Aruba is a tiny island just off the coast of Venezuela and has some of the most incredible beaches that I’ve ever seen around the world, crystal clear water and calm weather most of the year round. It is paradise!
Away from the beaches the island is quite dry and barren with very spread out villages and towns. Most of the northern shores are lined with high end hotels for American tourists and during high season thousands of tourists arrive on cruise ships every day.
Everything gets nicer once you find your way down south and away from the popular spots you can enjoy the perfect conditions and some amazing seafood. The island is easy to get around with the local buses.
Basic Travel Information
- Location: ABC Islands near Venezuela
- Status: Constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands
- Languages: Papiamento, Dutch, English is common
- Currency: Aruban Florin, US Dollar widely accepted
- Route there: A very expensive flight or a cruise ship
- Recommended: As a beach holiday it beats anywhere I’ve ever seen, but it won’t be cheap by any means
My Story
I arrived in Aruba as the first shore day on my cruise around the Caribbean. I had decided not to book any excursions and just get off the ship as early as possible and explore by myself, the closest I could get back to my typical backpacking.
Once I’d made my way out of the dock and past all the vendors trying to sell excursions and merchandise to the people from the ship I made my way out of the capital, Oranjestad and found the first of many stunning beaches to hike along. Over the course of the morning I made my way up to the very northern area of the island, stopping only when the heat became unbearable and I had to seek shade.
Eagle beach was the one I would most recommend in this area. It is north of Oranjestad but south of the main hotel area so the perfect beaches aren’t overcrowded at all. Palm beach has all of the tourists from the hotels and is a good place to go for activities but way too crowded to be a good place to relax.
I then caught the cheap local minibuses that run constantly up and down the island and used them to get down to the south end of the island where I’d been recommended a restaurant by some travellers who had been to the island before. Zeerover restaurant is an absolute must for anyone who goes to Aruba. The fish is freshly caught, cooked, seasoned in incredible flavours and served to you on the floating eating area with a perfect view out at the ocean. I can’t recommend it enough!
I walked back up the coast, along Savaneta beach which is completely empty and lovely if you can get there and back up to Oranjestad to explore before getting back on board the ship.
I would really like to return to Aruba for a relaxing beach holiday at some point in the future but its quite unlikely that I ever will. The flights to the island are generally extremely expensive, as is the accommodation. You can’t really use it as a base to explore the area either. It isn’t connected by sea to nearby Venezuela (for obvious reasons) or to the neighbouring Dutch ABC islands (for not at all clear ones).
Brief History
I was completely unaware of any of the history of the Caribbean Islands when I visited. While travelling around and writing these articles I became curious and decided to include a brief history of each. I hope you find it interesting.
Aruba is generally considered to be part of the Caribbean even though it is on the South American continent because of its cultural links, colonial history and continuing ties to the Netherlands.
The island was originally inhabited by the Arawak Caquetio Amerindians who migrated from South American and settled much of the Caribbean. Europeans arrived in 1499 when the Spanish claimed the island. In 1636 Aruba was seized by the Netherlands and has remained under Dutch control ever since.
Aruba is now one of the four constituent countries in the Kingdom of The Netherlands along with the Netherlands, Curacao and the Caribbean Netherlands (Saba, St Eustatius and Bonaire). It is normally spared the hurricane season that affects most of the Caribbean and tends to be incredibly hot and dry in all seasons. This makes it perfect for tourists, mostly from the USA, who provide the island with 73% of its income. There can be a severe overcrowding problem in high season when the hotels are full and multiple cruise ships arrive in the dock bringing thousands more tourists onto the small island.
Places Nearby & Trip Planning
Limited transport and high flight costs mean that you are only likely to visit this island on a holiday here. But if you have the time and money you should definitely try to go to the other ABC islands as well:
- Curacao
- Bonaire
Also see my main article: Travelling in the Caribbean
When to Visit
Aruba has excellent weather all year and it is rare for it to be affected by hurricane season.
High season is December – March and Aruba tends to be busier and even more expensive in this period.
The island is extremely hot all year, bring sunscreen!
Further Information
This website was my favourite sources of general information for this location:
Last Updated: May 2020
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