Aruba first timers in November...help us please
Apr 24th, 2007, 01:33 PM
#1
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Aruba first timers in November...help us please
We just booked our honeymoon for 8 nights at the Bucuti in November and was wondering if anyone else had any helpful tips for us.
This will be our first trip to Aruba. Any advice on restaurants, grocery stores, rental cars, if we even NEED a rental car, etc would be great.
Other questions. How are bugs? How's the weather typically in November? Should we get trip insurance? We didn't do an all-inclusive so how much should we plan on bringing for food dining out...roughly?
Anything we simply MUST do while there?
I can't tell you how excited we are!
This will be our first trip to Aruba. Any advice on restaurants, grocery stores, rental cars, if we even NEED a rental car, etc would be great.
Other questions. How are bugs? How's the weather typically in November? Should we get trip insurance? We didn't do an all-inclusive so how much should we plan on bringing for food dining out...roughly?
Anything we simply MUST do while there?
I can't tell you how excited we are!
Apr 24th, 2007, 05:05 PM
#2
Congratulations! We went to Aruba 2years ago and stayed at the Marriott.
Rental car is only needed for a day or two. We taxied to restaurants. Rent a jeep. I hear that is fun.
Restaurants: We loved El Gaucho. The Chalet Suisse was also very good. A couple of talked about restaurants are Flying Fishbone and Madame Janettes. Dress is casual. Nice shorts/capris and nice tops. Men, khaki shorts and golf shirt is fine.
Kukukankoo (?) bus is a party bus that takes you around the island for bar hopping. (We had our kids so did not participate, but hear it is good fun).
Definitely go to aruba-bb.com I got most of my great info on restaurants, snorkel tours, etc.. from the aruba bulletin board. They are regulars that travel there. I haven't been in a couple of years, but from what I have read, little has changed.
Weather is almost always hot and sunny with a constant wind. The wind was not bothersome to me. It is just a constant breeze. No bugs because of the wind
.
I hope you have a great time!
Rental car is only needed for a day or two. We taxied to restaurants. Rent a jeep. I hear that is fun.
Restaurants: We loved El Gaucho. The Chalet Suisse was also very good. A couple of talked about restaurants are Flying Fishbone and Madame Janettes. Dress is casual. Nice shorts/capris and nice tops. Men, khaki shorts and golf shirt is fine.
Kukukankoo (?) bus is a party bus that takes you around the island for bar hopping. (We had our kids so did not participate, but hear it is good fun).
Definitely go to aruba-bb.com I got most of my great info on restaurants, snorkel tours, etc.. from the aruba bulletin board. They are regulars that travel there. I haven't been in a couple of years, but from what I have read, little has changed.
Weather is almost always hot and sunny with a constant wind. The wind was not bothersome to me. It is just a constant breeze. No bugs because of the wind
. I hope you have a great time!
Apr 24th, 2007, 05:21 PM
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Congratulations!
Aruba is a great choice and Bucuti is a very nice romantic resort.
I would recommend the following restaurants,in no particular order.
1.Pago Pago
2.El Gaucho
3.sunset grill
4.Marandi
5.Le Dome
6.Madame Janette
7.Ventanas del mar
8.Ruinas del mar
I would rent a car for a couple of days, just to have the freedom to tour the island on your terms, it's an easy island to navigate and safe,
Optima rental agency? offers low daily rates.
taxi's are cheap(fixed rates)and reliable, readily available,you will never have to wait.
grocery stores are located along the main blvd J.E.Iroquoian(Hong King)
weather is near perfect sunshine year round and little chance of rain.
bugs never a problem for us whenever we have visited Aruba, we have been a number of times including Oct & July.
get the trip insurance just for your own peace of mind. Good choice not going AI, There are too many good restaurants in Aruba.
plan on spending around $150-200/night for dinner.
must do's? baby beach, Palm beach
DO you like to snorkel?
I would do the Jolly Pirates snorkel tour, DE Palm Island and visit the California lighthouse and the Alto vista chapel, shop in downtown Oranjestad,after dinner have drinks at the Hyatt bar.
other than that Relax, swim, drink, eat and Relax some more.
the beaches,people and weather are fantastic.
You will have a great time in Aruba.
Aruba is a great choice and Bucuti is a very nice romantic resort.
I would recommend the following restaurants,in no particular order.
1.Pago Pago
2.El Gaucho
3.sunset grill
4.Marandi
5.Le Dome
6.Madame Janette
7.Ventanas del mar
8.Ruinas del mar
I would rent a car for a couple of days, just to have the freedom to tour the island on your terms, it's an easy island to navigate and safe,
Optima rental agency? offers low daily rates.
taxi's are cheap(fixed rates)and reliable, readily available,you will never have to wait.
grocery stores are located along the main blvd J.E.Iroquoian(Hong King)
weather is near perfect sunshine year round and little chance of rain.
bugs never a problem for us whenever we have visited Aruba, we have been a number of times including Oct & July.
get the trip insurance just for your own peace of mind. Good choice not going AI, There are too many good restaurants in Aruba.
plan on spending around $150-200/night for dinner.
must do's? baby beach, Palm beach
DO you like to snorkel?
