My husband and I spent our honeymoon at the Tam from June 9-June 15. While our flight from Pittsburgh to Aruba (and back) was miserable... our trip in Aruba was amazing.

We started with the $20 cab ride from the airport to the Tam. There were lines of people waiting to get on buses, but we had no problem walking straight up to a waiting cab. The driver was very nice, and as most of the drivers, was born and raised in Aruba. He offered us a lot of great tips and it was def a good way to start the trip.

Once at the Tam, we got straight into our room (we got there at about 1 pm and it was ready). While I agree with everyone that the rooms are a bit dated, it was the perfect size for two and offered everything we needed for the little time we spent in it. We spent most of our days on the beautiful beach. The pool was nice and they had games every afternoon. The food is very good with a ton of variety at every meal. We brought about $50 in ones and tipped a dollar or two at every meal. Sometimes it was appreciated, sometimes not, and it was def not expected. We ate at Palm Grill and Red Parrot, both of which were very good. We also ate at the Sunset Beach Bistro which was part of our honeymoon package with the Tam. The food was ok, the sunset was amazing, but there were also about 10 other couples so it felt kind of like being herded to dinner. On our last night we ate at the Flying Fishbone which was incredible. The food was delicious and you can't beat eating on the beach. It was about a 25 minute cab ride and it cost about $30. The Tam made all of our reservations for us which was amazing. We never had trouble getting a cab, there was usually one right outside of the hotel. If we needed one and there was not one there, the front desk called one for us.

As for activities, we went downtown one morning to do some shopping. We took the bus in for $2 and we walked back to the Tam after. The walk was about thirty minutes, but there was no sidewalk so it was a bit tricky at times. We also went on an ATV tour which was interesting. We went through Watapana Tours, which I would not recommend, but I would def recommend some sort of tour of the island. Finally, we took the Jolly Pirates Sunset sail. If you want a booze cruise, this is a great tour. If you want a nice romantic sunset sail, then this is not the cruise you should take.

We arrived at the airport a little over three hours before the flight. You go through customs in Aruba, so you def want to be there early, although we were probably there a little earlier than necessary.

All in all it was an amazing honeymoon. The people of the island are some of the nicest people I have ever met and everything is absolutely gorgeous.

Great hotel and very nice staff. Location is perfect, rooms are situated 30 meters from the ocean at the very beatifull beach. Very nice golf resort is only few minutes away and different kind of trips can be done and the hotell staff will assist you with everything.

This was my best vacation ever, and you won't get tired to all inclusive food as there is quite a big variety of different kind of cuisines.

My husband and I stayed at the Tamarijn for our honeymoon in Oct. 05. We had a room in a newer building at the end of the row of rooms. We were on the second floor, but switched to the bottom. I loved it. The rooms were not 5 star, but they were very, very clean. The sliding glass doors opened up to the beach and beautiful clear blue water. There were golf carts that came around very often if you wanted to go to the lobby and were too lazy to walk (which we were). We tiped the drivers one dollar per trip and they were very happy. The Tiki bar was very close. Everything was included so we definatly tried new drinks and had a blast. The buffet was great, but we prefered to make reservations in one of the many resturants (also included). We were sure to tip the servers and bartenders. They really apprectiated this and gave us great service. THe pool was very nice. We ususlly took a golf cart to the DIvi Divi for lunch...GReat pizza. THe rooms at the Divi are not all right on the beach and are a little bit more expensive. I much prefered the T. I would stay there again in a heartbeat. Very calm and peaceful. THere were even free bikes to rent. and snorkeling gear.

Highlights: everything included...close to casino...friendly staff...clean...white sand and blue water, less crowded than the highrises...

lowlights...really cant remember any.....maybe that they tried to get you to buy a timeshare, but we went and heard what they had to say and walked away with 100 dollars for a massage and 100 dollars to the casino....worth it!

We also did a bunch of excersions.... the person at the desk helped us pick everything out.....Loved the horseback riding, sunset cruise, snorkeling, and rented a car to go to baby beach

WHEN WE GO BACK TO ARUBA WE WILL NOT BE STAYING ANYWHERE ELSE......

We booked our room through the Tam-which is why I post on this section, but it was technically included in the time share Divi Dutch Village at the Tamarijn, but Tam classifies it as a suite. So, anyway, we had a studio suite in this section, which is located directly behind the beach front Tamarijn buildings, and the room was decent. I'll break this review down into sections so it's easier to skim.
The Room: I have cleaned hotel rooms so I know some inside stuff, which makes staying hotels a little difficult for me (little tip, in most hotels, that top comforter isn't always washed), so our room, to me, wasn't quite clean enough. There was a noticeable odor of mildew/mold when we walked in and we eventually decided it was coming from the drains, but it either aired out or we got used to it. There are mold spots in same places, and the majority of our pillows had a distinct mildew smell to them, not terrible but certainly noticeable. Also, in the range of smells-the beach/pool towels, to me, always smelled like sour milk-not completely clean. Also, the floor was never very clean, but the maid service was quite good. The best thing about this room, however, was the Dutch Village pool, which all sets of Dutch Village rooms share-there are a couple, so you didn't have to walk all the way to the main resort to swim.
The Food: If you are able to get reservations at the 4 restaurants that require them (Red Parrot, Ginger, Paparazzi, and Palm Grill), do it! The food at those restaurants is quite good, as is the service, but the service in all the food establishments was exceptional. Aside from that, the buffets are not very good. Breakfast is the exception here, with an omlete bar and french toast, pancakes and waffles-all quite good. But lunch and dinner were, despite all efforts to provide many options, pretty monotonous. The resort has theme nights for dinner but they all seem strangely very similar to not very good chinese food-even simple pasta didn't taste quite right to me. For lunch, I recommend going to Pizza Per Tutti instead of the buffet, and Red Parrot was my personal favorite restaurant. As for the bars, some bartenders were great, others were very quiet, not mean just not involved with patrons. A tip-if you look young (or are young), but are 18 or above, make a point of showing your wristband (a different color for those of age) to the bartender, because some don't really pay attentions and will give you a virgin drink if they decide you look young.
The Beach: The beach in front of the Tam isn't perfect, but if you're in the business of laying on a chair and only putting your feet in the water occasionally, I recommend staying on the Tam side. The wind is very strong so when you're on the beach at the Divi, which is longer and doesn't have the barrier of hotel rooms to block some wind, you get sand blown at you, and it's not very comfortable. If you'll be in the water the whole time, this isn't a problem, but the water at the Tam is just as nice, you just have to find a spot to get in-and watch for rocks, I almost broke my toe! Also, if you're squemish about stepping on things, try Eagle Beach instead because Druif, where Tam is located, has a lot of coral that washes up that you must step over to get to the smooth sand farther out in the water.
I did truly have a fantastic vacation-I recommend parasailing-and all-inclusive worked well for my travel needs and the Tam beach was perfect because there wasn't constantly blowing sand, but just know what you're getting into-i.e. maybe use the money you save on the rooms, which are a good deal, to buy a travel sleeping bag (which keeps you from having to deal with not quite clean or nice sheets) or bigger luggage to bring your own pillow and towel.