On this episode of One Happy Podcast Maggie and I continue our “Planning an Aruba Vacation” series, with the latest episode being about packing for your trip.  Although Maggie and I always travel together we have two very different packing styles.  Her’s is to meticulously plan out each and every step and then bring something for every possible contingency.  My packing style is to bring what you feel you’ll use and if it’s not enough… you make it enough.

While we all know the basics of packing, there are items that each of us likes to have on vacation with us. Depending on your likes and dislikes these specialty items can greatly increase what you bring along.  For us, it almost doesn’t matter since we use Southwest airlines.  Southwest allows us to check two pieces of luggage completely free.  However if you are flying on a different airline, chances are you will want to be a bit more careful.  Our specialty items list is comprised of things such as cameras, Kindles, a Bluetooth speaker and other entertainment type items.  What are yours?

Another wrinkle that we have to consider on our Aruba vacations is provisioning for the home we rent.  Most rentals do not stock the items you’ll need during your stay.  So for our stay, at the beginning, we always make it a point to stop at Lings for supplies.  Things like toilet paper, paper towels, and some cleaning supplies are all necessary.  We also like to pick up food items for breakfasts and some lunches.

On this episode of One Happy Podcast you will hear about:

• Our different styles of packing for vacation
• What we bring along that isn’t exactly standard
• What supplies come with the home we rent
• Things we purchase for the home upon arrival
• What we like to bring from home as well as items we pick up upon our arrival in Aruba

Eight things you may want to seriously consider when packing for Aruba:

• Aruba is a very casual island so you don’t need as many “nice” clothes as you would elsewhere.
• Despite evening temperatures routinely being in the mid 80’s some restaurants are on the chilly side.  You may want to bring a light sweater
• Bring sunscreen as it can be very expensive while on the island, especially if you are planning to purchase in the hotel gift shop
• Remember to bring your bug spray.  Zika is on the island so do what you can to protect yourself
• Does the place you are staying have laundry facilities
• Although the sand in Aruba is talcum soft, you may still want to bring water shoes along since not all beaches are created equal.  Also, some forms of sea life may be harmful if stepped on.
• If you plan on doing laundry while on vacation it may be easier to bring your own
• If your checked luggage gets lost for the first day will you have what is necessary to ensure the day is not a dud

Products talked about on this episode:

• Keep Your Stuff Safe bag
• Papasan Float
• Portable Luggage Scale

When we visit Aruba, renting a vehicle is not an option.  For our upcoming vacation in July, we are just now going through the process of choosing an agency for our rental.  Normally, we rent a jeep from Royal Aruba but this trip we are switching things up a bit.  This time, instead of renting a Jeep we are looking to downsize to a compact car.  The last visit our Jeep needed to be repaired and our replacement was a Kia Picanto.  Driving that little matchbox car around the island was a very different experience but not unpleasant at all.  Also a couple of months ago, on a trip, we had a Chevy Spark as a rental and drove that 5 hours from Atlanta to Pensacola, Florida.  It was actually a lot of fun.  So this trip to Aruba instead of a big old gas guzzling Jeep we are going for the go-kart.

This episode is me exploring our options for rental car agency.  I went to visitaruba.com to look at their list of rental car agencies.  From that list, I eliminated the large chains like Hertz and Avis.  I didn’t have a reason for eliminating those agencies I just want to go with someone local.  The requirements I had was an agency that rented to vacationers not staying at a resort because some do have that rule.  I am also looking for a good combination of customer service and price.  Sending the email gives me a chance to test the service and I am using the prices listed on their websites for an apple to apple comparison.  Please note that the price listed on the website may not be the actual cost of the rental but was the only fair way for me to compare different sites.  Also, just because I do love tooling around Aruba in a big Jeep I also looked at the prices on Jeeps… you never know.

• A comparison between 10 different Aruba car rental agencies
• How a website glitch impacts customer service
• A rule some car rental agencies have that may keep you from being able to use them
• How much it will cost for us to rent a vehicle for 8 days
• A few reasons why you may want to consider renting a vehicle if you never have
• Us struggling with the decision of renting a small car over a Jeep

