Aruba

FH and I are going there and staying at the HYATT..

We arent do all inclusive...there are so many restaurants,,we dont want be limited.

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Posted by DayBeforeThanksgiving

We booked for the Renaissance... it's on its own private island right in town. I know a few people that have been to Renaissance and Loved it... I heard that Hyatt, Renaissance and Wyndham are supposed to the nicest. But Renaissance is right in town for shopping restaurants, etc. That's why I decided to book there so we didn't have to rent cars, etc.

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is the HYATT by the Renaissance?? becasue I heard the Hyatt is by the town also...

I don't think the Hyatt is near the Renaissance. The Hyatt is on the strip on the beach.

I went to Aruba for my HM. We stayed at the Marriott & did the all inclusive plan. We ate at different restaurants 5 of the 8 nights we were there for dinner. Breakfast and lunch, and all our drinks (and room service) were included.
I think you'll be thrilled at any of the 4 hotels mentioned here... Hyatt, Radisson, Wyndham, Marriott. If you choose the Renaissance, the difference is, it's downtown. I personally don't know if they have a beach, or the same beach that the other hotels sit on.

Aruba is very expensive, so the ai plan worked for us. We like to drink, and even a bottle of water was $5bucks at the hotel. so, we added up what we thought we would spend in meals and drinks, and even to spend a little more to enjoy restaurants like El Gaucho, it worked to our benefit. My girlfriend who went 2 weeks before we did stayed at the Radisson, no all-inclusive plan. She loved it, but said it was pricey. They wouldn't eat much for breakfast and lunch though, and splurged on dinners.

Feel free to ask me any questions.

We went to Aruba for our honeymoon and stayed at the Bucuti Beach resort. We chose the Bucuti because the 2 most important things to us were the beach and a quiet, romantic place. It was perfect! Their beach was voted in the top 10 beautiful beaches of the Carribean and they cater to couples and honeymooners- there were very few children around. It was peaceful, quiet and a romantic stay. We also chose the Bucuti because a suite there in a beautiful, new building was less expensive than a room in any of the other hotels. Included in our honeymoon package there was a 3 or 4 course romantic dinner on the beach, which you can also book (and pay for, I think it was about $70) if you are staying somewhere else. We had a sunset seating and it was one of the best evenings we had there.

For us, doing an all inclusive might have saved some money, but not much. We didn't want to be tied down to certain restaurants for our first trip there and we are not drinkers, so for us, it worked out. I would imagine you would save a lot more $ with the all inclusive if you were hanging out at the bars and drinking on the beach, which wasn't the case with us. The Bucuti is in the low rise section of the island, between the high rise hotels (where the Marriott, Radisson, Hyatt and Windham are....) and downtown Oranjestad ( I think the Renaissance is downtown.) There is sort of a 'town' around the high rise hotels - lots of restaurants and shops within walking distance, but I think the city of Oranjestad is what most people call 'downtown.'

You might want to think about what you want to do while you're there. If you want a lot of activities, like water sports, and entertainment at night, the high rise area might be a good bet for you. We really wanted quiet, and were willing to take a cab to get to other places if the mood hit, so we went with the low rise area. The island is beautiful- you'll love it no matter where you stay!

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Posted by rosaria

FH and I are going there and staying at the HYATT..

We arent do all inclusive...there are so many restaurants,,we dont want be limited.

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We stayed at the same place and for the same reasons is why we did not go all inclusive.

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Posted by nylisa

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Posted by rosaria

FH and I are going there and staying at the HYATT..

We arent do all inclusive...there are so many restaurants,,we dont want be limited.

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We stayed at the same place and for the same reasons is why we did not go all inclusive.

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did u love the Hyatt? did u stay in a regular room or suite?

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Posted by nylisa

We stayed in a regular room and loved it. The hotel is out of this world. You are going to have a great time.

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that's what someone else mentioned,,the rooms are soo nice , you dont have to pay extra for a suite.....but they said you can try to tip the concier and he may give you an upgrade...

thanks again for all your help!!!

I went on my HM there also...it is an unbelievable island to say the least. We also did not do the all-inclusive because the restaurants there are AMAZING.

We stayed at the Marriot in one of the large wrap around suites (you can view them on their website). The hotel was UNBELIEVABLE. People were so nice and it had everything. It is the furthest hotel on the stip but it had the best rooms i thought and they had balconys which very few have. We had a make-up room and kitchen and huge room. You can also use the pools and other areas in the two timeshare places next to the hotel.

