Hi! My fiance and I are deciding between Aruba and Curacao for our honeymoon in October. Does anyone have pros/cons for either of them? Best beaches, best restaurants, best activities? In Curacao, we're between the Marriott or the Breezes; in Aruba, between the Radisson or the Hyatt. ANY info would be super-helpful.

We've heard that Curacao is more urban than Aruba....what does that mean? Is it just more modernized and city-ish, or is it more rundown like the center of Nassau?

Thanks!!

What it means is that Willemstad is an actual working town, with a harbor, oil refinery. In other words, there is industry outside of tourism.

Here are some pros and cons

Aruba: Pros
Great long beaches
Very good accommodation
Tourist friendly
Friendly people
Safe

Cons
Busy, crowded on some beaches
Main town no big deal
Touristy

Curacao
Pros
Lots of culture
Great architecture
Friendly people
Great restaurants
Not as touristy

Cons
Not many long stretches of beach
Hotel staff not as seasoned
Harder to get around

OF the hotels you have mentioned the Curacao Marriott and the Aruba Radisson and Hyatt are the best.

<font color="green">Karameli:</font>

<font color="red">www.tripadvisor.com</font> has many, many traveler reviews (many quite recent) discussing various aspects of both islands - lodgings, sights, restaurants, etc. etc. Definitely worth a look.

You might also want to check out the <u>Aruba</u> &amp; <u>Curacao</u> - specific headings reports on this site.

Stay in the &quot;Caribbean Islands&quot; section and utilize the drop-down menu at the top of this page for the two islands. In each try searching on &quot;trip report&quot;.

I've been to both Aruba and Curacao and I prefer Aruba.

Aruba has much better beaches and as a previous poster stated the hotel staffs are more seasoned. In my opinion Aruba is also much safer than Curacao, plus the island is easier to navigate. I've never stayed at the Hyatt or the Radisson, so I cannot offer any info on them.

When we were in Curacao we met two couples (they were not traveling together) that had moved from Breezes to the Marriott b/c they were not happy with the food or accomodations at Breezes. We loved the Marriott and the Kura Hulanda in Curacao.

If you have any specifics quesions feel free to email me.

Good luck deciding!

Nancy

I have been to both and would agree with the above opinions and vote for Aruba. Curacao is more for those who want to just relax. There is less to do and it does not have the beaches Aruba has. Congratulations!

Author: paulalou
Date: 09/26/2003, 06:43 pm
Message: TNT vacations like GWV Travel is discounted trvel from the EAST coast, mostly New England area...where are you located??



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Author: littledarlin3
Date: 09/29/2003, 10:36 am
Message: I'm located smack-dab in the middle of the US (more or less), so I guess I wouldn't be able to benefit from TNT or GWV. Darn it! Were you able to find out if that is, indeed, a correct publication of the price?



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Author: paulalou
Date: 09/29/2003, 03:45 pm
Message: From what I understand, the Sans Souci is no longer managed by Grand Lido which may have something to do with it. Whne I called to confirm pricing, TNT told my travel agent that they will have 2004 prices competely &quot;loaded&quot; into their computer system on 9/30 (whatever that means)- so I cannot confirm the price until then....weird. I am beginning to wonder about things here.....I'll let you know as soon as I hear.



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Author: Carib_Ruby
Date: 10/04/2003, 09:12 am
Message: paulalou

Hi, what have you found out?

Ruby



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Author: b1karen
Date: 11/18/2003, 05:32 am
Message: Just wanted to let you know that I booked Sans Souci at a great price a few weeks ago. Has anyone been lately? We usually went to the lidos but never made it to Sans Souci so we are really looking forward to it.



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Author: paulalou
Date: 11/18/2003, 11:41 am
Message: Sorry about the delay replying......TNT Vacations has a great land only price for the Sans Souci - this works great if you live in the New England area.....$1049/per person for 7 nights, all inclusive - this is the lowest price room - but even the ones with the jacuzzi were only $400 more. Anyone who has looked to book the Sans Souci knows it is usally about $5000 for the week for 2 people! So if you can travel from Hartford or Boston....this is a great deal. The only problemis, since TNT does not offer charter flights to Jamiaca, you cannot book it online at TNT Vacations...you have to call in to a travel agent who deals with TNT. We saw some $511 airfares to Montego Bay last week - this would be a great deal for someone - FYI -we were looking at march travel, which is peak time.....



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Author: littledarlin3
Date: 11/18/2003, 01:41 pm
Message: paulalou: I've gotten some great pricing from discount-all-inclusive.com (I haven't used their services before, but I've read several posts that give them good reviews). For 7 nights (verandah suite), including airfare for 2 people, it's 3,360. The airfare from OKC kills us! This is pricing for Feb., 04.



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Author: LizzyV
Date: 03/24/2004, 08:30 pm
Message: My husband and I went to stayed at the Radisson in Aruba for our honeymoon and we loved it. The people are so friendly in Aruba and it is very safe. There is much more to do in Aruba than Curacao. Curacao has some beautiful beaches. I did not feel safe in Caracao, the natives did not like Americans. Also, there is not much nightlife in Curacao. We went to Aruba from September 21 - 28 and had great weather. I have heard that October is the rainy season. Best Wishes!

Karameli...

I have stayed at both Hyatt Aruba (for our honeymoon) and Breezes Curacao (for our 2nd anniv.)...

I HIGHLY, without hesitation, reccommend the Hyatt Aruba for your honeymoon
Please email me with any questions!

[email protected]

Ruby

Aruba!
Hands down!
no competition!

thanks everyone! aruba it is....

LizzyV: Just for future reference, the preferred term is locals not natives. And are you sure that the locals didn't like Americans? Isn't that generalizing? I found the locals to be very friendly for the most part.