Curacao, aruba, princess cays

[ss75511]

Hi! My mom and I are traveling on the Crown Princess over Christmas and we will be going to Aruba, Curacao, and the Princess Cays....

 

Does anyone have any particular tips or recommendations for things to do while in these places?!

 

What about the best beaches & best restaurants?

 

Thanks so much!!

[-Lew-]

You might want to also check the Aruba and Curaçao boards.

 

Lew

[mafig]

Crown did this itinerary the beginning of this year, so you might want to check the Review section and see what others did then.

Edited November 7, 2013 by mafig

[skynight]

Hi! My mom and I are traveling on the Crown Princess over Christmas and we will be going to Aruba, Curacao, and the Princess Cays....

 

Does anyone have any particular tips or recommendations for things to do while in these places?!

 

What about the best beaches & best restaurants?

 

Thanks so much!!

 

Are you sailing on Dec 21st. Check out the roll call for your cruise. Here is the direct link http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1762219. Also check out Princess tours on the Cruise Personalizer. You are scheduled to be in Curacao on Christmas Eve from 2pm until 10pm and in Aruba on Christmas Day. Some of the stores may not be open. I would check through the web to if there are any special local Christmas activities at these two ports.

 

In Curacao you dock on the north side of the inlet. You have to walk across the pontoon bridge to get to the main street. It is the street you see in all the photos that runs along the waterfront. Allow yourself enough time to return to the ship. Your return could be delayed if the pontoon bridge is open. It's a very long taxi ride around the harbor. Curacao is not known for its beaches, and arriving at 2pm does not really allow much daylight. Sunset is around 6PM.

 

In Aruba you dock right in town. The main shopping area is right along the waterfront. There are stores and restaurants there, but it will be Christmas Day. Eagle Beach is a short taxi ride away and a little further is Palm Beach. Aruba has nice beaches.

 

Princess Cays is a beach. You can book tours outside of the Princess Cays property, but why not just enjoy the beach. Your ship will be the only one there. Princess serves a buffet lunch at two different locations on the beach. It's burgers, dogs, chicken, ribs, salads, etc. You eat at picnic tables. Bar drinks are available from roaming waiters and at the beach bar. You pay with your cruise card. There is an area just outside of the Princess property where locals sell things. If you plan to go there bring along a photo ID and some cash. If you want to get to the beach early, pick up your tender ticket early.

[Liz54]

Are you sailing on Dec 21st. Check out the roll call for your cruise. Here is the direct link http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1762219. Also check out Princess tours on the Cruise Personalizer. You are scheduled to be in Curacao on Christmas Eve from 2pm until 10pm and in Aruba on Christmas Day. Some of the stores may not be open. I would check through the web to if there are any special local Christmas activities at these two ports.

 

In Curacao you dock on the north side of the inlet. You have to walk across the pontoon bridge to get to the main street. It is the street you see in all the photos that runs along the waterfront. Allow yourself enough time to return to the ship. Your return could be delayed if the pontoon bridge is open. It's a very long taxi ride around the harbor. Curacao is not known for its beaches, and arriving at 2pm does not really allow much daylight. Sunset is around 6PM.

 

In Aruba you dock right in town. The main shopping area is right along the waterfront. There are stores and restaurants there, but it will be Christmas Day. Eagle Beach is a short taxi ride away and a little further is Palm Beach. Aruba has nice beaches.

 

Princess Cays is a beach. You can book tours outside of the Princess Cays property, but why not just enjoy the beach. Your ship will be the only one there. Princess serves a buffet lunch at two different locations on the beach. It's burgers, dogs, chicken, ribs, salads, etc. You eat at picnic tables. Bar drinks are available from roaming waiters and at the beach bar. You pay with your cruise card. There is an area just outside of the Princess property where locals sell things. If you plan to go there bring along a photo ID and some cash. If you want to get to the beach early, pick up your tender ticket early.

 

Just what I was going to say! We had a nice wander around in the town in Curacao, the Eagle Beach by cab in Aruba. Both very relaxing. Agree on Princess Cays!

[geoherb]

We enjoyed the Ultimate Balcony Dinner while our ship was docked in Curacao a couple of years ago. It's the perfect setting, with the beautiful view of the town at sunset. We took an island tour during the afternoon--one of those you can book right at the dock for a lot less than on the ship. The best part of Curacao, in my opinion, is right there in town. It's very picturesque.

 

In Aruba, we took a cab to Eagle Beach and rode the public bus back. Now that we've had experience with the buses, we'll probably do it both ways the next time we're in Aruba.

[zahav1]

I would also suggest that you check TripAdvisor.com, great suggestions there

[Arubalisa]

Stores in Aruba will be closed Christmas day.

[karabear15]

We did this exact itinerary for New Years, it wad awesome. We did miss Princess Cays as the waters were too rough to tender. Be aware that Aruba and Curacao have trade winds always blowing...we had a pretty rough night due to high seas because the winds were so strong, no storms or anything all wind...so many of the people I traveled with had to take dramamine. I would suggest bringing it along regardless if you don't think you get sea sick. My mom has never been sea sick and we've done rough seas before, but she needed it that night.

 

Sent from my EVO using Forums mobile app

[GradUT]

When we were in Aruba on a Princess cruise a few years ago, we did the 4-hour sail-and-snorkel excursion offered by Princess. (We were only in port until 1pm, so we didn't have enough time for a private snorkel trip as those were all-day trips.) The catamaran runs to Catalina Beach, one of the better snorkel areas on Aruba, and stops in two places for snorkeling, one of them being the wreck of a German freighter. Even if you don't snorkel, it's a nice ride on a boat and it's all-you-can-drink rum punches on the sail back to the ship! Since the trip only lasts 4 hours, you should have time to catch a taxi or bus to Eagle Beach and enjoy the beach for a couple of hours before you have to be back on board ship.

 

I doubt that many, if any, private tours will be running on Christmas Day, so your best bet to see any of the island will be a ship's excursion.

[ss75511]

Thank you so much for the info, we are definitely snorklers/beachy types. My mom isn't much for the thrill-type excursions (atvs, jeeps, watersports, etc)...even though those would be right up my alley, I think this trip is going to be more laid back and relaxing. READY to disembark :)

[jennmaybe]

Are you sailing on Dec 21st. Check out the roll call for your cruise. Here is the direct link http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1762219.

 

I can't quite figure out why when people ask for suggestions in ports, they are directed to their role call so many times. Why would the assumption be made that they don't know about their role call?

 

We are on the Crown next month as well, but our role call is the most boring role call I've ever been a part of. So boring, that I haven't checked it in a long time. They would never be able to help me with excursion questions, especially if they are first-timers to the islands as well. They were more concerned with scheduling cabin crawls and slot pulls than anything. I did ask my role call what everyone was doing in Aruba & Curacao, but I did not get a single response. Not one! So, I don't bother with it anymore.