SWR: Aruba review- kind of long
We went to Aruba this weekend for a friend's destination wedding, so I figured I'd post a review of our trip there in case anyone is planning a trip or honeymoon there.
We stayed at the Renaissance Hotel- the wedding was there and the guests room blocks were there as well. The hotel has 2 parts- the Marina Hotel and the Ocean Suites. We stayed in the Marina hotel- they told us it was the place for the 'younger' crowd. Both hotels are older, but the Marina had been recently updated and the rooms all had the great new bedding with the fancy linens and down comforters, etc. A couple of friends stayed in the Ocean Suites and said they didn't have the updated rooms yet, but they were still nice. No matter where you stay, you have full use of both hotels and their services, and they're within a 2 minute walk across the street of each other. They also shuttle you back and forth with a golf cart if you want. The staff was all very courteous and they provided really great service. There's a private island that the Renaissance owns that they shuttle you to on a boat- I'd recommend going out there. They have 2 beaches on the island- one for families and one that's adults only. They have flamingos that wander around next to you, which was really cool. the island also had a bar and activity rentals, and we had our own cabana boy to bring us our drinks. It was great!! The only drawback is that it's close to the airport so you can hear the planes taking off, but there's not a lot of flights out of Aruba anyway!
Because we were there for the wedding, they had a lot of the events/meals planned for us at the hotel so we didn't eat out much, but we did go to a few places:
El Gaucho - this is a great steakhouse. I'd read great things about it on other posts, and I'd agree. The food is fabulous. We all ordered steaks and they were all great. I'd definitely recommend it to anyone. Make sure you call for reservations- they book up quickly.
Iguana Joes- this is more of a casual bar/restaurant. We went there one night for a fun dinner with a group of people. There was a bit of a language barrier with the waiter (a lot of Aruba natives speak Spanish, but they are all bilingual), but everything was fine. They had a mix of local/Mexican/American foods. Everyone enjoyed what they ordered and the place had a fun atmosphere.
Activities: We were only there for 4 days and 2 were busy with wedding stuff, so we didn't have much time for a lot of tourist stuff. we did take and ABC Jeep tour of the Island for a 1/2 day. They pick you up and drop you off at your hotel, and take you to 5 or 6 different stops on the island. Our tour guide was funny, and you do get a good look at a lot of the island. The tour does take you off roading a lot, so if you don't like bouncing around in the back of a jeep, don't go on the tour! We thought it was a lot of fun, though. You also get to visit a natural pool on the beach to snorkel in which was a great addition to the tour. One thing we thought was strange was they don't have a guide for each jeep/ The tours were w caravan of 4 jeeps- the tour guide was in the first jeep, and then tour members drove all the other jeeps! the guys loevd being able to drive the big 4 wheel jeeps off roading, butit did seem weird that they do that. Something like that would never fly in the states!
The weather was pretty good. It's always breezy in Aruba, but it's really windy in June and July- winds were 15-30 MPH the entire time we were there. It does keep you nice and cool in the hot sun! The bride had a hard time keeping her veil on, and it was tough to hear their vows because of the wind, though. The temps were about 85 each day. It was a bit cloudy the first 2 days- it sprinkled every now and then, but it was only cloudy for about an hour or so and then it would be sunny again. And even if it is sunny, you can still get a burn. Trust me, I know!
American money is accepted everywhere- they have their own curtrency, but they said they barely use it. We never used anything but US dollars while we were there. They're pretty Americanized- we had a Sbarro, Taco Bell, Subway, and Dunkin Donuts right next to the hotel.
We had a great time- I didn't want to come home yesterday!
Hope this helps and FM me if you want any other info.
We stayed at the Renaissance Hotel- the wedding was there and the guests room blocks were there as well. The hotel has 2 parts- the Marina Hotel and the Ocean Suites. We stayed in the Marina hotel- they told us it was the place for the 'younger' crowd. Both hotels are older, but the Marina had been recently updated and the rooms all had the great new bedding with the fancy linens and down comforters, etc. A couple of friends stayed in the Ocean Suites and said they didn't have the updated rooms yet, but they were still nice. No matter where you stay, you have full use of both hotels and their services, and they're within a 2 minute walk across the street of each other. They also shuttle you back and forth with a golf cart if you want. The staff was all very courteous and they provided really great service. There's a private island that the Renaissance owns that they shuttle you to on a boat- I'd recommend going out there. They have 2 beaches on the island- one for families and one that's adults only. They have flamingos that wander around next to you, which was really cool. the island also had a bar and activity rentals, and we had our own cabana boy to bring us our drinks. It was great!! The only drawback is that it's close to the airport so you can hear the planes taking off, but there's not a lot of flights out of Aruba anyway!
Because we were there for the wedding, they had a lot of the events/meals planned for us at the hotel so we didn't eat out much, but we did go to a few places:
El Gaucho - this is a great steakhouse. I'd read great things about it on other posts, and I'd agree. The food is fabulous. We all ordered steaks and they were all great. I'd definitely recommend it to anyone. Make sure you call for reservations- they book up quickly.
Iguana Joes- this is more of a casual bar/restaurant. We went there one night for a fun dinner with a group of people. There was a bit of a language barrier with the waiter (a lot of Aruba natives speak Spanish, but they are all bilingual), but everything was fine. They had a mix of local/Mexican/American foods. Everyone enjoyed what they ordered and the place had a fun atmosphere.
Activities: We were only there for 4 days and 2 were busy with wedding stuff, so we didn't have much time for a lot of tourist stuff. we did take and ABC Jeep tour of the Island for a 1/2 day. They pick you up and drop you off at your hotel, and take you to 5 or 6 different stops on the island. Our tour guide was funny, and you do get a good look at a lot of the island. The tour does take you off roading a lot, so if you don't like bouncing around in the back of a jeep, don't go on the tour! We thought it was a lot of fun, though. You also get to visit a natural pool on the beach to snorkel in which was a great addition to the tour. One thing we thought was strange was they don't have a guide for each jeep/ The tours were w caravan of 4 jeeps- the tour guide was in the first jeep, and then tour members drove all the other jeeps! the guys loevd being able to drive the big 4 wheel jeeps off roading, butit did seem weird that they do that. Something like that would never fly in the states!
The weather was pretty good. It's always breezy in Aruba, but it's really windy in June and July- winds were 15-30 MPH the entire time we were there. It does keep you nice and cool in the hot sun! The bride had a hard time keeping her veil on, and it was tough to hear their vows because of the wind, though. The temps were about 85 each day. It was a bit cloudy the first 2 days- it sprinkled every now and then, but it was only cloudy for about an hour or so and then it would be sunny again. And even if it is sunny, you can still get a burn. Trust me, I know!
American money is accepted everywhere- they have their own curtrency, but they said they barely use it. We never used anything but US dollars while we were there. They're pretty Americanized- we had a Sbarro, Taco Bell, Subway, and Dunkin Donuts right next to the hotel.
We had a great time- I didn't want to come home yesterday!
Hope this helps and FM me if you want any other info.
