Aruba

Advantages: Largely Unspoiled
Disadvantages: Perceived a little to far to go.

...Aruba In rge Caribbean part of the Dutch Island chain. A terrific place which is still largely unspoilt. The island offers a variety of different entertainments and the Casinos are popular. Not visited by many UK people because they feel it is just to expensive. Believe me it isn't and I would compare the prices with those pais at home in the UK. Flights; I flew off season with KLM from Newcastle an the cost was £546 return. The temperature was 32 C and comfortable. Humidity is not a problem because the trade winds constantly blow a nice gentle breeze across the whole island. Nightlife, other than the beach resprts which are concentrated at the North of Aruba, is good and relaxed. The people are terrific and very friendly. The beaches, particularly Baby Beach are excellent with snorkelling at Baby Beach very good. Local...

VinceSmith 30.07.2000 · Read review
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Review of General: Aruba

Aruba great place to tan!

Advantages: Hot Hot Hot white beach, palm trees, crystal clear water.
Disadvantages: Americans every where, little culture V. Expensive

...I have just returned from a long weekend in Aruba (decadent I know but I work in the travel industry). Just twenty miles off the coast of South America and far from the Hurricane Belt this island is hot (28c) all year round. Known as the Dutch Antilles locals speak Dutch, Spanish and American. Currency is Arubian Florins but every one used US dollars. After a 9 hour flight we arrived on the Friday evening to a welcoming smile from the ground staff in the air conditioned airport. Outside we quickly negotiated a taxi to our Hotel 'The Windmill Resort' Palm Beach (all taxis are a fixed cost of $20 US). Our taxi driver took us through the capital 'Oranjestad' and pointed out some popular bars and a few basic things about the island. Most importantly every where accepts US Dollars most of the Casinos are open until 5am and there are 2...

KittyV 21.06.2005 · Read review
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Review of General: Aruba

Bon Vini Aruba!

Advantages: Lovely beaches! Grat waves for surfers!
Disadvantages: Can't think of any.

...Bon vini Aruba (in their local language called "papiamento" means "welcome to Aruba") is what your passport will say if you come to this friendly island, or as they call it, and you'll also be able to read in that funny stamp with palms, "one happy island". Happy indeed. The island is a paradise for families or lovers. It is also a well-known resort from windsurfers, so the youth that enjoy this kind of water activities will find their place in here too. the nightlife is kind of poor, but it depends on the hotel where you're staying, some of them organize plays, games, bingos, dances, competition, and all the typical variety that beach resorts offers. if not a visit to the city will impress you in a nice way, full of lights, music everywhere, and all in a healthy and safe environment. All the main hotels are situated in...

mreservado 20.07.2004 · Read review
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Review of General: Aruba

Paradise Caribbean island!

Advantages: great food, friendly people, wonderful crystal clear water!
Disadvantages: no direct flight

...I'm working for an airline and I've won a pair of tickets (had to pay for the taxes though) over x?mas prize draw the year before last. And we didn?t know where we should go. But I?ve always fancied going to the Caribbean. Then my Manager recommended Aruba to us. So I started planning and doing all the research last year May06 for the trip! And we decided to go for about 1 week during end of August. Flight time is about 1.20hrs from London to Amsterdam and 9hrs from Amsterdam to Aruba. First of all, I searched through Google to look for the official tourism website for Aruba which is www.aruba.com. The site is really great it tells you all the things that you can do while you are there and also tells you where you can stay depending on you budget. The categories are for the hotels are: 1. High Rise Hotel is like luxury resorts...

roseycheeks 15.05.2007 · Read review
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Review of General: Aruba

Our Aruban Adventure!

Advantages: Friendly people, great food, fantastic beaches!
Disadvantages: Long flight time

...I had fancied going to Aruba since hearing about it on an episode of Friends (sad, I know, but there you go!) My husband and I finally decided to go in July 2003 for fortnight. We booked to stay at the Tamarijn Divi resort, all inclusive. So lets start from the beginning ......... We booked through Kuoni who could not have been more helpful if they had tried. Their online booking facility is fantastic and telephone staff always strive to do their best for you. As Aruba is a dutch island, the flights that we had went from Manchester via Amsterdam and then onto Aruba. We had 5 hours to kill in Amsterdam so went from Schiphol (I think that's how its spelt!) Airport into Amsterdam itself and had a wander round. Transport from the airport was via train which was punctual, clean and cheap (British Rail take note!). After our...

Junglejuice30 31.08.2005 · Read review
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Review of General: Aruba

sun, sand, sea and.......

