HOLIDAY INN RESORT ARUBA

Holiday Inn Resort Aruba occupies some 400 metres of sand on Palm Beach, one of the widest stretches of the strip, with 590 rooms across three buildings. Three outdoor pools plus a children's wading pool, a free kids' club with supervised activities, a casino, a full spa and seven dining outlets, from Da Vinci Ristorante to Agave Mexican Cuisine. Parking and wifi are free. This is the address that puts Palm Beach within reach of families and groups, with the whole neighbourhood within walking distance.

Holiday Inn Resort Aruba at a glance

The resort spreads 590 rooms across three low buildings set back from about 400 metres of Palm Beach, on one of the widest stretches of sand on that strip. Three outdoor pools, a separate wading pool for small children, a supervised kids' club at no extra cost, a full-service spa, a casino and seven places to eat or drink sit inside the property. Self-parking and wifi come with the room. Guests have ranked it 4.3 out of 5 across more than 8 500 TripAdvisor reviews, which puts it at the top of its category on Palm Beach.

What makes this address work is the ratio between what you get and what you pay. The buildings are older than the towers next door and the rooms are decorated simply, yet the beach frontage, the pool deck and the staff are the equal of anything on the strip. Travellers who care more about where they wake up than about marble in the lobby tend to leave happy.

Is it an all-inclusive?

The rate the hotel itself sells is a room-only rate. Meals and drinks are paid as you go, in the seven outlets on site or in the dozens of restaurants within a ten-minute walk. Several tour operators, however, package the same rooms with an all-inclusive plan sold separately, which is why you may see both formulas for the same address.

Which one serves you better depends on how you travel. A family that eats breakfast at the resort, grabs lunch at the beach bar and heads into Palm Beach or Oranjestad for dinner usually comes out ahead on the room-only rate, because Aruba's dining scene is one of the reasons people choose the island. A group that wants to settle the food question once and never think about it again is better served by the packaged plan. Our advisors compare the two on the exact dates you have in mind, since the gap moves with the season. Call 1 866 628-6241 and ask for the side-by-side.

Palm Beach or Eagle Beach: what actually changes

Aruba's two famous beaches sit a few kilometres apart and attract different holidays. Palm Beach, where this resort stands, is the animated one: high-rise hotels in a row, a boardwalk of restaurants and shops, watersports operators, casinos and live music after dark. You walk out of the lobby and you are in the middle of things.

Eagle Beach is wider, quieter and lined with low buildings and the famous divi-divi trees bent by the trade winds. It suits couples looking for space and calm. Neither is better; they answer different questions. If your idea of a good evening involves choosing among twenty restaurants without getting into a car, Palm Beach is the right side of the island for you.

Which room to choose

Rooms are distributed among three buildings and the differences matter more than the categories suggest. Standard rooms in the older wings are the value play, well kept and comfortable, with a garden or partial view. Rooms in the renovated tower carry more recent finishes and higher floors. Ocean-view categories face the water squarely, and on Palm Beach that view includes the sunset, which is the reason many guests pay for it.

Families should ask about the layouts with two double beds and about connecting rooms, which exist but move quickly in high season. Balconies are not universal across every category, so it is worth confirming that detail before you book rather than discovering it on arrival.

Where you eat on site

Seven outlets cover most needs without leaving the property. Corals handles the buffet and the à la carte breakfast. Sea Breeze sits closer to the sand for lighter meals. Da Vinci Ristorante does Italian in a proper dining-room setting, and Agave Mexican Cuisine covers the other end of the register. Oceanside Bar and Grill is the feet-in-the-sand option for lunch and cocktails. The Palm Lobby Bar and Café, Puro Coffee and the gelato counter fill the gaps between meals.

Beyond the gate, the Palm Beach restaurant row starts within a two-minute walk. That proximity is the single strongest argument for staying on this stretch of coast: you are never captive to one kitchen.

Travelling with children

The kids' club runs supervised activities at no additional charge, which is rarer on Palm Beach than parents expect. Babysitting can be arranged for evenings. The wading pool gives small children their own water, away from the main deck, and the beach here shelves gently enough that toddlers can stand well out from shore.

The practical advantage of Palm Beach for families is that the calm, shallow water and the sand's width leave room for everyone. Sandcastles, snorkelling lessons and an afternoon nap under a palapa all fit into the same stretch of morning.

The pools, the beach and the casino

Three outdoor pools mean you can usually find a chair, even in February. The main deck is the social one, with the swim-up bar and the music; the others run quieter. Palapas and loungers line the sand, and the classic Aruban routine of claiming a shaded spot early in the morning applies here as everywhere on the strip.

The casino on site keeps roughly 186 machines and three tables, open late, and it draws a relaxed crowd rather than a serious one. The spa handles massages and treatments if the beach turns out to be too much sun.

Who this resort suits

It fits families who want a real beach, a free kids' club and the freedom to eat wherever they like. It fits couples who prefer spending on excursions, dinners and diving rather than on a suite. It fits repeat visitors to Aruba who already know the island and want a reliable base on the best part of Palm Beach.

Travellers whose priority is the newest room on the strip, or a small boutique property with forty rooms and total quiet, will be happier elsewhere on the island, and our advisors will say so plainly.

What to know before you book

Aruba sits outside the hurricane belt and enjoys steady trade winds year-round. Those winds are the island's air conditioning: they hold the humidity down, they keep the east-coast seaweed away from this shore, and they mask how strong the sun is. Sunscreen goes on more often than instinct suggests.

The island uses the Aruban florin, though US dollars circulate freely everywhere. Electrical outlets match the North American standard. Getting to Palm Beach from the airport takes roughly twenty minutes. For entry requirements and current government guidance, consult travel.gc.ca before departure.

Booking Holiday Inn Resort Aruba with an advisor

Room category, building, meal plan and the difference between a room-only rate and a packaged all-inclusive all change what this holiday costs and what it feels like. An advisor who knows the property sorts that out in one conversation instead of five tabs of comparison.

Reach a Voyages AquaTerra advisor at 1 866 628-6241, or explore our Aruba all-inclusive resorts, our Aruba travel guide and the full range of southern all-inclusive vacations.