| Wonderful....Once again. |
| Hotel Riu Palace Aruba |
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Emily09 >
2 contribution(s) United States of America |
| Jul, 2010 | Leisure | Family
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| This was our second time ot this resort. We had such a good time the first time, we decided to take our 8 year old this time. He really liked it and had a blast. We had no issues or complaints. The staff is wonderful. We received 3 phone calls through-out the week from the director of the resort to make sure our stay was good and we had everything we needed, Very nice!! |
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| Activities on and off the Resort/Hotel |
| We booked all of our excursions with DePalm tours, they have a rep in the lobby. We went on the baby beach tour, which I would highly recommend especially if you have young kids, our 8 yr old loved it. We went on a 4 hour snorkle trip which was great, food, drink and fun! We also went to DePalm Island which was a blast, we went on the half day, which was perfect, pay the admission and everything is included: drinks, food, water park, snorkle, basketball, volley ball. Very very nice for the price and everything that comes with it. |
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| Arrival |
| Upon arrival we were welcomed by the staff with a welcom drink. Quick check in, but the room was not ready, she told us to go eat and then come back and the room should be ready, which it was. The lobby was clean and smoking in NOT allowed, outside only, which was great. The front staff was very friendly and effecient. |
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| Beach/Pools/Grounds |
| The beach is pefect, white sand, clear water and hardly any waves, what more would you want. Shade is hard to come by, as people do wake up at 5am to grab a spot under the shadey area, but grab a spot under a palm tree its nice, provides protection from the sun and plus you didn't have to get up at 5 to get it. Pool chairs are the same, but you wait till 1:30 the chairs are easier to come by. Pool area very clean, and nice. |
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| Other Comments |
| We went to dinner one night off the resort, We ate at Moby Dick. Which was very very good. The atmosphere was very nice and elegant. Pricey but worth it. The staff was excellent!!! |
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| Restaurants and Bars |
| We tried 3 out of the 4 reservation restaurants, The Italian, The steakhouse and The Gourmet. The steakhouse and the gourmet were excellent, very very good. The Italian was good also, I just liked the other 2 a little better. Reservationa are required at the 4 Ala carte restaurants, you need to make these between 9-12 every day for that night's seating, 6:30 or 9:00. Its not hard to make reservations, we always got our first choice, one morning we forgot to make reservations and went to the lobby at 1145 and we were given a reservation for the gourmet. The buffet was very good for breakfast every day, we ate dinner a few times also, which was once again very good, something for everyone!! Miss the food already. The pool bar was quick and entertaining, staff wonderful. We went to the outside bar everynight, very nice and laid back, perfect way to end the day. The lobby bar has nightly shows, which were either good or comical, but still stayed to watch. |
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| Rooms |
| Our room was in building A, right in the center of the resort, great view of the pool and beach, wonderful sun sets from the balcony. Of course our room had the double beds pushed together, which did not bother us, it was ok for a vacation, they are not that hard and we slept fine every night. The bathroom was big with a stand up shower and tub combo, 2 double sinks. The balcony was average size, enough for 2 chairs and a small table, very private. Yes, the TV is outdated, but who comes to a place like this to watch TV???? No musty smell or smoke smell in the rooms. AC was good, kept the room nice and cold. Never heard our neighbors next door or loud noise in the hallway. |
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| I just loved it. |
| Hotel Occidental Grand Aruba |
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Desii Pattinson >
1 contribution(s) Panama |
| Mar, 2010 | Leisure | Family
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| Since i'm not much of a talker, I'm just gonna say I loved it. Unless I have something to say. |
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| Activities on and off the Resort/Hotel |
| Since we didn't do a lot in the resort.. Well, we did go to a show, which was in English, and since we are a Spanish speaking family, we didn't understand a lot of things. I'm writing this in English because I have studied more. Besides that, we didn't do much more than swimming in the beach, the pool, and going to restaurants when necesary. Off the resort, since Aruba is a very beautiful and small island, everything is close to everything. We met the Natural Bridge, California Lighthouse and went shopping. Absolutely dazzling and colorful. Everything. |
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| Beach/Pools/Grounds |
| The beach is absolutely gorgeous, the sand is cool, the water clistal-clear, the pool was very clean, but the jacuzzis were a little too hot for the weather. I liked the pool bar as well, but I didn't like their piñas coladas as much as in the lobby. |
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| Other Comments |
| I'd definitely go again. When I grow up and get a job. |
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| Restaurants and Bars |
| In all the restaurants the food was just delicious. And for the bars, I couldn't stop drinking piñas coladas. |
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| Rooms |
| Well, I stayed in one of those rooms for couples. I slept in the bed for once, and it's like sleeping in clouds. Even the couch. Well, not really. I absolutely loved the decoration and the bathtub. |
