Arikok
The windward fifth of Aruba, kept wild since 2000: Arawak drawings on cave ceilings, a lava-rimmed pool against the surf, dunes and turtle beaches, and no hotels at all.
- Arrival
- Queen Beatrix International · AUA
- To the park
- Just under 40 minutes from the Palm Beach hotels
- Private jets
- GA terminal with US preclearance
- Best time
- All year
The city
The island’s other coast.
Arikok National Park takes in roughly a fifth of Aruba, some 7,900 acres of hills, cactus scrub and limestone coast, protected since 2000. It holds the island’s highest point, Jamanota, at 620 feet, and on a clear day a single viewpoint looks over both shores.
The north-east coast here faces the trade wind and the open sea, a different island from the calm western beaches. Tracks are rough enough that a four-wheel drive is the sensible choice, quads and motorbikes are banned, and the gates at San Fuego and Vader Piet open in the morning and close in the late afternoon.
- Fontein Cave A low cave where reddish-brown Arawak pictographs cover the walls and ceiling, explained by rangers at the entrance.
- Conchi The natural pool: a shell of lava rock that holds back the breakers, reached on foot or on horseback down a rocky ravine.
- Boca Prins and Dos Playa Dunes shaped by the trade wind and a beach where leatherback and green turtles come ashore to nest.
Arriving
Land in the south-west, drive to the wild side.
Queen Beatrix International lies on the south-west coast, about nine kilometres from the heart of the park in a straight line.
- Panama City 1 h 45
- Barbados 1 h 50
- New York 4 h 25
- Los Angeles 7 h 20 long-range jet
- Zurich 10 h 45 long-range jet
When to go
All year round.
Dry, with about four hundred millimetres of rain in a year and highs of 30 to 33 °C in every month. The steady north-east wind takes the edge off the heat on the windward coast. A light wet season runs from October to December; February to May are the driest months, under twenty millimetres each.
- 30° J 37 26°
- 30° F 19 26°
- 31° M 8 26°
- 31° A 13 26°
- 32° M 14 27°
- 32° J 18 27°
- 32° J 31 27°
- 32° A 25 28°
- 33° S 35 28°
- 32° O 65 28°
- 32° N 78 28°
- 30° D 66 27°
Where to stay
On the calm coast, a short drive west.
Shown for information. We have no arrangement with any of these hotels.
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The St. Regis Aruba Resort The island’s newest grand hotel, opened in 2025, with fifty-two of its 252 rooms given over to suites.
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The Ritz-Carlton, Aruba A resort of 320 rooms on the sand since late 2013, named by the tourism authority among Aruba’s five-star houses.
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Boardwalk Boutique Hotel Aruba Two MICHELIN Keys for a family-run cluster of casitas, for adults only, among the trees of a former coconut plantation.
Where to dine
Dinner back on the west coast.
No MICHELIN Guide covers Aruba. These are tasting menus and upscale tables picked by The Infatuation, and a chef’s table with a Travellers’ Choice award on Tripadvisor.
- Infini by Urvin Croes The Infatuation Caribbean tasting menu $$$$ Blue Residence, Eagle Beach
- Ever The Infatuation Caribbean tasting menu $$$$ Weststraat, Oranjestad
- Terra by Jeremy Ford The Infatuation Contemporary $$$$ Bucuti & Tara Beach Resort, Eagle Beach
- Papiamento The Infatuation Aruban, seafood Washington, Noord
- Fred Royal Chef’s Table Tripadvisor Travellers’ Choice 2026 Chef’s table $$$$ Wilhelminastraat, Oranjestad
Flying to Arikok?
Choose how you arrive.
A Business or First Class seat on a scheduled airline, or an aircraft of your own. Tell us the date and how many are travelling, and we reply with one final price, our margin included.