Renaissance Aruba Resort & Casino - Aruba

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I had a great stay on this great island. Visited: February 2009 Posted by rmh8022 This was a great hotel. Sorry to disagree with other reviewers, but here is my personal opinion for what it is worth. First off, this is an urban hotel. Keep this in mind prior to booking. It's in the heart of downtown, which means you get great walking access to tons of shops and restaurants, but it's loud. So, if you are looking for a true relaxing beachfront hotel, pick another one. If you are looking for a trendy stay, then I recommend this hotel. They have great pools, bar, and great bar food. I also enjoyed the shopping and views of the harbor where cruise ships come in. The beach was a short ten-minute boat ride away. Enjoy a great dinner at Flying Fishbone. It's expensive, but really romantic. Or, try Cuba's Cooking. Also, don't forget to have breakfast at The Dutch Pancake House. I had the best crepes I've had since my trip to Europe! 9 users found this review helpful. 0 found this review unhelpful. Did you find this helpful? It was okay, but our expectations were higher. Visited: May 2007 Posted by ralphfers We had never been to Aruba before, so we decided to stay here in 2007. There were two separate parts to this resort, one had a beach (where we stayed) and the other was across from the marina. Forget the beach resort. It offered common motel style accommodations. Things were pretty old inside. The beach resort just had a little breakfast area by the pool, too. The food was okay, so long as you don't mind lizards crawling over your toes while you eat. The sister hotel across from the marina was better, but I wouldn't recommend staying at it either. We took day trips and went to different areas for dinner. In addition, the "private island" was nice, but nothing to write home about. The Hyatt and Marriott were the places to stay. There was an RUI under construction, also. We liked the Hyatt area best. There were places right across the street to eat (like Texas de Brazil and other restaurants). The airport was very close to the Renaissance Hotel. What I found people apparently do is stay there the last day or two of their vacation so they can hit the local places - then be right around the corner from the airport. It wouldn't be a bad thing to consider as there are some top restaurants in walking distance of the Renaissance, including the #1 Steakhouse on the island. So, to sum it up, I would stay here again (not the beach site) but only for the last two days of the vacation. 5 users found this review helpful. 3 found this review unhelpful. Did you find this helpful? The hotel was in a great location. Visited: June 2006 Posted by alexjgeller The marina hotel had a real South Beach feel. We loved the location - we walked to almost everything. 9 users found this review helpful. 2 found this review unhelpful. Did you find this helpful? It is beautiful, but where is the excitement? Visited: May 2006 Posted by 675372619 So here we were, the second week of May 2006, in this five-star hotel. It was situated beautifully near the Aruba coastline and was surrounded with a nice palm tree garden. The rooms (or suites) were clean, cozy and had all the features we could wish for. The hotel had a nice pool bar. However, breakfast was simple and was not five-star worthy. Also, entertainment in the hotel was zero(!) star. Near the hotel were a couple of nice restaurants, but too few for a touristic place like Aruba. Entertainment could be found in the casinos (if you want to be surrounded by many, many, many old, 70 year American people shouting to each other). The private island which is related to the hotel was absolutely fabulous and is highly recommended. Diving may seem great, however, my attempt to go diving was stopped by unnecessary formal procedures (which seemed childish, in my opinion). The hotel staff was very friendly and helpful. The other hotel, called Renaissance Marina Hotel, was not an option. It was very dull, with lots of shops, and a busy street. There was also a lot of moisture due the fact that it contains the harbour for the hotel water taxi. I suggest you book the Renaissance Beach Hotel instead! 12 users found this review helpful. 3 found this review unhelpful. Did you find this helpful? I cannot wait to stay here! Visited: June 2005 Posted by kirndeport "I recommend you avoid this resort at all cost. Visited: August 2003 Xavier Baskerville from Jersey City, New Jersey, USA" This person sounds like a miserable human being. There is no way it was that bad. I am sure nothing could please this person. LOSER 1 users found this review helpful. 