Curaçao West Coast Tour: Hato Caves, Grote Knip & Daaibooi Beach

This was a great overview of the island. We received an email a few days before the tour with instructions on where to meet. We were able to easily find them at the port (warning, you have to walk past all the ship excursions). The guide was very friendly and informative. There were only two families on the tour which was a nice size. We toured the caves first and then went to the two beaches with a final stop at the Salt flats to see flamingos. You do have to pay for loungers at the beaches ($5 each, cash). There was food available at the second beach and it was reasonably priced and good.

The ride was nice and well done by Guide Neli. She is very kind and shared great curiosities about Curacau and surroundings. We had a good time. Suggestions to make it even better: 1 - It would be better to extend the time at the Great Knip beach. It was very short. 2 - The Flamingo viewpoint was not interesting at all. I don't know if it´s the time of the year, but anyway, the place is not beautiful, and there were no Flamingos there. They could be aware of this before taking us there. The time invested commuting and staying there could be used better in another beach or so.

We did not visit Kas di Pal'i Maishi. The caves were nice and we enjoyed that stop. Grote Knip was completely overcrowded. We had one hour. We waited the entire tine just to get a drink and a burger. The beach was filthy was well. I realize its high season, but it was not worth the long drive to not be able to enjoy it. Virtally the same for the beach. Completely overcrowded. We did go in the water. Water shoes are a MUST as there are coral pices abd sharp shells everywhere. It drops off quick and there are large boulders under the sea. The flamingos were ok. They were pretty far away so not much to see. Overall we spent more time traveling vs seeung things. The bus had a serious drive shaft issue and the driver was filling the radiator and oil at every stop.

This tour includes a little bit of everything! The caves were really interesting but just know that you cannot photograph much in there. Only small sections of the cave. We got to see the flamingos but they have been very far off in the distance. The beaches were great. At the first beach, we snorkeled and saw one turtle! I highly recommend WATER SHOES. The beaches are very rocky. The second beach we went to was the best beach we’ve been to here in Curaçao! It was so beautiful. The water was crystal clear and it wasn’t as rocky as most beaches. Also, be aware that they charge you for everything at this beach; the shower, the bathroom, and the beach chairs. Overall it was a super fun and educational experience! Our tour guide Nelly was fabulous!!

The tour didn’t meet the value of the price. Our driver was nice but we got started later than anticipated. Hato caves was neat to see but objectively short for the long ride to get there. The air conditioning in the bus malfunctioned so it was a hot day of bus travel. The sea turtles we were anticipating seeing ended up being one guy who was feeding a sea turtles while groping women posing them for pictures and demanding tips. Playa Knepa was beautiful but it was an extortion tour. The chairs cost money, the shower to wash your feet cost money, access to a bathroom cost money. For the price of what it cost to do the tour we added an extra $100 to be able to eat and sit during the course of the day. If you want to see these places I would recommend them but given the timeframe we were operating on and what it cost to be there you would be better off renting a car and doing it on your own time.

Great tour! The beaches are amazing and the water is out of this world! Ask your driver to do a stop for lunch bc the food was great! It’s VERY hot so be prepared! They do give you drinks if needed! Very friendly and the town is great!

Very helpfull and friendly guide. Package contains everything as described. Reserve in time as the bus is only having space for 9 people.

Nearly cancelled due to lack of communication before trip, but glad we didn’t. Great trip seeing multiple highlights. The turtle beach was not very impressive- glad it was not our only beach experience on Curscao.

The tour operator was to have picked us up from our resort at 8:35. We arrived in the lobby at 8:15. Our only instructions were to look for a driver in a blue shirt with an embroidered company logo on it. At 8:35, we still never saw this person. There was a single, unmarked van in the drive but no operator was clearly visible. Our lobby reception staff informed us that many tours were not allowed within the resort and picked up from the front gate so we went there at 8:40. The only ride awaiting here was for a dive shop. We checked with the gate staff and were told no tour operators had been admitted thus far today. We waited at the gate until 9:15 before giving up. I immediately reached out to the tour company and was told that a refund would not be issued as we had missed our ride. I was told that they attempted to reach me via cell phone but being in a foreign country, no service was available. I was also told that they attempted to call our room but we were not there as we were awaiting them in the lobby/front gate. This was a highly anticipated tour by my young children due to the sea turtles. BOOK WITH EXTREME CAUTION! If interested in similar tour, consider the cheaper alternatives.

