bup1224

1 hour ago, geoatl said:

Pelican and Blue Finn definitely keep showing up in our searches. As of now, however, Carnival doesn't actually have any official sunset sail as part of their official excursions. Seems odd. It's been a couple of days since I checked on the Carnival site, maybe they will add one. But, yeah, Pelican and Blue Finn seem to be widely recommended and respected. Thanks for confirming. Need to check into Blue C. Have heard less about them. 

I have only been on the Pelican (going again on Tuesday,  I live here) and have enjoyed their trip.

All 3 are highly recommended here.

On 7/5/2019 at 11:15 AM, SimplyMarvie said:

We're trying to decide what to do in Curacao and have two competing priorities. 

 

On one hand, I've got a kid who is absolutely OBSESSED with sea turtles, and wants to get up to Playa Piskador to swim with them. This is literally his life-long dream and he's been working really hard to get over his fear of sticking his head in the water so he can snorkel and see the turtles, so it feels like a must-do. 

 

On the other hand, we have a chance to possibly relocate to Curacao in the next couple of years for work, so we'd like to wander around town and get a feel for the vibe of the place in order to decide if that's an opportunity we want to chase or not. 

 

If we're in Curacao for a day from 7:00am to 4:00pm, is it possible to do an early morning snorkel with the turtles, and then come back and wander around town for a few hours before we have to make it to the boat? Or that way too much? If we did do it, would it be better to hire a tour guide to handle the snorkeling part, or rent a car and have to deal with drop off and pick up?

Price out rental cars vs. tour guide and rental car is cheaper.

Playa Piskado is amazing and I do suggest getting there early as it gets crowded. 

You will have time for both,  unless you choose a long tour.

With that being said, our downtown area of Punda is an area to explore as well.

Most likely, downtown is not an area where you would live if you relocated here (I live here full time).

A cruise ship stop is definitely not enough time to explore the island as far as moving/living here. Highly recommend a longer stay here if you like the vibe of our island in order to explore the island for a possible move here.

On 7/3/2019 at 9:24 PM, geoatl said:

Sailing Carnival Horizon September 7. Itinerary includes a late arrival and departure in Curaçao. Looking for a great sunset sail. Would welcome any recommendations from experienced travelers. 

The Pelican, Blue Finn Charters and Blue C Watersports all do, however the cruise line may use them so you might not be able to book independently. 

15 hours ago, ridgerunner51 said:

Is the entrance to the water rocky?  Is it a little steep?

 

If you are asking about the Infinity area at Renaissance,  no rocks at all. It's a man made area

On 6/23/2019 at 1:57 PM, bup1224 said:

Happy to help! Mambo has beach hats, restaurants and shops too. 

*edit- that should say beach bars not hats 

3 hours ago, ridgerunner51 said:

One more question please.  Is Mambo Beach loud?  We will actually be there November 3rd.

 

On a cruise day, there typically is alot of people.

There is music playing at each section of the beach.

4 hours ago, warcon said:

 

Hi bup1224   i was wondering if you could help.  about 5-6 years ago we did a tour in Curacao that went around the city and to the liquor distillery then to Mambo beach i think it was through a small company.  at that time was around $25 pp  and they had beer and soda on the bus 🙂   we cannot remember the name 😞 

 

Thank you for any help !!!! 

Hi, maybe Irie Tours? 

Also, there are a few tours that will be right outside (or maybe right inside) the port area that offer that (not sure on the drinks part lol). Our friends took 1 last year the name was Quality Tours.

21 hours ago, ridgerunner51 said:

Thank you very much!

Happy to help! Mambo has beach hats, restaurants and shops too. 

On 6/21/2019 at 1:50 PM, ridgerunner51 said:

We will be in Curacao Oct 30th 2019.  I have read through posts and reviews for the beaches, but I cannot determine which beach is the least rocky and calm.  Could someone please help me out with this?

Mambo beach area is very calm with no rocks.

3 hours ago, Ashland said:

There was no one there during our port stop last September. Agree...nothing like it used to be.

That's because it was totally closed last September.  It reopened in October I believe with the regular floating market vendors and recently closed again due to Maduro closing the borders with Curaçao. 

Curaçao decided to put local vendors in there so no more boats,  etc. as it was in the past. 

24 minutes ago, CheckersMidwest said:

We were there May 22nd - our tour guide took us by there . It was on my list of things to see and there were no vendors. She said due to the issues with Venezuela.

There are vendors as stated above, but they are local vendors as in the pictures.  The local vendors were there last week when I was in Punda.

No it is not as it used to be at all.

9 hours ago, pmoniz said:

Does anyone know if there's a place in Curacao that has a "luau" type excursion? Dinner/Entertainment on a beach or something like that??

 

No luau type things here. There may be a themed night at one of our beaches/restaurants when you are here. You can check Pasa Bon online for events.

