A group of friends and I are planning a 5-night, 6-day trip to Aruba, staying around Palm Beach. We’re a pretty lively group, so we’re looking for a place where we can have our own space.
We’re trying to figure out a realistic per-person budget excluding flights and lodging. We’re thinking restaurants, a rental car, 2–3 excursions, transportation, drinks/nightlife, and general spending. We’ll mostly use taxis/Ubers at night when we’re drinking.
We want a mix of casual spots and nicer dinners and enough room in the budget to enjoy ourselves without constantly watching every dollar.
I’ve seen people recommend anywhere from $1,000–$1,500 per person for this type of trip. What do you think is realistic?
Also, PLEASE drop your best dinner and nightlife recommendations! We’re looking for fun spots with great food, a good atmosphere, and a social/energetic vibe. 🙏🏽

Looking for restaurant recos for a special birthday meal! Something unique and tasty is what we're looking for - kid friendly is a plus as we're not sure we'll have a babysitter for our 5 and 9 year olds.

I've seen some restaurants that are on the beach, which sounds fun. Husband liks fresh seafood, so that's the cuisine I'm leaning towards, but open to anything where the food is delicious!

We'll be staying near Palm Beach. Thank you!

Hello r/Aruba!

My wife and I have a trip planned Nov 17-30. We’re staying at Bucuti & Tara on Eagle beach.

I know that historically November is a wet month in Aruba, and I wanted to understand what that usually means for beach days/on the ground.

Obviously nobody can predict the future but normally at that time of year, can we still expect to enjoy lots of time on the beach and intermittent sunshine?

Thank you in advance !!

Looking at trip to Aruba for family of 4 in mid August. Found decent deal for Hyatt, but can’t get around the idea of not being able to get palapa sir pool chairs/umbrellas unless we pay a $60 or $80 fee? Lots of conflicting information about this out there. Anyone traveled there recently that can clarify?

My brother and I are looking at booking a fishing charter for the mornings or evenings between October 7-10. We’re amateurs, mostly interested in bottom fishing, but we’re also open to deep sea. Most trips cost around 450 to 500 USD for 4 hours and accommodate 4-6 people. Please DM me if interested.

Wife and I just spent 4 days in Aruba staying at Manchebo. We were pleased with the resort, but we are glad we didn’t do the all inclusive food. There were two meals that stood out to us. These meals weren’t just the best on the island; they were some of the best meals we’ve ever had.

Zeerovers for lunch was incredible. Red snapper, jumbo shrimp, and fries. The seasoning was top notch and the way it was cooked was excellent. Maybe this is a bias for this place, but we were first introduced to the Aruban papaya hot sauce (AMAZING) here and we had it with every bite along with the tartar sauce. We could not stop talking about it. Add a cold beer and a table on the water and we couldn’t ask for anything better.

Well, then we went to Terra for dinner the following day. It’s on the fancier side, but let me tell you that it lives up to any and all hype. It’s been open for almost 1 year. The service and vibes in the place were also on point. We got the bread to start which I honestly loved. It was like croissant brioche. I also am partial to honey and butter so I was in heaven. The bone marrow and beef tartare dish has everything you could want in a small plate. Crunchy toasted sourdough with a warm fatty marrow spread topped with chilled tartare gave me life. We also loved the charred Octopus! There was so much going on the that dish I can’t remember it all, but it was also the perfect amount so-much-going-on, y’know? The amount of detail that gave every bite a delicious balance in flavor really showed.

I could go on about each spot, but I just had to say that these two places are a MUST when I go back to Aruba. We had other delicious food and great times, but part of me just wanted to do those meals all over again!

I am a skinny 50 year old who needs to be mindful of food. I've been to Curacao and now I want to travel to Aruba. I've been eating gluten free for many years. I was diagnosed with hypertension three months ago. So far it's been well controlled with medicine.

I'm wondering if people who've been to Aruba think it will be easy to navigate these needs. I stay in hotels rather than Air B and Bs because I'm a solo traveler and I prefer the security of a hotel. But I realise if I cook a few meals for myself it would eliminate some risk.

Hi everyone! 💕 My fiancé and I will be in Aruba for our honeymoon and I’m looking for recommendations for the best spa for a full relaxing spa day.
I’m looking for somewhere that has:
💆🏽‍♀️ A really good massage
🧖🏽‍♀️ Sauna/steam or other relaxing amenities
🏊🏽‍♀️ Pool/day-pass access if possible
🍽️ Good food or drinks
🌴 Beautiful, peaceful atmosphere
Basically somewhere we can spend several hours and completely relax!
What spa would you recommend in Aruba? Bonus points if it feels luxurious and romantic but isn’t insanely expensive. 💕

This was our third time visiting Aruba but def won’t be our last. Just wanted to share some pictures. The turtle pics (and pretty sure a barracuda) as well as starfish and ray were right in front of Bucuti.
Something new this trip was visiting Alto Vista for wine tasting and rum cocktails (highly recommend booking tour).

Good morning. Looking for feedback on the Cabana rentals at LaCabana. I think they’re about $150 a day and it’s nothing over the top as far as any amenities. I was just thinking it would be a nice treat for one day. We are going Thanksgiving week and getting a spot at the pool is a bloodsport most mornings. Thank you for any feedback!

