cruises. We are somewhat underwhelmed by the shopping on the island, but we understand there are some who love to shop anywhere, anytime at anyplace :) Many of the downtown stores that are within walking distance of the cruise port do stay open in the evening...particularly if there is a ship in port. There is also a cute shopping area located all the way out near the Palm Beach hotels/resorts which can be accessed by taking the local bus (about 3 dollars round trip) from the bus station across the street from the cruise port (a few yards to the right when you cross the street) or you can always get taxis. As to the 4x4 trips, it is a lot of fun. The back side of the island is almost like the lunar landscape and is great in a 4 x 4. That being said, it is relatively easy to simply rent a jeep and go on your own which will probably save you quite a chunk of money over booking a tour. If you do want to rent a vehicle (you can also rent regular cars) its probably wise to reserve online for pick-up at the port. They do give you free maps with any rental so we have never thought the tours were worth the extra money....but of course there are many folks who always want to be on a tour. Most of the ships tours cram 4 (or more) in a vehicle while we simply prefer to get our own 4x4 and do our own thing. With a long port day you will actually have enough time to explore a good portion of the island.

 

Hank

[Wefewee]

Our Westerdam Cruise embarking March 4th has Aruba and Curacao switched so we get the part day in Curacao and the full day in Aruba.

We've rented a small car for the day at $50 from Royal Aruba Car Rental - the Jeeps are usually in the $80-$100 range and are indeed mandatory for off-road adventure. Since we plan on heading to two beaches for snorkeling during the day we didn't need the Jeep.

It would be best for you to check for information on the 'Ports' Board - I learned all of the information that I needed there and subsequently booked Royal Aruba for the car. If you can't see what you need, then pose a question re: Car Rentals to that Board.

My only concern (and warning) to you is that you make sure just when the agency closes and requires your vehicle to be returned.

Also, I do recall reading of some pretty disreputable car rental companies there so check thoroughly!

Trip Advisor was also a great help.

Hope it all works out for you!

[cb at sea]

There are restaurants and casinos within easy, easy walking distance of the dock...just make sure you're back to the ship before sailaway!!!

 

Beaches are all public...just hop in a cab. There are restrooms, food/drink/rentals all up and down the beach.

[Y's Owl]

I agree with Hank on the car rental. It's the best way to see the island. The rental car companies will send a car to the port to get you and take you to the rental offices near the airport. From there, continue Southeast to San Nicholas. There you can find some good local shops without all the tourist stuff made in Asia. San Nicholas is where most of the natives live. The rest of the island is touristy or for snowbirds. From Sero Colorado you can take the back roads into the Aricok National Park and slowly drive the roads. You avoid the entrance fee this way. On my last trip, I took along my portable GPS and did Geocaching finds. There are several in the park and at Sero Colorado. Keep working your way around the island in a counter clockwise fashion and you will see the other sites and eventually arrive back at the ship. Just follow the tour buses and you won't get lost;). On my first trip by ship there in 1992, rental cars were only available for persons who needed the car at least 2 days which limited cruise passengers to organized tours or taxis. Because I was born on the island, the car company let me do a daily rental. On my last trip, I learned they no longer had the restriction on car rentals. I had pre-reserved a Jeep for the day, but when I got there, they gave me a free upgrade to Toyota FourRunner! Have a great trip. You cannot possibly have a bad time there.

[tip]

Head over to the DePalm Tours desk at the Renaissance Hotel which is just two or three blocks from the port. Book a sunset sail. You are picked up at the hotel by coach and taken on a 30 minute or so ride to the pier. It is a two hour or so cruise up and down the coast with an open bar, snacks, music, and just a beautiful view. Well worth it! A coach will then return you to the hotel or even the port at about 8-8:30 in plenty of time.

[qiqiangzhu]

Aruba, nice place.

 

Lots of rocks on the otherside of island, very quiet at night, can do some secret things if without moon...:D

[mcduck]

The shops around the pier closed between 6 and 6:30 on our recent stop. Restaurants will be open of course, but there was nothing that special, or anything that can be considered local cusine so we wandered back to the ship for diner.

[Krazy Kruizers]

also keep in mind that everything in aruba is expensive

[Cygneagile]

also keep in mind that everything in aruba is expensive

 

Ha, thank you for the tip. I have been to Aruba several times so I am not taking an excursion this times. My sisters will be doing the excursions on their own. How close is the Casino from the dock? What would they be selling in the stores. More souvernirs and other unnecessary things?

[TrolleyGirl]

In my notes I have saved for things to do in Aruba, I have the Flying Fishbone restaurant. Another couple on CC had reported have a lovely beach sunset dinner at the restaurant. Maybe you could look into that.

[waverley7]

We did the 4x4 with the cruiseline (Princess or Nowegian, can't remember) and we had a blast. It was nice travelling in a convoy like that and we saw a large part of the island.

[JJPacer]

There is a carnival in Oranjestad, that goes into the evening.

[bepsf]

If you're there on a Sunday, most all the shops are closed.

Either go to the beach or take an excursion which take you to the far side of the island to the Natural Bridges, the Lighthouse and the Ostrich Farm or an ATV tour.

[DiscoMom]

We just got off the Noordam. We had signed up for the 4x4 tour of the island and canceled when it said you had to be able to handle a 4-wheel drive. I haven't in so long that I didn't want to chance it. We ended up going to DePalm Island. They take you from the dock to a short boat ride to the island, It's all inclusive(unlimited drinks/bar drinks, burgers,etc, all snorkeling equipment and banana boat rides) They have salsa lessons and very clean restrooms and changing facilities. Lockers are available if you want. We were with a group of about 50 and we all had a great time. Snorkle was awesome!

 

Lisa

[2tsquared]

We were on the Zuiderdam in Jan 2010. In Aruba, we arranged an afternoon tour with Green Zebra Adventures. They use "TomCars", and if you can drive forward and put a car in reverse, then you can drive the Tomcar. We had a group of 3 cars, each of us 2 per vehicle. I had so much fun driving that I made my DH play passenger almost the whole time!

 

Head over to the Ports of Call, Aruba board and you can see my review of our time with Green Zebra along with reviews of other private tour vendors. Seeing sites other than "just the beach" truly made Aruba a wonderful trip! So much so, we repeating the same cruise again this November! :)