International Travel News: A nice breeze in Curacao

In January '04 we spent 15 nights at the beautiful Curacao Marriott Beach Resort & Emerald Casino (phone [599-9] 736-8800, fax [599-9] 462-7502 or visit www.marriotthotels.com/ curmc). This 5-star resort is first Class. We paid $229 for a nice double with a beautiful view of the blue and green waters of the Caribbean.

The open-air lobby, typical of hotels in this area, was so pleasant to walk through anytime of the day or night.

The resort's open-air Palm Cafe faced the lovely pool area and Caribbean and offered breakfast, lunch and dinner. The Emerald Bar & Grill was also excellent, serving lunch and dinner. The main restaurant was Portofino, serving Italian fare and offering either inside or outside dining. And at the Seabreeze, a swim-up bar, one could eat and drink while remaining cool; it was happy hour here every afternoon from 4:30 to 6.

The service in all of these restaurants was excellent.

One could actually stay at the resort the whole time, as the water activities were numerous. The sandy beach had many tiki huts to keep guests out of the sun all day. The snorkeling was excellent, with many kinds offish to look at.

After a workout in the fitness room, guests could use the locker room hot tub (one for ladies and another for men). The daily attendants were so helpful to this elderly couple.

All in all, it was a marvelous vacation and we will return to this Marriott again in the near future.

In the town of Willemstad we took the city tour, an hour-long tram ride through the market and shopping area--excellent. The cost was $10 per person, and we made our reservations at the Concierge's desk at the Marriott. We also saw the Mikve Israel-Emanuel Synagogue, the oldest in the Western Hemisphere, dedicated in 1732. We would highly recommend this tour. We also visited the Senior & Co. Liqueur Distillery and the Amstel Brewery.

One of the highlights of our trip was visiting Fort Nassau, high above Willemstad. The food in the restaurant was excellent, and its view of the harbor and city was wonderful--a must. Our two excellently prepared lunches included scallops and shrimp, wine and two bottles of Amstel plus a huge chocolate ice cream sundae. The cost was $58 including tip.

We also ate at Hotel Kura Hulanda, located in Otrobanda, a recently renovated area that is just superb--another "must"; it was like a fairyland. The area features the Kura Museum on African artifacts, four great restaurants, three bars, a courtyard with a piano player and a tremendous atmosphere.

We ate at the main restaurant, also the most elegant, Astrolab Observatory Restaurant (no shorts allowed). Our two superb dinners of pompano and haddock garnished with sliced plantains and vegetables cost $89 including wine and tip.

A large channel separates Willemstad into two towns, Otrobanda and Punda. To cross this channel, one can walk the swinging pontoon bridge called the Queen Emma Pontoon Bridge, or the "Swinging Old Lady." Emma was the great grandmother of the present queen of the Netherlands, Beatrix. When the bridge is open, you can take the free ferry.

Shopping here is not as plentiful as in Aruba, but it is adequate. We found the New Amsterdam Store on Gomerzpein full of Hummels, Lladro, linens and jewelry to our liking. The staff in these stores were so pleasant. By the way, U.S. dollars were accepted in every restaurant and store in Willemstad--no need to purchase Dutch guilders.

In Punda, we used the Out Cafe's Internet computers to send e-mails back to our family. The charge was only $6 for over 30 minutes.

We rented a car from Hertz at the Marriott for about $32 a day. A taxi to Willemstad cost about $15 for two persons, one way, so renting was our best option. This also allowed us reliable transportation to the Curacao Airport when we had a very early flight home.

We highly recommend Curacao for your next vacation. The daily temperatures were in the mid-80s, with a low of 74 in the evening. We always had a nice breeze off the Caribbean as we slept with our door open in our second-floor room.

DOUG & JUDY BARNETT

Sarasota, FL