We arrived in Curacao on 11-1-22 and leaving on 3-21-23. We had never been here before. The research was done on the internet through social media and other sites. We chose well for our first winter in a warm location. I blogged every day. You can review previous blog posts for other information. We will probably be back for another winter. Here are my impressions of the island. I do realize other people have different impressions, but these are mine.
The temperature here is a human temperature. Never really too hot if you have shade and it cooled down nicely at night. It was about a 5 degree swing per day for the temperature. I have been in 33 countries and 49 United States and have never been in a temperature zone so nice. The ocean temperature is very nice as well. around 80 Fahrenheit. Much warmer than the Gulf of Mexico. I was able to walk to the ocean from my AirBNB and swim or float in the morning in the water for an hour every day. The ocean water was so clear.
We were never concerned for our safety. We stayed in well lit areas and did not stay out after 10pm either. The people here are pretty friendly and have a relaxed lifestyle. There were not people standing around with their hands out. There were not people passed out in the streets or sidewalks. I did not see a needle laying around anywhere. I smelled marijuana twice briefly. I did not see any fights at the bars or anywhere else. I believe this is a safe island to be on.
There are plenty of good beaches and places to hang out. We preferred beaches with amenities such as hot food, chairs and toilets. You do have to pay beach fees and chair rentals at some beaches. Porto Mari was nice and had great ribs. We really liked Blue Bay. Blue bay had a nice restaurant and well kept beach area. Mambo was always full of people and had a great variety of restaurants. Daaibooi was kicked back. We went to the beaches mainly in the afternoons from around 1300-1700. The beaches were nice and the water calm on the south side of the island. Many of the beaches are in lagoons or bays which are natural water breaks. No current really noticed. Nice to snorkel at and swim or float with little to no current.
Food… There are so many restaurants to chose from. There are local restaurants and larger American chains to choose from such as McDonalds, BK, Subway, Pizza Hut, KFC… We ate out often and mostly at local restaurants. We ate out least a couple times per week. We were never ill from eating food. The grocery stores are clean and amazing. The shelves are stocked. There a few different chains to chose from. We shopped at Vandentweels (Albert Heijn) mainly. Carrefour and Centrum were just as nice. Every store has a little bit different stock and what they decide to carry. If you want something specific you may have to go to a different brand store. We cooked at home often as well. We were never concerned for food safety or its availability.
Water. The water is drinkable everywhere. I prefer drinking this water from the tap as compared to water I have back home. Restaurants will serve tap water. It is nice to have safe water taps you can drink out of. That is a huge bonus to this island.
We stayed in an AirBNB apartment on Penstraat. We were close to Avila Beach Resort. The neighbors were nice and were very friendly. The internet was steady at about 140 mbps upload and around 19 Mbps download. Very few interruptions of service. I could work from home here if I had a job like that. We had bars on the windows and doors which were nice for personal safety. I liked them. It is better to have bars and not need them, than to not have the bars and have problems. We did not have any problems with theft while we were out on the island or at our home. We secured our property reasonably as to not make opportunity for problems.
There is a great Coast Guard and Dutch Navy presence here. I liked to see them around the shipping lanes and harbor. They also have aircraft for overwatch. The police seem to be pretty active on the island and were friendly when approached.
Less than desirable… Penstraat is a one way drag strip between Punda and Mambo beach. This is a residential area. Speeds on vehicles regularly reached well over 50 mph. Saw the neighbor dog get run over by one of these vehicles. Exhaust noise is loud on many of the vehicles here from mopeds to semis. The original invention of the horn was to alert people of a hazard. This island uses the horn to “wave” at people in greeting. A horn honking, for me, is now ignored. No one pays attention to the horns anymore if there is a hazard. I found the honking to be extremely annoying.
The highways have deep potholes. You must be aware at all times to avoid them and to avoid oncoming traffic that is avoiding potholes on their side of the road. The same potholes have been on the roadways since I have been here with no improvement. The roads are tar and should be easy enough to maintain and repair. The gas prices are determined by the government and it should be easy enough to charge for gas what you need to maintain the roads. The traffic pattern has a flow, if you take your time and don’t get in a hurry. Drivers will stop in front of you to let people turn left in front of them. This is fine in a traffic jam, but when the roadway is clear ahead, it is unusual to have to stop like that. Turn signals are rarely used as well. Driving on this island has made me a more alert driver. There are plenty of not aware people who get into accidents here as well. I have seen a few after collision results.
Abandoned/junk vehicles. Same two broke down vehicles in the street in front of my apartment for 4 months. Wrecked bumper hanging and inoperable. There are numerous examples of wrecked vehicles on public streets throughout the island. Abandoned vehicle ordinances are easy to write and enforce.
Drempels aka bumpy cops or traffic tables. They are really effective as a traffic slowing device. Some of these have lost their markings or they are faded to a point of not being able to see them when it gets dark or it is raining. I have learned what to look for. I was surprised by a couple when I first arrived. Nothing like a free launch in a 2013 Hyundai Elantra to make you pay more attention.
All in all the island is nice and livable. You have to live within the boundary’s the people of this island have chosen. I am absolutely good with that. They have done well. It is especially nice an American can stay here for 180 days without a Visa. It makes things much less complicated. I am looking forward to coming here again.
Live your best life!
DrAiLs WoRld 