Hello~
I'm trying to plan my honeymoon (at the end of September); and the hurricane season is forcing me to consider Aruba. Its not my choices (I wanted to go to St. Bart's), but all the travel agents seem to think its a safe bet to avoid bad weather and/or hurricanes. The problem is that I've seen so many negative stories on T.V. about the Aruba that I envision it being a place full of cheesy bars and drunken college students. The travel agent told me the shopping and restaurants are upscale and comparable to South Beach, but I find this hard to believe. Can anyone please clue me in.

Thanks~
Elisa

Can anyone please tell me about Aruba?

Sounds to me that you have been watching WAY TOO MUCH FoxNews Channel. Aruba is quite nice.

I'll admit its all those Natalie Holloway stories that have made me shy away from Aruba. Not because I'm scared of crime, but because it looks like a circus for college students. I'm not a fan of Fox though.

Aruba is not full of college students. I did not think much of the shopping, but I did not really look for it. The downtown area was not my favorite part of the island. Aruba is arid and not very pretty in landscape. The hotel areas are all lush and beautiful like you would expect. The restaurants are excellent. There are many nice upscale restuarants. But, Aruba is not dressy. It is more casual. We had a great family vacation on Aruba.
For a quiet, basically no kids hotel, I would recommend the Bucuti Tara Suites.
For a hotel with more action, the Marriott, Hyatt and Radisson are all very nice. I read in another post that the Hyatt will be having some construction until Dec.
I think you should go where you want on your honeymoon. Hurricanes can strike anywhere on the islands including Aruba. Although it is more rare.
Did you think about Hawaii? We were just there and had a great time. You would need about 10 days to make that trip worthwhile.
If you truly love St. Barts, then go, just buy trip insurance.
Have you also thought of Bermuda? It is very nice, quiet and pretty there and it is further north than the caribbean islands. It also does not get hit as often by hurricanes.

Aruba does not have the captivating beauty you may be looking for on your honeymoon. There may not be millions of places for you to choose from out of the hurricane belt, but there are others. Trinidad and Tobabago, the Grenadines, Bermuda, and Hawaii are some that come to mind. You don't say where you are flying from or your time frame, but Hawaii and Bermuda are some of the best journeys I've made and would make a great honeymoon playground. We personally got married in Hawaii and had our ten year wedding anniversary in Bermuda and have so many wonderful memories of so much enchanting beauty.

Hello and congratulations! I have been to Aruba twice and had a great time both times. I am 32 and my husband and I are not huge drinkers and we had a relaxing and fun vacation there. Both times we stayed in the hi-rise area and it was not full of spring breakers and cheesy bars at all. In fact I was in South Beach this March and I would never compare it to Aruba. Aruba is a lot more relaxing and low-key. The shopping in town is better than when I was in Miami, the Bahamas, Puerto Rico and Barbados. There is even a little Gucci store in town, so how bad can it be? There are some cheesy bars downtown where the cruise ships come in, but when you are staying in a nice hotel in Palm beach you wouldn't notice that. The beach is gorgeous, the hotels are nice, esp. Hyatt and Radisson, and the food and weather are great. I would also say that the people are some of the most friendly I have encountered in the caribbean and I always felt totally safe there. We live in Manhattan so I feel like we know about shopping and food, hee hee. Good luck and have fun!

I wouldn't listen to the travel agents. If you're worried about being in a cheesey kind of place for your honeymoon, I don't think Aruba is for you. There are nice hotels, sure. Some nice shops, but it is not St. Bart's. I went a couple of years ago and stayed at the Radisson. There was a Dunkin Donuts everywhere I turned, not to mention Pizza Hut, Wendy's, Sbarro Pizza - not the type of surroundings I would want for my honeymoon. Can you find places to go to eat that are not American chains? Of course, but it felt way too Americanized for my taste. Hawaii and Bermuda are both nice alternative suggestions. Or, just book St. Bart's, or even Anguilla, which I think is a fabulous place, and get insurance.

What about Europe? There are some lovely beach options there, too. So many choices in Italy, the Cote d'Azur, Spain, too many places to name. . . .

Elisa, maybe Antigua??? I was in Antigua once in December, and once in late August, and once in July (honeymoon). No rain except at night...great sunny weather everyday. I asked the locals what the weather was like at other times and, of course, they replied always perfect!!!

I agree about Bermuda too...beautiful and perfect for a honeymoon. I was there in July, late August, and another time in April (cold). Great beaches and shopping...lots of beaches to explore on a motor bike.

College students won't be anywhere in late September will they??? I have been to Aruba in the summer as well as December, and February. Great weather all 3 months...always a little windy. I also agree with the other posters and did not think the shopping was that wonderful, but we had a great time.

