Aruba · the rulesDoes Aruba have a red light district, and is it legal?
Yes. Aruba has one small red light district, in San Nicolas at the southeast end of the island. Sex work in Aruba is legal and regulated along Dutch lines, and it is confined to that one area.
The rules for the red light district in Aruba
Aruba follows the Dutch approach: legal, but tightly regulated. Workers must register, licensed venues must meet health and business requirements, and nobody under 18 can work legally.
In addition, the trade is confined to one part of San Nicolas. In short, the island keeps it in one place deliberately, and that is unlikely to change.
Why the red light district in Aruba is in San Nicolas
Because San Nicolas was the refinery town, the history explains it. When the Lago refinery ran here from the 1920s the town filled with workers from across the Caribbean, and in 1928 the government set up a regulated zone rather than let things run unchecked.
Is there a red light district in Aruba outside San Nicolas?
No. There is nothing comparable in Oranjestad, Palm Beach or Eagle Beach. So if you read otherwise online, it is wrong: the district is a few streets around Rembrandtstraat in San Nicolas, about 40 minutes from the hotels. What the San Nicolas bars are like.
What visitors should know
Above all, Aruba enforces drink-driving seriously, and a rental car in a police stop ends the holiday. Also, there is no Uber or Lyft on the island, and the buses are no help late at night, so sort your ride home before you go. Getting there and back.
Common questions
Is prostitution legal in Aruba?
Yes. Sex work in Aruba is legal and regulated along Dutch lines: workers register and venues hold licences. However, it stays within one part of San Nicolas.
Where is the red light district in Aruba?
In San Nicolas, at the southeast end of the island, about 40 minutes from the Palm Beach and Eagle Beach hotels. The venues are on and around Rembrandtstraat.
Is it like Amsterdam?
No. For one thing, there are no lit windows and nobody on display. It is a cluster of fifteen to twenty small bars that look like ordinary neighbourhood bars from outside.
Go with someone local
Round trip from your hotel, up to two hours in San Nicolas with a local guide beside you, then straight home. $385 for 1 to 6 people, or $300 with code PAPI.
Strictly a guided night out for adults 18 and over. A guide and transport service only, not affiliated with any bar or venue.