Aruba- 8am to 10pm

[3smithboys]

We are going on an ABC cruise next summer on the Celebration. We have never done o Southern before. We will be in Aruba from 8am-10pm. Right now, we are thinking about doing a snorkeling trip that would be finished around noon. Then possibly going to Palm Beach for the afternoon. The excursion isn’t through Carnival, so we would be taking a taxi and meeting at a location that looks like it is near Palm Beach area.
 

I also saw that beach chairs and umbrellas (I burn very easily) could be reserved ahead of time through a vendor. This vendor has 2 locations farther up the beach. It doesn’t look like we could walk,, so we would need to take another taxi after the excursion.

 

We are planning to snorkel on Bonaire and Curaçao too, so knowing that, would you suggest that we don’t bother snorkeling in Aruba too and just do a beach day? Should we do an all inclusive somewhere? Any other suggestions for Aruba? Places to eat? Thanks so much! 

[genealogyfan]

I've been to Aruba many times. If you will be in Palm Beach, I definitely recommend eating at Smokey Joe's; Salt and Pepper, Tango Argentine Grill, and Papilion. All are good food.

 

A new restaurant that just opened in the last couple years that was really good was called "The Lobby", just across from the Hilton. Excellent food.

 

If you are looking for a great view, carribbean vibe and good food, try the Bugaloe, which is on the pier between the RIU and the Hilton. Outside on the pier, right on the water, but the price for food is really good.

[3smithboys]

55 minutes ago, genealogyfan said:

I've been to Aruba many times. If you will be in Palm Beach, I definitely recommend eating at Smokey Joe's; Salt and Pepper, Tango Argentine Grill, and Papilion. All are good food.

 

A new restaurant that just opened in the last couple years that was really good was called "The Lobby", just across from the Hilton. Excellent food.

 

If you are looking for a great view, carribbean vibe and good food, try the Bugaloe, which is on the pier between the RIU and the Hilton. Outside on the pier, right on the water, but the price for food is really good.

Thank you for all of these suggestions! We are thinking now about not doing the snorkeling excursion in Aruba and doing an ATV/UTV excursion that will show us the island and have some beach stops as well. This is a 4 hr excursion, so if we aren’t too tired, we could go to the beach for a couple of hours. If not, we can go back to the ship to shower/rest and head back out for dinner. We will definitely look at your suggestions! 

[BoozinCroozin]

If you are going in June, we are on the same cruise. We plan to tour Aruba with a 4x4. Bonaire we will take a snorkel excursion to Klein Bonaire then tour around the port. Curacao we will rent a car and tour ourselves. We want to go to Playa Piskado.

[3smithboys]

30 minutes ago, BoozinCroozin said:

If you are going in June, we are on the same cruise. We plan to tour Aruba with a 4x4. Bonaire we will take a snorkel excursion to Klein Bonaire then tour around the port. Curacao we will rent a car and tour ourselves. We want to go to Playa Piskado.

We are going on the Celebration on July 15th. I think we are planning some similar things though! We are planning an UTV tour of the island in Aruba and then heading to Eagle Beach for a bit. In Bonaire, we are going on a snorkeling excursion with Woodwind (I read on here they are great.) We booked a turtle and beach excursion on Curaçao. I’m hoping we actually see turtles! 

Edited August 2, 2022 by 3smithboys

[3smithboys]

5 hours ago, BoozinCroozin said:

If you are going in June, we are on the same cruise. We plan to tour Aruba with a 4x4. Bonaire we will take a snorkel excursion to Klein Bonaire then tour around the port. Curacao we will rent a car and tour ourselves. We want to go to Playa Piskado.

 Can I ask who you booked your car rental through? I am thinking that might be a better way to go… it would give us more flexibility and time to see things on the island.

[BoozinCroozin]

I haven't booked cars yet. Aruba really needs a 4x4 Jeep to see the better things. Curacao can be any car. When I figure who to book with, I will let you know what I chose.

[3smithboys]

6 hours ago, BoozinCroozin said:

I haven't booked cars yet. Aruba really needs a 4x4 Jeep to see the better things. Curacao can be any car. When I figure who to book with, I will let you know what I chose.

Thanks! We have an UTV excursion booked through viator for Aruba that looks great and takes us all around. Since we are in port for so long that day, we think we are going to head to Eagle Beach on our own after. We feel pretty good about that day.
 

We are questioning our day in Curaçao because even though it takes us to the 2 places we want to go (turtles and beach) it’s a 4 hr excursion through Carnival and the travel time is pretty long… Many reviews have said it’s a great excursion but many have said it’s just too rushed. So, that’s why we are thinking about possibly renting our own car and doing it ourselves. 

[BoozinCroozin]

Playa Piskado is ~30-45 minute drive by itself in Curacao. With a 4 hour excursion and other stops, it is only going to be a short time there. We plan on renting a car, going there first thing until about lunch, then stop at 2-3 more places on the way back.

[dacf]

18 hours ago, BoozinCroozin said:

Playa Piskado is ~30-45 minute drive by itself in Curacao. With a 4 hour excursion and other stops, it is only going to be a short time there. We plan on renting a car, going there first thing until about lunch, then stop at 2-3 more places on the way back.

Anything fun or interesting to do in the evening in Aruba?

