Is Palm Beach in Aruba public?

Yes. Every beach on the island is public by law, the sand in front of the hotels included. Hotel setups are for hotel guests, and a few sections are hotel leasehold. Bring your own umbrella or rent one, and use the public sand.

Palm Beach or Eagle Beach?

Palm Beach if you want bars, piers, water sports and your hotel 20 meters from the water. Eagle Beach if you want width, quiet and the fofoti trees. The water is calm at both. They're 4 km apart, 5 minutes by taxi.

Can you snorkel at Palm Beach?

Not from the sand; the bottom is sand all the way out. Snorkel boats from the strip anchor at Malmok, Boca Catalina and the Antilla wreck, 4 to 5 km north. The Arusun sail is $63.

Where do you park at Palm Beach?

Free spots between the Hyatt and the Barceló and along J.E. Irausquin Boulevard across from the RIU. Come early for them. The malls across the road have paid lots. Arashi and Eagle have free lots if you'd rather drive on.

How do I get to Palm Beach from the cruise port?

It's 7.5 km by road. A taxi takes about 10 minutes at the fixed rate. Arubus line 10A leaves the Oranjestad terminal on weekdays, mostly 20 minutes apart, and runs the whole strip for $2.60. The catamaran piers are stops on the way.

Is Palm Beach crowded?

The middle stretch is the busy part through the day. The north end past the Ritz-Carlton is quieter, and early mornings are quiet everywhere. Check the ship schedule for your day.

Palm Beach, Aruba: public access, palapas, parking, piers

Map

Where is Palm Beach

12.5748° N, 70.0490° W Directions in Google Maps Apple Maps OpenStreetMap

How to get there

By taxi from the port About 10 minutes at the fixed island rate. Name your hotel or a pier; every driver knows the strip.
By bus Arubus line 10A runs the whole strip from the Oranjestad terminal for $2.60 a ride. On weekdays it leaves from 6:15 a.m. to 6:10 p.m., and most departures are 20 minutes apart. On weekends it's hourly. Check the timetable for your day and get off at your hotel's name.
By car Free spots between the Hyatt and the Barceló, plus the curb along J.E. Irausquin Boulevard across from the RIU. Come early for them. The malls have paid lots, and you check the signs before you leave the car.

At a glance

Palm Beach at a glance

From the cruise terminal	7.5 km (4.7 miles) by road; about 10 minutes by taxi
From Eagle Beach	4 km (2.5 miles) north by road; about 5 minutes by taxi
Water	calm and shallow a long way out. Check the depth as you go in
Entry	sand all the way; the piers have ladders
Snorkeling	nothing off the beach. The catamarans to Malmok, Boca Catalina and the Antilla leave from the piers here
Shade	palm trees and the hotels' palapas. Hotel setups are for hotel guests, and some sections are hotel leasehold. On the public sand you bring an umbrella or rent one
Parking	free spots between the Hyatt and the Barceló and on J.E. Irausquin Boulevard across from the RIU; paid lots at the malls. Check the signs before you leave the car
On the shore	beach bars on the sand and on De Palm Pier, restaurants across the road, water sports huts every few hundred meters
Ship days	check the ship schedule and come early if you want space; the north end past the Ritz-Carlton is the quieter part

From the desk

"Which pier is the boat?" is the question I'd settle before you leave the room, and the answer is on your ticket. The strip has piers and a beach hut for every operator. Read the meeting point and the check-in time on your ticket, and leave time to get there. Nobody waits.

The beach

What Palm Beach is like

Palm Beach is the strip. Eagle Beach has the width and the trees; Palm Beach has the hotels on the sand, a row of them from the Divi Phoenix to the Ritz-Carlton. In between you get piers with bars at the end, water sports huts and parasail boats. The water is calm because the strip sits in the lee of the trade wind. It stays shallow a long way out, but check the depth as you go and keep kids close.

The sand at Palm Beach is public, and that includes the stretch in front of the Marriott. What isn't public is the gear. The hotels set up palapas and loungers for their own guests, and a setup that's been placed counts as taken even when it's empty. A few sections are hotel leasehold, and the tourism authority's 2026 beach guidelines keep those for hotel guests. Walk in with your own umbrella and a towel, and use the public sand. If you're not sure where it starts, ask a beach attendant.

The strip changes by the hour. Early on it's joggers and the fishermen at the Hadicurari huts at the north end. The loungers fill through the morning. From 5 the sunset crowd walks out on the piers with a drink. Kitesurfers work the north end at the fishermen's huts when the wind is up.

Tours

Tours that start at Palm Beach, or pick you up here

Snorkeling tours 12 tours · from $55 per person

Our list has 7 boat trips and 5 shore snorkeling tours. The Arusun sail to the Antilla and Boca Catalina is $63. Check your ticket for the meeting point and the return time.

Scuba diving 8 tours · from $76 per person

Red Sail's dive boat leaves from Palm Beach: 2 tanks at 9 a.m. for $95, or a single afternoon tank. Check pickup for your first dive, since Aruba Bob's course has you meet at the dive center.

Beach photoshoots 4 tours · from $60 per person

Our list has 4 photo sessions. Check the location for yours before you book. Palm Beach gives you the piers and the palms at sunset, with the strip's lights coming on behind you.

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