2 hours ago, tarmom4ever said:

bup1224 - Thank you for all the wonderful tips about Curacao.  We will be in port from 8 to 8 and have arranged a private tour for 6 of us that range in age from 10 to 52 years young.  We know that we want to snorkel but we also want to have time to see the island.  We are not much on museums.  They are picking us up at 8:30 AM and will last for 5-7 hours.  Where should we go?  Lunch?  Thank you for your input.

Go to the West Punt area beaches,  Grote Knip is gorgeous,  Playa Piskado for the turtles, Shete Boka National park is amazing! Our island is so much more than just the beaches (depending on your tour operator) they should drive you through the more natural terrain too.

If you want local, ask the tour about Landhuis Dokterstuin for lunch. 

9 minutes ago, Airrace said:

I too would be interested in a place to get lunch

I can suggest Plasa Bieu in Punda for local food for lunch. 

The Dive Bus !

On 5/10/2019 at 2:00 PM, jcb91777 said:

Anyone have any suggestions on a sunset sail in Curacao?  Will be in port until 11 pm in January of 2020 and would be the perfect time to do this.

Check Bounty Adventures Curacao or the Pelican Express 

Here is a link to a self guided walking tour of Punda. 

https://www.curacao.com/en/activity/architectural-walking-guide-historic-willemstad?cat=tours

On 5/5/2019 at 2:43 PM, bobmacliberty said:

Would someone please confirm if taxis and Blue Bay Beach accept US Dollars and/or credit cards?  Any security concerns (beyond normal) with use credit cards on Curacao?  Planning for how much cash to bring for our coming cruise (2 weeks away!).  Every Caribbean island that I've been to accepts USD, but this will be our first trip to Curacao and I'd like to confirm. 

 

For Blue Bay Beach, we plan to taxi there and pay for chairs rather than use a ship excursion.  We want more flexibility on how long we stay.  Does it "sell out"?  Should we get there early to ensure that we get loungers?  Thanks.

Taxis here (unless you hire a private tour guide) do not accept credit cards and will accept US dollars. 

I haven't seen Blue Bay take credit cards for the entrance fee (but they might) but you can use credit cards or US dollars at the bars and restaurants there.

It tends to get crowded on cruise ship days so earlier is better IMO.

Mambo, Blue Bay, Kokomo are all close to port if you aren't renting a car. Smoking is permitted on beaches here (and I am sure you do this but) please remember to toss the cigar stub in the trash not on the beach. 

Here is a link to a self guided walking tour you can download. 

https://www.curacao.com/en/activity/architectural-walking-guide-historic-willemstad?cat=tours

Not familiar with an audio version here

The sign is yellow now, it was repainted a while back. Walk across the Queen Emma floating bridge,  walk down Breedestraat and Wilhelminaplein will be on your right.

On 5/2/2019 at 6:13 AM, Airrace said:

Has anyone been to the floating market recently?  I have read that it closed because of the Venezuelan government restrictions but another article said it has re opened.

It has local vendors now as of last week.. I live here and we were there today. Absolutely nothing like it used to be IMHO.

31 minutes ago, TTEllis said:

Pietermaai I walked back there, yep!!! I forgot I was hammered on mojito's(best in history) that's awesome back there, there was so much art of every kind for sale on the sidewalks we had to walk on the street, it was great! Excellent live music on the street corner too. Incredible steel type band playing on the corner right outside the bar I was sitting in, it was really unbelievable, like I said I didn't want to leave.

 

What's the area called where the big red Curacao sign is, back on the left the right side being the ocean the left side is the city kinda?? Thanks. I don't remember the name of that little bar I was in back there but it was like the back of there home or something, this place was great. On the front window it say's  "Best Mojito's in the Caribbean" and they are, I can certainly vouch for that.😁 Those mojito's are absolutely addicting, fresh everything $10 a pop I drank 8. Yummo!!

 

This is why last year I did a day pass at the Santa Barbara, it's simple math. Be patient with me it's only taken me 4 visits to get this right, it's terribly sad. It really is. Thanks Todd

Hey Todd the Curaçao and Dushi signs are in Punda on the Wilhelmina Plein.  You most likely were on Columbasstraat (just a guess).

2 minutes ago, TTEllis said:

Listen to what I'm trying to tell you, this time on Curacao with your ship porting at 11am don't worry about going to the resort. Go downtown right across the bridge, I walked this whole little quaint town, they call it Willemsted(I think), it's absolutely beautiful, incredibly inviting little city, bars and shopping are top-shelf, not only top-shelf, Curacao can be pricey but it's totally worth it. Spend your day walking around the city, you'll be glad you did, have dinner at one of the restaurants on the river we did it was wonderful. Good luck and have fun. Todd

Willemstad is the name for our capital city.  The area on the port side is Otrobanda - Rif Fort is there.  When you walk over the floating bridge you are in the area called Punda.  

There is also areas called Scharloo, Pietermaai that are walkable from the port area with Street art.

13 minutes ago, babchia said:

 

😥They are booked up! Now trying to figure out what to do? We really liked the idea of a "custom" tour. Any suggestions?

Similar company here is "Let Lucy Handle it".