City overview

Aruba sits 15 miles off the coast of Venezuela, outside the hurricane belt, with reliable sunshine, constant trade winds and some of the widest white-sand beaches in the Caribbean. The island is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, and Dutch order meets Caribbean warmth in a place small enough to cross by car in under an hour — resort strips along Palm and Eagle Beach on the west coast, a rugged cactus desert and wind-battered north shore behind them. Jewish life is concentrated in Noord, where Chabad Aruba has grown since 2013 into a community of roughly 150 people, and the island now supports year-round kosher dining for the first time.

Getting Around

Public transit

Arubus runs the island's public bus network from the main terminal in Oranjestad, across from the cruise terminal, with a second station in San Nicolas.

Route 10 links Oranjestad with the Palm Beach and Eagle Beach hotel strips and runs frequently. Fares: single trip $2.60 (AWG 4.50), round-trip Retour card $5.00 (AWG 8.75), day pass $15.00 (AWG 26.25).

Rideshare

There are no rideshare services operating in Aruba — Uber, Lyft and similar apps do not serve the island.

Taxis fill that role: they are unmetered and run on government-set fixed rates by zone, agreed with the driver before departure. Dispatch stands sit at the airport, the cruise terminal and every major resort, and hotel front desks will call one.

Car rental

Rental cars are widely available at the airport and in the resort areas, and are the practical choice for reaching Arikok National Park, the north coast and San Nicolas.

Driving is on the right. A standard sedan handles the paved west and south of the island; the interior and north-coast tracks require a genuine 4x4, and most rental agreements prohibit taking a regular car onto them.

Airport

Queen Beatrix International Airport (AUA). Distance from Centre: About 3 miles (10 minutes) from downtown Oranjestad and about 5 miles (15–20 minutes) from the Palm Beach hotel strip. Queen Beatrix International Airport is Aruba's only commercial airport, on the southwest coast just outside Oranjestad. It handles direct flights from a wide range of US, Canadian, European and South American cities, and is one of a small number of airports outside the United States offering US Customs and Border Protection preclearance — travellers flying to the US clear immigration and customs in Aruba and arrive as a domestic flight, so allow extra time before departure. Taxis, car rental desks and hotel shuttles all operate from the arrivals area.

Good to know

Best time to visit

January through April brings the driest, sunniest weather and the steadiest trade winds, though Aruba's climate stays warm and rain-free enough to visit comfortably in any month.

Insider tips

Stay in Palm Beach or Noord if kosher food and Shabbos matter — the island's kosher restaurants sit at the Hyatt Regency on Palm Beach and Chabad is a short distance inland at Salina Cerca, while Eagle Beach and Oranjestad are a drive away. Order Shabbos food early: Chabad's cutoff is Thursday at noon and it is firm. US dollars are accepted everywhere at a stable rate, so there is little reason to change money. Bring US-style plugs and skip the adapter. The trade winds are constant and deceptive — sunburn happens fast because you never feel hot. A kosher sushi pop-up from New York has run at the Hyatt Regency during Yeshiva Week winter break for several years running, which is worth checking if you're travelling in January. And a regular rental car genuinely cannot reach the Natural Pool or the north-coast ruins; book a 4x4 tour instead of trying.

Safety & emergency

Aruba is consistently one of the safest islands in the Caribbean, with low violent crime and a visible tourism police presence along the resort strips. The usual precautions apply: lock valuables in the room safe, don't leave belongings unattended on the beach, and take care with rip currents on the north and east coasts, which are dangerous for swimming even when the water looks calm. Medical care is good by regional standards. Police: 100. Fire and Ambulance: 911. Hospital: Dr. Horacio Oduber Hospital, Sasakiweg, Oranjestad — +297 527 4000

Local time

4:55 AM

+4 hrs from NYC

Plug

Type A/B

127V

Currency

Aruban Florin

Kosher map of Aruba

Pick a place on the map or search an address or hotel to see what is kosher around it.

Aruba

Chabad Jewish Center of Aruba