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| Your Arrival |
| Arrived at 6:30 p.m. The view: stunning. It was beautiful. I didn't mind waiting in the lobby at all. I liked all the decoration, the fountain was a great detail. A guide gave us a tour arround the hotel, and led us to the buffet, which name I forgot. But I could see the little waterfall in the swimming pool, and it was beautiful with the dim lights. |
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| We had a great time! |
| Hotel Tamarijn Aruba Beach resort |
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Larry09 >
1 contribution(s) Canada |
| Dec, 2008
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| My wife and I stayed at the Tamarijn with our 7 year old son from December 6 to 20. We had a great time! The low-rise area where the Tam is located is much more relaxed than the high-rise area further north. We much preferred the low-rise area. |
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| Activities on and off the Resort/Hotel |
| I would recommend one of the jeep tours. We had a good time going to the natural pool on the other side of the island. It was what they called a "shake and bake" tour, since you go off-roading and are baked by the sun! |
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| Arrival |
| December 6-20, 2008
The desk staff were nice and helpful. We checked in late, since our flight was delayed and one of our pieces of luggage got lost, but they handled us nicely and made sure we were able to get a beer before the bar closed at 1:00 am... |
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| Beach/Pools/Grounds |
| Pools were very nice and refreshing. The beach right in front of the Tam has eroded a bit in recent years but the beach between the Tam and the Divi is very large and very nice! |
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| Other Comments |
| My wife and I stayed at the Tamarijn with our 7 year old son from December 6 to 20. We had a great time! The low-rise area where the Tam is located is much more relaxed than the high-rise area further north. We much preferred the low-rise area. Downtown Oranjestad was about a 20 minute walk from the Tam. I walked there on numerous occasions by myself and never had any problems. I always felt quite safe on this island. My son had a great time playing in the ocean and swimming in the pools. The only problem we had was with the kids club, which was not at all well attended by other kids, so we didn't bother booking him into that. He did fine meeting other kids his age the second week we were there. The first week, he wasn't able to find any suitable playmates, but we made do by going to the ocean and bodysurfing. Darn! :-) |
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| Restaurants and Bars |
| The quality and variety of food at the Tam and Divi kept us happy for 2 weeks. We saw some repeats by the 2nd week, but it had been long enough in between that it didn't bother us. We liked Paparazzi the best and Ginger was just ok, the rest falling in between. My wife has food allergies and she was always able to find something to eat. |
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| Rooms |
| The rooms are basic, but we couldn't have cared less about that. We were there for the surf, sand, sun and sights! The room was clean and comfortable, so that made us happy. |
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| The Aruba Marriot is a fine hotel |
| Hotel Marriott Aruba Resort & Stellaris Casino |
| User Rating:
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Alexander from Ontario >
1 contribution(s) Canada |
| May, 2008 | Leisure | Family
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Taxi fare from the airport was twenty-five dollars. Check-in was efficient. Beautiful 'new age'lobby. Could pass for Tahitian. Respectful clientele.
Rooms:
Rooms were large and well fitted. Plenty of area to both unpack your belongings while enjoying sufficient 'living space'. One has to give adequate thought to your room assignment when checking in- rooms on the lower floors tend to get noisy and other specfic rooms also have their particular issues- we awere assigned a room immediately beneath the salon/ hospitality area of the upper most Tradewinds floor. Those on the upper floor receive access to a hospitality suite for drinks and breakfast. Each morning we were awakened very early by the high heels of the ladies setting out breakfast and coffee in the hospitality suite. Take my advice, avoid that specific room assignment. Also, as usual, avoid rooms near the elevators.
Restaurants and Bars:
All restaurants, in the hotel and out, serve quality meals- very pricy as we have come to expect in Aruba. LaVista was certaily very good, albeit near empty. High's steakhouse was not worth the hype. My son loved the Mudslides at the pool bar. Part of the enjoyment in visiting Aruba is the evening meal and stroll to and from the local restaurants in the high rise area. Consequently, try not to place to much emphasis on the eating establishments in the hotel.
Beach/Pools/Grounds:
Their one pool was lagoon style. It was large enough but certainly not spacious. Very sanitary. All guests seemed very friendly and respectful. However, staff did permit a small seemingly lonely group of young male twenty-somethings to float about in some morally questionable loungers. Most guests with children weren't impressed.
Activities on and off the Resort/Hotel:
This was not our first trip to Aruba. Tours are often very expensive. It is often better in terms of money and time management to rent a car or jeep for two or three days and to go to the various activites of your choice.
Other Comments:
The Aruba Marriot is a fine hotel. In Aruba, only the Hyatt is of similar quality. I'd give the edge to the Marriot for accomodations and to the Hyatt for grounds and pool.
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