What I Got Up To On Days 1-3 In Aruba

AD- I went to Aruba thanks to Aruba Tourism so my trip was complementary
but all thoughts and opinions are my own

I may have only mentioned it a million times, but last month I headed to Aruba. Thanks to Aruba Tourism UK. It really was a bit of a pinch me moment but such an incredible experience and country. I got to spend 5 nights on the island alongside another lovely blogger fitting in as much as we could to see as much of the island as possible. And I think we did a pretty great job of it all in all. I was going to do one post but I got part way through and the post was huge so here’s what we got up to during the first half of our trip.

Travelling from the UK to Aruba

Aruba is a constant balmy temperature pretty much all year round. So you can get your fix of sunshine whenever you need it. But they do still have ‘high season’ which is December- April, typically when people want to jet off to warmer climates. Despite Aruba sitting in the area of the world where you’d expect hurricanes, the country is actually protected by other countries so don’t directly experience them.

The UK offers a direct flight to Aruba, but this only runs for part of the year. We flew with KLM by taking a short 45 minute flight to Amsterdam and joining on the flight from there to Aruba which runs every day. The flight time from Amsterdam is about 10 hours there, and around 8.5-9 hours coming back.

If you’re wondering why Amsterdam, it’s because Aruba is actually a Dutch overseas territory. This means a lot of the people who live in Aruba may have been born in Holland, or have family from there. Our flight went without a hitch and I settled back for the 10 hours with ease. Movie watching, catching up on Ru Paul’s drag race and reading books meant the time passed in a flash.

Day 1

Our first evening

After arriving in Aruba we were greeted with our hosts from the Aruba Tourism board and taken to our home for the next few nights. We were hosted at the Amsterdam Manor Hotel which is just across the street from Eagle Beach which was voted the number 3 beach in the world on Trip Advisor. I’ll be doing a more in depth post on where we stayed at a later date, but safe to say I was very happy with my new home.

Considering we’d been up for a long time we didn’t venture too far for the first night’s meal. We were taken across the road to Passions on the Beach which is one of the hotels restaurants. As the name suggests the restaurant is on the beach. Sadly we missed the sunset as I’m sure this would have been stunning while sat eating dinner. But when we were there the sun set quite early between 6 pm and 630 pm. I won’t go into too much detail on the food itself as I’m going to do a separate post all about food, but it was a great ending to our day of travelling.

Day 2

Jeep tours and the Natural Pool

Due to the time difference I was up pretty early this morning. Breakfast was at the hotel for day 1 and then we headed off on a jeep tour of the island with De Palm Tours. The off road experience in our jeep started off pretty tame until we headed into the Arikok National Park. We were thrown all over the place as we headed to the Natural Pool or as it’s known the Conchi Pool.

Thankfully we were in a large 4 x 4 jeep, but the other ways to get to the pool include UTV’s which you can rent and ride. Although I don’t trust my driving skills enough on uneven terrain. Or you can hike the trail, but in the blazing heat this option wouldn’t have even entered my mind. As we headed up we got some wonderful views of parts of the island. But the journey isn’t for the fainthearted. When we stopped there weer 80 odd steps to clamber down before heading into the Natural Pool. I’m not too steady on my feet but taking it slow it was perfectly manageable. The hardest part was changing into my swimming gear as I wasn’t prepared and wearing it underneath my clothes. Rookie mistake!

The Natural Pool is a calm swimming hole which was formed by a cluster of rocks that protect it from the rough surf of the Northeast facing coast. And after a warm morning and lots of being thrown away it was a welcome relaxation. But keep an eye on the groups around you as it is small and can get busy.

Continuing with the jeep tour around Aruba and lunch

After getting back on the jeep we were taken to a few more stops including some Natural Bridges. The main Natural Bridge collapsed a few years ago, thankfully during the night. But a smaller one next to it dubbed ‘son of a bridge’ stands tall. This one was created in just 3 weeks due to a nearby hurricane and it stands next to the remains of the Natural Bridge.

The jeep continued to take around sights such as Bushiribana Gold Mill Ruins which is an abandoned gold mill which was used in the gold rush of the 19th century. We stopped at the Alto Vista Chapel which was the first Roman Catholic Church on the island. And the final stop was the California Lighthouse on the north of the island. We actually  stopped our tour here to meet with the tourism team and head to lunch. Which after our morning I was well in need of. We headed to Garden Fresh where I indulged in a great panini and fresh juice.

Total relaxation at the Ritz-Carlton Spa

Our spa afternoon could not have come after a better activity. We were a little worn out from the jeep tour, and in my case a little red around the edges. So an afternoon at the spa was just what I needed. The Ritz-Carlton is the islands only 5* hotel and set along it’s own palm lined beach. From what I saw it looked stunning, especially the adults only pool area which was so tranquil.

When we arrived at the spa it was empty which meant we could fully explore. The spa itself may not be huge but there was an outdoor jacquizzi which I wish we had more time to relax in alongside a sauna and steam room. But we were there for a treatment and my what a treatment it was. The Misterio Di Aloe treatment was just short of 2 hours and included a refresh facial, a fully body massage and foot reflexology. And for the first time ever I actually fell asleep in the treatment room as I was so relaxed.  I’m a true believer in treating your body well and this did just that.

Our first full day ended in Barefoot which is another on the beach restaurant. We were meant to be there for sunset but unfortunately this didn’t happen, but it would have been stunning if we had. I indulged in two courses of fresh seafood and it was definitely one of my favourite dinners of the trip.

Day 3

A morning and afternoon out at sea

Day 3 started with an amazing breakfast at Craft before we headed to the coast to embark on our sailing trip with Tranquilo Charters. A lot of sailing trips headed to one side of the island where there’s a sunken ship that you can dive or snorkel. But our sailing trip went the opposite way. This ensured we had plenty of space to snorkel and enjoy the water. The crew on the boat said the popular spots can get very crowded in the water. For about 4-5 hours we spent time relaxing on the boat watching the views, or heading into the water.

To begin with we were taken out to a small area to snorkel to check out the life around the corals. And thankfully the seawater wasn’t as cold as I had anticipated. The second part of our snorkelling adventure went further out. I was a bit sceptical as although I can swim fine I wouldn’t say I was the strongest swimmer. But I knew I’d regret it if I didn’t go out. We drifted and swam following the smaller boat to allow us to see a lot of underwater life and it was so relaxing. Even if I popped up head up approximately every 30 seconds to check I could see the boat.

When we got back on the boat we had lunch and spent more time basking in the sunshine. A great mixture of relaxation and sight seeing without having to move around too much.

Aruba Aloe Vera

After we got back onto solid ground we were taken to the Aloe Factory which was founded in 1890 and is the world’s oldest Aloe Company. It was incredibly interesting to see how Aloe is harvested from the plants. And they grew as far as the eye could see. The Aruba Aloe Factory is both FDA and ISO approved and they don’t test any of their products on animals.

Our tour took us outside to the plants themselves and then around the factory where everything is produced. The of course it ended in the gift shop where I had to constrain myself from trying to buy the whole shop. I picked up a few bits though and their pure aloe did wonders for my sunburn. Although considering how bad my skin is around sunshine I should have bought a larger bottle!

This evening took us to an Italian called Hostaria Vittorio where I filled myself up with calamari, garlic bread and cheese and nut stuffed pasta. Safe to say day 3 was another great day!

Stay tuned to find out what else I got up to in Aruba. And for more of an in depth look into where I stayed and everything I ate.

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