Knowing

Sometimes a week’s vacation is all you need to unwind and recharge. My husband and I just returned early this morning from a week at the Radisson in Aruba. From the time we stepped on our United flight, we were ready to leave MN’s winter behind. Because we enjoyed Curacao so much, we were excited to see the differences between the two islands. So many people on the boards have stated that the Radisson was such a nice place and that the dining on Aruba was some of the finest in the Caribbean, that naturally we had high expectations. Our flight went well and we landed somewhere between seven and eight hours later. The airport in Aruba was clean. We had made arrangements with De Palma tours to pick us up and take us to the hotel. We had two stops prior to our arrival at the Radisson. The lobby was not as elaborate as I expected. Check in was a little slow and initially we looked at each other and silently thought, “What have we gotten ourselves into?” Our room was ready, however, the bellman didn’t bring up the luggage. So we found the room on our own and brought our own luggage up. We were not disappointed in the room. It was nicely decorated and spotless. It was overlooking the lagoon and the pool. We lost some of the view because of high trees, but it was still nice. There was a bar and restaurant called Gilligan’s by the pool. We ordered a drink and split a bucket of peel and eat shrimp. Very pleasantly surprised at how good it was. We ate dinner that night at Laguna and again, weren’t expecting much. The food was VERY good. We did a breakfast plan that included an all you can eat buffet. It was good as well and we also received a $150 food and beverages credit as a promotion that was going on. After breakfast the next morning we were ready for a dip in the pool. We had to bring our slip every morning to pick up towels. This was kind of a pain in the neck as it was one more thing to remember to bring. Additionally we were told that if we wanted a hut on the beach we needed to be down there at 7am to sign up for one. The beach is very clean and the sand is extremely fine. Right next-door was a parasailing place. My husband went for his first time and loved it. Not a lot to do at the hotel – Bingo was about it, but we met some nice people who were staying in the next room and they joined us for dinner a couple of times, along with our friends who we were vacationing with from another state. Everyone seemed to be from NJ, NY or Boston.
Our friends had rented a car for the week. They had no problem navigating, but I noticed that the signage is no better in Aruba than it is in Curacao. Some people drive absolutely crazy and just cut right in front of you. We put on plenty of sunscreen and our sunglasses, packed our cooler with beer and went to the California Lighthouse, the natural bridge (full of tourists) to the beaches and shopping.
Some things that stood out: Many people on Aruba had English that wasn’t very good. More so than other islands we’ve visited. Fewer iguanas than some of the other islands, although they were more aggressive, twice they climbed onto the lounge chair with me. Now I love animals, but I didn’t want to be bothered in that way. Just because a menu says lobster doesn’t mean they aren’t out. You need to call that morning and ask. Even though Aruba has constant wind, it wasn’t enough to blow things around. We enjoyed it, as we never got TOO warm.
Most of the restaurants that we ate at were good. The only one that wasn’t was Madame Janettes. We had soup that tasted like it came from a can ($8) and an old butcher steak that was very tough ($49.00). We also ate at Chalet Suisse, Iguana Joe’s, Tango’s, Pincho’s (Wonderful ambiance, but I didn’t care for my food. My husband and our friends thought it was good) Texas de Brazil, Fish and More and Sunset Grille. Tango’s has an early bird dinner before 7pm and it’s very tasty. We got there right at 7pm and they were nice enough to still give it to us. They also provided live free entertainment.

