This Island in the Caribbean Lets You Swim With Flamingos
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About 10 minutes by boat from the island of Aruba, there is an island owned by the luxury Renaissance hotel chain where flamingos like to roam, and vacationers are able to take a dip with the pink, feathery creatures.
Guests who are staying at Renaissance Wind Creek Aruba Resort can visit 40-acre Renaissance Island and the area dubbed Flamingo Beach for free.
Complimentary taxis leave the resort — which is on the west side of Aruba, just 3 miles from the international airport — for exclusive Renaissance Island every 15 minutes between 7 a.m. and 7 p.m.
If you're not spending the night at the Renaissance resort, you can purchase a day pass to the island for $125. Call the property on Saturday to check for availability and reserve your spot with the front desk staff or a concierge for the following week. Alternatively, day passes can be purchased online, also with the following week's availability released on Saturdays.
The resort may limit availability for visitor day passes if hotel occupancy is especially high. Plus, these day passes are a hot commodity, popular among cruise-ship guests who are spending the day docked in Aruba. So, if you have your heart set on seeing a flamboyance of flamingos, plan to wake up early to call the resort or hop online first thing on the Saturday before your intended visit.
Visitors' day passes include a meal and an alcoholic drink at Papagayo Bar & Grill or Mangrove Beach Bar. Private cabanas are available to rent.
The white-sand Flamingo Beach section of Renaissance Island is reserved for adults only, while the next-door area nicknamed Iguana Beach is open to families with children. (And yes, plenty of slow-moving iguanas make their homes here.) Children can visit Flamingo Beach only between 9 a.m. and 10 a.m.
Many flamingo lovers have been flocking to the private island for selfies with the birds.
Aruba isn't the only place to snap selfies with flamingos. Ecuador's Galápagos Islands, Bonaire in the Caribbean, or Mexico's Yucatan peninsula are all great options for spotting flamingos on vacation.
