In January 2025, my husband Jeremy and I went on an eight-day cruise from Miami, Florida to the ABC Islands, which are Aruba, Bonaire, and Curacao. It was our first time visiting Miami and these islands.
Travel Day & Miami
Our journey started at 2:30 am as we left Lake City to travel to the Minneapolis/St. Paul International Airport. We flew on Sun Country as we always try to fly on this airline because they donate all the flights for Minnesota Make-A-Wish trips including our son's wish trip.
After we landed in Miami and picked up our rental, Jeremy and I went to eat at World Famous House of Mac. Per the website World Famous House of Mac "is a renowned restaurant located in North Miami Beach, FL, known for its unique spin on traditional cuisine. The establishment is famous for its signature mac & cheese, along with other dishes like jerk salmon pasta and fried chicken & waffles ." Jeremy got the Philly Cheesecake Mac & Cheese and I got the Smoked BBQ Beef Mac & Cheese. It was the best mac & cheese that I have ever ate.
After lunch, we went to see the Wynwood Walls. The Wynwood Walls are a series of murals in Miami in the warehouse district of Wynwood. Wynwood is known for being an entertainment district, with artwork, restaurants, breweries, clothing stores, and dance venues, among other retail options.
After exploring Wynwood, we went and checked into our motel, Kompose Boutique Hotel Miami Airport. This was a newer hotel with great staff and modern decor. It was a great place to stay.
For dinner, that night, we went to Copper Blues Rock Pub & Kitchen in Doral. It was located at the CityPlace entertainment complex. CityPlace was beautiful at night, but we were not big fans of the restaurant. It only had ok food and bad service. The staff was too busy flirting with each other, then waiting on two 40ish years olds from Minnesota.
The next morning, we headed to Miami Beach. Traffic and parking are awful in Miami, and I was so glad that I researched where to park near the beach before we left Minnesota. Right after we started walking the beach path, it started pouring down rain and we got soaked. Just to get out of the rain, we got some food at a restaurant on Ocean Drive and then we had to stop at a souvenir store to purchase sweatshirts because we were cold from getting wet. Because of the rain, we did not want to continue walking along Ocean Drive, so we went to the World Erotic Art Museum. We were able to see a lot of interesting art, but half-way through the museum, the power went out and we had to leave. To get out of the rain again, we stopped at The Baked Bear and got some yummy cookies at The Baked Bear. The Baked Bear is known for their whole made ice cream sandwiches.
Our next stop in Miami, was Little Havana. Little Havana is a neighborhood of Miami and is named after Havana, the capital and largest city in Cuba. The neighborhood is centered around Calle Ocho (Southwest Eighth Street), a vibrant thoroughfare lined with Latin-inspired restaurants, bakeries, fruit stands, cigar shops, rum bars, art galleries and music venues. While exploring we went into shops, saw where they played chess and got some yummy Cuban food.
That night we just went back to our motel to rest and to repack to get ready to board the cruise ship on our next day.
Carnival Horizon
Before heading to the cruise terminal, we dropped off our rental car and went to find the shuttle. To our surprise, Hertz's did not have a shuttle, but according to their website they did. I knew they had Miami had a free trolley to the cruise terminal, but we were unable to find where we can get on it, so we found a hotel that had taxis out front and took one to the terminal. This was our first time cruising out of Miami and we both have said we enjoy cruising out of Port Canaveral better.
For this cruise, we were on the Carnival Horizon. Per the website "Carnival Horizon is a Vista-class cruise ship operated by Carnival Cruise Line. It is the 26th vessel in the Carnival fleet and is the second of Carnival's Vista class, which includes Carnival Vista and Carnival Panorama. The ship was built in 2018. It is a bold, beautiful ship with many activities, dining options, and bars and lounges. Some of its features include the new Bonsai Teppanyaki and Guy’s Pig & Anchor Bar-B-Que Smokehouse/Brewhouse."
This cruise was an eight-day cruise, and we got on the Horizon on a Saturday. Sunday and Monday were Sea Days, Tuesday we were in Aruba from 8 am to 10 pm, Wednesday we were in Bonaire from 8 am to 10 pm, Thursday we were in Curacao from 8 am to 5 pm, Friday and Saturday were two more Sea Days, and we were back in Miami on Sunday.
Over the next eight days, Jeremy and I did many activities including swimming, mini-golf, dancing, trivia, listening to music, table tennis, massages, eating, a brewery tour., and a lot more. We also went to the shows every night, the comedy club, and the military appreciation.
Aruba
We docked in Aruba at 8:00 in the morning, but Jeremy and I didn't get off until 10:00 as we had a couple message. I always book my spa treatment on a Port Day because it a lot cheaper than on a Sea Day.
