Aruba tips?

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Kharon

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Upstate NY
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I'm going to stay a few days on Aruba on my way home from Bonaire. I'll just putz around the saturday I get there and get situated. Same for the day I leave (tuesday).

I'd like to do a couple of days (sunday, monday) snorkeling. I have spots picked out but if anyone has suggestions I'd be happy for them. Would like to see lots of fish/marine life. I'm scouting to see if Aruba would be a good place to take my wife. for some snorkeling, hiking, caves, and whatever. I'll have had enough diving on Bonaire and my gear will be dry, so snorkeling

To get around I'd like to rent a scooter. I have parking where I'm staying but doubt it's enclosed. I really need suggestions. I'm staying at Pista Q - Wilhelministraat 68 Oranjestad. If a scooter isn't wise, I could rent a car at the airport.

How about a market. I think I have a kitchen, so could cook some meals.

Any food place I shouldn't miss. Don't want to put on more than shorts & a T, so nothing upscale.
 
I was there earlier this year.

Beaches are public however you have to pay for chairs, and in most cases pay for umbrellas, unless you bring your own. Rates and service vary. If you're going to be in the water the whole time you will not need. Some airbnb and similar hosts will provide chairs, cooler, and umbrella that you can haul as part of the rental, which can save you money.

You may want a snorkeling vest, for visibility, and in case you get caught out by the wind and surge. I wore one at least some of the time.

I rented a small car. Rates were reasonable. I would not recommend a scooter due to the consistently heavy traffic, absence of a scooter culture among the locals, and poor pavement conditions. If I were going to be on two wheels I would want the control, wheel size, and power of an on/offroad motorcycle although I didn't see these either. Also you will want to be able to haul groceries and beach gear. We did not have to pay for parking and only had trouble finding a spot in the resort area where you're staying, so if you have parking reserved there, bob's your uncle.

Groceries, go to Superfood plaza, north of where you're staying.

You are staying in the resort district near the NW end of the island. We did not find any good snorkeling in that immediate area however we had a good day at the beach at Surfside Beach where we stayed at Reflexions restaurant. Beach here is sandy so not much to see. The restaurant provded beachside service including a loveseat with a sunshade, and had good food and reasonable rates.

If you drive north to Arashi Beach you can swim over to the reef area where the boat tours go (assuming you're relatively strong swimmers and have good fins). The beach here is rocky and not particularly good for swimming, but that means there is more to see. I would not characterize the snorkeling as fantastic but it was OK. We went early and scored a spot under a tree. There were various vendors for food and drink. We encountered a group of topless sunbathers here, so apparently that's permitted or at least tolerated.

The most interesting snorkeling was much farther south at Baby Beach and Mangel Halto beach.

Baby Beach is popular among families because there's a protected area that is uniformly shallow for, how shall we say, swimmers who are still learning. It is connected to the ocean through a series of channels and basins. If you can handle the surge and keep from crashing into the rocks, you can swim into these basins and there's some good snorkeling with quite a few reef fish. I had a great time swimming around in the surge and watching all the fish. There are kite surfers in the adjoining area, who are fun to watch. Prices for chairs and canopies were higher here due to there only being one vendor on site. There's a restaurant called La Granja on the way back that we enjoyed, inexpensive latin-caribbean fusion. There's also a fish market that's really good but kind of expensive, very casual, order at a window and they prepare the food and bring it to your table. Ask around for name and directions if interested

We really enjoyed Mangel Halto beach. Snorkeling not as good as the pools at Baby Beach but much easier. I was able to bring my wife who does not swim well. Shallow, mangroves, rocks. The beach is secluded and mainly appeals to locals. There are some umbrellas and tables that are free, come early to score them and bring chairs. There are no bathrooms or services nearby but there's a local bar off the beach. Sand beach with tree cover, mangrove, and scrub made for some seclusion and protection from the sun and wind.

Hiking wise Arikok Park/Dos Playas is nice also in the southeastern part of the island. There is an admission charge. There are some caves in the area that are open limited hours but fun to walk through.

Dutch Pancake House near where you're staying is good for breakfast or lunch and reasonably priced for the resort area. We ate there several times.
 
