Bubali, Aruba: The Wetland Behind the Hotels
A bird sanctuary, the island's biggest supermarket and cheaper food, a block from the sand.
Why Go
Bubali is the strip of land immediately inland from Eagle Beach and Palm Beach, and most visitors experience it as the place they drive through to reach the sea. It holds two things worth stopping for: the Bubali Bird Sanctuary, a genuine wetland with a viewing platform and more herons than you would expect a few hundred metres from a high-rise, and the island's largest supermarket. It also has restaurants at a fraction of beachfront prices, which over a week is the difference that pays for the car.
The Experience
The district is a grid of ordinary streets between the two big beach strips, low-rise and residential, with commercial plazas along the main roads. The wetland sits in the middle of it — an accident of history, since the ponds began as a water-treatment site and turned into the best birdwatching on the island, with a raised platform to look over them from. Around it the area is unglamorous and useful: supermarkets, a casino, small restaurants, a dive shop, the kind of businesses that exist for people who live here. Everything is five to ten minutes' walk from either beach, which is the point — you get resort-strip access without resort-strip pricing or noise. The wetland is also a reminder of how narrow this island is: from the platform you can see the high-rises on one side and the low-rise hotels on the other, with a functioning marsh and its birds in between, and the whole arrangement sits inside about a kilometre. Aruba is often described as arid, and it is, but this corner is the exception that makes the rest legible.
What to Try
Climb the platform at the bird sanctuary early or late in the day, when the herons and the occasional flamingo are moving. The Aruba Aloe Factory Museum and Store is the island's oldest company and a better hour than it sounds — aloe has been grown here commercially since the nineteenth century and the tour explains why. Eat where the neighbourhood eats: Señor Burrito Aruba, Kiya Restaurant for Colombian, Fire & Flames BBQ Sports Bar & Grill, Jungle Café and Deli Perfetto all cost noticeably less than the same meal on the sand, and Kini Kini Pool Bar covers the afternoon. Super Food Plaza is the big supermarket and the reason self-catering works on this island. For activity, Mermaid Dive Center Aruba, Beach Tennis Aruba and UTV Adventure Tours by Fofoti all operate from here. Glitz Casino covers the evening without a walk to the strip, and D Shop Aruba and Family Dogs are the small local retail. The practical shape of a week based here is simple: shop once, walk to Eagle Beach in the morning, eat inland most nights, and use the saving on a boat trip or a car you would otherwise have skipped.
Insider Tip
Do your shopping at Super Food Plaza and eat at least half your dinners in Bubali rather than on the strip. The saving across a week is large and the cooking is not worse — it is simply priced for residents. For the sanctuary, go within an hour of sunrise or sunset: in the middle of the day the birds are inactive and the platform is exposed, and you will conclude there is nothing there.
The Practical Stuff
Bubali sits between Eagle Beach and Palm Beach, about fifteen minutes from Queen Beatrix airport and five to ten from Oranjestad. Both beaches are within a short walk, which is unusual for somewhere this much cheaper. Parking is free and easy throughout, unlike on the beachfront. The Arubus route along the coast road is a few minutes away and runs frequently to Oranjestad. Shops keep ordinary hours and close on Sundays; restaurants stay open. There is no beach in Bubali itself and no nightlife beyond the casino — the strip handles that, ten minutes on foot. Aruba lies outside the main hurricane belt, so conditions are consistent year-round.
Common Questions
What is the Bubali Bird Sanctuary?
A wetland between Eagle Beach and Palm Beach with a raised viewing platform, home to herons, egrets and occasional flamingos. The ponds began as a water-treatment site and became the island's best birdwatching.
Is Bubali a good place to stay?
Yes if you want to walk to two of the island's best beaches while paying inland prices for food and rooms. There is no beach in the district itself and no nightlife beyond one casino.
How far is Bubali from the beach?
Five to ten minutes on foot to either Eagle Beach or Palm Beach, which is the whole argument for the area. Parking in Bubali is free, which it is not on the beachfront.
Where is the best supermarket in Aruba?
Super Food Plaza in Bubali is the largest, and the main reason self-catering is practical on this island. It is a few minutes from both beach strips with free parking.
When should you visit the bird sanctuary?
Within an hour of sunrise or sunset. In the middle of the day the birds are inactive and the viewing platform is fully exposed to the sun.
Is Bubali cheaper than Palm Beach?
Noticeably, for both food and accommodation. The restaurants here serve residents rather than hotel guests, and the difference across a week is substantial.
Pair It With
- Aruba Aloe Factory Museum and Store — The island's oldest business, ten minutes from the sand.
- Super Food Plaza — The shop that changes what a week costs.
- Mermaid Dive Center Aruba — Diving without a beachfront address.
