A Local’s Guide to Slowing Down in Curaçao
Curaçao has a rhythm all its own. For visitors, it’s easy to get caught up in seeing everything at once. For locals, it’s easy to get swept into the pace of daily life. But slowing down here is not just possible, it’s essential.
Start with the mornings. Wake up before the city does, when the air is cool and the light is soft. Walk by the sea and listen to the waves before the world gets busy. Freshly gathered herbs and flowers, carefully picked so you can savor them in a soothing, revitalizing herbal tea. That silence is a gift, and it sets the tone for the rest of your day.
Food can also be a way to slow down. Don’t rush it. Sit with a plate of something fresh and flavorful fish straight from the ocean, a dish simmered with love and actually taste every bite. Our flavors aren’t just food; they’re history, culture, connection. They remind you to be present, to savor.
Find a quiet bay or beach, not the crowded ones, but the ones where you can hear your own breath between the sound of the water. Stay there longer than you think you should. Let the sun move across the sky. Let yourself do nothing. It’s in that “nothing” that you start to feel everything again.
And if you live here, slowing down doesn’t mean you need to leave the island or spend a lot of money. It can be as simple as taking a new road, visiting a familiar spot at a different time of day, or stepping outside at sunset with no phone in your hand just watching the sky shift colors, like a free painting gifted to you every evening. At Marichi in Punda, you can watch a beautiful sunset in peace, just steps away from the bustle of the city. And on the eastern side of the island, from a high viewpoint at Seinpost, you can end your day with a breathtaking panorama of Curaçao stretched out before you.
Slowing down in Curaçao isn’t about missing out, it’s about finally catching what’s been here all along.