Advantages: right on the beach
Disadvantages: flight time

.... The gift shop near the snack bar also sells basic over the counter treatments i.e pain killers, diahorrea tablets etc. WATER Aruba has one of the worlds best water treatment plants but i was still worried about drinking the water. However, they were right we all drunk the water including the kids without any problems what so ever. I recommend buying a couple of bottles of water and then keep refilling them from the tap, put them in your room fridge to chill them because the tap water is never cold. CHECKOUT We had the option of checking out the night before our departure between 6pm and 10pm but we decided not to. You have to vacate your room by 12 noon on the day you leave so we waited to check out then and we never had to queue. You will need to hand over your towel cards, wrist bands and safe key and settle any charges. The hotel...

ali831 23.06.2007 (25.06.2007) · Read review
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Review of Tamarijn Aruba Beach Resort, Oranjestad

Excellent Service - a Company to rely on

Advantages: friendly, helpful staff
Disadvantages: none

...I recently used KLM to fly from Birmingham to Lima, via Amsterdam. The whole experience was very satisfying. Checking in at Birmingham was a doddle, we booked through to Lima. The flights left on time. We were given a newspaper as we boarded the plane at Birmingham, followed by breakfast. After a short stop over in Amsterdam (Schipol is a lot better place to spend a couple of hours than Heathrow), we took off on the 13 hour flight to Lima. We were fed and watered often on the flight. At Aruba, the crew changed and we had an hour to stretch our legs in Aruba airport before continuing our journey. At Lima our baggage turned up, much to our surprise. On the return journey, the plane was delayed for 4 hours at Aruba, because of a storm, hence we missed our connection at Amsterdam. We had to spend a night in Amsterdam. This was...

junta 24.12.2000 · Read review
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Review of KLM Royal Dutch Airlines

Caribbean Cocktails

Advantages: Tastes good
Disadvantages: Tastes better if you're actually in the Caribbean and someone is making it for you!

...cocktail umbrellas, sit back in the garden, relax and enjoy! ++FROM TRINIDAD++ Named after the Trinidad carnival, one of the most famous in the world. TRINIDAD CARNIVAL TE LE LE (serves 1) 1 shot Trinidad rum ½ shot tequila ½ shot vodka Dash of orange liqueur 3 shots orange juice 3 shots mango juice Dash of sugar syrup Dash of Angostura Bitters Dash of grenadine And simply, mix together and drink! (From the book ?Shake Dat Cocktail?) ++FROM ARUBA++ Aruba is famous for the delicious liqueur called ?Coe Coe?, which is made from the island?s cukwisa plant (agave). You?ll need Coe Coe for the following cocktail: ARUBA RUMBA (serves 3-4) 1 slice fresh pineapple 4 tablespoons coconut milk 4 tablespoons white rum 4 tablespoons Coe Coe liqueur 1 small banana 2 tablespoons simple syrup Place all...

Maia 02.06.2003 · Read review
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Review of Recipes for Drinks

A quick peek into my life

Advantages: Not sure there are any!
Disadvantages: You want 5 minutes of your life back

...Dad and I always had time for a game of catch. 18. Favourite Holiday: Spending time anywhere in the Carribean, I have been to most every island so if you ever need any advice on where to go, drop me a line! 19. Favourite day of the week: Friday of course. 20. Favourite Toothpaste: Ever since I got married, a tube just keeps majically appearing in the drawer. How does that happen? 21 Favourite Restaurant : Chez Mathilde in Oranjestad, Aruba. The food is amazing, the service even better and best of all, you don't have to wear a tie. 22 Favourite Flowers: Lilacs, they remind me of the house we lived in growing up. 23 Favourite beverage: A great cup of coffee and the perfect martini (extra dry, straight up, three olives and make that gin of course). And not both at the same time. 24 Favourite sport to watch...

Scott_Howitt 15.03.2003 · Read review
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Review of All About Me

The AA and the Caribbean? Surely not...

Advantages: Bright, colourful, great pics, good text
Disadvantages: £12.99 less to spend on Rum!!

...I must admit, I wouldn't instinctively turn to the AA (Automobile Association) when it comes to guide books, especially not one for the Caribbean! However, the AA do produce a good range (300 or more) of guidebooks, and the Explorer series is really rather good. Softback, handy travel bag size (not pocket), around 300 pages of a mixture of text, full colour photographs and useful maps. This book covers all the major islands including: Anguilla, Antiga, Aruba, Barbados, Barbuda, Bonaire, Cayman Islands, Cuba, Curacao, Dominica, Dominican Republic, Grenada, Grenadines, Guadeloupe, Jamaica, Martinque, Montserrat, Nevis, Puerto Rico, Saba, St. Croix, St. John, St. Kitts, St. Lucia, St. Martin, St. Thomas, St. Vincent, Tortola and Trinidad & Tobago. Whilst perhaps each island could command a book in itself, this is a great introduction...

Kingseany 16.06.2004 · Read review
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Review of AA Essential: Caribbean - AA Publishing