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TOURIST GUIDE TO SIGHTS, TOUR ACTIVITIES, ATTRACTIONS, TRAVEL AND EXPLORATION - ARUBA
Aruba Sightseeing Tour: Come and experience the "Colors of Aruba!" Visit such sites as the Alto Vista Chapel, the huge boulders of the Casibari Rock Formations, the Natural Bridge and the dark hulk of the Bushiribana Gold Mill Ruins. Get dropped off in downtown Oranjestad, where you can plot your own exciting tour through the island's shopping district. Don’t miss your chance - book online now!
Airlines
Aeropostal (tel 297/837793); American Airlines (tel 297/822700); Avianca (tel 297/823388); Continental Airlines (tel 297/880044); Delta (tel 297/886619); Dutch Caribbean Express, formerly ALM (tel 297/838080); KLM (tel 297/823546).
Banks
Many banks are located on Caya G.F. Betico Croes, including ABN/AMRO (tel 297/821515); Aruba Bank (tel 297/821550); Caribbean Mercantile Bank (tel 297/823118); and Interbank Aruba (tel 297/831080). Many ATMs are also found in shopping centres.
Car rental
AC&E Jeep & Car Rental (tel 297/830840); Alamo Car Rental (tel 297/833244); Amigo Car Rental (tel 297/860502); Bon Bini Rent a Car (tel 297/834471); Budget Car Rental (tel 297/828600); Caribbean Car Rental (tel 297/822515); Econo Car Rental (tel 297/887072); Hertz Car Rental (tel 297/821845); Thrifty Car Rental (tel 297/835335).
Internet access
Cyber Café , 2nd floor Royal Plaza Mall (Mon-Sat 8.30am-9.30pm & Sun 10am-6pm; US$6 for 1hr); Cyberzone Internet Café , Seaport Marketplace Mall (Mon-Sat 9am-11pm & Sun 2-10pm; US$6 for 1hr).
Laundry
Aruba Laundry & Cleaning, Hendrik Straat 30 (tel 297/823627); Oranjestad Laundry, Arendstraat 107 (tel 297/821638).
Pharmacies
Pharmacies, called boticas , are open Mon-Sat 7.30am-7.30pm. Botica Eagle, near hospital (tel 297/876103); Botica del Pueblo, Caya G.F. Betico Croes 48 (tel 297/822154); Kibrahacha Botica, across from the SETAR telephone office on Havenstraat (tel 297/834908).
Post office
Main office is located across from the St Franciscus Church (Mon-Fri 7.30am-noon & 1-4.30pm). A small postal outlet is also located on the ground floor of the Royal Plaza Mall (Mon-Fri 8am-3.30pm).
Nightlife
At night, the dazzling lights of Oranjestad attract party buses and scores of revellers who visit as many bars, nightclubs and casinos as possible before daybreak. Many of the restaurants and bars have live local bands on weekends, and most hotels and resorts offer theme nights and activities for their guests. If you're heart is set on spending an elegant evening, the glitzy Las Vegas style dance shows at the Crystal Theater in the Sonesta Resort are well worth the price of admission.
Café Bahia Weststraat 7 tel 297/889982. A staircase leads upstairs to an open-air dance floor. Local bands usually play on weekends, happy hour is on Fri 5-7pm and ladies night is Wed. Closes 3.30am on weekends and 2am on weekdays. No cover charge.
Carlos'n Charlie's Weststraat 3A tel 297/820355. A popular bar with tourists who dance to tunes from the 1960s to the 1980s. The music gets going after 11pm. US$3 cover charge.
Club E-Zone Bayside Mall on Weststraat 5. The largest indoor dance floor in town plays European music and attracts a fairly young crowd of tourists.
Crystal Theater Downtown at the Aruba Sonesta Beach Resort on L.G. Smith Boulevard tel 297/836000. An impressive heart-thumping "Let's Go Latin" dance show ($37) with live music and dancers. Show times are from Mon to Sat beginning at 9pm. The resort also has a 24-hour casino.
