Eagle Beach Aruba: The Honest Guide From a Local Host

Every travel magazine has already told you Eagle Beach, Aruba, is one of the best beaches in the world. Fine. Here is what they do not tell you: where to park, where to sit if you are not a hotel guest, which afternoons the current turns, and what to eat when you leave. Ghislaine has walked this beach for years, usually at 7 am before the chairs come out.

Eagle Beach and the low rise hotels

Eagle Beach is the wide stretch of white sand south of Palm Beach, between the Divi Links area and the Manchebo headland. The sand is finer and the beach is deeper than Palm Beach, often 60 to 80 metres from road to water. Across J.E. Irausquin Boulevard sit the low rise hotels: Amsterdam Manor, Bucuti and Tara, Manchebo, Costa Linda, La Cabana, the Boardwalk Boutique Hotel a little inland. Nothing tall. The lack of high rises is what keeps it quiet.

The water is calm and clear close in, with a sandy bottom and no coral. It shelves gently, which is why families like it. Fifty metres out the floor drops and on a windy afternoon the current can run along the beach. Lifeguard towers mark the swim zones.

The fofoti trees

The two trees leaning toward the sea are fofoti trees (Conocarpus erectus), not divi divi trees, though everyone mixes them up. They are protected and they are the most photographed thing on the island. Early morning is the only time you will get a photo without strangers in it. The light from the west in the late afternoon is better for colour but the beach is full by then.

Eagle Beach parking and how to get there

Park on the sand side of the boulevard, free, in the pull off bays. On a February Sunday the bays near the trees fill by 10 am; walk a bit north toward La Cabana and there is always space. Buses on the Arubus hotel route stop every 15 to 30 minutes in front of the resorts.

There are no public toilets or showers on the beach itself. The hotel beach bars will usually let you use the restroom if you buy a drink.

The shade question

Here is the thing nobody says plainly: the thatched palapas and the rows of loungers in front of each hotel are set out by that hotel for its guests. Legally the beach is public to the high water line and you can lay a towel anywhere. In practice, if you take a Bucuti palapa the staff will ask you to move.

Options for non hotel guests:

• Bring your own umbrella. Our homes have beach umbrellas and chairs for guests, use them.
• Rent chairs and an umbrella from the vendors near the Divi end, usually $10 to $15 for the day.
• Go early. Before 9 am the unmarked palapas at the public end near the Eagle Beach car park are first come, first served.
• Sit under a fofoti tree. Small shade, great view.

Eagle Beach turtle nesting season

Eagle Beach is the island’s main nesting beach for leatherback, green, hawksbill and loggerhead turtles. Nesting runs from about March through September, hatchlings from May into November. Tortuga Aruba, the volunteer foundation, patrols at dawn and marks every nest with stakes and tape.

What that means for you: do not move the markers, do not dig near them, and if you are on the beach at night, keep flashlights and phone screens pointed away from the sand. Hatchlings follow light and will head for the road instead of the sea. If you see a turtle coming up at night, stay back and call the Tortuga Aruba hotline, the number is on the signs.

Eating near Eagle Beach

• Passions on the Beach, in front of Amsterdam Manor: tables in the sand at sunset. Book ahead in high season.
• Elements at Bucuti and Ike’s Bistro at Manchebo: the two best hotel restaurants on this stretch, both fine for outside guests with a reservation.
• The Dutch Pancakehouse by the Alhambra casino: breakfast or a cheap lunch, Dutch pancakes the size of a wheel.
• Tulip Caribbean Brasserie and Screaming Eagle on the boulevard: dinner within a 10 minute walk.
• Coffee: Café Baristas at Alhambra, or walk 10 minutes inland to Noord.

For a supermarket, Super Food Plaza in Noord is 5 minutes by car and has everything, including a decent wine section.

Best time to go to Eagle Beach

Weekday mornings from 7 to 10 am are empty and the water is glassy. Weekend afternoons draw local families with coolers and speakers, which is a nice scene but not quiet. The wind usually picks up around noon and drops again before sunset. Sunset is straight out to sea, every day of the year, and it is the best free thing on the island.

Eagle Beach vs Palm Beach, in one line

Eagle Beach is for the beach. Palm Beach is for everything around the beach. If you cannot decide, read our comparison.

Stay nearby

Our Hideout Dream Big Suite and Hideout Happiness Suite are a short walk or two minute drive from Eagle Beach, with umbrellas and chairs included. Ocean View 2BR on the Palm Beach strip is 7 minutes north if you want restaurants on foot. Oasis Hideaway in Gold Coast is the quiet pool option 15 minutes away. See them at /stays/.

Questions people ask

Is Eagle Beach free to use?

Yes. All beaches on Aruba are public, including the sand in front of the resorts. Parking along the road is free too. Chairs and palapas in front of hotels are generally reserved for their guests.

Can you swim at Eagle Beach?

Yes, the water is usually calm near the shore and shallow for the first 20 to 30 metres. On windy days the current beyond that can pull sideways, so stay in front of the lifeguarded zones and keep kids close.

When do sea turtles nest on Eagle Beach?

Nesting runs roughly March through September and hatchlings emerge from May into November. Tortuga Aruba marks nests with stakes and tape. Do not touch the markers and keep lights off the sand at night.

Where are the fofoti trees on Eagle Beach?

The two famous leaning trees are in front of the low rise hotels, roughly between Amsterdam Manor and the Bucuti resort. Walk the beach and you cannot miss them.