So you want to visit Flaming Island in Aruba but is it really worth it? You have seen photos of people feeding beautiful pink flamingos in Aruba and are expecting to see these beautiful birds walking along all of the beaches in Aruba. The first thing to be aware of is that these beautiful birds can only be found on the Renaissance Wind Creek Resorts private island. Although Flamingo Island in Aruba is private, we will share a couple of ways to get to the island and also if the island is really worth it.
Where is Flamingo Island?
Flamingo Island in Aruba, or Renaissance Island, is a private island associated with the Renaissance Wind Creek Resort in the downtown Oranjestad Aruba area. The island is the only location that you will find Flamingo’s as they aren’t native to Aruba and are not just roaming the beaches. Since it is a private island there is some planning that is required if you are looking forward to seeing these beautiful creatures.
How to get to Flamingo Island?
There are 3 options to get to Flamingo Island…
Option #1 – Book a stay at the Renaissance Resort. All guests are eligible to go to the private if they so choose. There is no additional fee as it is a benefit of staying at the hotel. There are 2 locations you can pickup the water taxi at the hotel, one is in the lobby of the Marina Hotel section (Adults only) next to the Starbucks. The other location is at the dock next to the Ocean Suites section (Family friendly option). It is then just a short boat ride (approximately 8 minutes) to the dock on the island.
Option #2 – Book a Spa treatment on the island. If you book a spa treatment at the Okeanos Spa on the island, you will also be able to spend the day on the island. This is a great option if you were looking to book a massage. Why not enjoy the sound of the waves while you relax. You can book an appointment here.
Option #3 – Book a day pass online. The passes are $125 per ticket and include the transportation to the island, lunch, and a drink from the Papagayu Bar & Grill or the Mangrove Beach Bar. For children ages 5-12, passes are $62.50. Just be aware that children are only allowed to visit Flamingo Island from 9am-10am as it is adults only. From 10am to the end of the day, children may enjoy Iguana Beach which is the family side of Renaissance Island.
The resort will release a limited number of day passes to those that are not guests on a daily basis. This is only if the hotel is below 80% occupancy. If the resort is 80% or higher, it will not release day passes to anyone other than guests. The number of available passes fluctuates based on the occupancy of the resort.
I recommend staying a night or two at the Renaissance. As this is going to ensure that you will have access to the island. If there are a few of you it is also the most economical as well. We stayed two nights at the hotel and enjoyed the island and the downtown area. We then moved to another hotel on Palm Beach so we could enjoy a different part of the island.
Things to do on Renaissance Island…
If you are with a group, celebrating a special occasion, or really want some shade you may be interested in reserving a cabana. There are cabanas at both Flamingo and Iguana Beach for groups of 4 or 6. A cabana for a group of 4 can be reserved for $425 and a group of 6 is $500. A 4 guest cabana will receive 2 bottles of Voss still water, 2 bottles of Voss sparkling water, bottle of sparkling wine, refreshing food amenity, personalized cabana butler service, towels, 2 water floats, and 2 full face-snorkeling masks. Keep in mind when booking the cabanas if you are traveling with children, you will only be able to book at Iguana Beach only where upon you will receive 2 kids snorkels as well. You can reserve your cabana here.
You can feed the Flamingos if you are on the island early enough. Bring some change for the machine with the food so that you can feed them.
The Red Sail Sports store provides floats, snorkeling gear, paddleboards, and kayaks at no extra cost. Rentals begin at 8:30am and continue until 4:00pm. Paddleboards and Kayaks are on a first come first serve basis.
There are chaise lounges available and towels available to all guests. There are plenty of spaces to relax for the day. Or find a relaxing hammock among the mangroves.
You can grab a cocktail and some food at the Mangrove Beach Bar at the Flamingo Island side and the Papagayo Bar & Grill on the Iguana Beach side. We walked over to the Iguana Beach side to check out the iguana’s and to also grab some lunch. Lunch was delicious. Aruba does tend to be a bit of a windy place due to the trade winds. So if the winds are a bit high, try and eat further back in the restaurant. We were finding that the sand was blowing so we chose to sit further back in the restaurant which ultimately a good choice.
So is Flamingo Island Worth it?
So let’s get back to the topic at hand, is Flamingo Beach really worth it? I would definitely say yes! It was a great experience that you won’t get in too many places and the island was beautiful. We truly enjoyed our day and would do it again. We would definitely recommend staying at the Renaissance Wind Creek Aruba Resort. It was a great resort, we started off our trip with two nights there and it was just a great way to kick off the trip.