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Aruba Trip Report - My stay at the Allegro in Aruba
February 1 - February 8, 2001
Sent in by: Jay Nanney
I just returned from Aruba yesterday, February 8th, 2001. We stayed at
the Allegro for 3 nights, and moved to "The Mill Resort"
for the next 3
nights. The island is wonderful, and we had a great time!!
My experience at the Allegro was quite different than some of the people
who have posted on this website and others. I thought the resort was very nice. I have
stayed in nicer hotels, but the Allegro is very nice. Their beach is fantastic!! Nice palm
trees everywhere, and several little "shade huts" that offer some relief to the
intense sun. Always plenty to do. The water is a beautiful color, but not the clear water
that you often see in the Caribbean - the sand seemed to be all stirred up or something.
At any rate, it was a beautiful color, but you could not see the bottom.
The pool is great. The pool bar is excellent- not usually too crowded, and usually fast
service. We went all inclusive, and found the service to be great. I have to STRONGLY
disagree with the gentleman who stated that the drinks weren't strong at the Allegro. It
depends on the bartender!! I had some that were almost too strong, and believe me- I'm a
"seasoned" drinker. However, they do use about the lowest quality liqour that I
have ever had in my life. The Vodka had an unusual taste- but not too bad. The Gin was
horrible. I drank Pina
Collada's, Margaritas, Tequila sunrises,
Vodka tonics, and the local beer (Balashi), which is not bad at all. In fact it's quite
good on tap.
The food was okay. Interestingly enough, almost every post says that the
"Topaz" has a great buffet, and the food is good. I found that not to be the
case. But to be fair, we only ate breakfast there. But the breakfast was BAD. I had to
hunt through about 50 glasses to find 1 clean one. The waiter person we had was rude. The
place was tremendously crowded. The eggs were dry, bacon was all fat, and bread was stale.
It was really, really bad.
On the other hand, most of the posts we read, and even a review from a
friend of mine, said that the Papaya, which was the poolside restaurant,
was bad. We found it to be MUCH, MUCH better than the Topaz. It was not
crowded at all. The breakfast was much better, and much faster. Everything was clean, and
the waiters were exceptional. We had dinner there one night- us and about 5 other couples,
when the other restaurants were PACKED. We had an excellent prime rib, complete with a
great salad and sides, and a very nice red wine. The service was the best I have ever had
outside of a 4 star restaurant. A great surprise considering some of the posts I have
read.
We also ate on two occasions at the Ballroom. We didn't stay for the show (we were winning
like crazy in the casino and couldn't wait to get back). The food was pretty good. Not
great, but pretty good. Service was mediocre to good.
We really enjoyed the casino. There was one tall, native fellow who waited on us every
night, and he was quite a gentleman. Wish I had gotten his name. Very, very cordial fellow
who kept the drinks coming. I won a $1,000 jackpot on a progressive $1.00 slot machine,
which was very nice. My wife LOVED the "Yahtzee" games. However, I would highly
recommend that you try out other casino's too. We won $700 at the Radisson (a very lucky
trip for us), and we also had a blast at the wyndham casino, which might have been our
favorite of the casinos. I heard the Allahambra was good, but we never saw that.
The rooms were not great- they were pretty much regular hotel rooms. And
not as clean as I would have liked to see. They are in need of a remodel, in my opinion.
But not too bad- don't let that stop you if you get a good deal. We spent very little time
in the room, and it really wasn't that bad. Just not wonderful.
Do not rent a car unless you want to spend a day driving around the
island. If your intention is just to stay on the beach, go downtown, and
go diving or whatever; you'll not need a car. Cabs were plentiful and
reasonable. But the bus system is wonderful. For $2, you can travel from
the hotel to downtown and back again. They are clean and safe- even late
at night. We walked around the beaches and roads near the hotels at 2 in
the AM, and felt safe. Even with the casino winnings in my pocket!!
You will not need Florins- US dollars are accepted everywhere. We did find SOME bargains,
but not everything is dirt cheap as we were led to believe. The liqour at the airport is
the cheapest- depending on what you buy!! Stoly vodka 1 liter was $7.50!!! now that's
cheap!!! But Jack Daniels Black label 1 liter was $22.50. Not any cheaper than Sam's, I
don't think. Beefeater Gin (one of my favorites) was about 1/2 the price I normally pay at
discount US liquor stores!!!
If you go out for dinner anywhere, stay away from Carlos and Charlies
downtown. What an overpriced DUMP!!! They sell a 1/2 yard that they call
a yard, and fill it with beer for $12 US dollars!! Absolutely ridiculous. Food was okay.
Filthiest bathroom I have ever seen in my life. One waiter was very nice, the other was
the rudest I have ever seen in my life. Stay away from this horrible, horrible place.
If you would like any more info, I would be happy to correspond. My email is listed below.
Have fun!!
Jay
Nanney
jnanney@primary.net
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