San Nicolas
Aruba · 8 m
Description
San Nicolas is the second town of Aruba and was built by the Lago oil refinery, which brought in workers from across the Caribbean and gave the place an English-speaking, Trinidadian and Grenadian character the rest of the island does not have. The refinery closed and the town emptied, and since 2016 an annual art fair has covered whole streets in large-scale murals, which has turned it into the island's cultural quarter. Charlie's Bar, open since 1941 and hung floor to ceiling with the debris of eighty years, is the other institution.
Length of stay
Recommended length of stay: 1 to 2 days (optimal 1 day)
Travel season
Best time to visit: January – August
- Jan
- Feb
- Mar
- Apr
- May
- Jun
- Jul
- Aug
- Sep
- Oct
- Nov
- Dec
Highlights
- Street art murals of the Aruba Art Fair
- Charlie's Bar
- Aruba Carnival parades (January - February)
- Community Museum and the Nicolaas Store
- Caribbean cooking of the refinery town
- Seroe Colorado lighthouse and its natural bridge
- Rodgers Beach
- Carnival Euphoria mural walking route