9 found this review unhelpful. Did you find this helpful? This is a trendy new resort for a perfect vacation! Visited: October 2004 Posted by jabalrock My husband and I were looking to go on a quick vacation to the Caribbean this fall. Friends recommended Aruba and the Renaissance, so we gave it a try. We stayed at the Renaissance Marina Hotel, a newly renovated and trendy hotel set right in the heart of town. The pool was one of those new zero entry pools looking out over the marina, and at night it changed into Blue - a great new Martini Bar. We enjoyed a dinner/show package at their new restaurant L.G. Smith's and the show "Let's Go Latin" which had several dozen dancers from Cuba. All of the island's best restaurants were within walking distance of the resort and they had a casino that was always open and exciting. There was a boat that came right into the lobby that took guests over to the private island where they offered outdoor massages in a private cove area. There were two sections to the island -including one for adults only. We had a great time and would easily recommend this resort and Aruba. 15 users found this review helpful. 0 found this review unhelpful. Did you find this helpful? You must stay at the Renaissance! Visited: September 2004 Posted by markwilliams60 The Renaissance was definitely in the most perfect area to stay, not to mention the most beautiful. We were in the heart of the capitol (not much of a city). There was no crime, no beggars, and lots to do. The best part was that they had their own private island for guests' use only. It was one of the best parts of Aruba. We were also a five-minute taxi ride to any hot spot on the island, not to mention two minutes from the airport for convenience. I'm going back again! I've been to the Bahamas and Cancun, and I thought Aruba was about 10,000 times more fun and safe. I hope this helps! 13 users found this review helpful. 0 found this review unhelpful. Did you find this helpful? This is the place to stay! Visited: September 2004 Posted by auagirl I recently went to Aruba, which was just a beautiful and fun place. We stayed at the Renaissance Aruba. It was unique and beautiful - especially the private island, where we felt like we were on our own island. The staff was very accommodating and friendly. The rooms were recently redone and were very beautiful. We stayed in an ocean view room, but spent almost no time there. We were mostly at the pool area when we were not at the island. Blue, the martini bar, was tons of fun and was our stop before going out to dinner. Aruba had some fine restaurants. Villa Germania was lovely and L.G. Smith was incredible (decor and food). Also, the spa is not to be missed. 11 users found this review helpful. 0 found this review unhelpful. Did you find this helpful? I would highly recommend this hotel. Visited: May 2004 Posted by jjohn84977john We stayed at the Renaissance Hotel (downtown) from 5/22-5/29. We received an outside room and do not recommend it. We were up most of the night due to the traffice we could hear. The next morning we asked to be moved to an inside room, and it was no problem. The next six nights were great. The private island was wonderful. It was not crowded, and there were no problems getting a chair or shade. We went to the pool in the late afternoon and had no problem getting a chair or shade there either. We enjoyed the convenience of being downtown and being able to walk everywhere. The shops were right under the hotel, there was a grocery store behind the hotel and all types of food were available within walking distance, whether fast food or fancy sit down dinners. Also, the bus station was within walking distance if you wanted to visit the highrise section. We have been to Aruba before and stayed at another resort, but would recommend this hotel. 9 users found this review helpful. 0 found this review unhelpful. Did you find this helpful? My suggestion is another resort Visited: February 2004 Posted by gidgetkennedy First, there are two sides to this resort-- one side is the the beach towers, (the one with all the pictures the great free form pool, the big rooms and the veiw of the ocean) the second is the marina side(loud, and down the street). While in the reception line at the marina side we heard many people saying they had no clue they would be staying at the marina resort and not the beach towers. We spend a good half and hour in line, and when we got to the desk we were told there were no rooms available yet and that as soon as one was ready we would get the key. (Check in was at 3:00p.m. and it was 3:55p.m.) While waiting we heard many people say they booked, and paid for the beach side and why are they not there? Well it seems they over booked that side and that this was all they had available. When we got to our room we found it to be very clean and comfortalbe. It was not the garden veiw i imagined, but a view of a very busy street. It turned out to be a little loud, but there was alway something to watch. The pool at the Marina resort was small, but nice. The only problem was that there was very limited seating. The private island was nice. It had two sides one was more crowded, but the sand was much better. The island has a HUGE!!! fly problem. They were everywhere. It made it difficult to relax, eat, drink and anylthing else without constanly swating them away. The Staff we found very unfriendly. I know other reveiws say different, but on our stay they were anything but friendly and helpful. The waitstaff never smiled, and were just