Malmok, Aruba: The Rocky Coast With the Best Snorkelling

Why Go

Malmok is the stretch of coast north of Palm Beach where the hotels stop and the villas begin. There is very little sand: the shoreline is low limestone shelf dropping straight into clear water, which is a poor beach and an excellent place to get in with a mask. The reef here is close, shallow and healthy, the Antilla — a scuttled German freighter and the largest wreck in the Caribbean — lies just offshore, and the flat water off the huts to the south is where the island's windsurfers have always sailed.

The Experience

The road runs along the coast with substantial houses on both sides and access points to the water between them. It is quiet in a way Palm Beach fifteen minutes south is not: no vendors, no music, no loungers, just parked cars and people getting in and out of the sea. The water is exceptionally clear because there is no sand to stir up, and calm because the reef breaks the swell. Boats come up from the hotels through the day to moor over the Antilla, so the surface is busier than the shore. Inland the land rises to the golf course and the dry interior, and further north the road continues to Arashi and the lighthouse. Sunsets here are the best on the island and nobody charges for them. The absence of sand is worth stating plainly rather than discovering on arrival with a towel: there is nowhere comfortable to lie down along most of this coast, and people who come expecting a beach leave disappointed while people who come expecting a swim leave delighted. It is the clearest example on Aruba of a place that is excellent at one thing and useless at the adjacent one.

What to Try

Snorkel. Malmok Reef is directly off the shore, shallow and easy, and it is the best free snorkelling on Aruba — bring your own gear and walk in from one of the access points. The Antilla wreck sits offshore in around eighteen metres, too deep to snorkel comfortably but the standard first dive on this island; Underdog Divers runs it. Ocean Z Restaurant is the place to eat with the water in front of you, and The Restaurant at Tierra del Sol and Brisas di Oro cover the rest. Tierra del Sol is the island's championship golf course, immediately inland. Etnia Nativa is a private cultural visit by appointment and unlike anything else on the island, and Elisa Lejuez Art and Nos Aruba Dushi Tera are the local art and craft. When in Aruba and Brisas di Oro fill out the short list of places to eat. The natural half-day here is to snorkel in the morning while the water is stillest, eat somewhere along the coast road, and carry on north to Arashi and the lighthouse for the afternoon and the sunset, which strings together the three best things at this end of the island.

Insider Tip

Bring your own snorkel gear and swim from the shore rather than booking a boat. Every catamaran on the island sells a trip to "Malmok and the Antilla", and the snorkelling half of that trip is water you can walk into for free from the road — the boats are worth it only for the wreck itself, which is a dive rather than a snorkel. Wear something on your feet: the entry is limestone shelf and sea urchins, not sand.

The Practical Stuff

Malmok is about ten to fifteen minutes north of Palm Beach and twenty-five from Queen Beatrix airport. You need a car — this is a residential coast road with no bus service worth planning around and nothing walkable. Parking is free and informal along the road, and it fills at the popular access points by mid-morning. There are no facilities on the shore at all: no shade, no bathrooms, no lifeguard and no vendors, so arrive with water and sun protection. Water shoes matter here more than anywhere else on the island. Aruba lies outside the main hurricane belt, and this west-facing coast is sheltered and calm nearly year-round.

Common Questions

Is Malmok good for snorkelling?

It is the best shore snorkelling on Aruba. The reef is close, shallow and clear, and you can walk in from access points along the road with your own gear rather than paying for a boat.

Is there a beach at Malmok?

Barely — the shore is low limestone shelf with small pockets of sand. It is a place to get into the water rather than to lie on it. Arashi a few minutes north has proper sand.

Can you snorkel the Antilla wreck?

Not comfortably. It sits in around eighteen metres, so it is a dive rather than a snorkel, and it is the standard first dive on the island. Boat trips that combine both snorkel the reef, not the wreck.

Do you need water shoes at Malmok?

Yes. The entry is limestone shelf with sea urchins in places, and this is the one part of Aruba where going in barefoot is a genuinely bad idea.

How far is Malmok from Palm Beach?

Ten to fifteen minutes north by car. There is no useful bus and nothing walkable, so a car or a taxi is necessary.

Are there facilities at Malmok?

None on the shore — no shade, bathrooms, lifeguard or vendors. Bring water and sun protection, and note that parking at the popular entry points fills by mid-morning.

Pair It With

Malmok reef — Free snorkelling straight off the road.
Underdog Divers — The wreck that the snorkel trips cannot reach.
Ocean Z Restaurant — Lunch with the water in front of it.