As we prepared to leave, we said it was a nice island and the Radisson was nice, but most of the staff left a lot to be desired. They didn’t seem happy and didn’t smile, except Maria who makes the omelets and the others at the Laguna and they just weren’t helpful. I had made all our reservations for dinner at home, except for two. I asked the dinner reservations person to take care of it. Both places had no reservations for us when we got there. The shopping is pretty much like it is everywhere else and we only bought $113 dollars worth of stuff. We felt very safe there, but would we go back? Probably not. It was a nice escape, we’re glad we went, but we personally still like some of the other islands better.

girlonthego

thanks for a great trip report. We enjoyed Aruba and thought it was a great island to take the family. It felt very safe and comfortable. We enjoyed our meals for the most part and it never rained in the eight days we were there!

christiegr

My husband and I went to Aruba in April 2004 and I did not really like it. The snorkeling was not good.We went parasailing for the first time and it was fun. To me, Aruba is not a very pretty island.The people were great though.We stayed at the Renaissance Aruba and the staff there was wonderful.
We have been to Kauai Hawaii and for beauty , Aruba did not compare. Also drugs were real bad in Aruba.Locals approached us alot trying to sell drugs.
We are going to St John in June and I hope that we enjoy it more than Aruba.

NYGiants27

I have been to Aruba multiple times and have never even smelled marijuana being smoked let alone been approached to buy it. That doesn't mean that there aren't any drugs there, I'm just surprised you encountered them so often.

ekeley

I agree with NYGiants27. I went to Aruba in September 2004. I neither smelled marijuana nor was ever approached to buy any. I can't wait to go back!

girlonthego

Never were we approached to buy drugs in Aruba. We felt very comfortable walking the beaches at night. There was no selling of anything on the beaches during the day. I thought Aruba was great.

christiegr

The teenagers in Aruba were smoking pot at the bus station in Oranjestad.Guys approached us walking down the main drag trying to sell Cocaine.Maybe we should have stayed closer to the California lighthouse end.We were in the heart of Oranjestad. I felt safe there but just did not like being approached so much.The people were friendly also.
As for natural beauty , it sucked to me.It is no comparsion to Hawaii where you have mountains,canyons,waterfalls, and the best beaches for snorkeling.
Of course everyone is different and likes different places.

Knowing

Christiegr,
The Renaissance looked like a nice place. If we were to go back, we would stay at the Wyndham. We heard wonderful things about their service while we were in Aruba. It was lacking at the Radisson. I have taken major heat on another board for my opinions. We really DID enjoy Aruba, but we have just found places we like BETTER. We, too, found that Kauai is our idea of pure magic.

capri767

christigr..I agree.I thought Aruba was not at all appealing.My fiance was approached to buy drugs and we were on our porch at the Bucuti!He walked right up to my fiance ...the whole Aruba experience to me was odd.I would not go back to Aruba

christiegr

Knowing- I see that you have been to StJohn and Kauai both.Which is your favorite?Can you compare them or are they both nice in different ways?

Knowing

Christiegr-
Kauai is my favorite, hands down. It is the perfect vacation spot. I know that people say it's expensive, but so is every place. The food is so wonderful and there is so much to see and do.
The USVI is fairly easy to get to, the people are very friendly & not a lot of kids. It's nice. But you can't compare the two places. I know how you feel about Aruba, but trust me, the USVI will be more to your liking.

NYGiants27

Knowing, I know this is off topic from the thread here, but I'm in the process of researching for my honeymoon. Any tips you can share on Hawaii? We will probably stay on 2 different islands. Thanks.

Knowing

NY Giant -
Our favorite island is Kauai. If you do two, make sure this is one of them and do it last. The best advice I can give you is to buy the book, "The Ultimate Guide to Kauai". It covers EVERYTHING. Additionally, if you hop over to the US board here and type in what you are looking for, you will also get many answers. Congrats!

christiegr

Knowing-Thanks for the info.Next time we go to Hawaii,I would like to go to Molokai.Have you ever been there?I have seen on the Travel Channel that it has the longest waterfall of the islands and it looks to be less developed , similar to Kauai.

Knowing

Christie,
A friends parents just bought a place there last year. He said they share the same ocean but that's about it. Next to no shopping, very quiet, etc. There may be some deep-se fishing, but I can't imagine there would be many places to sit by a pool. If you're interested in staring out into the water and totally relaxing, this might be for you!

francophile03

You're comparing the Aruba with Hawaii. I'm sure both have their good and bad points.