ISO Advice from Curacao Locals

[AlanTheTrainer]

Hi There
My wife and I will be heading out to Curacao for a 10 day trip that we are SO looking forward to.

We are arriving on Friday the 19th and have 2 nights booked at the Kura Hulanda down in Willemstad before heading up to the Westpunt and 'The Lodge' for another 8 glorious nights.

I'm in need of some advice on a few things, some Scuba and some not.

First off I am trying to get an idea of what the boat rides are likely to be from Westpunt (it's ocean encounters west at the resort) to some of the nicer sites. I do get sea sick in choppy water and have fed the fishes on more than one occasion. We dived in bonnaire a few years ago and the boat rides were short and smooth... perfect for me. Can I expect the same on curacao? I hear about some great shore diving on the island. Would I be better off sticking to the house reef and shore diving. We are both fairly novice divers 20-30 dives and will be doing a refresher course as it's been a couple of years since we went underwater. (Damn this recession!)

Secondly we were hoping to get a rental car, something a bit fun like an open top jeep. I took a look on the usual travel web sites and the big names aren't offering anything fun to drive. Can someone recommend a local rental place that might have something nice.

Third I'm looking for somewhere really romantic to take my wife one day. We normally take turns in organising a fun day/evening over the Valentine weekend and this year it's my turn. But with the vacation just around the corner we decided to postpone until we hit the Island. the guide books I've found are pretty useless (20 pages max on Curacao ) so I need help with suggestions etc for that.

That's all the specifics I can think of . I'm off to troll my way through the forum to see what else I may have forgotten.

Thanks in advance

14 days and counting
Alan

 

[Kukuisa]

Alan,

The boat rides to the dive sites are along the coast, so no open water. The sea is smoother than on Bonaire special in the area of Kura Hulanda Lodge.

 

[jdcpa]

The boat rides are no big deal really.

I would recommend that you got to a health food store before you leave and get Ginger Root. Take two at night, in the morning and after lunch. That has been shown to greatly reduce seasickness.

You will love Westpunt, Lodge Kura Hulanda, Bryan, Toni, Tooki, and Andreas at Ocean Encounters West and you must go to Sol Food to see Sunshine and David.

I am jealous as we can't get back until June.

Please make sure you add a trip report, with pictures when you get back.

 

[diversteve]

Are you going to be at the Lodge the day of the romantic dinner?

The two restaurants that we saw in Westpunt - Janchees and Rancho El Sobrino, seem a bit... well - tacky for what you want. RES was fine for local food but nothing fancy - plastic plate sort of place. My friend actually met his wife in their bar. :cool2:

I'm not sure there's much else out there. If I was going to suggest a fancier place in that area, it would've been the restaurant at the Lodge...

One place recommended to us nearby was Landhuis Daniel. It's on the road back towards town. We never made it there. Landhuis daniel

As much as the idea of an open jeep is appealing, there's a lot of theft in some areas of Curacao. We were advised by our rental owners to lock everything and hide it if possible. We rented an SUV and used the included cargo cover to conceal stuff left behind while we were diving. At a couple of sites, we were the only ones there. At many others though there is a on-site dive operator who might watch over your stuff.

Shorediving along most of west Curacao is relatively easy. If there's not a simple beach entry, there's a dive dock. At many sites there's also a dive operator on-site - you pay a few guilders to use their facilities. Most have tanks/wts. also. The diving couldn't be easier, the reef parallels the shore. Some areas it's a short surface swim out - the beaches are often in small breaks in the ironshore cliffs - other's it's 30-40 yds. offshore.

OEWest at the Lodge is one of the nicer facilities in the area. And Playa Kalki/Alice in Wonderland is probably the best dive in that area also. It's their dive site.

 

[AlanTheTrainer]

Thanks Steve for the input. It might well be the fancy lodge restaurant. But those others look fun for other evenings.

