A painted Dutch harbour town on a Caribbean island, an uninhabited islet with a lighthouse and two wrecks, and a west coast of small bays cut into limestone.
Curaçao is the one with the history. Willemstad is a UNESCO World Heritage site and looks like nowhere else in the Caribbean — gabled Dutch merchant houses in ochre and blue along the water, a pontoon bridge that swings open for shipping, and a floating market supplied by boats from Venezuela.
The west coast is the sailing. A run of small bays cut into limestone — Porto Mari, Cas Abao, Santa Cruz — each with clear water, a reef at the edge and very little behind them. The Blue Room, a sea cave you swim into, is on the same stretch.
Offshore, Klein Curaçao sits on its own a few hours to the south-east: white sand, a derelict lighthouse, two wrecks on the windward side and turtles in the shallows. And like its neighbours, the island is below the hurricane belt, so the season runs all year.
Punda and Otrobanda either side of the harbour entrance, the swinging pontoon bridge between them, the floating market, and the best restaurants on the island.
Uninhabited, a few hours south-east, with a ruined lighthouse, wrecks on the windward shore and turtles in the shallows. Stay the night and have it to yourself.
Porto Mari, Cas Abao and Santa Cruz — small, clear, reef at the edge and hills behind. The quietest sailing on the island.
A deep protected bay on the south-east side with the Tugboat wreck in shallow water and Fort Beekenburg on the headland above it.
The wild northern coast — blowholes, sea caves and cliffs at Shete Boka, and Christoffel behind it for the walk to the summit.
Curaçao gives a week more variety than its neighbours. There is a proper city at one end of it, an uninhabited island at the other, and a coast of small clear bays in between.
Most itineraries run down to Klein Curaçao early, while everyone is fresh, then work back up the west coast bay by bay with Willemstad saved for the end. The north coast is spectacular and weather-dependent, so it goes in when the forecast allows.
The island sits outside the hurricane belt and is driest from January to September, which makes it one of the few Caribbean grounds that is straightforward in high summer.
Swim into a sea cave lit blue from below, dive a tugboat in fifteen feet of water, walk a UNESCO waterfront, and anchor overnight off an island with a ruined lighthouse.
A low, uninhabited island a few hours south-east — white sand, a derelict lighthouse, two wrecks on the windward side and turtles in the shallows. The day boats leave in the afternoon, so an overnight gives you the place to yourself.
A UNESCO World Heritage site and genuinely unlike anywhere else in the region. Punda and Otrobanda face each other across the harbour entrance, joined by a pontoon bridge that swings aside for ships, with a floating market at the Punda end supplied from Venezuela.
The raw northern coast — limestone inlets, sea caves and blowholes where the Atlantic swell arrives with nothing in front of it. Anchor offshore and go in by tender when the sea allows.
Two of the best west-coast bays: soft sand between low hills, double reef close in at Porto Mari, and water clear enough that the snorkelling needs no planning at all.
A small tug sitting upright in shallow water at Caracas Bay, entirely covered in coral and reachable on a snorkel; and the Blue Room, a sea cave on the west coast you swim into, lit from below through the entrance.
Eight days out of Willemstad, down to Klein Curaçao and back up the west coast. A guide only — the north coast in particular depends on the day.
Board in the harbour and move round to Spanish Water — a large protected inlet with mangroves and villas around it. A sunset sail and dinner aboard.
Out to the islet. Snorkel the reef, walk to the lighthouse and the wrecks, and stay the night once the day boats have gone.
Back to the mainland for the Tugboat wreck in shallow water, and the climb up to Fort Beekenburg for the view over the bay.
Round to the west coast. Double reef close in, a soft-sand beach between hills, and a quiet afternoon in the water.
A short hop up the coast to the best sand on the island. Snorkelling, turtles if you are lucky, and lunch on the beach.
North for the wild coast. Anchor offshore and go in for the blowholes, the caves and the cliffs — weather permitting, and worth waiting a day for.
South again to a quiet cove, with the Blue Room sea cave next door for anyone who wants to swim into it. Paddleboards, and the last evening at anchor.
A last coastal sail back down to the capital, alongside by late morning, with time for the old town before transfers.
Curaçao is outside the hurricane belt and dry for most of the year. January to September is the settled window; October to December sees more rain, though it rarely interrupts a week.
Because the island rewards moving. Klein Curaçao, the west-coast bays and the northern cliffs are all awkward to reach by road and straightforward by sea — and Willemstad is a harbour you can walk off the boat into.
Klein Curaçao overnight, Willemstad on foot, the Tugboat at Caracas Bay, and the Blue Room if the swell allows.
Hato International (CUR) has direct flights from the United States, Europe and across the Caribbean. Willemstad is about twenty minutes from the airport.
Not for snorkelling, and several of the best sites — the Tugboat among them — are shallow enough to enjoy without it. Scuba needs a recognised certification; local centres run courses if you have the days.
Line fishing is permitted in most places. Spearfishing is restricted and several species are protected; catch-and-release is encouraged and a licence may be needed for some kinds of fishing.
Dutch, Papiamentu and English are all official, and Spanish is widely spoken. English will get you everywhere.
The Netherlands Antillean guilder is official, but US dollars are accepted almost everywhere and cards work throughout. Carry a little cash for markets.
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