Curacao apts or villas?

[DiverDebbie]

My husband and I were considering a cheap AI beach vacation to Cuba, with secondary priority on diving this time around. However, lately we've been talking with friends (2 other couples) about all of us going away together again in Jan. (they came to Jamaica for our wedding). So... wheels are turning... Since 4 of us are serious divers, I'm rethinking the Cuba idea. Some of the group have been to Bonaire on a dive club trip, so somewhere new would be nice. Since 2 are non-divers, and all of us like a good beach, I'm thinking Curacao. Sure would be nice to go to a serious dive destination yet it seems that Curacao might be a little more well rounded for other activities as well.
Seeing that we'd have a small group, I'm thinking maybe a 3 bedroom vacation villa. We've done the dive trips to remote and rustic BC resorts, so something clean, simple, and affordable would be good. Yet a good location that is a short walking distance to a decent beach, and maybe to some shore dive sites as well would also be nice. Is that too much to ask for? hehe. None of us want to spend a fortune (again... Couples wasn't exactly cheap!) I can see us needing to rent a vehicle or 2, but I'd rather not spend the entire time driving all over the place.
I've been browsing around a bit, but can anyone make a recommendation? It seems from posts here that the West end is the place to be for the best diving? I still have to look into availability/cost of flights, so I thought I'd get a little more info. before I present the idea to the group. Ok, I admit I am a travel freak, so I'll so a LOT more research! LOL

 

[Curacao Sunshine]

Hi Debbie,
I would recommend the west end, we like living and diving in Westpunt. You can find a lot of villas and apartments on VRBO or homeaway. There are some beautiful villas at Coral Estates. they are located above Habitat (a dive resort) and are about 25 minutes from Willemstad and 20 minutes from Westpunt. There are some affordable condos in Lagun, Lagun Blou and in Westpunt you have the high end Lodge Kura Hulanda, All West Apartments and we are Curacao Sunshine Getaway. Sunset Waters is a couple of miles off the main road and is another dive resort between Habitat and Westpunt. You can google all of them. Here is a link to a map of the island.
http://www.abcislands.se/img/Curacao_map_large.jpg You have done a lot of dives and probably like the freedom of shore diving. It's pretty easy here but the sites are not as close to one another as in Bonaire. There are a few boat dives you might want to consider. Research away, there have been a lot of threads on ScubaBoard with opinions on everything. Feel free to email me with any specific questions. Sunshine
curacaosunshine@gmail.com
But.... there is not any nightlife on the west end unless you plan a night dive. If your group enjoys a variety of restaurants, casinos bars and dance clubs you might want to consider staying in town. From Westpunt it is a 40 minute drive.

 

[DiverDebbie]

Thanks for all the info. Sunshine. Good place to start, and the map is great!
Yes, I know there are definitely lots of opinions on SB. I certainly have my own too Oh well, makes the world an interesting place. If we all liked the exact same things we'd all be crowded in the same spot!
I actually haven't been to Bonaire yet myself (my husband has), so I haven't been spoiled what looks like the easiest shore diving in the world. But we've been to places with no shore diving whatsoever, or difficult entries (rocks/surge/big surf) so I would be spoiled by Curacao I think. A mix of shore and boat diving sounds perfect. Curacao has appealed to me for some time now, and I think it would be a great choice for the group. It's more a matter of seeing if all the pieces can come together for a trip.
Our group isn't really the busy nightlife/dance club type. We prefer to just hang out and have dinner and a couple of drinks... or a night dive at least once would be a must. So a place that's a little more off the beaten track sounds good, especially if we have wheels anyway. I can't see cooking all the time though, so as long as there are some mid-range restaurant choices near by, it's all good.
I checked out your place btw and it looks beautiful. I just love the architecture and the colours... hmm... kayaking from the beach behind your house and a dive shop just down the road... and it says it sleeps 8... I'll send you an email later for more details

 

[Divedoggie]

I recommend Westpunt as well. We had 4 people (2 couples) in our group. We stayed at Allwest Apts and were Very pleased. We will absolutely return and stay there again. The rooms have kitchens and there are BBQ grills attached to the railing overlooking the ocean and the sunsets.
The on site shore diving is outstanding as is the house reef at Playa Kalki, "Alice in Wonderland."
The value at Allwest was outstanding and it included unlimited 24 hour shore diving, a great dive locker, shower, gear cleaning area, and a truck.

