Arriba Aruba

AS OUR JEEP KICKED UP clouds of dust along the track hugging Aruba's windswept north coast, the radio suddenly burst into life.

"Mama Miaaaa! You're gonna have some fun today, if you stick with your Papa Alfred. Aye-Aye-Ayeeee!"

The word "enthusiastic" doesn't really do him justice. Papa Alfred, our cartoon-like tour guide on the jeep safari across the desert that covers much of the Lesser Antilles island, was simply irrepressible.

"I have three wives and you mammas should know I'm looking for a fourth! ha-ha-haaa," he roared.

"And now we're approaching the oldest church on Aruba."

Under his freewheeling direction, our convoy of bright yellow jeeps hurtled from coast to coast, visiting a clutch of Aruba's best attractions, including a gold mine and a natural bridge under which the turquoise water of the Caribbean Sea crashed against rocks.

At each point, we stopped under the sweltering midday sun to drink ice-cold lemonade and rest our ears from Papa Alfred's booming commentary.

The popular image of a Caribbean holiday may be sipping pina coladas on a white sandy beach, and the beaches certainly don't come any whiter or sandier than Aruba, where the palm trees are thrown into sharp relief against the deep blue, cloudless sky.

In fact, the honeymooners and young families staying at the Divi Aruba Beach Resort – our base for the week – could be forgiven for never straying further than a couple of hundreds yards from their rooms, looking out as they do onto acres of gorgeous golden sands.

Everything you need to enjoy a perfect week or fortnight in the sun is provided at the all-inclusive Divi, and the neighbouring Tamarijn resort. Guests have a choice of about a dozen different restaurants and beach bars to sustain themselves. In between, you can work a sweat up playing beach tennis, go kayaking, take a nap in the shade or simply watch any lingering stresses float away in the pool.

But as tempting as it was to spend our days sipping cocktails on a lilo, we were only too glad to try out the many different ways that Aruba, dubbed One Happy Island, can create a warm blanket of endorphins.

I was mildly surprised to discover that these include studying butterflies. A plethora of different butterfly species can be viewed at close quarters among colourful blooms and palms at Aruba Butterfly Farm, near the capital of Oranjestad.

A morning spent walking among these beautiful creatures reminded me of the Red Admirals I used to see fluttering around the farm I grew up on, and made me sad that populations have since been in such decline.

It was soon time for us to pay our respects to another of Aruba's slightly beleaguered creatures. The Aruba Donkey Sanctuary takes in injured and sick wild donkeys, providing care and a permanent home. It's a great place to spend a couple of hours, especially if you're an animal lover or have children in tow. Set amid a forest of wild cacti, it was also our first taste of the rugged interior that we would later cross on horseback.

After an evening spent catching up on pina coladas at our beach bar, my head was a little fuzzy as we took to the island's dirt tracks for the De Palm jeep safari. But any lingering hangover was washed away on De Palm Island, a short hop from the coast and a water-lover's dream. After mucking around on the water slides, we walked to the end of the pier to try out the sea trek.

This proved to be one of the most memorable parts of the trip. After donning a giant white helmet, I descended a series of steps into the deep blue sea, stopping a few times to adjust the air pressure in my ears.

With compressed air pumped directly into our helmets, we walked around the sea floor as a colourful array of tropical fish circled overhead. What was initially slightly unsettling quickly became a mesmerising experience, as the natural tendency to float upwards was checked by the helmet's weight.

Having explored the sea from the bottom-up, it was time to reverse the process by donning a snorkel mask and flippers and swimming around the island's shallower waters.

It is here, where the water is warmest, that Aruba's sea life is at its most colourful, as I saw for myself as I floated inches above stunning blue parrot fish and weird-looking green stripy eels.

That evening, we met Reggie and Sabine for a few cocktails as the sun dropped over the Caribbean Sea. But there was little time for wistful gazing over the tranquil waters. The couple run ArubaSalsa, the only dance school on the island that specialises in Latin styles such as salsa and merengue.

Now, I've tended to regard myself as a reasonably good mover on the dance floor, but a couple of moves with Sabine quickly exposed some serious shortcomings. Chief among them was a tendency to step on her feet as I lumbered forward with a distinct lack of hip-swivelling fluency. That night, I promised myself that I would attend Salsa classes on my return, putting the activity on a virtual list that also included "learn Spanish" and "learn Dutch".

The following day, we set sail on the MiDushi, an impressive wooden ship that took us to some of the best snorkel sites on the island. They include a deep water spot where we floated above the Antilla, a German freighter from the Second World War that was scuttled in 1940 by her captain to avoid capture.

After some lunch prepared by the friendly crew, a swing rope appeared and we enjoyed a hilarious couple of hours diving into the turquoise sea. After a challenging climb-the-rigging contest, we headed back to our resort for another evening of pina coladas, lilo-lounging and haphazard dancing.

Having spent most of our trip on – or under – water, it was time to kick up some dust on dry land. More precisely, it was time for some frisky horses from Rancho La Ponderosa to kick up dust on a horseback tour of the desert and the island's rugged north coast. My only other experience on a horse was aged six, when my sister plonked me on the back of Rufus, who proceeded to wander into a ploughed field. So it was an unexpected joy to find myself cantering along the beach.

That evening, as the sun fell below the horizon, we reflected over another cocktail on what had been a simply amazing week. Our hosts were undoubtedly keen to show us the best Aruba has to offer, but, still, I don't think it was possible we could have had more fun.

And so, as I boarded the plane the following day and said farewell to One Happy Island, I added a new entry on my mental list of things to do back in Scotland, alongside the languages and dancing. It was, simply: "come back".

PACKAGE

Thomas Cook Signature (0844 871 6650, www.tcsignature.com) offers seven nights in Aruba from £1,359 per person with accommodation at the Divi Aruba Beach Resort.

AND THERE'S MORE

A half-day jeep safari tour with De Palm Tours costs £38. A full day on the De Palm Island costs about £50, or £80 including the sea trek. Visit www.depalm.com

A day on the MiDushi costs about £30 for adults, £10 for children. A discount is available when booking online at www.midushi.com

Two hours' horseriding to Wariruri Beach costs £35 per person. Visit www.rancholaponderosaaruba.com

For more information on The Butterfly Farm of Aruba and the donkey sanctuary, visit www.aruba-travelguide.com/butterflyfarm and www.arubandonkey.org

For more information on Aruba visit www.aruba.com

Scotsman Reader Holidays offer cruises which visit Aruba. Tel: [phone] or visit www.holidays.scotsman.com