Best beach for me?

[Terry in NJ]

Thanks for doing this research! ;)

The Amsterdam sounds perfect!

(I like your thoughts on NO jetskis... no noise, no fumes.)

I may be beaching it myself that morning... DH has only committed to one beach day, and we're doing 2 hours at Porto Marie in Curacao the next day. Maybe my sister will join me and we'll leave the kids with the hubbys :D :D !

[Terry in NJ]

Max's Mom...

Didn't we cruise togther on the Empress out of Philly 4th of July week in '06?

Nice to "see" you! Hope all is going well.... still cruising I see! :)

[maxs mom]

Hey, Terry! I thought I recognized you !!! What cruises have you got going on? I am wanting to go to Playa Porta Mari in Curacao as well on our next cruise. We beach it in every port! We've become quite the beach connoiseurs! May give this place a try in Aruba. Looks good.

[akpsoccer]

Sorry I didn't respond.. I havent check these boards in a little while!! Eagle Beach is great, nice and quiet. The water is gorgeous. No water sports, no highrise hotels. The web address of the Amsterdam is http://www.amsterdammanor.com/

 

 

 

And here is the papalas you can get..you have to rent the chairs but if you get there early enough you can grab an open papala. there's also a small bar on the beach and a jug of cold water (it's free)

 

[ncmomof2]

How long is the bus ride from the cruise terminal to Amsterdam Manor? And how often does the bus run?

 

Thanks for all the great suggestions and information!!

[akpsoccer]

the bus ride is only about 10 minutes...i'm not sure how often they run though

[maxs mom]

Amanda.....thanks for those pictures. That looks great. Quite a difference from Palm Beach. When you get there do you have to go in and register at the hotel like a day pass or anything, or do you just walk out to the beach? Can you use the pool?

[akpsoccer]

When you get off the bus, you just cross the street & step on to the beach! Someone will be there if you want to rent a chair...you don't need to go into the hotel or register or anything. Chairs were $5.

I'm not sure if you can use the pool, I never have...but I've walked by it a few times (it's on the way to the restaurant and bathrooms)...and I didn't see anyone there to stop you if you wanted to use it...haha!

[emen822]

Can you use the pool?

 

Unfortunately, you cannot use the pool. :(

[maxs mom]

Wow...emen822! You leave in 6 days!! I just noticed that! Be sure and report back to us when you get back. Have a great cruise.

[emen822]

Wow...emen822! You leave in 6 days!! I just noticed that! Be sure and report back to us when you get back. Have a great cruise.

 

:D :) :D

Thank you!

You can be sure I will report back.

[Sunny AZ Girl]

I'm just beginning my Aruba research - I expect to be an expert by my 2009 cruise!:D

 

I like the pictures of Eagle Beach. It looks like our kind of place. I think we would like to do an island tour followed by the afternoon at the beach. Is the beach close enough to the ship to make that practical? We are only in port until 5PM, so we would like to be back to the ship by 4PM.

 

Also, are there any nice shops close to the ship? I love getting within walking diatance of the ship and shopping for 1/2 - to 1 hour prior to boarding.:)

[maxs mom]

Eagle Beach is not that far from the port......maybe a 10 minute taxi ride or so. You should be able to take an afternoon beach break.

[Nonie]

I saw your message and was wondering about the Amsterdam Resort. I e-mailed them and asked for prices for the day, distance from port and pool use. Here is the reply I got:

 

Thank you for your e-mail, hereby I would like to inform you that we do have day pass available the price would be $ 5.00 per person with this you get a chair on the beach and a cabana. You can use the beach bar and settle the bill by cash or credit card. Also would like to inform you that the pool is not included in this package this is only available for our guest. Also would like to inform you that the terminal of the crew ship is about 8 minutes away from us.

 

The pictures I saw look nice so I think we will go there on our trip.

 

 

 

Best regards,

 

 

 

Monique Hodge

 

Reservations dept.

 

Amsterdam Manor Beach Resort

 

J.E Irasquin Blvd. 252

 

P.O.Box 1302

 

Tel #: 297-527-1100 / 1-800-969-2310

 

Fax #: 297-527-1112

 

E-Mail: reservations@amsterdammanor.aw

 

Website: http://www.amsterdammanor.aw

[Terry in NJ]

Max's Mom:

I am on the same cruise as Emen, I fly out tomorrow to San Juan and we sail on Easter Sunday! I'm pretty much packed, hence the "board time". Oh and I am soooo excited.

(Last Easter we were on the Star Princess and loved the "anytime" seating. Two positives for Princess, anytime seating and you can bring on some of your own wine ;) with no hassles.)

I'm hoping to get to Eagle Beach, right at this Amsterdam Manor Beach Resort. If I do, I'll post a report.

AMANDA, those pictures were gorgeous!

