Curacao vs. Aruba
Aug 3rd, 2013, 08:12 AM
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Curacao vs. Aruba
I am in the very early stages of planning a trip for this summer. I am debating between Curacao and Aruba. Any thoughts on this would be very helpful. We want to stay at a hotel on the beach, but we are not necessarily looking for a "beach vacation." We love the atmosphere, but are not into any of the watersports, so that isn't a factor in our decision.
We want to stay in a 4 or 5 star hotel. We like to explore the area to get a feel for the local culture. We enjoy sightseeing, visiting museums, traditional foods, etc. We are from Ft. Lauderdale but we want to feel like we are in another country, not just a tropical island (if that makes sense).
We have been to Puerto Rico, St. Thomas, and Mexico, so if there is any comparison to these places, that would be helpful too. I look forward to your replies!
We want to stay in a 4 or 5 star hotel. We like to explore the area to get a feel for the local culture. We enjoy sightseeing, visiting museums, traditional foods, etc. We are from Ft. Lauderdale but we want to feel like we are in another country, not just a tropical island (if that makes sense).
We have been to Puerto Rico, St. Thomas, and Mexico, so if there is any comparison to these places, that would be helpful too. I look forward to your replies!
Aug 3rd, 2013, 11:10 AM
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We have been to Aruba many times in February/March & love it. Have never seen or heard of any museums in Aruba or Curacao which is very close to Aruba.
I am sorry but I cannot really help you decide between 2 beach destination island when you are not looking for a "beach vacation".
Aruba is very Americanized. It is highly unlikely that in Aruba you will feel as if you are in another country. It feels very much like the US.
I cannot speak for Curacao as I have never been there but my guess is it may be similarly Americanized.
If you really want to feel like you are in "another country", go to museums and sight see, why not consider flying FLL to Halifax, Nova Scotia ( airport code YHZ). Check Air Canada and Westjet for direct non-stops FLL/YHZ. 3 hour flight. Anytime up until early October would be the perfect time to go....the earlier, the better. Halifax is a coastal city. In fact, it is just up the coast from FLL!
OB1
I am sorry but I cannot really help you decide between 2 beach destination island when you are not looking for a "beach vacation".
Aruba is very Americanized. It is highly unlikely that in Aruba you will feel as if you are in another country. It feels very much like the US.
I cannot speak for Curacao as I have never been there but my guess is it may be similarly Americanized.
If you really want to feel like you are in "another country", go to museums and sight see, why not consider flying FLL to Halifax, Nova Scotia ( airport code YHZ). Check Air Canada and Westjet for direct non-stops FLL/YHZ. 3 hour flight. Anytime up until early October would be the perfect time to go....the earlier, the better. Halifax is a coastal city. In fact, it is just up the coast from FLL!
OB1
Aug 3rd, 2013, 12:32 PM
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Aruba and Curacao are nothing a like. It's like comparing apples to oranges.
Aruba is built up and Americanized with casinos and tons of dining options and bars. The Palm Beach area is lined with high rise hotels and across the street are various dining, bars, shopping and entertainment. Beach front is additional bars and restaurants.
The Eagle Beach area has the low rise hotels and more spread out. The beach in that area is more expansive. Aruba has a great public transportation system that is convenient and inexpensive. Their tap water is fine for drinking and you will clear customs at their airport instead of when you return to the US. Aruba can feel a lot like Florida to some people. We did enjoy the culture there and many people are multiple repeat visitors because it's one of the best destinations for safety concerns, convenience and considered outside of the hurricane belt.
Curacao looks like Arizona with water. There are no long stretches of beaches, but coves/inlets mainly on the West side of the Island. The sand is made of crushed coral, so water shoes are necessary. You will need a rental car and a good map to find all those areas or take a beach hopping tour. Most everything is spread out so a rental car is necessary to get around. Public transportation is few and far between. There are taxis and a public vans service, but we found many of the drivers not interested and pretending they couldn't speak or understand English. The downtown shopping area is very nice and clean with real department type stores. There is no haggling or beach vendors in either destination. We found the linen shops in both destinations to be fabulous with great prices. However, Curacao had one specific area for vendors in the downtown area. Curacao is much poorer than Aruba. Reminded us of Jamaica.
