Divi Aruba Beach Resort

June 3 - June 10, 2000 - by Debbie and Ron K.

First and foremost

I would like to thank all the bb'rs out there in bb land for all the helpful information we received as we began our l-o-n-g countdown approximately 6 months ago. A special thank you goes out to "Peter" and "Juan", also to "John" for that awesome photo of the room I intended to request (and got). That photo was my desktop wallpaper that carried me thru continuous daydreaming at work as well as at home.

Logan Airport

Our flight was scheduled to depart at 7:15am, Saturday June 3rd. We went GWV and had a nice, uneventful flight. The flight departed just about on time. We were charged $30.00 per person for fuel charges as we stood in line at the airport. They accepted only cash or check, I brought one check with me as planned. The flight was pleasant, we flew North American, nice attendants, service etc. The plane was HUGE and not all seats were taken, so we got to spread out which was nice. The GWV representatives at Logan were friendly and attentive.

Alas, on Aruba soil

We arrived at Aruba airport at approximately 11:30am. We went thru customs, no problems, grabbed our luggage and immediately jumped into a cab. We took the advise of many bb'rs to avoid the transfer bus stopping at every resort etc. The cab fare was about $16.00 (??) and very much worth it. The GWV representatives were right there at the Aruba airport instructing us where to go, what to do etc.

Divi Aruba Beach arrival

We were 2nd in line to check-in. We arrived at approximately 12:30pm. The desk attendant "Pearl" was very pleasant, it took us about 3 minutes to check-in. She had a bright smile and welcomed us to the island. As we were standing there, a nice "Fun Maker" gentleman came over to us with a tray of Rum Punches and handed us both a drink and welcomed us to the Divi. That was totally awesome and it set the vacation mode into immediate action !! I had emailed Lisa Cusson with a specific room (Vista II, room 523) and the front desk had it logged on my arrival slip, Woohoo !!

We rented the room safe for $2.00 a day, well worth it for the peace of mind. Pearl put our "Coochi Bracelets" on us and told us to check back around 2:00pm since check-in is about 3:00pm. We went to the Pelican Terrace and had yummy burgers and also proceeded to the bars for another round of Rum Punches. We got in our room at 2:30pm, a friendly bell man handled our baggage to our room. The room was just as we anticipated and more, what can I say, the view was breathtaking !!

Miscellaneous

This being our 3rd trip to Aruba (hadn't been to Aruba since 1996) and our first at the Divi, we did not do many island tours, as we have been there, done that. We wanted to do our best at doing "nothing". We decided to just do our own thing at our own pace. So the next day we decided to rent an economy car at Budget Rental, right from the lobby. Budget had a 3 day special, a Toyota Tercel, automatic, A.C. at $85.00. We also got the insurance which was $8.00 a day (we also received a large free beach towel that was included with the special). We had so much fun cruising around doing this and that, that we extended the car rental for one more day.

Activities

We had only snorkeled once before in Aruba, and we became addicted back then. So our first thought was to snorkel to our hearts content. We had brought our own mask and snorkel tube from home and got the fins from the resort and headed out for Baby Beach. Wow, what a beach !! It was absolutely beautiful, the water was so calm and the sand was pearly white. I was skeptical at first as I had heard that there was hardly any shade or facilities and the oil refinery was a sight for sore eyes. There were about 6 shade huts, public restrooms and a small concession stand and who the heck cares about the refinery in the background !

We snorkeled beyond the rocks and saw HUGE parrot fish, the fish were plentiful. We had brought 2 underwater cameras and we had a blast. We spent alot of time there, but it did get crowded once a few bus tours showed up. Just be sure you watch your face as we had people swim into us, fins flapping at our noses etc. We ended up going to Baby Beach again on another day, as we liked it so much. We also ventured over to Malmock Beach, but I was afraid to go out because you had to walk on the slippery rocks to get to the coral and I feared I'd fall on my face, so I watched my husband snorkel for a bit. We proceeded back to the room and washed up and then did the shopping thing downtown, which we thoroughly always enjoy.

SeaVenture Sunset Cruise:

We went on this cruise that departed from the Depalm Pier and we had an awesome time. It was around $29.00pp and it was well worth it. The tour crew was knowledgeable of the island and very informative of the shipwrecks we passed along the way etc. Well worth the money, we tipped the "Rum Runner" as he was very sociable and entertaining and kept our drinks "bottomless". Very nice island music playing and recieved a narration/history of the resorts as we merrily cruised on by. I would highly recommend this excursion, it was great.

El Gauchos

I had booked reservations via internet about a month in advance for June 7th, our 20th Wedding Anniversary, 5:30pm reservations. We still had the rental car, but my husband suggested we spoil ourselves on "our day" and let someone else do the driving. So the Bell Captain at the Divi rounded us up a cab. The cost was $16.00 round trip. When we arrived at El Gaucho's, our reservations were honored and we were seated immediately in a small room in the front, by a window. There were only about 10 tables and it was very dark, quiet and romantic. We both ordered the Charrasco Steak, it was so very tender, we could cut it with a butter knife. The portions were very large, it was about 4 inches thick as well. The side veggies were nothing to write home about, just the usual broccoli and cauliflower. But the steak was way beyond perfection so that is what really mattered. The service couldn't have been more attentive, top notch place. The bill came to around $73.00 with a few drinks each. All in all it was a great evening, a wonderful 20th Anniversary memory. We were in and out of the restaurant in about 1-1/2 hours. There was a line of cab's across the street from the restaurant so we had no wait to get back "home" to the Divi.

