renaissance island

We've stayed at the Renaissance Marina hotel (adults only, Ocean suites has family accommodations) for 9 consecutive years, and always use our Marriott points. Don't pay the rack rate, always looks for deals. The pro's inlcude a nice downtown location with private island beach via the boat shuttle that picks you up inside the mall below the hotel lobby that has two man made lagoons which are very safe for swimming. The cocktail lounge at the hotel (called Blue) includes a deck pool that overlooks the main drag through Oranjastad and a view of the cruise ships and marina. You're right in the middle of high end stores, market style shops and some nice restaurants. The rooms have been remodeled since we began visiting and the staff is always friendly and helpful as are most of the Arubian people. The con's include the check-in process which doesn't cater to premium Marriott (we're Platiunum Plus) guests even though the confirmation and welcom e-mail that you get prior to arrival says to make use of this. I've stood at the Premium checkin desk waiting while my better half waits in the normal line and the front desks folks just ignore me. I've complained about it for a few years now, but nothing has changed, so just don't expect any special treatment on check-in. They have occassionaly however upgraded us a better room which makes up for it. The private island lagoons however are getting more shallow over the years due to the coral sand/silt seeping through the rock walls that outline the lagoons thus swimming and snorkeling aren't as good. This year at the adult lagoon (called Flamingo because of the half dozen or so beautiful bird residents) had significantly more black flies than in years past. In fact this is the first time in 9 years of consecutive visits (late Feb) that were unable to hike to the island's edge due to severe mosquitos. There's also rentals via Red Sail for floats, snorkel gear, etc. and a nice Papagayo palapa for cocktails, drinks and food, but again many fies. It's kind of a win loose, they've made changes to try and lower the winds to make dining and the beach less windly, but of course that's also what keeps the bugs to a minimum. Overall, it's a nice introduction to Aruba and it's great people, just be prepared for some inconvienences as mentioned above.

Sun, sand, floating on the turquoise water, island cocktails and excellent service from Vivian, Nathallia, Silvano and Joenne. You made our day, thank you!

If you're a guest at the Renaissance, there is a free shuttle boat that takes you to this private island (7-7). The island is free for guests at the hotel.There are two sides, one for adults and one for families, and a nature trail. We went to the adult side for the quiet. We were able to get a palapa (palm tree umbrella with table) near a palm tree and hammock. We spent the entire day relaxing, watching the flamingos and iguanas. Food and drink are not allowed, but you can purchase these at Papagayo's (food was reasonable, but alcoholic beverages were a little pricey). The lagoon on the family side was very sandy, but the lagoon on the adult side was rocky. Hotel check-in is at 4:00, so if you're early, wear your bathing suit and enjoy the day at the beach.

Great island and the boat ride to the island was great. You swim with too many fish, but it is an island so what can you say. You will find many iguanas and flamingos there. The restaurant wasn't that good but you have no other option.

Wonderful island with great access to private beach. Beach Bar was great, had the same consistent service the entire trip. Our waiter Gladys was very great, highly recommend.

A great value for a cruise visitor. A$99 day pass included a picturesque boat trip, lunch at a clean beachside cafe with a giant pizza oven and good food, a drink and towels and lounge chairs. The beaches are spotless and the staff super friendly! The beach is protected and the waters are calm. We rented a floaty for $5. Best is all the wildlife - iguanas, ghekos, hermit crabs , pelicans and flamingos! The flamingos hang out on the adult beach - resting and fishing in the shallow waters with all of the beach goers! We did hear planes but it wasn't very annoying (we were there on a Wednesday) and the pristine setting more than compensated. We bought our tickets at the Renaissance hotel desk (a short walk from the cruise terminal) and caught the boat from Starbucks in the hotel lobby!! Boats run every 15 minutes or so!

Departing from the boat, the left side of the island is family oriented and has a great restaurant and bar, the right side is adults so a bit quieter. The flamingo's are on the adult side and will come up to you if you have food for them. The couple massage is fantastic facing the ocean.

