My boyfriend & I (both 24) have booked our trip to Aruba in September 2004. We are staying at Bucuti & are mostly going to relax on the beach but want to try some activities as well (possibly snorkling, jetskis, parasailing, horseback tour, etc). Any recommendations on vendors for activities, places to eat, etc? Is it worth it to rent a Jeep to do your own exploring? How is the shopping? All advice is appreciated. Thanks.

Hi! We went to Aruba in September of 2002 and loved it!

Best place to eat is El Gaucho. incredible Argentinian steaks (and good sangriatoo) Madame Janette's is also good for seafood. We wanted to try but didn't make it to The Flying Fishbone (tables are in the sand!).

For happy hour and to watch the sunset, go to Kokoa's at the end of the DePalm Pier, next to the Radisson. Great drink specials, really good specialty pizzas and fun atmosphere.

I also recommend the Jolly Pirates snorkel trip (that have a cool rope swing too). And rent a jeep and explore the rugged side of the island.

And you must do the Kukoo Kunuku Party Bus. A blast!

Have fun!

Hi MeganandJ. You will LOVE Aruba. My wife and I went there also in September 2002. Stayed at Tamarijn, but did see Bucuti...looks very nice. Definitely rent a 4x4. You will want to cruise around in the desert on the interior of the island. There are lots of buses that run regularly, but almost everyone rents a vehicle of some type. You just have more freedom to move around that way. We rented from 2Plus (all of their vehicles are at least 2 years old, hence the name). We rented a Suzuki Samurai with a bikini top. It was a blast! They don't have the newest or the nicest cars, but they are a lot cheaper. THey will pick you up at your hotel and take you to their place to fill out the paperwork and rent the car also. On your way out, you can drop it off at the airport. If you want a great meal, check out Chez Mathilde. It is a French restaurant in the heart of Oranjestad. Very nice atmosphere, professional service, and a meal you will never forget. It is still the best steak I have ever eaten. Good seafood also, as you might expect.

We're not really big party people, but we did see the party bus that Kristen mentions. It looks fun....pretty much it is a "booze cruise" around the island, especially at night. You will also want to check out Carlos & Charlie's a few blocks away. Loud music and dancing way into the night.

We also did a horseback tour in the national park and over to the Natural Pool. That was very cool, but expect a rough ride, especially if you have never ridden a horse. The scenery is amazing, and the tour guides are very knowledgable and helpful. Ours was Miguel. Very entertaining. I think the place is called Rancho Daimari.

You may also want to check out the glass bottom boat tours out to the Antilla shipwreck off the coast near the lighthouse. You can see lots of different kinds of fish and coral under the water. Many of our best pictures were taken there.

We didn't do lots of shopping, but there is lots of it there. Downtown Oranjestad is very Americanized. There is even an internet cafe where you can go to read or send e-mail.

Don't worry about the weather. It almost never rains in Aruba. I would expect temps in the mid 80's to low 90's F during the day with moderate humidity. Not untolerable conditions by any means. If you have any other questions, please ask. I'll do the best I can. I can also try to e-mail some pictures if you'd like.

Thanks for the responses! We will definitely try the dining recommendations. Renting a Jeep appears to be a must as well. Is a US drivers license accepted?

MeganandJ - no problems with a US driver's license. They are glad to accept it. However, you probably will need a major credit card.
On the subject of money - prices on most items are in US Dollars and also in Aruban Florins. From what I could tell, pretty much all of the businesses accept US currency. The only time I even touched any Aruban currency is when I exchanged some money just to be able to have some to keep as a souveneir!

Brandon77,

I was looking at the Divi Aruba resort, which is right next to the Tamarijn. Can you tell me if the food was any good at the offered restaurants and if the rooms were decent? I found a few bad reviews about food, rooms and very old or borken equipmnet that should be part of the all inclusive package. Any info or pics that you can email to [email protected] would be greatly appreciated.

Hey there!
We actually walked over to the Divi and ordered a drink. It looked a little nicer than the Tam, but we found the Tamarijn to be more than adequate. The rooms were a little older but had everything we needed and were very clean. We really weren't in there much except to sleep. So much to do! As far as restaurants go, the all-inclusive I felt was kind of a waste. We were on the go so much that we didn't really take much advantage of lunch or dinner. If we go back (which I'd LOVE to) we aren't going to do the all inclusive. Now, if you are big drinkers and plan on staying around the property alot...it is probably worth it. They were remodeling one of the restaurants while we were there, so we got a choice of restaurant credits. We chose Chez Matilde. It was kinda expensive but WELL WORTH EVERY PENNY. We had a 100 credit, and still spent about 80 of our own money, but that was our last night there and we wanted to dress up and go somewhere nice. I highly recommend it if its in your budget. I had the lobster...Brandon had the steak. It was the fanciest meal I have ever had, but maybe we just aren't as cultured as some people. Back to restaurants, you have choices of both the Tam and the Divi. They are setup buffet style during meal times but there is a pizza/finger food place you can order any time of day. Plus other places. You definitely wont go hungry.