La Fiesta 2nd floor Adventura Mall on Klipstraat tel 297/889982. This trendy terrace bar attracts both locals and tourists. Latin beats are mixed with European and American tunes.
Mambo Jambos 2nd floor Royal Plaza tel 297/833632. Tables are removed on Fri and Sat for dancing; other nights this place is great for hanging out and listening to music. It's also a restaurant serving sandwiches and snacks. Latin tunes played throughout the day. Daily 10.30am-4am.
Radisson Aruba Caribbean Resort Casino Radisson Caribbean Resort on Palm Beach tel 297/864045. Casino surrounded by lavish drapery and Caribbean palms. The lounge and sports bar are also popular.
Stellaris Casino At the Aruba Marriott on Palm Beach tel 297/869000. One of the island's favourite casinos.
Oranjestad
Named in honour of the Dutch Royal House of Orange, Oranjestad has been Aruba's capital since 1797 and has served as the island's main port ever since. Today, the small harbour continues to attract schooners, fishing boats and cruise ships from all over the world. The tiny capital on the southwest shore bustles with activity as thousands of visitors descend upon it each day to shop, dine or try their luck at one of the many casinos. The streets that make up the downtown core are lined with modern imitations of pastel-coloured Dutch colonial houses adorned with ornate gabled roofs; a good number of them have been renovated into shopping complexes, administrative buildings, museums and restaurants. A handful of older buildings, including Fort Zoutman and the lofty King Willem III Tower, offer reminders of Aruba's past. Just a hop and a skip away from the city is the island's main beach strip and resort area.
For many tourists, the first glimpse of Oranjestad is along the busy palm-fringed thoroughfare of L.G. Smith Boulevard , the island's main artery connecting the capital with the hotel district and the northwest and with San Nicholas in the southeast. Running parallel to the harbour, the downtown stretch of the road is lined with shopping malls, boutiques, casinos, government offices and parliament buildings. Unless you plan to shop 'til you drop or while away the hours gambling, the city's sights won't occupy too much of your time. There are, however, a number of interesting cultural attractions, best explored, like the city itself, on foot, as everything you'll want to see is concentrated in a small area.
The picturesque harbour is a good place to begin your wanderings. Starting from the white tourist information booth adjacent to the Atlantis Pier, head east on L.G. Smith Boulevard. Turning left onto Oranjestraat, you'll reach the beautifully preserved Fort Zoutman , the oldest building on the island and perhaps the town's most important landmark. The fort was built in 1796 and played a vital role in securing Dutch interests on the island. Armed with four cannons, it was originally sited along the coast; centuries of shifting currents have changed the coastline so that today the fort now sits some 300m away from the water. The adjoining Willem III Tower was added in 1868 to serve as a lighthouse and the town's first public clock. The fort houses a small historical museum (Mon-Fri 9am-noon & 1.30-4.30pm; US$1.15) displaying an interesting collection of artefacts that trace Aruba's history. Its open-air courtyard also hosts the weekly folkloric Bon Bini Festival (Tues 6.30-8.30pm; US$3), which features traditional music and dance, and is the best place to try local dishes.
One block east of the fort, on Zuidstraat 27, is the fascinating Numismatic Museum (Mon-Fri 7.30am-noon & 1-4pm; free), home to over 30,000 historical coins from Aruba and around the world dating back to 220 BC. Some of the many highlights include a display of Aruban Indian shells used for barter, beads used as money by North American Indians and bills made of silk and linen.
At the north end of the city the tiny Archeological Museum , J.E. Irausquin Blvd 2-A (Mon-Fri 8am-noon & 1-4pm; free), has an impressive array of local artefacts and pottery. The most important exhibits include stone tools from 2000 BC, pottery from the ceramic period (500 AD) and the skeletal remains excavated from an Indian burial site.
Back near the harbour, around the corner from the Seaport Casino, is the quiet Wilhelmina Park , honouring the 1955 visit of Queen Juliana of the Netherlands, a white marble statue of whom dominates the plaza. The park is especially striking when tropical plants are in bloom between June and October. Benches set amongst the shady grove of trees makes this an ideal place to rest after sightseeing or a long day of shopping.
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