ARUBA: ONE HAPPY ISLAND
ARUBA: ONE HAPPY ISLAND
ARUBA: ONE HAPPY ISLAND
Sarah-Quita Offringa & Oda Brødholt have spent the last few seasons training together in Aruba, we hear from the duo about what exactly makes Aruba so magical… from offering world class windsurfing to its laid back atmosphere, stunning scenery and beyond.
Words: Sarah-Quita Offringa and Oda Brødholt.
Photos: John Carter and Kade Sconfienza.
WHAT MAKES ARUBA MAGICAL?
SQ
“What I love about Aruba is that you can be as busy or as laidback as you want. In Aruba, the economy is focused around tourism, so there are many activities to keep any visitor busy. They range from horseback riding, to off roading, to hiking on the north shore, to watersports activities on the westside and then fine dining and clubbing at night. At the same time, we have world class beaches where you can just relax and go for a swim in the incredible blue water. Everything moves at a little slower pace on the island and that is fine by me!
I love being at home, but here is also this thing called island fever. When you’re on the island too long you eventually have to leave! What I’ve learned over the years is that whenever I can, even if it is for a few days, I try to fly back home. Being home is refreshing and fills me with new energy for the upcoming travels and contests.”
ODA
“I loved the first time I came to Aruba, as having a local guide like Sarah who knows every single spot on the island for all the different conditions just makes life so easy. I knew I was always at the best spot depending on the conditions. If you walk Aruba’s main streets, they have these two Hollywood stars, and SQ has one of these two stars! She is really an athlete that everyone from Aruba is proud of and she always takes the time to take selfies with fans each time she goes to the supermarket or moves around the island. At times I think it can be challenging for her, but it is cool to see how much she inspires the local community on her home island Aruba. Also, everywhere Sarah goes she is a great Aruba representative. The flag is with her everywhere, all around the world, and she is proud to represent such a great island like Aruba.”
WINDY SEASON
SQ
“Straight off the plane you feel the welcoming breeze! The wind blows from December through to August. The best season is Easter time when the northeast trade winds blow consistently between 20-30 knots every day. To put that into perspective, that means I will go freestyling on my 4.8m and 93L on normal days and can be overpowered on my 4.4m on windy days. In slalom terms, I’d sail between 6.5m and 7.8m on my medium board.
I love windsurfing and I spend time on the water nearly every day in the windy season. But what I love about home is how accessible everything is. In general, I try to fit as many possible sessions as possible and activities, in one day, and then I want to do it over and over again the next day, which is to my detriment sometimes. It’s a small island, so it’s always just a short 5 to 15 minute drive to get anywhere.”
ODA
“I like how friendly everyone is! The name One Happy Island is 100% correct! As a tourist you feel welcomed, and the vibe is great! I used to windsurf more on Bonaire, one of the neighbouring islands, but I love the fact that Aruba usually is one sail size smaller, which means that the wind has a bit more power than on Bonaire. Most days I will be sailing on my 4.4m and some days 4.8m. These two sail sizes in freestyle will cover most days on the water here. Escaping the Norwegian winter and spending a few months in Aruba works well for me. I go to the gym three times a week and play tennis – the rest of the time it’s all about windsurfing. As I’m here before the start of the season, it’s nice to have a kind of daily routine for a longer period. In Aruba you will never be bored. Windsurfing, kiting and wing-foiling will keep you busy all day, and if you like to go out for a nice dinner, they have so many different restaurants that offer great food!”
LOCAL SUPPORT
SQ
“In Aruba the locals are supportive of me. So, it’s not like I’m getting harassed or anything like that, but a lot of people recognise me when I am driving around. The locals treat the contests as a joint venture. They always say, “When are WE going for the next event?” So, most places I go to people just congratulate me and express their support. I take plenty of photos with kids and babies and I usually give a lot of talks at schools explaining what I do, which is fun and hopefully it may help motivate some kids to follow their dreams.
I feel super lucky that I have Aruba to call my home base, but since I still have big aspirations in windsurfing, I need to travel to keep challenging myself. I just want to improve in the waves, and this is something I simply can’t do regularly in Aruba. Besides that, I have this deep urge to see and discover new places. There’s a difference going to familiar places or going to a completely new destination. Discovering a new location is very exciting and keeps me inspired. Of course, it’s great to return to favourite spots as you deepen your connection with that place and the community there.
The more I travel the more I realise how much more there is to see. It almost makes me melancholic that I won’t have enough time to experience everything I want in this period of my life. Sure, I can keep travelling all my life, but the physical ability I have now will not last forever and I kind of want to take advantage of that.
Returning to Aruba after a trip away at a windsurfing competition or travel trip is always a special feeling. Especially that first morning drive to the beach, that feels magical. The water is so blue and calming. When I come back home, I always ask myself why I even left! It really is a little paradise. Aruba is the perfect place for me to let my hair down (Even though mine is permanently defying gravity) and relax. I don’t usually windsurf so much after I’ve been travelling a lot. I tend to spend more time with family, drink coffees and enjoy outdoor breakfasts, I kitesurf, play tennis, have BBQ’s, and just do different things to refresh my mind.”
TYPICAL DAY
SQ
“On a typical action-packed day, I will do a gym or tennis session early in the morning, then grab breakfast at Eduardo’s Hideaway, where you have nice vegan meals, then go through the Island Grind drive through for a take-out coffee and head to the water for the first session of the day. When I go for a slalom session, I prefer sailing at the Fishermen’s Huts. This is Aruba’s most known windsurfing spot and where all the windsurfing and kitesurfing schools are. It’s located on the northeast of the island.
The wind is offshore, so it can be gusty, but once you’re out on the blue highway you have cleaner wind, and it is pure bliss blasting over turquoise waters! I think the ‘Huts’ is a great place for beginners and intermediate windsurfers as the water is quite flat and the reef is always a safe area where you can take a break.
