Curacao: Klein Curacao Catamaran Day Trip with Snorkeling

About This Experience

Irie Tours runs its Klein Curaçao day out on a sailing catamaran from The Village Marina at the Caracasbaaiweg roundabout, on the Jan Thiel side of the island. The operator puts the crossing at one to one and a half hours, and the boat carries the bow trampolines that make the outward leg either the best or the worst seat on the water depending on the swell.

The day ashore is the standard Klein Curaçao shape — swim, snorkel, walk to the lighthouse and the shipwreck, or sit in the shade and do none of it — but the catering is where this trip separates itself from the cheaper end of the market. Breakfast sandwiches, coffee and tea on the way out; a barbecue lunch of meat and chicken skewers, chorizo and salads; fruit; and an open bar that opens at 12:30.

Snorkel gear and beach chairs are included, and turtles on the reef edge are a routine sighting rather than a lucky one. Dolphins along the way are not guaranteed but are not rare either.

Transport is the practical detail worth knowing: round-trip transfers cost $15 per person, and pickup inside the Jan Thiel area is free. At a 07:00-ish start that is often the difference between a taxi fare and no taxi fare.

Highlights

• A sailing catamaran with bow trampolines, on a crossing the operator puts at one to one and a half hours
• An open bar from 12:30 — water, sodas, juice, rum, vodka, blue Curaçao, wine and beer
• A barbecue lunch of meat and chicken skewers, chorizo, salads and garlic bread
• Snorkelling with sea turtles on the reef edge off the west beach
• Breakfast sandwiches, coffee and tea served on the way out
• Free pickup inside the Jan Thiel area, with round-trip transfers elsewhere at $15 per person

What's Included

• ✓ Return catamaran day trip to Klein Curaçao
• ✓ Crew
• ✓ Breakfast sandwiches
• ✓ Coffee and tea
• ✓ Open bar from 12:30
• ✓ Barbecue lunch
• ✓ Fruit
• ✓ Snorkel and mask
• ✓ Beach chairs

Not Included

• Hotel pickup and drop-off outside the Jan Thiel area — $15 per person round trip
• Gratuities
• Scuba diving
• Anything bought on the island outside the operator's own service

What to Bring

• Swimwear and a towel
• A hat
• Reef-safe sunscreen
• Motion-sickness tablets if you are prone to it
• Cash or a card for extras

Good to Know & Caveats

• Vegetarian, vegan and pescatarian versions of the barbecue lunch are available on request.
• Round-trip transport is $15 per person, and pickup within the Jan Thiel area is free.
• The open bar opens at 12:30 rather than at departure.
• Guests are asked not to touch marine life on the reef.
• Several reviews name the crossing itself as the weakest part of an otherwise good day — this is the open-water leg, not the island.

Meeting Point

The Village Marina & Apartments, Caracasbaaiweg z/n Rotonde, Willemstad, Curaçao — near the Jan Thiel roundabout.