down right grumpy(all of them). We found the othe resorts and restraunt the staff were very friendly. So we believe the management probably are not very good to them. (a special note, waitstaff only, all staff seemed friendly, and helpful.) This resort just didn't seem to live up to the hype. I think that the resorts in the high rise area are a far better choice. If you are afraid you will miss the downtown location, there are plenty of restraunts and shops in the high rise area, and the beach is beautiful. After all that we had a really nice time. We really enjoyed the driftwood restraunt (two nights in a row). Just a word of advice-- THE LOVE TUNNEL CAVE-- do not go into if you do not like cockroaches. There are at the least hundreds of cockroaches as you decend down the cave. I don't know what else you may meet because the first roach to crawl over my toes sent me running back up and out of the cave. Well that is my review. I really believe that your money is better spent staying at a different resort on the island. 4 users found this review helpful. 7 found this review unhelpful. Did you find this helpful? The Renaissance is a wonderful resort with excellent staff. Visited: February 2004 Posted by jtjoslin We just returned from our sixth visit to Aruba and the Renaissance Aruba Beach Resort. I can't say enough wonderful things about this resort. The rooms have recently been remodeled with new carpet, counters, sinks, etc. The staff, as usual, was so wonderfully helpful and went out of their way to make our stay a memorable one. The housekeeping ladies worked so very hard to keep the room clean, providing us with excellent service. We never had to ask for fresh linens or towels and things. And every night, the bed was turned down with mints on the pillow. How pampered can one get? The private island was wonderful. Never in our six years have we seen litter anywhere on the beaches. The service on the private island was excellent with waiters coming out to the beach to take drink and food orders. In addition, the staff at the restaurant was wonderful, and the groundskeepers were at work around the clock at the resort and on the island. I can't say enough great things about it. 9 users found this review helpful. 0 found this review unhelpful. Did you find this helpful? This is a nice resort in the middle of town. Visited: February 2004 Posted by aduggan We stayed at the Renaissance for two nights in February. We were in the Marina tower and the rooms have all been remodeled and are very nice. We enjoyed being in the downtown area with many places to choose from to eat and shop. Make sure you eat at Driftwood - they serve great seafood and it is within walking distance of the hotel. We also enjoyed going to the private island. A word of caution: If you plan on snorkeling, listen to the crew at Red Sail about snorkeling outside of the rocks - be careful. The ocean can be very rough and it is difficult to find where to enter the lagoon. All in all, we enjoyed staying at the resort and look forward to going back. 7 users found this review helpful. 0 found this review unhelpful. Did you find this helpful? It was a great hotel, but it was under construction. Visited: September 2003 Posted by jenderek27 We stayed at the Renaissance in September 2003, and although it was under construction, we had a great time. The location was great, and the staff was friendly and courteous. The construction did seem to be a bother, but we quickly forgot about it once we stepped outside. There were a lot of restaurants and shops within walking distance, which was great. The boat to take guests to the private island was convienient, as well. We enjoyed the ride on the water, and the beaches were beautiful. On the right side (for adults) there were pink flamingos walking around. I don't remember hearing the airplanes all that much. Back at the hotel, there were a couple pools and sitting areas. The location was perfect right downtown, we shopped all day! If you like the convenience of shopping and tons of restaurants and casinos right outside the front door, then stay here. They did apologize for the noise of the construction, and gave us tickets to "Lets Go Latin", but only after complaining of the noise. Once the construction is finished at the Beach Tower, this should be a great place! My suggestion is to make sure they are done with the Beach Tower before you book. But overall, it didn't ruin our time here. 3 users found this review helpful. 