A small piece of advice to you or anyone staying near the Tam or Divi. There are rocks in the water there. Buy some water shoes. Buy them now since summer is almost here, because we went in September and by that time like to have NEVER found them. They hurt your feet if you do not have them. We didn't take any pics of our room like dummies (sorry) But I believe we do have a pic of the room from the outside, doesn't really show much, but if you would like it I will try to find it. The picture on the Tam's website shows a pic of a room and it actually looks like ours did so maybe the Divi's is accurate as well. We have various pics of other stuff. Any info we can provide or help you with, please do not hesitate to ask. I wish we had made a better itinary each day. I feel like we missed alot. Not a huge island, but still alot to do. Enjoy! Hope this helped!

Back to the water sports, horseback riding, glass bottom boat, etc... do these reservations need to be made way in advance or can we call when we are in Aruba? We just aren't sure what we'll feel like doing on a certain day.

MeganandJ,
We made ours while we were there, but as far as the horseback ride, we did have to wait til the next day because they were full the day we wanted. That was the most beautiful countryside!! You get to go to the natural pool, very beautiful. The glass bottom boat, we made the afternoon before. The horseback ride was very rough, but worth it. My butt hurt for about 2 days, but neither of us had ever ridden a horse before. They also recommended wearing pants, we didn't nor did anyone else. It would have been MISERABLE it was so hot. They also suggested we didn't take our bag either. So we left it there and just took our camera. WIsh we had put on the sunscreen that was IN our bag! We were there for 5 days I believe, so we rented the jeep for 4 of those days. We really didn't get lost except on the other end of the island where all the houses are. I can't remember what it was called but it was the side nearest the airport. ANything else you think of, don't hesitate to ask.

You had asked about shopping and my husband replied (he doesn't really like to shop)...I had heard jewelry was cheap there, but from what I could tell, it wasn't that much cheaper. There were alot of neat little shops by the big fancy building you will pass when you leave the airport on the way to where you're staying. It is in Oranjestad. You really can't miss it, but when we went they were closed, it was only about 9 or so, so go there during the day if you like stuff like that.

Hope this helped!

I saw recommendations to Chez Mathilde, madamme Jeanette's & El Gaucho, any others? We will be there 7 nights & will eat out each night so we need more restaraunt suggestions. We won't be able to eat at super expensive places every night. Also we are not big partiers but do enjoy a few cocktails, especially on vacations. Any suggestions for low-key places to get a few drinks & perhaps enjoy live music? Brandon77- does this glass-bottom boat cruise have dinner or drinks?

Aruba is wonderful!!! I've been the last two years in October and am returning this fall. The weather is always perfect, the beaches are beautiful and the people are so friendly!!

I recommend the Octopus boats. Jethro is the owner and he runs daytime snorkel trips and really relaxing sunset cruises. Prices are good and the service is personable and wonderful...keeps us returning year after year.

As far as dining is concerned there's an Italian place called Aldo's (I think). This restaurant is very low on atmosphere but excellent on taste and price. Maybe a takeout italian meal on the beach?? Another place I love is the french steakhouse. They offer a 5 course meal w/ bottle of wine per couple for $30/pp. This restaurant has a great menu and will happily substitute what you want as the main course. The chicken parmigian is amazing!!

Have a great time and feel free to email me with any further questions!! Kelley [email protected]

Let me add the following:
1. You have to see the natural bridge
2. Eat at La Trattoria del Faro de Blanco. It is a must.
3. Shop till you drop downtown
4. Eat at Tango- good food and professional tango dancers.
5. There is a small church in the Aruban "outback" that has an incredibly beautiful hand carved altar that is a work of art several hundred yrs. old. I forgot the name of the church but the concierge should be able to help. And get used to hearing and saying "bon dia". Its the local (Papiemento) gretting. Folks are very friendly there so you'll hear it often. Bon dia!

Hello there MeganandJ,
The glass bottom boat does not have drinks or a restaurant. It isn't that long, maybe an hour or a little more. The coral and fish that you see underwater is amazing. I wish I could remember how much it was. We really didn't eat out a whole lot because we had the all inclusive. We tried to be around at nights to use it and save money. Carlos and Charlies had alot of dancing and club type things. We mainly just drove around and explored stuff. WE never did find the natural bridge or the church. We wanted to, but heard if you didn't know the area, you'd get lost. Not sure how true that is. If we can be anymore help, just ask!

the best place to get advice on everything aruba is www.aruba-bb.com