The main attraction for Aruba is that the weather is so reliably consistent. We did get rain showers every day but they came and went and the rest of the time was sunny, warm, not too hot. My wife enjoyed the trip, more than she expected. She is neither athletic nor especially comfortable in the water but she found the beaches relaxing, she'd read for a while, walk a little, have something to eat or drink, maybe swim a little bit, shop the overpriced local art vendors, etc. It's perfect for that. There were plenty of people but once we got out of the resort district we did not see the sorts of crowds we have encountered in Cozumel or Grand Cayman.

Driving wise, the signage and traffic rules are European, if you've driven in Europe you'll do fine, if not, you'll have to learn fast. Compared the the USA there are lots of traffic circles, more complicated right-of-way rules and signage, and very few stop signs and traffic lights. You need a GPS, google maps will work best but you need to pay for a data plan, if not download Maps.ME and load it with the Aruba streets before you leave the usa and use that. I used one of the major car rental agencies -- I think National -- and recommend you do the same. You will not save much money dealing with a local outfit and your dispute resolution alternatives are weaker if there is some sort of problem.
 
Thanks for the extremely useful information. I'll rent a car ( online today) and forget about the scooter. Also, good tip about the major rental agencies. I'm quite used to driving on Bonaire. I would guess it's not much different, signage wise, but I would expect much more hectic traffic. Around here the number of traffic circles have become very numerous, but I'll have to find out the right of way rules. Here it's if you are already in the circle. I've heard some places it's if you are entering the circle. Assuming one and it actually being the other could be disastrous.

These are the snorkeling places I thought to try: Catalina Cove, Boca Catalina, Malmok Beach, Mangel Halto Reef, Puerto Chiquito, Savaneta Beach, Arashi Beach. My wife isn't a strong swimmer, so I'll be looking for places with easy swimming and as many fish as possible for when we go together.

Since she's the hiker I might save those for when she's with me. Unless I get tired of being in the water - yeah right, that's going to happen. Won't be needing any of the beach amenities. I do have a great snorkeling vest but I usually inflate a five foot SMB, neon orange or neon yellow (depending on time of day), put a 2# weight at the bottom to keep it upright and drag that with me as I snorkel. If needed I could bring the vest.

Superfood Plazza and Dutch Pancake House sound good. I'll also have to check out Zeerover in Saventa because my wife is a seafood nut.
 
'll also have to check out Zeerover in Saventa because my wife is a seafood nut.

That's the fish place I was trying to remember. Very casual, order and pay at the window, they prepare and bring you food. Seating is largely open to the ocean and some of it is actually out on a dock over the water. There are some local fishermen who sell to Zeerover and you'll see their boats (interesting ones) at the docks. People tend to spill/throw scraps into the water and there's some largish fish that wait below the docks for food. Fun place. It is casual but I would not characterize it as inexpensive.
 
That's the fish place I was trying to remember. Very casual, order and pay at the window, they prepare and bring you food. Seating is largely open to the ocean and some of it is actually out on a dock over the water. There are some local fishermen who sell to Zeerover and you'll see their boats (interesting ones) at the docks. People tend to spill/throw scraps into the water and there's some largish fish that wait below the docks for food. Fun place. It is casual but I would not characterize it as inexpensive.

Thanks for the confirmation re. which place it is. The information we got was to get there early because it's so popular they often sell out very quickly. As far as expence, for the few trips my wife and I take together, I'm inclined to splurge on her - and lately, even me too. I used to scrimp, finding the cheapest accomodations, cooking my own meals, getting the cheapest flights when going diving. My kids have been bugging me to loosen up and treat myself. They're probably right.
:snoopydance:
 
snorkeling...suggestions

Here's some video I took while snorkeling in Aruba so you can see what to expect.


[ Edited to add: Saw you had to cancel your trip after posting this. Hope you're able to reschedule! ]
 
Here's some video I took while snorkeling in Aruba so you can see what to expect.


[ Edited to add: Saw you had to cancel your trip after posting this. Hope you're able to reschedule! ]

Thanks for the video. I did re-schedule, though my wife won't be able to meet me this time. March 2-9 diving Bonaire and March 9-12 on Aruba.
 

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