0 found this review unhelpful. Did you find this helpful? I recommend you avoid this resort at all cost. Visited: August 2003 Posted by annodwy Our experience was that this hotel did not live up to the reviews and pictures posted about the hotel. The furniture in the room was worn, broken and dirty. The bathroom had mold everywhere and the shower curtain was covered with grime and mildew. The tiny kitchenette was stocked with dirty utensils and dusty drinking glasses. The floor tiles were cracked, sticky and dirty. We tried to change rooms but none were available, so we accepted their offer to have them clean the room, disinfect the bathroom and change the shower curtain. The hotel was also undergoing renovations, which contributed to making the hotel very noisy and dirty. The tiny beach by the hotel was muddy from tractors rearranging huge boulders in the water, and the sand was a mixture of rocks, garbage, and construction debris. The hotel pool was filled with floating Wendy’s drinking cups, straws and soda cans from kids who launched them in the pool. The private beach at this hotel was the main reason why we selected this hotel and it was the worst part of the vacation. There was a long wait for the boat to take you to the private island and when the boat did arrive, the shoving and pushing to get aboard made taking a NY subway during rush hour a walk in paradise. They had a bar on the private beach that refused to serve us because of our color. The onsite manager apologized, but the employees did not change their behavior. The private beach was crawling with huge iguanas, pink flamingoes and exotic ducks on the beach. It was also crowded, poorly maintained and the beach was inferior to the public beaches. We decided to move to another hotel, but we became ill from the mold in our room. The medicine prescribed by the doctor on call did not alleviate our illness. The second prescription we received did not help either, and our illness became worse. We cancelled our vacation and returned home. Upon our return, we made all the appropriate complaints about the condition of the property including the horrible service of which we had proof and documentation. The regional manager was very apologetic about the service we received and the condition of the property. He told us the renovations would be completed by December 2003 and offered a generous package to visit the property, but we declined. No amount of monetary compensation could induce us to visit this property again. 0 users found this review helpful. 4 found this review unhelpful. Did you find this helpful? A pleasant staff and private beach, but few fine dining options. Visited: August 2003 Posted by lgorman This was our first visit to Aruba. The people were very friendly and incredibly clean—always mopping, washing, etc. Considering our shopping is usually done in Manhattan, the shopping choices were appealing - Cartier, Ferragamo, etc. Our fifth-floor oceanview suite was nice, but tired, with worn paint on the furniture, sagging cushions in the sofa. Our biggest complaint was about dining. The hotel essentially had no restaurants, despite their claim to have fifteen. There was the outdoor Captain's Table at the pool area, the private island outdoor lunch facility, and at the Marina Tower, L'Escale ("fine" dining if you like being seated looking into the casino), and the Brasserie (Ponderosa anyone?). We ate well at a very fine French restaurant within walking distance, Chez Mathilde, that I would highly recommend to anyone visiting the island, and we took a cab to Papamiento, also very nice and highly recommended. But, if you are looking for a self-contained resort with fine dining options like the Fairmont Southhampton Princess in Bermuda, or Atlantis in the Bahamas, this is not it. The other of the "fifteen" restaurants consisted of Dunkin Donuts, Wendy's, Subway, and other moderately priced, very casual, independently owned restaurants at the adjacent Seaport Village Marketplace. The private island was nice, but the beaches were rocky. The noise from the airport, only about two miles from the hotel and less than 1/2 mile from the island, was always annoying, and sometimes deafening. (The DC9s - MD-80s were especially bad.) Water sport rentals were limited - no jet skis available. If we went back to Aruba, we would not choose to stay here but at one of the "high rise" hotels on Palm Beach. 0 users found this review helpful. 0 found this review unhelpful. Did you find this helpful? A great resort, but even better people. Visited: April 2003 Posted by sassamanlaw My wife and I just got back from a long weekend at the Renaissance and we are counting the days to our return next year. The rooms were large. We had a suite, but it was somewhat worn. They told me that all the rooms are to have a makeover that will be finished by December 2003 to bring the resort up to Renaissance standards. The grounds around the Beach Tower, the nicer of the two towers, were well groomed and attractive. However, the place was literally crawling with lizards including some two-footers. They didn't bother us and I thought they added to the charm. My only negative was the fact that the bartenders couldn't do a free pour with the drinks, they had to use a machine that pre-measured the amount. The result was that the drinks tended to be weak. All that being said, the thing that made this a great resort was the people. The staff, from the manager on down, truly cared about the guests and they will do anything to make your stay a pleasant one. For dining, go to the Seaport Marketplace and eat at the Waterfront Crab House. The owner, Roy Leitch, works very hard at making sure the patrons are well taken care of. 1 users found this review helpful. 