On everyone's must do list. Once is enough.Staying at Renaissance Ocean Suites for 3 weeks over holidaysOther reviewers have it right.Fun place to go but hardly relaxing.Weekend flight schedule makes noise unbearable, island is next to runway.. Separate island, families v adults only, not enforced....see mngrs response at Marriott/Renaissance .Skiffs with trained Captains whisk you over to the island. Average food/drinks, but NO "happy hour" prices as in Main resort, so take the 4:30 boat back to ocean suitesHAVE FUN ON THIS smaller version, one happy island!

If your staying at one of the Renaissance properties you get free boat access to private island. The island has two beaches and a lunch spot. The flamingo beach is adults and other is for children. There are real flamingos which is awesome but adult beach is very Shelly and rocky. The other side beach is much nicer soft sand neither were crowded when we were there which was nice. Free chairs. Nice lunch spot. It would be nice if they gave mats out for free as well but they are $5. It's near the airport but during the week you only hear one or two planes. No big deal. It's actually pretty cool to see up close and personal. We found water to be a little chillier than up at eagle beach but much clearer. Nice place to get away from all the cruise ship people on days when they invade the island.

The Renaissance Aruba is the only resort on the island with it's own private beach. Accessible only by private boat - the beach is open only to guests staying at the resort. We enjoyed this private beach all through our stay on the island. A short 15 minute boat trip (the boat picks you up from the jetty at the Renaissance hotel) away, it i a lovely lovely island which has a restaurant, a bar, water sports and a nice quiet beach. And oh yes, there are flamingoes as well!

Everything that people have said about the look of this beach is true - the water is blue, the flamingos do exist and are pretty neat to see up close and the food is very good and reasonably priced. If you're staying in the Renaissance Hotel this is a no brainer since it's a quick water taxi away but I have no idea how people consider this beach to be relaxing - AT ALL. THE BEACH IS 100 YARDS FROM THE MAIN LANDING STRIP OF THE ARUBA INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT. The first time I heard a plane land I actually thought that it was crashing into the beach. IT'S THAT LOUD. You might as well pull up a chair and a towel and lay down at Terminal 4 in JFK. I put noise cancellation headphones on, blasted music, tried to read, EVERYTHING to cancel out the noise - to no avail - it's just INCREDIBLY LOUD. I heard other people saying that you "get used to it" but why would you want to? I would skip this beach and head to the other end of the Island closer to nature and far away from 737's.

Great place to go if your staying at the renaissance. Pretty impressive snorkeling around this island and just outside their rock barriers.

We stayed one night in the hotel Renaissance with three people. This was cheaper then buying three tickets for renaissance island alone. It is a nice island. Flamingo's, iguanas and quiet beaches. But you can check it out in one day and spend the rest of your holiday in cheaper hotel

We were not staying at the Renaissance Hotel, but we booked a day trip via the hotels front desk. The cost is $99 per person, which included water taxi to the island, lunch, non motorised water sports and a cocktail. I thought it was well worth the money, the beach is beautiful and the main reason I wanted to go was to see the flamingos. Take American quarters to use at the feed vending machine on the bridge. The feed can be given to the fish and the flamingos. I hand fed the flamingos and they were very gentle. A wonderful experience. There are lots of large inguanas on the beach who roam around quietly under your sunchair and happy to pose for photos. They get fed at 12.00. There are 2 beaches, family and adults only on the flamingo side. Although I did see some children come on the adult side briefly to see the birds which is understandable.We used our vouchers to hire snorkels and flotation mats which were wonderful. The voucher said an hour, but we were told to bring them back by 4.30, so had a few hours use. Maybe because it was quiet.Lunch was delicious. Friendly staff.We did go during a quiet time, so maybe my experience would be different if it was busy.We did not get bitten by Mosquitos, but we left by the afternoon.The only down side is lack of shade in the afternoon. It can also be bit noisy due to being so close to the runway. Apart from that, loved it!

We stayed at the renaissance family hotel, and while we weren't thrilled with the hotel location (it is very close to the airport, and very loud), Renaissance island was gorgeous. We spent the whole day there and the kids had an amazing time and we got some beautiful pictures. There are plenty of lounges and hammocks, and the food at the restaurant was good. There are little lizards all over the island, and pelicans diving for fish. We didn't see the flamingos because they are on the other side, but there was plenty to see. Beware of the Mosquitos by the mangroves, my son and I got about 500 bites between us, even with bug spray. Try to find chairs as far away from the mangroves as possible.