Playa PortoMari?

[SassyGirl]

I have been researching Curacao beaches and I think Playa PortoMari looks like the perfect beach for us.

 

Can anyone who has been there tell me....

 

Is it easy to get a taxi to and from this beach?

 

How much will it cost to get a taxi?

 

How much would it cost to get a taxi back into town after we are done at the beach?

 

Anything else you can tell me about this beach would be greatly appreciated!!!

 

Thanks.

 

SassyGirl

[Coolcruise02]

I have not been there yet but plan on going in November. I found a web site on another thread - http://www.playaportomari.com

 

I think the taxi was $10pp and a $2pp entry fee.

 

Can anyone else add to this? Thanks :)

[Coolcruise02]

On their web site they show a nature trail leaving from the parking lot. Has anyone done this? Thanks :)

[rjscott]

We were at Playa Porto Mari a couple of wks ago. The taxi was $10 pp each way and the entry to the beach "club" was $2 pp. Lounge chairs were an addt'l $3 pp, but that included a complimentary soft drink. It's a beautiful beach, good for sunning and for snorkeling.

 

Becki

[Coolcruise02]

Thanks Becki, did you happen to see the nature trail?

[rjscott]

Coolcruise, no, I didn't see the nature trail, but didn't really look for it, as we had a limited time at the beach. I would think it would be very nice and you'd probably see some birds and lizards at the very least. We saw the tiniest little red frog at the outside shower. I'd never seen one like it.

 

Becki

[showergirl5311b]

So this beach, does it have washrooms, somewhere to eat, showers etc.......Are there any water toys there? etc.......waverunners, parasail, can you snorkle here?

[rjscott]

Showergirl, yes, good snorkeling. And, nice changing/washrooms. There is a dive shop on premises, but not sure about the other watersports. There is a bar for drinks, and I believe some food. Check the website I posted for specifics.

 

Becki

[JudyK]

A few questions for anyone that has been to Playa Porto Mari.

Can you tell me how long was the taxi ride from the cruise dock to Playa Porto Mari ?

Also, how far out did you have to swim to get to the reefs to snorkel?

and how was the current?

Did anyone rent snorkel gear from the dive shop?

[rjscott]

JudyK, the ride was about 20-25 min. We docked at the new pier, so the ride from the old pier may be a few minutes longer. The park doesn't open until, I believe 9:30, and we got there just a few minutes b/f opening. Since we only had a couple of hours there, our driver waited for us.

We had our own snorkel equipment, so, sorry, don't know what the dive shop rented. There were no strong currents the morning we were there; very easy to get around. It's not far out to the coral, and in fact, there is lots of smaller coral nearer shore, where a lot of fish congregate, so you can see a nice variety of fish w/o going too far.

Hope this helps! :)

 

Becki

[JudyK]

Thanks Becki,

That is just the information I needed. We have some people in our group that are not very stong swimmers and they wanted this information. We too, always take our own snorkel equipment.

[Arubalisa]

Is this a white sand beach or just snorkel and sunning?

Can you rent an umbrella along with the chaise lounges?

Is taxi fare still $10 pp? Assume that is roundtrip?

Does it get crowded with cruise ship passengers? :D

[rjscott]

Arubalisa, this is a nice, white, sandy beach. I believe there were umbrellas in addition to the loungers, but you might want to check the website to see if that info is out there. http://www.playaportomari.com

As for the taxi fare, our fare was $10 pp each way, and we had a group that filled a van. I've read that others have paid more and also less, so it may be a matter of negotiating with the driver. I believe that our price was based on the driver waiting for us; less driving, less gas.

 

Becki

[eldercruser]

I know HAL has a tour to PortoMari, but it is just one school bus. The folks stay for about two hours, but there was still plenty of beach space. We did this last year. Reading all the above info, we may proceed independently this year. The facilities are quite nice.

[gizmo]

It sounds like the 10.00 is because the van was full. If two people got a taxi, it would probably be much more.

[Arubalisa]

Arubalisa, this is a nice, white, sandy beach.Becki

Do we need to wear water shoes?

