Curacao island is one of those islands that I had heard about, but didn’t really know much about. But since marrying someone from The Netherlands, I’ve learned all sorts of things about the Dutch. And there are actually several islands that are apart of The Netherlands: Aruba, Bonaire, Curacao, St Maarten, St Eustatius and Saba.
Where is Curacao? Curacao is located all the way in the south of the Caribbean, in between Aruba and Bonaire, and right above Venezuela. The three together make up the ABC islands and are Dutch territories.
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I feel like all Caribbean islands have their own unique culture and Curacao is no different. Though Aruba, Bonaire and Curacao are all Dutch islands, even they differ from each other.
Curacao’s capital city, Willemstad is the tropical version of Amsterdam. Instead of monochromatic houses lining the canals of Amsterdam, you have brightly colored buildings of the same colonial style in Curacao, also on the water’s edge.
In Aruba, Dutch was spoken far less, but Curacao was brimming with it. And maybe we just didn’t go to the right spots in Aruba, but we found loads more Dutch people in Curacao. (My Dutch husband, who lives in America, was keen on finding his people since he doesn’t get to speak Dutch as much anymore.)
You’ll also find an Albert Heijn here-a popular Dutch grocery store! (Not just a grocery store. It’s the grocery store.) They had my favorite Dutch candy and my husband’s favorite snack at a stall right outside. You could smell it from the other side of the parking lot (and not in a good way)…read on to see it!
But it was little things like this that really held the Dutch Caribbean charm for us. Not to mention, the island is beautiful.
When Should You Go:
You’d probably be ok visiting Curacao at any time of the year and here’s why: Curacao island is so far south in the Caribbean that it is below the hurricane belt. This means that 1. they don’t get hurricanes and 2. they don’t get as much rain as other islands.
However, they still have a ‘rainy season’ so it’s more likely to rain from October through December. But it’s not a rainy season like other tropical places…just…a little more likely to rain during this time. Otherwise, you can expect hot/warm temperatures.
How to Get to Curacao Island:
Curacao island has an international airport so it’s easy to fly into if you’re coming from the US. Miami has direct flights to Curacao and the flight time is around three hours.
Curacao is also a popular cruise destination as many cruises stop in the capital city, Willemstad, for the day. If you visit on a closed-loop cruise, it’s one of the places you can travel to without a passport.
How to Get Around
Visually, Curacao island is very appealing. Easy to get around? Ehhh, not quite.
Renting a car in Curacao is a must on the island but driver beware, the roads in Willemstad are a complete disaster of one way streets. Navigating this labyrinth is not easy and it’s more of a two-person job. Let me rephrase, it IS a two-person job. (Just had flashbacks of me and my husband both yelling in the car while trying to navigate our way in town.)
Even though the maps on our phones worked, they weren’t always accurate and when you think you can turn left, you can’t. Because it will be a one-way street. We did many loops around the city due to directional mishaps and unmarked roads.
Once you leave the capital, it’s like easy driving on a country road to paradise. It’s night and day. The roads aren’t busy, you can figure out where to go without almost wrecking; it’s bliss.
Safety
Walking around is safe and enjoyable, though we were warned a few times about car theft. We were told not to leave anything in our car that we didn’t want stolen.
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In fact, we were even advised to leave everything unlocked with the windows down so no one would break in. Almost as if people see a locked car and assume it’s locked for a reason (because you have something in there you don’t want taken).
It gives you a little bit of an unsettled feeling to be honest BUT we never had any problems. People were friendly and the island was beautiful.
Things to Do in Curacao:
Being the largest of the ABC islands, Curacao island definitely takes a little more time to explore-something to keep in mind when booking your trip. There are also a lot of things to do on this island. Apart from exploring and hanging out at the beach, Curacao is a big diving place too.
Explore Willemstad, Curacao
I can’t begin to explain how much I love the buildings here. The capital of Willemstad has the Dutch colonial architecture that makes you feel like you’re walking through Amsterdam, except for the fact that it’s hot and the buildings are all bright colors.
The city is very charming to walk through. Stop by the waterfront for souvenir shops and cafes with a view, or get lost in the streets looking for photogenic buildings. If you walk towards the bridge, you’ll see colorful buildings lining the water front, just like in Amsterdam! It’s also a great spot to grab a drink or some bitterballen!
One of the roads going into Willemstad had these small, identical houses lining both side of the road! They were very cute but the road is pretty busy so it’s not the easiest place to get a picture.
Walk the Queen Emma Bridge
Head to the water front in Willemstad to see the Queen Emma Bridge. The interesting thing about this bridge is that it actually swings open regularly to allow boats to come through while people are on it. It swings to the side, not up!
Walk to the opposite side and you’ll find souvenir stalls and the Rif Fort, a former fort turned into an outdoor mall and courtyard. Walking back gives you great views of the iconic ‘Amsterdam buildings’ and their bright colors. The bridge also lights up at night creating a tunnel of lights.
