Aruba has so many vacation places and entertainments for adults, but what about the children? Many families go on vacations together these days which mean more attractions are necessary for children. Rides, games, kid-friendly hotels and restaurants. In Aruba, that also means keeping an eye on your children at all times as they’re almost always around water. Make your trip to Aruba not only a safe vacation, but one your children will remember forever.
The most unfortunate part of swimming in Aruba is there are no lifeguards officially on duty due to lack of funding and organization. Therefore, parents should be proactive and keep their children in safe, shallow waters. Don’t let children go into water too deep or they could get caught in the undertow and pulled out further. To go the extra mile, it wouldn’t hurt for parents and older siblings to be trained in CPR and basic First Aid. It’s important to note that in the past 15 years, deaths by drowning in Aruba only went over ten people in a year once.
With the scary part aside, there are more exciting activities to get on to. Most resorts and some hotels offer kids clubs. Some of those are even free of charge. Some of the resorts offer zero entry pools, also known as beach entry pools. These pools are great for anyone with little one still unsure of the water. They offer the gradual slope entry of the beach without the salt water to sting the eyes or the waves to knock them off their feet. All the resorts offer freshwater pools as seaweed and salt free options to the ocean.
One of the best resort features for kids is the One Happy Family Vacation package. This package is open to all children under the age of 12, who stay at a participating resort, in a room with a paying adult. Each qualifying child receives a souvenir and a kiddie cocktail upon checking into their resort or hotel, and free breakfast, every morning, from the kids’ menu at their hotel. Participating families receive all sorts of coupons and discounts for activities and other events around the island. Each child receives a VIK, Very Important Kid, passport which has empty places to be filled out at different locations around the island. After completion, each passport is turned in for a chance in a drawing to win a family trip for four, for seven days, including airfare.
Aruba has a couple great places for kids and their families who are interested in animals and insects. The Butterfly Farm is open year around and will allow you and your children to see butterflies in various stages of life from around the world. Once you make your first trip to the Farm at Palm Beach, your ticket will get you free admission for the rest of your trip. Take the kids back at various times during the day to see different butterflies in different stages of flight and life. What a wonderful lesson on the cycle of life.
The Donkey Sanctuary is another place to take the children for a lesson about animals. This sanctuary became a safe haven for the donkeys on the island that no one had a need for once cars became the primary mode for transportation. There’s no admission fee to enter the Donkey Sanctuary but donations are greatly accepted. If you come to the sanctuary early enough, you can help with the daily chores like feeding and cleaning up after the donkeys. If these chores aren’t your thing, you can get a drink or snack from the concession stand and sit back and watch the action.
If you have the idea that Aruba isn’t for children, let that thought wash away with the sand. From the programs set up by the resorts on the island to the animal farms and sanctuaries, there’s always something going on in Aruba for children. You just have to be small enough to find them.