Our plan for the day was to pick up our rental car and explore the island. Our Google Map didn't work on our phone, and we were unable to find a paper map, so we had to use my memory of looking at Google Map before going on this trip. The first thing we did was drive the 15 miles to San Nicolas to explore the town and the street art.
We then drive to Baby Beach to do some snorkeling. Per the VisitAruba.com "Baby Beach is located at the Southern tip of the island, just past San Nicolas, on the other side of the island from the popular hotel area. The clear turquoise water in this picturesque bay is warm, shallow, and is sheltered from the rough seas by a man-made breakwater. This beach is popular for sunbathing, snorkeling and the perfect hang-out for families as the water level is generally between knee and waist-deep, making it a perfect place for kids to swim." We only stayed a little bit because it was really windy and the sand was blowing everywhere.
We continued exploring the island and saw the large red anchor and wild donkeys. We were lucky and saw the sign for the Donkey Sanctuary Aruba and we were able to find it. At the sanctuary, we saw a lot of donkeys, a peacock, cats, and a gift store.
We then tried to find the Harley Davidson's store so Jeremy could get a pin for his motorcycle vest, but we were unable to locate the store. We then went back to the port area and walked around and shopped. Since it was Taco Tuesday, we went to Lucy's Retired Surfers Bar & Restaurant for some tacos and we both did the infamous scorpion shot. The shot was Tequlia with a dead scorpion, and it was hard to get down, but we both did it!
Bonaire
The next island we went to was Bonaire and at this island we rented a motorcycle from · Scuba Bikers Bonaire. If you are ever on this island and you have a motorcycle license, we recommend renting a motorcycle from Scuba Bikers Bonaire. William was wonderful to rent from as he met us at the cruise terminal and walked us to his shop and had a beer with Jeremy after we were done.
Bonaire is 24 miles long and the island is divided into two parts. The northern end of Bonaire is relatively mountainous, although its highest peak, Mount Brandaris, is only 790 feet. The southern part of the island is nearly flat and barely rises above sea level. A significant portion of this southern region is covered with sea water in process of evaporation for salt production. This area also contains Lac Bay with its large mangrove forest. The shoreline of Bonaire is dotted with lagoons and inlets, the largest of which is Goto Lake in the north. These lagoons and wetlands provide an excellent habitat for flamingos.
We started on the southern side of the island and we saw, the pink salt pans and slave huts, flamingos, wind surfers, donkeys, and Sorobon Beach, where we stopped for a drink. We then headed to the northern side and saw the mountain, 1000 steps, and we stopped at Rincón. In Rincón, we went to The Cadushy Distillery and got some Island Liqueurs. Since we went had time left we decided to go around the southern loop again before we had to return the motorcycle. Everything that we saw on this island was amazing and it was our favorite island on this trip.
Before we returned the motorcycle, we were supposed to fill up the gas, but with only four gas station on the island, we had no luck finding any of them. We did find the local supermarket where we stopped and got some Dutch food and Bonaire's salt.
Curacao
The last island of this trip was Curacao. We started the day having a drink with my brother and sister-in-law by the water and bridge and then Jeremy and I headed to the Landhuis Chobolobo. The Landhuis Chobolobo is home of the Genuine Curacao Liqueur. Per their website "A visit to the Curacao Liqueur Distillery at Landhuis Chobolobo is a journey through the history of Curacao. You can experience and learn more about the distillation process of the world-famous Blue Curacao Liqueur and enjoy the taste such as it has been produced since 1896". We did the tour of the distillery, had some free samples, a couple of drinks, and purchase some liqueur to take home. The rest of the day we went shopping and had some more drinks.
Miami Again
When we arrived back in Miami, we took a taxi to the Budget Car Rental office near the cruise port. I recommend no one should ever pick up a rental car near the port, instead they should pick up a car at the airport. I stood in line for close to two 2 hours, it was awful. We then had lunch at a Pollo Tropical before heading to Miccosukee Indian Village and Miccosukee Airboats. An airboat ride was on my bucket list to do and we had so much fun seeing the Alligators.
Before dinner, we checked into our hotel, La Quinta Inn & Suites by Wyndham Miami Airport East. I would not recommend staying at this motel as it was run down.
For supper that night, we went to The Doral Yard. Per their website "Our venue offers culinary delights, live entertainment, and events in Downtown Doral. The Doral Yard is a 20,000-square-foot space divided into two indoor/outdoor zones: The Hub and The Backyard, which includes an anchor restaurant, Sufrat Mediterranean Grill. The Hub, our indoor section, encompasses a mini-food hall, co-working space, meeting and event space and a full bar. The Backyard, an outdoor entertainment and culinary space walled by plants and trees, includes a larger stage for live music and cultural performances, as well as a grassy turf area for gathering and dancing, a full bar, and several more culinary vendors" The food was amazing!
We had an amazing vacation and we fell in love with these three islands. We know this will not be the last time we go to them!
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