Aruba has the most gorgeous ocean I have ever seen. Actually, the entire Caribbean puts majority (if not all) beaches to shame.

Where is Aruba?

Aruba is a Dutch Caribbean island, is close to South America, and is only 9 miles from the coast of Venezuela. A lot of people from the east coast of The States travel here. They speak English and take American currency. Aruba’s official languages are Papiamento and Dutch. I went to Aruba with my mom and my godmother, Colleen.

When you come up from the escalator at the Queen Beatrix Airport, you see this amazing “Aruba Welcome to happiness” sign. Aruba is known to be the happy island and who couldn’t be happy coming into Aruba with a sign like that? Eagle Beach is very laid back with calm waves. It tends to be windy but make no mistake, you will get sunburnt if you don’t put on sunscreen every two hours. Just because you don’t feel the sun burning doesn’t mean your skin is safe. It’s funny because I am religious about sunscreen. I put a timer on my phone as a reminder and lather up! My godmother was making fun of me on how much sunscreen I was putting on while she didn’t care to put it on. Guess who didn’t get sunburnt and stayed out in the sun longer? 😉 My godmother unfortunately had to deal with a sunburn and being uncomfortable outside for two days.

SUNSCREEN IS YOUR FRIEND!

Casa Del Mar 2 Bedroom Suite

We stayed in a 2 bedroom, 2 bathroom suite at Casa Del Mar that included a full kitchen, a living room, 2 beds in one room, and a master bedroom. Eagle Beach is right outside of Casa Del Mar. The master bedroom had a full tub and shower that were separate. Master bedroom and master bathroom are pictured.

Snorkeling

I am not a strong swimmer so the snorkeling tour I went on was perfect. I was able to wear a life jacket (although you can opt out of it if you want to dive in deeper in the ocean). One of the stops was where SS Antilla sunk in World War II. The water was so clear to see all of the fish, I didn’t want to leave the water (which is the down side of booking a snorkeling tour, you will have to get out after a short chunk of time). Let me be a mermaid and live in these waters!

Dining

Pizza Bob’s

Pizza Bob’s has the best bruschetta I have EVER tasted. Not only is the actual bruschetta diced and seasoned perfectly but it’s the soft garlic bread that makes it so delicious.

Ricardo’s Restaurant & Bar

Ricardo’s was my go to place for happy hour (TWICE a day) and for my meals. Pictured is my fish sandwich and the quality is indescribable. Ricardo’s is right on Eagle Beach with outdoor seating with a cover or directly outside on or off the beach. They have weekly karaoke nights.

Linda’s Dutch Pancakes

My first time having dutch pancakes. This place was busy in the morning. I love that this restaurant is (of course) dutch themed and they have cute humorous books on display that you can pick up and learn a little bit about the Dutch. I LOVED their iced coffee. It was better than what I normally have at home!

Pictured: Strawberry pancake, omelet, and the owner Stefan who was so kind. He took over his family’s business and puts kindness and hospitality as a first priority.

Shopping

The Renaissance Mall had a lot of high end stores including Louis Vuitton, Prada, and Gucci. You can also gamble although, I have never had any luck. They also have more affordable shops around as well as the Aruba Flea Market who tend not to waste your time with unnecessary mark ups for the sake of haggling. Aruba’s Starbucks standards have gotten an A+ from me. Although it may be hard to believe, not all countries make Starbucks drinks the same but Aruba made my lattes perfect.

Until next time, Happy Island!