I have stayed here several times and really enjoy Playalinda . It is not a large Resort like Marriott or Hyatt but it has an appeal that those larger Resorts don't have. You can't beat the experience of having a condo compared to Hotel room especially the 2 Bdrm units . Once you stay in these type of accomodations it is hard to enjoy any hotel room .
The property is well kept right on the beach steps from the water .
This is the best location in Aruba walking distance to many good Restaurants ,Casinos and Shopping. Staff is friendly with an on duty concierge who will help set up activities ,car rental or dinning. If you can't relax and enjoy yourself here ! you have a problem. Its easy to understand why many of the timeshare owners have been there a long time and love the place .They have a website that gives you a very good idea of what to expect ! (---)

My husband and I traveled to Playa Linda last year and I am just now getting a chance to contribute to the reviews.

My husband and I absolutely loved Aruba but we both had mixed feelings about Playa Linda. This was an RCI timeshare exchange for us and we had waited almost 2 years to go to Aruba with this exchange. RCI reps had told us, "it was one of the best beach resorts in all of Aruba and a hard place to obtain," so we were really looking forward to staying at this resort. Also, one of my work supervisors (at the time) is an owner here and she had stayed here every October since the resort opened (about 25 yrs ago???)...so she raved about it. When we booked through RCI we felt pretty confident that it was going to be a great place and we had few hesitations.

When the shuttle pulled up to the resort and we walked in, the place immediately struck us as being dated and old...truly in need of some updates and renovations. The lobby is open-air and pretty enough but the furniture was like late 1970's, faded and a bit dirty and not really inviting. From what my supervisor tells me, they are renovating, painting and updating many areas at Playa Linda; so this is a good thing!

We had numerous problems at check-in including rather poor treatment from the front desk staff, including an absolute "no way" from a surly person when my husband and I kindly asked to relocate from our first room. I had requested an upper floor, non-smoking room, with a view (if possible), which I was told prior to traveling had been confirmed. When we got there, the desk person told us that the "better rooms were kept for Playa Linda owners and not timeshare swaps," so we immediately felt like we were getting 3rd class treatment.

My husband and I are both extremely patient and polite people and we rarely, if ever have difficulty when we travel; so we said, "Oh, okay" and we slinked away to our room! We were given a dark, 2nd level room that had nicotine infused cushions/curtains, all of which wreaked of cigarette smoke, complete with a view of a side alley and trash bins (dumpsters). I didn't mind the 2nd floor and I could tolerate the alley view but I couldn't take the cigarette smoke. Anyhow, after begging and pleading for hours (until 2:00 am), the night staff put us in a "booked" room for just one night, telling us we would have to go to a 3rd room in the morning. No problem...

The 3rd room was more of the same minus the nicotine but again, I'm told they are painting and renovating. The room was dark, old, dated and not super-clean (especially the bathroom areas). I was afraid to use the kitchenette for the entire week, but...again...okay.

The beach at the resort and ALL the beaches we visited in Aruba were absolutely beautiful. It was hard to get a chickee and the resort beach was PACKED but again...all okay...because after all, it's Aruba and it really is beautiful!

On our second day, we decided to put our resort woes behind us and we rented a car so we could drive ALL around the island. Aruba is beautiful, it really is! We discovered that most of the little coves and beaches are "public" and easily accessed. You can park your car and snorkel/swim just about anyhwere. The sand is powder-soft and a beautiful white color, and the water is crystal clear. The breezes were heavenly and we never had a bad beach day! Seven Mile Beach was loads of fun and we also drove to Baby Beach one day and spent the entire day swimming, sunning and snorkeling!

The resort staff helped us book a couple of excursions, which turned out to be just okay. We went on a snorkeling catamaran/dinner cruise which was alright but very expensive--$110.00 per person. I'd skip that one! My husband also went on a couple of other snorkeling trips, minus the catamaran and the dinner, and he had a pretty good time.

Playa Linda is in the "high rise" hotel district and like many of the resorts everywhere, there are plenty of great restaurants, shops, bars, stores, etc within walking distance. Also, several of the hotels in the "high rise" area have casinos; so those were fun to check out, too!

While some of the local restaurants were a bit fancy and rather expensive (say, Madame Jeanette's), we were only turned away from one place because we weren't properly attired. Otherwise, we had great food, wine and desserts just about everywhere!

If you rent a car, you must go to a restaurant called "The Flying Fishbone," which is at the opposite end of the island in a little town called Savaneta. While it's about a 45 minute drive from Playa Linda, it is definitely worth the trip! Like many of the restaurants in Aruba, the tables are placed directly on the sand and the sunsets at dinnertime are spectacular! It was very, very romantic and reasonably priced.

I absolutely loved Aruba, probably more than my husband did; we definitely plan to return someday. I loved the arrid, dry, "scraggly" kind of ruggedness, the wonderful rock formations, the beautiful beaches and the crystal clear water...think Grand Cayman or Turks & Caicos.

While I didn't feel the kind of warmth from the locals that I'm usually accustomed to when I travel to the Caribbean, the people were nice enough and very polite, if a bit reserved.

I would not hesitate to go back to Aruba...it really is a beautiful place and quite different from most of the lush, more humid Caribbean islands that have lots of trees, rainforests and green vegetation (those are pretty, too). Aruba really is a spectacular place and when we go back, I don't think we will return to the Playa Linda! Sorry :0(

This was our third trip to Aruba. We stayed at the Hyatt then the Wyndham (now the Westin) the first two times. We enjoyed both of those hotels. The Playa Linda room (Studio) offered more for our family than the other hotels (Larger balcony and mini kitchen). The pool was great and had plenty of chairs. We liked the covered parking and friendly staff. We will stay here again, probably next year!

Our stay at the Playa Linda was wonderful!!! Everyone was so friendly and helpful. There were many restaurants in and around the propery to chose from and they were all good! The market in town was a little far but worth the trip to buy groceries. The views were amazing every morning from 407. Getting stuck in the elevator definitley wasnt the highlight of my trip but getting out in 15 minutes was not horrible and didn't put a damper on things! Bradley at the Basa Ruti Bar is one of the best guys there as well as Tommy on the beach! We will definitley go back here again even though the crowd is older. Aruba is a fabulous place to vacation, but don't go into town at night, a little on the scary side!