[Burghboy76]

Every time we go to Aruba we go to beach. It is perfect for families and/or beach lovers. Power soft sand and clear blue water. Though it does get moderately populated I wouldn't say either are crowded like some other popular Caribbean beaches like Orient in St. Martin or Megans Bay. There are watersports available if you so chose but you won't be bothered by "barkers" while trying to relax, in fact I am not sure I have ever been solicited while beaching it there. If you want descriptions of some other beaches there are some descriptions of the other beaches here.

 

http://cruiserfaqs.com/wiki/index.php5?title=Aruba

[emen822]

I was on the AOS last week and took the bus (very convenient!) to AMBR. When I got off the bus and walked across the street, I noticed a bulldozer on the beach. :eek:

 

http://pictures.aol.com/ap/singleImage.do?pid=5530RGWJm-rOciPzFi6Q-Wo2jGMn7j7jPTn3v4xQp5Fd3Ig%3D

 

 

But we just walked a little further down the beach where we were able to rent chairs and enjoy the beach. Aruba is beautiful and we are 98% sure we will be back next year on the same cruise. The sand was so soft and the water was crystal clear.

 

http://pictures.aol.com/ap/singleImage.do?pid=5530RGWJm-rOciPzFi6Q-Wo2jJxMm7AZGGUav4xQp5Fd3Ig%3D

[Sunny AZ Girl]

I was on the AOS last week and took the bus (very convenient!) to AMBR. When I got off the bus and walked across the street, I noticed a bulldozer on the beach. :eek:

 

http://pictures.aol.com/ap/singleImage.do?pid=5530RGWJm-rOciPzFi6Q-Wo2jGMn7j7jPTn3v4xQp5Fd3Ig%3D

 

 

But we just walked a little further down the beach where we were able to rent chairs and enjoy the beach. Aruba is beautiful and we are 98% sure we will be back next year on the same cruise. The sand was so soft and the water was crystal clear.

 

http://pictures.aol.com/ap/singleImage.do?pid=5530RGWJm-rOciPzFi6Q-Wo2jJxMm7AZGGUav4xQp5Fd3Ig%3D

 

Beautiful pictures! I wonder if that bulldozer was making sand castles?;)

[Arubalisa]

March 20 & 21, Aruba had 7 - 10 foot waves as the result of a cold front in the Caribbean.

It caused flooding of the beaches and at least one swimmer drowned. The bulldozer was more than likely reapportioning the sand.

[maxs mom]

Thanks for the reports. Hopefully things will be back to normal in July!

 

Lisa.....where was your picture taken? Were you there then?

[Arubalisa]

Lisa.....where was your picture taken? Were you there then?

Not my photo' date=' but it was taken between the Divi and Tamarijn (this is facing south). [/color']

 

This was an extraordinary event. Happens, maybe twice a year. You should be fine in July.

 

Even in December at the Tamarijn, we had days where the ocean was pretty flat and other where we had 2 foot waves.

 

Palm Beach is almost always flat, the only exception being events like above.

 

Eagle, Manchebo and Druif beaches have more waves daily dependent upon whether, but again, not 7 - 10 footers. Those are only "special ocassions" :eek: .

 

You can watch the waves on Eagle Beach at http://www.bucuticam.com/tarabeach.jpg This location is about a mile down the beach from the Amsterdam Manor.

[maxs mom]

Thanks, Lisa! Love that Wikipedia map. I've seen it before and it really comes in handy! The Bucuti Resort looks especially nice. All those resorts right there in a row look like prime places....Costa Linda, Bucuti, and Manchebo. Are any of those open to us cruise passengers? In your opinion.....is Amsterdam Manor the best place for us to go on Eagle, or would you suggest another?

[carib123]

We are a family of four (me and my husband, two girls ages 14 and 12) who have never been to Aruba. We are looking for a powderly sand beach, no jetskis, parasailing ON the beach, (no vendors would also be a plus), chairs/umbrellas to rent, food/drinks/restrooms and it would be nice to take the bus there. About the bus, I have read that you should have exact change, but does that mean I have to have change in coins? Or should I just have $6 ready when we board the bus. Thanks in advance for your help.

 

We were in Aruba on Thursday 4/3/08 and for the sound of it Palm Beach is your best choice. As far as the bus is concerned you do not have to have exact change. For 2 round trips it was 4.60 or 2.30 per person. Buses clean and efficient. To Palm you take the L10 route.

[Arubalisa]

On Eagle Beach, at this time, the Amsterdam Manor is the only place that I am aware of which is renting chaise lounges.

Palm Beach there are a number of vendors who rent chaises. Palm Beach will give you much more variety on food, beverages and watersports.

[maxs mom]

Well.....I like Palm Beach but I would really like to get away from the massive crowds and the watersports.....they were just in our face the last time we were there. I think we would like a quieter place like Eagle to veg this time. So we will try the AMBR.

 

Thanks for all the info.....keep it coming.....anyone that goes there from now until July.....keep us posted......pictures always appreciated!