Rental Car vs. Taxi vs. bus line

[Jillbus]

I need some help planning our day in Aruba.

We plan to head to Mangel Halto to snorkel from the port,

maybe have some lunch, then take a sunset cruise from Palm Beach, ending up with

dinner near the port.

Any thoughts on how we should handle transportation?

 

Thank you!:cool::cool:

[Hatteras51]

You will be heading in entirely different directions. Mangle Halto would be an expensive taxi ride, and you would have to make arrangements with the taxi driver to come back and pick you up . You would probably be better off renting a car for the day.

[richg35]

Although I am usually an advocate of mass transit, I wouldn't rely on the bus in Aruba. In two trips there I barely saw a bus. The schedule is very infrequent - about 1 bus per hour in any direction. I guess if that works for you and the bus is close enough to where you are going you could give it a shot.

 

We have always rented a car for our air/land vacations in Aruba and it's the easiest way around. We have never used taxis so I can't comment on cost or friendliness of service.

[Jillbus]

Although I am usually an advocate of mass transit, I wouldn't rely on the bus in Aruba. In two trips there I barely saw a bus. The schedule is very infrequent - about 1 bus per hour in any direction. I guess if that works for you and the bus is close enough to where you are going you could give it a shot.

 

We have always rented a car for our air/land vacations in Aruba and it's the easiest way around. We have never used taxis so I can't comment on cost or friendliness of service.

 

We have decided to rent a car, but I cannot figure out which rental place is closest to the port? Any suggestions?

Thanks!

[richg35]

We have decided to rent a car, but I cannot figure out which rental place is closest to the port? Any suggestions?

Thanks!

 

I actually can't help with that because I have always rented from the airport (I have never actually done a cruise to Aruba). You might want to contact a few agencies and see if they do any kind of drop-off or pickup from the cruise port.

[Leavethekidswithmom]

Royal or Jays

 

 

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[Hlitner]

You could use public buses, but its wise to check out the published schedules to see if it works with your own schedule. You are aware that you are heading in opposite directions (from town and the cruise port) which means you will spend a lot of time dealing with buses. You would have to bus back into town (to the bus station near the ship) to later catch a different bus line out to Palm. In your situation we would probably opt for a rental car to save valuable time.

 

That being said, Mangel Halto is not a place for snorkel novices. You would certainly want to have decent flippers. When we recommend snorkeling places on the island (which we have often done here in the past) we purposely omit Mangel Halto. The current can be brutal (especially on windy days) and a one-way drift snorkel makes the most sense...although it will leave you with a hike if you are using a rental car. If you do head out to that area, it can be helpful to run into local snorkelers who will always have advice on how to handle the existing currents.

 

Hank

[Jillbus]

You could use public buses, but its wise to check out the published schedules to see if it works with your own schedule. You are aware that you are heading in opposite directions (from town and the cruise port) which means you will spend a lot of time dealing with buses. You would have to bus back into town (to the bus station near the ship) to later catch a different bus line out to Palm. In your situation we would probably opt for a rental car to save valuable time.

 

That being said, Mangel Halto is not a place for snorkel novices. You would certainly want to have decent flippers. When we recommend snorkeling places on the island (which we have often done here in the past) we purposely omit Mangel Halto. The current can be brutal (especially on windy days) and a one-way drift snorkel makes the most sense...although it will leave you with a hike if you are using a rental car. If you do head out to that area, it can be helpful to run into local snorkelers who will always have advice on how to handle the existing currents.

 

Hank

 

Which places do you recommend for snorkeling if we rent a car?

Thanks!

[Hlitner]

Which places do you recommend for snorkeling if we rent a car?

Thanks!

 

Our favorite spot is off Arashi Beach (the same reef area can also be accessed from another beach near Arashi). But to do this snorkel you should have your own equipment including some decent fins....since its a pretty long swim from the beach out to the best parts of the reef (one could argue that there is not a lot of reef). If you do go to Arashi you will likely notice some snorkel excursion boats stop just off the coast for snorkeling. They know the best spots so you would want to swim out to their area. There is another decent snorkel spot a few hundred yards to the left (looking out to sea) of Arashi....in the shallow water close to shore. Depending on sea conditions this can be a challenge...especially if seas and wind are trying to drive you into the rocks.

 

There is another area at the far opposite side of the island called Baby Beach. We are not fans of Baby Beach, but there are a few OK spots near the large boulders that frame this beach.

 

Hank

[richg35]

I wouldn't rely on the bus. I should have added earlier that on our two land/air trips in the last 5 years bus service seemed to be very sporadic.