Divi Aruba All Inclusive

I'm a solo female traveler who would not hesitate to return to Aruba, it felt safe and unsolicited. Decided on the All Inclusive Divi based on a recommendation from a friend, which also includes access to the Tamarijn either by foot, or via hotel shuttle every few minutes (picture a open air golf cart with extra seating) that also transports guests to the Alhambra Casino. About the resort: Check-in was Island time paced, once I got my room key it was vacation mode all the way. Didn't get any bug bites, didn't see any spiders or cats. Plenty of birds, lizards and gekko's who won't bug you and rather disliked how some guest children taunted them. Variety of guests ... families, couples and not many single travelers. As a result, single travelers would need to put themselves out there and be sociable if they feel so inclined.. I met one single male traveler, a lovely couple from Argentina, a family from South Carolina and Oakville. The resort hosts a market at least twice a week at the Divi and Tamarijn, no beach hustlers trying to sell you on activities which was a nice change from most Caribbean islands. Shops available at the Divi for essentials, or take home souvenirs. Or, stop-in at the Diamond International say hi to Iris, Orlando or Jose - not pressure to buy! 3 bars: 1) main lobby which also serves quick food items like pizza, sandwiches, etc. This bar tends to get busy which can make getting a drink difficult. So try the other pool bar or the Pelican bar. Two TV's in the area, one with news, one with sports. 2) Pelican Beach Bar, which gets very busy at night but has a great view and fantastic ocean breeze, along with nightly entertainment (musicians and dancers) 3) Pool bar, never had to wait long. Recommendation: Bartender Robertorico, ask him for the "lovely lady or La Bella Donna", it's not on the menu & it's delicious. Not all bartenders are the same! Tips are communal & appreciated. Restaurants a plenty: -Pelican Buffet available for breakfast, lunch or dinner. Highly recommend ordering anything being cooked by the grill chefs. Two improvements possible: buffet chaffing dishes were lukewarm at best & need better heating options to keep food hotter. Second some guests don't have any etiquette when serving themselves. Buffet items did become repetitious after 7 days, with most food being imported onto the island think it was a decent variety of food items being offered. Dessert, try the ice cream!!! Loved the mini custard tarts (no gel coating). Guest can also dine at the Tamarijn. There are other restaurants available at either property, check for days of operation: Pure Lime (Mexican), Red Parrot (continental), Paparazzi, etc. Ultimately, no shortage of dining of options. However, as a single diner found it easier to get a table at the Pelican buffet. Suggestion: tip your server at the start of your vacation & you'll get great service (tips are not communal like bar staff) ... some servers are just not into their job. David and Asia provided outstanding service. My room: was in the 200 block, 2 stories (stairs only, no elevator) ... while slightly older, the room was in fairly good condition given there are likely hundred of guests within a calendar year. Great sized balcony with an ocean view, ideal for drying your bathing suit or enjoying the view. Fairly sound proof, well functioning AC, large shower enclosure with decent water pressure, double sinks. Closet space is limited, dresser drawers are deep. Room was cleaned daily, even if "do not disturb" sign was on the room door. Ladies, hairdryer wasn't bad ... cord seemed a little short. Brought my own as my hair takes a long time to dry. TV offered channels in English, Spanish & Dutch. No ipod devices, just a plain clock radio that was off by 20 minutes. The beach: from the Pelican bar guests can opt to go left (towards the Tamarijn), or right beyond the Divi property. Left and center side beach had a steady surf. Right side beyond the Divi was much calmer, clearer and could see minnows. Caution watch out for the rocks in the sand to avoid stubbing (or worse breaking) a toe. Shells can be found if you're a collector. Beach shade is hard to come-by, need to get up extra early (5:30 to 7:00a) secure a lounger (not the most comfortable) with shade. Would be nice if hotel offered pop up sand umbrellas. But it's a windy area so that's maybe why there aren't portable umbrellas available. Would be ideal if Divi offered guest a "sun screen shelter" so other guests didn't have to inhale their spray. Honestly, it's too windy to use a spray sun screen in the open. Pools: 3 of them and with very limited shade options. Loungers are extremely comfortable. Gold towel means the lounger is available, gold & green towel means someone has staked their claim. Activities available by the main pool such as bingo, dance lessons, pool aerobics, volleyball. Casino: smelly and who wants to be inside while the sun is shining!!! Other shops and non hotel restaurants available Monday to Sat, limited few open on Sunday. Two minute walk from the hotel. Wish there was a division for adults and family areas, would make the property 5 star for me. Based on my experience, St. Lucia too many bugs & bites. Barbados, very lively surf and more expensive. Aruba Divi was a balance worth experiencing again.

We have just returned from our 8th trip to the Divi AI over the course of 27 years I would go every year if we could afford to do so. My husband and I LOVE this resort and now our 2 teenagers also love the Divi. In my opinion, the Divi has the best beach on the island of Aruba. The resort is in the low rise section and there are no crazy crowds or people 6 or 7 deep on the beach. The beach is wide and spacious and clean and beautiful. The rooms are just OK, could probably use some updating, but we don't spend more than sleeping / showering time in the room so no big deal for us. They were adequate. Only a small fridge un-stocked in the room - really would love to see at least some bottled water but not a big deal. Rooms are all just steps to the beach - no matter where you are on the resort. We love the staff. All of them. They are a wonderful group of people who have all worked at the resort for years. All friendly, helpful, and always there if you need something. Best bartenders as well. About the bars - they have a few draft beers - Balashi, Miller lite and Heineken (I believe - maybe Amstel?) and they offer other well known alcohol as well. Absolute, Dewars, Captain Morgans, etc. Most folks seemed pleased with the offerings. My kids had more smoothies than we can count, and the staff were all great while making them. They always kept our drinks full. No straws at the resort, but you don't really miss them, even with the frozen drinks they melt so fast in the heat they are easy to drink. The restaurants were all very good. The breakfast and lunch buffets had something for everyone in our group. We only did dinner once or twice at the buffet and it was great. We ate most dinners at the sit down restaurants - Red Parrot (my fave - try the tenderloin with peppercorn sauce, yum!) Paparazzi was very good. (Eggplant app and lasagna were great!) and Ginger Asian was just OK. The kids liked the Palm Grill (cook your own food.) and we never tried the Mexican place because my husband doesn't care for Mexican food and they offered fajitas and tacos at the buffet so the kids were happy with that. Making reservations is an odd process at the sit downs. Everyone lines up at 8am to book two nights out for prime seatings. Kind of a pain for us if you want to sleep in (from too much Balashi the night before!. And then when you go to the places, there are empty seats so the process seems a little off somewhere. Also we loved that the pizza bar was open until 1am. We did manage to take advantage of late night pizzas a few times on this trip. Note - don't miss pasta carbonara at the sandpiper bar (Clair and Curtis are the best!) and be sure to take a trip to the pizza bar at Tamjarin as they have better choices with fries and chicken tenders which the kids loved. One thing I wish they would do differently is manage the palapa huts on the beach. I think this is an issue at any resort unfortunately. People get up at 4am and go to claim a hut for the day. They then don't show up to sit under the hut until 1pm. This is very selfish and the resort could better manage the process My family needs shade or they will burn to a crisp. I don't enjoy waking up early to run out and grab a hut but we had to in order to enjoy the beach without burning to a crisp. All in all, we love the Divi AI and will return again next time we can plan a trip back to Aruba. That beach is my favorite place on the planet (so far....)