Awesome views and Turtle bay beach was great. The tour gudie Nelly was energetic and informative. I'd recommend this island trip

Pickup was super easy—right outside near the cruise market tents. A friendly staff member greeted us and walked us just outside the gate to meet our driver. Our van had five tourists, and our guide Nelly was fantastic. The van had AC (huge win!), and she provided water, Sprite, Coke, snorkel gear, and pool noodles. Throughout the drive, she shared great info about the island. Stop 1: Flamingos This was a very quick roadside stop to see the flamingos. You can get out and take photos, but honestly, they were pretty far away—even zooming in didn’t help much. A bit underwhelming. Stop 2: Hato Caves Nelly handed us off to a local cave guide, and we rejoined her at the cave exit. It’s definitely humid inside, but they do have fans. Stop 3: Turtle Spotting & Snorkeling I can see why this is a love it or hate it spot. Its best to come with low expectations to “swim with turtles”. A fisherman cuts fish on the dock to attract turtles. I swam on the left side where it didn’t smell as strong, and while I didn’t see turtles there, the water and views far left were gorgeous. We had plenty of time to snorkel, swim, and explore. Stop 4: Grote Knip Beach This was my favorite stop. It’s a smaller, scenic beach with beautiful water and a laid-back vibe. I did the cliff jump—it was easy to get to- at your own risk- but definitely jump straight like a pencil or you’ll slap the water hard like I did and end up bruised 😬. We had about 2 hours here to relax and swim before heading back. Final Thoughts: I wouldn’t personally do this tour again only because I’ve done it once and I’d want to try something new next time. But I absolutely recommend it—especially for first-timers in Curaçao. You get to see some off-the-beaten-path areas. I would recommend to the tour company to drop the flamingo spot and maybe instead drive through the colorful downtown instead. Tips: • Wear water shoes (I wore Tevas)—the beach entrances are rocky. • Be prepared for stairs/inclines at several stops. • Bring cash – Beach chairs cost $5–$10, bathrooms are $1, and snack vendors are cash only as well. • You can leave stuff in the van with the guide at stops you don’t want to carry things to. It was a great balance of adventure and relaxation!

We had a great time! Wina our guide was enthusiastic and gave a lot of information. The turtle swimming was a bit too touristy but well it was fine. The caves were beautiful, just as the Grote Knip. You can do some great snorkeling there. We even saw some Flamingos on our way back.

This excursion was great! Our guide, Nellie, was so informative, kind, funny, and just all around pleasant! She gave us an experience of a lifetime. We saw the flamingos, capturing some of the best pictures. Then Nellie took us to Hato Caves, where a wonderful guide told us about the history of the caves and the bats who reside there. There are steps up to the caves, but they are doable and you can go at a pace that is comfortable. Then off to swimming with the turtles, which was a great experience. We took alot of pictures and snorkled. Our last stop was the beautiful beach of Grote Knip. Wow...I cannot describe how amazingly beautiful this beach is. Our time there was unforgettable! On our way back to our resort, Nellie showed us more of the interesting history, arts, and landscape of this beautiful island. I highly recommend this excursion.

Our tour guide was Nelly and she was fantastic! In addition to seeing the beautiful sites we got to learn so much about the history of the Island. Nelly was extremely knowledgeable and allowed plenty of room for questions. The cave tour was really cool as well as swimming with the turtles. Grote Knip is such a beautiful beach. It had rained in the morning so the flamingos had gone away. We were sad to miss them, but nothing you can do about the weather! Even without seeing the flamingos we felt the experience was well worth the cost.

Truly beautiful experience. The tour guide was amazing and the views were beautiful. Definitely worth the money!

Enjoyable. Hato Cave was interesting. Swimming with the turtles unique. Only way to get good pics with them is to have a local or tour guide feed them. Grote Knip was stunning. The final visit to see the flamingos worth skipping as the birds are quite distant.

This tour was a fantastic way to see different areas on the island. Our guide was very enthusiastic and informative. We got to see the sea turtles up close, went to a beautiful beach where the water is just an unbelievable color, and the caves were the perfect ending. Highly recommend!

We had a great time. If you don't like steps you might want to think about it. The hato caves have alot of steps going up. But we enjoyed the beach and the turtles. And our tour guide was awesome.

Great tour! Loved the caves, so fascinating! The two beaches were beautiful, people snorkeled with the turtles and swam in the beautiful blue water. Lovely tour, highly recommend!

