Best Beaches in Curaçao: Which Ones Are Worth Visiting?

The west coast beaches

The west coast, out towards Westpunt, has the quieter beaches and the best snorkelling from the sand. You need a rental car or a taxi for the day.

Grote Knip, also called Kenepa Grandi, is the beach on most Curaçao postcards: white sand and turquoise water in a bay framed by low cliffs. Park and walk to the round stone viewing platform at the top of the steps for the photo, then go down to the sand. The beach is free, and you pay for the toilets, the showers and chairs. It is open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on weekdays and to 6 p.m. at weekends, when it gets busy. The water is shallow and calm over sand, which suits non-swimmers, but there is no coral to speak of, so bring your mask for another beach.

Cas Abao is the easiest full day on the island. You pay once per car at the gate, and for that you get secure parking, restrooms, showers, lockers, a beach bar, a restaurant, a dive shop and a raft moored offshore to swim to. It is open from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. The water is calm, and the reef is close enough to snorkel from the beach.

Playa Porto Mari sits on a private plantation estate and charges $3 per person, with children under four free. It is open from 9:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. and closes on 31 December and Carnival Sunday. The draw is a double reef you can reach from the shore: the first reef starts close to the beach, and a second lies farther out, past a sandy valley. There is a bar and restaurant, a dive operator, chairs at $3.50 and two nature trails behind the beach.

Playa Lagun is a narrow bay between high rock walls in a fishing village, with very calm water that makes it easy to keep an eye on children. Near the rock walls the water is shallow, and at the mouth of the bay the bottom drops away to coral and large sponges. Turtles come in for the scraps from the fishing boats. The beach is small, with only two palapas, so arrive early. Facilities are basic: parking, toilets that are not always open, and a dive centre.

Playa Piskadó, also called Playa Grandi, is a free public fishing beach at Westpunt, and it is where you go for turtles. The fishing boats come back in the morning and throw fish scraps into the water, and the turtles gather around the pier. The entry is over rocks or down a boat ramp that can be slippery with algae, so wear water shoes. A small snack bar opens at weekends, and there is no dive shop, so bring your own mask. Do not touch, chase or feed the turtles, and ignore anyone on the pier asking for money to feed them. Without a car, the Kenepa Grandi turtle tour takes you there from your hotel or the cruise port for $75; it has 4.5/5 from 42 reviews. Our guide to snorkelling with sea turtles in Curaçao has the rest.

The beaches near Willemstad

The south coast beaches are a taxi ride from town. They have more to eat and drink than the west coast, and less to see underwater.

Blue Bay is the beach to choose with children. The sea floor slopes gently, there is a playground, and the water sports centre rents snorkel gear, kayaks and boards. The beach is open from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m., with loungers, shade, showers, changing rooms, restaurants and a bar. Entry is free for guests of the resort, and everyone else pays a day fee at the gate. Two house reefs start a short swim out if you want to snorkel.

Mambo Beach is the closest of the big beaches to central Willemstad, 2.7 miles from Punda, next to the Sea Aquarium. A two-storey boardwalk of restaurants, bars and shops runs behind the sand, and the beach clubs, among them Mood, Cabana Beach and Wet & Wild, put on DJs, happy hours and salsa nights. The water is calm and shallow. Come here for lunch, a sunset drink and the evening; it is the most popular beach on the island, so expect company. BlueFinn’s sunset cruise leaves from Mood Beach.

Jan Thiel is a beach-club day on the south-east coast. You pay a small entry fee, and loungers, palapas and cabanas cost extra. Zanzibar serves food and drinks to your lounger and runs a Saturday happy hour with live music from 5 p.m. Papagayo has pools and cabanas, and Scuba Do runs a dive centre on the beach. Choose Jan Thiel over Mambo if you want to spend the whole day on one lounger with a pool nearby.

Klein Curaçao

Klein Curaçao is the best full beach day on offer, and it is the only beach on this list you cannot reach by car. The island has no residents and no shops, so everything you eat, drink and sit under comes on the boat. You get a long white beach, clear water and green turtles in the seagrass shallows. The Mermaid full-day boat trip costs $155 for nine hours, with breakfast and a barbecue lunch, and it has 4.8/5 from 361 reviews. The open-sea crossing out can be rough. Our Klein Curaçao beach guide covers the island’s beaches and what each boat gives you on the sand.

Choosing three or four for your trip

Mix the types. On a week’s holiday, a good set is a west coast day at Cas Abao or Porto Mari with a stop at Grote Knip for the view, a morning at Playa Piskadó for the turtles, an afternoon and evening at Mambo or Jan Thiel, and one day to Klein Curaçao. With small children, swap the west coast reefs for Blue Bay. If snorkelling is the reason you are here, Playa Kalki and Daaibooi on the west coast are good shore entries too; see the best places to snorkel in Curaçao. Check opening hours before you drive out, because several west coast beaches close in the late afternoon. For the driest months, see the best time to visit Curaçao for beaches.

Frequently asked questions

What is the most beautiful beach in Curaçao?

Grote Knip, also called Kenepa Grandi, is the one on most postcards, and the viewing platform above the bay is the place for the photo. Klein Curaçao is the other contender, but it takes a full day by boat.

Which beaches in Curaçao are free?

Grote Knip, Playa Piskadó and Daaibooi are free to enter, though you pay for toilets, showers or loungers. Cas Abao charges per car, Playa Porto Mari charges $3 per person, and Blue Bay charges a day fee to anyone not staying at the resort.

Which Curaçao beach is best for families?

Blue Bay, for its gently sloping sea floor, playground and water sports centre. Playa Lagun is a calm alternative on the west coast, and Grote Knip has shallow water over sand.

Do you need a car to visit Curaçao’s beaches?

For the west coast, yes, or a taxi or a tour. Mambo Beach is 2.7 miles from Punda and Jan Thiel a little farther along the south coast, both a taxi ride from Willemstad. The west coast boat trip covers Cas Abao and Kokomo Beach without a car, and Klein Curaçao is boat-only.