Occidental Aruba - Day passes are available

[maggieq]

If you are interested they are $75.00 per person. I got this information from Mary Giron, front desk manager. This includes facilities/food/beverages, etc.

 

This resort, for those who don't know, is on Palm Beach and next to the Hyatt. It was a $2.00 bus ride last year.

 

Hope this helps someone looking to spend the day at a nice resort/beach.

[gizmo]

The price has sure gone up ! :mad:

[bling19572010]

Is the Occidental pretty nice?

[Arubalisa]

Good info, but too rich for my blood. I don't think I could eat or drink that much in one day without passing out. Even at $8 a piece that is a whole lot of fruity drinks :)

Beaches in Aruba are public. I can rent a chaise lounge next to the Radisson for A LOT less.

[bling19572010]

Arubalisa, can you tell me a little about laying on the beach next to the Radisson. I.E., where it's located, best way to get there, is snorkeling good, can you use the Radisson's facilities, cost etc.

 

Thank you!

[gizmo]

Is the Occidental pretty nice?

 

I spent the day there 2 years ago. Yes, it was nice. It was just refurbished earlier this year.

 

IMO $75.00 PP is NOT worth it. We paid $40.00 PP 2 years ago.

 

The drinks especially the foo foo fruity tooty drinks are not very good. The banana daiquiri I had was terrible and the strawberry not any better. I couldn't drink more than a mouthful or two . They do NOT use fresh ingrediets, it is all bottled stuff and not very good.

The margarita was ok, but tasted like limeade, which I love, so it was ok for me. Mr. Gizmo drank beer which was draft only. The beach bar didn't open until 11:00. Lunch was a buffet which I thought was very good.

 

The pool area was pretty, but they blasted loud rock music all day. We opted for the beach because of this. You do get use of their beach chairs.

 

For $40 it was worth it, considering what you would pay to rent beach chairs, lunch and a couple of drinks.

$75.00 is a rip off and no way in the world would I pay this kind of money for this place.

We were planning on doing this again this year, but I scratched this off my list when I saw the price.

[bling19572010]

gizmo....thanks for the information. You helped me make my decision!

[Arubalisa]

Arubalisa, can you tell me a little about laying on the beach next to the Radisson. I.E., where it's located, best way to get there, is snorkeling good, can you use the Radisson's facilities, cost etc.

 

Thank you!

At the very southern end of the Radisson's Beach just before the De Palm Pier is a tent (see below) which rents all the "goodies". You can get there by taxi or bus. You can buy drinks at the Radisson or have lunch at their beachfront restaurant Gilligan's.

[bling19572010]

Arubalisa, can you use the Radisson's lounge chairs or do you rent them at the tent? What about their pool, are you allowed to use it and the bathroom facilities? What is your favorite beach in Aruba? Thanks!

[Arubalisa]

Arubalisa, can you use the Radisson's lounge chairs or do you rent them at the tent? What about their pool, are you allowed to use it and the bathroom facilities? What is your favorite beach in Aruba? Thanks!

No you cannot use the Radisson's chaises or shade palapas but you can rent the chairs (and I am pretty sure umbrellas) at the tent. I will find out exact pricing when we are at the Radisson for vacation in September. Would anyone notice if you hopped into one of the swimming pools? Would think not. There is a bathroom near Gilligan's next to the pool, so again, doubt anyone would say anything about that either.

We love Palm Beach because the water is calm. Some complain it is too crowded :eek: but I grew up at the NJ shore so I have never felt Palm Beach to be crowded on it's busiest day :D Our favorite resort is the Radisson with #2 being the Wyndham. The Radisson is set on a 14 acre piece of property so their beach is quite lengthy anyway.

For us the positive of having so many activities and amenties close by far outweigh anything else. . . Watersports, restaurants, bars...

[Arubalisa]

Arubalisa, can you use the Radisson's lounge chairs or do you rent them at the tent? What about their pool, are you allowed to use it and the bathroom facilities? What is your favorite beach in Aruba? Thanks!

No you cannot use the Radisson's chaises or shade palapas but you can rent the chairs (and I am pretty sure umbrellas) at the tent. I will find out exact pricing when we are at the Radisson for vacation in September. Would anyone notice if you hopped into one of the swimming pools? Would think not. There is a bathroom near Gilligan's next to the pool, so again, doubt anyone would say anything about that either.

 

We love Palm Beach because the water is calm. Some complain it is too crowded :eek: but I grew up at the NJ shore so I have never felt Palm Beach to be crowded on it's busiest day :D Our favorite resort is the Radisson with #2 being the Wyndham. The Radisson is set on a 14 acre piece of property so their beach is quite lengthy anyway.

 

For us the positive of having so many activities and amenties close by far outweigh anything else. . . Watersports, restaurants, bars...

[bling19572010]

arubalisa, that would be awesome if you could check out the prices for rentals (at the tent) at the Radisson. We don't go until the first of November so that works for me. Also, is the snorkeling good at the Radisson? Any other tips that you could offer would be great! Thanks so much!

[Arubalisa]

arubalisa, that would be awesome if you could check out the prices for rentals (at the tent) at the Radisson. We don't go until the first of November so that works for me. Also, is the snorkeling good at the Radisson? Any other tips that you could offer would be great! Thanks so much!

JMAT- I will post here and let you know what I find out while we are on the island in September. As far as snorkeling goes, there is not much to see off of the Radisson, just a sandy white bottom with a few fish passing by at random. You can however very easily walk down the beach just a short ways past the Aruba Resort Spa & Casino (former Wyndham) and there are some rocks you can snorkel around.

[bling19572010]

arubalisa, I'll be looking forward to your comments after your vacation!

Thanks.