 

I have to make sure all the bases are covered. :) The family has still not forgiven me for the rocks in the water in Cozumel :o for which they did not have their watershoes. :(

[eldercruser]

Watershoes will be most helpful at playaportomarie.

[thatbloominplace]

there is also a great short hiking trail with gorgeous views of the beaches from above. the shoes could be used for that as well. we loved playa porto mari. have fun.

 

steve

[betsybug]

The driving instructions on the Porto Mari web site are wrong. For example, there is no Porto Mari billboard on the west highway. We rented from Avis at the pier for $58 (insurance included) and drove there in half an hour. Here are the correct directions:

 

Take main road to the west from the Mega Pier on road marked with large green signed "West Punta". Turn left at green sign "St. Willibrodus". Go to the end of the road (3 km) and see the large churg on hill on left in the village. Turn left in front of church at sign "Coral Estates". Immediately you will see the small white "Porto Mari" sign on the right fork roadway. Follow that road to the parking area at Porto Mari.

 

The best snorkeling is on the far left of the jetty/walkway on the rocky part of the beach. You don't need water shoes because there's enough sand there to walk into the water and put your fins on in the calm water. The snorkeling in the middle of the beach ito the right of the jetty - near the swimming platform - is not so good. This is the best snorkel beach we have visited in the Caribbean.

[lgarner]

Thanks BestyBug - we are on our way there in a few days - also rented a car. Although we made our way there once before, I think your directions will be much better - I remember a few wrong turns getting there last year!

 

Lisa

 

Do you recall if there were, in fact umbrellas - I can't recall since we were only there for a brief peak at the view and then on to another stop.

 

Also, did Avis have a map of the island for you to use? I can't remember that either - senior moment!

[lgarner]

Playa Porto Marie is a great beach - we rented umbrellas and they were set up under permanent umbrella like stands. The snorkeling here was awesome to the left of the pier facing the water. Its a little rough on the feet getting into the water (pieces of old broken coral and shells, etc.) We did not think of getting in from the pier (ladder into the water) but we did get out that way.

[Phamer55]

I just got back from this beach - it is awesome! I think it's the best Caribbean beach I've ever been to (I've been on 4 Caribbean cruises). The sand is soft and the water is super clear and calm. There's a little raft that you can swim out to. The snorkelling is pretty good too. I didn't need water shoes. The cost was only $5 ($2 entrance plus $3 for a chair). They no longer give you a free soft drink with the chair. The cab fair is $10 pp one way. There are no hotels and no jet skis, so it's very peaceful. There weren't too many people there, I'd say only 1/4 of the beach chairs were being used. I highly recommend it!!

[Arubalisa]

With 7 out of the 10 of us having previously been to Curacao and spending the day touring, it was easy to decide that this day would be spent at the beach. We really wanted to try one of the fabulous looking beaches which were furthest from the cruise terminal and thus "less touristy".

 

Furthest north on the west side of the island are beaches Grote and Kleine Knip and Playa Kalki. It would be very expensive to get there via taxi so we attempted to rent a vehicle for the day. A 10 passenger van would have been perfect. Well, turns out that because it was Christmas week, there were no agencies on the island who would rent a vehicle for less than 3 nights (more were 7 nights). So we had to come up with "plan b".

 

We spent the day at Playa Porto Mari. Walked off the ship to the waiting taxis found two drivers who were willing to split us between the two of them and drive us to Porto Mari. They said it would be a 45 minute ride, but it ended up being only about a half hour tops. Not a cheap ride at $10 per person each way, but without a car, we had no choice.

 

The money was well spent. It was nearly perfect. Our entire family can highly recommend it. The only thing it is lacking is clean soft white sand. The sand contains coral fragments, some of which are large chunks, and walking can be painful. Once you reached the water, the sandy bottom here was much much better. IF you are prepared beforehand, you will have a pair of water shoes with you.

