If you’re looking for an island-hopping experience in the Caribbean that offers great weather year-round, the southern Caribbean islands are most recommended.

Doing a multi-island trip in the Southern Caribbean is perfectly suitable 365 days a year because they are located outside the hurricane belt.

You are most likely to avoid a major storm during your vacation when island hopping the ABC islands (Aruba, Bonaire, and Curacao) in the western edge of the Leeward Antilles chain. Even during Hurricane season from June through December.
 

Aruba, Bonaire and Curacao are considered the sunniest islands of the Caribbean. It is the perfect place to visit year-round, as it has the least number of rainy days on average plus typical, more than 8 hours of sunshine per day.

That’s what you are most likely are looking for when island hopping in the Caribbean, sun-sure weather, right? The ABC islands are also one of the safest islands in the Caribbean.

Aruba, Bonaire and Curacao offer sun, sea and sand. All three islands share the same native language of Papiamento. Widely spoken is Dutch, English and Spanish making it quite easy for visitors to communicate. Because the islands are part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, they are often referred to as the Dutch Caribbean. The islands also have the traditional celebration of Carnival in common.

So far, the similarities, because they are worlds apart despite being apart just a 30-minute flight. Here’s a small sum up of their strengths and uniqueness, in alphabetical order, not the geographical order, (ACB).
 

Aruba is a popular tourist destination offering plenty of direct flights. It’s the smallest, and most expensive of the three and it is a rather flat island. You will find great restaurants, bars, lots of famous fast-food chains and big-name high-rise hotels on one huge strip.

Aruba is a great place to make mile long beach strolls. The service is on point and perfectly catered to American standards as most of the tourists are from the USA. You’ll find shipwrecks for diving, commercial small islands like Palm Island and Renaissance Island. If you wish to compare Aruba with a Caribbean Island, you can compare to the Bahamas in a sense.
 

“One Happy Island”

On this Caribbean Island you will find untouched beaches and lots of nature parks. This sustainable island is like one big National Park with many reserves.

People visit Bonaire mainly because of its beautiful diving spots; they are known as offering the most beautiful dive sites in the world. This ecological island attracts mainly European tourists and offers a village-like atmosphere.

There are no traffic lights, and you mostly find small-scale resorts and apartments here. This island offers mainly water sport activities, some terraces & pubs and gives you the most peace and quiet. Maybe, even Caribbean wide.
 

“Once a visitor always a friend”
 

Curacao is the biggest island of all three and is considered the “center” of the ABC islands. The UNESCO Handelskade and Pontoon bridge are iconic, as well as its Instagram worthy intimate bays.The uninhabited island of Klein Curacao is a true Bounty Island. Curacao offers hills and rocks, especially near Christoffel Park and Shete Boka Park.

Like Bonaire, Curacao offers a very accessible reef and is great place to snorkel and dive. You will find a European or “Little Amsterdam” kind of vibe and this gem mainly attracts tourists from Europe. You’ll mainly see low-rise boutique hotels or family-owned hotels.

The range of activities is most diverse here and also holds an array of cultural activities. Lots of art, street art (murals) as well, unique restaurants and bars, and there are several lively areas spread over the island. There are tons of hidden gems to discover on Curacao and it is recommended to rent a car to explore them all.

“Feel it for yourself”

In conclusion: When visiting the ABC islands, you will experience a great variety. Each island is unique, beautiful, and welcoming & warm in its own way.

Knowing all their characteristics we can imagine you’re wondering how to divide your days. Allow us to sum up the perfect ABC island hopping itinerary for you.

The final step besides selecting your hotel, would be selecting your flights. Since your start and end of this Caribbean Island-hopping experience, may depend on your location and the (direct) flights to (one of) these islands, we won’t state an exact start or end point. It is wise to check the three airports’ websites to check up to date info regarding flight schedules (also due COVID-19 modifications).

You can additionally view which airlines are flying to the ABC islands from which cities to create your most efficient travel itinerary. You can immediately see the airlines’ schedule flying in between the ABC islands as well.

There are 5 airlines operating the ABC route: Winair, Divi Divi Air, EZ-Air, Jetair, Aruba Airlines.

- Aruba (Queen Beatrix International Airport): https://www.airportaruba.com/flight-schedules
Airport Code: AUA

- Bonaire (Flamingo International Airport): https://bonaireinternationalairport.com/destinations/

Airport Code: BON

- Curacao (Hato International Airport): https://www.curacao-airport.com/flights  

Airport Code: CUR

"Caribbean Island Hopping is as easy as ABC"