Aruba is one of the most beautiful islands in the Caribbean. And it’s close to the coast of Venezuela, which means it’s typically out of the range of normal hurricanes in the region.
If you’re looking for a great place to relax and enjoy the beach, water, and sun, then Aruba is for you!
I first visited Aruba in November of 2017 and it was pretty much the first big solo trip!
I’ll never forget my time in Aruba because I had just left a soul crushing job and I wanted to treat myself to somewhere nice.
Aruba was an amazing place to relax and I felt like it really helped me at that point in life. So here is my guide for must see things in Aruba for solo travelers
Aruba truly is One Happy Island 🙂
1. Eagle Beach
Eagle Beach is one of the best beaches in Aruba. It’s located about 15 – 20 minutes north of the downtown area.
There are a lot of low-rise hotels and resorts in this area and it’s considered one of the best beaches in Aruba. The white sand is incredibly soft and the water is warm 🙂
There a ton of things to do on Eagle Beach. You can go para gliding, water skiing, and so much more. And they also have free beach chairs and large shaded regions for the public (although they lock the chairs away early in the evening).
Eagle Beach was my favorite place to just relax and not care about anything. The weather in Aruba is typically fantastic (although a little humid).
I had a ton of fun watching the sunsets from Eagle beach. The views are everything you would expect from the Caribbean and more!
And don’t forget to take a dip in the famous Caribbean water! It’s a nice way to cool off from the heat 🙂
Eagle Beach is also home to the renowned fofoti trees in Aruba. These are short trees (typically close to the beach) that overlook the water. They make for great Instagram pictures 🙂
And fun fact: four species of sea turtles nest in Aruba and most turtle nests are found on Eagle Beach. Although when I went, I didn’t see any sea turtles at all 🙁
Maybe next time!
2. California Lighthouse
I’ll never forget the first time I saw the California Lighthouse. I had just landed a few hours ago. The first thing I did was go to Eagle Beach and take a quick swim.
But after that I knew I wanted to see the California Lighthouse for sunset. It’s about a 15 minute drive from Eagle Beach.
I drove on the beautiful road with my windows down, blasting music. The views are incredible. Once you pull up to the California Tower you’ll see its signature white color. I think it’s one of the best sights in all of Aruba.
It’s certainly not the largest lighthouse I’ve ever seen, but still pretty nonetheless. During the mornings, you can actually line up and go to the top.
The lighthouse was named after the S.S. California – which sunk previous to its construction in 1910.
If you’re willing to pay up for it, check out the el Faro Blanco restaurant (an Italian restaurant).
It’s literally right next to the California Lighthouse. I have heard mixed things about the restaurant though, but it certainly looks very nice!
Before you head back into town, be sure to check out the sand dunes near the lighthouse. You can park anywhere along the coast and walk down. I walked around for an hour or so until it turned dark outside.
The sand is soft and pearly white. And there are giant boulders all over the place so you can get great views of the ocean. It’s a perfect way to spend the night in Aruba 🙂
3. Diana’s Pancake Place
If you’re looking for authentic Dutch pancakes (or just looking for some good food to nurse a major hangover), Diana’s Pancake Place is the place to go.
It’s about 10 minutes from Eagle Beach and it’s on the second story of the building.
They have a variety of Dutch pancakes with toppings like apple, strawberry, and Nutella. They also have savory options like cheese, onion, tomato, bacon, and ham.
The Dutch pancakes are known for their large size, but thinness. In fact it’s really more like a crepe.
The people there are incredibly nice and very friendly. And they serve beer in the morning (get a Balashi – the local beer) in case you’re a raging alcoholic like me 🙂
4. Alto Vista Chapel
The Alto Vista Chapel is a small church on the northern tip of Aruba. The chapel was built in 1952 on the site of the original, and first, Catholic church built in Aruba (in 1750) by a Spanish missionary, Domingo Antonio Silvestre.
The chapel is easily recognizable with its yellow paint and white crosses.
But the best part of the church is you’ll get great views of the Aruban landscape. Plus, it’s on the way to many other attractions on the island like the Natural Bridge and the Balashi Gold Ruins.
So it’s worth a quick pit stop to check out the landscape and this somewhat historic church.
5. Bushiribana Gold Smelter ruins
Did you know there used to be GOLD in Aruba?
Yep…In 1824, gold was finally discovered in Aruba, and eventually, the industry produced a few million ounces of gold!
Check out the Bushiribana gold smelter ruins near the northern tip of the island. It’s one of the more unique things to do in Aruba.
Here the Aruba Island Gold Mining Company smelted all of the gold ore that they mined.
And the gold mines are close to the Natural Bridge as well. So I would do both places on the same day.
As someone who has been to a modern gold mining operation before, it was interesting to see an old fashioned gold mining facility. Obviously, the equipment is no longer in the ruins.
However, you can still climb on top of the ruins and get great views of the water. And if you’re feeling thirsty, there’s usually a truck there with ice cream and cold drinks!
6. The Natural Bridge
The Natural Bridge is one of the must see sights in Aruba. In fact, I would say it was one of my favorite things to see in Aruba because it was so beautiful.
