My daughter and I have been taking annual trips to New York City every holiday season since she was eight – only missing 2020 due to COVID. As our journeys evolved, so did our adventures: when she started high school, we added a sunny weekend in Florida between our birthdays (mine in late January, hers in February). Then, during her college years, the tradition paused in favor of her Virginia Tech party weekends—which, I don’t blame her for. Now that I’m in my 50s and my daughter is a fully independent adult, traveling together has taken on a new dynamic. We love spending long weekends together exploring new places.
Last November, while enjoying Eagle Beach in Aruba with my hockey mom friends, I texted my daughter, “This is where we’re going for our trip in February!” It was love at first sight, and our subsequent mother/daughter trip lived up to every expectation. It is no wonder that Trip Advisor named Eagle Beach the #1 beach in the Caribbean and #3 in the world!
Here is everything you need to know about a mother/daughter or girls’ trip to Aruba.
WHERE TO STAY
Aruba is an 18-mile-long island with various areas to stay. Palm Beach is where you’ll find most of the large hotel brands. I loved Eagle Beach so much that we decided to return there for our mother-daughter trip. It’s quiet with powder white sand and perfect greenish-blue clear ocean water.
It’s funny because neither of us will go into the Atlantic Ocean but we floated for hours in the water in Aruba. TIP: We got these floats ahead of time from Amazon that were easy to travel with.
When I went with my girlfriends, we stayed at the O Condominiums. There were five of us and we had a 3-bedroom condominium. It was perfect. Nothing was available there for this trip, so we booked at Oceania Condominiums a few blocks away. It’s a great complex with big, beautiful pools.
We rented a 2-bedroom unit. It was a little worn and in need of a touchup but that didn’t deter us. Overall, it was fine, and I would stay at either location again. However, I will zoom in on the pictures of the unit before I book. We used Bocobay to book both trips and could not have been happier with their customer service. They take very good care of their renters and are extremely attentive.
GROCERIES
Staying at a condo with no restaurant on site, we wanted to have some groceries in our unit. Superfood Aruba has an easy-to-use app and they deliver which is great if you don’t have your own car. We did however have a lot of issues on both orders with substitutions, and not substituting. It’s hard to believe a grocery store doesn’t have crackers to go with the cheese we ordered. On this trip with my daughter, I decided to check out the Superfood Aruba myself. It’s an easy half-mile walk from Oceania. It would be difficult to walk back with a case of water, but it was perfect to grab snacks. You might want to consider delivery for the bigger, heavier items as well as those that are likely to be in stock like fruit, milk, and butter, and go yourself for the things like chips and crackers.
RESTAURANTS
When I went with the hockey moms, we had a rare 2-hour afternoon rainstorm that shut down the roads in Aruba due to flooding. We couldn’t get a cab, so we had to cancel our dinner reservation on the other side of the island. Instead, we had to find a restaurant we could walk to. Screaming Eagle was close and had good reviews, so we went there. It was delicious and the food was so memorable that my daughter and I went there on our first night.
We have very similar tastes so every night we shared a little bit of everything – appetizer, salad, entree, and dessert. At Screaming Eagle, we had the blackened Chilean sea bass in a champagne sauce with truffle risotto and sautéed spinach. I had the sea bass last time too. It’s one of those meals you dream about. I can’t wait to go back and have it again!
The next night we went to Opus. I’ve always heard you should get the special at a restaurant, so we did – Grouper topped with shrimp, which was delicious.
Our last night we went to Ocean Z. This was rated #1 on Trip Advisor and I now know why. If the weather cooperates, definitely request outdoor seating. Across the street is a spectacular sunset over the water.
They had live music when we were there (a Frank Sinatra crooner) and the atmosphere and overall vibe were perfection!
Dinner was spectacular. We had linguini with lobster and shrimp in a wine alfredo sauce. This is another meal I’ll be dreaming about!
In November we also went to Gianni’s (Italian) and Lola Taqueria (Mexican – great tacos and yummy margaritas). Both were really good so if you don’t feel like fish or seafood, try one of these. Most restaurants take reservations and I recommend planning ahead.
There are plenty of great beachside restaurants and bars along Eagle Beach to have lunch. We had breakfast in the room, lunch on the beach, and then explored the island for these delicious dinners.
THINGS TO DO
When I went in November, we went to Sopranos Piano Bar. I couldn’t wait to take my daughter back. We had so much fun there! Unfortunately on this trip, the piano player called in sick the night we went. The fill-in was a singer – not a piano entertainer. He was very talented and we enjoyed his music but the “Piano Bar show” we saw in November was outstanding. We stayed for hours singing along. I highly recommend spending a night at the Piano Bar – maybe two.
There are also lots of boat excursions and if the weather cooperates, I recommend a sunset tour because the sunsets in Aruba are spectacular!
TRANSPORTATION
There is no Uber or Lyft on the island. Aruba Taxi is available via What’s App and phone but beware… they ghosted us! We used them once. They were very late and then picked up the wrong people. They finally sent a cab but we were very late for our dinner reservation. They never responded when I requested a pickup after dinner, nor did they respond to any of our other requests while we were there. Thankfully the restaurants can get you a cab after dinner but getting there might be difficult. I recommend asking your taxi driver from the airport if they will take you places while you are there. We used that driver for the rest of our trip! Make sure you have What’s App before you go. That’s what everyone uses.
WRAP UP
If you want a nice, quiet, relaxing mother/daughter trip or the perfect girlfriend getaway, I highly recommend Eagle Beach. I can’t wait to go back! (Maybe I’ll take my husband next time :). I hope you’ll try some of my suggestions above and share this with anyone you know who is thinking about a trip like this.
Here’s a video summing up our amazing trip! Enjoy Aruba!
I hope you are enjoying life over 50! If you want inspiration, tips, and advice for life at this stage, tune into the Living Ageless and Bold Podcast. New episodes drop every Wednesday