0 found this review unhelpful. Did you find this helpful? A less expensive alternative to Palm Beach high rises. Visited: March 2003 Posted by rms800 This was probably our first and last trip to Aruba. Even though the island did a good job catering to tourists (the natives were friendly, the beaches were spectacular, it never rains, the island is clean, it had the usual shopping choices and some top notch restaurants), we found it lacking local character. Except for the gambling, the weather and hearing Papiamento spoken, we could have been in Florida. Aruba seemed to have a cruise ship mind set which isn't where we're coming from. The rooms at the Beach Tower were clean and modern enough and our room had a kitchenette (a plus). We preferred a more intimate (read: smaller) hotel. The high rise hotels on Palm Beach were more crowded and claustrophobic (although their beaches were nicer). Since this hotel was downtown, it didn't need to be a free-standing, self-contained unit like those on Palm Beach. This would be an advantage if the shopping and activities were more than what the typical cruise ship port offers. The clientele was mix of time share owners (mostly retirees, it seemed), families and others. Most chose to spend time at the hotel’s freshwater and saltwater pools rather than making the trip to the private island. We liked the private island. It was intelligently designed. Palm trees served as umbrellas for the chaise lounges. There were two beaches, an exercise facility with a tennis court, a restaurant / bar, a tropical bird enclosure, a beach store and a water sports activities center. It wasn't that crowded in high season. The reason for this must have been the airport. We were literally yards away from it. In the afternoon, when traffic was its busiest, we could hear and feel the jets thunder. Some people could adapt (I took a nap for example). The Beach Tower was not immune to the noise - it was just not as intense as on the private island. The only restaurant at the Beach Tower was The Captain's Table, an outdoor restaurant in the pool area. We had breakfast there everyday (it came with the room) and one evening meal. Unless you are a fan of buffets, stay away from the evening meals. We went to a "Mexican fiesta". The variety was limited and all the hot dishes were bland. They ran out of the Corona beer that was advertised at half price. There were franchise restaurants nearby (Wendy's, Sbarro, and Subway - if that is your thing) as well as “local” restaurants (Italian, German, Chinese, Sushi) - nothing to write home about. Downtown had some good choices if you want to spend the money (Chez Mathilde was worth it). 2 users found this review helpful. 0 found this review unhelpful. Did you find this helpful? Location, Location, Location! Visited: September 2002 Posted by trf0403 We had a great stay at the Renaissance for our honeymoon. We had an oceanfront suite in the Beach Tower and it was wonderful. We could watch the sunsets from our huge balcony, as well as the cruise ships departing. The pool was very nice, as was the private island. This was a great choice for folks who don't want to be on the beach all day. There were so many restaurants next to the hotel that we did not eat at the resort very often. The mid and high-rise resorts didn't have near the choices of dining or shopping nearby that the Renaissance did. We rented a jeep for 3 days from the onsite Thrifty agent to see some other sites. Snorkeling at Baby Beach was awesome. The hotel had a De Palm Tour desk set up and we did the sunset cruise and rover tour with them. Both were fabulous. The hotel concierge was super and took good care of us. I'd stay at this resort again and highly recommend it. 1 users found this review helpful. 0 found this review unhelpful. Did you find this helpful? We had a wonderful time - again. Visited: August 2002 Posted by nataline We are going back June 2003 - just the two of us. My family has been to this resort four times in the last six years. The grandchildren are clamoring to go again, so we will probably visit in August, too. The children love it as a "hi"p place with built-in babysitters (us). But we love it, too, for its peacefulness and the huge rooms that accommodate families. Aruba - and especially Sonesta (we still remember that name) - is a great place for the entire family. The beach, the pool, the private island and restaurants of all kinds are all so near. Oh, what a vacation! Try it - you'll love it. 0 users found this review helpful. 0 found this review unhelpful. Did you find this helpful? We had the best vacation ever. Visited: December 2001 Posted by ANYUCI11 Our family had the best experience at the Aruba Sonesta Beach Resort. It was the perfect combination of fun and relaxation, ending as the perfect family vacation for my husband, me, our son (25) and our daughter (21). My favorite dinner show was the "Let's Go Latin", which I would like so much to order a copy of. Thank you for the ten days in paradise. We will come back to the Aruba Sonesta Beach Resort. 1 users found this review helpful. 0 found this review unhelpful. Did you find this helpful?