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Aruba Trip Report - Paradise Beach Villas
September - 30 - October 7, 2000
Sent in by: Michele Lansing
Just returned from a fabulous week in Aruba at the Paradise Beach Villas where we own a
2-bedroom timeshare unit. Before we left on our journey I made sure to order an Aruba Plus Card for my husband and
myself. It was well worth the US$20 investment for the two cards.
Our first stop after arriving via American Airlines was Explore Car Rental.
We had reserved a Suzuki Jimny through their Internet site. As promised they were at the
airport awaiting our arrival. The transported us to their offices, which is located near
the Ling and Sons grocery store.
The Jimny (a hardtop, two-door Jeep type vehicle) was $390 for the week. We new this going
in and
presented our Aruba Plus Card and
immediately received 15% off the rental price (US$58.50). Aruba
Plus Card had already paid for itself.
Our next stop before our resort was the Ling
and Sons grocery store to stock up on breakfast and lunch items and
beverages. Because we had a full kitchen we chose to do these meals in to save some money.
Once again, at the checkout counter we presented our Aruba
Plus Card and received a 2% discount (about $ 4.20). The savings are really
adding up.
We arrived at Paradise Beach Villas, our timeshare resort, about 3:30 pm. We were checked
in very quickly and on our way to the pool. Paradise Beach Villas has completed the work
on their pool area. They now have two beautiful pools and a waterfall stream that appears
to connect them. There are two new hot tubs and a good- sized kiddy pool. After a little
lounging by the pool we were
off the Royal Cabana
Casino for gambling and dinner.
The Royal Cabana
offered match plays on several table games with our Aruba
Plus Card. Since we only play the slots we opted not to use our card. After a
little gambling we went into their restaurant and had the all you can eat seafood buffet.
This is a great deal for $14.95 per person, plus 15% service charge. They had several hot
and cold items and lots of seafood choices. Don’t be deterred because they call it a
seafood buffet. There are lots of non-seafood items as well.
On Sunday, we decided to make it a lazy day for all. We walked the beach in front of our
resort and covered quite a distance. Our friends attended the 12:30 pm Catholic Mass at
the La Cabana Resort. They said that it was quite nice and that they enjoyed the priest
very much. They would recommend this service to other Catholics that want to attend a Mass
in English. After more lounging by the pools, we headed into Oranjstead for dinner.
Tonight’s vote was lobster, so we chose the Driftwood restaurant. This restaurant can
be kind of tricky to find, as it is not on a major street. Shortly after being seated we
were given a basket of garlic bread that we had refilled twice. We had our choice of soup
or salad with every entrée. The lobster tail here was quite good. It was served with
rice, vegetable and corn bread. The portions, while large, were not too big to finish the
entire meal. We skipped desert this night.
On Monday, we decided to do some sight seeing because there were no ships in port and we
would avoid the large crowds. So early in the morning we packed up our bagels for
breakfast and our sandwiches for lunch and headed out. We went to Arashi beach,
near the California lighthouse, and combed the beach for shells and sea glass. But our
greatest find was the US$20 bill that I found sticking out of some seaweed. After walking
the beach for about an hour, we ate our breakfast in a little seating area near the
parking lot. After breakfast it was on to the California lighthouse. It is looking really
beautiful this year; it has just recently been repainted to cover the graffiti that
tourists and natives alike have been leaving. New to the lighthouse this year are three
vendors with carts selling beverages and snacks. We left the lighthouse and headed down
the eastern coast towards the
Alto Vista chapel. The chapel had just completed the celebration of its 250th
year in Aruba. While beautiful, the tents that they had erected for the celebration took
some of the serenity of this chapel away. After leaving the chapel we decided to head back
to the resort, because we had encountered one of Aruba’s rare rainstorms. We happened
across the St. Anna church in Noord. This church has a beautiful altar that has carved out
of mahogany wood in Europe. It was a wonderful surprise on our journey.
