Hotel advice for Aruba, please!
 

Planning our first trip to Aruba in late Feb, and need some advice on what resort/hotel to stay at.

My husband and I are in our early 30's, and would like to stay at a clean, comfortable resort (nice room & bathrooms!), with local activities and attractions somewhat close by. We enjoy exploring on our own, but also really value a few good days on the beach. We aren't doing an all inclusive, so nearby restaurant options outside the resort would be a plus. Our budget is about $300/night.

Based on many reviews I've read, I was contemplating between:
Bucuti, Radisson or Renaissance.

I know the Rad and Ren is on the more touristy side of the island, which is my main hesitation in booking there, as we don't like massive crowds. My first choice was Bucuti, but unfortunately, they are not available for our dates. Any other key hotels I've missed, particularly 'hidden gems', that we should consider??? We’d consider boutique hotels or villa rentals as well, if the rooms and hotels are worth the $$.

Many thanks!

The Renaissance is located in the middle of town - not on the beach. They have a private island that you must take a boat to reach. The Radisson is on the beach but the beach will be crowded. There is a small hotel located near the Bucuti. The beach there is uncrowded. I have never stayed in it, Manchebo Beach Resort, but maybe you should look at it. There are many restaurants nearby.

The strip hotels on Palm Beach are closer to many resturants and bars. The Raddison is located there. The Raddison get good reviews and lots of recommendations. Bucuti is located on Eagle Beach. It's very quick and easy to get bus transporation to either the Palm Beach area or to downtown.

We stayed on Palm Beach last time and loved the conveneince that most everything was right outside the front door of our hotel. However, it is more crowded than Eagle Beach. Also, check out Amsterdam Manor. We are looking at staying there our next trip. They just renovated all of the rooms in a contempory style. All rooms have either a small kitchette or a full kitchen. They are located at the start of Eagle Beach so it is walkable to the Palm Beach area. The bus stop is right out front though if you don't want to walk it.

Take a look at this map. It lists where all the hotels are located:

http://www.aruba.com/about/regionalmap.php

This map shows where most of the resturants are located:

http://www.restaurantsaruba.com/googlemap.html

Aruba has good bus service, so getting around is not a problem unless you want to go to certain restaurants that would require a taxi (for example, Mme Janette). For other "attractions" -- and there aren't many in Aruba -- there are tours that can be booked through your hotel. From your description I would recommend booking a hotel on Eagle Beach. We stayed on Palm Beach (the Radisson) but went through the Amsterdam Manor hotel while we were there and I thought it was adorable. Now that they've renovated the rooms I would definitely stay there. But not until I had explored some discount options. We went through MCM Tours (after reading about them at arubabound.com) and saved considerably on our hotel.

We stayed at the Radisson when we went to Aruba. We were so disappointed. We have friends that stayed at the Amsterdam Manor and said they really enjoyed their stay there. The staff was friendly and the room was clean. They had a kitchenette so they saved some money as they were on a budget after doing a big trip to Hawaii. They liked the location and didn't mind being across the street from the beach at all. They took the bus to the malls downtown and they were literally minutes away. They said they would stay there again so that's a good sign!

We went to Aruba a few years ago and stayed at the Marriott. It was perfect for our active family.

One hotel we walked around was the Hyatt. It hasn't been mentioned so far, but it was very nice looking from the lobby to the grounds. When we went 2004, the Hyatt, Marriott and Radisson were the top hotels. Of course, Bucuti gets rave reviews for being a great couples hotel. I was never there, but have heard only good things. Since that is not an option, check out the Hyatt as well. Marriott is crowded and busy and now has even more buildings.
The Rennassaince is in the middle of the city which was not the greatest place to be. It is not a cute town like Bermuda.

We went to Aruba several years ago and stayed at the Hyatt Regency. It was great! They were renovating at the time, but that is long finished. It was a beautiful resort and within your price.