VACATIONS FROM HOME: SANDALS ROYAL CURAÇAO

LUXURIOUS AND QUIET
Willemstad

We are at the extreme eastern end of Sandals Royal Curaçao in a cluster of walk out bungalows with a little patio and a view of the ocean beyond a golf course fairway. This is our fifth visit to a Sandals resort, an all-inclusive adult couple only family of resorts scattered across 7 different islands in the Caribbean.

Invariably as one travels in this Sandals world comparisons are made between the different resorts. Which resort has the nicest grounds? Which resort has the best restaurants or evening entertainment? Where is the best diving? And, which island is the most interesting destination, resort notwithstanding?

I can spend the time here and go over the trace differences between any of our past Sandals resort visits and contrast them with our time here in Curaçao, but that would be boringly tedious. So, let me just talk about Sandals Royal Curaçao.

IT’S A BIG WORLD OUT THERE

Your favorite wandering wackos have a mantra: It’s a big world there, someone has to see it, which means returning to someplace is anathema to our psyche.

On all five of our visits to a Sandals resort we ask each other would we like to return to that particular resort for a future visit. Up until now the answer has been “no” because there's so much more in this world to see, but Curaçao is different.

Between the charm of a brand spanking new resort, which opened just last year, the incredible diving, the manicured grounds, little things like food trucks for snacks and a full slate of evening entertainment, as well as the Dutch island of Curaçao itself waiting patiently for you to explore her glorious beaches and colorful buildings of the capital of Willemstad have Janet and I considering a future return.

Willemstad, Curacao

As we planned for this trip we learned that the diverse culture of the island nation of Curaçao is alluring, where signs are printed in Spanish and Dutch. We learned that the diving here is world renown making Curaçao a highly sought after destination for this underwater sport. Knowing all this and wanting to do it all and not feel rushed we booked an extra day, for eight days total. Yet, now, at the end of our trip to Curaçao we STILL feel like there is so much more to do and see and experience.

LOGISTICS

Not wanting to get in late to the Sandals Royal Curaçao and pay for a truncated day, we flew in the previous night of our check-in, staying in a modest hotel near the airport. The taxi driver we flagged down after we landed was a godsend.

It is quite possible to never leave the resort and not be aware you are in a foreign country, but Ida not only drove us to Sandals the next morning, two days later she took us on a full day of Curaçao. The world of Sandals is beautiful and luxurious, but the island of Curaçao is fascinating and well worth the time to explore.

Grote Knip Beach

On our tour with Ida she first drove us through Willemstad and showed us sights like the floating Queen Emma bridge and the Locks of Love display (which Janet and I added to with our own keepsake display of affection). Outside of Willemstad Ida stopped so we could see pink flamingos and then at several of the beaches along the west coast as we cooed over the beautiful vistas and white sand beaches, going for a swim in the crystalline waters of Cas Abao Beach before dropping us off in the capital again where we could linger over drinks and some snacks before getting a taxi that she arranged for us to take us back to the resort.

If you are traveling to Curaçao and are interested in hiring Ida please write me at: greg.dunaj2@yahoo.com for her contact information.

We arrived at Sandals that first day around 10 am. Though our rooms weren’t ready until much later in the day we were able to take advantage of the resort and even did our check-in dive with the dive masters at the aqua-center, and we even signed up for a dive before we even got into our room! It was like getting another day free.

THE RESORT
Double Infinity pool

There isn’t an actual beach at Sandals Royal Curaçao, which might be a drawback for some, but there are three large pools on the grounds and several “tepid” hot tubs. (This IS the Caribbean). Every Sandals has a massive main pool with a swim-up bar, but here at Curaçao this is an impressive two-tiered infinity pool. The lower one has the swim-up bar, and both offer one a view of the ocean. There’s a smaller, quieter pool nearby where they play volleyball in the afternoon. There’s a bar there. And, at the extreme eastern end of bungalows where we are there is a “quiet” pool, with no bar or entertainment, though they fill a cooler with drinks. It is very tranquil.

The dive shop is a half-mile away and at first the distance seemed daunting, but at least we get our steps in for the day. There are plenty of Dutch Bikes scattered around the resort for a grab and go ride if you need to get somewhere quickly. None of the diving sites are more than 10 minutes from the resort and they are currently using two boats.

There are some serious divers who come to Sandals Royal Curaçao with all their own equipment, etc. We come with nothing but our own scrape shirts and Sandals provides all the equipment like vests, masks and regulators. Despite the influx of “elite” divers (not us) the dive-masters are patient and helpful and each dive we’ve been on is better than the last one!

Our Cottage at Sandals

We’ve had some great meals while here. There are 8 restaurants offering everything from sushi to Mediterranean cuisines as well as a unique feature of three food trucks offering quick snacks like Spanish tapas and gazpacho and Bitterballen a Dutch-style tapas.

CIRCLE BACK

So, what we have experienced here at Sandals Royal Curaçao and Curaçao itself has us yearning for more even as we pack our bags for the return trip. But, before we can even consider a return to Curaçao we are first traveling to the Sandals Resort in Barbados this December and we booked a trip to St. Lucia the next year. Whether or not we return to Curaçao this has been a wonderful trip.

It may be a big world out there, but as they say at Sandals: “Welcome Home”.

Thanks for reading.

Love Janet and greg