SOMETHING SATURDAYS
  • The Blog
  • Travel
  • Index
  • About

4 Days in Westpunt, Curaçao (Part II)

7/3/2016

7 Comments

 
We had a very active final few days of our trip to Curaçao - climbing mountings, snorkelling on shipwrecks and descending into caves. In between, however, we did find plenty of time to kick back and relax.
Picture
The view from Christoffel Mountain.
On Friday morning we woke early to take on the hike up Christoffel Mountain in Christoffel National Park. Due to the relentless heat of the sun, they won’t let anyone begin the hike after 11am, so we were sure to show up as early as possible. After picking up our tickets, we entered the park and followed the roller coaster roads up and down towards the parking lot at the foot of the mountain. Even at 9 am, the heat was intense.
Picture
Looking up at the peak.
The hike was a lot of fun, taking us up through thick vegetation that provided some much needed shade, up ever steeper slopes until the hike turned into a scramble, and finally up the last stretch of the ascent. Along the way we encountered a lot of Dutch travellers, including a very energetic class of schoolchildren. After navigating our way up and over boulders we joined them on the craggy peak for some really spectacular views. The entire island stretched out below us, with sea on all sides. Apparently you can even see Venezuela on particularly clear days.
Picture
Plugging away at the hike.
Picture
Enjoying a rest at the top.
The descent was pretty straightforward, but we definitely worked up an appetite and a thirst, so we made our way straight to a nearby restaurant called Trio Penotti for a cold beer and a delicious lunch. After hanging out there for a while it was back to the resort where Luke passed out for a few hours. We enjoyed a very relaxed afternoon, and took a drive around some nearby beaches. Due to some very sunburned backs of necks, we decided not to do any sunbathing, but we did enjoy ourselves some much needed ice cream.
Picture
Enjoying a break (in the shade) at the beach.
We welcomed a slow start on Saturday morning before setting off to visit a landhuis - one of the former plantations on the island - to learn a bit more about the history of the island and slavery. We decided to return to Landhuis Savonet in Christoffel National Park, where we began our hike the previous day. The main building of the plantation housed a museum that featured a lot of detailed information about life on the plantation, before and after the abolishment of slavery.
Picture
Looking out over the rest of the landhuis.
Picture
The main building of the landhuis.
After the landhuis visit, we headed back to our bungalow for a quick lunch before an afternoon snorkel trip with Go West Diving. After a very short briefing on the boat, our tour took us out to two snorkeling spots along the coast of Curaçao. First up was the Blue Room, an underwater cave. Entering the cave carefully through a very low opening, we turned around to see how the place got its name - brilliant turquoise light reflecting off the sandy seabed into the cave. It was very beautiful.
Picture
The Blue Room.
Unfortunately, Elizabeth had forgotten about her deathly fear of anything related to breathing underwater (for more info, check out our post on Underwater Santa), and made the wise decision to stay clear of the Blue Room. However, after a little practice she was back in and under the water by the time we reached our second snorkel spot: Black Sand Reef. Here we drifted around the inlet to find a ship wreck and coral reefs teeming with colourful fish. On the way back to the dive shop, the boat stopped by Playa Grandi for us to spot some sea turtles who are attracted to the area by the local fishermen cleaning their fish in the waters.
Picture
Luke diving deep.
Picture
Elizabeth snorkeling (with a noodle).
We ended our final full day in Curaçao with a nice dinner at a restaurant near to our accommodations, watching the sunset, and sipping on some (incredibly strong) Blue Curaçao based cocktails.
Picture
Sunset view from the restaurant.
On our final day we managed to fit in one last sightseeing stop before hopping on the plane: the Hato Caves, which are conveniently just 5 minutes away from the airport. Here we toured the caves with the help of a guide, learning about the formation of the caves, the bats living within, and the escaped slaves who took refuge in them.
Picture
Hato Caves.
And so our trip to Curaçao came to an end, and we headed to the airport for our flight back to Toronto. We had an awesome time travelling with our friends Rebecca and Piers and can’t wait for the next adventure.

In case you missed our other blog posts from the trip:
​3 Days in Willemstad, Curaçao
4 Days in Westpunt, Curaçao (Part I)

And check out our awesome Curaçao travel video!

Here are some more pictures from our final few days in Curaçao.
(SLIDESHOW)
7 Comments
Mar link
8/3/2016 01:05:08 pm

Looks like such an amazing place! I would love to go snorkelling or diving right now.

Reply
Elizabeth link
9/3/2016 02:43:42 pm

Curacao is supposed to be a top place for snorkelling and diving and I can definitely see why - it was pretty amazing!

Reply
Ashley @ The Wandering Weekenders link
8/3/2016 04:03:52 pm

It sounds like y'all had such a fun time on your trip and got to do so much! The hike and the cave look absolutely beautiful and amazing!

Reply
Elizabeth link
9/3/2016 02:46:50 pm

When we showed up in Curacao, we had a few vague ideas of things we may be interested in doing but by the end of the trip we had taken advantage of some of the top things that Curacao had to offer and we were not disappointed!

The view from the top of Christoffelberg was spectacular.

Reply
Sara link
9/3/2016 03:16:07 am

Looks like there is tons to do in Curaçao! Those views from the hike look amazing!

Reply
Elizabeth link
9/3/2016 02:48:43 pm

THE VIEWS WERE UNBELIEVABLE!

Definitely worth the climb.

Reply
Katie link
18/3/2016 08:02:45 pm

I was totally thinking about your Santa snorkeling experience, and waiting to read about it, when you mentioned diving in your previous Curacao posts hehe ;P

Seems like you guys added another fun travel adventure to your list!

Reply

Your comment will be posted after it is approved.


Leave a Reply.

    About Us

    Picture
    We're Elizabeth and Luke.
    Join us on our weekly Something Saturday adventures, where we explore somewhere new or try something new! 
    ​
    Read more about us here.

    Follow along

    BLOGLOVIN'
    BY E-MAIL
    RSS FEED

    Categories

    All
    Art
    Asia
    Australia
    Beach
    Canada
    Cheese
    City Break
    Cuba
    Culture
    Curacao
    Diy
    Dogs
    Food
    France
    Games
    Hiking
    History
    Hong Kong
    Ireland
    Mexico
    Music
    Nature
    Newfoundland
    Ontario
    Ottawa
    Sport
    Sports
    St. John's
    Subway Saturday
    Toronto
    Uk
    United States
    USA

    Archives

    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014
    October 2014
    September 2014
    August 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014
    May 2014
    April 2014
    March 2014
    February 2014
    January 2014
    December 2013
    November 2013
    October 2013
    September 2013
    August 2013
    July 2013
    June 2013
    May 2013

Powered by Create your own unique website with customizable templates.