The water is nice and there are lots of water sport activities. It's not my cup of tea though. If you want less crowds rent a car and go to a beach away from the hotels.

The Palm Beach area has changed over the year and for the better, but the beach remained the same, simply the best beach on the island. Hang out infront of the Raddision for the best in water sports and ammenities.

Make no mistake, Palm Beach is where you want to be when you are in Aruba. A wonderful beach. Lots of water activities of all kinds (with the exception of a submarine and of the nicely sheltered Baby Beach at the southern end of the island). Lots of shopping in the hotels and at the Palm Beach Plaza and Placeo Herencia, a wide range of restaurants, many of them very good indeed. Placeo Herencia's "dancing water" shows each evening (on the hour starting at 7:30) are fun and, even better, entirely free.

In the evening, in particular, this area absolutely rocks (including, if you want, a Hard Rock Cafe). And, yes, there are a number of casinos as well if that's of interest to you (it's not to me, though).

We made a stop at aruba on our christmas cruise and everyone told us to go to palm beach it's the best. They were right. We got there about 10 in the morning and there wasn't many people, by the time we were leaving at 2 it was very crowded. The beach was beautiful. Crystal blue water and white sand beaches. It doesn't get much better than that. When we got dropped off by taxi there was a man renting beach chairs. We grabbed chairs and spent a great day relaxing. If heading to aruba make sure to go to palm beach.