Renaissance Aruba continues
by Kisu
Renaissance Marina is the new hotel building for adults only and it has splendid restaurant L.G Smith and a casino. As the name says, the hotel is in the marina and has no beach, but there is a swimming pool and boat taking you to the private island from INSIDE the hotel.
Renaissance Ocean Suits is older resort but its' a big size complex with many many restaurants (including taco bell and subway), shops, small beach and a casino.
We stayed at Ocean suites and really enjoyed it!
Staying at Aruba
by ykx86 about Renaissance Aruba Beach Resort and Casino
This hotel was just minutes away from the airport and located in downtown Oranjestad. Some people are bothered by the planes taking off and landing because it was so close to the airport, but we didn't really notice it very much. It's overall a very elegant hotel, with the front lobby in the open (no enclosed walls). Our room was clean, and had a partial ocean view. But we didn't have a balcony =(. A private island to the guests. You can take a boat, which is available every half an hour or so, from the main hotel building to the little island in about 15 minutes. It's very beautiful, not too crowded, there are hammocks, lounge chairs, towel service, even a resturant serving food and drinks. This is a great place to tan topless =), as I have done so, it's not so overwhelming like a public beach.
Great beachside service!
by amyknedlik about Aruba Renaissance Hotel
I didn't leave the hotel for most of my trip. Just walked to the beach every single day. Great waiters that deliver what you need - beachside!
One of the Best in Aruba
by A TripAdvisor Member
My wife and I just got back from the 'happy island' of Aruba. We stayed at the Marriott's Renaissance Hotel in Oranjestad in the Marina Tower.
First as far as a choice between the Marina Tower or the Beach Tower, we would personally choose the Marina Tower because it is just steps from all the great shopping, restaurants and nightlife, plus a fantastic view of the Harbor if you get a view room. We like to be in the middle of things and there is no other resort that can put you closer. All the other Hotels located on Palm Beach were a ways out from the city which means without a car you are stuck paying resort prices for everything and/or travel back and forth to Oranjestad. If you've been to Hotel Row in Cancun, you get the same thing with the Hotels located on Palm Beach without the plus of local nightlife within walking distance. The Renaissance is very clean, with a nice feel without being pretentious or snobby. There is Golf Cart access between the two towers (so you don't have to walk if you don't want to) and one of the coolest features of the Marina tower is that the boat that takes you out to Renaissance Island (for hotel guests only) comes right into the middle of the Hotel Lobby to pick you up and wisk you away to a private oasis of fun and leisure. I saw more than one envying tourists eye watching our boat coming in and out of the resort wondering where we were being wisked off to. As an earlier reviewer noted, on the island there are two beaches, the first a family beach, the second an adult beach; as in topless beach. The adult beach has the better snorkeling along the rock barriers (less suntan lotion to murk the water) where an abundance of aquatic life can be observed. It also tends to be quieter (no children) and even has resident pink and orange flamingos that walk amongst the tanning bodies. As far as the noise from the nearby airport, you only really notice it on Saturday when planes are busy coming in and out. The beaches are strung with hammocks and tanning loungers with ample towel service including moist cold towels (for cooling off and wiping down) located in storage bins along the dock area, and of course all the drinks and food your heart could desire. One of the drinks they serve, called the Banana Jammer was delicious. While exploring the town of Oranjestad, two places that are excellent to visit are Iguana Joe's Restaurant (be sure and read how it got it's name) and Garrufa's Martini and Cigar bar. Garrufa's has got to be one of the best classic jazz bar's in existence. The dark burnished wood bar, the elegant atmosphere and the superb jazz quartet and Wednesday night's solo pianist are a jazz afficionados dream come true. I couldn't help but get that giddy feeling of delight in having discovered one of the great gems of Aruba. Not to be missed either is the natural pool which has one of the most grueling treks you'll ever take by SUV. Actually I can't believe that the rental car agencies don't have you sign something saying you WON'T take your SUV there. But the trip is worth it. Be sure and swim in this natural wonder and by sitting on the far side of the pool against the rock wall facing the ocean you get a fantastic drenching from the breaching waves on the other side of the wall without being overly dangerous. One last great thing about Aruba is that the merchants and especially the street merchants are not aggressive with you and respect it when you say no thanks. The people were very friendly, helpful and accepting of Americans coming in and out of their island which nowadays counts for something. The only reason I don't give Renaissance 5 stars is because there are hotels in other parts of the world that I've traveled to that are better overall therefore in my experience this one rates a 4 but would have to be one of, if not the best in Aruba.