 

There are facilities: umbrellas, chaise lounges, restrooms, open air restaurant and even a dive shop. Beware that prices at the restaurant and bar are posted in guilders (also called, as in Aruba, the florin), abbreviated NAFl. or ANG. It is pegged to the US dollar at a stable rate of US$ 1 = NAFl. 1.77. So as you can see, the prices when converted to US dollars are going to be much less. At the bar, when in the ABC islands, I always highly recommend an Amstel Bright!

 

We were a little confused when we arrived because their website states they charge Naf. 3.50 p.p. (Naf. 4.00 on Sundays/Public Holidays). When we arrived I guess we kind of expected someone at the entrance collecting the fee. A man appeared at least an hour after we had arrived and just walked from chaise to chaise down the beach collecting the money. We arrived at the beach just about a short while after they opened and were glad we got there when we did. If you require shade I would imagine ESPECIALLY on a weekend since there were many locals there, arrive when they open. According to their website they open at 9:30 am.

 

Three of us had two chaise lounges and an umbrella for the bargain price of $8 USD. My brother rented snorkel gear for himself and his son and paid about $6 or $8 each. Once they had their masks and snorkel they were off exploring. They finally came out of the water raving on and on about how fabulous the reef was, they had never seen so many "cool fish"...My husband and I are both divers, and though we knew there was great snorkeling AND a dive shop on the premises, had never even considered diving. It did seem thought that no matter where you looked there were people walking around with tanks on their backs.

 

Hmm...were we missing something here? We decided to take a little stroll down to the dive shop. I figured if the price was right, I could at least convince my husband into taking a dive. He had his wallet with his certification card on him, I did not. It was uselessly sitting in my wallet, in the mini-safe on the ship. Gee, maybe a lesson to be learned here?

We asked the nice man behind the counter how much to rent gear for a shore dive and it was ONLY $23 for all equipment including weights and the tank. Now THAT was a bargain. I don't know if my husband's eyes lit up, but mine surely did. My husband then explained to the gentleman that I did not have my C-card, by any chance would he be able to look up my certification on the computer? "Surely" he replied. Wow how cool was that?

 

Oh no, I suddenly remembered I did not have my prescription dive mask with me! Again, another item left back on the ship, this one inside the luggage underneath our bed. I am blind without my glasses so there was no considering diving for me, no way would I be able to see anything- zero, zilch, nada. In saying this out loud, the gentleman asked if I knew what my prescription was. I did not, but my husband did. Well the chances are probably one in a million, but he had a mask with my prescription in it! Wow, I would never have dreamed of being that lucky in my life.

 

In talking some more we found out that in a couple of hours they were offering a guided dive of the reef. Instead of going off on our own in a relatively safe place, but one we were unfamiliar with nonetheless, why not spend the extra money for a guide. So for $36 per person 2 hours later we had one of the best and longest dives in my life. My husband has over 100+ dives (I have a little over half that) and admittedly, was not quite as impressed as I was, but I was in heaven. I will always remember not only the abundance of fish, but the gorgeous Stove-Pipe Sponges. We have dove Aruba many many times, but Curacao really put it to shame in everyway. For our next dive vacation I would not hesitate to consider Curacao, but thinking about that makes me REALLY curious about the diving in Bonaire...

 

I have a copy of the snorkel trail map http://www.our-cruises.com/curacao/portomari_snorkelmapa.jpg Remember the depth is in meters. :)

[carol&jeff]

Arubalisa - Were you able to pay the entrance fee - and the cab rides for that matter - with US dollars? I don't want to have to exchange money, if possible. Thanks!

[Arubalisa]

Arubalisa - Were you able to pay the entrance fee - and the cab rides for that matter - with US dollars? I don't want to have to exchange money, if possible. Thanks!

Oh absolutely use your US dollars! You know, come to think of it, I cannot remember the last time I went anywhere in the Caribbean where they did not accept the good old USD $$. :)

 

The prices at the bar and restaurant were listed in Guilders. Prices are listed in guilders (also called the florin), abbreviated NAFl. or ANG. It is pegged to the US dollar at a stable rate [does not fluctuate] of US$ 1 = NAFl. 1.77 for cash.