• Amigo Car Rental
• • Nonresort rental okay
  • Email Response less than 3 hours
  • Cost of a Kia Picanto or similar vehicle 233
  • Cost of a Jeep 857
• Jay's car rental
• • Nonresort rental okay
  • Email Response less than 3 hours
  • Cost of a Kia Picanto or similar vehicle 205
  • Cost of a Jeep 514
• More 4 less Car Rental
• • Cost of a Kia Picanto or similar vehicle 228
  • Cost of a Jeep 600
• Optima Car Rental Aruba
• • Nonresort rental okay with a safe driveway
  • Email Response less than 3 hours
  • Cost of a Kia Picanto or similar vehicle 224
  • Didn’t see a jeep on their website
• Aruba Royal Car Rental
• • Nonresort rental okay
  • 204 Picante
  • 502 Jeep
• Super car rental Aruba
• • Nonresort rental okay
  • Cost of a Kia Picanto or similar vehicle 257
  • Cost of a Jeep 565
• Top Drive Aruba
• • Nonresort rental okay
  • Took nearly 24 hours (longest)
  • Cost of a Kia Picanto or similar vehicle 258
  • Cost of a Jeep 797
  • Special note not sure if the website has a glitch but it says renting a can-am UTV would cost me 7,260 dollars for the week.  
• Value Aruba
• • Nonresort rental okay
  • Took nearly 24 hours
  • Cost of a Kia Picanto or similar vehicle 251
  • Cost of a Jeep 680

Eliminated

• smart rent a car
• • The email got bounced back
• Easy car rental
• • The email got bounced back

Make sure you tune into the next episode of One Happy Podcast as we discuss packing.  Learn what we take along on our trips and what we purchase after we arrive.  If you have never had a private rental and are looking into one, you’ll want to know what necessities you’ll have to purchase upon arrival.

Have you ever wondered what it would be like to rent a home or condo on Aruba?  Well if you have this is the show for you.  On episode 53 of One Happy Podcast Maggie and I are going to be talking about we find and rent vacation homes in Aruba.  While this isn’t an episode that everyone will use, I believe it’s one that everyone will find interesting.  It’s chock full of information about the process of renting a vacation home in Aruba.

During this 40 minute episode, we go through our entire Aruba vacation rental evolution from being newbies to the seasoned vets we have become.  What I think makes this particular episode so useful is we go over not only some of the tools we use but the things we look for in a rental.  It’s actually a summarized account of what we actually did.  So if you are someone who may one day want to rent a private residence in Aruba this is a great place to start.  In the future, we will do more detailed episodes focusing on the different aspects of renting but this is a great overview.

On this episode of One Happy Podcast you will hear about:

• Our first ever rental on the island of Aruba
• Why the relationship with the person you are renting from can be one of the most important you make on the island
• Customer service expectations
• Why you should “interview” the owner
• Our experiences renting at both Eagle and Palm Beach

An outline of this episode:

• Our first rental at Oceania
• • The process of finding the rental
  • Investigating the owners
  • What the Oceania Condo was like
  • Why we don’t rent there anymore
• Our Current rental in Palm Beach
• • Why we choose the Palm Beach area
  • Reasons for choosing this rental
  • Interviewing owners
  • Becoming friends with the owners
• Possible future rental locations
• • Two possible locations
  • Advantages of Saveneta
  • Our wishlist for a future rental

In future episodes of this series we will be discussing:

• Renting a vehicle in Aruba (complete with comparisons) and exploring some sites
• Planning out our restaurant list as well as what to do for entertainment
• Packing for Aruba and planning out what to pick up on arrival
• Who knows what else

Places mentioned this episode of the show:

• VRBO
• Homeaway
• AirBnB
• Aruba Happy Rentals
• Onehappypodcast.com
• One Happy Podcast Facebook

This episode of One Happy Podcast the Officially Unofficial Podcast of the island of Aruba  is going to be a bit different from the norm.  Today Maggie and I are beginning part 1 of a multi-episode series about Planning a vacation to Aruba.  More specifically  on this introductory episode we discuss what goes into planning when to visit the island, how we book our tickets and deciding on where to stay.

It's kind of funny because when we plan the discussion goes so streamlined that you don’t realize what all goes into these decisions.  I guess once you graduate to Aruba regular status you have a pretty good routine down.  Even so I think it's interesting to hear how others arrive at their decisions.  Today we are deciding on the timing of the trip, which is probably the single most important piece of the puzzle.  We are also discussing how we decide on an airline, which is a large part of the expense.  Lastly, we discuss how we choose where to stay on a visit to Aruba.  These are all very important factors that need to be carefully considered when booking a vacation.

In future episodes of this series we will be discussing:

• The comparison between Resort, All-inclusive and Private Rentals
• Which area is best for your High rise, Low rise or Other
• How we found and booked our first (and subsequent) private rental
• What to pack for Aruba and what to pick up when you arrive
• and whatever else we can cram in there… so stay tuned.