The rain lasted most of the afternoon (about 5 hours) but it was not a violent storm. In
fact, we took this cloudy time to enjoy the new hot tubs at our resort. For tonight’s
dinner we chose the
French Steakhouse. I would highly recommend this to anyone dining out in
Aruba. Located in the Manchebo
Beach Resort, you have the choice to dine either in the restaurant or outside
on their covered patio. We chose to dine outside were we could enjoy the weather and the
music being performed. For dinner we decided on the Ambassador’s five-course meal at
$25.95 per person, plus 15% gratuity. This meal included a bottle of wine for each couple,
appetizer, soup or salad, entrée, desert and coffee or tea. We had the twin tournedos
with butter shrimp for an entrée.
On Tuesday morning we went into town to get some souvenir shopping done. Our friends
wanted to get a pearl necklace that one of the larger jewelers on the island was
advertising. The store did not have it and was not sure if they would every get it back.
We wandered into several of the stores looking for this necklace. We walked into a jewelry
store behind the Royal Plaza Mall called
Kay’s. I am not sure if the man we talked to was the owner or not, but he offered to
order the same style necklace for us and have it in his store by Friday with no condition
for us to purchase it. I would highly recommend this jewelry store to anyone. After
shopping, it was another relaxing day on the beach and at the pool. The surf was really
high and strong due to a tropical depression that was in the area. We have never seen
anything like it in all the years that we have been going to Aruba.
After a relaxing day we decided that we wanted to enjoy the sunset from the beach and
check out all of the hotels on the Palm Beach
boardwalk. We parked our car at the Wyndham Hotel and made a short stop in their casino.
From there we walked past the Aruba Grand and headed to Kokoa Beach Bar for
cocktails and to watch the sunset. Once again we presented our Aruba Plus Cards and got two cocktails
of the day for the price of one (savings of US$8.00). After watching a sunset that was
blocked by clouds we headed further down the beach, we looked at the newly rebuilt
Radisson (quite beautiful) and the remodeled Allegro Hotel. Our next stop was the Hyatt
for a little more casino action and the dinner at their Palms restaurant. My husband had
the
shrimp fajitas and was very surprised by the portions. I had their soup of the day and
chicken quesadillas. This again was very good food at reasonable prices.
On Wednesday, we decided to complete our sightseeing tour of the eastern coast. We went to
the Bushiribana ruins and the
Natural Bridge. It is amazing how different this side of the island is from
the Western coast where the hotels lie. It is rugged and deserted, and gives the feeling
of being anywhere but a tropical paradise. From here we came inland and toured the rock
formations at Casibari
and Ayo. They are quite interesting and with a little imagination, you can
see all sorts of things. After the completion of our sightseeing tour we went back to the
resort for more relaxation at the pool. Our resort offered Bingo at 3:00pm in the
afternoon. To play one card for 5 games it would cost you US$ 5.00. It was a good
investment, as I won a gift certificate to use on either the Mi Dushi or Tattoo sailing
adventures.
Tonight’s dinner was an adventure into Cuban dining at Cuba’s
Cookin’. Once again we used our Aruba
Plus Card and we each received a free cocktail. We had two choices and
decided on the Hemingway Daiquiri. This was very near the best daiquiri that I have ever
had anywhere. Once again we had a savings of about US$ 10. When we arrived we got a basket
of yucca chips and three kinds of sauces a hot salsa, honey mustard and a balsamic vinegar
and oil with chive and garlic. During our cocktails and through our entire meal a two
piece ensemble that played all types of music entertained us. After the chips, we chose to
have an appetizer of boiled yucca with the balsamic vinegar sauce on top, then on to the
main course. My husband had a dish that they have nicknamed the "1959 Cadillac".
It was a combo platter that contained two types of beef dishes and pork tenderloin. I had
the lobster enchilada, and let me tell you that it was out of this world. The lobster was
so tender that you could cut it with a fork. Our entrees were severed with vegetables,
black beans and rice and fried plantain. After dinner we decided to splurge and had
dessert, my husband chose the rice pudding and I had some of the best key lime pie ever.
Our entire meal with an additional round of drinks was US$ 85.00. Quite reasonable for all
that we had.