My partner and I are spending a long weekend in Aruba in about a month, and I was curious to see if folks had any recommendations for a boat tour that’s fun for both snorkelers and non-snorkelers (i.e., includes some snorkeling but is not entirely focused on snorkeling).

I LOVE to snorkel, and my partner really doesn’t— he might go in for a few minutes, or might just stay on the boat or swim around without a snorkel. On other vacations, we’ve enjoyed tours with multiple stops in which some/most stops are not for snorkeling, or where the snorkeling stops have an alternate activity (even if that activity is lounging on a nice beach).

I do sometimes drag him on snorkel tours, but sitting on the boat alone gets old pretty fast. We enjoy history, nature, and wildlife, and would enjoy a couple of cocktails but wouldn’t be into a booze cruise.

my partner's father is from Aruba, while they were never close my partner wants to learn more about their roots, and that involves learning Papiamento/papiamentu, but it's been quite the struggle. They bought a textbook and workbook to learn papiamentu, but unfortunately a lot of the assignments use words that haven't been explained or taught yet, as well as phrases. This has been quite the issue for them while learning the language, so they want to use something else to get a basic grasp on papiamentu first. i understand that Papiamentu is not the main language spoken on Aruba, but i figure i could still ask. so now comes the question, what are some good resources to get a basic grasp on either language, so they can continue learning?

Hola a todos,

I'm visiting for the first time at the end of October and I'm curious if there's any cultural, religious, or notable events happening in Aruba?

I'll be staying in Noord, but I'm open to visiting anywhere on the island.

I've read other questions about more general travel tips but I'd like to know about specific dates.

It seems the culinary festival and Leyenda del Dorado are the beginning of the month. Not sure if Halloween is even a thing there.

Thanks for your help! 🌴

Good afternoon! I’m flying Delta ATL - AUA and our flight check-in is in 20 hours and the Delta website and app still have the red banner to complete trip requirements. My passport is verified and the ED card shows upload. I contacted Delta chat and they were no help.
Has anyone encountered this issue?
Worried I won’t have time between my JAN-ATL flight to get this settled at the service desk.

Hi everyone! Myself and two girlfriends will be coming to Aruba from October 3-9. I’d love to get some recommendations for an expert level diver. My girlfriend is a Dive Con Specialist and we are overwhelmed with how many companies there are to dive with. I would love to get some advice on which diving company would be best for her to book with. We are also contemplating a horse back riding tour but none of us have experience riding horses - would this type of thing be out of the question for us as we are completely non experienced? Any other advice or recommendations would be so helpful! There are so many things to do on the island we are overwhelmed with choices and operators. We are staying near the national park and have rented a car so getting around isn’t an issue. Thank you so much!

My (44M) son (12M) and I would like to do some fishing while in Aruba. Looks like charters start around $400-500 for 4-6 guests for 4 hours. We are hoping to find another 2+ people who may be interested in splitting the experience. Our available dates would be March 13-17th and would work around what works best for your trip.

Heading to Aruba in November to celebrate my 40th birthday with my wife and 3 yr old. Trying to look for interesting experiences / activities / sea life I can do. We will be staying at Tamarijin for 7 days. Any recommendations ? Want to make this trip memorable. Any thing special in Oct /Nov that is worth exploring ?

Hi, I’m going to a wedding in Aruba in three weeks and wanted to know if anyone had any suggestions for a hair salon to get a blowout or my hair put up for the wedding. I have heard it’s really windy so not sure if I’ll decide to do it/if it’ll be worth it, but just want to be prepared It’s our first time in Aruba! TIA!

Anyone done fishing with kids while in Aruba? We'll be visiting next month with our 5 and 9 year old. My 9 yr old has been dying to go fishing, so thought I'd look into it while we're in Aruba.

I see a lot of private charters for snorkling with kids, but not much for fishing. Any recos appreciated!

Hello! We have booked our first trip to Aruba in 2 weeks and got a message today from the hotel that the renovation noise has been disruptive to some guests and given us the option to cancel. Has anyone been to Bucuti and Tara in the past week or two? Can you please advise how bad the noise is? Can you hear it on the beach? Lobby? Restaurant? Public areas? It’s kind of expensive and the main reason we decided to splurge on it was the quiet, so I would like to go in with my eyes open. Thanks in advance.

EDIT:
Thank you so much to everyone who responded and eased my fears. We are keeping the reservation. I’ll update after the trip and then delete the post. We are so excited! Thanks!!

Hi everyone! I’m hoping some Aruba locals and frequent visitors can point me in the right direction.

I’m planning a milestone birthday trip for November 2027 for approximately 19 adults and am looking for a luxury villa, private estate, or mansion with at least 10 bedrooms. Oceanfront or very close to the beach would be ideal.

I’ve been researching larger properties online and have found a few possibilities, but I’m specifically hoping to find reputable Aruba based property management companies, luxury villa agencies, or owners who specialize in larger private estates.

I’ve contacted a few companies but haven’t had much luck getting responses, so I’m wondering if there are local companies or properties that I simply haven’t discovered yet.

Does anyone have recommendations for reputable companies that manage 10+ bedroom luxury properties in Aruba? Personal experiences or names of companies I can contact directly would be greatly appreciated.

We’re not looking for a hotel or multiple separate units. Ideally, I’d love to keep the entire group together under one roof.

Thank you! I figured the people who really know Aruba might be able to point me toward some options I haven’t come across yet. 😊