I would do the Jolly Pirates snorkel tour, DE Palm Island and visit the California lighthouse and the Alto vista chapel, shop in downtown Oranjestad,after dinner have drinks at the Hyatt bar.
other than that Relax, swim, drink, eat and Relax some more.
the beaches,people and weather are fantastic.
You will have a great time in Aruba.
Apr 24th, 2007, 06:23 PM
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I would like to recommend Que' Pasa for dinner...it was recommended to us by a local for very good food at a good price!It's in Oranjestad.
We also liked the Flyin' Fishbone...the view at sunset is awesome!
Bugs should not be a problem as the tradewinds are pretty strong in Aruba.
Have fun!
Christie
We also liked the Flyin' Fishbone...the view at sunset is awesome!
Bugs should not be a problem as the tradewinds are pretty strong in Aruba.
Have fun!
Christie
Apr 26th, 2007, 10:40 AM
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We had 5 dinners in very good restaurants, and the average cost was $100. You can spend less.
Car? - take taxis and the bus.
Trip insurance - Probably not necessary unless you have some unuaual circumstances.
How much to bring? Bring a load of singles, and expect to give them out like halloween candy. Otherwise, a credit card is best.
More questions? Search on Fodors for all the info you want.
Car? - take taxis and the bus.
Trip insurance - Probably not necessary unless you have some unuaual circumstances.
How much to bring? Bring a load of singles, and expect to give them out like halloween candy. Otherwise, a credit card is best.
More questions? Search on Fodors for all the info you want.
Apr 27th, 2007, 11:23 AM
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You HAVE to book Le Dome for Sunday Brunch - $36pp, the champagne is free flowing and the food is wonderful.
We spent a very relaxing 2hrs there and would totally recommend it.
You will love the Bucuti - I wouldn't stay anywhere else
Please come back and give us a trip report
We spent a very relaxing 2hrs there and would totally recommend it.
You will love the Bucuti - I wouldn't stay anywhere else
Please come back and give us a trip report
Apr 28th, 2007, 03:11 AM
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We used Tropic Car Rental. Hans met us right outside of baggage claim. We filled out p'work there. He gave us a token to get out of the parking lot, gave us directions to hotel, and we were on our way! We had a very nice Yaris and it was less than $200 for the week (that was in 2005).
Highly recommend.
Highly recommend.
Apr 28th, 2007, 12:00 PM
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Congratulations on your upcoming wedding! My husband and I spent a week in Aruba a few years ago. The other posters here alluded to the wind. Aruba is a top world class wind surfing destination. So don't go expecting to have a nice 'do - the wind will just undo your hairdo! Being right off the coast of S. America, there are numerous restaurants featuring GREAT steaks from Argentina. Great in both the juicy flavor and the size. We had never seen such huge portions!
As a lot of cruise ships stop in Aruba, there is good shopping. My husband and I both bought star sapphire rings there, a stone we hadn't seen in other places.
Scuba diving is "so-so" there, but it didn't sound like that's on your list anyway.
We had a car for the whole week, and found it helpful, though the car looked like a "pregnant roller skate" (small enough to wrap your arms around)
As a lot of cruise ships stop in Aruba, there is good shopping. My husband and I both bought star sapphire rings there, a stone we hadn't seen in other places.
Scuba diving is "so-so" there, but it didn't sound like that's on your list anyway.
We had a car for the whole week, and found it helpful, though the car looked like a "pregnant roller skate" (small enough to wrap your arms around)
Oct 13th, 2007, 01:55 PM
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I've been to Aruba three times in the past six years and we always book our restauarnt reservations online before we go to make sure we go the exact places we like.
I recommend:
*El Guacho for the great steaks. You can take the bus downtown then walk to get here.
*Madame Janette for great everything. The seafood casserole with gouda cheese is great so are the steaks and creamed spinach. My husband and mom love the almond crusted grouper, I think. Reserve a table outside and call to find out what nights the musicians play outside and reserve for that night. I think one of them is Sunday but I could be wrong. You need a taxi to get here.
*Driftwood- great seafood. Their creamy garlic dressing is very good as is their Aruba Style Fish. Take the bus downtown then walk.
*I went to the Cuban Restaurant once and my husband and I thought it was really good and a nice departure from the foods we were typically eating. I can't remember the name, but if you get a local paper (free at most hotels) there will probably be an ad in their for it with a coupon for a free drink, as there are with many of the restaurants there.
The weather should be great and we never had a problem with bugs. Have a great trip!
I recommend:
*El Guacho for the great steaks. You can take the bus downtown then walk to get here.
*Madame Janette for great everything. The seafood casserole with gouda cheese is great so are the steaks and creamed spinach. My husband and mom love the almond crusted grouper, I think. Reserve a table outside and call to find out what nights the musicians play outside and reserve for that night. I think one of them is Sunday but I could be wrong. You need a taxi to get here.
*Driftwood- great seafood. Their creamy garlic dressing is very good as is their Aruba Style Fish. Take the bus downtown then walk.
*I went to the Cuban Restaurant once and my husband and I thought it was really good and a nice departure from the foods we were typically eating. I can't remember the name, but if you get a local paper (free at most hotels) there will probably be an ad in their for it with a coupon for a free drink, as there are with many of the restaurants there.
The weather should be great and we never had a problem with bugs. Have a great trip!
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