On this episode of One Happy Podcast you will hear about:

• How to work and family schedules can impact when you visit Aruba
• How even with Aruba lying below the hurricane belt a major storm can still affect your vacation
• Why you should always have an ideal airfare price in mind
• An overlooked reason why you might need to purchase a timeshare
• Why early-bird dining may be something you want to look into
• Our reasons for going with a private rental but why we may choose a resort sometime in the near future.
• High Season or Low Season which one is for me?

An outline of this episode:

• Deciding on timing
• • Work schedules
  • Family schedules
  • When is your Timeshare
  • High and low season for Aruba

• How are we getting there
• • Deciding which airline
  • What time do you want to fly out
  • Which airport are you flying out of
  • Booking early vs booking late
  • Layovers and Hurricanes

• Where are we staying
• • Timeshares
  • All-inclusive
  • Resorts

Other links and resources mentioned this episode of the podcast:

• One Happy Podcast
• One Happy Podcast Facebook

Hello and welcome to this 51st episode of One Happy Podcast where I and my co-host Maggie take a look at Aruba early-bird dinner specials.  Very recently we booked another trip to the island and because we love to plan, have decided to attempt to shift our days forward.  What I mean by that is we want to get up about 2 hours earlier than normal, therefore doing everything else 2 hours earlier.  If all goes as planned our beach time, lunch time and dinner time will be something other than what we are used to doing.

On this episode of the podcast, we attempt to look at 10 different restaurants and their early-bird menus.  For those of you not familiar with early-bird specials, here is a breakdown.  Oftentimes restaurants will offer a portion of their menu as nightly specials for those who come in for dinner before a certain time. For example, a restaurant may want to increase traffic between the hours of 5pm and 7 pm, this is where an early-bird really comes in handy.  The restaurant will put together a limited menu of appetizer, entree, and dessert and sell them as a package deal, at a discount.  This  practice was called early-bird due to the same the early bird gets the worm… or in this case, the early bird gets the discount pricing.

Each of us look at 5 different Aruba restaurants that feature early birds and we describe and eventually attempt to choose which ones catch our attention.  This is an awesome 50-minute episode that will most likely open your eyes to a segment of dining in Aruba that you may have overlooked in the past.

• 10 awesome early evening dinner deals in Aruba
• A Palm Beach upscale restaurant making a move
• What Maggie and I plan on doing for at least a couple of dinners this trip
• A few dining terms you may have seen but possibly overlooked
• Why early-bird dining may be something you want to look into
• No less than 5 great places to eat grouper in Aruba

• Papillon restaurant Aruba
• Tango Argentine Grill
• Amuse Bistro
• Salt and Pepper at Arawak Gardens
• Taste of Belgium
• French Steakhouse at Manchebo
• Twist of Flavors
• Scala at Palm Beach
• Sole Mare Aruba
• Barney's Aruba

• One Happy Podcast

On today's episode of One Happy Podcast, we are tackling an issue that is near and dear to many of our hearts.  What do you do in Aruba after the sun goes down?  

Aruba is absolutely incredible during the daytime and even in the early evening.  Also, the culinary offerings available on the island are some of the best in the Caribbean.  However, it's been said that after dinner Aruba lags behind some of the other islands in the Caribbean.  

Now if you have been visiting for a while you are probably on your way to developing a network amongst locals.  But if you are relatively new to the island or if you are someone that likes to stay close to the resort your view of Aruba nightlife may be very different.  This episode of the show takes a look at some of the nightlife options available to tourists on the island of Aruba.

• Aruba Casinos
• The Kukoo Kunuku
• Karaoke in Aruba
• The Carubbian Festival
• Aruba Ray’s Comedy

• Where the best karaoke is on the island.
• What fun in a bottle means.
• The only place to find world class comedy on the island.
• How to get a taste of Carnival year round.

• Aruba Marriott Resort & Stellaris Casino
• Arubus
• Casa del Mar Beach Resort
• Casibari Cafe
• Eduardo's Beach Shack
• Kukoo Kunuku Party Bus
• La Cabana Beach and Racquet Club Aruba
• La Vista Restaurant at the Marriott
• Matthew's Beachside Restaurant Aruba
• Ricardo's Restaurant & Bar | Ricardo's Aruba
• The Mill Resort & Suites – Aruba
• The Pata Pata Bar
• Onehappypodcast.com - sign up for the newsletter

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Joining me on this 49th episode

We start off talking about a new

Cheryl and I also spend a bit of

On this episode of One Happy Podcast you will hear

Properties and Restaurants mentioned on this episode of

Joining me today on One Happy Podcast is a relative newbie to Aruba, David Cohen.  However despite having only been to the island a handful of times David is so far ahead of most visitors in one aspect.  They not only decided that Aruba was the place they would like to eventually retire to, David and Brenda actually purchased a home there.  