Note: if a 4×4 vehicle is recommend to get to the Natural Bridge. I got there in a 2 wheel drive car, but I would not recommend it.
And I admit…I should have researched that ahead of time, but I was an idiot haha.
I drove through the rugged terrain in a small sedan and it was really a bumpy ride haha! But it was totally worth it because the views are incredible.
You can look off to giant cliffs as the water hits those rocks. It’s so amazing! Anyways, the natural bridge is one sight you shouldn’t miss in Aruba. The natural bridge is incredible and it’s made out of coral limestone.
The bridge was a formed by years of pounding surf and it was actually one of the largest of these types in the world. Unfortunately, part of the bridge actually collapsed in 2005, so it’s a shame I didn’t see it in its former glory.
But the remains of the bridge are still a worthy site.
If you get close enough to the water (when it hits the shore), you can get a tiny sprinkle of mist against your face. It feels really good on a hot Aruban day!
7. Hiking
If you’re into hiking there are a few noteworthy places in Aruba to see.
The first is Casibari Rock Formations.
This rock formation consists of clusters of huge tonalite rocks that sit together. Some of the rocks weigh several tons are funny looking.
They government has created several trails that go through the rocks and you can even climb all the way to the top to get some amazing views!
The second hike I would recommend is Ayo Rock Formations. These are LARGE monolithic boulders that stack on each other.
These rock formations were used by the local Arawak people so that they could hear incoming thunderstorms closing in on the island. They also carved paintings in rocks called petroglyphs while performing religious rituals.
You can even hike all the way to the top of the rock formation. On a clear day, you can see Venezuela off in the distance!
8. Downtown Oranjestad
Oranjestad is the capital of Aruba and it’s borrows architecture from its Dutch owners. There are a ton of things to do in Oranjestad. I think the best thing to do is simply wander around and get lost.
But here are some sights that you may be interested in:
Fort Zoutman
Fort Zoutman is Aruba’s oldest building dating back to 1798. And it was built to protect the city from pirates. It now includes a museum, which costs about $5 to enter.
Oranjestad was actually built around this fort so it’s definitely a historic place on the island. You can also climb all the way to the top and see the giant bell they have on top.
If you go all the way up, you’ll have one of the best views of the city!
Renaissance Island
While I didn’t have enough time to go, I would highly recommend going to Renaissance Island. It’s a small island that the Renaissance Hotel owns.
They ferry people to the small island where there are flamingos as far as the eye can see! You can go play with them and even feed them.
But be warned, the ferry to the island is free for hotel guests, so you’ll need to buy a day pass if you aren’t staying at the hotel.
Shop around
One of the best things to do in Oranjestad is to shop around! There’s pretty much something for everyone. There are tons of high end brand name shops like Rolex to small mom and pop stores and even tourist traps as well.
I found it was nice to just walk around admiring the buildings and window shopping.
9. Arikok National Park
Arikok National Park is so beautiful. And it actually encompasses a large portion of the island (about 20%)! I spent about 9 hours at the park and felt like I didn’t have enough time to fully see all of it.
Next time I go I’m definitely going to spend two days here 🙂
The park has a good mix of everything. Parts of it are like a desert with lots of cacti. There are also plenty of beaches and coastline to enjoy the pretty water views. And there are a lot of local plants and animal that can only be found in the park.
And fair warning, you will want to rent an ATV if you want to see the coolest sights in the park. You can rent them as part of a tour or you can just rent the ATV yourself and solo travel.
Being the introvert that I am, I opted to rent the ATV and solo explore. There are a ton of ATV rental places across the island. However, I would recommend Justin’s ATV.
The people there are very friendly and professional. They will pick you up at your hotel and drop you back after you are done.
This was actually the first time I’ve ever been on an ATV so it was a very fun experience. These little things can go up to 60 km per hour!
It took about 25 or 30 minutes for me to drive from Justin’s ATV all the way to Arikok National Park. The park is on the southern portion of the island.
Jamanota Hilltop – this is the highest point on the island. Come here if you want incredible views!
Fontein Cave – This is a limestone cave with pictographs left behind by the local Arawak tribe. It also includes more recent “wall art” made by early European settlers.
Quadirikiri Cave – Another limestone cave close to Fontein Cave. It has home to many bats (although I didn’t see any on my trip).
The Natural Pool – The Natural Pool is a calm swimming hole formed by the cluster of rocks that protects the pool from the rough surf.
One of my favorite things to do at Arikok National Park was on the way to the natural pool. There are these gigantic cliffs over the ocean.
For some reason no one was around when I was there. As a loner, I appreciated the quietness as the wind hit my face while looking down at the beautiful water. It was one of my favorite experiences in Aruba.
10. Baby Beach
Baby Beach is the most southern beach in Aruba and a lot of locals live here and have fun at the beach.
The beach is really close to the southern exit at Arikok National Park (you can’t miss it as you’ll pass a giant red anchor). Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to stay too long or go in the water because I had to return the ATV I rented to go to Arikok.
Baby Beach is a shallow, sheltered man-made lagoon on the southeast end of the island.
It is named Baby Beach because the water calm and safe for very small children. And because the water is so calm, snorkeling at this beach is safe for newbies.