Accommodation: Where to stay in Curacao

Curacao provides a huge selection of accommodations to suit most tastes and budgets, in a number of very different areas / locations. Hopefully the quick overview below will be a good starter for 10 for your planning.

The Dive Bus is based in the Willemstad area, close to Curacao Seaquarium and Breezes / Sunscape Hotel. Our pick up and drop off service covers these accommodations in the Willemstad area.

The Dive Bus is no longer offering accommodation onsite at Ocean Apartments because diving is a LOT more fun than doing laundry ;o) Instead, click here for accommodations in The Dive Bus pick up zone, ranked by proximity to The Dive Bus

1. Willemstad area

This is where you'll find The Dive Bus, in the south-east-ish of Curacao (click here to find The Dive Bus on gogglemaps and get directions on how to reach us).

• Downtown:
  
  Willemstad is not a specific place, but an area made up of small districts. The downtown districts are Otrabanda and Punda, one on either side of the main canal and reached by either the highest bridge in the Caribbean ('Juliana', vehicles only, no pedestrians - you'll see why when you see the bridge!), the pedestrian bridge (‘the swinging old lady’ or Queen Emma) or the free pedestrian ferry when the bridge is open for boat traffic to pass through.
  
  There are lots of shops downtown, increasingly more bars and restaurants (although not as many as you might expect in a main downtown area) and several hotels and other accommodation options.
  
  
• Seaquarium Beach (aka Mambo Beach, Cabana Beach, Kontiki Beach - same place, many names!)

This is one of the few 'tourist' areas, with quite a few bars, beaches and accommodations on or close to the beach. It gets its name from the Curacao Seaquarium at the far end of the beach, which is well worth a visit, and various bars and hotels on or close to the beach.

It's the liveliest area in which to stay, offering the most options for things to do on your doorstep, but it’s still relatively quiet and un-built up, not like South Beach Miami,  Benidorm or Aruba. This is where you'll find The Dive Bus - right opposite Breezes / Sunscape Hotel, close to Lions Dive, Curacao Seaquarium and Avilla Beach Hotel.

There are hardly any shops here but there’s a supermarket 3 minutes away by local bus, and it’s about 10-15 minutes to downtown by the same.

• Piscadera Bay

This is the other main tourist area, but quieter and further out of town than Seaquarium Beach, with fewer bars and restaurants nearby (without a rental car). The hotels tend to be a little more expensive in this area (Marriot, Hilton, Floris Suites) but are not bank-breakers.

There are no shops in here except those at the hotels, but most hotels run shuttles to and from downtown (15 mins to Otrabanda). Nearest grocery store is about 10 minutes drive away.

• Jan Thiel ("Yan Teel")
  

This area is undergoing a lot of development and a long overdue facelift, with a LOT of new accommodations and facilities now available.

The actual resort area of Jan Thiel has a private beach, restaurants, bars, spa, play area, tourist shops and a new (small but more than sufficient) supermarket (Albert Hein / Van den Tweel).

There are some lovely places to stay in Jan Thiel but unless you plan on staying at the resort for your entire vacation (definitely possible!) you'll need a rental car. It's quite a ways from anywhere and anything else and local transport definitely runs on island time...

On a map, Jan Thiel looks to be right next door to Seaquarium Beach and it is: – by boat. Land-lubbers will find it’'s about 10-15 minutes (up to 30 in 'rush hours') drive away and about 20 minutes drive downtown (Punda).

 

2. 'Out West'

This covers the rest of the island to the West of downtown, which is quite a large area but much less densely populated. Tourist accommodation options are increasing almost weekly, and you'll most definitely need a rental car if you're staying in this area.

• Sunset Waters + Habitat Curacao

Sadly both of these dive resorts closed a few years ago.

• Westpunt

This is the furthest area away from anything and anywhere else on the island. Go here for total isolation and relaxation away from it all, quite literally. The only major hotel here is the Kura Hulanda Lodge, but there are an increasing number of other accommodations also available.

We run Dive Bus trips out West but we don't offer pick ups in this area. If you're thinking of staying out West, you can just meet up with us on site or follow the Bus...