Aruba Mini Guide
It’s a reasonably big island found not far off the coast of Venezuela and was a colony of Spain for almost a century before coming under Dutch control. The island is a distant but physical part of the Netherlands. Visitors to the island will detect a very strong Dutch influence in the architecture, language, culture and in some ways, the food. It’s a very popular holiday destination with North Americans and Europeans. Besides tourism, oil refining and gold mining and extraction of guano for phosphate fertiliser production are all aspects the tourist doesn’t see.
Getting to Aruba? Reina Beatrix International Airport is the island’s main airport and receives flights from North and South America as well as from Europe. The majority of European scheduled flights route through Amsterdam whilst Thomson operate a weekly flight to Aruba from London Heathrow Airport and Manchester. The airport is very close to the capital Oranjestad and there are many ways to access the resorts of the island from the airport.
Things to do in Aruba
If you can drag yourself away from the beach, Aruba has so much to do with shipwreck diving very popular in the clear waters. The island has a ‘mountain’ called the Haystack, which, at only 500ft, still gives a great view out over the island. There are many natural sights worth visiting inland from strange rock formations to lakes and from caves to the cactus fields of the interior.
Should you rent a car in Aruba?
Seventy square miles of Aruba is waiting to be explored and the best way to travel through the scenery, reminiscent of Westerns, is to hire a car in Aruba.
Some of the worlds leading car rental agents have offices in Aruba, agents such as Avis, Sixt and Budget all operate here providing a famliar service for those renting a car in Aruba for the first time. But don't discount the local car hire agents like Smart Rent who offer an excellent service at very competitive prices.
In fact, Smart Rent consistently rate among our highest ranked car hire companies in Aruba.