The best activity we did in Curacao was a dive at the Aquarium. No certification was needed. It was truly the highpoint of the trip and the only reason we went there. We would definitely return to Aruba, but not Curacao. There are museums in Curacao. The Kura Hulanda Museum showcases their slave/history. They also have the Rif Fort and Curacao liquor distillery.
We found it very difficult to get to Curacao from Texas. We actually had to fly Continental to Aruba and then take the puddle jumper on Insel Air to get to Curacao. Since you are already in Florida, you can probably get a better flight out of Miami on American.
If your interested I have pictures of both of our vacations on our photo site:
Curacao:
https://kvrlvnphotogallery.shutterfly.com/pictures/2375
Curacao Aquarium Dive:
https://kvrlvnphotogallery.shutterfly.com/pictures/2616
Aruba:
https://kvrlvnphotogallery.shutterfly.com/pictures/4178
If you really want to feel like your out of the US and not on a beach vacation, I would suggest a more scenic Island like St. Lucia, Grenada or Jamaica.
Aruba is built up and Americanized with casinos and tons of dining options and bars. The Palm Beach area is lined with high rise hotels and across the street are various dining, bars, shopping and entertainment. Beach front is additional bars and restaurants.
The Eagle Beach area has the low rise hotels and more spread out. The beach in that area is more expansive. Aruba has a great public transportation system that is convenient and inexpensive. Their tap water is fine for drinking and you will clear customs at their airport instead of when you return to the US. Aruba can feel a lot like Florida to some people. We did enjoy the culture there and many people are multiple repeat visitors because it's one of the best destinations for safety concerns, convenience and considered outside of the hurricane belt.
Curacao looks like Arizona with water. There are no long stretches of beaches, but coves/inlets mainly on the West side of the Island. The sand is made of crushed coral, so water shoes are necessary. You will need a rental car and a good map to find all those areas or take a beach hopping tour. Most everything is spread out so a rental car is necessary to get around. Public transportation is few and far between. There are taxis and a public vans service, but we found many of the drivers not interested and pretending they couldn't speak or understand English. The downtown shopping area is very nice and clean with real department type stores. There is no haggling or beach vendors in either destination. We found the linen shops in both destinations to be fabulous with great prices. However, Curacao had one specific area for vendors in the downtown area. Curacao is much poorer than Aruba. Reminded us of Jamaica.
The best activity we did in Curacao was a dive at the Aquarium. No certification was needed. It was truly the highpoint of the trip and the only reason we went there. We would definitely return to Aruba, but not Curacao. There are museums in Curacao. The Kura Hulanda Museum showcases their slave/history. They also have the Rif Fort and Curacao liquor distillery.
We found it very difficult to get to Curacao from Texas. We actually had to fly Continental to Aruba and then take the puddle jumper on Insel Air to get to Curacao. Since you are already in Florida, you can probably get a better flight out of Miami on American.
If your interested I have pictures of both of our vacations on our photo site:
Curacao:
https://kvrlvnphotogallery.shutterfly.com/pictures/2375
Curacao Aquarium Dive:
https://kvrlvnphotogallery.shutterfly.com/pictures/2616
Aruba:
https://kvrlvnphotogallery.shutterfly.com/pictures/4178
If you really want to feel like your out of the US and not on a beach vacation, I would suggest a more scenic Island like St. Lucia, Grenada or Jamaica.
Aug 4th, 2013, 04:17 AM
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I've spent very little time on Aruba, just a couple of nights. We stayed on Palm Beach, and, felt like we were in Florida. I know we could have found places to stay more suited to our travel style, but, it was just a short stay on our way to Bonaire.
On another trip, we spent over a week on Curacao. In retrospect, a bit too long. Should have spent more time on Bonaire, less on Curacao.