Take a Tour of the Blue Curacao Factory
Take a guided tour through the Blue Curaçao factory to get an inside look of the distillery that makes the bright blue liqueur. You might be surprised to find many other colors than blue and also many other flavors-all of which you can try at the bar!
Look for Wild Pigs at Porto Mari
The first beach we headed to was Porto Mari for the sole purpose of trying to spot wild pigs. We read that they are often on the beach and even saw signs up indicating that they may be roaming around.
Visions of the swimming pigs in the Exumas scrolled through my mind but unfortunately, we didn’t see any. The beach was crowded, narrow, and the color of the water just so-so (I was spoiled after seeing Baby Beach in Aruba).
Wildlife that we did see, however, were lizards. Big ones, small ones, ones that tried to scare you into dropping your food…they were everywhere.
One particularly bold one crawled right up next to my chair and just watched me for a good hour while I eyed him with paranoia.
Hang Out at Mambo Beach
Mambo Beach is a man-made beach in Curacao and a popular place for visitors. It has lots of beach chairs, beach bars, beach restaurants and is a lively place to hang out. It also doesn’t get the waves like other parts of the island since it is man-made.
Check Out Shete Boka National Park
If you want to get off the beaten path a little bit, head to Shete Boka National Park. There are a lot of rocky inlets where the waves crash into underground caverns. You can get right up in the caverns to see where the waves come in.
The park covers about 10 km of the north shore and there are about 10 pocket bays where sea turtles will come to nest. The turtle nesting season is from May to December so you’re more likely to see them during those months.
Cliff Jump at Playa Kenepa
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While you can cliff jump here, it is certainly not the only reason to come here. This view was jaw-droppingly stunning. When you arrive, you actually park above the beach and head down a rock pathway that opens up into this overlook. I could have stayed here all day and taken the same picture over and over. It’s THAT pretty.
Fun fact: Playa Kenepa was at one point deemed the most beautiful beach in the Caribbean. In the entire Caribbean! How cool is that?
Look for Flamingos in the Wild
I was a little bummed that the photos in Aruba with flamingos eating out of your hand on a gorgeous beach are the result of a $150 ticket to a private island. Are there flocks of pink flamingos just waltzing around beautiful beaches waiting to get their picture taken with you? No. (And in reality, the private island in Aruba only has 6. I guess that still qualifies for a flock? But it’s a lot less than the pictures lead you to believe.)
BUT there are flocks of flamingos in Curacao, living out their flamingo dreams in their natural flamingo habitat. You just have to find them.
Apparently, flamingos like salt flats. And one of the popular places to see them is the St. Willibrordus salt pans. It’s not the white sand, turquoise water that Instagram leads you to believe.
The water’s a bit murky, the scenery just ehh, BUT they are there. And it’s pretty cool to see. If you want to take photos, I’d suggest taking a telephoto lens and your professional camera because you won’t get close enough to take a good picture on your iPhone (like me, who forgot my telephoto lens).
Snorkel or Dive the Tugboat Wreck
This was my first wreck dive ever and I was completely excited. I know a lot of people have phobias about things being underwater that shouldn’t be, but for some reason, wreck dives really interest me.
The good thing about the tugboat wreck is that it is accessible from the beach. That’s right. We walked into the water from the beach with our dive gear and then dove to the site.
Since it’s not very far, non-divers can swim to it as well. It’s also not very deep, so you can see it from the surface of the water if you’re snorkeling.
Take a Day Trip to Klein Curacao
If you have the time, consider taking a boat trip to Klein Curacao, or Little Curacao, for the day. This small island located off of Curacao is uninhabited and mostly barren. You can explore the old lighthouse and shipwrecks along the coast. Apart from the other boaters, you’ll have the island to yourself!
Explore Fort Beekenburg
Fort Beekenburg was built in 1703 and sits on the top of a small cliff. The fort was originally built to protect the bay from the British and pirates. You can explore in and around the fort. You’ll see canons lining the walls and you’ll get a nice view of the bay below.
Try Some Traditional Dutch Foods
With Dutch influence so prevalent on Curacao island, you’ll definitely get the chance to try some Dutch delicacies, like raw herring pictured below. And if sucking raw fish and onions right off the bone doesn’t appeal to you, there are lots of other things to try. Bitterballen, frikendale, or maybe just stick with a stroopwafel.
But don’t forget about the grocery store! The large supermarkets here have many Dutch foods and candies as well. My favorite are the gummies from Katja!
Where to Stay:
Willemstad is a great place to stay and you’ll be able to find a lot of accommodation in that area. It’s nearby to the colorful buildings, lots of restaurants and attractions. If you decide to stay elsewhere on the island, you’ll have a quieter place and be able to explore a different part of the island better.
We stayed within walking distance to the center of Willemstad but also had a rental car so we could get out and explore other parts of the island.
Curacao island is such a beautiful place and I could not get enough of the colorful buildings. After several visits to The Netherlands, it was very cool to see a tropical Dutch island. There’s a lot of things to do in Curacao and you could easily spend a week here exploring.
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