morecowbells
Contributor
Recently spent Jan. 24th-Jan. 31st In Curacao. Previous diving destinations include Cozumel, Saba, and Grand Cayman. I would have to say that Curacao is one of my favorites. We booked a package through Oceans Encounters West and All West Apartments. We did four boat dives over two days with OEW and the rest was shore diving. Below is a summary of our vacation:
All West Apartments:
We booked a Jr. One bedroom. The unit was better than I expected. Everything was immaculate and spotless. Kitchen had granite counter tops, floors were all tiled, no shortage of hot water, and the covered patio was quite large and also tiled. What I really appreciated about this place was the layout. Kitchen and bathroom was in the front. Bedroom and living room was in the back which was all oceanfront. At night it was very peaceful. Our unit was larger than I expected and a perfect set up for my husband and I. Ants were an occasional problem which usually was a result of our actions. I left a Coke bottle cap on the counter and the next day there were small ants all over it. As long as I kept stuff sealed and stored, the ants were not an issue. One thing that would be a nice addition to the apartment would be an electrical outlet in the bathroom. It was the only place with a mirror and if I don't blow dry my hair well at night I unfortunately look like a troll in the morning.
Tank room was definitely a convenience. It was a simple task of taking the number of tanks needed and loading them up. You had your standard rinse tanks for BCD's/wetsuits, another or regulators and another for cameras. Tank room was locked and secure but had open ventilation and breezes which aided in drying our equipment. My only complaint is a minor one . Being vertically challenged at 5'3" the bars used to hang BCD's were quite high and with the hangers attached to the bar, it was near impossible to hang up my BCD. Fortunately my husband would jump in and help me out. I noticed other women having the same issue. A small section of some lower bars would be nice or a couple of removable BCD hanger's would at make the task easier.
The Diving:
What can I say? We did not have a single bad dive. For our boat dives we used OEW. The boats were spotless and the crew very safety conscious. Our boat dives were to Santa Cruz and Black Coral Garden on one day and then Sponge Forest and Watamula the next day. All dives after that were all from the shore. Our shore dives included Playa Kalki, in front of All West apts, Playa Lagun, Cas Abou and Porto Marie. My favorite dives were Watamula (boat dive) and Porto Marie(shore). We saw a great deal of your standard Carribean fish, numerous eels sighted on each dive, and two days in a row saw spotted eagle rays! I was really hoping to find a frogfish but they seemed to elude me. When diving Porto Marie a bunch of people were talking about a manta ray sighting. I am convinced they got it mixed up with a skate. At least that is what I have to keep telling myself to keep my sanity. After all I was in the ocean at the same time and could not bear to miss a manta sighting. We were going to try a shore dive at Kleine Knip. We drove past an abandoned booth and proceeded to the beach. There was no sign of life and it seemed so deserted. I got creeped out(too many Stephen King books?) and we went to Playa Lagun instead. Who knows, the Manta and dolphins were were probably at Kleine Knip.
I have to say that the dive shops at both Cas Abou and Porto Marie were amazing. Even though we did not use their shops they gave wonderful advise on what to look for, directions and info on sea life and currents. They were friendly and so helpful.
Food:
Not many choices in Westpunt. We did our grocery shopping at Centrum and ate many meals on our lovely patio.
Sol Food. My gripe with this place is that it is not open enough! Fresh, tasty and inventive food in a fun and laid back atmosphere. It was such a treat to finally meet Sunshine and dine with Andreas and other members of this board and Tripadvisor. A great place to hang out and watch the sunset.
Gouveneur de Rouville in Willemstad. Sorry guy's. Not feeling the love here. A series of blunders-too many to mention.
Rancho El Sobrino. A very pleasant surprise. High quality ingredients at a reasonable price. Excellent service.
Diversions:
After spending the morning diving we decided to head to Willemstad. Loved the architecture and photo ops of Punda. The floating market was fun to check out. We just strolled around the quaint walkways and noticed a high end sunglasses shop, cosmetics store, shoe and handbag shop. We turned the corner and saw yet more of these identical shops! I honestly felt like Bill Murray in the movie Groundhog Day were he keeps reliving the same thing over and over! I have to admit that I hate shopping so this was getting painful. I decided to look at some sunglasses and within two seconds one of the employees was standing within 6" of me giving me the stink eye like I was going to steal some sunglasses. Needless to say we left and headed to Gouveneur de Rouville for dinner. I am not going to get into all the details, but it was such a disappointment.
I know I have myself to blame for my Willemstad experience. I should have looked into visiting the slavery museum and the Synagogue but we did not give ourselves enough time. I just have to say the returning to Westpunt was like Dorothy returning to Kansas (okay, a little dramatic!). I was so glad to be far away from all the shops and cruise ships.
Wrapping it up:
To be honest, I was somewhat reluctant about my Curacao trip. Months prior to leaving I kept hearing about the crime and the general lack of marine life. We never had issues with crime and on some dives felt like we were in a fish bowl-absolutely surrounded by maine life! I would love to return to Curacao soon. When I compare it with Grand Cayman Curacao has so much more bang for the buck with your lodging, food and diving plus the scenery is so much more dramatic. Cozumel may still be my favorite due to the diving swim throughs, more variety of marine life and pelegics. But there are so many shore dives in Curacao that I did not get to that I need to come back for more! Thanks Sunshine and Andreas for taking such good care of us! Here are a couple of photos from our trip.
