The colors of Willemstad. The waves of Cas Abao. The rosé at Saint Tropez. The live music at the Avila. Curacao is a rich mosaic of culture, food, art and vibes. And the Caribbean island is as buzzy as it’s ever been.
Travelers just keep coming to Curacao, which has been experiencing a travel surge the likes of which it has never seen over the last three years.
That’s led to new attractions, continued hotel development (including some new properties on the way this year) and, most notably, new flights.
More flights on the way
That includes routes on carriers like Delta, Azul and, most recently, American Airlines, which is now planning to launch a brand-new weekly flight for the winter.
AA is set to kick off its first-ever flights between Chicago and Curacao, with the route launching Dec. 6, Caribbean Journal has confirmed.
The route will be running once every wee, with service on Saturdays. For now, it’s a seasonal flight, meaning the flight will operate through April 4, 2026.
It will be complementing Americans existing service to Curacao out of Miami and Charlotte, and opening up the vast Midwestern market, one that has been increasingly important for Caribbean travel.
Curacao’s hotel growth
The new Sandals Royal Curacao that debuted back in 2022 made the biggest impact, but Curacao has been seeing steady, serious hotel growth for half a decade. Things have certainly picked up in the last few years, with new hotels from brands like Dreams (which now has on-the-beach bungalows at its Il Mare adults-only wing), Hilton and Wyndham and, laster this year, the opening of the sleek new Art Hotel in the Pietermaai district (it’s already taking bookings for a mid-summer debut).
Where to stay right now on this Caribbean island
Curacao has a very unique hotel product, with just about every kind of hotel option from urban getaways to beachy all-inclusives to luxury hotels.
If you’re looking for something in the heart of the capital, we always like the great-value Brion City Hotel, with rooms at $144 per night.
For an all-inclusive, the Sandals Royal Curacao remains the pre-eminent option (adjacent to Curacao’s outstanding Old Quarry golf course, designed by Pete Dye). Rooms start at $959 right now, all-inclsuive.
For luxury, the unquestioned leader is the Baoase Luxury Resort, which has an enchanting Bali meets the Caribbean vibe and just debuted its new private-island experience (that includes a beach bar). Rooms at the Baoase have rates of $659 in the summer if you book direct.
The Chicago flights are already on sale, with roundtrips going for $673 if you book Dec. 6-13. The flight takes about 5 hours. In that same timeframe, AA’s Miami-Curacao flights are going for about $552, according to Google Flights.