The Hyatt was nice (not big balconys though) and the Radisson was nice too (the balconys and hotel rooms were much further away from the water then the Marriot). The Holiday Inn looked a little old for my liking but they had a great casino. We also enjoyed occidental (all inclusive resort). They had a great casino and the pool area was wild (I read a review about them saying that people who stay here work hard for their vacation and it shows at the pool area). Its really loud and people drink all day.

The Renissance is really nice but it is in the city area, so you will have to take a cab to many of the nice restaurants in the hotels.

You won't be disappointed by Aruba though...amazing all the way through!

No, the Renaissance isn't right by the Hyatt. The Renaissance has a seperate private beach. From what I hear the Hyatt is gorgeous as well, but they were a bit more expensive than the Renaissance, so we went with the Renaissance and we upgraded to the Ocean View Suite... We didn't do the all inclusive package either. All I hear is, 'Do not do all inclusive in Aruba' because the food is great and there are tons of beautiful restaurants to eat at. So we chose not too. I heard that from travel agencies as well as people that have gone there. No matter where you stay, you will be so happy. You're on your honeymoon and you are in one of the most beautiful islands!!!!

By the way, is anyone taking a non-direct Delta flight that connects in Atlanta? It was around $400 more to go direct through American Airlines, so we have to suck up the delay, but it's only an hour!

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Posted by DayBeforeThanksgiving

No, the Renaissance isn't right by the Hyatt. The Renaissance has a seperate private beach. From what I hear the Hyatt is gorgeous as well, but they were a bit more expensive than the Renaissance, so we went with the Renaissance and we upgraded to the Ocean View Suite... We didn't do the all inclusive package either. All I hear is, 'Do not do all inclusive in Aruba' because the food is great and there are tons of beautiful restaurants to eat at. So we chose not too. I heard that from travel agencies as well as people that have gone there. No matter where you stay, you will be so happy. You're on your honeymoon and you are in one of the most beautiful islands!!!!

By the way, is anyone taking a non-direct Delta flight that connects in Atlanta? It was around $400 more to go direct through American Airlines, so we have to suck up the delay, but it's only an hour!

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we only booked our hotel because we are going on our honemoon in december so my travel agent wasnt able to book the tix's yet..FH is a gym teacher and cant take off after our wedding for the HM..

so i will let you know once we get our tix's

the hyatt!!! we loooooved it. great massage, awesome beach (they comb it every morning) lots of things to do, and the hyatt has about 4 restaurants right in the hotel. it really is like a little town unto itself. the other hotels don't have the same night feel to it...meaning that at the hyatt, we felt more like we were in another country rather than at a hotel on a strip of land. we also rented a car (itty bitty car) and drove to the other side of the island and explored it and it was amazing. town was fun, but the best best best thing we did was take a boat ride to de palm island where we spent the day snorkeling...oh my...our guy took us out about a quarter mile out to sea and it was where the sea shelf drops and it was incredible! but regarding inclusive...yeah, you may save some money and at the hyatt you can't go wrong with their food, but we felt that our honeymoon was not the time to try to save money. splurge a bit and enjoy your one honeymoon...you won't regret it!


eta: dh during out excursion snorkeling!

the view of one of the restaurants from our room

dinner on the beach. this was AMAZING!!! highlight of our honeymoon and the best way to end a trip. 2 hours, eating alone while the sun set with our own private waiter. this rocked!

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Posted by gNi1125

We were in Aruba in August and stayed at the Radisson. We loved it there. If we went back we would def stay there. There is nbo rainy season in Aruba. Its always sunny. Feel free to ask me any questions.

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We stayed there as well! I believe the Hyatt is the fanciest, but the Radisson had the nicest grounds and you can sit out on the balcony (most other hotel just have the french balcony - where you can only stand).

But I unfortunately must disagree with gNi1125 - typically her statement is true BUT ever since all the hurricanes this past Sept their weather patterns changed. We were there in November and it rained 6 or 8 days The island was in SHOCK.

Regardless we had a blast and would love to go back - hopefully the weather patterns will return to normal for all the upcoming brides if it hasn't already

Here's what the beach looked like when we left

how is aruba in august... any suggestions of where to go ??
im thinking about that for late aug, but im nervous about hurricane season...