arubabeaches.net

Palm Beach in 2004

Once in a while I like to browse thru my collection of photos. I stumbled across one that is interesting, especially if compared with changes as of late.

The picture was shot in 2004 and shows Aruba Grand Hotel and Wyndham Resort. Today those properties are owned by Riu Palace Aruba and Westin Resort.

Riu expanded exponentially in comparison to Aruba Grand which was a very small hotel. Actually, it was the ugly duckling at Palm Beach. Since Riu purchased it, the company transformed it into perhaps one of the most beautiful resort today. Some say it doesn’t really fit at Palm Beach; it belongs more somewhere in northern Africa. Regardless your taste, especially at night, Riu looks amazing. Check it out here.

I haven’t been around the net lately to look for hot-deals for you. Today I did my round and for my surprise American Airlines has a New Year’s sale going on. These air-fares are spectacular. Remember these deals are only valid for a brief time, so don’t hesitate.

American Airlines has the following round-trip, air fare only, per person bargains to Aruba from:

• Atlanta for $286. This is a head-on competition with Delta Airlines. Probably with a stop in Miami or San Juan.
• Baltimore for $284. Probably with a stop in Miami or New York.
• Charlotte for $294. This is competition for US Airways at their hub. Probably with a stop in Miami.
• Chicago for $299. I think this one is a very good deal. Competition for United Airlines. Flight will stop in either Miami or New York.
• Denver for $362. Isn’t it really cold in Colorado? Guys, it’s 82 degrees currently on the island. The air-fare seems very reasonable. This flight will probably stop in Miami.

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I’m happy to report that the weather is becoming more and more stable. After roughly two months of relatively unstable weather, it seems that it has stopped raining considerably.

According to the local weather service it still might rain a little during the night. During the day, local rain showers might surprise us sporadically, however, don’t pay too much attention to that.

The “down side” is the heat. We’re headed towards the dryer time of year, consequently it’s going to be hot. Remember your sun protection.

Renaissance Island Aruba

Renaissance Resort is located in the heart of downtown Oranjestad, Aruba’s capital. Therefore it lacks a beach. Nevertheless the resort opted for this location and wasn’t discouraged by this. In fact the company decided to purchase an abandoned island, just off the coast, fixed it up and voilá, a beach was born.

Despite the fact that Renaissance Island is build with the intention to offer in-house guests a beach option, I would recommend it for others as well to visit. There are some amenities on the island and you could easily fill you time there.

It is a relaxing place with a good and quiet ambiance. I suggest planning your visit during the week and try to skip weekends. For additional information visit Renaissance Aruba Resort & Casino

I read an interesting article in the November issue of a local business magazine, about the latest wave of foreign investments in the condominium projects. Apparently Venezuelan entrepreneurs are pumping money into the development of condos in Aruba.

Building condominium projects and malls is booming in Venezuela. Take as an example the Sambil Mall franchise. This company started by building the biggest mall under one roof in Latin America, in the capital, Caracas, a few years ago. Now-a-days Sambil has almost ten malls in the whole country and more malls are in the pipeline throughout the region. If you are curious, visit their site at: sambilmall.com. The page is in Spanish, but you can view the pictures of the projects they are working on.

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The topic of this site is pretty obvious; however, I don’t want you to miss out on other nicer sites in Aruba. The other day I drove down to Aruba’s National Park.

When people hear “national park” automatically they assume that it refers to some kind of forest. However, if you are familiar with Aruba you might already know that Aruba is an island that has little sub-tropical vegetation. In fact Aruba has little vegetation.

The pictures above show actually some vegetation. The last few weeks it has been raining a lot, consequently the vegetation is in decent shape. For now.

Arikok National Park is was created almost 10 years ago to be an area protected for nature and for us to admire. It covers approximately a quarter of the island and it is managed by park rangers. The park has couple of sites, such as the highest and second highest elevations, spectacular beaches, caves etc. I you are in any luck you might catch a glimpse of a the few animals that live in the park.