Holiday Inn Resort Aruba - Beach Resort & Casino by IHG

Holiday Inn, Thank you again for a wonderful week in Aruba!! Tough going back from 86 degrees to 22 degrees, but just sets the stage for the next trip down in the spring. I have told you before, your staff are the very best at what they do. From Donnie at check in to each and every server and guest attendant you have. During this stay we did not do the all-inclusive, so that we could taste the cuisine off the property. I can clearly state, that although good, your restaurants are perfect. We enjoy the food and staff at all of them. Big shout out to Maxi at Sea Breeze who is always a pleasure and makes hanging out there so much fun. Thanks again to Andres at the Sea Breeze bar for the hospitality and the hot tottie on our last night. Don’t forget to call. The breakfast buffet in the morning is always special. Thanks Eddie for still being there to make sure everything is just right. So glad to see you each time we go. Big thanks to Carolina and Chanty who we seek out in the morning. They are a great way to start your day! Last, but certainly not least, our friends at the Oceanside Bar and Grill. This was the original reason why we returned. Edward, aka Edwin, aka Eduardo is the absolute best. He is the first person we want to see when we get to Aruba and the last before we leave. Just an all around great guy and superb bartender. Although, they are and were all great, Lucas, Jose, Anthony, Lucila, and a new kid that I can’t recall his name, Ed is our go to. We never have any complaints when we visit. If anything, it would be to just give patrons a heads up that your laundry facilities are down, like you do about the renovations, just so we pack additional clothes. Other than that a dream trip again. We hope you all have a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year! See you in 2026! Dominick and Elaine #$2.00

We recently stayed at the Holiday Inn All Inclusive Resort in Aruba, and unfortunately, our experience was far from what we expected—especially for the price we paid. Check-In Experience Our problems started the moment we arrived. Because of an issue caused by JetBlue Vacations, we needed assistance at check-in. Instead of empathy or any willingness to help, the concierge staff was dismissive and cold. The attitude was “business only,” with zero concern for how stressed or confused we were. When we asked for proof of the issue they claimed existed, the concierge couldn’t provide anything. A manager got involved, but the treatment was exactly the same—unhelpful, unsympathetic, and uninterested in any kind of resolution. We felt uncomfortable, unwelcome, and completely unsupported right from the beginning of our trip. “All Inclusive” That Really Isn’t The biggest disappointment: the so-called “all inclusive” package is not truly all inclusive. • Kids’ meals: Even though we paid for them to be all inclusive, kids are forced to order only from the limited kids’ menu. They do not have access to the regular menu like adults. • Kids needing adults to sign for drinks: Anytime the kids wanted a drink, an adult had to walk over and sign a receipt. Very inconvenient and unnecessary. • Drink limitations: Adults could only order two drinks per person at a time. When you’re a group of eight, it means everyone has to get up and go to the bar constantly. On top of that, you always have to sign receipts—again, very inconvenient for an all-inclusive resort. • Rude bartenders: At Seabreeze, several bartenders made us feel like we were inconveniencing them when ordering even basic drinks. Drinks we had the night before at the Agave restaurant suddenly became “not available.” We felt judged and treated differently for wearing the red all-inclusive bracelets. This is the opposite of how guests should feel on vacation. The Misleading $150 Hotel Credit We were told we would receive a $150 hotel credit that we could use during our stay. This was extremely misleading. • It could only be used for bottled drinks and gelato. • It could not be used for: • Palapa rentals ($30/day) • Any restaurant dishes with surcharges • The souvenir stores inside the hotel Why offer a “credit” that is practically unusable? It felt like a marketing trick rather than an actual benefit. Check-Out: The Worst Ending to a Disappointing Stay At checkout, they tried to charge us $77 for items we purchased using the hotel credit—the same credit that already had limited use. Then the most shocking part: they cut off our all-inclusive bracelets immediately, meaning: • We could no longer access the all-inclusive food or drinks. • We could not even use the hotel bathrooms freely. • Because we had a late flight, we had to leave the hotel property to buy our own food elsewhere. No hotel we’ve ever stayed at has revoked amenities the second you check out—especially when you’re still physically on the property waiting for transportation or a flight. Completely unacceptable. Overall Hospitality There was absolutely no warmth, hospitality, or professionalism from the staff. No one cared to ask how our stay was, even at checkout. The general tone throughout the trip was unfriendly and indifferent. ⸻ Final Thoughts We’ve traveled to many countries and stayed at many all-inclusive and non-inclusive resorts. We have never experienced anything like this. This resort desperately needs customer service training, honest labeling of its “all inclusive” program, and a complete overhaul of how guests are treated from check-in to checkout. We do not recommend the Holiday Inn All Inclusive in Aruba and will not return

Great food, music and attention. Make sure you make your reservations. Maxi is great. Also they offer many gluten free dishes which is amazing for those with celiac disease.

Everyone at the hotel is friendly and helpful. The breakfast crew is wonderful, especially Carolina. We also love Smitty who helped us set up our palapa every morning.

This is our second trip to Holiday Inn Aruba and we will be making it an annual tradition. Andres is the best bartender, went above and beyond for us every night. Monique, Lucas, Richard all provided excellent service as well. All of these employees made our experience here wonderful

Our first time at Holiday Inn Resort. Loved everything about it, Izea is our favorite waiter at Sea Breeze. All staff has been awesome. We had a couple issues in our room , was taken care of immediately.

Great service! Veronica was very attentive and overall awesome. We thank her for her awesome job. Great food and atmosphere.

I wanted to love this resort because of the location and price point, but the stay was mediocre at best. While there were certainly exceptions, most of the staff seemed bothered when asking for help, making a purchase or just generally having to do their job. The hotel is dated which we fully expected and were totally fine with. The room was clean and functional for the amount of time we spent in it. No microwave, old-fashioned coffee pot that leaked, one sink and a poorly conceived shower with the faucet behind the non-moveable portion of the door requiring you to get into the shower to turn on/regulate. Our ocean view upgrade in Sea Tower overlooked a nonfunctional and decrepit mini golf course, parking lot and the nightclub next door. The nightclub plays DJ music until 1 or 2 am each night and the entire room thumps. Only 1, very thin beach towel per guest. The pools close early. We had to set up our own beach chairs each day by unstacking them and dragging/carrying them across beach. We saw a waiter 1 time our entire stay on the beach for drinks. Attempted lunch at ocean grill only to leave after receiving menus and no service for 15 minutes. Arrived home from excursion one day to find all shops, interior casino entrance, 2 restaurants and the interior walkway to our building closed for renovations- no warning at check-in and no explanations - just a sign and caution tape. No convenience store, no gift shops. We attempted to bring all of these issues to the attention of management who cared less - assuring only that they will do better to communicate and then later offering to switch our room the night before check out. If we knew construction would be occurring that limited the amenities and offerings of the hotel in advance, we would have chosen different accommodations. We actually switched here from another hotel after considering the different offerings and clearly made the wrong choice. Overall, while the location is great, the beachfront area perfect and nice pools, dealing with a nightclub next door, unannounced closures and construction and managements assurances that they will be sure to communicate with patrons better in the future does very little for current guests and, in our case, those that will not be returning based upon a poor experience.

I had dinner at the Sea Breeze. Maxi took great care of me! She was personable and gave me great suggestion for wine. The food was delicious and the live music was a vibe. I truly enjoyed my night.

Great experience, service and food at Seabreeze! My waiter was friendly and welcoming. Izea. My table was looking out over my he ocean and saw an incredible sunset.