r/curacao

Hi everyone! I'll soon be going to Curacao and I would love to try scuba diving for the first time. I was searching for the best spots for seeing fishes and water animals, and found out that Playa Porto Marie, Playa Kalki and Tugboat beach are pretty good for that.

Which one do you recommend? Do you have any company that you would recommend as well with some nice spots ? :)

Thanks a lot !

Does anyone have experience with the island who can tell me a good area to get an Airbnb or vrbo where we could walk and hop right into the water for good snorkeling? Thanks!

Are you able to show up at most beaches with your own towel/char and sit where you want or do you have to pay and rent the chairs on the beaches?
We like to just show up and throw a towel down most of the time when we travel.

Visiting for 6 days in November, I’ve been seeing good reviews of a lot of car rental places, and just want to know if there’s any recommendations if my main concern is getting a newer car. Thanks!

Looks like rain is in the forecast all next week? Will this ruin my trip? I want sunnnnnn.

We’ll be in Curaçao Aug 27–Sep 3 with 2 adults, 2 kids, and grandparents in their 70s. Everyone is active and swims, but we’re trying not to make the trip feel like a checklist.

We’re only there 7 nights and, in hindsight, probably should’ve done more research and booked 10 nights instead 😂. So now we’re trying to see a lot without turning the whole vacation into a military operation.
We’re staying near Mambo Beach and renting an SUV.

Our rough plan:
Thu: Arrive, dinner, Punda Vibes/fireworks

Fri: Early Playa Piskado for turtles, lunch in Westpunt, then Grote Knip

Sat: Otrobanda + Willemstad/Punda, then Kome for dinner

Sun: Slow villa morning, then Cas Abao

Mon: Shete Boka + Playa Lagun

Tue: Hato Caves + Tugboat Beach snorkel, then relaxed villa/pool afternoon and Fort Nassau dinner

Wed: Blue Room Cave tour + Porto Mari

Thu: Relax at the private villa beach, lunch, then Departure

We’re treating Jan Kok flamingos as an optional stop on one of the west-coast days rather than forcing it into the schedule.

Is there anything here that feels repetitive? To me it does but that’s because we’ve never been to Curacao other than a 5 hour cruise stop.

Are we missing any must-do beach or snorkeling spot?

For dinners, we’re trying to keep a simple rule: after a long beach/adventure day, if we don’t have much time to get back, shower, and reset, we’ll do something casual — Mambo, food trucks around Caracasbaaiweg, eat somewhere on the west side before driving home, or just eat at the villa.
We’ll save reservation dinners for days when we have a few hours to relax and get ready.

Our goal is to see a good variety of Curaçao, get plenty of swimming/snorkeling in, but still have time to actually enjoy the villa and feel like we’re on vacation.

My husband and I are staying in Playa Lagun in April 2027 (first trip to the island) and I would love your recommendations of restaurants on that side of the island. My birthday lands during our trip, so we will probably go to one of the more upscale restaurants in Willemstad for birthday dinner, but other than that, we prefer casual places and would like to be able to try some local cuisine and fresh seafood. Are reservations required in most places? Thank you for sharing your must try places!

I’ve been hearing from quite a few travelers who were charged money to complete their Curaçao Digital Immigration (DI) Card.
Just a heads-up: the official DI Card itself is free. There are third-party websites that appear in Google results and sponsored ads offering to complete it for you for a fee, but you do not need to pay a third party to submit the card.
The official DI Card can be completed within 7 days before your departure and is mandatory for international visitors traveling to Curaçao.
Please make sure you’re using the official website and be careful with sponsored Google results.
👉 Official DI Card: https://dicardcuracao.com/dicard
Do your research before paying anyone for something that you can complete yourself for free!

Looking for a taste of Caribbean authentic cuisine, and we will be staying at the Avila beach hotel. Do you have any recommendations for foods or places we must try?

Or are they easy to take on the day-of when visiting? We are staying at Renaissance for the first portion, then a villa in Sint-Michiel then LionsDive. A total of 16 nights.

From what I understand, I don't think we strictly need a car for the Renaissance and LionsDive, its walking distance to different restaurants and activities. We would want a rental for the Villa middle portion (4/5 days) so that we can drive to the different beaches in the west and general island exploration by car.

Correct me if I am wrong!

My question as per the title though, is it best to book online in advance, or can we just pick up a car easily from the hotel or a company nearby the hotels? We mostly know we will want a car for the villa portion, but if ever we want a car for a day or two while staying at the other 2 hotels can we do it on the spot? Thanks!

We got back last week and here are my recommendations

Arrivals
• Starting 7 days prior to arrival, fill out immigration card
• Download App Airside to get Curacao Express pass….bypass immigration lines
• If book direct with Avila, they will pick you up and take you back to airport.  Otherwise, need to get private transport

Drinks
• No Diet Cokes
• Coke, Coke Zero, and Sprite
• NO Seltzers unless find a grocery store that carries SodkaCaribbean Seltzer

Cash
• Spent $200
• Small bills for tipping

Transportation
• Avila has shuttle to downtown at 9 and 2 with returns at 11:30 and 4:30
• Downtown is 15 – 20 minute walk
• 24/7 Curacao app you can get taxi at any time but they are all waiting downtown
• Seems all trips $20

Restaurants
• Only liked Breakfast at the resort and beach food
• Rankings

1. Masa Cana
2. Rozendaels
3. SOI95
4. Kome
5. Café George
   • Serafina – everyone raves but it was the worst place our order was wrong and it was not seasoned at all
   • Made reservations on each website 1 week out

 
Tours
• Went to Klein Curacao on the Mermaid and they pick you up and take you back
• People we met hired a guy through the Viator app and went to all beaches for $300 plus tip

My flight, airbnb, and rental car are all paid already, so this isn’t included in my cost. I have a $1000 credit limit, and then I am taking out $150 USD cash (i’m from Canada). Is this enough to survive off of for 6 days? I’m buying groceries and gas but splitting the cost with my boyfriend. I’m worried im not gonna have enough.

Traveling there in two weeks and want to know if anyone has any experience bringing zyns. Do they care at customs/will the inspect your bag?

Hey All!

Im heading to Curacao in a couple of weeks and was hoping for some advice on what snorkeling gear to bring!

I am not a strong swimmer (can doggy paddle/tread water), so would a swim vest be necessary or can I see enough from shallow water?

Do you need flippers? I currently have a mask and tube!

Thanks all!

Are there any tours that take you to 2-3 beaches and point out the landmarks along the way? We prefer not to rent a car so figured I’d ask!

any tips from ppl who successfully have (flying in from the states next week)? anything to look out for with customs (e.g. keep in pocket or carry-on), or if anyone knows the customs process (xray/dogs/etc) thatd be super helpful!