Aruba vs. Turks and Caicos
 

My fiance and I will be going on our honeymoon in June 2002. We have narrowed our trip to either Aruba or Turks and Caicos. Are the beaches in Aruba as beautiful as they are in Turks and Caicos. If we went to Aruba, we were thinking about staying at the Aruba Sonesta Beach Resort and if we go to Turks, we would either stay at The Sands or The Royal West Indies Resort. Any information about the resorts or the islands would be greatly appreciated. We are looking for beautiful beaches, we don't need a lot of nightlife, just a nice relaxing time. Thanks.

The short and simple answer is NO! Provo is quiet and still fairly pristine and undeveloped and Grace Bay Beach is fantastic! IMHO you can't get more of a contract in islands than Aruba and TCI! Sonesta? Isn't that the one where you have to boat to the beach altho it's their own "island?" Not my idea of fun having to schedule the transport to the beach. For activity and busy as an option, head to Aruba but for lovely beaches - and absolutely wonderful water - it's the TCI!

Both have beautiful beaches. But, T&C lacks night life and things to do while Aruba you have a choice of just lazing in the sun or being busy all day. The Sonesta is an in-town hotel so if you are looking for those beautiful Aruba beaches you may want to stay on Palm Beach. Check out packages at www.travelunlimited.com

Turks has the best beaches we have ever seen in the Caribbean - jus tmiles of empty space with out all the highrises, bustle of people, vendors - nothing! The sand is pure white, soft and the water - you can snorkle right off the shore.<BR><BR>As far as things to do off the resorts, however, Aruba will offer far more. Turks is truely a desert island - very flat and dry and really nothing to see except rent a jeep to explore and go to other islands for the day.<BR><BR>But if seeking relaxation, privacyt, romantic - Turks is wonderful!

We have been to Aruba 5 times and just love it! I have been wanting to go to Turks but have never made it so I can't compare but I have been to other islands.<BR><BR>You don't want to stay at Sonesta cuz one of the previous people were right..it is downtown and you take a boat to their island. Stay on Palm Beach. We love the Aruba Grand. It is a small hotel with the BEST section of beach...not crowded, friendly staff, great resturant. Go to arubagrand.com and get their number and CALL them for better rates than the web site. Ask for AAA disc, honeymoon, etc. You'll love it!! <BR><BR>

In May of 2000 my husband and I went to T&C and stayed at the Sands. We loved it. There were plenty of restaurants in the area. The service was slow, but that is to be expected in the Carribean. The food was pretty good at Hemingways the restaurant at the sands. We had one of the best dinners at Anacounda (Grace Bay Club) (I know thst is not the coreect spelling, but it is close). The beaches were never crowed and I must say, the most beautiful beaches that I have ever seen. (And I have seen plenty of beaches). The nightlife is lacking, but if you are on your honeymoon- you already have that covered. I have not been to Aruba, but as I understand they islands are hard to compare. One is busy and lush, the other is secluded and desrt-like.<BR> Congrats and best of luck.

<BR>I have never been to T&C but having been to Aruba I can tell you there is nothing lush about the island. It is a desert island. They get very little rain which accounts for the arid landscape. Years ago Aruba had quite an island flavor to go with its beautiful beaches but development is slowly changing the island. I understand they are even getting a Wal-Mart and/or K-Mart. I shutter to think of it. What a way to spoil the island atmosphere.

I have a diary of our stay in Aruba at the Sonesta at www.rosmd.com Go to Travel. We stayed a the Sonesta twice and loved it. The short boat ride to the island is fun and the island is very quiet and private if you want. Restaurant and spa are there too. If you want a local restaurant, it is just around the corner downtown (where most of the strip hotel visitors come for shopping and food) We loved out stay at the Sonesta. Have a good time, see the diary?

Anna-<BR><BR>Just one question. Since The Sands is not all-inclusive, was it terribly expensive to eat while you were there?<BR><BR>Thanks,<BR>Kelly

If your asking about TCI, it is expensive to eat out depending on where you go. Then again, depending on where you are from you may consider it cheap. It's about 100$ for 2 w/o drinks.

If you are going to Aruba, (which I suggest b/c my husband and I went there in May 2001 and absolutely loved it) you MUST stay at the Hyatt. Once you see all the other high rise hotels you will realize that the Hyatt is the most beautiful. You will regret it if you stay at the Sonesta. The Hyatt's grounds and beaches are top notch. Good luck!

Aruba is a lush island......Yea<BR>Reason #18372791 not to listen to these fodors people.

I do not recall anyone saying Aruba is Lush. The landscape at the Hyatt, Radisson are Lush. The Wyndham is also a top choice.<BR>There is plenty of greenery around the hotels, the rest of the island is arid with cactus and Divi Trees. The Natural Bridge is beautiful.<BR>The beaches on Provo are the prettiest I have ever seen, but there was not a lot of other things to do.

think it was anna that said "one was lush, the other desert like" implying that Aruba, I would guess, is the "lush" one. But she does admit that she hasn't been to Aruba to compare. The only thing lush about Aruba is the drinkers there. &lt;--- that's a joke, folks! There are lots of irrigation systems that make hotels green and tropical but both Provo and Aruba are very arid islands with little natural "beauty" when it comes to tropical or lush. The location of the TCI is not tropical and the wind of Aruba keeps any chance of vegatation down and those Divi Divi trees stunted. Of course there are more lush islands in the TCI (both in the Turks and the Caicos) but Provo is not one of them. Aruba wil certainly have the casinos and all the other activities but for peaceful tranquility without the crowds, staking out beach huts and welcoming pleasant hosts, head to the Turks and Caicos. The "natural bridge" and the wonders of Aruba are rather overblown when it comes to beauty and things to see for attractions really! It was full of litter and a itty bitty little "bridge" with a cheap shop for "gifts" located next door.

Tough choice: I've been both to T&C and Aruba. Of the two, I preferred Aruba because there was simply more to do than swim and snorkel: The town is cute, just like the Netherlands in pastel colors, shopping, some casinos, a fairly interesting culture (language-wise); it's famous for windsurfing, some caves. We rented a scooter and zoomed all over the small island. In T&C we only hung around the beach resort.<BR>(Stayed at Club Med and Bushiri Hotel, respectively).

Thanks for all of the replys. We have decided on Turks and Caicos.<BR><BR>Kelly