Holiday Inn SunSpree Resort Aruba

June 6 - 13, 2003 by Caroline

I just recently returned from a week vacation at the Holiday Inn - Sunspree Resort, and figured I would try and share some of my findings out.

I was with my 4 other friends, for we were celebrating our high school graduation.

The Holiday Inn was an absolutely fantastic resort. I don't know why there were so many bad reviews about it, because me and my friends had an fantastic time! We went the week of June 6-13. But our plane got delayed coming home, so we got an extra day and 1/2 there :)

The beach was absolutely gorgeous in front of the hotel. It could often be hard to find a beach chair, so we always found ourselves asking the beach boys to get us some. We did the All-Inclusive package, and let me tell you, I would *never* do it any other way. All of your meals are included, and the food is expensive there. And it was really nice not to be looking at the prices, just order whatever you want.

We never found a problem with surcharches. The majority of the drinks we had were strawberry daquiris, margaritas, etc.
We never ordered specific name brands, because there really is no need too.

We stayed in the Curacao Tower, on the 6th floor, which was magnificent. We had a great breeze, and a lovely view of the ocean. The room was nice sized and clean. However, it rained a few days, and the bottom floor got flooded. So if you stay in that tower, DO NOT get a room on the first floor.

The Seabreeze was out favorite lunch time restaurant. Since the summer is the off season, it wasn't open for dinner.
But we ate lunch there EVERY day! There is this one waiter, Adolf, who is fabulous! Very attentive, and funny.

We found the buffett's at night, the "theme" nights rather dissapointing. The food was gross, and the dessert, which was always different cakes were disgusting. And if your not on All-Inclusive, those dinners are 26$! Trust me when I say, its not worth it.

The Pali Coco lounge worked out great for dinner. It was snack food, but it had pizza, tuna, chicken fingers, etc.. which was fine for us. We never did make reservations at the Mirimar Restaurant, but it looked very nice.

We never went to the Casino either, for fear we would spend most of our money. It looked entertaining though.

The activities I recommend are:
Banana boats: If you sign up for them outside, next to where you grab your towels, its only 10$ vs. 15$ in the hotel lobby area. Its SO much fun, but the salty water hurts your eyes, so wear goggles, you'll look really....attractive...

Kukoo Kunuko: Its a bus that takes you to this gorgeous restaurant! I mean, I felt like a million bucks at this place.
Its so posh. Its actually the garden of this millionaries home. When we went, one of the sons was outside eating dinner with his girlfriend, and he was very friendly! They even let you look around the inside of the house, which is amazing!
Then you go to 3 different bars, and you will get very drunk, but its fun, and they take care of you so you don't lose your way.

Carlos 'n Charlie's Mexican Night: I actually won a free mexican night at the Orientation (GO to the Orientation! You really want to do this!) But don't order any soda! Its really expensive. They give you lots of alcohol on the bus, 2$ Corona's, and its a blast. My poor friend was forced to do some body shots, and had to take shots of tequila, but its all in good fun.

Snorkeling at the Antilla: Its this German shipwreck from WWII, and its really eerie and creepy to go over it. But its alot of fun, and the fish are really cool to look at down there.

ATV's: Not for the more mature audience, because you go over mountains! Literally. Over rocks, mud, sand, and it can really get very bumpy and throw you everywhere. I highly, highly recommend it towards a youthful athletic group. Its very fun!!

Do *not* do the Carlos 'n Carlos Shopping Tour: It was a waste of money, you don't save that much money, and the malls are nothing special, its just like the malls here in the US. Really not worth it. We spent most of the time sitting around, waiting for lunch time.

I hope this review helps a little bit. Because I know that I was reading these reviews before I went, and was worried at some of the bad HI reviews. Trust me, the hotel is great! Aruba is a very relaxed island, so take advantage of that.

Have a great time! I know I did :)

Caroline