We stayed several different places while on Curacao, but, none were on the beach. We enjoyed our stay, but, didn't fall in love with the place.
The west end of the island was fun for a couple of days, although the food choices were very limited.
We did enjoy Willemstad. Spent quite a bit of time just sitting at outdoor cafes, eating, drinking, reading and people watching. There are several excellent small museums.
The only one of the ABC islands we're likely to return to is Bonaire. However, it's all about the water there. Not much for beach.
I'd second Grenada as a possibility. Lovely island. Grand Anse is a beautiful beach. Nevis might be a possibility as well.
On another trip, we spent over a week on Curacao. In retrospect, a bit too long. Should have spent more time on Bonaire, less on Curacao.
We stayed several different places while on Curacao, but, none were on the beach. We enjoyed our stay, but, didn't fall in love with the place.
The west end of the island was fun for a couple of days, although the food choices were very limited.
We did enjoy Willemstad. Spent quite a bit of time just sitting at outdoor cafes, eating, drinking, reading and people watching. There are several excellent small museums.
The only one of the ABC islands we're likely to return to is Bonaire. However, it's all about the water there. Not much for beach.
I'd second Grenada as a possibility. Lovely island. Grand Anse is a beautiful beach. Nevis might be a possibility as well.
Aug 4th, 2013, 07:25 AM
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Curacao has one of the highest standards of living in the Caribbean, it has oil, it is better off than Aruba which is also quite a well off island by Caribbean standards. Curacao's main industry is not tourism although it has a well established tourist infrastructure. It also has a long established financial industry. It's a real island. We stayed at the Marriott which is on a gorgeous beach, white sand and clear water. It does not have Cancun style beaches that go on for miles along with gigantic hotels, rather smaller less crowded beaches where, if you are interested, you can see some local culture, esp at weekends. Christoffel National Park is beautiful in it's own way, Willemstad has interesting architecture and museums, there are several landhuis of interest to view in the countryside (the island is not big). The landscape of the ABC islands is very similar, dry dusty, arid with cactus and iguanas.
If you haven't travelled much, Aruba might be the easiest and most comfortable option. As for it being like Florida, not sure what that means since it doesn't look anything like the Florida I have been to. If it is a reference to the number of Americans on the island, well it is wall to wall Americans in many parts of the Caribbean & Mexico. Americans don't venture much into the French Caribbean.
From Miami, there are lots of options. Barbados & Antigua for instance. There are several interesting historical sites, hotels to suit all budgets. The French Caribbean is in your reach eg Martinique, you can get to Mexico, skip Cancun and other mass tourist areas and rent a car see the fabulous ruins and some Mexican culture. There are also options from FLL.
If you haven't travelled much, Aruba might be the easiest and most comfortable option. As for it being like Florida, not sure what that means since it doesn't look anything like the Florida I have been to. If it is a reference to the number of Americans on the island, well it is wall to wall Americans in many parts of the Caribbean & Mexico. Americans don't venture much into the French Caribbean.
From Miami, there are lots of options. Barbados & Antigua for instance. There are several interesting historical sites, hotels to suit all budgets. The French Caribbean is in your reach eg Martinique, you can get to Mexico, skip Cancun and other mass tourist areas and rent a car see the fabulous ruins and some Mexican culture. There are also options from FLL.
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Aug 5th, 2013, 04:25 AM
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As all ready stated Aruba is very Americanized think Starbucks dunkin doughtnuts, TGIF and Wendy's etc. You get the picture. I love Aruba for I cannot do without the Starbucks coffee. You will hardly feel as though you were in another country however Aruba has the warmest friendly people I have ever met! It is a great island and love going there. For a different experience, I would also suggest St. martin. They have a French and Dutch side. You can feel as though you are in 2 different counties on one island. French food, speaking accents. Grenada is also a great option. I love Grenada known as the spice island you use to be able to visit a factory where the spices were made? Not sure if this still exists as it has been a few years since I was there. I also second Barbados. I liked Barbados for a day--it was fun.
