Four interesting museums in Aruba, worth a visit
When packing your suitcase for Aruba and preparing for a sunny vacation, a visit to a museum might not be the first thing that comes to mind. Yet, it is a frequently asked question that comes up at our Front Desk and Concierge team and since we pride ourselves with our guests who go out of their way to explore the island, get to know its culture, history and people, we gladly provide you with a list of some museums in Aruba that are very worth a visit. For sure you will be pleasantly surprised by the divers collections they offer and the monuments they’re located in.
Archaeological museum
Located in the heart of downtown Oranjestad, the archaeological museum on Schelpstraat in the famous Ecury house is hard to miss. The green monumental mansion dating back to 1929, once the Ecury family home, is an eyecatcher in Oranjestad and now home to Aruba’s Amerindian cultural heritage. The museum consists of three buildings in total. Next to the Ecury house stands a cunucu house, a traditional country house that was built around 1867. The newest section at the backside of the green mansion, housing the museum’s modern exhibition space, was built in 2007 and officially opened in 2009. Inside the museum visitors can take an active role in discovering the past by using special technology, and by exploring the replica of a dwelling used by the very first inhabitants of Aruba. Indian artifacts dating back the Pre-Ceramic period of 2500 BC are on display throughout the museum.
About the Ecury House
The 1929 green mansion was home to the Ecury family, well-to-do Arubans who sent two of their youngest children to The Netherlands to study. Their son, Boy Ecury, was 15 years old upon arrival in The Netherlands, and had turned 18 by the time the WWII broke out in 1940. Boy soon became a target for the German nazi’s, as he was of color and he had joined the Dutch resistance. Boy was eventually captivated and executed in 1944. His remains were brought back to Aruba in 1947 and his legacy as a war hero was honored with a special statue, which was unveiled in 1949 and is still in its same place today, alongside L.G. Smith Boulevard close to the ‘Coral Pyramid’ building
Another fun fact: in celebration of 100 years of aviation in Aruba and the long standing relationship with royal Dutch airline KLM, and in remembrance of the 103rd birthday of Boy Ecury, a new ‘KLM house’ resembling the Ecury mansion, was created and recently unveiled with a festive ceremony in Aruba. The KLM houses are miniatures of Delft Blue porcelain containing hard liquor (Dutch jenever) that are given out as collector items to passengers in business class. Each miniature is a replica of a real house, somewhere in the Dutch Kingdom, the majority of them replicas of Dutch canal houses in Amsterdam, each with a number printed on them for collection purposes. The Aruba Ecury house is numbered 103, after Boy’s birthday. Watch a video about the history of the Ecury House, Boy Ecury and the KLM House #103 here.
Fort Zoutman & Historical Museum
The oldest building of Aruba, Fort Zoutman was originally built in 1797 as a fortress to protect Aruba from pirates and other intruders coming by sea. Today, only a piece of the fortress wall and two canons remain. Next to the fort, a tower was added in 1866, named after the -then- reigning king, King Willem the Third. While the fort went on to serve as -amongst others- a prison and a police station and the Willem III Tower started off as a lighthouse, and in later times served as a tower with a clock, both buildings were integrated into the Historical Museum of Aruba in 1984.
Both buildings can be visited; on certain hours of the day tours lead up to the tip of the tower providing 360 island views, while the new building inside the fort houses a collection of artifacts and attributes used by former Aruban generations. In the courtyard of the fortress the replica of a traditional kitchen is on display to showcase cooking traditions of the past. Make sure to ask our Concierge staff is the Bon Bini Festival might be on; usually held every Tuesday of the week, this open air show inside the fort’s courtyard showcases music, folklore, dance and culinary traditions from Aruba.
Museum of Industry
When in San Nicolas, the largest city in the southern part of Aruba, make sure to look out for the iconic water tower in art deco style on the outskirts of the downtown area. Inside this remarkable building you’ll find the Museum of Industry, paying tribute to the five main industries that have supported Aruba’s economy over the past 200 years: phosphate, aloe, gold, oil and tourism. A stunning, interactive display on the ground floor highlights areas of the island and their role during each industrial phase, while artifacts of each industry are explained in detail. On the top floor of the tower a video exhibit recounts the stories of eyewitnesses and family members of ancestors, active during the main industrial phases in Aruba. After your visit to the museum, make sure to have a chilled drink at Charlie’s Bar, the oldest bar in town and remnant of the flourishing oil industry days with some keepsakes of Aruba’s Lago Oil Refinery still attached to the bar.
San Nicolas Community Museum
Lastly, the San Nicolas Community Museum is located in the back of the monumental building "Nicolaas Store". After touring the downtown area and admiring the colorful street art and murals donning the city walls, make a stop at this quaint community museum after you have a typical Aruban snack or lunch at Kulture cafe located in the front part of the renovated Nicolaas Store building. Although modest in size and set up this museum provides insights into daily life of yesteryears. Especially after visiting the Museum of Industries and learning how influential the arrival of the oil industry has been to Aruba, and San Nicolas in particular, you’ll be able to see and experience how that translated into daily life in the early 1900-s.
