aruba active vacations

I am staying in Aruba for one week and decided it was the perfect opportunity to take up kitesurfing. Through a kitesurfing friend of mine in Barcelona I was put in touch with AAV who told me it´s the best school in Aruba. I have never done watersports and in general am not a very sporty person. So of course I was quite nervous the first lesson! I asked the very friendly manager behind the counter, Franco, for a nice experienced instructor and he assigned me Arturo. Arturo gave me the motivation and confidence to feel at ease with the kite from the beginning and he even managed to get me on the board in the second lesson! He is very patient, kind, professional and most importantly fun! Also the whole international staff at AAV is very friendly and helpful. I definitely recommend kitesurfing with Arturo at AAV if you are in Aruba and looking for an active and fun vacation!

My little cousin visited Aruba for the first time and took a windsurf lesson with Diego. He loved it! Diego was very patient and showed great teaching skills. Everybody at AAV is friendly and very knowledgable of what they do. Kudos to management!

As a senior, learning to practice KiteSurfing was for me like a dream. Fortunatly I spent time with Arturo at Aruba Active Vacations and I have had a nice opportunity to learn. Thanks to the patience and profesional support of Arturo I could catch my first winds over the sea in Aruba. And I will continue to practice when I will be back in my country.Thanks Arturo

Took two 2-hour lessons with Arturo. Had an excellent time. Kite boarding is not as easy as some might expect. Arturo was pleasant, knowledgable and fun to learn with. Would definitely recommend for those that are interested in learning.

I have had windsurfing lessons from Diego, refreshed the tacking techiniqes, learnt different jibes. He was very patient, skillful. Not only he demonstrated techniques but able to tell where my problems are which makes him a exceptional coach!!!I am definitely back for more!!One suggestion for having sails/masts for Intermediate level visitors.It will attract those who already knew basics but not at advanced level group

This is what makes Aruba the place it is. Local talent, world wide phenomena, all at your service to provide the best instructors ever. Diego and Remco, the most talented and helpful instructors, will make your Aruba vacation the best ever. My third year in a row, and I will be back for a fourth. Cheers AAV!

We just came back from two weeks of hanging out taking lessons at AAV. This is our fourth year in a row taking lessons from AAV. Diego was with myself or a family member everyday teaching us kite boarding. He was fantastic.He showed excellent patience and teaching ability for all five us taking lessons, whether it was a private lesson or a shared one. He helped with our equipment which we had brought with us. Even let my boys use his board as we were short one. Whether it was coaching techniques, saving us from being too far out and bringing us back to beach, or just being helpful in all areas, he is a terrific instructor. We also would recommend Alex, Remco and Will as fabulous instructors and coaches! Iris and Franco who work the desk are very helpful, also. We are planning our return trip already. We love Aruba and especially the staff at AAV.

I rented a mountain bike for four days while vacationing in Aruba. My wife and I had driven our little rental car along the beach road at the north end of the island, and it looked decent for biking. I did not take a tour, and judging by what others have said here that may have been a mistake, but I quickly was able to find the jeep track that winds it's way around the north end / lighthouse, and heads back along the rugged and exposed windward side of the island. The riding itself is not too exciting, but the view is worth it, and I quite enjoyed myself. Just get out early if you can, especially if you've just arrived - the sun really packs a punch.AAV was good to deal with - the bike was delivered exactly on schedule. It was your usual so-so rental shop bike - marginal brakes, funky shifting, but it was ok. When I popped in to the beach shop after my first ride, I learned that they also have higher end Cannondale bikes, and I upgraded - much better. This is a nice, quality bike, in perfect working order. I had seen someone's route map online that showed a nice loop starting and ending near the high rise hotels. On my second day, I thought I would see if I could piece it together ( no maps are available anywhere) . BIG MISTAKE! I started out working my way through the neighbourhood behind the hotels. The homes quickly went downhill, I didn't know where I was, and then the dogs showed up. I was chased or snarled at by at least four packs of nasty looking curs, two of which were very aggressive. The worst moment was when I got away from those two only to realize that the street I was on dead-ended and I had no choice but to go right past them again. That got the heart rate up. AAV had indicated that Aruba is totally safe, and I felt completely safe out on the trail, but not so in the residential areas - that was a scary experience. Along the jeep track on the east side of the island I found some single track heading up a rise and into the desert. I rode it a few hundred metres, but it was quite technical (fun) and I was alone ( not so fun) so I decided that after my dog scare I had had enough excitement for one day. Out and back was a little over 30km, and there was plenty more trail / double track ahead of me. Saving that for tomorrow's ride.

Bikes were delivered and picked up from our hotel. Mine didn't fit well so they were close enough and I had exchanged. They gave us accurate directions to where we wanted to bike. NO problems.

I took 2 lessons. Remco, Arturo, Iris and the young lady at the shop (I didn't catch your name), thank you for your friendship, service and and patience. Active Vacations Kite Lessons got my adrenaline pumping. I never really managed to get on the board, but my trainers Remco and Arturo kept praising my efforts. That's all I wanted. I will be back for my third lesson as soon as I can.

These guys know what they are doing, are great teachers and are totally honest with their clients. It took me a lesson and a half with Arturo to learn to control the kite, get up on the board, and by the third lesson I was getting up and staying on the board (and then crashing pretty hard - but that's part of it!). Looking forward to coming back next year!

I spend a week in Aruba Riu Palace hotel. Great beach, delicious food ang great service makes your time more pleasant. Resort offers a lot of activities as well, but I prefer something more exiting and something special to memorize this time and may be something challenging. I wasn't sure if this can be exist in resort area with crowd of people everywhere, but unexpectedly found that - kitesurfing school. I had no previous experience surfing with kite at all, bur instructor from Spain Arturo was so patient with me and guide me through basic technic Now, I am thinking to keep practicing this emazing sport and have another reason to get back to Arizona. Hope, I'll find some school like this at home (Brooklyn, New York). If someone wants to try, use url below: www.aruba-active-vacations.com

We enjoyed the 1 day rental of mountain bikes for our family of six. They were reasonably priced ($25 per bike for a 24 hour period), very flexible (they didn't have a small enough one for my 7 year old, so overnight they borrowed a bike from another company), and their drop off / pick up service at our hotel made it extremely convenient. We chose to bike from PlayaLinda to the California Lighthouse (7 miles round trip) and had a great time. I highly recommend it for all families! Only concerns are car traffic for younger riders, but you could just start your ride at their offices to avoid some of the traffic. Would rent from them again... they also seem to specialize in kite surfing and wind surfing be the looks of their outfit and all the other customers....

We had an amazing time mountainbiking the north side of the island. Tim, our Tour guide showed us around and let us choose between easier or more dificult routes. Choose the dificult tracks, They are worth it! The tour starts early to evade the heat. When you are finished you can just dive into the sea for a perfect cooldown. And if you have energy left you can go on wind surfing or kite surfing.

The last time I kitesurfed was 6 years ago, and I was just getting up on the board. All I can say that, I wished, I had Remco for my first instructor. He gave me a quick refresher course on land, and then we hit the water. He gave me excellent instructions on handling the kite, and I was off with a few body drags. Then the moment of truth...getting up on the board. Perfect instruction on how to power the kite up and getting up on the board. I was up on my first try for 10 seconds then more the next time. I would suggest this place to beginners - experts. Everyone, I met was so nice and encouraging. I will be coming back next year. Give Remco a shout when you are there. Hopefully, you can take a lesson with him...great attitude and excellent instructions. Leave the big egos at home, and you will have a great time.