It’s been an exciting year of travel for us but as you know we had a good reason because we’ve been celebrating our silver wedding anniversary. When I told people we were wrapping our latest trip to South America up with a week at Sandals Royal Curaçao, most of them got it… but a couple pulled a face and one person on Instagram asked if it wasn’t just a “posh Butlins full of loud Americans”.
(A quick note for my American readers who I love dearly: this isn’t a dig at you. We Brits have more than earned our reputation in certain Spanish resorts and because the Caribbean is right on your doorstep, sometimes it’s seen as the US version).
Before we left that comment did niggle a bit. As you know, Mal and I never had a proper honeymoon so twenty-five years on we were determined to make up for it in a big way and Curaçao was to be our final stop after Mexico and Medellín. I knew that by that point all I’d want would be a week by the sea with good food and zero effort. And so a luxury, all-inclusive fly and flop felt like the perfect way to end what we knew would be a stimulating but exhausting time in Colombia.
I told you about the Medellin side of the trip last week so now let’s talk about the Caribbean – and specifically Sandals. Some of you came with me live on Instagram while we were out there so you saw it up close, but for others I’m going to try to encapsulate it here in words. And in the interests of transparency, we were guests of Sandals Royal Curaçao for the week but I’m free to write about it in my own words.
So, the Americans. Yes, they’re there and some of them are loud but I don’t say that with irritation because they’re clearly having the time of their lives. We found the louder ones gathered at the party pool where the music goes on all day around the swim-up bar.
At night the indoor lounge bar fills up and gets louder as the evening goes on. If that’s what you’re after you’ll be very happy. But the resort is big, and once we’d orientated ourselves we knew that we’d easily find the peace and relaxation that we’d gone there for. That doesn’t mean that we spent the week hiding from people… although perhaps we did a bit.
The quiet pool
We found a favourite spot at the designated quiet pool and despite the resort being full, we almost always had the whole thing to ourselves.
We liked the fact that instead of a bar there’s a low-key cool box beside it that’s discreetly replenished with ice-cold drinks of every kind, water, soft drinks, wine, champagne, beer… and you just lift the lid and help yourself. So we often spent the mornings there with a book and a swim, enjoying the constant breeze.
We learned that Curaçao sits in the path of the trade winds so the warm breeze comes in off the sea all day and all night so even in the middle of the afternoon you’re not baking. There was none of my usual need to slide constantly in and out of the water to stay cool.
In the afternoons we headed down to the beach where there was a resident pelican. We spent a lot of lazy time watching him circle, tuck his wings in and drop into the sea with an inelegant plop, scoop up a beakful of fish and bob back up looking chuffed with himself. Strangely he didn’t trigger my bird phobia so I was happy to be as close as this to him (and note how quiet the beach was).
When we’d had enough of him we’d go in with masks and snorkels – the fish there are amazing, great shoals of them. It was like a live version of Finding Nemo.
And that was pretty much our day, every day… breakfast in the quiet restaurant at the edge of the resort, marvel at the huge iguanas…
…go to the quiet pool, wander on for lunch from the street food trucks, stroll down to the beach to see what the pelican was up to, have a snorkel (or not!)…
…slide back on to the loungers with a cocktail and then partake in a lazy conversation about where to eat that night. Fly and flop indeed.
Eating outside at Sandals Curacao
One of the things I loved about being here was the packing. I split my suitcase into two halves when I was doing it, one half for (almost three weeks in) Medellin and one half just for Sandals. So when we got to Curaçao I could pack away the athleisure that I’d been wearing since we’d left home and bring out my bright colourful beachwear, bikinis and evening dresses with heels – it felt so good!
In the evenings we went wherever we could sit outside – and that’s where we found a difference between the Sandals in Curaçao and the three we visited in St Lucia a few years ago. There, most of the restaurants were deeper in the site and dining was inside. In Curaçao, they really make the most of the beachfront location with al fresco dining options.
Most Americans seem to prefer to eat inside in the air conditioning which I completely understand but it means the tables outside are left mostly to us Europeans. Sitting out in peace as night fell with great food, a chilled glass of wine and my shoulders kissed by a warm breeze felt so good after the hustle and bustle of city centre Medellin.
