Oceanfront Villa: snorkeling & Diving at Mangel Halto

My husband and I enjoyed our stay. Juan was great at getting us settled in and helping us out when we needed it. The house is great, very spacious. The back bedroom has the best AC, the other bedrooms have Air Conditioners that are ok but if you like it nice and cold when you sleep, stick to the back bedroom. Everything else was great.

The home is spacious and has a beautiful setting with the ocean in your front yard and a pool in the back. The snorkeling across the street from the cottage is the best location on the island and the private beach just a short walking distance from the cottage was very beautiful. While we enjoyed our stay, we did have a few issues that were an inconvenience:

1. The dishwasher does not work. I had to hand wash dishes in cold water all week (no hot water in kitchen sink), which is not what I enjoy doing on vacation.

2. The shower heads in both bathrooms are broken, so you have to hold the handle during your shower for the water to hit you directly. Otherwise, it just hangs and the water goes everywhere.

3. The only TV which is in the main living area did not work because the modem was broken. The cable guy came to repair it but did not have a new modem, so no cable TV all week.

4. We only rented the villa not realizing that the outside cottage could be rented to complete strangers. This was not mentioned on the VRBO website. If I was aware of this possibility I would have included the cottage in our reservation so that we would have had the privacy that I expected when renting a private home. Although the couple who rented the cottage was very nice, it is a very small area in the back pool area and sharing this space with strangers was awkward.

The manager, Mr. Williams, was very friendly and helpful.

The villa is beautiful! Well kept and clean. The view out the front door is simply amazing! Right across the street is a beautiful beach! It's quiet and never crowded. The locals that come down to sit along the beach are very respectful of your privacy. Juan was simply amazing when we had questions or needed something looked in to here at the villa. I would recommend that you get a car when staying here, as you are quite a ways away from other beaches and excursions. Probably one of the most relaxing vacations I've had! A couple glitches with a couple of the appliances, but nothing that ruined our experience! A beautiful villa that I would definitely come to again!

It was a trip of a lifetime for our family of five (kids aged 10-16). We enjoyed being away from the resort area and with-in a short drive to such beautiful beaches. The accommodations were great. We found it to be very spacious, clean and comfortable; and the pool area was a big hit with the kids. We especially enjoyed barbequing and eating in the outdoor dining area. The owners were warm and welcoming, and gave us all the information we needed to make the most out of our stay. We hadn't expected the snorkeling and scuba diving, directly in front of the villa, to be so excellent. We also took advantage of their in-house PADI scuba diving instruction; first-rate! We wholeheartedly recommend you choose this oceanfront villa as your home base when travelling to Aruba.

I have had the privilege to stay at this property several times and am always overwhelmed at its beauty. The villa is so comfortable and accessible to the sea just outside the front door. I have enjoyed snorkeling in front of the villa and have seen many beautiful fish and coral there. Some days I chose to just swim in the ocean, walking on the clear sandy bottom.

Eating out on Aruba was very enjoyable, especially dining at some restaurants on the sandy beaches in the evening, watching the large sun sink into the ocean.

I will return.