Travel

I can't say enough good things about the half-day Natural Pool Tour with ABC Tours.

The previous day, we had booked a Natural Pool tour through our hotel with De Palm.

I can't say enough good things about the half-day Natural Pool Tour with ABC Tours.

The previous day, we had booked a Natural Pool tour through our hotel with De Palm tours. Our concierge asked us if we wanted to try ABC instead, but we had a friend who recommended De Palm so we booked with them. We should have listened to the concierge, as the next morning De Palm forgot to pick us up! Our concierge called ABC immediately and they held the tour for us so we could go that morning. The bus driver swung through the hotel and dropped us at ABC and soon we were off on an unforgettable day.

A fellow tourist drove us and his family as part of the convoy. Later we discovered that my wife went to college with the mom and dad - a crazy coincidence! We stopped first at a beautiful natural bridge followed by an old gold mill. We were given enough time to explore both locations, and Joal and Jerwin provided informative historical information about the sites and about Aruba in general.

After the gold mill, we entered Arikok National Park and the real off-roading began. The bumps and rocks made us feel like we were on a roller coaster, but we never felt out of control. We stopped at a beautiful beach and Joal surprised us with the opportunity to jump off of a cliff 30 feet to the ocean below. It was thrilling, and definitely the highlight of the tour while certainly dangerous, the tour guides worked together to make sure everyone who wanted to do it was safe. Please listen to them when they advise that it is only for strong swimmers.

After that thrill, we headed to the Natural Pool. As a prime tourist destination, the pool was crowded and chaotic, but our guides made sure everyone got in and out safely. We ended the day with a very good included lunch back at the tour headquarters. I would say the only minor blip was that it took a while to get the bills figured out as everyone ordered drinks and those are extra to the included lunch.

Overall, it was a fantastic experience. I'm so glad De Palm forgot us and we went with ABC instead.