Published on Nov, 2024
This Curacao private tour was a great day and a highlight of our trip.
Helvig was great to work with from pre-trip communication to showing up early for pickup right to the end of the day. As a lifelong resident, she is a wealth of knowledge on all things Curacao. She's willing to take you wherever you want and see whatever you want to see, but she's also available to make suggestions and point out additional options along the way.
Before our trip, we indicated that we wanted to hike Mount Christoffel but based on our ship's arrival time and the driving distance, Helvig suggested that this may be too late a start. We took her advice, and she was right. It would have been far too hot and take too much of our day. So, like I said, she's willing to listen but has good suggestions.
Instead, we started with a bit of a drive from the port to Shete Boka National Park for some amazing views and a little bit of trekking to the various coves. From there we took a quick visit to Grote Knipp to take a few pictures and dip our toes in the crystal blue water. After that, we visited a salt lagoon overlook with a quick stop to see wild flamingos.
At that point, we were ready for lunch and I mentioned my wife really likes fried plantains. Helvig made a few suggestions then called to make a reservation and verify that fried plantains were available. Lunch was awesome with great local food and a beautiful view of the Queen Emma bridge and downtown Willemstad.
Next was a walk through downtown with some light souvenir shopping. We only had one more request which was to tour the Curacao distillery and buy the traditional Blue Curacao liqueur, but Helvig suggested we enjoy the AC in the car and drive through the east side of the island. That was a great idea and we got to see a lot more including the newer (big money) housing being built in the Spanish Water district. We did finish up with a quick tour of the distillery before heading back to port.
Full day was about 8:30am until a little after 4pm.
If you've made it this far, don't hesitate to book this tour. Helvig is great. It's like having a knowledgeable local friend drive you around Curacao for a day and tell you all about the island and island life. Perfect, right?
