SUGGESTIONS / IDEAS for Excursions (Curacao & Aruba)

We will be on the Vista in a few months and need some thoughts on excursions. In Curacao, we are there until 10:30pm and excited about our first nighttime port. I have heard that a sunset cruise is not to be missed, and that it's great to just walk around with all the lights there at night and perhaps a local restaurant. Any suggestions for Curacao? The next day we are in Aruba and have heard that Eagle Beach is the place to be. It's my wife, son (19) and daughter (14) with us, so we are good with anything adventurous and fun. (In La Romana, D.R., we have a dune buggy excursion booked so we are all set there). We look forward to the comments from anyone who has been to either (or both) of these places. Thank you. :D

We have done the tour with Irie in Curacao and it was pretty fun.

http://www.irietours.com/all-west-beach-hopping-tour-

The ports of call board has lots of information as well as Trip Advisor. Here is the link to the ports of call board.

https://boards.cruisecritic.com/forumdisplay.php?f=587

I second the suggestion for Irie Tours in Curacao.

We did the sunset sail in Aruba, and really enjoyed it.

We hung out at Lion’s Dive Hotel in curaçao. You can pay a small fee to use their beach and chairs. They have a bar and food. It was so peaceful and uncrowded. Beautiful day spent there!

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

That’s a 3rd vote for Irie Tours. Fantastic tour at a very reasonable price

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

We have done the tour with Irie in Curacao and it was pretty fun.

www.irietours.com/all-west-beach-hopping-tour-

 

The ports of call board has lots of information as well as Trip Advisor. Here is the link to the ports of call board.

 

https://boards.cruisecritic.com/forumdisplay.php?f=587

We were there 2 weeks ago with this company for the shorter, less expensive tour. After standing around smelling diesel fumes for 30 minutes and being promised our bus "will be here any moment," our bus finally showed. Then we sat on the bus another 15 minutes smelling more fumes, waiting around - possibly for more people to show up - I'm not sure.

By that time, I had a headache & jumped off the bus and went back to the ship. Husband & son went on the tour. They said it was "meh." I have no problems with open air buses, but not when they are just sitting there, not moving.

The Aruba Jeep tour to the North coast was a hoot ! I highly recommend this ship excursion. We got lost, the driver drove too fast and hit every pothole , I got dirty and finally got wet. THIS WAS FUN ! :D We stopped several places, such as the mill ruins, the lighthouse, the natural bridge, and a wonderful beach.

My Jeep tour in Curacao was canceled and I wound up on a countryside bus tour. It was mostly boring. :confused:

I don't know if it's available on your cruise or not but in Aruba, we did the Segway tours and it was a blast. They teach you how to operate them, then split you up into two groups. One group goes on the tour and the other goes to the beach. At the end of the tour, you stop at the beach and the other group takes off on the Segways and you enjoy beach time. We were on the group that took the Segways first. The guide takes you up to the lighthouse and stops for picture taking along the way. At the top, they stop for a bathroom break and more picture ops.

On the way back, you stop at the beach and they give you a free soda. DW and I are in our late 60's and we really enjoyed it. One of the workers at the beach came up to us and said that he really enjoyed seeing OLD people on this excursion. :mad:

The Aruba Jeep tour to the North coast was a hoot ! I highly recommend this ship excursion. We got lost, the driver drove too fast and hit every pothole , I got dirty and finally got wet. THIS WAS FUN ! :D We stopped several places, such as the mill ruins, the lighthouse, the natural bridge, and a wonderful beach.

 

My Jeep tour in Curacao was canceled and I wound up on a countryside bus tour. It was mostly boring. :confused:

Have to second this tour, we did this on our last trip to Aruba and so glad we did. Took a little time getting started but once we were on our jeep it was a blast. They used the front facing seats not the side facing ones. Plenty of room for my husband who is 6’ 4” y’all as we say at the back of the Jeep.

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

We will be on the Vista in a few months and need some thoughts on excursions. In Curacao, we are there until 10:30pm and excited about our first nighttime port. I have heard that a sunset cruise is not to be missed, and that it's great to just walk around with all the lights there at night and perhaps a local restaurant. Any suggestions for Curacao? The next day we are in Aruba and have heard that Eagle Beach is the place to be. It's my wife, son (19) and daughter (14) with us, so we are good with anything adventurous and fun. (In La Romana, D.R., we have a dune buggy excursion booked so we are all set there). We look forward to the comments from anyone who has been to either (or both) of these places. Thank you. :D

When are you on the Vista? We are on the July 14th and also have the dune buggy excursion booked for DR! Hoping to find a good sunset tour in Curaçao.

Sent from my iPad using Forums

SL Cruisers, we are on the same cruise as you. Fun that you also have the dune buggies. Please let me know what else you find. Thanks!

We hung out at Lion’s Dive Hotel in curaçao. You can pay a small fee to use their beach and chairs. They have a bar and food. It was so peaceful and uncrowded. Beautiful day spent there!

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

Thank you for the tip. do you recall how from port they are? taxi rate? and Rate of chairs/beach?

Oh and did you just take a taxi? Assuming you didn't need a reservation since it wasn't a typical AI pass?

Thank you!

I am interested in going snorkeling on Curacao and was wondering if the snorkeling sites on Irie Trours West Beach Hopping Tour are good places to go. I've only been snorkeling once, but am eager to do it again.

It's not a night-time tour, but I saw on the "Curacao" post that "Around Curacao" (by Andy) was excellent. Checked TripAdvisor and saw mostly 5-star reviews so we booked with him in December 2018. He said it is just he and one other driver in order to control quality. The number of hours and price was excellent!

It's not a night-time tour, but I saw on the "Curacao" post that "Around Curacao" (by Andy) was excellent. Checked TripAdvisor and saw mostly 5-star reviews so we booked with him in December 2018. He said it is just he and one other driver in order to control quality. The number of hours and price was excellent!

Do you know how many people he can take on a private tour? Cost?

It's not a night-time tour, but I saw on the "Curacao" post that "Around Curacao" (by Andy) was excellent. Checked TripAdvisor and saw mostly 5-star reviews so we booked with him in December 2018. He said it is just he and one other driver in order to control quality. The number of hours and price was excellent!

I read excellent reviews about Around Curacao as well and booked with them for April 2019. I would love to hear about your experience when you return in December!

Do you remember how much you ended up paying? Did you pay in advance of trip or just catch a cab over and pay on arrival?

We hung out at Lion’s Dive Hotel in curaçao. You can pay a small fee to use their beach and chairs. They have a bar and food. It was so peaceful and uncrowded. Beautiful day spent there!

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums