La Cabana

Nov 29th - Dec 6th, 2003 by Paul

This was our third trip to Aruba, our first trip with our two children Christopher (3 and one half) and Stephen (8 months). We booked three airline seats and opted to carry Stephen on our laps (permitted by all airline carriers for infants less than 2 years in age at no cost).

The Aruba Travel-Guide web site is excellent, but we noted a lack of trip reports covering travel with small children so here goes…

Trip Arrangements:

For this trip, we used Continental Vacations to make our travel arrangements. We quickly learned that Continental Vacations is not owned by Continental Airlines itself, but by Certified Vacations Group, Inc. This is not readily noted anywhere on Continental's web-site and I believe is somewhat misleading. This became very frustrating when we attempted to redeem OnePass (frequent flyer miles) to cover 2 of our 3 tickets. In the end, we ended up paying for the two tickets and not being able to use our frequent flyer miles (after becoming thoroughly frustrated with the Certified Vacations and their condescending and unhelpful staff). Overall service was poor and cost was by no means a bargain. Our suggestion is to use another travel agent.

Air Carrier:

Continental Airlines with direct service to / from Newark, N.J. We always use Continental Airlines and the flight down was great. On the way back, we were flying into a wicked North Easter (snow storm) that dumped over 16 inches of snow on New Jersey. The flight was delayed taking off from Aruba for 3 hours but we landed without delay in Newark. This was incredible, considering the blizzard conditions underway and visibility of less than a quarter of a mile. Kudos to our pilot!

Car Rental:

We rented a 5-door Kia Rio Wagon through Jansen. The total cost for the week was $221 ($200 for the car and $21 for an infant rear-facing car seat). Jansen's staff is very friendly and accommodating and we'd highly recommend them. My Gold Visa credit card provider now offers car rental insurance for Aruba (something not available on our last trip) so we declined the additional insurance through Jansen. To be safe, I recommend that you check with your credit card company before the trip to ensure they cover car rentals in Aruba. Over the course of the week, we used $30 worth of gasoline.

Hotel:

For this trip, we opted to stay at La Cabana due to the fact they offered a one bed room suite at a reasonable cost. In addition, many folks on this bulletin board highly recommended La Cabana for individuals traveling with kids. We had Grand Suite #4541, which was a 'Superior', which means two double beds. La Cabana threw in the crib for free (normally they charge $5 per day).

Adults traveling with kids should remember this is a vacation for you everyone (including you). Trying to cram everyone into one room is a recipe for misery. Opt for the one or two bedroom suite, and you'll be happy you did.

Here's a quick run down on our impression of La Cabana:

La Cabana Pluses

• Kitchenettes: Great when traveling with kids. Comes fully loaded with a refrigerator, microwave, toaster oven, silverware, plates, wine glasses, utensils, etc. Grade: B+
• Affordable Price: You won't find a more reasonably priced resort on Aruba offering the same amenities. Grade: A-
• Kid Friendly: From the kid's activities, to the kiddy pools, playground & waterslides this is a kid friendly resort. Grade: A
• Happy Hour: Extended (3 hour) happy hours are great - drinks are 2 for 1. Grade: B+
• Atmosphere: Unpretentious atmosphere, relatively quiet at the grand suite pools (except for guests screaming on the large water slide). Grade: B+
• Dunkin Donuts: This was convenient for inexpensive breakfasts and consistently great coffee. Baskin Robbins is great for the kids and for adults who love ice cream. Grade: A
• Large Waterslide: A blast for adults and kids over 42 inches in height. Grade: A
• Beach: Eagle Beach is nice and we always had and easy time finding a palapa (beach hut). I believe Manchebo Beach is superior, but I prefer Eagle beach over the beach in the high rise section. Grade: A-
• Barbeque Area: For use by all guests for no additional charge. Grill your own lunch and no need to worry about buying charcoal; the grills are natural gas which is provided by the resort. Grade: A

La Cabana Minuses

• Check in / Check Out: Check in for non-timeshare owners is extremely SLOW and INEFFICIENT. It took us 30 minutes to check in and 45 minutes to check out. Three inefficient front desk people to handle a huge line does not cut it. In addition, has anyone at La Cabana ever heard of an automated check out system? Grade: F
• Disrepair of Rooms: Our room was relatively nice and was functional but in general, was in pretty bad disrepair. The bathroom faucet leaked, the beds were extremely uncomfortable and worn out, both towel racks in the bathroom were broken and the room had a mild mildew smell. This odor could have been attributed to the rain we experienced while in Aruba, but I wouldn't bet on it. Grade: C-
• Cleanliness: The overall resort is maintained pretty well but the cleaning staff did a really poor job of cleaning the floors in our room. Our 8 month old son looked like a dirty swiffer sweeper after crawling around on the tiled floor (even immediately after the room was cleaned). I think vacuuming the tiles before they mop could help because their sweeping efforts don't seem to cut it. On one day, they also outright failed to clean our room - maybe it was a vacation day on account of the rain? Grade: C-
• Unaccommodating Staff: The line to check out took 45 minutes! After getting to the counter, I kindly requested a delayed check out because our flight was delayed 3 hours on account of the snow storm in New York. My younger son was napping in the room and my older son was asleep in my arms as I requested the late check out. I asked nicely and despite the delayed flight and sleeping kids, they denied my request! I was kindly told, there was nothing they could do. They mentioned that if the flight was canceled, they would provide a discounted room but I'd have to wait on line again if the flight was cancelled. I met other guests who were granted late check outs and they did not have kids. Grade: F

Would I recommend La Cabana?

I wouldn't go out of my way to recommend this place.

Would I stay at La Cabana again? If the price was right, I might stay here again. Before booking through a travel agent, check to see if any owners are willing to sell you their timeshare week. I've heard of people getting a week for anywhere between $400 and $700 for a one bedroom. Pair this up with frequent flyer tickets, and you're talking about an affordable family vacation. This amount should cover the owner's yearly maintenance fee and it beats the unit going unused and the owner having to shell out this money for nothing. I understand the check in / check out times are much better if you're a member, or a guest of a member.

I've listed the pluses and minuses, you need to decide if this place is right for you.

Traveling with Kids:

Aruba is a great destination for parents traveling with kids. Here are some helpful suggestions that worked for us when traveling with our two young children.

Baby Back Pack:

We purchased a Snugli Cross Country for this trip. The carrier accommodates kids up to 40 pounds in weight and up to 10 pounds of additional gear in a convenient cargo pouch. Cost was $50. We used this carrier for my 8 month old son, who weighs around 21 pounds. I'm 5 foot, 6 inches tall and this thing was a dream! Great for morning walks on the beach and for visiting areas inaccessible to a stroller (i.e. Quadriki Caves).

Baby Food:

We brought enough for 1.5 days for our 8 month old and bought baby food for the rest of the week in Aruba. Prices for Baby Food in Aruba is comparable to the states, it saves room in your luggage and they carry the same brands (we use Gerber) as are available in the states. Again, try Kong Hing or Super Foods just north of Oranjestad.

Car Rental:

Try bringing two kids and your family's luggage on the DePalm bus from the airport (to your hotel) and your vacation will be off to a horrible start! Car Rentals in Aruba are right in the airport, are inexpensive and make a lot of sense. Plus, both of our kids nap very well in the car so it was easy for us to get them to nap while you drive around the cunucu, taking in the sights.

Cooler (Soft-sided):

Packs down to virtually nothing in your suitcase and is great for carrying kids snacks & juices to the beach. This cooler also doubled as daddy's Balashi Beer cooler - nothing like an ice cold Balashi on the beach or near the pool. Get your ice free ice from La Cabana's ice machines or make ice in your fridge.

Diapers:

We brought enough with us for 1 day and bought our diapers for the rest of the week in Aruba. Prices for Diapers in Aruba are comparable to the states, it saves you a ton of room in your luggage and they carry the same brands that are available in the states. Try Kong Hing or Super Foods just north of Oranjestad.

Lolly Pops:

We brought along a few for our older son. My son loves them and they worked great at equalizing his ear pressure during take off and landings.

Lunch:

Since our older son is very picky, he was happy eating peanut butter & jelly sandwiches, yogurt, etc. on the beach. We bought everything we needed to satisfy his finicky tastes for breakfast, lunch and dinner at the local Aruban supermarkets.

Portable DVD Player:

We purchased one specifically for this trip. On sale for $129 at Circuit City and this handy little device was worth every penny. Why ruin everyone's trip on the plane (including your own) by having to listen to your kid whine and scream the whole flight? My 3 year old is relatively good on planes but after 2 hours, he loved watching Clifford, Thomas the Tank Engine, Elmo, etc. This thing is not much larger than a portable CD player, which ends up taking up very little of your precious luggage space. The rechargeable battery is good for about 3-4 hours.

Portable Beach Tent:

We visit the beach regularly at home (in warmer months) and have owned a Cabana II Sunshade for some time. This thing folds down to nearly nothing, comes with a carrying case and offers a SPF of 50+ which was great for our 8 month old. He loved playing in this thing on the beach and napped inside it a few times as well.

Travel Stroller:

We use a Graco travel stroller that we have had for some time and enjoy it thoroughly. We recommend avoiding an umbrella stroller; sure they fold up small but most lack any type of storage area for carrying a diaper bag, beach bag, etc. Besides, the airline will gate check any size stroller which makes bringing a slightly larger, and functional, one extremely convenient.

Tourist Sites Visited:

For this trip, we did relatively little but relax so the list of places visited is short.

Alto Vista Chapel - Quaint chapel set against the backdrop of Aruba's windward coast, numerous cacti and crashing surf in the distance is inspiring. Benches outside make a nice spot for a picnic lunch with the kids.

Arashi Beach - An awesome beach just south of the lighthouse. Great for adults & great for kids. Soft sand, relatively shallow & calm water, nice beach huts make this a great destination for families. Backdrop of the lighthouse and the undeveloped northern tip of the island is very nice. Head to the north end of the beach if you plan to snorkel, as the reef is quite close to the shore and pretty good here.

Baby Beach - On our first two trips, we were unimpressed with this beach due to the uninspiring backdrop of the smoking oil refinery. With kids, this beach is a MUST. The finest white sand you can imagine, an extremely calm and shallow beach, nice beach huts, and a snack shack makes this a perfect destination for families with kids. Hopefully, the jeep tour group or DePalm tour bus doesn't pull up while you're visiting as the number of visitors to this beach can increase dramatically and ruin the relatively tranquil and calm setting. Both sons loved this beach!

Eagle Beach - Right in front of La Cabana (just cross a tiny street). Huts are plentiful and the water is relatively calm. Keep an eye on those kids, some of the waves are big enough to tumble the kids.

Quadriki Caves - My 3 year old loved this cave and the bats. My 8 month old rode happily along in the baby back pack as daddy carefully ensured his head did not contact the low cave ceilings. Save yourself some money and pack a small flashlight which is all you need to explore this cave. If you need to rent a flash light, they cost $7 and you only really need one for your family.

Restaurants - Plenty of kid friendly restaurants abound in Aruba. Our approach was to go out to dinner early, while the kids were still agreeable and before the restaurants became crowded with those without children.

Our 8 month old eats baby food and the 3 year old has a very limited menu of foods he likes. Our list from this trip is rather short and many other great restaurants exist in Aruba. Always remember that most restaurants add a 15% gratuity automatically, so check your bill carefully to avoid double tipping.

Italian Food Avallone's: Opens at 5:30pm and if you go at this time you'll have the place to yourself. The owner of Avallone's is Tom, an extremely friendly guy who can teach Molto Mario from the Food Network a few things about cooking Italian food. Since my wife and I are both of Italian descent and can cook pretty well, we aren't huge fans of Italian restaurants but Avallone's is definitely worth the trip for authentic Italian! We liked it so much, we went twice in one week and loved the fact that every dish is cooked to order. Tom also gave us a tour of his kitchen and his wonderful back yard basil garden.

Our first visit to Avallone's was without our kids as my in-laws, who were down in Aruba the same time kindly watched the kids for a night. 1 Artichoke appetizer (a must have), 1 fresh mozzarella appetizer (very good with proscuitto & a pepper capanade), 1 chicken & eggplant special, 1 veal marsala, 1 cannoli, 2 decafs & 2 (yes 2) bottles of a 1999 Chianti Classico Reserve for $187 with 15% gratuity. YIKES, that's a lot of money but we did have two great ($40) bottles of wine. Stick to one bottle and your wallet and your head will feel better the next day.

Second visit was 4 adults and the kids. 2 Artichoke appetizers (like I said, a MUST have), 1 zuppa de pesce, 1 veal marsala, 1 chicken & broccoli, 1 chicken w/ proscuitto, 1 side order of spaghetti for my 3 year old, 1 Manhattan (cocktail), 3 iced teas, 1 chocolate ice cream, 2 tiramisu desserts for $183 with 20% gratuity.

If you like Italian food, visit Tom at Avallone's for a scrumptuous dinner; you won't regret that you did.

Driftwood: All of us love seafood and if you're traveling with kids, this casual downtown Oranjestad restaurant is a good choice for seafood. They have a kids menu including French fries & chicken fingers. This place opens at 5:30pm. Dinner for all 4 adults, 2 kids and a pitcher of white sangria (a MUST have) was $155 with 15% gratuity. The catch of the day is consistently good; I like mine prepared Aruban style and my wife likes it prepared garlic style. If you like escargot for an appetizer, its good at Driftwood.

Gasparito: If you're looking for traditional Aruban food, look no further. The 'Aruban Combo' is a delightful assortment of shredded chicken and seafood which is very good. Restaurant opens at 6 p.m., does not have a kids menu but we found food to satisfy our three year old. Several other families with kids were also dining here. Cost is reasonable.

King Ribs: Everything everyone writes about this place is true. Awesome BBQ food at extremely reasonable prices. We took ours to go but you can eat here if you wish (outside on picnic tables, extremely casual). Both visits we spent around $20 and had plenty of food for two adults for two meals. My son does not like BBQ so we cooked him up some macaroni & cheese back at La Cabana and he was a happy camper.

Madame Jeanettes: This place is not to be missed as the food is consistently good. We made a 6pm reservation and there were 3 other families with kids dining at the same time. No kids menu per se, but you should be able to find something to satisfy your little ones; our little guy was happy with a side order of French fries. Cost is reasonable.

Closing Remarks

Traveling with Kids - Leave extra time for everything and keep your patience; traveling with kids can be stressful but with a little advance planning, your trip can be a pleasure! Watching our kids enjoy the pool, the beach, and all of the wonders of Aruba was extremely satisfying.

Weather - It can rain in Aruba (and it did), especially in November and December, which are the rainiest months. Standing water brings mosquitoes, so pack bug spray with DEET. The citronella bug repellents sold in Aruba don't keep hungry bugs away.

It can snow in New Jersey in early December - here's a shot of our warm welcome home (16 inches of snow)!

We'll see you next year (with our kids) in Aruba!

Paul