Shopping in Aruba is not comparable to South Beach. South Beach actually seems more multi-cultural than Aruba. Aruba is like Miami Beach in that it is built up with one hotel after another, been there twice it is just too crowded for my taste and very family oriented. If you want to be out of the hurricane zone look at Curacao, we liked it better and much more interesting than Aruba. Also, has some nice smaller properties for a honeymoon -- check out the new Kura Hulanda Lodge. We stayed at the Marriott which is less intimate than the Kura Hulanda but still a nice property, much smaller than Aruba Marriott.

Aruba is a desert island on which, even is September, you will not get "rained out" on your honeymoon. Your travel agent is giving you some good advice about selecting Aruba. You will, and are getting a lot of differing opinions here. My husband and I return to Aruba year after year for only these reasons because there is NOT a wild party atmosphere. The whole Holloway thing is so blown out of proportion by the American media...

Why do we love Aruba?
1. guaranteed good weather
2. variety of 4 star resorts (no 5 stars yet, Ritz will open someday)
3. fantastic restaurants with a wide variety of cuisine
4. beautiful beaches.

For a honeymoon I highly suggest the Bucuti Beach Resort www.bucuti.com They cater to honeymooners and couples. An oceanfront Tara Suite would be idylic for a honeymoon. Other suggestions include the Radisson, Hyatt or Marriott.

If you were thinking St.Barts, Aruba most probably won't measure up on the luxe and style factor:it's a mass tourism destination with lots of chain hotels. Tho at risk for hurricanes (you'd be wise regardless to buy
comprehensive travel insurance thru
Travelguard International), Playa del
Carmen is South Beach in style (see Hotel Basico and Hotel De Seo). South of Cancun, the romantic (a keyword rarely fulfilled by Aruba) factor is well-fulfilled by upscale boutique
resort/hotels like Maroma and Ikal del Mar.

Hello Elisa,
Aruba offers a variety of hotels that provide more upscale services and also those that do not. We dressed for dinner almost every evening, as there are some very nice restaurants, some are very pricey but worth both the food and atmosphere. However, Aruba is not a lush island as it is very arid and dry, but some of the hotels grounds create a lush atmosphere. I also like Grand Cayman; again, not lush, but beautiful 7 mile beach that is nicer than Aruba's Palm beach. Bermuda is upscale, but unpredictable end of Sept. Water is rougher, but lots of fun stuff to do and see. Good luck and have a wonderful wedding celebration!

Check out this great message board for more information on Aruba:

http://www.aruba-bb.com/index.php

My wife and I are going there for the first time in November and cannot wait!

Marc

I certainly do not wish to hijack this thread, but ArubaLisa,would you explain your comment..........

"The whole Holloway thing is so blown out of proportion by the American media..."

I agree with Kissy that Grand Cayman's 7 mile beach is nicer than Aruba's Palm Beach.

I would go to Grand Cayman or St John if I were you.If you choose St John..Caneel Bay resort or the Westin are both good resorts.

Christie

Guess what I (again) and a few others recently have been banned on the TA forums for saying about the censorship on the Aruba forum on their 'Off Topic Chatter' forum. That "censorship" thread is now removed, but a new one wondering why it was removed is there.

http://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowTopic...c_chatter.html

Seems you cannot say anything negative, even though it is factual or give a negative opinion on Aruba.

Just a heads up to the newbies to Aruba, seems the moderators on the Aruba TA forum are biased and so much for their logo, "get the truth, then go", when only positive remarks or facts about the island can posted.

By the way, I recently posted as Sandi_Shore and if you want to check my posts on TA site. Of course anything negative (but factual) I said on Aruba has been taken off. I never have any trouble with any of their other travel destinations forums and have even been thanked repeatedly for my help, so what gives???

Try reading this thread there as well, if you want.

http://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowTopic...c_chatter.html

Should say that thread on the TA website that was removed had nothing to do with Natalee Holloway, but giving out good factual information about water clarity, how windy it is, how it is a basically flat desert island and how it is a very small island and that it has many American fast food restaurants and is quite Americanized, which is all good honest and factual information. Seems you can't mention anything negative about Aruba on TA Aruba forum or it will be removed or you will be attacked by those who own timeshares on the island and Aruba has more timeshares than any other island in the Caribbean.

Sorry for sounding off here, but it is frustrating and seems a shame when you try to help newbies and can't give them good honest, factual information and you own personal opinions about the island, if they are negative in any way.

This is a much better and friendly forum for getting unbiased travel information.

TA logo, "get the truth, then go" is a joke, so don't believe most of what you read there.

Thanks for letting me vent.

Aruba is nothing like Miami in terms of anything.

Miami is very multi culturual.
Aruba is not.

Miami is lush with lots of vegitation.
Aruba for the most part is arid rocky desert.

Miami has much bigger and prettier beaches than Aruba.

Miami has some of the best shopping in the world. Aruba is more like Cozumel.

I love Aruba and love the rocky desert landscape but the Miami comparison is bad.

Miami is a multi culturual multi ethnic major world city. Aruba is a tiny island in the caribbean.

Miami has probably 50-100 upscale luxury hotels. Aruba may have four.