When I want more challenging conditions, I prefer going to Barcadera where the wind is more side shore and somehow funnels between the island and the reef further out. The gusts are stronger, the chop is bigger and steeper, and this is where I can practice all my freestyle power moves. From Barcadera you can move further south towards Rodger’s Beach, where I occasionally have some fun wave sessions, but this only happens a couple of times a year. But this area is lovely just to hang out. Rodger’s Beach is the uncrowded version of Baby Beach, which is the opposite bay, beautiful and shallow, but attracts many tourists, whereas Rodger’s Beach is more peaceful and feels more local.”
ODA
“We normally check Barcadera first if the wind is good for freestyle. However, before that Sarah insists on stopping at one or two coffee places along the road heading to the spot. And I will happily join that!
We will be sailing at Barcadera most of the time alone, so it is important that the whole team of the two of us are on the same hyped page. That is why we make sure we don’t play songs that will not fit our daily mood before hitting the water. Sarah is a great windsurfer, but an even better DJ. She knows how to get the right mood before rigging our sails. We also discuss what we want to practice on the water before heading out. Like that it is easy to see the other person’s mission and help the process of learning.
Coming from Norway it always blows my mind how clear the water is in Aruba. Every single day I do make an appreciation thought about how lucky I am to be sailing in this beautiful water. Freestyle, freeride, slalom or foiling, in Aruba you can train it all!”
THE ‘K’ WORD
SQ
“On my way south it’s nice to make a stop at ‘Mauchie Smoothie’ to fuel up, or even grab a nice rice dish at the Sero Colorado Shack. I know this is a windsurfing magazine, but the highlight for me is ending the day at Boca Grandi, with a kite session. It was originally a windsurfing spot, but the wind is onshore and very consistent, however, it tends to be a tad lighter than the offshore spots, so it became a predominantly kitesurfing spot. So, ‘if you can’t beat them… you gotta join ‘em’’! When it does get windy, and I windsurf there, it’s a fun spot to go for big shakas and forwards. Boca Grandi is a small bay, surrounded by white dunes and sea grape trees. It’s like doing a day trip to a completely different island. The sunset session is magical and gives you that end of day high.”
APRÉS WINDSURFING
SQ
“If you still have enough energy after a sports packed day. Then it’s time to explore Aruba’s nightlife! I also love going to Craft for breakfast and coffee, but at night it turns into the place to see and be seen during the happy hours. Fine dining can be had at Yemanja, Bohemian, Que Pasa and many more. I don’t enjoy clubbing too much, and much more enjoy the live performances at Piers or Shacks at the beach.
There’s a different happier vibe during these parties. Bugaloe and Pelican Pier offer sunset and night-time entertainment with live music or karaoke nights. Finally, to me the ultimate feel-good activity in Aruba is taking a sunset cruise. Being on the ocean with some nice music and good company is the ultimate One Happy Island feeling.
Aruba is a cultural melting pot. The locals speak four languages. We live and breathe hospitality and welcome people from all over the world. Here, you’ll meet the friendliest individuals that want to make your trip to Aruba an unforgettable one.
If you’re flying from Europe, there are direct flights available from Amsterdam either with KLM or TUI. I’d recommend TUI if you’re travelling with your own gear. Besides that, we have many flights to Aruba from the US too, so there are plenty of options to make it to the ‘Happy Island!’”
ODA
“Aruba is a great island for windsurfing due to the consistent wind season and warm water. You have different spots offering different conditions, which is something I really like about it. It is always good to train in different conditions when you want to improve your sailing. Some spots are easier than others, so you can always challenge yourself on the water. On magical days, we have even had some down-the-line wave sailing, but that is not happening as often as we would like. When I stay for a longer training period, I always appreciate that I can have a “normal” life next to windsurfing. Aruba offers great food and plenty of other activities as well. I started my tennis addiction in Aruba in 2020! There are plenty of gyms around and running in the nature or hiking Hooiberg are great options for other activities as well as the nightlife Aruba can offer.”
TRAINING PARTNERS
SQ
“It’s amazing to have Oda as sparring partner. We match each other’s energy level and tend to hype each other up for whatever activity we get excited for. We both always want to improve at what we do and are always trying to outdo each other. At the same time there’s a lot of filming, video analysing and philosophical tech talk about how to do certain moves better, so we help each other improve too. I used to travel alone a lot and at some point, it started feeling like this routine was a bit lonely, quite often. However, once we started travelling together it brought back the fun and excitement aspect of travelling and training for me. We have a lot of fun on our adventures and there’s never a dull moment.
ODA
“Sailing with SQ is always fun! Sometimes before morning sessions she needs a shot or two of coffee to really wake up. But once the coffee kicks in nothing makes me more hyped than sailing with Sarah. It’s the whole adventure from packing the car to playing the right songs to get in the right mood to train and discuss what we want to learn during the session. I think we are a good team on the water together as we offer each other a lot of support. It’s great to be have someone sailing around you, who has a higher level than you and when it comes to SQ, she sets the stand for women’s windsurfing, so as a training partner goes, it doesn’t get much better. It is just so inspiring! I also tend to over sail a lot as I am not always able to get off the water, while SQ usually is better at stopping at a time when we still have quality in the session! With the Norwegian mindset of thinking: “What if there is no more wind tomorrow? I need to sail until my arms can’t handle it anymore.” it is easy to over-sail. However, for the Caribbean from Aruba, that’s not really an issue as the wind blows almost every day. So, for a Norwegian it is great to have the Caribbean to make sure we get quality over quantity.”
The post ARUBA: ONE HAPPY ISLAND appeared first on Windsurf Magazine.