[J0urn3yman]

On 7/25/2022 at 5:06 PM, 3smithboys said:

Any other suggestions for Aruba? Places to eat? Thanks so much! 

I highly recommend the West Deck for local food.. I went to Aruba September 2021 for a week and we had dinner there 3 times! It was that good.

[3smithboys]

1 hour ago, J0urn3yman said:

I highly recommend the West Deck for local food.. I went to Aruba September 2021 for a week and we had dinner there 3 times! It was that good.

Thanks so much! I will check it out!

[Hockeydad1972]

On 8/2/2022 at 12:24 PM, 3smithboys said:

We are going on the Celebration on July 15th. I think we are planning some similar things though! We are planning an UTV tour of the island in Aruba and then heading to Eagle Beach for a bit. In Bonaire, we are going on a snorkeling excursion with Woodwind (I read on here they are great.) We booked a turtle and beach excursion on Curaçao. I’m hoping we actually see turtles! 

Ha… fabulous… we are on this same cruise with a group of 30.. feel free to find us and join the fun.. 

 

 

[3smithboys]

11 hours ago, Hockeydad1972 said:

Ha… fabulous… we are on this same cruise with a group of 30.. feel free to find us and join the fun.. 

 

 

Awesome! Thanks! We are also from PA… It will just be my husband and me on this trip. 

[Cool Breeze Cruiser]

We rented a UTV in Aruba in April & explored on our own. We rented from Arubiana. Each ATV/UTV has a very easy to follow free offline navigation app. We are renting a UTV from Arubiana again in September.

 

https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=&ved=2ahUKEwi7hpf19b75AhVDDkQIHdqSAhcQ_Bd6BAhcEAQ&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.arubiana.com%2F&usg=AOvVaw0d2VJDPrvDke22gqPtjGfZ

 

We are renting a car in Curacao from Advance Carrental Curaçao for our cruise in September. A mid size rental car for $75, includes delivery to the pier, insurance, a programmed GPS & a cell phone in case you need help or you want to extend or return the car earlier.

 

https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=&ved=2ahUKEwim6Zq39r75AhVVLUQIHRSTA8oQ_Bd6BAhGEAQ&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.advancecarrentalcuracao.com%2F&usg=AOvVaw146RNIj0ez-WZAFo_SH-wb

 

 

 

[3smithboys]

1 hour ago, Cool Breeze Cruiser said:

We rented a UTV in Aruba in April & explored on our own. We rented from Arubiana. Each ATV/UTV has a very easy to follow free offline navigation app. We are renting a UTV from Arubiana again in September.

 

https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=&ved=2ahUKEwi7hpf19b75AhVDDkQIHdqSAhcQ_Bd6BAhcEAQ&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.arubiana.com%2F&usg=AOvVaw0d2VJDPrvDke22gqPtjGfZ

 

We are renting a car in Curacao from Advance Carrental Curaçao for our cruise in September. A mid size rental car for $75, includes delivery to the pier, insurance, a programmed GPS & a cell phone in case you need help or you want to extend or return the car earlier.

 

https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=&ved=2ahUKEwim6Zq39r75AhVVLUQIHRSTA8oQ_Bd6BAhGEAQ&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.advancecarrentalcuracao.com%2F&usg=AOvVaw146RNIj0ez-WZAFo_SH-wb

 

 

 

Thank you so much for all of this great information! 

[Cool Breeze Cruiser]

3 hours ago, 3smithboys said:

Thank you so much for all of this great information! 

You are welcome. We went through this list on their website & marked the places we wanted to visit the most. it is VERY easy to navigate Aruba on your own with their App.

https://arubiana.com/#where-to-go-h2

 

We had a wonderful lunch & drinks at the Rum Reef Bar & Grill at Baby Beach. They have an Infiniti pool overlooking the beach you can use too. 
 

 

[BoozinCroozin]

Unfortunately, the UTVs are only 2 seaters. I need to take 3 people and room for snorkel gear and small cooler.

[Floridastorm]

I am wondering, with all the passengers on the cruise ships, do the car and ATV rental places run out of cars? I would imagine, if you make an on line reservation and pay for it, they would most definitely have a vehicle available for you. Or, am I just assuming?  

 

Also, is the driving on the roads American style or British? 🦽

 

Thanks all........................Dave

Edited August 28, 2022 by Floridastorm

[BoozinCroozin]

I am guessing they do. The size of these islands are not that big and in some cases smaller than some cities. The place I put a reservation on were specific about timing. They said after 9AM they will give the Jeep to someone waiting. We port at 8AM giving us an hour off the ship and to get to the rental. They wouldn't have that disclaimer there for no reason I take it.

[sldbolt06]

I would suggest Trikes Aruba - we’ve done it twice and had a great time. You get to see a good bit of the island.  
you can also check out the All Things Aruba Facebook page for more info and restaurants. 
 

https://trikes-aruba.com/

 

[JoRoy218]

On 9/28/2022 at 1:00 AM, sldbolt06 said:

I would suggest Trikes Aruba - we’ve done it twice and had a great time. You get to see a good bit of the island.  
you can also check out the All Things Aruba Facebook page for more info and restaurants. 
 

https://trikes-aruba.com/

 

Looking into this, you mentioned getting to see a good part of the island. Do you just stop and chat or is there any communication along the way? Looks like a great way to see a lot in a short time.  Thanks for any input.