After having first visited the island on their engagement cruise, David and Brenda would return to the island to be married (which is a story in itself).  The next time, Aruba whispered in their ear to buy a timeshare, and they did, at the Playa Linda. Shortly thereafter Aruba made another suggestion, why don’t you buy a home here, and they did.  I guess it’s one of those things where when it feels right there is no use deliberating, you just make it happen, which is exactly what they did.

On this episode of the show we start out hearing about the process of getting married on the island.  Also David fills me in on how someone manages to go from first time visitor to purchasing a home in Aruba in three short years.  David tells the story of how they knew which of the nine houses they viewed was the right one.   He also gives a little advice that may be helpful to anyone who is thinking about purchasing real estate on the island.  We also talk about the activities David and Brenda enjoy while on island and it wouldn’t be a show without discussing which restaurants make the list.  

On this episode of One Happy Podcast you will hear about:

Properties and Restaurants mentioned on this episode of the show:

Links and Other Resources mentioned this episode

Joining me today on One Happy Podcast,  Aruba’s Officially Unofficial Podcast is 18 year Aruba veteran Janice Worters.  Janice and her husband Bill first discovered Aruba in 1998 on the recommendation of a friend.  On that initial visit, of course the fell in love and decided to return the following year.  That next trip in 1999 was the first time they laid eyes on the Costa Linda and knew immediately it was the right property for them.  Janice and Bill purchased a timeshare at the Costa Linda and have been calling it home ever since.

On this episode I speak with Janet about what her version of Aruba looks like.  We go from that initial visit all the way through her most recent vacation which took place just last month.  Along the way Janice and I discuss the wonderful people of Aruba, exploring the island, some of her favorite restaurants and also the possibility of an extended two or three month vacation to the island.

The interview itself takes just short of an hour and is chock full of both information and enthusiasm.  This episode of the podcast will be especially fun for those who have stayed at the Costa Linda before.  However even if you have never set foot onto that particular property you will want to give this episode a listen.  Janice’s love for all things Aruba shines through so bright that when this is over you will want to book a trip to Aruba immediately.  Who knows?  You may even want to book a stay at the Costa Linda for your next trip.

Today on One Happy Podcast I have a very special treat for you all.  I am being joined by a guest who is originally from South America but has been living in Aruba for the past 13 years.  Over the course of that time she has gone on a journey that has included getting married, raising a family and setting up a business of her own.  Many of you are probably familiar with this business as it’s brought joy to so many of our lives.  Of course I am talking about Gaby of Aruba’s Hand’s by Gaby.

If any of you have had the pleasure of meeting Gaby you would know that despite not being from Aruba she is the living embodiment of everything we love about the island.  This spirit that Gaby possesses comes through in the artwork she sells as jewelry on the island.  Gaby’s warmth, joy and happiness is directly translated to everything she makes.  In fact, it wouldn’t be a stretch to say that every piece of jewelry contains just a bit of Gaby inside.  

This interview which lasts about 50 minutes talks all about Gaby’s relationship with the island of Aruba.  Additionally we learn all about Aruba’s Hands and why the art she produces is so much more than just a souvenir.  You will learn about Gaby’s introduction to the island, how she met her husband and also about her family.  We talk about Aruba’s Hands and what that name means and why it is important.  In every civilization throughout history art has played such an important role in the identity of a culture… Aruba is no different.  On this 46th episode of One Happy Podcast Gaby does a fantastic job of explaining why if you love Aruba you owe it to yourself to take a piece of that art and culture home with you after vacation is over.

On This Episode of One Happy Podcast You Will Learn:

Contacting Gaby - So maybe you want to see some of Gaby’s work the next time you are on island.  Currently there are a number of ways to make this happen.  Gaby does shows 5 days a week at a number of the hotels in both the high rise and low rise section.  Below is her schedule as of 4/5/2016.  As mentioned in the episode you can also get in contact with her for better guidance.

As mentioned you can also contact her via her Facebook Page Aruba’s Hands by Gaby

Links and Resources Mentioned on this episode of the show:

Also if you would like to be included in the Friend’s of One Happy Podcast Facebook Group send me an email at [email protected] and I can get you in there.