Loved this place! Location,location,location!
by TripAdvisor Member derekfap
Just got back today from a wonderful 7 days here. Our group of 6 are all 30 somethings, some married, some single, and we ALL had a great time. We do 3 or 4 trips to the carribean every year, and this place is definitely one of the nicest we've ever been to. Everything is very clean (especially compared to anywhere in Mexico), they pride themselves on the clean drinking water, and we drank lots of it. The food was great at every restaurant we went to. I really don't think they have a bad restaurant within walking distance of the Renaissance.
Iguana Joe's stood out as one we especially liked. There wasn't any construction when we were there. They have a huge bingo event every Tues and Thurs night. I don't normally play bingo, but don't miss this, and don't be late. They offer sandwiches and drinks included with playing for $9. You will not have to exchange any money while in Aruba, everything is in US dollars. The best part of this hotel is the private island. It could not be any better. Flamingo's and iguana's will walk right up to you. I've never seen a cleaner beach, and there are no crowds of people or anybody trying to sell you anything. I say again- No salespeople trying to sell you junk! Just nice and quiet, with lots of chairs and huts. No need to get up early to "save" chairs. The food on the island is also really good. You will be happy there!We went on the Atlantis Submarine which is right out the front door from the hotel. It was ok, but probably not worth the $80 each. What "was" worth it is the Kuku Kunuba bus tour. For sure, without a doubt, The FUNNEST night we had in Aruba. You can sign up at the front desk, is $55 for dinner (A very good one!), champagne, a drink at each of the 4 bars they stop at, and a crazy bus ride around the island. Fun for all ages!(Adults) We had a few senior citizens on our bus that had the time of their life. The marina is right out the front door, so it was fun to step over there at noon, and four o'clock to see the fish they caught.
Usually Wahoo. Make sure you check when happy hour is. The island starts at 3pm, and then I think the pool starts at 5pm. Beers are usually $6 each, but only $3 at happy hour. And only $1 at the grocery store right behind the Renaissance. Everything is so close by that you can just walk to find anything you could need. I'd say it has the best location of all the other hotels we looked at. I will definitely come back to this place!
Very nice, but loud
by A TripAdvisor Member
My husband and I just returned from our trip to Aruba (Feb 14 thru Feb 21). We really enjoyed our stay at the Renaissance (Marina Tower), with the following exceptions:
We were booked in a Run of the House room, which was an interior room on the 4th floor. The room was small, but very nice. Our main complaint, which will keep us from returning to this hotel is - Music from the "Blue" Lobby bar was very loud, with the "base" vibrating our room walls. This music was also in competition with Piano music in another part of the complex, which was almost of a classical note. I'm sure this conflict was because of the location of the internal room, but it was very distracting....definitely could not take an afternoon nap.
The pool area was really nice and the Private Island was great. Beware if you're looking for a quiet time...don't go the week we were there.
We didn't know it when we booked our trip, but the schools up North were out on a winter break so there were alot of kids of all ages.
The good thing of this week though, is Carnival. We thought the Parade of Lights and the Children's parade were great...Very loud at our hotel though. The parade route goes directly in front of the resort...gets you in a party mood real quick...Not much sleep though.
We loved the location and will try to book into the Beach tower on our next visit...same resort, but a couple of blocks away on the beach and appeared to be a little quieter.
Photos
Renaissance Aruba Resort & Casino