After dinner there was entertainment and we really enjoyed a bachata class one night but generally we just went for a wander round the gardens. Quite often we ended up in a hammock with a bottle of fizz from the minibar in our room. It’s all included so there was nothing illicit about it but carrying a bottle of fizz through the grounds in the dark still made me feel about sixteen. Getting out of the hammock gracefully afterwards was another matter…
One evening we had a special dinner down on the water’s edge. I’d imagined couples lined up along the sand like a speed-dating event but there were only three others. Everyone was well spaced out and we ate with the sea lapping next to us while the sun went down. I wondered if it was going to feel a bit contrived when I booked it but once we were there it felt truly romantic.
Getting out into Willemstad
On Instagram, one of the things that people told me they’d worry about most with an all-inclusive, and Sandals in particular, is feeling trapped. People I’ve spoken to assume you land, lie on a lounger for a week and fly home without seeing anything of the island. You can do that but it doesn’t have to be that way. Sandals offer you the opportunity to go into the capital, Willemstad, in the evening and we did it twice.
The first time was on a Thursday, which is when Punda Vibes happens. Punda is the old part of town with the painted Dutch buildings along the waterfront that you’ll have seen in every photo of Curaçao. Willemstad really is a city of colour, famed for its street art. The buildings are made from coral stone and the salt carried in on the trade winds settles on the walls, causing them to peel like this which somehow adds to the beauty.
We timed our visit for late afternoon so we had a chance to see the art and the Queen Emma Bridge which is an engineering miracle. It’s a floating pontoon that swings open to let ships through and it’s lit up at night so it’s worth timing your crossing for after dark. Watch the warning flags though because it takes a while to open and close so you’ll have to get a ferry back if that’s happening.
Every Thursday as the sun sets, Punda Vibes begins. The streets fill with locals who come for the music, with stalls everywhere and fireworks over the harbour at the end. Curaçao Pride happened to be on the same night that we were there so it was even busier and more joyful than usual. We found ourselves in the middle of the parade with everyone else, laughing and marching to the beat of the drums.
The second time we went into Willemstad was for dinner at a local restaurant which is part of the package if you’ve booked a Butler suite at Sandals. You choose where you want to go from a list and it’s all part of your all-inclusive. I think it’s great that they’re supporting the local businesses this way. You’re dropped off and collected in an air-conditioned car so it feels like a special night out and we did it on Mal’s birthday. We chose Sal The Kitchen but actually the food was better at Sandals – I’m glad we went out and had a local evening though.
Bikes, watersports, golf and the gym at Sandals Curacao
And it doesn’t have to be fly and flop if you don’t want it to be. There’s loads of sport going on, the gym is excellent and the watersports are free, including scuba diving if you’re qualified, so if you have a diving certificate this is the time to dig it out.
There are Dutch bikes all over the resort that you just pick up and ride which feels right on an island that’s officially still part of the Dutch kingdom.
And Old Quarry is right next door, looking out over Spanish Water and the sea (voted the best golf course in the Caribbean this year in the Golfers’ Choice Awards on Leading Courses). You can book tee times through the resort and apparently there are free golf clinics for Sandals guests every Tuesday (I don’t know quite what they are but I’m sure some of you will). We enjoyed watching these two. He was taking his golf very seriously, playing alone and she stayed in the buggy with a bottle of prosecco… while we were having breakfast… I think golf on holiday would have that effect on me too!
If you do go to Sandals make sure you really explore on your first afternoon because there are so many little nooks and crannies that you can escape to but you’ll miss them all if you just head to the pool. Ask about the Willemstad trips early on so you can make sure you’re there on a Thursday. And pack a light wrap or a cardigan if you’re going to eat inside the restaurants – they’re air conditioned US style so they’re glacial!
You take yourself with you when you go on holiday and even though we enjoy the luxury of an all-inclusive now and then, we’ll always work out how to do it our way. What I liked about Sandals Curaçao was that there was room for us to do that, in five-star comfort with endless options for great food and drinks all day – while everyone else had the type of holiday they wanted on the other side of the resort.
Have you been to a Sandals, or have you been put off by the reputation of all-inclusives? They’re reading this so let me know.
Disclosure: We were guests of Sandals Royal Curaçao, all words and opinions my own.
