Four beaches can be accessed from a single entry point near the northern town of Soto. At the former Landhuis of San Juan, you'll be asked to pay a small entry fee before continuing along a set of dirt paths that lead to the sea. It's up to you which path you take.
If you're looking for solitude, lace up your hiking boots and tromp through the woods to Santu Pretu, a small beach of black sand accessible from Santa Cruz. Here, you'll find untouched nature, strange sand, and excellent snorkeling, but you probably won't find any other people.
After scratching wounds into our arms and legs during a prickly hike that started at the parking lot of Playa Porto Mari, we returned eagerly to the beach. Soft white sand, cool blue water, and incredible reefs for snorkeling... if this were always the reward, I would go hiking every day.
Once you drive past Sint Willibrodrus, you'll arrive at Daaibooi Beach. Although it's privately-owned, Daaibooi has remained free to the public, and boasts a natural, uncommercial vibe. The moment we sat down on the sand, we realized that we had fallen in love with yet another beach on Curaçao.
We pulled our car into the parking lot and, for a few stunned seconds, sat in silence. We had found the perfect beach. The one which your optimistic mind envisions whenever you set off for the ocean. But Grote Knip was the very first beach we were visiting in Curaçao! Was it just luck we had already found the best one? Or... we allowed ourselves to hope... would all the island's beaches be this spectacular?
