Aruba (Oranjestad)
Trip Summary
Pristine beaches, crystal-clear water, powdery-white sand–Aruba is the gem of the ABC islands. Located in the Southern Caribbean, this place has everything you could want in a perfect vacation destination! It is also one of the places in the Caribbean I would happily go back to for an extended period of time.
My husband and I visited over the summer while traveling aboard Royal Caribbean’s Serenade of the Seas via their Southern Caribbean route. This place surprised me because it was similar in some ways to Curacao (a mix of Dutch and Caribbean culture), but different in so many others (sandier beaches, less hot, more to do/see).
One day was good to get a glimpse of the island, but it offers so much for an extended stay that I found myself thinking of when I could go back!
Oranjestad is lovely to tour around and photograph as it is full of brightly-colored buildings. Aruba is also a very touristy island, so there is an abundance of shops and restaurants to peruse as well.
Knowing that we wanted to see the beach first and tour around the city later, we hailed a taxi over to one of the most beautiful beaches on the island–Eagle Beach! This is a public beach and one that was highly recommended on travel sites, so we didn’t want to waste any time getting there…and what a beauty it was!
Eagle Beach is lovely because the beach is very wide and has beautiful powdery white sand for what seems like forever. There is an abundance of cabanas and if you want to wade in the water, the sand bar goes on for quite a bit before it gets deep. If you are a snorkeler, you are out of luck as there is only sand and not much to see underwater, but if you like to lay out and relax, this beach is heaven!
Luckily, when we went, the beach was not very crowded, so it was a peaceful and quiet day. Fortunately, Aruba has a lot of gorgeous beaches, so people are spread out among them, and nothing is every overwhelmingly crowded. Just peaceful…just what you want on a vacation!
It really could not have been a more perfect beach, so for its wide open beach of powdery-white sand, gorgeous water, and calm atmosphere, Eagle Beach scores high in my book!
Eagle Beach: A
After spending the day playing in the waves, napping in the sand, and swimming again, we started to head back to Oranjestad to catch our ship. We had a little bit of time before the all-aboard time, so we looked around for a place to stop and have a drink before leaving the island, and that is when we found Iguana Joe’s!
This bar and restaurant is very close to the cruise port, so after climbing the curved staircase to get to the entrance, we sat down and looked through the menu. They serve all kinds of things from burgers and wraps to Caribbean cuisine, but we didn’t have a ton of time, so we turned to the drink menu. After all, this place was known for its drinks…they had everything from sangria to margaritas to strong drinks called “potions.”
Typically, touristy restaurants mark up their prices and water down their drinks, and we kind of expected that here, but the menu was actually encouraging in that the prices were actually not too bad for a popular spot. We were curious about the “potions,” too, so we ordered one, and when it came, we were shocked to discover that it was very, very strong. There was no watering down of drinks here, that was for sure!
Halfway through our “potion,” we looked at each other and thought, oh, this could get dangerous! It was going to be time to head back to the ship soon, and we wanted to make sure we could walk back, ha! So after finishing and settling our bill, we headed back to the ship, but gracious, that place was a surprise! Good drinks, good prices, good reviews, and a power punch of a “potion” if you are brave enough to try it!
Iguana Joe’s Caribbean Bar and Grill: A
All in all, the day was wonderful, and I highly recommend Aruba. There are a lot of beautiful beaches, and it was hard to pick just one to go to, but if I have the chance to come back for a longer stretch, I know that I will be visiting all of them! They are all so beautiful!
Favorite Experiences
I don’t think I would change much about our stay in Aruba, except to make our visit longer! Eagle Beach was gorgeous, and Iguana Joe’s was a lot of fun, so be sure to add these places to your itinerary!
While going to the beach, we passed a lot of fancy hotels, and I know that Aruba would be a great spot to just relax for the entire vacation, so next time we schedule an all-inclusive vacation, Aruba is on the list of considerations!
What I Wish I Knew
Unfortunately, I didn’t know about one of the most Instagram-able spots on Aruba until long after I left–Renaissance Island… a private island owned by Renaissance Aruba Resort where a bunch of flamingos live! So I think if I had the chance to go back, this would be one of my stops as I haven’t seen many flamingos in the wild before. If you have a chance to go before I do, there are some good tips here.
I would also visit more of the beaches as there are so many beautiful ones there. Baby Beach along with Palm Beach, Manchebo Beach, Arashi Beach, and Savaneta Beach are just a few of the ones I’d visit. There are so many!
I know that the island offers a variety of tours and activities, so if you go, I’d recommend checking out this forum here for additional suggestions. Be sure to bring lots of sunscreen as the sun is very strong, and you can get burned easily here. Water is also a must for the heat. Aruba wasn’t as hot as Curacao was for us, but you still had to hydrate often when out in the sun!
All in all, Aruba is absolutely lovely, and you will have a great time! It has lots of activities for families but is also a romantic place for couples, so it is really the perfect destination if you need a beach vacation.
I also post reels and TikToks regularly of all the places I’ve reviewed on here, so if you want to see some videos of what to expect, check out my social media here:
TikTok: @touristyteacher
Instagram: @touristyteacher
Facebook: @touristyteacher
Happy travels!
