General Information:
Aruba is a country off the coast of Venezuela, in an area known as the Dutch Antilles (which is comprised of Aruba, Bonaire and Curacao.
For more country specific info see: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aruba
Cash is king, USD all the way in this country.. especially if you are in the capital or in the tourist zones, if your not... then you will probably need to carry some Arubian Florin (exchange rate is about 1.79 florin to 1 USD). Don't be fooled by the exchange rates... the cost of living is pretty high there... in fact for those of you versed in Hawaiian travel, I would say a bit more costly than "The Islands" so bring lots of greenbacks you will need all you bring.
Language:
You can likely get along anywhere in Aruba using English, but the local language there is Papiamento (a mix of Spanish, Portuguese and some Dutch and others). If you speak Spanish you can go anywhere and do anything, essentially ensuring that you will have a fairly rich travel experience. Again, English will get you around... but you may be missing out a bit.
Weather:
Can you say "Hot and Humid" all year around? When I was there the temperature ranged from 81F to about 91F, with a high humidity.
Of note, there are pretty strong tradewinds that blow all day and night there (about 10-15 mph on average), but you kind of appreciate these winds after a while as they keep the temperature moderate, without them I am sure it would be about 120F all day and night. :-P
Aruba Activities:
Water sports of all kinds including; Parasailing, Scuba Diving, Snorkeling, SeaDoo's, Kite Surfing, Windsurfing (see notes above about wind), Kayaking (although kayaking specifically is not recommended, as the winds are high and the sea lanes are crowded with speedboats, etc... making it a dangerous deal)
I would highly recommend the snorkeling trips as you go out on a Catamaran and you get to see some pretty interesting finds like a WWII German freighter that was sunk by its crew, you will not believe how big and cool this ship is for a snorkeling adventure. The snorkeling trips are actually pretty reasonable overall as well making it a must do while on the islands.
If you are so inclined you can party all night long in Aruba (and rather safely overall I might add), there are plenty of places to drink and dance if you desire, or you can just relax and watch some amazing sunsets while lounging in a beach chair... Island life is easy and laid back here.
Prices:
Overall, you can expect good deals on hotel rooms and flights etc, especially during the "low season" which is between April to July (spring break is an exception), the "high season" is July to October and is the time when things generally cost a bit more. Plan accordingly.
You will find that in the hotel zones, the restaurants are very pricey (especially in the "High Rise" hotel district) with an average dinner costing about 2-3x what it would cost to go out to dinner in California. There are many "off" places to go downtown where you can get GREAT food for very reasonable prices if you want to go that route.
I have travelled lots of places and I can say that Aruba is very safe overall and I wouldn't worry much about safety there, as usual just be cognizant of your environment *just as you should anywhere in the world*
What to know about before you go:
1) If you rent a car, make sure that you turn it in the DAY BEFORE you depart, especially if you are taking an early flight out. The rental agencies don't normally open before 6am and you will get a rush of people trying to fight to turn in cars, this could be problematic if you are supposed to be on one of the 7:50am flights.
2) Pack some clothes (at least one days worth) in your carry on bag, it is not uncommon that luggage is "misplaced" (ours suffered this fate) if you are transferring from either Philadelphia or Miami airports. If you are lucky like we were, you will get your bags the next morning the following day, if not... then you can find some cheap clothes downtown @ the Aruba Discount Center
3) US Customs happens IN ARUBA, so plan accordingly... I would recommend 2.5 hours prior to your flight so you make it past the check-in counters and US Customs.
4) Travelers checks can be exchanged in the hotels at zero fees, but are not widely accepted outside the hotels, so either brings loads of cash or bring tons of travelers checks and just cash them as you need them. I would recommend travelers checks in general and in larger denominations to avoid the "hand cramps" from all the signing / dating you will need to do when exchanging them.
That is it for now, if you have other questions.. let me know and I can give you what I know / learned.
