Island Profile: Aruba

Just 19 miles north of Venezuela, Aruba is a popular cruise ship destination with glitzy, Euro-style casinos and late-night dance clubs. Aruba is also a laid-back place with quaint Dutch-Caribbean culture and architecture and quietly stunning beaches.Eagle Beach is typical, with aquamarine waters lapping the pancake-smooth shore. Palm Beach is a seemingly endless sweep of sand curving around lagoon-like waters, and it's action-packed and sometimes crowded. On the island's eastern tip is Baby Beach, a placid semicircular strand that borders the bay and is great for young children. Aruba's countryside is a stark and arid landscape punctuated by giant cacti, spewing blowholes, upended boulders, massive dunes and crashing waves. Natural Bridge, sculpted out of coral rock by centuries of wind and sea on the windward coast, is a remarkable sight.On the water, Aruba is all about windsurfing and deep-sea fishing. Under the water it is all about wrecks. The 400-foot Antilla is a huge German freighter that lies in just 55 feet of water and is great for novice wreck divers. The Sea Jane is smaller and deeper but still easily accessible, resting at 95 feet of water. The Star Garren is one of the newer artificial wrecks. Because Aruba is outside of the hurricane belt, it's a good destination any time of the year. American, TWA and ALM service Aruba. US $1 = 1.79 Aruba guilder For more information about visiting and diving Aruba, click on the home page below.