Aruba, a vacationer's paradise. This Caribbean island is a crowd pleaser for visitors from around the globe. Here you can find some of the most beautiful beaches this part of the world has to offer as well as an array of high-end restaurants, hotels, and casinos. It's like the Caribbean meets Las Vegas.
Aruba is an expensive vacation destination and scores low in affordability on my travel rating scale from 1-5. However Aruba scores well on food, safety, and activities.
Travel Score = 3.5
Affordability= 1.5
Food= 5
Culture = 3.5
Safety = 5
Activities = 5
Hotel Value= 2.5
Transportation = 2.5
Just flying there round trip from almost anywhere will set you back at least five hundred dollars. Overall expect to pay first world prices or higher for just about everything. With some effort you could probably negotiate a week's stay in the 20 - 25 dollar a night range in the main town of Noord, but I have not personally seeked that out.
I've had the pleasure of spending a week in Aruba in October of 2015 and a week in October 2016. I came on an invite from my father and his wife. They have a time share at the Divi Resort on Eagle Beach, one of the most pristine white beaches on the island.
All week we ate at high-end restaurants, swam in the luxury resort pools, enjoyed the perfect white sand beaches, and drank tropical cocktails. We gambled at the casinos, took a day trip to the lighthouse, and even did an all you can eat and drink snorkeling cruise around the island. We snorkeled above a Nazi WWII ship wreck and saw all sorts of colorful fish and marine life.
People come to Aruba for it's fine dining. At El Gaucho's Steak House I ordered a 36 oz T-Bone. It was bigger than my head! Somehow I managed to eat the whole thing. Also the Aruban style seafood had real good flavor and spice. All over the island you can find incredible restaurants offering top quality food.
Getting around isn't third world cheap either that's for sure. A five to ten minute taxi ride can have you parting with a twenty dollar bill in a hurry. If you have gotten used to how cheap taxis are in other countries like Ecuador, you may be caught in a sticker-shock moment. Other than that, renting a car for 30 dollars a day isn't a bad option.
I felt really safe in Aruba at all times. When we drove through where the locals live in Noord, the streets looked pretty good to me. There was no overt poverty like I've seen in other near-by countries. Aruba relies heavily on their tourist economy, by the looks of things, they are doing well.
Culturally Aruba is a Dutch settled island. The main Airport is called Queen Bitrix International. You can find Dutch influence all throughout the island especially in downtown Orajestad where you will see lots of old traditional Dutch architecture. They also grow fields of Aloe Vera on the island, and they sell a lot of Aloe products to the sun drenched beach goers.
Overall if you are looking for a true vacation, fancy restaurants, beautiful casinos, gorgeous beaches, great weather and willing to pay for it; Aruba may be your ideal destination. For a long term budget traveler like myself, at times I felt a bit out of place; but I made sure to enjoy every minute of it!
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