Planning & Arrival

Should I rent a car?

Although the beach is only 1 mile away, we would recommend that you rent a car in order to get the most from your vacation. There are 3 reasons for this:

1. You can enjoy everything that Aruba has to offer more easily. Drive up to the California lighthouse, check out different beaches, take a nice drive to the other end of the island, etc. There is plenty of free parking at the beaches.
2. The walk to the beach is safe and easy, but there aren’t sidewalks for the whole walk. (And despite how friendly everyone is on the island, for some reason drivers don’t tend to give any space when people are walking at the side of the road.)
3. Assuming that you plan on having at least some of your meals at Canaruba, it will be easier to get groceries if you have a car. You can walk to the closest one, but you may prefer to go to one of the larger ones. Check out our “groceries” page.

More information about renting a car can be found at this page on our website.

Taxis are widely available on the island. There is no meter – rides are all done on a fixed rate basis. The rates can be found here.

Here is a quick summary to/from Canaruba (which is in the Boroncana neighbourhood):

To / From As of Aug’17	Airport	Hi-Rise Hotels (the main local restaurant area)	Eagle Beach (further away that Palm Beach)	Lo-Rise Hotels (Oranjestad downtown)	Noord (Local)
Boroncana	$27	$10	$13	$14	$8

There may be additional fees for extra people or baggage and sometimes a little more depending on the day or time.

Can I park my car at Canaruba?
How many cars does it hold?

One car will fit on the driveway inside the gate. A second car could park on the road in the cul-de-sac. Don’t worry about not being inside the gate – Aruba is very safe and many people in the Boroncana neighbourhood park on the road in front of their home. (The gate is more of an inconvenience than anything! – but please keep it closed or the goats will have a feast on our mangos)

Any suggestions on car rentals in Aruba?

More information about renting a car can be found at this page on our website.

How many people can sleep at Canaruba?
(You say 6, but could we fit 8?)

The 3 bedrooms will very comfortably sleep 6 people. We do have an air mattress that sleeps an additional 2 people. However – the only place it would fit though is in the main living area, so you may find this a bit in the way. If you wanted to run the air conditioner in the main living area at night for sleeping this would likely take your electricity usage over the allowance. We would need to come to an arrangement for a slightly higher rental rate as well. If your plan is for 8 people, let’s talk.

Packing

Do I need to pack sheets or towels?

We took care of this for you! We will provide you with 2 beach towels per person and 2 sets of bath towels per person (bath towel, hand and face.) One of the sets is a really nice Lacoste brand.

We have 2 sets of sheets for each bed. One set is Lacoste brand.

There is a clothes line in the backyard so you can dry everything as often as you want. You can do laundry at the home as well as there is a washer & dryer.

Soap, Shampoo, Conditioner?

We have you covered in each shower…

What about beach chairs, games, music, etc?

No need! Check out our list of contents.

What type of clothes should I plan on packing?

Very light. It’s hot. Pack a lot of sunscreen, a hat, maybe a SPF-sun shirt.

All you will need during the day is your bathing suit.

It’s very comfortable at night. Shorts for men & women, or a light dress for women will be very comfortable.

Do you have a crib / playpen or high chair for our baby?

Our on-island property manager has some of these that you can rent directly from them. Note that they do not have sheets for these, so you may wish to bring your own sheets for the crib or playpen. There is an additional cost for this, and you would pay the property manager directly.

There is a limited availability of these though, so please let us know as soon as you make the booking if you would like to request this. The earlier we make the request the greater the chance of availability.

During the Stay

What can you tell me about the cleaning of Canaruba?

Your rental agreement includes a $75 cleaning fee, which goes towards the cost of cleaning the home after your departure and preparing it for the next guests. (The actual cost is $150, but we only charge 1/2 of this on the rental sites so that the cost doesn’t go too much beyond the original price we post.)

If you would like to get a mid-stay cleaning this will be an additional cost. This is best arranged in advance. Please let us know the day(s) you would like and we’ll let the on-island property manager know so that she can schedule it.

Since these mid-stay cleanings are not included in the rental, you can pay the on-island property manager directly for this at the time. Plan on approximately US$150 for the full cleaning, but if you would like more or less than the “normal” you can speak with her about this.

Canaruba will be cleaned after you depart so that our next guests can have the same great experience as you did. This was covered by the cleaning fee you paid in your booking. We would ask that you please do your best to keep it reasonably clean and reasonably cleaned up before you leave.

What about the pool cleaning & gardening?

During your stay you may encounter pool and/or yard maintenance.

The pool is cleaned twice per week. The gardener comes twice per month.

Our on-island property manager will do their best to give you advance warning, but if you would like them to come back another time please don’t hesitate to speak with them or discuss this in advance with the on-island property manager.

Is the water safe to drink?

FUN FACT: Aruba is home to some of the cleanest drinking water in the world. You don’t even need to filter! The tap water goes through a multi-step process and is run through limestone before it makes its way to you. Clean drinking water right out of the tap, everywhere. Now that is relaxation.

What if I have questions or need help with something?

The on-island property manager will provide you with her contact information on your arrival. Generally she is available during normal business hours. Outside of business hours, she is available for emergencies – but please, only true emergencies.

See our page for medical and emergency contacts here.

Do you have security cameras? (Are you watching us??)

We don’t and we’re not. We’ve heard the horror stories too and rest assured that we have no interest in watching you.
Since you can probably tell we enjoy the “gadgets”, we would like to point out that we do not leave any recording/security cameras active during your stay. We do have 2 cameras that we use when guests are not staying at Canaruba, but we put them away and they are disconnected upon guest arrival. The chromebook does have video on it in case you wish to speak with family or friends, but feel free to keep it closed or put some tape over the camera it if you have any concerns.
The previous owners of the home installed cameras around the outside. You will notice that they have all been turned away, and they are not connected for monitoring.
If you have any concerns, please don’t hesitate to ask us.

General Aruba

What is the currency in Aruba?

The Aruba Florin (fl or RWB) is pegged at $1.78 per US dollar. Generally you can pay in either currency, and if you receive change it will be in the currency that you pay in. Credit cards are widely accepted and the store will convert from Florin to USD for all credit card charges (sometimes they will use a very slightly different rate than 1.78). You will also find many bank machines around the island.

Do I need to worry about storms or hurricanes or damage from either of these?

One of the great things about Aruba is that it is so far south it is below the hurricane zone. So you can plan your vacation with ease a long time in advance!

What’s the weather like?

Aruba has the most sunshine out of all the carribean islands. It is hot – probably 30 most days. Aruba does have a pretty constant strong wind – at first this was unexpected, but we quickly came to appreciate it. It keeps the days more comfortable. Just don’t plan on reading the newspaper outdoors!
The evenings are warm and comfortable. Shorts and dresses are great – you may still be too hot in pants.

Is Aruba safe?

Very. Aruba is a small island (20 x 6 miles) and the population is only about 100,000. You will quickly see that it is a close community. Ourselves and our neighbours have not had any problems.

So why the fence and gate on the property? We really don’t know, other than perception and tradition. We did get some advice though that it is mostly to keep the goats out of the gardens – and it’s true…