One Happy Honeymoon

We chose Aruba as our honeymoon destination for its uniqueness as a desert isle in the otherwise lush Carribean, its location outside the hurricane belt, its consistent weather, its interesting culture, and its pristine beaches. Needless to say we were disapointed by nothing.

We stayed at the Manchebo Beach Resort & Spa, located on Manchebo Beach. We chose the resort for its all-inclusive program as well as its "biggest beach in Aruba".

It truly was the best and biggest beach on the island. It was also very relaxed, low-key, and couples friendly (no screaming kids here).

The restaurants were great, the staff was even better. During the course of our week on the island we became quite friendly with the staff. We had a perfect view of the ocean from our second floor room and absolute privacy.

We visited many of the sites on the island - the Natural Bridge, Arikok National Park, downtown Oranjestaad, Palm Beach, the Alhambara Casino, chartered a fishing boat, enjoyed a sunset cruise, and explored the island.

All in all, the island touted as "One Happy Island" handed us "One Happy Honeymoon" indeed.

Quick Tips:

Don't bother to exchange US Currency for Aruban Florin. It is completely unecessary as the only thing in Florin was the gas for the rental car. In fact, the locals seem to find it more difficult to accept Florin than Dollars.

Rent a Jeep instead of a car. The entire Island can be seen in one day from a vehicle, and almost all roads outside the cities are dirt & rough. Go with an air-conditioned hard-top Jeep if you can.

Wear sunscreen! We used SPF 50. We saw many vacationers on the island who were burnt & looked miserable. We were lucky enough not to be one of them.

Don't expect to find shells on the beaches, there are practically none. What you will find is ancient pieces of coral smoothed by the sea.

Do think through your wardrobe. Hats should fit tightly or have a chin strap, or they will fall off. Don't wear dresses or skirts that are too flowy - the wind is exceptionally consistent and strong.

Do have a great time! This is a very laid-back and extremely hospitable island.

Best Way To Get Around:

As mentioned, renting a Jeep for a day is the best way to explore the island. We took taxis instead of the bus, but as the taxis charge a pre-set rate, we found them to be quite affordable and always available.

The Manchebo Beach Resort & Spa was a gem. It was very quiet, laid back, and moderately priced. If you are looking for an expensive, lush resort with all the amenities, this is not the place for you. However, if you are looking for friendly staff, a GREAT beach, good food, and relaxation, make your reservation today!

We were on the all-inclusive program, and unlike other all-inclusive programs there was no "special" menu and absolutely no restrictions on food. The drink choices were fine, although we suspected that the "premium" beverages were a little better, especially in reference to the cocktails. The French Steakhouse was a delight, and is considered to be one of the best restaurants on the island. The Italian Garden Terrace was our favorite for dinner. It is open, breezy, full of tropical plants, and the staff was superb. The lunch restaurant, Pega Pega Beach Bar & Grill, had steak fajitas to die for, as well as a Hawaiian burger with a giant slice of grilled pineapple. Yum!

The pool was small, but no one was really there for the pool, they were there for the beach! The beach seems massive compared to what the other hotels have on the island. It is very wide, and during the off season you could ALWAYS get a palapa, even if you slept in and got to the beach after noon time. We saw that the high-rise hotels all shared Palm Beach, as the hotels were located on the opposite side of the road, and the beaches were crowded. We felt lucky to be on Manchebo Beach.

The rooms were large but a little outdated, although we didn't care as the only thing we did in the room was sleep and dress. Housekeeping did a wonderful job, everything was always well stocked and clean. The bed was not too firm. Our balcony from the second floor (there are only 2 floors) was an ocean view and it was supremely private and had a gorgeous view, as you can see from the photo.

All in all we were very happy with our choice to stay at the Manchebo and will definitely be returning the next time we visit Aruba!

The Butterfly Farm was a delightful side trip. We took our rental car for a quick ride from our hotel in the low-rise area first thing in the morning. The Farm opens at 9am and the butterflies are most active during the early morning hours. The tour was quick, pretty interesting to learn about the butterfly life cycle. The enclosure was quite small, however it was beautiful and the size allowed you to really feel as though you were "among the butterflies". There were a lot of different species, and all in all it made for some great photo ops! The gift shop was also very nice, with some beautiful jewelry and a few things made from actual butterfly wings. A little on the pricey side, but again worth the time and money. Great for small kids, too.

We took our rental car to the California Lighthouse at the Northern tip of the island towards the end of the day, before we went back to our hotel for dinner. It was nice, but you cannot go in the lighthouse, there is no gift-shop or tour operator, so it is really just there for a few pictures. You could get a good view of the island, which was nice. Also, there was a herd of wild goats while we were there. If you have a rental car and nothing to do for a bit, it's a good spot for a picture or two, otherwise there was really nothing more to it.

We stopped by the docks in Oranjestaad one day to check out the fishing fleet and charter options. My husband is an avid fisherman, and the chance to catch some Caribbean fish was a big part of our honeymoon.

We looked at some of the boats that were in dock, and ended up chatting with a couple of Dutchman. We talked about what fish could be caught (Mahi Mahi, Wahoo, Marlin, Kingfish, Amberjack, Tuna, and Bonito) and how much they charged for a charter ($300 US for a half day). We reserved and arranged for the fisherman to pick us up at our hotel at 7:00am the day of the trip.

The charter boat, The Mahi Mahi, was a 42 foot long vessel. Downrigger, Outrigger (all terms I am only vaguely educated on), all in all there were 6 lines. It took a while before we saw any action, but after a brief rain storm we had a hit and my husband pulled in the first fish of the day, a bonito. We took turns, and I ended up with a small bonito, a small albacore tuna, and some weird thing they referred to as a "false marlin". My husband had better luck landing the bonito and a Mahi Mahi.

The crew were great, they were very friendly and seemed to not only be very good at their business but quite happy doing it as well. All in all we had a great time (despite my seasickness). We did not keep any of the fish ourselves but never the less we had a great time!

We took a 2 1/2 hour sunset cruise on a Catamaran that was offered to us through our all-inclusive program with the hotel. A bus picked us up the day we had arranged for the cruise and brought us to Palm Beach, where the catamaran was departing from.

The cruise was open bar, and fun. It was hard to drink out of the plastic cups at times due to the high winds, which would splash the liquid back into your face. There were quite a few people, though it was not overcrowded.

The cruise was fun, but the sunset in Aruba is very quick and because there is usually a lot of haze the sunset is not particularly brilliant either.

The day we rented our car, we first went to the Eastern coast of the island. Here you will find breathtaking views of rough ocean water hammering the rocky coast, sights such as the Natural Bridge and the gold mine ruins, and picturesque views of the rugged island interior. It was a great day trip, and the ride to the Eastern coast is also filled with charming country homes and wild goats. I recommend making this trip to everyone who has the chance, if only for the sheer beauty in the contrast between the two sides of the island.

Just as a side note, I found it extremely entertaining to marvel over the abundance of lizards on the island. From the very small to large iguanas, just about everywhere you went they were to be found. There was even a species of turquoise lizards. Some of them were even hams for the camera!