If you want to eat out, Jaanchie's restaurant is considered one of the island's best for local cuisine. The spoken menu, in the language of your choice is unique and fantastic.
The bar and restaurants at Kura Hulanda are available, but the grill down on the beach near the dive shop is the only good value.

Topside activities included climbing Mt Cristoffel and touing the park, visiting the secluded beaches along the coast, and driving into Willemstadt for a day.

I would recommend getting groceries, charcoal, booze, etc in Willemstadt after you arrive at the airport and before you head out to Westpunt.

 

[carib_traveler]

As your group is mixed with divers and non-divers I would, personally, not go for Westpunt. The west-end is great for diving of course, but besides Shete Boka & the Cristoffel Park there's not much to do and it's a long way from Willemstad. Maybe you should look at some more central locations like Piscadera Bay or the area near Seaquarium (always forget what the area is called)?
For a list of private villas, apartments and such you could look at Curacao Luxury Villas | Bon Bini Curacao (some are luxury but most are ok price-wise). Friends of mine stayed at the last one in that list ( www.villascuracao.com ) with their whole family and were very happy with the price/quality ratio. They rented their cars there as well.
You'll most likely love Curacao, so have fun

 

[FlamingoVilla]

I think your ideas of coming to Curacao is right on track when you have some in your party that are not divers. Curacao has so much to offer and you will not get bored while your friends are having fun in the water. You definitely will need a car and I would go ahead and rent 2 so that those who are land lovers can go do their own thing.
National: NationalCarRental Hertz: HertzCarRental

I am not one for AI, as I usually like to cook my own food or enjoy the local cuisine at the area I am visiting. AI gets tired quickly, especially for adults, IMHO. If you have kids, then maybe the AI will make your stay a bit easier because of the selection of food for every picky pallet.

There is so much diving to do on the island, from the East end (Breezes AI) all the way up to the West point. There are lovely houses and apartments to stay on both sides and in the middle. If you want to enjoy the "down" town area, then you might think about staying on the east side. If your intentions are to take to the town once or twice during your vacation, then you might want to consider something in the middle in Piscadera (Blue Bay - has a great golf course) or St. Willibrordus (Habitat Dive Center) with travel times less than 30 minutes. The other option I would recommend is to stay on the west end towards Lagun & Westpunt. The drive to Punda/Otrobanda would be about 45 minutes. Sunshine has a cute 3BR apartment to stay in Westpunt: Sunshine's

We have rental accommodations, Flamingo Villa, in the middle of everything, in Coral Estate; St. Willibrordus. You can rent 2-5BR and the villa can sleep up to 12 guests. Flamingo Villa / Curacao Flamingo Villa
The gourmet kitchen is meant for cooking and entertaining, not just a 2-burner stove-top for
reheating, so money can be saved by creating your own meals. You can find the serenity of the breathtaking panorama view of the Caribbean Sea while relaxing in total privacy in your own villa.

Here's a link to some of the popular shore diving areas to get you started:
Scuba Shore Diving Curacao
If you plan on visiting in Sept or Oct, don't miss the 'Sex of the Reefs', the annual Coral Spawning that happens September 18-25 and October 17-24, 2008
Sportdiver.com Travel
And a fabulous island report for everyone:
Island smackdown - MSNBC.com

If you have any questions, please feel free to send me an email:
info@flamingo-villa.com

Hope you have a wonderful vacation, where ever that may be.

Flamingo
www.FlamingoVilla.com

 

[gustele]

For information on shore dive sites you can also check Dive locations / Dive sites / Welcome to the Curacao Diving Paradise - Curacao Diving Paradise.

 

[Diver OnLu]

Hi DiverDebbie,

If you decide to stay at Sunshine's place in Westpoint and need to organize for your shore (and/or) boat diving, just let me know. Ocean Encounters West is close by for tanks, boat dives, advice on shore dives or just a nice chat amongst divers.

Maybe for accommodation you also would like to check out ..:: All West Curacao ::... We have Dive groups from 6 to 20 people there on a regular base, and provide you with all necessary facilities for shore diving (a marvelous house reef - direct access from the apartments to the beach, locker room with rinse tanks and hangers, transport boxes for the equipment and full tanks 24 hours a day) onsite.

If you have any more questions, please just let me know.

Best regards from Curacao
Andreas