St. Thomas charmed me, but Curacao left me longing for more.
After our routinary big breakfast, the first order of the day was to rent a car.
We walked into Renaissance Curacao Resort & Casino by the cruise port terminal in Willemstad where the car rental was located. While my brother was occupied with paperwork, I found myself leafing through brochures in Irie Tours. Until this day, I regret never asking for the name of the kind woman from Irie Tours who so graciously gave us a wealth of information about Curacao, despite knowing we were on a DIY tour. She told us about how the people of Curacao can speak Papiamentu, Dutch, English and even Spanish! She showed us photos of herself in her wonderful adventures in Curacao. Introduced us to MAPS.ME – how did we ever survive our past travels without this? And gave us the nitty-gritty of getting the most out of one day in her beautiful island country. Just looking at her little map built up much excitement. Looking back, I should have given her a hug, for welcoming us to Curacao and arming us with practical details!
Following “Madam Irie’s” tips, we headed to Shete Boka National Park. In this park alone, we were able to see three gems: Boca Tabla Cave, Natural Bridge and Boca Pistol (Blow Hole). They charged an entrance fee of $10 per person, and it was well worth it!
The Carribean water was so inviting, we were soon treading to the beach! Ah! Decisions, decisions! There were so many to choose from!
Our Curacao beach tour: Playa Kalki, Playa Piskado, Cas Abao ($5 parking fee) and Kokomo Beach!
I can’t begin to describe how beautiful all these beaches are. Each one different from the other, but equally stunning. The fact that they are accessible to the public for free is so awesome! And Curacao has so much more to offer. It’s a shame that we only had one day to explore.
Willemstad is bookmarked in my mind. This is the kind of place that makes my heart beat fast. Yes, I’m definitely coming back.
TravelhackRR 