On Thursday, we decided to visit De Palm Island and do some snorkeling. A great secret for
anyone with a car, at any De Palm tours desk in a hotel you can get an Aruba Activities
Catalog. About two-thirds of the way through the book there is a coupon for a free ferry
transfer. Each coupon is good for one person only, but it will offer you savings of US$
8.00 on the ferry transfer. If you
want to see fish, this is the best snorkeling on the island. We fish are so tame that they
will come to you the minute you enter the water with a bag of bread. We saw giant, blue
parrot fish and several other varieties that I cannot ever name. It was some of the best
snorkeling that we have ever done anywhere. There is a restaurant and bar here that is
more reasonable in price than most of
the places in town. If you don’t snorkel or scuba dive you can relax on the beach and
enjoy the view.
Dinner on Thursday was at our favorite restaurant on the island. As usual dinner at
Papiamento’s was a 2-½ hour event. I don’t think we would have ever gotten out
of there if we didn’t ask for the check. We enjoyed a romantic meal on the patio with
light only from the white twinkle lights. The baked onion soup was fantastic and the
Cesar’s salad was perfect. My husband had the Neptune and I surf and turf for dinner.
Both of these meals are served on hot stones so that you can complete the cooking process
at your table. After dinner we relaxed and enjoyed coffee and their coconut mousse
dessert. Once again it was a fabulous evening of relaxation and romance.
On Friday, our last day on the island we took the Mi Dushi sail and
snorkel cruise at a US$ 48.00 per person (includes: snorkel trip, equipment, lunch and all
you can drink) we had some great savings. The first was that I got to go for free because
of the Wednesday win at bingo. My husband presented his Aruba
Plus Card and received a 10% discount (US$ 4.80). Our adventure started on
the Kokoa Beach Bar
pier where, at check in, we were giving the choice of orange juice or Mimosa (orange juice
and champagne). After our juice we lathered up with sunscreen and were ferried out to the
Mi Dushi a sailboat
that was built in 1925.
We had a sail of about an hour to our first snorkeling stop at Boca Catalina.
This is a pretty reef with many fish, but not nearly the amount of fish we saw at De Palm
Island. After about a 40-minute snorkel we boarded the boat and everyone was given a
chance to get on the rope swing. It was a ton of fun. After the rope swing event we were
served a BBQ lunch. This included BBQ chicken,
BBQ ribs, Caribbean rice, a cold vegetable salad, corn on the cob, a hush puppy (fried
fish-cake) and a roll with butter. Off to our next snorkeling stop, the German freighter Antilla. This
was our first experience with snorkeling a shipwreck. While the fish we still not as
plentiful or colorful as at De Palm Island it was an eerie experience none the less. Make
sure you tell Captains Mario and Pete hello if you take the trip. After the Antilla stop it was
back on board for our cruise back to the docks and did the free drinks flow. All total it
was a trip that was about 4 ½ hours in length.
Friday night we went to the Mill resort to see BWM (Brothers Making Wisdom) play. This is
the hottest band in Aruba right now and we know one of the members. If you get a chance to
check them out make sure to tell Randolph that Michele and Chuck from the USA said hi.
While at the Mill we decided to eat dinner. We ate at little restaurant that is attached
to the bar near the pool.
WHAT A FIND!!! We had their BBQ tourist special. Our meal included bread basket and beef
noodle soup to start. Then we were served a BBQ meal that included chicken and ½ a slab
of ribs. With the main course we also received french fries and cole slaw. After the main
course we got chocolate cake for dessert. The total price for this meal was US$ 10.00 per
person. Check out what their daily tourist special is, you will be pleasantly surprised.
Saturday was our last day on the island. Since we were taking the 3:00 pm flight to Miami
in route to home we decided to be lazy by the pool in the morning. Our resort has a new
deli that serves some great sandwiches. Afraid that we would not have a meal on our flight
we bought sandwiches to take with us. We took our car back and arranged for a taxi to the
airport. The taxi was US$ 15 and we gave the driver a US$ 4.00 tip with four people in our
party. We were sad to be leaving Aruba again, but we are anticipating our return next year
only 363 days to go.
For those who were keeping track we had a total savings of US$ 85.50 by using our Aruba
Plus Card. It is well worth the investment. By October 14th we should have our photos of
this year’s trip posted at Photopoint.com. If you are interested in seeing our photos
go to www.photopoint.com. The email address for
our photo album is mich8466@peoplepc.com
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