Weather

Through-out the week it was cloudy often. We really didn't mind as we are not avid sun worshippers. All week we were looking for shade. The temperatures were in the very high 80's. When we arrived in Aruba it was 93 degrees. The tradewinds were perfect and muchly needed. We brought a 30 sunblock and believe me, if you miss a spot, the sun will find it tenfold. I am one of those people that burn on top of burn and then tan around Christmas time. It also rained everyday for about 5 to 10 minutes. The clouds came and went all week long. There was also an equal amount of sun all week as well, so there was a constant battle between the clouds and the sun, which was all well and fine with us.

The water at the Divi

Water temperature (a guess) is about 82 degrees or so. On our second day, we decided to go swimming in the ocean with our floaties. There were plenty of floaties, snorkel equipment, beach towels to go around. The waves were quite big, around 5 feet or so. As the day progressed they had gotten bigger. Upon our arrival home, we were told that there was a tropical storm that was in the South Florida area that affected Aruba water. We could see very dark clouds way off in the distance that day. Both my husband and I had gotten knocked down by about 7 foot waves, so we didn't go in again all week. One wake of a large wave had knocked me over and I was thrown into the sand with a vengeance. I came out of the water bleeding from multiple minor cuts on my right thigh. I also noticed a pea-sized hole in my right beach shoe from being thrown and dragged into the sand, lol. Now everytime we look at that beach shoe, we laugh, what a memory, hehe. Talk about salt in the wounds, OUCH ! Taking a shower to wash the salt and sand off my leg was very painful !! Moral of the story: I had heard that the ocean in front of the Divi was calm, well....trust me on this one...not this week it wasn't...it saw me coming.

Divi Aruba Beach Resort

In my opinion, I thought the Divi was fantastic. It was clean, personable and comfortable. Nothing like walking around in your barefeet, without a care in the world, no pocketbook, wallet, worries. There is nothing like it, you could just feel the ambience in the air. We had walked around to other close-by resorts and we found that the Divi was closest to the beach and just seemed more relaxed and laid back. The Pelican Bar was awesome and the drinks were totally yummy. The new Cocoanut Bar near the lobby was also fantastic. The bartenders were quick to serve, we did not have to wait for a cocktail at all, anywhere. The Divi also has a "self serve" machine of soda's as well as Pina Colada cocktails and soft ice cream. The Cocoanut Bar serves personal 7 inch pizzas that are beyond words, ahhh...brick oven pizza's....super good fresh thick crust. They also serve a variety of delicious grilled sandwiches all day long. We were hooked on the pizza's, any toppings you like, they have it. The Pelican Terrace buffet's were just okay. The breakfasts were the same all week, lunches varied a bit, but the dinners were better and varied most nights. Also a little bit of advise, don't leave a full plate of food at your table and then walk away to get your drink or whatever, as the birds will make a mad dive into your plate. I saw this happen many times as birds visit where there is open-air food no matter what resort.The entertainment was like the word says - entertaining. Vincent the Limbo guy was very good and was the highlight of all the nightly shows.

We dined at the Red Parrot at sunset, all outside seating is oceanfront. We both had the Filet Mignon, my husband wasn't thrilled over his cut, but mine was excellent, not like El Gaucho's but delicious nonetheless. The presentation was top-notch, a truly fine dining experience. The service was good, alittle too serious, waitstaff hardly cracked a smile as they were all business, but that was okay with us, we were too interested in enjoying the view anyway. The grounds at the Divi were spotless, many workers were walking around doing this and that all week, constantly improving the property. The staff always said hello to us as they walked by and always had a friendly smile to share with us. The maids were very cordial and friendly as well.

Departure

What can I say, Boo Hoo !!! Flight back home was again uneventful and on time. (We took the DePalm bus to the airport) We thought the week went by nice and slow. We were told by others they thought the week flew right by, we think maybe it is because they booked up the whole week with several activities. We didn't do that, we went our own pace with no commitments, no time restraints, no stress. We didn't bother with the timeshare stuff, we just did our own thing. We had the perfect week, like a vacation should be.

In Conclusion

On a scale from 1 to 10 (10 being the best) I would give the Divi an honest 8 1/2. They could use a bit more skill and imagination with the buffets, but all in all, we would definately recommend the Divi and will definately be back in the future. I hope I fulfilled your "Aruba Fix" needs to help you along with your much anticipated Aruba countdown. You will not be dissappointed with the Divi as I didn't even see half the negative things I had read about on the many bulletin boards.

I hope I didn't put all of you to sleep (Zzzz), if I did then...by all means, may you have sweet dreams of Aruba..........Enjoy your vacation !

Debbie & Rob K.