Sunshine, sunscreen, and snorkelling are all words that pop up immediately when we think of Aruba. The country delivers year-round sunny conditions, warm temperatures, stunning coastlines and beaches, as well as a prime location, as it is situated outside the Caribbean hurricane belt. Its arid climate sparks dramatic desert landscapes on the interior of the island, with the majestic volcanic cone of Hooiberg at the forefront, seen from almost everywhere on the island. One of the most special days we have spent in Aruba was when we got engaged, because it was filled with adventures beyond what one would think of when it comes to Aruba. So, here’s an example of how we spent a very special day in Aruba, without visiting any beaches.
As a note, we did this entire day without a car and relying on cabs. We DO NOT recommend doing this. It’s not the taxi system the problem, it was our planned locations. Taxis in Aruba are wonderful, with fixed prices between locations, and a great way to get around. They just don’t work well for this day. To allow you all some giggles, some of the highlights included running down a desert street trying to get (and keep) reception to call a taxi company, being told a pick-up point that we’re still not sure exists to this day, and running out of water *before* our hike. Sure, we made it to all of our planned locations, had some laughs, survived, and have some great stories to tell now, but the stress was not worth it. With that disclaimer out of the way, let’s get started.
If your starting your day off a cruise ship in Oranjestad, from the airport, or from the hotel area in Palm Beach, you’ll want to head North to the tip top of the island to visit the California Lighthouse. As we started in Palm Beach, we had breakfast at Willem’s Dutch Pancakes. This restaurant serves up delicious food, the portions are big enough to fill your tummies but not leave you completely full, and the staff are always so lovely. We always get the apple cinnamon dutch pancakes (Alexia) and it never disappoints.
Estimated time for breakfast (30 minutes to 1 hour) and price ($40 USD including tax and tip for two pancakes)
Now, its time to head to our first activity of the day! Its a quick 15 minute car ride from the Palm Beach area to the lighthouse and there is paved road that leads directly to the parking lot. Once parked, there are stunning views from the bottom of the lighthouse, or, if you’re feeling brave, you can climb up to the top to get stunning views of the leeward and windward parts of the island. There is a small fee associated with this ($5USD per person at time of writing) that we would recommend bringing cash for, as it does make a difference in the view. The journey up (and back down) is quite cramped and you are going up stairs in a spiral pattern, but it doesn’t take more than 5 minutes to climb. It is quite windy at the top, but there is a fence netting around the whole thing that could catch anything that tries to fly away. At the bottom of the lighthouse, there are usually food trucks selling water, smoothies, and some souvenirs. There is also an Italian restaurant, but it was closed when we visited, so we can’t provide any comments on it.
Estimated time to and at the Lighthouse (30 minutes to 1 hour) and price ($12 USD for two to head up the lighthouse, plus taxi fare of $21USD)
Next up, we are heading somewhere that is untraditional, but it was such an unexpected highlight of our day, and that place is the Aruba Donkey Sanctuary. The donkey sanctuary is located in Bringamosa and houses almost all the donkeys that are on Aruba. Entry is by donation and you can buy apples and carrots to feed the donkeys on site. There is also a café and visitor centre where you can grab drinks and snacks. We technically has our lunch here on the day, as we got snacks from the café.
Estimated time to and at the Donkey Sanctuary (1.5 hours to 2 hours) and price ($35 USD for taxi, $20USD for donkey and human food)
Our next activity consists of a fun little venture through the Ayo Rock Formations. This is a quick little stopover on the way to our final stop that allows you to step back in time and experience some of the ancient and historic rock formations of Aruba. It’s a quick 10 minute journey from the donkey sanctuary and quite cool to witness.
Estimated time to and at Ayo Rock Formations (30 minutes to 1 hour) and price ($10 USD taxi)
Our final activity for the day was a hike up Hooiberg. This is an 587 step climb up a volcanic cone that is in the centre of Aruba. It offers breathtaking 360 degree views of Aruba, and we even got to see a peak of Venezuela in the distance as it was a clear day! It is a good workout, taking about 15 to 30 minutes, so bring water (we ran out at Ayo which was not ideal, so make sure to stock up before as they both do not offer water or have any refills available). We were guided up the hike by mountain goats, and could not get over how stunning the views of cacti, the ocean, planes coming in for landing at the airport, and the whole island were. If you can time this hike with the sunset, it would be absolutely spectacular, but we would caution that the hike down could be a bit treacherous in the dark so make sure to have some light if you choose to do so.
Estimated time (1 hour to 2 hours) and price ($13 USD for taxi)
To end our day, we headed to downtown Oranjestad and grabbed Italian food in the Renaissance Marketplace from Casa Tua, with a beautiful sunset to cap off an amazing day. There are plenty of options available here if Italian is not your preferred cuisine after your day of adventures.
Estimated time (1 hour to 2 hours) and price ($55.20 USD for dinner and $19 USD for taxi)
Need hotel recommendations to continue the adventure for multiple days? We have personally stayed at the Courtyard by Marriott Aruba Resort and would definitely recommend it. While not right on the beach, it’s a short walk from the main Palm Beach hotel, restaurant, and beach area (like maybe 5 minutes), for a much more reasonable price than most hotels on the beach. The one warning we will give about the hotel is that the “beach” area that is reserved for hotel guests is extremely lacklustre and not on the best part of Palm Beach. It was quite hard to find the first time we looked for it, and it’s on a first come, first served basis with not many chairs available and minimal shade if that’s important for you.
- Total time: 5 hours to 9 hours
- Our personal totals (per person) from our last time in September 2023:
- Price per day without including accommodations : $112.60 USD
- Price per day if including accommodation at Courtyard Marriott hotel: $384.60 USD