Our tour guide Daja was very nice and explained a lot about Curacao history and culture and economy that curious travelers (like me!) love to learn about. The Hato Caves were nice to visit. The “turtle beach” as well. We got to see just one flamingo but that was just by chance and timing, not any fault of the tour operator. On this tour I learned about some highlights that I went back to later in the week with a rented car, and shared with friends! I think a visit into the Landaus Knip museum would have been nice, but I understand theirs only so much you can fit into one tour!

Amazing and so fun!! Wina and Jerrell were so kind, funny, and personable they really made the entire experience worthwhile!!

We had an incredible time! Our guide was fantastic. She really knew and loved the island of Curacao! They brought us to the most beautiful places and we had a great experience! The flamingos, the snorkeling, the caves, and the turtles! Don't miss this incredible experience!

We had a very poor experience Wins and Didi were our guides. We made two unscheduled stops for a couple to use an ATM. We sat in a hot bus with mosquitos waiting for them. The flamingo stop is a pull over on the shoulder of the highway. The flamingos are in a pond. Unfortunately they were not close to the road and we could barely see them. The Hato cave was a good experience. You are turned over to a guide at the cave. There are 56 steps up and of course 56 steps down. Not sure how that is stroller friendly. Fisherman’s beach was nasty. Steps here as well. The beach was dirty with glass bottles and trash everywhere. The turtle swim was dictated by a person on the dock. You had to pay him $10 to swim with the turtles on your belly. You shouldn’t be touching the turtles. The water is made nasty by his continual hitting small fish and throwing them in the water with the turtles. The other side of the pier had no turtles and rusty metal pipes sticking out of the water. There were very few lounge chairs. Our last stop was another beach with once again over 25 steps to access. We have no issues with steps but feel that people should be made aware. We had a couple that had to stay on the bus and not participate because of all the steps. This beach was a little nicer. We were able to get lounge chairs. Lots of large rocks entering the water. Definitely suggest water shoes. Bus ride back to this beach was 45 min. Bus ride back to port was 45 min. They had a portable karaoke machine to play music. It had issues. Didi played the same Bob Marley song several times. They did stop the music to tell us about Didi’s trying for Ms Curaçao in hopes to make it to Miss Universe. Not a fan of this excursion. Waste of time.

Nelly was a fantastic and funny guide and trip was exactly what we expected. Pickup was also very smooth. Only the time foreseen for turtle beach was a bit too short. We had two little children and the time they needed to put on swimgear and then towel off didn’t leave us a lot off time (+- 20 min) to swim with the turtles.

Wonderful full day Curacao excursion from the cruise port. Hato Cave was cool but the beaches and snorkeling at Playa Piskado and Grote Knip were the stars of the trip. We also had a lot of fun with tour guides Wina and TeeTee, who shared both their personal stories and Curacao's. Would have loved a quick tour of Willemstad as opposed to the Flamingo stop, but otherwise amazing.

The tour didn’t quite meet my expectations. At Playa Piskado, there were no proper changing facilities, as it’s primarily a fisherman’s area, and getting into the water to swim with the turtles was a bit difficult due to the lack of proper access. While Grote Knip beach was beautiful, almost everything required payment, and entering the water there was also a bit challenging despite how lovely it looked. On a positive note, seeing the flamingos in their natural habitat was a beautiful experience, and I really enjoyed the cave tour.

This was a great experience while in Curacao. The tour guide was very knowledgeable about the island and very funny too! She was easy to talk with and answered any questions I had. The caves were very cool and interesting, however, there are a lot of stairs and uneven ground to get up to them inside of them so be aware. Swimming with the turtles was fun too and seeing all of the fish underneath. The last beach we went to was nice, but not as beautiful as described online. The sand was not as white as it looked in the picture and it was very crowded. There was also a lot of coral all over in the water too. We wished we wore water shoes.

The guide was 17 and not overly knowledgeable. Spent more time telling us about being in beauty Pageant then she did about the tour. Seeing pink Flamingos was just stopping the US on the side of the road. Beaches they took us to not worth a tour

My sister and I are here for the first time 3/31/25. Reviews for the tour looked good, so gave it a try. Did the flamingo/swim with turtles/green escape/cave tour. Tour guide Dia and driver Rio a 10/10. Dia said at beginning of tour we were her family for the next 6 hours. Safe, fun and informative. Highly recommend. Learn about island while in route to each stop.