The end:
All West Apartments:
We booked a Jr. One bedroom. The unit was better than I expected. Everything was immaculate and spotless. Kitchen had granite counter tops, floors were all tiled, no shortage of hot water, and the covered patio was quite large and also tiled. What I really appreciated about this place was the layout. Kitchen and bathroom was in the front. Bedroom and living room was in the back which was all oceanfront. At night it was very peaceful. Our unit was larger than I expected and a perfect set up for my husband and I. Ants were an occasional problem which usually was a result of our actions. I left a Coke bottle cap on the counter and the next day there were small ants all over it. As long as I kept stuff sealed and stored, the ants were not an issue. One thing that would be a nice addition to the apartment would be an electrical outlet in the bathroom. It was the only place with a mirror and if I don't blow dry my hair well at night I unfortunately look like a troll in the morning.
Tank room was definitely a convenience. It was a simple task of taking the number of tanks needed and loading them up. You had your standard rinse tanks for BCD's/wetsuits, another or regulators and another for cameras. Tank room was locked and secure but had open ventilation and breezes which aided in drying our equipment. My only complaint is a minor one . Being vertically challenged at 5'3" the bars used to hang BCD's were quite high and with the hangers attached to the bar, it was near impossible to hang up my BCD. Fortunately my husband would jump in and help me out. I noticed other women having the same issue. A small section of some lower bars would be nice or a couple of removable BCD hanger's would at make the task easier.
The Diving:
What can I say? We did not have a single bad dive. For our boat dives we used OEW. The boats were spotless and the crew very safety conscious. Our boat dives were to Santa Cruz and Black Coral Garden on one day and then Sponge Forest and Watamula the next day. All dives after that were all from the shore. Our shore dives included Playa Kalki, in front of All West apts, Playa Lagun, Cas Abou and Porto Marie. My favorite dives were Watamula (boat dive) and Porto Marie(shore). We saw a great deal of your standard Carribean fish, numerous eels sighted on each dive, and two days in a row saw spotted eagle rays! I was really hoping to find a frogfish but they seemed to elude me. When diving Porto Marie a bunch of people were talking about a manta ray sighting. I am convinced they got it mixed up with a skate. At least that is what I have to keep telling myself to keep my sanity. After all I was in the ocean at the same time and could not bear to miss a manta sighting. We were going to try a shore dive at Kleine Knip. We drove past an abandoned booth and proceeded to the beach. There was no sign of life and it seemed so deserted. I got creeped out(too many Stephen King books?) and we went to Playa Lagun instead. Who knows, the Manta and dolphins were were probably at Kleine Knip.
I have to say that the dive shops at both Cas Abou and Porto Marie were amazing. Even though we did not use their shops they gave wonderful advise on what to look for, directions and info on sea life and currents. They were friendly and so helpful.
Food:
Not many choices in Westpunt. We did our grocery shopping at Centrum and ate many meals on our lovely patio.
Sol Food. My gripe with this place is that it is not open enough! Fresh, tasty and inventive food in a fun and laid back atmosphere. It was such a treat to finally meet Sunshine and dine with Andreas and other members of this board and Tripadvisor. A great place to hang out and watch the sunset.
Gouveneur de Rouville in Willemstad. Sorry guy's. Not feeling the love here. A series of blunders-too many to mention.
Rancho El Sobrino. A very pleasant surprise. High quality ingredients at a reasonable price. Excellent service.
Diversions:
After spending the morning diving we decided to head to Willemstad. Loved the architecture and photo ops of Punda. The floating market was fun to check out. We just strolled around the quaint walkways and noticed a high end sunglasses shop, cosmetics store, shoe and handbag shop. We turned the corner and saw yet more of these identical shops! I honestly felt like Bill Murray in the movie Groundhog Day were he keeps reliving the same thing over and over! I have to admit that I hate shopping so this was getting painful. I decided to look at some sunglasses and within two seconds one of the employees was standing within 6" of me giving me the stink eye like I was going to steal some sunglasses. Needless to say we left and headed to Gouveneur de Rouville for dinner. I am not going to get into all the details, but it was such a disappointment.
I know I have myself to blame for my Willemstad experience. I should have looked into visiting the slavery museum and the Synagogue but we did not give ourselves enough time. I just have to say the returning to Westpunt was like Dorothy returning to Kansas (okay, a little dramatic!). I was so glad to be far away from all the shops and cruise ships.
Wrapping it up:
To be honest, I was somewhat reluctant about my Curacao trip. Months prior to leaving I kept hearing about the crime and the general lack of marine life. We never had issues with crime and on some dives felt like we were in a fish bowl-absolutely surrounded by maine life! I would love to return to Curacao soon. When I compare it with Grand Cayman Curacao has so much more bang for the buck with your lodging, food and diving plus the scenery is so much more dramatic. Cozumel may still be my favorite due to the diving swim throughs, more variety of marine life and pelegics. But there are so many shore dives in Curacao that I did not get to that I need to come back for more! Thanks Sunshine and Andreas for taking such good care of us! Here are a couple of photos from our trip.
The end:
