Reviews of this place are all over the map. I was forced to stay here and think I have the litmus test for others to decide if this place is for them or not. Here goes:

On arrival, the housekeeper took us to our room. As the opened the door, a small lizard fell from the doorway and scurried under the bed.

If this makes you shudder and fear the cleanliness of the place, you are best served by staying at one of the many fine, sterile and comfortable resorts in Aruba. And by paying the $400-$600+ a night they charge for it. If, on the other hand, you find this an amusing and somewhat endearing welcome to the tropics, you'll be fine.

Here's the rap on this place: the facilities are very dated. Like, 1950s motel, Jack Kerouac On the Road dated. Neon sign flashing "Air Condition" with the "ed" burned out. But the beds are clean (no bedbugs), the air conditioner works as does the fridge and TV.

As some other reviewers have noted with jaws agape in shock and horror, there is no "HOT WATER" (gasp!). What this place lacks is superheated water. Because the drinking water has to be desalinated here, it is quite expensive, so this place uses water tanks on top of the building for their washing water (like many places in the tropics). The water in the afternoon is very comfortable - 80+ degrees, like a swimming pool in August. It's fine, and doesn't run out.

There is a very eager and very noisy rooster nearby. Again, welcome to the tropics.

I have stayed in very nice luxury hotels, some dumps where I slept with one eye open, and camp often. This place is fine if you do not require all of the luxuries Americans have come to expect from a hotel. Coconut Inn is safe, clean and cheap. The staff is friendly and helpful. The internet works fine. It's not for everyone, but then again, neither is adventure. If you want to get the flavor of real Aruba, stay here and savor the difference.

You pay what you get for. We stayed for 5 nights and the room had everything we needed. two beds, a tv, wifi, kitchen, and bathroom. They even gave you a small breakfast ( eggs, sausage, and toast) but the pool was not too clean though. Plus you do not go on vacation to stay at a fancy hotel. You go to explore and coconut inn makes you want to stay out the whole day until its time to go to sleep. The only bad thing is that you really need a car if you plan to stay here. Everything is pretty far by foot and Eagle beach is about 15 minutes walking. But other than that it was a great stay and I would definitely come back.

need a lot of work to the place/pool was dirty/no ice machine/ needs new things to put rooms.

We stayed at the Coconut Inn for 5 nights. First the good things to be fair and objective. The staff was nice, the breakfast was o.k., the pool nice and the rooms were clean. The island is small so it is convenient but only because we had a car. Now here is the bad stuff. #1 for me was NO HOT WATER. They don't even have hot water tanks. I was told that the sun warms the water and if I waited til 4 pm it would be warm. I waited all day and it was lukewarm to cool. The room was not the one that was presented in the picture when we booked. It was supposed to be an apt. with a sitting area and sofa but it was one room with two beds. The Internet was almost impossible to use. I had to sit outside in the rain under a tiki hut to be able to work. I really did not like the crime bars on the windows. It was a poor area but I did not feel unsafe. I don't think there is a lot of crime in this area. I was worried about getting out in a fire as there was only one entrance for my unit. The rooms have not been updated probably since the 60's or earlier. Very retro especially if you like antique appliances. The pool chairs were falling apart which just looked bad. We found chairs that could be sat on and used them. I would not come back here unless I was broke! But it can be tolerable if you have to stay there.