Traveled solo (Mom) with my 17 year old son. Locating the group was easy and quick. Loved having. A mini bus with AC. The group was less than 20 people which was perfect! We saw with the caves, swam with the turtles, enjoyed the beach, saw the country side and stopped and saw the flamingos. The tour was great. Daja our guide was amazing. And Rio was a great driver. I booked through Viator and would do it again. Note: the Curacao beaches are rocky/coral/volcanic. I wish I had water shoes.

Beaches were amazingly beautiful and our guide was very knowledgeable! An awesome alternative to cruise ship excursions. We were able to do everything we wanted to do in one trip.

This a great excursion to see the West side of the island! The flamingos were very far away feeding, but the sea turtles was a remarkable experience, my daughter and I got to have the sea turtles swim over our bellies!! The Hato Caves were amazing, there is so much history to learn! I recommend this excursion for families of all ages!!!

Loved this tour! We had a small group, which worked out well, to learn about Curacao and see the sights. Titi was such a wonderful guide. She was bubbly, personable, and knowledgeable. She gave us tips when seeing the turtles. We enjoyed this tour and highly recommend. Grote Knip is a beautiful beach!!

Our guide Daya and our driver Rio were wonderful! Daya was extremely friendly and very informative. We learned a lot! The bus was extremely comfortable and the amount of time at each stop was perfect! The beaches have lots of stones on them, I highly recommend water shoes. It was a great day trip!

Our tour was amazing! Our guide Daja and driver Rio made our trip worthwhile. They were both knowledgeable and friendly!

Great tour. Our guide was fun and informative. She was fun and gave a lot oh information about the island. Would highly recommend.

The bus broke down and they did not show up ruined the whole day of our vacation. I had to scramble to make other plans.

Hands down my favorite excursion EVER! I have been on many, many trips/excursions, etc. and this was my absolute FAV.! Daya and her crew kept us literally belly laughing the whole trip while also providing us with so much interesting history and cultural information about the island of Curacao. I had done a lot of research on the "must-sees" and this tour hit every one. The length was perfect and even the time spent at each stop couldn't have been timed better. The pictures don't do the tour justice but I was too busy having fun to take any more! 20/10 recommendation!

First of all, a huge shout out to tour guide Nani and driver Rio! These two young people made the whole experience wonderful. Their personalities and love and pride in their homeland made the whole tour that much more memorable. We saw all the things listed on the brochure and we were always kept mindful of how close mankind is to nature, how dependent we all are. I'd love another tour with them both!

I thought we were going to have a huge group, but it was not. It was great to have only three other people on the tour with us. I thought we were going on a boat to swim with the turtles, but it was from a beach, which was better to me. We had a lot of history and information on the trip. I would definitely recommend this tour.

The cancelled the tour and hour after scheduled pick up time. Got a call after refund. Tried to rebook, higher price

Very informative and great day seeing Curacao. Our guide Wina was super sweet and as a Curacao native super informative about the island's history. Wina was super sweet, attentive and taught us so much about Curacao. I highly recommend this tour.

This tour exceeded our expectations and would highly recommend. Our tour guide was very friendly and knowledgeable about the island. Our driver was also very careful and friendly.

Enjoyed all of it. We got to see sea turtles and flamingos. They took us to a second area to see the flamingos because they weren’t in the first area. We had the option to stop for lunch or spend more time at the second beach which was nice. Overall, no complaints.

Our tour guide, Daya, and driver, Chibi, were so great. They were sweet and taught us so much about the culture and way of living here in Curacao.

Our guide Suela was FANTASTIC! She started the tour with Curacao info and never stopped. She provided an amazing experience during for us. She dropped us off at the various locations for the designated times and kept to the schedule. I would highly recommend this tour!

Our tour guide Daja was wonderful. She shared a lot about the island. We felt there was plenty of time at each stop. The caves were so cool, we caught a glimpse of 4 turtles at turtle beach, and loved grote knip beach. It was very crowded as many other tours were also there. Chair rental $5 bathrooms $1. I recommend water shoes as there are rocks at turtle beach. I gave 4 stars because I tried contacting the tour operator and never recieved a response. We were visiting via cruise and wanted to know pick up/drop off time ahead of the cruise. We recieved an email the day before. Otherwise it was a great excursion.

We had the chance to see wonderful places of Curacao and get a lot of interesting Information from Daja. Great Tour for a one-day visit (Cruise ship guests).

Our tour guide was amazing. She was very knowledgeable. We loved swimming with the turtles just wasn't enough time there that was my reasoning for a 4 star versus a 5 star.