Have to think about the jeep then......
Alan

 

[diversteve]

I forgot to finish my previous thought. If you're going to be in town (or want to drive approx. 45mins one way from Westpunt) there are some nice restaurants in Willemsted. One I heard about through a friend (never been there either - I didn't even bring long pants on our trip...lol): Bistro Le Clochard Curacao | Swiss and French Cuisine Restaurant in the Rif Fort

 

[FlamingoVilla]

You are going to be at the Lodge for 8 nights. Head away from there for your 'special' night out to dinner.
Since you will be in town earlier, I doubt you will want to drive back there while on the West side of the island. If I am wrong, go to Bistro. Very nice, $$$, bring long pants for that place.
So I would definitely recommend Landhuis Daniels for a really nice dinner: Landhuis daniel You can't go wrong there! Food is great and nice atmosphere. 5-course meal. Make reservations.

You won't need a jeep and its too much exposure.

Yes, the boat rides can get a bit rough and bumpy. Depends on the day and the water conditions - it varies so. Sign up and then ask them how the Seas are. You can always cancel if too rough.

Flamingo
Flamingo Villa, Curacao Luxury Villa Rental

 

[Curacao Sunshine]

Food.... while you are in town there are soooo many wonderful places to eat. Some are small yet charming and delicious like Sail above the Maritime Museum. Another higher end recommendation would be The Gourmet almost in the middle of Punda (Turn into the small plaza where you see the funky musical clock). These are all within walking distance of the Hotel Kura Hulanda. If you are staying there try to set aside a few hours to tour the Slave Museum.
Aside from the Lodge Kura Hulanda and Daniels (Dinner is wonderful but I highly recommend the pancakes for breakfast or lunch. I have mine with bacon and sautéed apples cooked inside) The rest of us in the West are eclectic and like Jaanchies with his birds and bats, sometimes more entertainment than a restaurant. From the lodge you can walk here (Sol Food) and to Jaanchies but at night (without a flashlight, no shortcut) it would be a mile and a half to Ranch Sobrino so you'd be happier in the car. In Lagun, Discover diving has dinner on Friday and Saturday and Bahia Inn has a BBQ on Thursdays (we have heard he is expanding his hours but I haven't talked to them recently). The Butterfly Garden and L'Antereau (Sp) are decent places near Cas Abou on the south coast road.
Diving is wonderful. You will be with Ocean Encounters West. Ask about the schedule; there are quite a few dive sites less than 20 minutes away - Watamula just 5. Shore diving is easy. If you rent air from the on site op you do not need to pay a user fee. That is for others who bring their tanks with them yet would like to use the showers and rinse tanks. For your wife, I'd recommend Lagun so she can snorkel with the turtles, PortoMarie for a nice lunch or Cas Abou just because it's so pretty.
Vehicles Rent a car or truck and be comfortable. If you want to go off road contact Eric's ATV for a fun tour or Curacao Actief for a more organized in the back of a truck tour.
Guides We have a rambling, nonsensical set of notes that drive editors and alike mad trying to read. Hey! Whaddaya know? I think I've managed to attach it here! Another disclaimer; I talk a lot (ya think?) so there is a lot of words. There are almost no margins so it's only 9 pages of notes and not 12 Just for giggles take a look.

 

[Bryan.]

Hi Alan!
Thanks for the post and we will look forward to meeting you both sometime around the 21st!

Ocean Encounters West is the resident diveshop for Westpunt. We are located right beside the lodge on the South East side - right on the Playa Kalki Beach.

We can schedule a refresher for you both... no issue! This is done right on our amazing house reef nicknamed "Alice in Wonderland". From there you can decide but like other people have mentioned, our boat diving sites are no more than 30 min from the shop... most of them within 15-20 min with the closest one about 3 min away! Additionally, all of our sites are meant for all levels of experience. We have a very experienced crew to help all along the way!

For more information, please do not hesitate to email directly! I am always happy to help!!

Also, check out the attached link to our YouTube channel!

See you soon!!

 

[AlanTheTrainer]

Thanks again to all the people for your insights...
I have a few ideas and I can't wait to hit the Island.
12 Nights & counting
Alan