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Has anyone been to Aruba and would recommend either doing a jeep tour or renting a jeep and exploring on our own ? We are going next month on our honeymoon and have only 6 full days to enjoy. We booked one afternoon doing the blue melody sunset cruise and wanted to spend another day exploring. I have been to Aruba before and did a self guided atv tour and had an amazing time. We did not do the natural pool because the drive looked treacherous. I don't know if we would be able to make it on a jeep on our own.
Should we do a half day tour that goes there? Or rent on our own and skip natural pool and go to baby beach, north coast and arikok park? Or do the full day tour that goes all those places? We like having freedom to do our own thing but if we get to see everything the full day tour might be worth it ? Any suggestions?
We've done both. We took a guided tour when we visited Aruba during a cruise and had only one day there. It was great! We enjoyed it but it only made us want to go back. We returned a couple of years later along with two other couples and we all rented jeeps for the week. We were all over the place, including natural pool. Yes, some of it was treacherous. In fact, at one point, I hit a hole and bottomed out so hard that I thought I had ripped the oil pan off the jeep. It was okay and after that, we were not quite so adventurous. When we returned the jeeps at the end of the week, I noticed that our rental agreement stated, "no off-road use." OOPS! Guess I missed that one.
If I had it all to do over again, I would go with the full day guided tour. You get to see everything and once you've seen it, you probably won't want to go back during your stay. Having your own wheels on Aruba is not that big of a deal. Public transportation will get you anywhere else you want to go and if you decide you're just going to hang by the pool a couple of days, then you haven't spent anything on a vehicle rental that day.
Aruba is nice if you're going to spend a day or 2 snorkeling and sunning. Great beach area for that. But the rest is overrated. We took a cruise tour and what a disappointment. It 1st took us through town and the guide just marveled at the nice new McDonalds and KFC that were built there, then we went over to an un-spectacular lighthouse, then to some windy area where ocean water swirled through some holes in the rocks. Whoopee!
While it CAN be done in a Corolla or similar vehicle, a higher-clearance vehicle is useful for getting to Dos Playas and the nearby Boca Prins (even got a bar and restaurant there now) on the northeast shore. It's past (north of) the Quadirikiri Caves on the eastern loop road, Route 7. Every time I've been there it's empty, and the water is truly amazing. Not very swimmable beyond the break, it's generally rough, but it's an idyllic beach, easy to get to, about 30 minutes from Palm and Eagle Beach. On the way back stop at Hooiberg, or Haystack Mountain, the climb to the top is worth it. The north shore has some nice places as well, north of the Tierra golf course, in which a Jeep is better than a standard rental car.
Aruba is nice if you're going to spend a day or 2 snorkeling and sunning. Great beach area for that. But the rest is overrated. We took a cruise tour and what a disappointment. It 1st took us through town and the guide just marveled at the nice new McDonalds and KFC that were built there, then we went over to an un-spectacular lighthouse, then to some windy area where ocean water swirled through some holes in the rocks. Whoopee!
Well it's sad that you only had part of a day there. I spent a week in Aruba and it was jam-packed with activities, from diving to riding trikes and Segways to exploring the entire island on our own and seeing the aloe factory and local areas. There is so much more to do there than just sunning and snorkeling.
There's so much to do in Aruba we go back every year. �� We always rent a jeep but I'm not gutsy enough to take it to the natural pond. I've heard great things about the tours.
Hey bac0s. What do you do when you rent jeeps?? Have any advice you could shares? Thanks!
Sorry for the late reply! We drive around the undeveloped side of the island. Stop at the little beaches (not suitable for swimming) and collect sea glass. Go to the Alto Vista chapel. Climb around the gold mine ruins. Drive through the National Park. Enjoy the beauty and peace. There few buildings nothing there and few people.
Been to Aruba a couple times and have tried the group jeep tour with about 10 people on a large jeep and also the jeep tour where you have your own jeep and drive with the group. (Those jeeps hold 2 people so you can take turns driving.) I would highly recommend the group tour with driving your own jeep - it was loads of fun! There are also ATV tours with just one person per ATV, but I actually like the jeeps better - they have roll bars (just in case), the ATVs do not. Also, I think that you get dirtier in the ATV since it is pretty dusty and there's no front window, like there is with the jeep. The scenery that you go through in the national park is stunning. There are also the Segway tours along the beach - we also enjoyed this.
Aruba is a great place to visit. However, it can be very commercial and touristy so you really need to seek out other adventures besides the main touristy/shopping/restaurant areas, if that is what you prefer. We enjoyed the Eagle Beach area much more so than Palm Beach as it was much more quiet and serenely beautiful. Eagle Beach was huge compared to Palm Beach. (We loved the Bucuti Resort on Eagle Beach.) Palm Beach area is much more touristy and lined with the high rise hotels, shops and restaurants, although the water is a bit calmer there for swimming than Eagle Beach.
Hope this helps!
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