Dh and I always wanted to take the helicopter tour, but had a tough time justifying the expense. This year we decide to bite the bullet and in lieu of exchanging gifts for our wedding anniversary, do the helicopter tour instead. Thursday morning was our helicopter tour of the island. There is only one operator on the island, Aruba Heli Tours. We decided to reserve the first tour of the day at 10 a.m. in order to have the rest of the day at the beach.
Christian was our pilot and tour guide. We felt it was well worth the extra money for the island tour versus the beach tour. The island tour begins at the helipad at the marina in Oranjestad. We headed north and saw Druif, Eagle, Palm Beach, Malmok, Arashi and beyond. We out over the wreck of the Antilla for a very unique view. From there it was on around the lighthouse and Tierra del Sol Country Club with all of it's palatial homes, flying along the northeast coast all the way up to the Aruba Drag Raceway Park.
Christian then took us back towards the west coast with a view of the refinery, heading back northward over the barrier islands towards to Oranjestad over Savaneta and past the airport, finally land back in Oranjestad. The color of the water during this portion of the flight was just as breathtaking as it is over Palm Beach. The tour was well worth the money even if only a once in a lifetime experience.
Through 17 visits to Aruba, this ranks in the top 3 excursions we have taken. The other 2 being Tranquilo and the Kini Kini ATV tour.
Our photos:
Aruba Island Helicopter Tour Oranjestad to Palm Beach
Northern End of Island- Fisherman's Huts to Natural Bridge
Eastern Coastline South of Natural Bridge to Bachelors Beach
Western Coastline from Southern End to Oranjestad
